Chapter 952: Volume 7: Heart of the Lion King Tang's England

The stands at the Camp Nou are packed. Since Spain is close to Portugal, many Portuguese fans came to this game, and they almost wanted to turn Barcelona's stadium into the home of the Portuguese team.

The reporters present all got England's big list, which includes all members of the starting lineup and the bench. Someone saw the name "George Wood" on it. They were a little confused-didn't it mean that Wood's injury was not healed and he couldn't participate in all stages of the group stage? Shouldn't he be sitting in the stands at this time, not on the bench?

Could it be that everything was a smoke bomb cast by Tang En?

The English journalists understood what was going on. Tang En must have hoped that George Wood, the captain, would be with the team every game, so as to give the team a sense of peace of mind.

They guessed right.

Although George Wood cannot play, he is doing what he can to help the team.

His teammates were warming up on the court. Instead of watching the show, he helped the coaches set up the triangle cone, and then he did some jogging to warm up. This scene fell in the eyes of the reporters and caused another discussion.

"I really don't see any effect from his injury, just look at his running movement, how normal it is!"

"No, you can still see it if you look closely. He hasn't dared to use the front of his right foot yet."

"That's right, jogging and playing on the field are two concepts... Alas, qualifying from the group was not a problem at all, but now I am worried about England."

"What are you worrying about! It's not that without George Wood, England is just a bunch of rabble. Are the best players in the Premier League to be judged?"

Someone muttered in their hearts: "The Premier League's promotion is so hyped, maybe it's really for viewing..."

Let's count the players in the current England squad. There are probably only four people who are truly world-class, Gerrard, Terry, Rooney and George Wood. Whether those other people can play the main force in the giant clubs of Serie A, La Liga, and Bundesliga is still unknown. Just like Lennon, who was considered the first choice on the right in England at the beginning, he couldn't even play as a substitute in Inter Milan.

So for those who understand football, England has always been a "pseudo-strong team". The English media must also understand football, but in order to satisfy the self-esteem and arrogance of the English fans, they advocate that English football geniuses are everywhere, and their goal is to be super-class as many as dogs. Only in this way can they bring economic benefits, after all, no one likes to hear bad things about their support team.

Therefore, England in the past has looked brilliant, but in fact it is vulnerable, just like a porcelain vase with a bright appearance. What's even more frightening is that these English players live in the media's lies and exaggerated propaganda all day long. They really think that they are world-class, unwilling to continue to improve, arrogant and arrogant, and collectively lose the chain at critical moments.

It's no secret that people all over Europe know that England only talk about it. For example, their opponents in this game, the Portuguese, are very aware of this.

After warming up and returning to the locker room, Queiroz analyzed the current situation in England for the players. He came to a conclusion——Tony Twain was bluffing, saying that without him, he wished others would think that England without George Wood was a second-tier team, but in fact it was. If Portugal is afraid of the legendary "non-nuclear tactics" of England and shrinks back in the game, it will lose a great opportunity.

This is a rare opportunity to score points.

Queiroz remembered Tang En's contempt for him at yesterday's press conference, which made him very angry. That man was just lucky enough to win several championship cups. The reason why he is famous is not because of his strength, but because he is in England! In that over-developed media, they can blow up a sesame-sized event as a major event that affects the development of the world.

How could a head coach who is independent, swearing, and married to a supermodel wife 21 years younger than him not be famous? He only needs to say "FUCK" to this scene, and it is enough for the media to hype for a week.

His fame and self-confidence are built on this foundation, and such a foundation is vulnerable and illusory.

This game will let you see and see...

"At the beginning of the game, we have to attack." Queiroz said, looking at his players.

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"If the kickoff is in our hands, we will retreat after a round of offense and draw them out. If the kickoff is in their hands, that's fine, let them attack, and we defend and counterattack."

Dunn was making the final arrangements in the locker room.

"The first 15 minutes of the game should be the most stressful time for you. No matter what, I don't want to see conceded goals. Even if I sacrifice offense, I have to defend them. Once the opponent is allowed to score first, the game will not be easy to play. gone."

