Football: The immortal legend on the green field

Having suffered two defeats in a row, Haarlem SC were determined to win this game, just like the previous two games.

Wanting to win and being able to win are two different things.

Before the game started, Johan Neeskens made clear the strategy for tonight, which was to be based on defense.

Shen Bin felt dizzy when he heard this strategy.

It is known that the first defensive core of our Haarlem Athletic is Tiote. He has just returned from injury and is obviously not in the best physical condition. Today I obviously have to spend more energy than usual to fill in for Tiote.

In addition to himself and Tiote, two Italians, Aleister and Bosinha, are also trustworthy. Unfortunately, Bosinha sprained his heel in the last game and needed to rest for ten days, perfectly avoiding this crucial battle.

In addition to Bosnia, main right-back Berna Canu was also on the injury list. Neeskens had to replace him with 19-year-old young player Al Barrow who had never played. Bosnia could not play, and there was also veteran Wes Rafael, but Al Barrow was really not reassuring.

Neeskens's response was to replace Gular with Herbert Bhutto, who was better at defense than offense, as the starting player, and to have Junior, who was used to moving to the center, occupy the left wing. This meant he completely gave up on attacking from the flanks!

When neither wing poses a threat, the opponent will definitely focus on attacking the wing. Can they defend by just defending? Groningen is known for its defensive counterattacks in the A-League. Who is better at defending?

This looks like a good idea that will help Haarlem Athletic to achieve their third consecutive defeat!

As he told the coaching staff before, life is a gamble, who can guarantee that they can always be invincible? But without high risks, there will be no high returns.

Regarding this game, the media generally believes that Groningen will definitely beat Haarlem.

Because Haarlem, which has been in a series of tough battles, is not only facing the threat of SBV Elite, but the two teams are only one point apart, and Valverde, which is ranked fifth in the second division, is only two points behind Haarlem. Just one round of games may bring about earth-shaking changes in the standings.

It is generally believed that compared with the FA Cup, team promotion is more important. Even if Haarlem passes the FA Cup, it is impossible for them to defeat the powerful Ajax in the semi-finals. Ajax is already 8 points behind PSV Eindhoven in the league. It is basically hopeless to overtake in the remaining games because PSV Eindhoven has been too stable this season and has only lost one game in the First Division.

Ajax is going all out to win the cup, the only trophy that can comfort them.

The most crucial thing is that Haarlem has been plagued by injuries, especially in the midfield and backcourt. In this game, Neeskens could only send out more than half of the main players, and several other main players were unable to play. Aleister could only play with an injury, and the back line was almost completely replaced.

In the two games that Shen Bin missed, Neeskens gave the captain's armband to Italian Bosigna. As if there was a curse, Bosigna strained his groin muscle after only serving as captain for two games.

In this match, Shen Bin returned to the team, but Neeskens did not return the captain's armband to Shen Bin or the old captain Weiss Rafael. Instead, he unexpectedly appointed Tiote as the new captain. This childish move caused dissatisfaction among many people in the team. Tiote, the new captain, wore the captain's armband. When he put on the captain's armband, Shen Bin saw that his hands were shaking with excitement. He put on the armband three times before he put it on.

Neeskens' boring move successfully created a rift between the players in the team, especially Gular and Sterling who were unable to play.

But when Shen Bin stepped forward to help Tiote correct the captain's armband, those in the team who were complaining for Shen Bin quickly calmed down. This formalistic plot was dissolved into nothingness by Shen Bin's one move.

This match is also considered to be a battle for the top scorer. This season, with Robben, Van Persie and Kuyt going overseas, Elia has held up the glory of the Dutch local striker. He has scored 17 goals in games representing Groningen. Among professional players in the Dutch league, Deng Zhuoxiang from China is tied with him. Although the two are not in the same league, the media will still compare the two because Kezman of PSV Eindhoven, who ranks second in the first-tier league scorer list, has only scored 12 goals so far. He and Elia are not on the same level at all.

Elia and Deng Zhuoxiang are both young midfield attackers. This match is a rare opportunity for the two to compete head-on. The duel between killers is often the most attractive. According to previous experience, Deng Zhuoxiang only has the opportunity to play in the second half.

The duel between these two men would be as eye-catching as the gladiatorial fights in the ancient Roman Colosseum.

The 19-year-old Dutch rising star has shown surprising form and goal efficiency in his first professional season.

Elia also paid special attention to this small Chinese midfielder like him. He even watched Deng Zhuoxiang's goal highlights before the game. It seemed that he was not as good as him in the ability to seize opportunities... I wonder what kind of sparks they will create in this game.

When Deng Zhuoxiang was mentioned in the pre-match interview, he showed an attitude of sympathy: "No, of course I hope Groningen wins. But he (Deng Zhuoxiang) is a very good attacking midfielder, and as long as he is on the court, he will cause a lot of trouble to the opponent's defense. He is one year younger than me now, and his body is a little too weak, which may be the only thing we can use. Score a goal? Haha, I can definitely score a goal, but as for him, it's hard to say... But, I hope he will never score a goal!" Elia laughed, and it can be seen that he is full of confidence, but he also has some concerns about Deng Zhuoxiang's goal-scoring ability.

On the field, the Groningen fans who came from afar breathed a sigh of relief. At the beginning of the game, Deng Zhuoxiang's volley in the penalty area was bravely saved by goalkeeper Watteres. His quick reaction and excellent positioning allowed him to incredibly save Deng Zhuoxiang's powerful volley. He is worthy of being the best goalkeeper in the Dutch league.

However, Haarlem's shot seemed to have used up their last bit of luck, and in the following game Groningen announced to their hosts that they were not here to "learn" from lower-level league teams.

Just five minutes into the game, the home team Haarlem SC got a corner kick.

After a corner kick, the ball was headed out of the sideline by the Groningen center back. The ball was thrown out again from outside the penalty area, but Junior shot the ball too straight and was easily caught by the goalkeeper.

The Groningen goalkeeper quickly threw the ball to start a fast break, and the fast winger Van Nistelrooy broke through Herbert Butto, who replaced Gular, on the left side, but the ball was intercepted by Shen Bin who followed.

After getting the ball, Shen Bin gently moved the ball forward. Oyer thought he was going to break through with his speed again, so he quickly took two steps back. But Shen Bin made a long pass to the left, and Shinji Kagawa rushed in at high speed and took the ball off beautifully. Haarlem Athletic counterattacked!

Shen Bin naturally ran towards the opponent's penalty area, ready to receive the shot.

Having learned his lesson from the first encounter, Dutch international Oyer followed closely behind the Chinese player and never dared to underestimate the Chinese man again.

Groningen captain Heitinga began to press towards Shinji Kagawa.

After several games, the Japanese player already knew how to gain a foothold in the Dutch league where players are taller than their opponents. He passed the ball before Heitinga could get close to him. Harward received the ball, made a slight adjustment, got rid of the defense and volleyed the ball, which quickly rolled along the grass and the uprights and out of the bottom line.