Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 176 This is not pride, this is confidence
The rest of the game became garbage time, somewhat like a casual practice match for the Kuwaiti players, since they had no hope of winning. They let go of their mental burden and actually performed better, making the game look more intense.

In the final moments, Mutawa scored a goal.

The final score was 5-1.
When the match ended, both sides felt relieved. Kuwait felt relieved because they had crawled out of a hellish match, and they felt relieved because they would never have to face Shan Yongzhuo again.

The Chinese team, on the other hand, had a truly relaxed time.

Before the match, Gao Hongbo devised a strategy to defeat Kuwait, as the next opponents would be the stronger Uzbekistan and the host country Qatar, making this victory crucial.

Now, they have exceeded their targets.

5 is better than 1!

This score is absolutely perfect.

After the match, the Chinese players were quite composed in interviews, and they all seemed quite pleased with themselves. Yu Hai, who had the second-best performance, said, "The match was easier than I expected. The whole team played well, especially the captain."

"With our captain, scoring goals is just too easy."

In a post-match interview, Gao Hongbo also highly praised Shan Yongzhuo, saying, "Shan Yongzhuo played exceptionally well. This is the power of the world's number one striker. With him on the team, the problem of our lack of attacking firepower that has plagued us for so long has finally been solved."

Other players also spoke about Shan Yongzhuo in their interviews.

Because his performance was simply too perfect.

On the other side, Kuwait's head coach Goran was very frustrated. At the post-match press conference, he said with a bitter face, "It's hard to imagine that there is a striker like Shan Yongzhuo in an Asian Cup-level competition. He is too outstanding, several levels above Asia. However, our performance was not bad either. After Shan Yongzhuo was substituted, we proved our strength."

The first round of group stage matches in the Asian Cup has concluded.

China's matches are attracting a lot of attention.

The first match saw China crush Kuwait 5-1, showcasing the strength of the Chinese team to all participating teams. Perhaps more importantly, it demonstrated the terrifying power of Shan Yongzhuo.

He played for 52 minutes in one match.

5 goals!
Shan Yongzhuo's answer sheet was breathtaking and attracted a lot of attention.

However, this only applies within Asia.

At this time, the focus is more on the final selection of the 2010 Golden Globe Awards.

While the Asian Cup was underway, the Ballon d'Or awards ceremony was also taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. Although Shan Yongzhuo made it into the final three, he did not make it to the next round.

Of course, he did not win the award in the end.

The Ballon d'Or was ultimately awarded to Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder. While the result was met with some skepticism, it was generally considered acceptable.

As the absolute core of Inter Milan and the Dutch national team's midfield, Sneijder led Inter Milan to regain the Champions League title after many years and led the Netherlands to the runner-up position in the World Cup, performing exceptionally well.

Domestic media outlets have voiced their sympathy for Shan Yongzhuo, but Shan Yongzhuo himself seems completely unconcerned.

The next match is against Qatar.

Gao Hongbo attaches great importance to this match because Qatar is the host country, and the match against them will inevitably be very difficult.

To qualify, this is an opponent they must face head-on.

In their first match, Qatar lost 0-2 to Uzbekistan. They will definitely fight hard for victory in this match in order to advance from the group stage.

Time is also very tight.

The group stage matches are spaced four days apart. Fortunately, Qatar is a small country, so there's no need for a long journey.

During the preparation period, the coaching staff produced a lot of materials, including Qatar's tactics and playing style, detailed information on their players, and even detailed analysis of how to counter Qatar's star players.

This took a very long time. However, it was mostly just theoretical and ultimately futile effort.

Some players take it very seriously; they look at the information of their opponents to understand them better, which helps them perform better on the field.

Some players are not interested.

For example, Shan Yongzhuo.

He didn't even look at the materials the coaching staff brought him; he just threw them aside.

He wasn't particularly concerned about Qatar, knowing they would be heavily marked, and he could simply look for opportunities to score during the match.

Of course, more importantly, he didn't quite understand the detailed tactical arrangements either.

In this respect, his abilities are really limited.

Not only did Shan Yongzhuo not look at the materials, but he was also not particularly active in training. He was just going through the motions. His performance worried Gao Hongbo. He said to his assistant in private, "Isn't Xiao Shan a little too... too arrogant? He's not serious at all now."

The assistant thought for a moment and said, "I don't think he's an arrogant person. He's just lazy. Last season, he scored 97 goals in a single season, and that was in Serie A and the Europa League. He's still performing very well this season. If he were the kind of arrogant person, he wouldn't be able to maintain this level of performance."

"I think this is not pride, but confidence."

Gao Hongbo nodded in agreement, agreeing that it made sense; players of this caliber should naturally possess absolute confidence.

Shan Yongzhuo only conducted basic training during training, and was not particularly active in tactical training against Qatar.

Gao Hongbo refused all media interviews, turning away all except for the scheduled ones. Even interviews with many female reporters could not change his mind, which added a layer of mystery to the Chinese team's preparations.

In an effort to boost morale, the Qatari side engaged in some kind of brainwashing speculation.

"He takes Qatar very seriously, but he doesn't have absolute confidence in defeating them!"

Such reports delighted the Qatari people, who continued to report on it, hoping that Qatar could defeat the Chinese team.

While the outside world was buzzing with excitement, Qatar continued its normal preparations for the war.

After the first defeat, head coach Mechu's on-field command was heavily criticized, and this match was a do-or-die situation for him.

During the preparation period, the entire Qatari team practiced offensive and defensive tactics, with their defense specifically targeting Shan Yongzhuo.

"If the defense is successful, the chances of winning are very high!"

"Otherwise, it will be very difficult."

Mei Chu had a clear understanding of the game. He knew that the other players on the Chinese team were not worth much attention. This was a one-man team, and the real player to limit was Shan Yongzhuo.

Without being able to limit Shan Yongzhuo's performance, defeating the Chinese team is out of the question.

Mei Chu's solution was nothing out of the ordinary; he had one player mark the player closely while the other players provided cover for him.

After adopting this strategy, Qatar effectively had two players following Shan Yongzhuo at all times.

Of course, Mei Chu also conducted targeted research on Shan Yongzhuo's threatening areas, and he found that Shan Yongzhuo's favorite shooting position was the central area in front of the penalty area.

That's just how it is in competitions.

He instructed his players that they absolutely could not allow Shan Yongzhuo to get the ball in the central area just outside the penalty area.

After expending so much energy on defense, it becomes difficult to launch a direct attack, so Mechu's offensive strategy is to play defensively and counter-attacking.

This is the strategy devised by Mei Chu.

(End of this chapter)