Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 226 Free Kick Hat Trick

In the final moments of the first half, Benfica regained the lead through a counter-attack.

This unexpected goal left Manchester City, who had been in control of the game, somewhat frustrated. Back in the locker room, Mancini's face was terribly gloomy.

The defenders kept their heads down, not daring to speak. They bore undeniable responsibility for the goal they conceded, especially Richards, who allowed Coentrao to break through and eventually pass to Saviola, whom he failed to stop at all.

Mancini suppressed his anger, summarized the situation in the first half, and made arrangements for the second half. The overall rhythm was not much different from the first half, and the key was to create set pieces through breakthroughs.

After the start of the second half, Benfica continued to defend, while Manchester City's attack remained calm and methodical.

In the 68th minute, Shan Yongzhuo received the ball on the edge of the penalty area and broke through with a powerful ground kick, but was brought down by Luisão, giving Manchester City another excellent free kick on the edge of the penalty area.

The Portuguese commentator nervously brought up his name, "Looking at this free kick, Shan Yongzhuo will probably choose to score directly..."

It wasn't just the Portuguese commentators; many people thought the same way, including the Manchester City players.

In fact, that's exactly what Shan Yongzhuo did.

The football, without any suspense, went over the wall and finally into the goal.

A signature leaf-shaped shot.

Before the ball even flew into the goal, he had already raised his hands high, celebrating the goal – a sign of absolute confidence.

Such confidence surprised many people, and it took them a long time to feel relieved after seeing the football go into the goal.

The Portuguese commentator exclaimed, "It's Shan Yongzhuo again, with his signature dipping shot. We all know what he's going to do, but we just can't stop him, there's nothing we can do."

"Shan Yongzhuo scored twice from free kicks, putting on a brilliant performance and leveling the score once again."

"Benfica's defense might be able to stop Shan Yongzhuo from scoring in other ways, but Benfica has no way to stop this kind of goal."

"This is an unreasonable breach!"

After the game restarted, the situation on the field remained largely unchanged. Benfica could only rely on counter-attacks to find scoring opportunities, but Manchester City firmly controlled the rhythm of the game.

For Manchester City, a 2-2 draw, especially away from home, is perfectly acceptable. Even a 0-0 draw at home would allow them to advance to the final on away goals.

For Benfica, this scoreline is not ideal; they need at least a victory at home, which would be their best possible result.

However, they dared not attack rashly. If they conceded another goal at this point, making it 3-2 and giving the opponent three away goals, Benfica's chances would be very slim.

So the game remained the same as always, with Benfica defending and Manchester City attacking at a slow pace. The two sides seemed to have a tacit understanding, and time was slowly worn down in this back-and-forth exchange.

However, in the 82nd minute, the situation on the field changed again.

Benfica, who had previously noticed Manchester City creating set pieces, had been defending very carefully, trying their best not to give the opponent set-piece opportunities in dangerous areas. However, this time, they still fell into their trap.

Felipe's irrational tackle tripped David Silva, giving Manchester City another set-piece opportunity.

Shan Yongzhuo was still in charge of the penalty kick.

The ball went into the goal without any doubt.

3:2.

Manchester City broke through Benfica's defense and scored, taking the lead away from home.

The entire Stadium of Light fell silent, except for the shrill cheers of Manchester City fans that echoed through the stadium.

The English commentator was ecstatic: "Manchester City are in the lead again! Shan Yongzhuo has scored an amazing hat-trick of free kicks, showcasing world-class skill!" "With three away goals in hand, Manchester City have a huge advantage over the two legs. I feel like I can already see Manchester City in the final..."

The Portuguese commentator on the other side was somewhat frustrated and speechless, but as a professional commentator, he still found a tricky way to explain everything.

"Shan Yongzhuo is unstoppable."

"A hat-trick of free kicks, he's a natural goal-scoring machine, no team can stop him from scoring."

"Benfica is no match at all."

"Benfica did everything they could in this match, but unfortunately, one of their opponents was an unreasonable super striker."

“Shan Yongzhuo, I have to bring up this name again.”

"This is the power of the world's number one striker."

The Portuguese commentator went on and on praising Shan Yongzhuo. In fact, in this situation, praising the opponent was a pretty good choice.

It's not that the team is weak, it's just that the opponent is playing cheat codes.

However, no one who heard these words questioned the Portuguese commentator's statement.

A hat-trick of free kicks.

If such a performance isn't something to brag about, then how can we?
Moreover, this goal had a very important impact on the situation of the two-legged tie.

With Manchester City leading 3-2, Benfica will need to score at least two goals at the Etihad Stadium to secure a victory against them.

The difference between a two-goal lead and a one-goal lead is significant.

Such a requirement seems too difficult.

Benfica's players realized this problem, so when the game restarted, they abandoned all defense and launched a fierce attack on Manchester City.

If we can equalize, we'll still have a chance when we play away.

But this time, they experienced the same situation Manchester City had faced before: a defensive wall.

After taking the lead, Mancini waved his hand on the sidelines, and Manchester City began to defend their goal.

Benfica doesn't have a free-kick specialist like Shan Yongzhuo.

Although they have a dominant center, Oscar Cardozo, he is bogged down in defensive woes and can't do much.

Saviola's inherent weaknesses also became apparent at this point; against a solid defensive formation, his abilities were difficult to unleash.

Time slowly slipped away.

Finally, the referee blew the final whistle.

Manchester City defeated Benfica 3-2 at the Stadium of Light, gaining a significant advantage in the two-legged knockout stage.

After the match, Shan Yongzhuo naturally became the focus of media attention, having scored a hat-trick of free kicks – a performance that can only be described as perfect.

He gave a very formulaic interview, spouting some perfunctory official jargon before returning to the locker room. The reporter was very dissatisfied with the interview, but there was nothing he could do about it.

(End of this chapter)