Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

On April 28, Real Madrid faced Athletic Bilbao away from home.

Before the match, Athletic Bilbao players entered the stadium early and lined up in two rows on both sides of the players' tunnel to welcome the Real Madrid players.

This is a La Liga tradition where other teams hold a parade to honor the champions who have already clinched the title, as a sign of respect.

This season, Real Madrid not only competed in the Champions League, but also performed exceptionally well in La Liga, winning the title five rounds early and setting a new La Liga record.

So when the Real Madrid players entered the field, the 80,000 Real Madrid fans present stood up and chanted the champions' slogan, celebrating Real Madrid's 31st league title in club history.

After lifting the trophy, Real Madrid were in high spirits and went on to defeat Athletic Bilbao, who had given them a hard time in the first half of the season, 3-0 in the subsequent match.

So far, in the 34 rounds of matches played, Real Madrid has achieved a record of 28 wins, 3 draws and 3 losses, with a total of an astonishing 87 points.

The current record for the highest points in a single La Liga season is 92 points, set by Real Madrid in the 1996-1997 season.

With four rounds remaining in the league, Real Madrid has a high probability of breaking its own historical record.

If Real Madrid wins all of their remaining matches, they could even push their points total to a staggering 99!
It's worth noting that in the 1996-97 season, La Liga had 22 teams, and the number of matches per season was four more than it is now.

Despite playing four fewer games, Real Madrid still managed to break their own all-time points record, demonstrating just how dominant they are in the league this season.

As a result, many Spanish football legends believe that Real Madrid is likely to establish another dynasty, just like the era of Di Stefano and Puskás.

When a reporter asked Di Stefano about this, Di Stefano smiled and said:
"Why not? I've been following Lin Feng closely. He's an outstanding player, and I believe he will lead Real Madrid to a new dynasty!"

As Real Madrid's greatest player in history, Di Stéfano has a huge influence on Real Madrid's official website and among fans.

Previously, some outstanding players such as Ronaldo, Figo and Zidane had received his praise when they joined the team, but no one had ever received such high praise from him.

His interview thrilled countless Real Madrid fans.

Unexpectedly, even Di Stefano has high hopes for Lin Feng. Could it be that Real Madrid is really going to recreate its former glory?
Of course, winning league titles alone is not enough to build a dynasty.

Real Madrid's dynasty was built on an unprecedented five consecutive Champions League titles.

To recapture their former glory, Real Madrid needs to win at least one Champions League trophy first.

Real Madrid is just two games away from achieving this goal!
……

Just as Lin Feng was leading Real Madrid to great success in the league and the Champions League, the Chinese national football team encountered a crisis in the World Cup qualifiers.

The World Cup qualifiers started after the Lunar New Year, but the second phase of the schedule arranged by the AFC is quite unfriendly to East Asian teams with a large number of players playing abroad.

The dates of the Chinese national football team's first and second round matches were not within FIFA's international match days.

February and March are the most crucial months for the league and the Champions League, and clubs will not let key players leave at such a critical juncture.

Therefore, many of these players, including Lin Feng, who played overseas, did not have time to return to China to participate in competitions.

As a result, the Chinese national football team failed to win either of the two World Cup qualifiers on February 6 and March 26.

Of course, this is also related to the strength of the opponent.

Due to the Chinese national football team's extremely bad luck, they were drawn into Group A, a group of death, during the draw phase.

The other three opponents in the same group are Australia, Iraq, and Qatar.

Of these three teams, one is a traditional powerhouse, one is a dark horse, and the other is a West Asian team that often receives preferential treatment from referees.

It's fair to say that every match will be tough, and the Chinese national team's schedule is particularly unfortunate: their first match is an away game against Iraq, and their second match is a home game against Australia.

When the national football team was incomplete, they happened to encounter the two strongest opponents in the group.

The result is self-evident!

To be honest, Zhu Guanghu did a pretty good job leading a depleted squad to a draw against Iraq away from home and preventing Australia from winning at home.

However, after two rounds, the Chinese national football team has only managed to get 2 points, ranking second to last, which is quite dangerous.

In the second stage of the World Cup qualifiers, teams must finish in the top two of their group to advance to the third stage, which is the final round of the top ten.

If the Chinese team fails to secure points against Qatar, the weakest team in the group, in the next match and improve their ranking, then the national team may have to say goodbye to the next World Cup.

After missing out on the World Cup in Germany, Chinese football cannot afford to miss out on the World Cup again.