He said sternly: "This is our first group match, whether we can qualify or not depends on the result of this game. Guys, we must admit that our current situation is not good. Our opponents want to take advantage of this." Everyone knew he was referring to George Wood's absence from the group stage.

"I heard something before. I don't know if you have heard of it." Tang En suddenly laughed, but in the eyes of players who knew him well, his smile at this time was very strange.

"The outside world has such a view of us. They think that the England team is all blown out by the British media. In fact, its strength is only second-rate in Europe."

Some of the players showed surprise on their faces, while others didn't seem surprised.

"I don't know what you guys think, but I'm not very happy. Because you were selected by me, and the team you formed is called 'European second-rate' by them. European second-rate!" Dunn suddenly raised the volume, "I don't care about the past What is the performance of the England team and what is the impression on people. I only know one thing - my team is here for the championship. Will a team that can win the European championship be a second-tier European team? "

"No, it's not, boss."

The players responded one after another.

"So I've been thinking that we need a chance to prove this to them. To prove that we are not putting on airs." Dunn waved his hand, "Portugal is a good opponent." He laughed, "We won't be ashamed just because we beat them It's not convincing to be seen as winning a weaker team. As long as we win Portugal, those bastards who say we are 'European second-rate' can only be slapped by us! One game win is not enough, because there are always some bigots It would be said that we were lucky, so this game, the next game, the next game... until the final, we have to win!"

The players' emotions were gradually mobilized by Tang En.

When the time was right, Twain said: "I don't care which clubs you come from, or what kind of football philosophy education you receive. I want to say, with me, with the national team, forget about your identities in the club and football. .National football is simple, I don't ask you to do anything other than win!"

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Wood has not had such an experience for a long time, sitting on the bench watching his teammates play. In the era of Eriksson and McLaren in the past, he often enjoyed the treatment of sitting closest to the stadium to watch the game. Later, he gradually grew into the team's main midfielder. Unexpectedly, after many years, he became a spectator again.

It's not a good feeling.

The game had started and John Terry had won the pick, so possession belonged to Portugal. Tang En was very satisfied with the result, and he applauded from below before the game started.

After the game started, Portugal took advantage of their kick-off and took the initiative on the field.

There are many similarities between Portuguese and Spanish football. Both belong to the European Latin school. They pay attention to ball control and delicate skills at their feet. Once they are allowed to control the ball, it will be difficult for the opponent to grab it again.

In the first ten minutes of the game, Portugal did exactly the same.

As long as the ball is at their feet, unless an attack is completed, it will be difficult for England to intercept their ball. Portugal's two full-backs can therefore safely and boldly insert assists.

Moutinho and Veloso pinned England's Gerrard and Michael Johnson in the middle, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Quaresma kept attacking England's defense from left to right.

The only good news is that high center forwards like Mitchell are not in Portugal, and they cannot use headers to threaten the goal guarded by Joe Hart.

It's just that the Portuguese changed their style of play after discovering that they hadn't laughed in blind crosses.

At the beginning, when Portugal made frequent crosses from the side, the England team almost gave up the defense on the side, shrinking the center and mainly releasing crosses. Now after Portugal's targeted adjustments, the England team is a little embarrassed.

Portugal's wingers have outstanding technique, speed and awareness, they are not passers who can only cross. At the same time, they are also prestigious wing assaulters.

Quaresma cut inside suddenly after feinting past England's left midfielder Downing on the right. Joe Mattock tripped him as he reached out to steal the ball. The referee whistled and called Mattok for a foul. This foul scared all England supporters into a cold sweat-the foul was only one step away from the penalty area. Quaresma almost made a penalty!

If that was the case, all of Twain's pre-match arrangements would be nullified. Thanks to George Wood's "blessing", Quaresma suffered a serious injury, and now that he is thirty-two years old, his speed is not as good as before, but his skills are maturing day by day, quite like Luis Figo back then. You can fool your opponent to complete a breakthrough only by using the technique at your feet.

Veloso took the free kick. He didn't choose to cross, but shot directly from the corner of the penalty area!

He completely fooled England goalkeeper Joe Hart, who was still at the far post to defend the cross when the football flew off the goal post.

