Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

Three days flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was time for the Chinese national football team to face Vietnam in the semi-finals.

Due to the significant disparity in strength between the two teams, this match did not receive much attention.

Most fans' attention was focused on another match – Japan vs. Saudi Arabia!

These two teams have won the last six Asian Cup titles and are the most dominant teams in the Asian Cup over the past 20 years.

The rise of Japanese football began the moment they snatched the championship trophy from Saudi Arabia in the 1992 Asian Cup final.

In the subsequent Asian Cups, the Japanese team gradually replaced Saudi Arabia's dominance and became the new Asian champion.

So for the Saudis, this is a war of revenge.

To reclaim the top spot in Asia, they must defeat the Japanese team head-on in the finals and knock them off their throne.

Both teams are very strong and have a lot of supporters.

Before the match, discussions about which team would win were heated both online and offline.

Of course Japan will win, is there even a question?

[Japan seems to have a knack for beating Saudi Arabia; the two teams have faced each other twice in the finals, with Japan winning both matches.]

Given the current strength of Japan's midfield, if they control the game, Saudi Arabia probably won't even be able to touch the ball!

Because the Japanese team has been so dominant in Asia in recent years, the majority of voices support the Japanese team to win.

Of course, some fans are also optimistic about Saudi Arabia.

I think Saudi Arabia can win; this Saudi team is really strong!

Anyone who watched Saudi Arabia's group stage and knockout stage matches could see that their form was getting better and better. On the other hand, the Japanese team, in their last match against a struggling Australia, were dragged into a penalty shootout. I feel that this Japanese team is not as strong as the last one!

[Saudi Arabia struggled against South Korea in the group stage, but in the knockout stage they decisively defeated Iran, a favorite to win the championship. To be honest, if I weren't a fan of the Chinese national team, I think Saudi Arabia could have won the championship based on their performance!]

Seeing fans arguing about the match between Japan and Saudi Arabia, some fans wondered: Is this still a Chinese forum?
Why is no one discussing the national football team's match when it's about to happen?
What's there to say about playing against Vietnam? If the Chinese national football team dares to lose to Vietnam, they might as well learn from South Korea and swim back home!

[The Vietnamese team did perform well, but ultimately there's a gap in strength between them and top teams, as evidenced by their thrashing by Japan in the final group stage match!]

The suspense in this match isn't whether the Chinese national team wins, but by how many goals!

[Just aim for the minimum wager; winning too much is a waste of energy. It's better to save that energy for the final against Japan!]

Zhu Guanghu and the fans had the same idea: given that the opponent was not strong.

He rested many key players in the starting lineup for this match, such as Zheng Zhi, Sun Jihai, and Han Peng, who were not included in the squad.

However, to avoid an unexpected setback, he did not remove Lin Feng and kept him in the starting lineup.

Clearly, Zhu Guanghu knows very well who the true core of this team is.

As long as Lin Feng is on the field, adjustments to other positions will not have a significant impact.

But if we manage to take him down, then things might be different.

The Chinese national football team lost to Thailand in a warm-up match before. Vietnam might be a bit stronger than Thailand. Without Lin Feng, the Chinese national team might have really suffered a defeat.

Despite Vietnam's outstanding performance in this Asian Cup, setting a team record by reaching the knockout stage and advancing to the semi-finals.

However, their overall strength is still far behind that of the Chinese team.

In the latest FIFA world rankings, the Chinese team is currently ranked 35th.

Vietnam's team is ranked 160th, 125 places lower than China's team.

Therefore, Vietnam's head coach Ederson wisely chose the defensive counter-attacking tactic, a tactic typically used by weaker teams, to deal with China.

After the match started, both teams quickly got into the game. The Vietnamese team put up a very strong fight, but the physical attributes of the players on both sides were undeniable.

Despite their high fighting spirit, their physical limitations restricted their ability to compete, allowing the Vietnamese team to concede the first goal in less than six minutes.

In the 6th minute, the Chinese team won a corner kick during an attack.

Lin Feng took the corner kick, and Dong Fangzhuo leaped high, overpowering two Vietnamese defenders, and easily sent the ball into the goal with a backheel shot.

That goal was almost effortless, even easier than in a practice match.

But for Dong Fangzhuo, it was of great significance because it was his first goal in this Asian Cup.

"Damn, you jumped really high! I was planning to pick up a loose ball at the back, but you intercepted me at the front!"