So after the second game, major domestic media outlets and fans were calling out the names of Lin Feng and others, hoping they could quickly return to the team and save it from its predicament.

In fact, even without fans' calls, Lin Feng had already made it clear in an interview with domestic media that he would participate in the third match against Qatar.

Lin Feng actually had a chance to participate in the match on February 6th, but the price was giving up two rounds of the league.

Lin Feng had already prepared to ask Real Madrid for leave, but Old Zhu felt that the Iraqi team was not strong enough and there was no need to make the overseas players go back and forth, so he did not let them come back.

By the time of the second match against Australia, the Champions League had entered the quarterfinals, and the league was also in its final sprint to win the title. At this point, Lin Feng really couldn't leave.

The situation is similar for other players. Without FIFA international match days, it's really difficult for them to find an excuse to return home to play. If they leave the team, the playing time they've worked so hard to get, or even their starting position, could be shaken.

So after much deliberation, Zhu Guanghu decided not to call up any overseas players and instead opted for a domestic lineup, playing a defensive counter-attacking style at home and managing to secure a draw.

Although 2 points is indeed not enough, on the bright side, the Chinese national football team is still undefeated.

Moreover, the upcoming schedule is favorable for the Chinese national team. If they can get six points from Qatar while Iraq and Australia are locked in a tough match, they can instantly reverse their current unfavorable situation.

However, if China fails to secure all six points against Qatar, their qualification for the next round will likely be out of their hands.

Therefore, the next two matches are extremely important, and can be considered life-or-death battles for the Chinese national football team.

Upon learning that Lin Feng and his teammates would participate in the next match, the vast majority of Chinese football fans finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fans feel a strong sense of security whenever they see Lin Feng on the court.

Many fans believe that the Chinese national football team feels like two completely different teams with and without Lin Feng, and their strengths are not even in the same league.

Coincidentally, Qataris think the same way.

After watching the first two matches of the national football team, they felt that the national team was just so-so, and even began to dream of getting points from the national team.

However, upon learning that Lin Feng and his teammates were about to rejoin the team for the next match, the Qatari players were furious and wanted to curse.

Why didn't you send your full-strength team when playing against strong teams like Iraq and Australia?

Now that it's my turn as the fourth seed, I'm going all out with my main players. What's the logic behind that?
However, it's not all bad news for Qatar.

After Lin Feng publicly stated his intention to participate in the next World Cup qualifier, tickets for their home game sold exceptionally well. Many of the tickets came from Chinese fans who had traveled from across China to support the national team, but even more were drawn by Lin Feng's fame, with neutral fans wanting to get a closer look at this football superstar, as well as a group of die-hard, passionate supporters.

As a superstar and the number one in Asia, Lin Feng's fame and influence in Asia far exceed his own imagination.

Young players from many countries idolize him, and many children have even developed an interest in football and pursued professional football careers because of his influence.

Lin Feng's emergence has had a greater impact on the promotion and dissemination of Asian football than any of the events held by FIFA and the AFC over the past decade.

……

Liu Yifei wasn't originally a football fan, but in the past year, influenced by Lin Feng, she has gradually come to like the sport.

She watched almost every single match Lin Feng participated in, whether it was a league game, a Champions League game, or a national team game.

Therefore, after learning that Lin Feng was confirmed to participate in the match against Qatar, Liu Yifei made inquiries and asked people to help her buy tickets so that she could go to the stadium to cheer for Lin Feng and the Chinese team.

When her friend Shu Chang heard the news, she thought she had probably gone mad.

"Sisi, don't go. There's war going on in the Middle East right now, it's not peaceful at all. Aren't you, a young woman, worried about your personal safety if you go there?"

"It's alright, the war is in another country, not Qatar. Besides, I'm not staying there for long, just one night!"

"No, I still can't rest easy about you. How about this, I'll reluctantly accompany you into this dangerous place!"

Shu Chang stood with her hands on her hips, looking every bit the boss.

"Our Changchang is the best!"

Liu Yifei was deeply moved by the other person's concern for her, but after a moment she suddenly realized:

"Wait a minute, I'm three months older than you, you should be calling me 'older sister'!"

……

With the World Cup qualifiers still a long way off, Lin Feng focused his energy on the league and the Champions League after finishing his phone conversation with Lao Zhu.

The second leg of the Champions League semi-final kicked off on April 30.

As expected, Barcelona failed to breach Old Trafford. Thanks to Scholes' stunning long-range goal, Manchester United defeated Barcelona at home, eliminating them 1-0 on aggregate and becoming the first team to advance to the Champions League final.