"Wow! What a pity!" exclaimed the narrator.

There was also a loud sigh from the stands. Portuguese fans account for the vast majority of Camp Nou, which has completely become the home of the Portuguese national team.

Veloso was also a little annoyed at losing such a good scoring opportunity. He looked up at the sky and muttered incessantly.

This shot made Tang En also stand up from the coach's bench, and he felt a little nervous. No matter how much preparation is done before the game, it is impossible to accurately predict what will happen in the game. This might be one of the charms of football games, but it was torture for Twain.

"If you want to foul, remember to stay away from the penalty area..." he said to himself on the sidelines.

Without George Wood, England are not what they used to be defensively in midfield. Portugal's midfield clearly had the upper hand, and they then laid siege to England's goal, hoping for an early goal.

The Portuguese fans in the stands cheered for their team and spared no effort.

But twenty minutes passed, and Portugal's indiscriminate bombing did not receive any results. England's dense defense left the Portuguese at a loss.

They wanted to use their personal skills to break through, but England would rather give them free kicks than let them break through. It’s a shame that the Portuguese couldn’t score. Their free-kickers didn’t serve well today. Except for Veloso who used Joe Hart’s inertial thinking to threaten the goal, there was no more ball for Hart. Very embarrassing.

Seeing that his team was helpless in the face of a dense defense, the Portuguese commentator sarcastically said: "Since when did England shrink back to defend? It's almost like an underdog from Eastern Europe. Tony Twain coached Forest When he was with the Forest team, the Forest team was considered the most unattractive and uninspiring style of play, and now he has transformed England into this..."

Mortenson, the BBC commentator who was in charge of explaining the England game, didn't care so much. He applauded Dunn's team loudly: "The Portuguese thought their offense was sharp, but in front of England's defense, they realized that they were wrong. How outrageous!"

The coach of the German team sitting in the stands wrote in a small notebook: "...England's strength has been significantly damaged after losing George Wood. They use more intensive defense to decompress the defense..."

Germany play Wales in Valencia later that same day, and they haven't forgotten to keep an eye on the other two rivals in this group. As for Wales, they didn't care.

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Ze Castro, the central defender of the Portuguese national team, is bored. His team-mates were busy breaking England's goal up front, and he and Pepe stayed behind to watch the show. Such a game is really boring.

He looked around, continued to run a short distance forward, and pressed on the center line. He was thinking in his mind whether he should jump in at the right time to participate in the attack, and enjoy himself with a long shot.

"Jose, come back!" Pepe suddenly called his name loudly from behind.

Castro rushed back and waved his hands. England is like a shrinking turtle. What is there to be afraid of?

"This idiot!" Seeing that she couldn't call him back, Pepe cursed in a low voice.

He set his sights on the England coach's bench on the sidelines.

Tony Twain was standing in the command area with his hands in his pockets. Fortunately, he wasn't sitting on the coach's bench with his legs crossed.

After one or two years, he still hasn't forgotten the boss's habitual movements. Different movements represent different meanings, and only the players of Nottingham Forest can understand. If he was sitting on the sidelines with his legs crossed, it meant he had a plan in mind, and there must be a conspiracy behind it. Now that he is standing on the sidelines, it shows that he is not very sure-he is also afraid that his team will be destroyed by Portugal's stormy offensive.

Maybe it's my nervousness?

Pepe shook her head slightly. I don't know why seeing England defending in such a mess, he always has an ominous premonition in his heart. It felt very familiar, the smell of Nottingham Forest.

If the England team in front of me changed their white jerseys to red, it would look more like it.

Pepe was distracted, and his central defender simply overwhelmed the center line. After receiving the return pass from his teammates, he feinted a shot and chose to break through with the ball himself!

As a Portuguese player, even a central defender has delicate footwork. He successfully circled the midfield and chose to pass the ball when he was close to the England penalty area. But after passing the football to his teammate Moutinho, instead of running back, he continued to advance, trying to play a two-for-one!

Moutinho's pass was blocked by Michael Johnson!

England strikes back!

Johnson passes the ball to Gerrard, big foot forward long pass!

