Chapter 162: Still Have to Look at Tang Zheng

Lu Liang's wide pass on the left side of the attack bypassed Meunier, Alderweireld and Vertonghen who were actively defending, and accurately found Sun Jingbo at the back point of the penalty area.

Facing Sun Jingbo's holding the ball, Vertonghen chose to put his hands behind his back. At the same time, he paid attention to Sun Jingbo's every move and was ready to block the shot at any time.

When Sun Jingbo touched the ball for the second time, he raised his right foot and tried to shoot from the right rib of the penalty area about fifteen meters away from the goal. Vertonghen subconsciously stretched his legs to get closer to Sun Jingbo to expand the defensive area.

But Sun Jingbo did not shoot directly, but passed the football to the top of the penalty area without observation.

Only then did Alderweireld realize that he had just forgotten to mark the Chinese team's most threatening player...

Tang Zheng, who was running diagonally in a straight line, raised his right foot without making any adjustments.

Tang Zheng's shot was very accurate, hitting the middle of the ball with the instep of his right foot, so the ball rolled against the turf towards the lower left corner of the goal.

Belgian goalkeeper Courtois, who is nearly two meters tall, got down to the ground very quickly, trying to block Tang Zheng's ground-breaking attack. However, compared to the speed of football, Courtois's saving speed was still a little slow. After half a beat, the football continued to run almost against Courtois's right fingertips...

"Ouch~~"

The Chinese fans at the St. Petersburg Arena raised their arms high, opened their mouths, and roared like a mountain and a tsunami.

The Belgian fans in the stands fell into despair as they watched the football rolling towards the lower left corner of the goal and forgot to make a sound.

But... half a second later, the Belgian fans jumped up with joy, raised their arms and shouted, as if they had scored a goal.

"Oh-My-God!!"

British Sky commentator Andy Gray exclaimed: "The football hit the left goal post!"

"Goalpost! Didn't go in!!"

Central 5 commentator He Wei was dumbfounded.

"Belgium has escaped!"

When Courtois heard the 'bang' sound from the goalpost, his heart was filled with excitement, and he wished he could stand like a carp and raise his arms and shout.

But when he looked at the football that bounced back, he felt that he was not feeling well...

Lu Liang adjusted his direction while running and faced the rebounding football.

At this time, the Belgian players in the penalty area reacted, but it was too late.

The hearts of the Belgian fans in the stands were in their throats again, and their pupils shrank, with a hint of despair in their eyes.

Lu Liang, who was not disturbed by any interference, pushed the ball with the arch of his left foot while running. Facing the push shot in front of the small penalty area, even Courtois's second reaction was extremely quick and was unable to do anything. Moreover, Lu Liang's follow-up shot was Fly to the far corner.

The football hit the upper right corner of the goal without any suspense, and the St. Petersburg Arena burst out with huge cheers from Chinese fans: "Ooooooo~"

"Goooooooooooooal——"

British Sky commentator Andy Gray drew out his voice to incite the excitement of the fans in front of the TV.

"The ball has gone in! The ball has gone in! Lu Liang scored with a supplementary shot, helping the Chinese team expand to two goals!"

Central 5 commentator He Wei stood up suddenly with his hands on the commentator's seat and shouted.

Lu Liang was very excited after scoring the goal. He opened his arms and ran all the way until he was dragged to the ground by Sun Jingbo. He stopped and celebrated the goal with his teammates.

The Chinese fans at the St. Petersburg Arena were as excited as children. It is undeniable that they thought about the Chinese team defeating Belgium before the game, but they never thought that they would lead by two goals before the half game was over...

This is completely unlike how a game between two teams with distinct strengths and weaknesses should play out.

After all, judging from the strength of the two teams, it is possible for Belgium to lead the Chinese team by two goals.

However, now the Chinese team is leading Belgium by two goals, which gives people an unreal feeling.

It is precisely this unreal feeling that gives Chinese fans surging power, and they roar like mountains and tsunamis, one after another.

The Chinese players were celebrating their two-goal lead, while the Belgian players looked at each other.

They never expected that the game would turn out like this.

As the favorite to win the World Cup, it was bad luck to lose to the French team by one goal in the semifinals, but why did it fall behind the Chinese team by two goals before half the game?

It’s unscientific!

Our team had the advantage for most of the game, so there was no reason to lag behind the Chinese team...

The Belgian head coach Martinez who appeared on the broadcast screen frowned, put his hands in his pockets, and looked at the Chinese players celebrating the goal with a frown.