Barcelona's loss in this match means they have once again failed to win any titles in either the league or the Champions League.

The star-studded lineup originally brought in to compete for the championship is now facing the danger of falling apart.

Several players and coaches, including head coach Frank Rijkaard and star player Ronaldinho, are likely to leave Barcelona this summer.

If things aren't handled well, or if a suitable head coach can't be found to replace Rijkaard, Barcelona could fall into chaos.

After Barcelona's elimination, La Liga's last hope rests on Real Madrid.

On May 1st, Real Madrid, playing at home, faced the challenge of Liverpool.

Although Liverpool suffered a crushing 1-4 defeat to Real Madrid at home in the first leg, judging from their demeanor, they seem to have no intention of giving up. Instead, they are going to fight Real Madrid to the death at the Bernabéu for that last glimmer of hope.

Mourinho admired Benitez's courage, but still adopted a defensive counter-attacking formation at home.

When Benitez saw Real Madrid's starting lineup and formation, he couldn't help but curse inwardly.

That's so shameless! How can there be such shameless people in this world?
It's one thing if you play a defensive counter-attacking style in my home stadium, but why do you still play a defensive counter-attacking style when you return to your own home stadium?
You, a prestigious and powerful family, and the most successful and famous top-tier family on this planet, have the audacity to park a bus at your home stadium. Is this something a human being would do?
In fact, Real Madrid fans were somewhat dissatisfied with the team's choice of conservative tactics. Compared to Mourinho's preferred defensive counter-attacking style, they would rather see the team play beautiful attacking football and overwhelm their opponents with dazzling attacks.

Instead of relying on cowardly defense to curl up for three-pointers!
But tempted by the prospect of their tenth Champions League title, even the most discerning fans chose to remain silent, showing them respect by not booing Mourinho and his tactics.

Reaching the final and winning the championship is the most important thing; whether the game is entertaining or not can be put aside for now.

Once we achieve our tenth title this year, it won't be too late to make demands on the team's tactics and playing style next year.

However, Real Madrid fans cannot tolerate Mourinho's defensive counter-attacking tactics indefinitely, as they contradict their core values ​​and are too pragmatic.

Real Madrid fans want to earn money with dignity – they want the team to achieve good results and win various honors, and they also want the team to play exciting matches.

Mourinho had no time to care what the fans were thinking. Although he adopted a defensive counter-attacking tactic, Real Madrid played far from conservative.

Compared to the previous match, they committed more players to the attack, especially during the transition from defense to offense, when almost everyone except for one center-back rushed forward.

The increased attacking force resulted in Real Madrid scoring an early goal.

In the 11th minute of the first half, Lin Feng delivered a diagonal pass during a counter-attack, assisting Raul to score the first goal.

The score became 1-0, and the overall score was 5-1!

Another nail has been driven into Liverpool's coffin.

But Liverpool quickly responded, with Alonso's free kick finding Crouch, who, after a goalless game in the previous match, finally broke his scoring drought with a beautiful header to help his team pull one back.

Two goals were scored in the first fifteen minutes of the match, which thrilled the fans watching the game.

Manchester United and Barcelona have only scored one goal in two games, which is nothing compared to Real Madrid and Liverpool.

But the goal-fest between the two teams was not over yet. In the 22nd minute of the first half, Gerrard helped Liverpool take the lead with a long-range shot.

But Lin Feng quickly scored with a free kick, leveling the score.

In the second half, in the 75th minute, Kuyt was tripped by a Real Madrid player in the penalty area, and the referee promptly awarded a penalty.

Gerrard seized the opportunity and helped his team regain the lead.

This goal gave Liverpool players a glimmer of hope for a comeback, bringing them within two goals of the final.

However, just five minutes later, Real Madrid capitalized on a quick counter-attack, with Lin Feng scoring again to level the score once more.

At this point, the match had reached 80 minutes, and even including injury time, there were only a dozen minutes left before the end.

The aggregate score between the two teams has reached 7-4, with Liverpool still trailing by three goals.

In the final stages of the match, Liverpool, realizing they couldn't turn the tide, finally gave up their attack.

They left the Bernabéu in a relatively dignified manner, with a score of 3-3.

After defeating Liverpool, Real Madrid also advanced to the final, becoming the second team after Manchester United to reach the final.

Twenty days later, the two teams will compete for the final championship at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow! (End of Chapter)