Mitchell, the lighthouse in the frontcourt, seized the position before Veloso, and then jumped high to ferry the header...

The football flew diagonally backwards. Walcott is plugging in at high speed!

At this time, there were only Pepe and goalkeeper Rui Patricio in Portugal's backcourt. The Portuguese didn't even realize it for a while-is our backcourt so empty? Where has everyone gone?

"Bastard!" Pepe could only scold his rushing partner Castro to vent his anger. He quickly dropped down the middle and ran to the side to block Walcott. This kid's speed is at the 100-meter sprint level. ...

The ominous premonition in his heart came true, and this scene was all too familiar to him—when they were in the forest team, they often dealt with those powerful opponents like this. When the opponents were complacent about besieging the forest, they didn't know that their Achilles' heel had been completely exposed to the firepower of the forest team.

Pepe grabbed the ball from Walcott with the idea of ​​fouling. He flew to shovel, hoping to knock the opponent off the court with the ball.

But he miscalculated. He might have been able to do this two years ago, but at the age of 32, he has no capital to underestimate the youth of "Little Tiger" Walcott.

The ball was poked away by Walcott before his toes touched it. Then the Arsenal winger jumped up lightly, out of the way of Pepe's flying tackle.

breakthrough!

Tang En took his hands out of his trouser pockets and was clenching them into fists, ready to wave them.

The opportunity that England had been holding on for more than 20 minutes finally came, and it came so easily that he worried whether Walcott would waste this excellent opportunity with too many distractions in his mind...

"If you miss your shot in the next game, just sit on the bench for me!" Tang En muttered viciously.

Walcott broke through Pepe, and the rest of the Forest team didn't watch the show behind. Mitchell, Rooney, and Downing's frontcourt attackers all increased their speed to the highest level, running desperately towards the opponent's penalty area, ready to respond to possible passes.

This horrified the Portuguese—this was definitely not an accident, it was a premeditated counterattack, this was a naked conspiracy!

Now even if Walcott slows down, England has a great chance of scoring. Portugal's central defender Ze Castro even only returns to the center circle...he is running very hard, but unfortunately he is born Not a speed player. Instead, the two full-backs were chasing back quickly.

Rooney rushed to the forefront, and he raised his arm, indicating that Walcott could pass the ball.

Walcott, who had already dribbled the ball into the penalty area, looked at the goalkeeper Patricio, then at Rooney, and swept the football.

The ball was slightly forward... Gritting his teeth, Rooney rushed over, and then shoveled!

"England's counter attack...Walcott is fast! Patricio strikes! He throws away! Rooney rushes in, will Walcott pass...he passes! he passes It's a ball! It's a little big, a little big, a little big... a shovel shot!!" The neutral Spanish commentator spoke at an extremely fast speed, like a machine gun, making the hearts of the audience beat faster.

He tackled the football and it bounced back towards the goal.

Mortensen has already roared out the voice celebrating the goal in advance: "GOOOO——"

The football flew out of a parabola and fell into the empty goal.

"—OOOAL!!"

Pepe, who was lying on the sidelines, saw this scene and angrily smashed the turf with his hands.

Tang En raised his fists high and waved towards the sky. The dugout and bench behind him rushed out, pumping their fists and cheering.

Rooney got up from the ground and ran excitedly towards Walcott, who was passing the ball for him. Downing and Mitchell, who were still sprinting just now, turned to chase Rooney without slowing down. The rest of England's players are also rushing forward. It was a spectacular scene.

It took less than fifteen seconds from England stealing the ball to their all-out celebration of the goal. More Portuguese players were still in the frontcourt, unable to react.

Queiroz angrily kicked off the water bottle at his feet. England is too forced and cunning! !

"England scored their first goal in this cup. In the 23rd minute, they led Portugal 1-0! This is only their second shot of the game! Terrible efficiency! "

After the goal, the England players embraced each other tightly, and Twain saw the "unity" he wanted most. He glanced at the angry Queiroz, who knew Portugal couldn't turn his palm.

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PS, after many chapters without a game transition, Twain's performance is finally here. The stage has been set up, this is the best stage that the whole world is watching, what kind of drama can he perform on it? Please look forward to it!

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