Gao Lin put his arm around Dong Fangzhuo's neck, grabbed his head and ruffled it wildly, turning his hair into a mess.

"Haha, how can I score if I don't jump that high? You guys have all scored, and I haven't gotten my first goal yet. How can I not be anxious?"

In this Asian Cup, the Chinese national football team brought a total of five forwards: Gao Lin, Dong Fangzhuo, Han Peng, Mao Jianqing, and Qu Bo.

Apart from Qu Bo, who has not yet made an appearance, all the other forwards who have played have scored a goal, leaving Dong Fangzhuo without his first goal, which makes Dong Fangzhuo very anxious.

Zhu Guanghu put him in the starting lineup for this match, and he was really looking forward to scoring a goal. Now that he has finally gotten his wish, a huge weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

"What's so hard about scoring a goal? Just serve Brother Lin well, and he'll keep passing the ball to you. Even if your shooting skills are terrible, you'll eventually manage to score one after a few tries!"

Dong Fangzhuo rolled his eyes at Gao Lin. "I understand the logic, but how am I supposed to serve Brother Lin?"

Are you suggesting I sell my body?

I've never heard of Brother Lin liking this kind of thing.

……

Conceding the first goal dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the Vietnamese team, and their defensive counter-attacking tactics failed right from the start.

Trailing behind, Vietnam launched an attack in an attempt to equalize the score.

However, his attempt to steal a chicken backfired. In the 12th minute, Lin Feng intercepted the ball in the backfield and dribbled forward with great strides.

The Vietnamese players, wary of his reputation and skill, were almost entirely drawn to his movements, completely ignoring the huge gap on the left side.

Seeing this, Lin Feng decisively sent a long diagonal pass, passing the ball to Mao Jianqing's feet.

Mao Jianqing received the ball and broke into the penalty area, then slotted the ball into the far corner past the onrushing goalkeeper.

The score became 2-0. With this score and the almost one-sided situation on the field, the game seemed to have lost its suspense and entered garbage time.

Although it was expected that the Chinese team would win this match, the fans did not expect that the Chinese team would win so easily.

Watching the previous match between Vietnam and Japan, it seemed that Vietnam could hold off Japan's attacks for a few rounds, and even scored the first goal.

As it turned out for the Chinese team, Vietnam was already defeated within just over ten minutes of the start. This happened so quickly that many fans who had just turned on their TVs hadn't even had time to process what was happening before seeing the score displayed prominently in the top left corner: 2-0.
Upon closer inspection, it turns out the Chinese team scored two goals. Oh well, no need to dwell on it, let's just celebrate!

After taking a two-goal lead, the Chinese team firmly controlled the situation on the field and forced the Vietnamese players to commit fouls multiple times through exquisite teamwork in the attacking third.

In the 22nd minute, the referee awarded another free kick.

Lin Feng and Chen Tao stood together in front of the ball. Chen Tao took the first run-up, but the Vietnamese players ignored him and focused their attention on Lin Feng.

In this Asian Cup, Lin Feng has already scored three free kicks, breaking the Asian Cup free kick goal record.

When facing such a free-kick master, you can never be too careful.

To their surprise, Chen Tao's run-up was not a feint; after completing his run-up, he directly shot the ball with his right foot.

The Vietnamese goalkeeper clearly hadn't expected this, and his hasty jump was too late; the ball flew straight into the far corner, and China easily made it 3-0.
The Vietnamese team guessed that the Chinese team would take a direct free kick, but they guessed the wrong player.

And they paid the price for their mistakes!
After taking a three-goal lead, the Chinese national team became bolder in their attack and committed more players to it.

Towards the end of the first half, Lin Feng extended the score to 4-0 with a long-range shot, and the Chinese national team returned to the locker room with a huge four-goal lead.

With such a huge lead, Zhu Guanghu finally felt relieved and substituted Lin Feng in the second half, letting him rest on the bench.

With a four-goal lead, how could Vietnam possibly turn the game around?

He was definitely overthinking it; the morale of the Vietnamese team had been shattered by the Chinese team's repeated goals.

Even with Lin Feng off the field, it didn't stop the Chinese national team from scoring goals.

In the 55th minute of the second half, the Chinese team passed the ball to the edge of the penalty area through a series of passes on the left wing. Gao Lin made a lateral pass, and Zhou Haibin, who had moved forward, used the momentum outside the penalty area to push the ball into the goal from the near corner.

