The strongest winger

Chapter 1138 Fierce battle on the court, game off the court
"-beep!!"

Following the Serbian referee Majic’s whistle, captain Ai Luo stepped on the football at his feet to Gao Lin, and then ran forward naturally. Gao Lin, who reached his feet, did not choose to take the ball forward, but kicked the ball non-stop to his teammate Zhang Xizhe who was standing in the middle circle.

Cristiano Ronaldo and forward Almeida started on the spot, like two sharp arrows rushing towards Zhang Xizhe who was holding the ball, hoping to cause Zhang Xizhe to make a mistake through sudden acceleration. However, Zhang Xizhe, who is only 23 years old, has a very clear mind and did not make a mistake because of the pressing of Cristiano Ronaldo and Almeida.

At the same time, CCTV commentator He Weicai belatedly gave the traditional CCTV lines: "CCTV, CCTV, welcome to watch the live broadcast of the 2014 No.20 World Cup in Brazil. The first round of the group match between China and Portugal in Group G has begun. The Chinese team is wearing a white jersey and attacking from right to left in the first half. The Portuguese team is wearing a red jersey and attacking from left to right. This match is the first appearance of the two teams in this World Cup..."

Cristiano Ronaldo made an emergency stop on the spot, leaving a deep mark on the turf with the studs of his sneakers printed with CR7, and turned and rushed towards Huang Bowen who was holding the ball.

The same goes for Almeida's choice.

However, Huang Bowen didn't move his upper body, and with a flick of his right ankle, he directly kicked the football given by Zhang Xizhe back to central defender Feng Xiaoting.

Seeing this, Cristiano Ronaldo and Almeida did not continue to sprint, but chose to run forward slowly, and Portugal's overall formation gradually improved.

Gao Lin was at the front, raising his right hand to ask for the ball. What he didn't notice was that the back line led by Pepe moved forward a small step. By the time Feng Xiaoting saw the gap and gave a long pass, it was a bit late. The assistant referee on the sidelines held up the side flag to signal Gao Lin, who was holding the ball, to offside.

Immediately afterwards, the referee Majic also blew his whistle.

Gao Lin, who had just finished turning around with the ball, heard the sudden sound of the whistle, and turned his head to look at the first assistant referee with a bewildered expression. He clearly remembered that he kept a distance from the last defender Pepe. Even if he made a mistake in his judgment, it was at least parallel, right?

However, the slow-motion replay given by the on-site director gave the truth. Before Feng Xiaoting passed the ball, the Portuguese defense had a neat forward press.

Of course, Gao Lin, who then devoted his energy to the game, didn't know it. He thought it was a misjudgment by the linesman.

Coach Pep Guardiola didn't think so. He just felt that the Chinese team's attack was a bit simple. It was unreliable to use a long pass directly from a central defender to find a striker. The success rate was not high, and it was normal to fall into an offside trap.

But in the next two consecutive attacks, both Gao Lin and Ai Luo fell into the offside trap set by the Portuguese defense, which made the sideline coach Guardiola realize that this was not accidental, but a deliberate effort by the Portuguese defense.

※※※

The Portuguese team did not forget to attack while shrinking the defense. The offensive left flank composed of Cristiano Ronaldo and Coentrao was very threatening. The tacit understanding between the two of them in Real Madrid was reflected in the first 5 minutes of this game.

If right back Zhang Linpeng had not had the experience of defending the offensive combination of Cristiano Ronaldo and Coentrao during his time in Real Madrid, it is estimated that this game would make him tired enough.

Coupled with Guardiola's targeted deployment before the game, when Portugal's offense tends to be in the direction of Cristiano Ronaldo, the defensive midfielder must assist in the defense, and the central defender must timely supplement the defense, because Cristiano Ronaldo and Coentrao are both very fast.

This is why Feng Xiaoting was placed at the right back in this game.

Therefore, the Chinese team's offense fell into an offside trap and Portugal's offense was difficult to achieve results, leading to a stalemate in the game.

There was no way to open up the game, which caused Guardiola a bit of a headache on the sidelines. Before the game, he did not expect that Portugal would choose such a risky defensive method. You must know that as long as the pass and reception are agreed, it will be a wonderful attack.

But... Portugal's strategy in this game is very correct.

Compared with many teams that play a fake four-three-three formation, the Chinese team's four-three-three formation has become much more realistic. The two wingers Ai Luo and Hao Junmin opened their positions very wide when attacking.

Although this kind of position can give them a temporary chance to single out, the problem is that Portugal's defense in the middle does not allow midfielders to do so. Therefore, many long passes that should have been completed by Wu Xi or Huang Bowen were initiated by the central defender. As a result, the forward players forget their position while paying attention to the incoming ball...

After another 3 minutes, the Chinese team's offense did not improve, so Guardiola took advantage of Ai Luo's long-range shot from the front of the penalty area and fired an anti-aircraft gun, and called Wu Xi to his side to teach him the opportunity.

Guardiola's latest adjustment is very simple, that is, to compact the scattered formation, from four-three-three to four-five-one, that is, the two wingers are recycled to the two flanks of center Gao Lin.

※※※

With Gao Lin's cover at the forward line, the defenders who were defending Ai Luo and Hao Junmin from the side did not dare to step forward blindly.

In addition, Ai Luo and Hao Junmin, who are hidden behind Gao Lin, have more room to sprint, especially Ai Luo, every time he runs can attract the attention of Portuguese defensive players and create better opportunities for his teammates.

"Guardiola is indeed a world-class coach. His on-the-spot adjustment ability is really too strong. When the Chinese team's offense frequently fell into the offside trap, he decisively chose to shrink the formation and shorten the distance between the players..."

Soon, Paul Bento gave a countermeasure.

In order for the defense to restrict Ai Luo and Hao Junmin from taking the ball forward, Paulo Bento asked the defenders to defend themselves as soon as they entered the 30-meter defensive area, and did not give them any chance to accelerate forward.

Of course, Paul Bento continued to ask the players in the middle not to allow Zhang Xizhe, Wu Xi and Huang Bowen to pass the ball to the forward line easily, that is, to use active running to cut off the connection of the Chinese team's frontcourt.

But in the 10th minute of the game, Paul Bento's wishful thinking was broken by the tacit cooperation of the Chinese team in the frontcourt.

(End of this chapter)