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"The Chinese team leads Belgium by two goals. If the score can last until the end of the game, we will create the best result of an Asian team in the World Cup." When the commentator He Wei of CCTV 5 said this, his voice changed: "I hope we can Players should not be too complacent. The first half of the game is not over yet, and there is still a long time before the full game. A temporary victory does not mean that the game will be won in the end. Only when the referee Cunha blows the whistle to end the game will the player be too complacent. It’s a game win.”

The on-site director just gave a close-up shot of Lippi, the head coach of the Chinese team, and He Wei sighed with excitement: "This game is the last game of Lippi's coaching career. I believe everyone hopes to make a contribution for us." Lippi, who made great contributions, ended his coaching career with a victory, so no matter what, the boys of the Chinese team must win this game, not only for themselves, but also for Mr. Lippi."

Lippi, who has rich coaching experience, will not make mistakes easily. When the players were celebrating their goals, he pulled Zhang Linpeng and taught them face-to-face instructions.

When the game restarted, Belgium, which was behind by two goals, had to step up its attack and launch waves of fierce attacks towards the Chinese team's defensive half in a fanatical atmosphere.

Fortunately, Lippi arranged targeted tactics for the team when the Chinese team scored the second goal. The full-body defense played a very obvious role. In addition, Belgium, which was two goals behind, played very aggressively, very directly, and organized the offense. Without patience, it is difficult to directly threaten Yan Junling guarding the goal.

In addition, the Chinese team's full retreat protected the space well, and Belgium's offense was greatly restricted.

Even though Hazard and Mertens have excellent foot skills, there is no way to beat several people.

The three defensive midfielders composed of Tang Zheng, Li Kui and He Chao protected the central defender's front and two ribs very well, leaving very little space for the Belgian.

The score did not change until referee Cunha sounded the end of the first half.

2:0

The Chinese team entered the locker room leading Belgium by two goals.

No one thought about this score before the game...

Although the Chinese team played very passively at the end of the first half, the result was obviously acceptable to them.

Therefore, the Chinese players who appeared on the broadcast screen seemed very relaxed, and their close teammates were chatting and laughing among themselves, as if the game had nothing to do with them.

The expressions of the Belgian players were completely opposite. They had heavy faces. There was no communication between their teammates and they were obviously still thinking about the first half that had just ended.

Throughout the first half, Belgium was far ahead of the Chinese team in terms of time of possession, number of shots, hits and corner kicks. However, the result was that the Chinese team took a two-goal lead. The huge feeling of powerlessness was even more painful than falling behind the French team.

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“Perfect first half!!”

When the players from both sides returned to the locker room, CCTV 5 commentator Shao Shengyi, who switched to the Beijing studio, laughed and said: "Belgium's overall strength is much stronger than the Chinese team, but the result is that we are ahead. This is football! As long as the Chinese team can In the second half, we performed as well as in the first half, and I believe that it will be our Chinese team that wins the game in the end!”

Those Chinese fans who did not switch TV stations all nodded lightly. In this case, they naturally wanted to support their homeland team.

Although they did not advance to the World Cup finals, finishing third was acceptable.

The Chinese fans are very satisfied with the current score, while the Korean fans are somewhat sour in their hearts.

The fourth place in the World Cup can be said to be the best result of an Asian team in the World Cup. The South Korean team used its status as the host to get fourth place in the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. It can be said that it is unprecedented for Asian teams. However, the third and fourth place finals between the Chinese team and Belgium ended in the first half with the Chinese team leading by two goals.

In other words, it is very likely that the Chinese team will no longer share the best results of Asian teams in the World Cup with the South Korean team, but will exclusively enjoy this unprecedented record!

Therefore, Park Zhenhui, the commentator of South Korea's SBS Sports TV station, said strangely during the halftime break: "The score in the first half does not mean the score of the whole game. The overall strength of the Chinese team is obviously weaker than Belgium. The Chinese team can lead by two goals." It’s because Belgium hasn’t found the feeling of the game yet. I believe that when the Belgians find the rhythm of the game, it is very possible to score three or even four goals in a row!”

"You have to know that Belgium was two goals behind Japan in the 1/8 finals. What happened in the end? Wasn't it just three goals in a row?"

The Korean fans sitting in front of the TV immediately thought of the sixth 1/8 finals of this World Cup. Although the Japanese team did not lead Belgium by two goals in the first half, they did score three goals in a row after falling behind by two goals.

This... is enough!

