Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 583 The Showdown in the Second Half

The first half ended in a 2-2 draw, and both teams were in relatively good spirits after returning to the locker room.

Although the score was equalized by the opponent in the final moments of the first half, Barcelona successfully contained Shan Yongzhuo, limiting him to only one goal in the first half.

From the perspective of the Barcelona players, this was already a great success, so they could accept the draw, since they still had one half left.

They believed they would be able to defeat Shan Yongzhuo's team this time.

For Barcelona, ​​Neymar undoubtedly had the worst experience in the first half.

In the first half, he not only failed to score, but also performed quite poorly against Nainggolan's defense in the latter part of the game.

On the other side, Shan Yongzhuo didn't have much of an impact throughout the match, but he did score a goal, which highlights the biggest difference between the two players.

"No, I must try my best!"

"I want to score!"

Neymar made a silent vow in his heart.

Although he has admitted that he may indeed be quite far behind Shan Yongzhuo, Neymar believes that he cannot be completely outmatched by the opponent, and at least his statistics cannot be too far behind.

The away team's locker room on the other side.

The Granada players were in good spirits, and everyone had a relaxed expression on their face.

Harry Kane, in particular, scored a one-on-one goal in the final moments of the first half, helping the team maintain a draw at halftime and making him a major contributor to the first half.

Head coach Pellegrini also praised all the players: "Everyone performed well, but we need to keep working hard. We cannot be satisfied with a draw."

Then, he turned to Shan Yongzhuo and Harry Kane: "Shan, Harry, the team's attack may need more individual contributions from you."

Then, Pellegrini gave instructions on the defense in the second half, especially on the targeted defense against Sanchez, who had been very active in the first half.

Pellegrini is not actually a very good coach at coaching defense. His football philosophy is relatively balanced between offense and defense, but there is still a focus. Compared to defense, he is more good at coaching offense.

However, facing Barcelona, ​​with a weaker overall squad and less control of the game, they could only rack their brains to focus on defense.

His chosen strategy was to replace him.

Gunnarsson replaced Ziyech.

They substituted an attack-oriented midfielder with a sweeping, muscular defensive midfielder, hoping to use the combined defensive efforts of Gunnarsson and Nainggolan to hold the first line of defense in front of the penalty area.

Gunnarsson's task was simple: contain Sanchez.

soon.

The second half of the game has begun.

Amidst the cheers and encouragement of the fans in the stands, the Barcelona players on the field were filled with fighting spirit, continuing their familiar style of play and maintaining control of the ball, quickly pinning Granada completely in their own half.

Barcelona launched a series of attacks.

The first wave of attacks lasted for nearly three minutes. Although they ultimately failed to score, the fact that they kept the opponent out of the ball and put Granada under immense pressure was a success in itself.

Fortunately, Granada's players had a really good mentality. They were mentally prepared for this situation in the second half, so they simply solidified their defense and tried their best not to give the opponent any chances.

Barcelona regained possession and continued to pressure Granada, performing better than they had at the end of the first half.

Every player performed quite well.

Neymar was the same. Fifteen minutes at halftime was enough for him to calm down.

The solo efforts in the first half were clearly not a good approach. Now, he no longer tries to chase the ball and rely on his individual ability to break through Nainggolan, but instead works together with his teammates in a coordinated manner.

This has led to a continued increase in Barcelona's attacking threat.

After calming down, Neymar's performance improved significantly.

In the 53rd minute of the match, Neymar received a pass from Fabregas and, without looking or stopping the ball, passed it out with a series of consecutive passes.

That was a beautiful pass that broke through Granada's entire defense. If Pedro hadn't misjudged the situation and hit the post, Barcelona would likely have taken the lead again.

"Hula..."

Regretful murmurs rang out from the stands, but the fans still applauded the players' excellent performance.

It doesn't matter.

There's still plenty of time; Barcelona has plenty of time to score.

After a brief regrouping, Shawcross's long clearance was regained by Fabregas near the center circle, and Barcelona launched another attack.

However, what was unexpected was that the situation suddenly changed drastically.

In the 59th minute of the match, Sanchez's breakthrough was directly intercepted by Gunnarsson, who then launched a long ball to Blind on the left wing.

After receiving the ball, Blind dribbled past the seemingly wooden Fabregas and launched a counter-attack down the left flank. Seizing the opportunity, he passed the ball to the onrushing Nainggolan.

Nainggolan was about to charge forward and then find an opportunity to kick.

Just then, he spotted Shan Yongzhuo, who had suddenly broken out of the encirclement.

Dan Yongzhuo was tightly marked, but this time, because of Nainggolan's sudden forward run, he attracted Busquets' defense, and Pique could not completely ignore Harry Kane who was almost in the penalty area. This resulted in only Bartra being the one who was really marking him with all his might.

Therefore, with just one acceleration, Shan Yongzhuo shook off Bartra and cut across the middle lane.

Nainggolan assessed the situation, but ultimately passed the ball to Nainggolan.

Actually, Shan Yongzhuo's choice to run laterally wasn't very good. Bartra was right behind him, and Pique was running up ahead of him.

They will likely face a pincer attack from both sides next.

However, Nainggolan chose to trust Harry Kane instead of passing the ball to him, who was in a better position.

Is Shan Yongzhuo an ordinary person?
of course not!

As the ball approached his feet, Shan Yongzhuo decisively activated the Ghost Shadow Grappling Technique.

Then, everyone saw that Shan Yongzhuo was extremely fast, and before Pique and Bartra could double-team him, he turned and shot without stopping the ball.

The shot was taken just one or two meters in front of the penalty area line.

This location is a standard area for Shan Yongzhuo.

Faced with Shan Yongzhuo's shot from this position, goalkeeper Pinto had no chance and could only watch as the ball flew into the goal like a cannonball.

The Camp Nou stadium fell silent for a moment, then erupted into a tsunami of cheers from the Granada fans.

The ball went in!
(End of this chapter)