The score became 5-0.
That wasn't the end of it. Two minutes later, the Chinese team won another free kick 25 meters from the opponent's penalty area.

Chen Tao's shot hit the far post, which was a real shame.

However, in the 69th minute, Chen Tao scored his second goal from a free kick, extending the lead to 6-0.

Shortly after, Chen Tao was also substituted, and the Chinese players on the field began to control the tempo, no longer attacking as fiercely as before.

They need to prepare for the final; with the outcome already decided, wasting energy is pointless.

Despite trailing by a large margin, the Vietnamese team did not give up on the game.

Unfortunately, their attacking ability was too weak, and they were unable to break through the defense. Their limited number of shots were also wildly off target.

The more the Vietnamese forwards wanted to score, the less they could find their rhythm; their absurd shooting skills made one wonder if they were even professional players.

Neither side managed to score again for the remainder of the match, and the score remained 6-0 until the final whistle.

A bosom friend afar brings a distant land near. (6:0)
For China and Vietnam, these two neighboring countries, this score is considered a rather auspicious number.

But the Vietnamese don't seem to think that way!

After being eliminated by the Chinese team by a large margin, the Vietnamese people regarded this battle as a national humiliation and vowed to take revenge on the Chinese team in the future.

Therefore, they began to work hard, focusing on youth training and league development, and established a cooperative relationship with Premier League giants Arsenal, introducing Arsenal's youth training system and establishing the Hoang Anh Gia Lai-Arsenal Football School in Vietnam, specifically to cultivate talent for Vietnamese football.

Chinese football fans probably never imagined that this resounding victory for the national team would have such a huge impact on neighboring countries.

This has put their football on a fast track of development. If Chinese football stagnates or even declines someday, perhaps the Vietnamese team can truly avenge their defeat on the field.

But that's all for the future. Right now, Chinese fans' attention is focused on another match that's about to begin.

……

After the match, Lin Feng received a congratulatory text message from Liu Yifei.

After reading the text message, Lin Feng's lips curled up slightly.

She had indeed been paying close attention to her match; otherwise, how could she have edited and sent the text message so precisely the moment the match ended?

Remembering that the other party had invited him to a concert three days ago, Lin Feng picked up the phone and dialed Liu Yifei's number.

The call was answered after only one beep.

"Are you free right now?"

"Um, is there something you need?"

"Didn't I say I'd invite you to watch the game together? I happen to have some tickets now. If you have time, come out and I'll treat you to the game. If you don't have time, then forget it!"

Half an hour later, looking at the fairy sister with rosy cheeks who was in a hurry to get on her way, Lin Feng couldn't help but smile.

There's really no need to rush. Even if the competition starts, it won't affect anything.

Both teams are very strong, and the outcome won't be decided so quickly.

Lin Feng handed over the ice water he had prepared beforehand, and then took out his own handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the other person's sweat.

When the handkerchief touched the other person's forehead, Liu Yifei's body visibly stiffened.

But she restrained herself from dodging, her eyes wide open as if she had seen a ghost.

The match between Japan and Saudi Arabia was incredibly exciting; the two players queued for ages at the ticket gate before finally getting in.

Kuala Lumpur has a high temperature; even at night, the lowest temperature is around 30 degrees Celsius.

Coupled with the crowded and noisy environment, and the fact that both of them were wearing masks and sunglasses, they were sweating profusely.

Fortunately, Lin Feng was well prepared. He not only prepared ice water in advance, but also bought a small fan with a battery.

After entering, I found my seat, sat down, unscrewed the bottle cap, and took a big gulp of ice water.

Press the fan switch again, and a gust of wind comes through, making me feel much cooler from the inside out.

"You're really well-prepared!"

Liu Yifei, who was wrapping a mineral water bottle in a handkerchief and applying it to her face as an ice pack, curiously looked Lin Feng up and down.

I didn't see the other person carrying a bag or anything like that, so where did he get all these things from?
"Want to try it? It's thirst-quenching and refreshing!"

"Ok!"

Liu Yifei nodded and naturally took the ice water from his hand and took a sip.

Then she leaned closer, lay on his body, and started blowing air into the small fan in his hand.

Sensing the fragrance wafting to his nose, Lin Feng couldn't help but lower his head and kiss it... (End of Chapter)