Most Korean fans believe that it is impossible for the Chinese team to defeat Belgium!

"Ouch, ouch, ouch—"

The sky above the St. Petersburg Arena rang with the continuous cheers of Chinese fans, one wave after another.

The Chinese fans at the scene were like children who got a new toy, dancing and expressing the ecstasy deep in their hearts.

The fifteen-minute intermission passed quickly, and players from both sides returned to the players one after another.

Before the start of the second half, Belgium took the lead in making substitution adjustments, with Chadli replacing Meunier who performed poorly in the first half.

The Chinese team coach Lippi, who came to the visiting team coach's command area, frowned, obviously worried about Belgium's first substitution.

The reason why Belgium fell behind the Chinese team by two goals in the first half was mainly because Meunier and Carrasco did not perform well enough. However, Carrasco's tactical ability was significantly stronger than Meunier, so the Chinese team suffered a lot in the second half. The test will be great.

Chadli helped Belgium beat Japan in the 1/8 finals and advance to the World Cup quarter-finals. He was in hot form and his performance in the quarter-finals and semi-finals was also remarkable.

However, Lippi was very confident in the tactics he deployed during the halftime break. As long as the Chinese team can implement the established tactics, unless something unexpected happens, the Chinese team will not be reversed by Belgium.

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"Beep~"

With the whistle of the referee Cunha, the second half of the match between China and Belgium officially began.

Belgium, which was trailing by two goals, quickly took advantage of the kick-off to launch a threatening offensive into the Chinese team's defensive hinterland. Fortunately, goalkeeper Yan Junling was in excellent condition and blocked Lukaku's header.

"Oh oh oh——"

The Chinese fans at the St. Petersburg Arena subconsciously let out a burst of exclamations.

Central 5 commentator He Wei frowned: "Belgium, which is lagging behind, is coming fiercely. It seems... the second half is not as simple as we imagined..."

as expected!

Five minutes before the start of the second half, Belgium formed four shots, three of which hit the goal.

Lippi, the head coach of the Chinese team, can't sit still and is ready to make adjustments to the lineup.

But before the dead ball appeared, there was a problem with the Chinese team's defense.

In the 53rd minute, Chadley, who came on as a substitute, passed and shot on the right side of the attack, bypassing Zhang Linpeng who was defending at the back point. The football was about to fly out of the bottom line. Vertonghen, the left center back who did not participate in the attack throughout the first half, Stop the football at the baseline and look up.

When everyone thought Vertonghen was looking for Lukaku, he suddenly passed the ball to the penalty area line, and De Bruyne completed a push shot while running.

The football stuck to the turf and rolled through the gap between the people towards the far corner of the goal. By the time Yan Junling waited, it was already too late to react...

"This... ball is too inappropriate..."

Central 5 commentator He Wei shook his head and sighed.

However, the Chinese fans in the stands were not discouraged when the team lost the ball. They believed that Belgium was just narrowing the score.

Until a minute later, Hazard broke into the penalty area after passing consecutive passes with Carrasco and Lukaku. Ko Zhunyi slipped while retreating, and stretched out his foot to trip Hazard without any other choice.

The referee Cunha on duty was very decisive and confident in his decision and awarded Belgium a penalty kick.

As the captain, Tang Zheng naturally had to help Gao Zhunyi defend himself, but according to the slow-motion replay given by the video referee, Gao Zhunyi did tripped Hazard while he was falling to the ground, which means there was no problem with the penalty kick.

In this regard, Tang Zheng and Chinese fans can only pin their hopes on goalkeeper Yan Junling.

But Hazard was very calm and easily hit the target in the face of the huge boos from the Chinese fans, helping Belgium equalize the score 2:2!

The Belgian fans cheered for joy, and the Belgian players celebrated the goal wildly in a fanatical atmosphere, releasing the huge pressure caused by the equalizer.

Immediately, the on-site director gave Tang Zheng a close-up shot of his face.

The two goals of the Chinese team were not directly scored by Tang Zheng, but he assisted one and planned another, which is equivalent to saying that without Tang Zheng, there would be no two goals for the Chinese team.

Now that the score has become a tie, the on-site director believes that if the Chinese team wants to exceed the score again, they have to watch Tang Zheng!

Central 5 commentator He Wei had mixed feelings, but he was full of confidence in Tang Zheng, who was broadcasting the scene: "A draw is not the end. I believe that the Chinese team led by Tang Zheng will be able to solve the current difficulties! I think... TV Do the fans in front of the camera think so too?"