Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

Chapter 472 Champions League Final, Against Cristiano Ronaldo

"CCTV, CCTV!"

"Dear viewers, we are now broadcasting live the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League final, Real Madrid vs. Manchester United!"

Sitting in the CCTV commentary booth were two familiar faces to many fans – Zhang Lu and Zhan Jun.

In recent years, with the improvement of the national football team's performance, the domestic football market has rebounded rapidly.

The increasing number of fans and the growing demand for watching European leagues through CCTV have gradually built a reputation among fans and made them increasingly popular with both new and old fans.

Because they have commentated on a large number of Lin Feng's matches, they are jokingly referred to by fans as Lin Feng's personal commentators.

The two have been confirmed to join CCTV's commentary team for the Olympic football event. Three months later, fans will see them in the commentary booth at the Olympics.

Before the match started, the two quickly introduced the starting lineups of both teams.

"Real Madrid's formation is 4-2-3-1, with Van Nistelrooy as the lone striker at the front."

Behind him was an attacking midfield group consisting of Raul, Lin Feng, and Sneijder.

The two defensive midfielders are Gago and Diarra.

The defense consisted of Ramos, Cannavaro, Pepe, and Marcelo, with Casillas remaining in goal.

"Compared to Real Madrid's squad in the league, there is a slight difference in the defensive midfield position. Mascherano joined during the winter break and is not eligible for Champions League registration, so he cannot represent Real Madrid in the Champions League."

Gago's playmaking ability is better than Mascherano's, but his defensive ability is much weaker.

While Diarra is a competent defensive midfielder, he is not a top-tier defensive midfielder, so this version of Real Madrid is not at its strongest.

Real Madrid's squad will be even stronger after they strengthen their squad in the transfer market this summer.

Both were somewhat curious. Mourinho had previously preferred to play Pepe in the defensive midfield position, but today he didn't do so, instead having him return to his old role as a center-back.

Does this imply that Real Madrid will face immense defensive pressure during the match?
Considering that the opponent's lineup includes forwards like Tevez and Rooney, as well as wingers like Ronaldo, Mourinho's arrangement is quite cautious.

As the saying goes, there are no great games in the finals. Offense can help them win the hearts of more fans, but defense can help the team win the championship.

Real Madrid is clearly aiming for the championship this time, so being cautious is not a bad idea.

Although Gago's defensive ability is not as good as Mascherano's, considering that there is also Lin Feng in the attacking midfield position who is good at both offense and defense, Real Madrid's midfield is not weak.

"Let's take a look at Manchester United. Ferguson has fielded a 4-4-2 formation today."

Van der Sar guarded the goal, with Evra and Brown on the left and right, respectively, while Ferdinand and Vidic, the old partners, formed the two iron gates in front of Manchester United's goal.

In midfield, Ronaldo and Hargreaves occupied the two flanks, with Scholes and Carrick positioned one in front of the other, while Rooney and Tevez formed the attacking duo.

Zhang Lu commented on Manchester United's lineup:
"Ferguson's decision not to field Park Ji-sung was somewhat unexpected, considering that the biggest threat in Real Madrid's lineup is their midfield maestro Lin Feng. If Lin Feng cannot be contained effectively, he will put enormous pressure on Manchester United's midfield and defense!"

Zhan Jun chimed in: "Hargreaves is an excellent all-around player. He is not only outstanding in defense, but also performs admirably in attack. Most importantly, he is versatile and can play in multiple positions in the midfield and defense. This is probably why Ferguson chose him!"

Ferguson had high hopes for Hargreaves; otherwise, he wouldn't have spent €2600 million to buy this injury-prone player from Bayern Munich.

Although he later became a liability for Manchester United due to numerous injuries, his arrival in the 07-08 season, along with the midfield trio of Carrick and Scholes, truly helped Manchester United dominate in the league and the Champions League.

……

Lin Feng doesn't know many people at Manchester United, and in fact, he attracted a lot of hatred because he led Inter Milan to a double victory against their opponents last year.

While waiting to enter the pitch in the players' tunnel, Lin Feng could feel several pairs of eyes on him from the Manchester United side.

He turned his head and saw that, apart from Ronaldo, the others had all turned their heads away, looking guilty as if they had been caught spying. Only Ronaldo, the clueless guy, continued to stare at him.

Lin Feng has seen many people like Cristiano Ronaldo who see him as a rival over the years.

In Serie A there's Kaká, in La Liga there's Messi, and even within Real Madrid, there's Robben who wants to challenge him.

Therefore, Lin Feng was able to remain calm in the face of Ronaldo's intense gaze. He not only did not feel offended, but he could also encourage Ronaldo.

So when Lin Feng saw the burning fighting spirit in Ronaldo's eyes, he nodded approvingly, smiled, and gave him a thumbs-up with his fist.

This move actually made Ronaldo feel embarrassed:

I'm so damn stupid. They were so friendly, treating me like a friend, and I was full of hostility...

Cristiano Ronaldo has a strong rebellious streak, but if you stroke his hair the right way, he will be flattered.

Perhaps due to his family background, Cristiano Ronaldo is quite sensitive and has a bit of an inferiority complex, and he craves recognition from the outside world.

His extreme self-discipline and strong competitive spirit are simply because he wants to become stronger so that he can gain more recognition and praise!

And now, before the game has even started, he has already received Lin Feng's recognition and even encouragement, which makes Ronaldo feel excited and eager to rush out onto the field and shout a few words.

Lin Feng was quite surprised to see Ronaldo's excited expression.

I just made a casual cheering gesture, how could it have such a powerful effect?
So he turned around and waved his fist at Gago behind him:

"Go Fernando!"

Gago, who was already very nervous, was completely bewildered by Lin Feng's sudden encouragement.

Did the other person sense my nervousness, which is why they were so encouraging?

Am I being that obvious?

Ruined!
The more he thought about it, the more nervous he became, and his body almost started trembling uncontrollably.

Lin Feng was extremely frustrated. Why was this trick ineffective against his own people?
Not only did it have no effect, he even felt that Gago was more nervous.

The long wait finally came to an end. Led by the referee team, the players from both teams left the players' tunnel and filed into the stadium for the final match – Luzhniki Stadium.

This stadium was the main venue for the 1980 Moscow Olympics. It is magnificent in scale and can accommodate 10 spectators at the same time. Its status in Russia is similar to that of the Bird's Nest in China.

At this moment, the stands of the stadium were filled with countless fans.

The supporters of the two teams were clearly divided: Real Madrid fans in white jerseys occupied the east stand, while Manchester United fans in red jerseys were concentrated in the west stand opposite.

As for the north and south stands, they were mainly occupied by local fans and some neutral fans.

Lin Feng also saw some Chinese people wearing Chinese national team uniforms and holding banners supporting him.

The fans are really enthusiastic; tickets for this final are said to be in high demand.

Real Madrid and Manchester United are considered by major media outlets to be the two strongest teams this season. Their clashes represent the highest level of European football.

Moreover, both teams have top-tier stars, which adds even more excitement to the match.

……

At 22:45 local time in Russia, the 07-08 UEFA Champions League final officially kicked off with the referee's whistle.

With the Champions League trophy at stake, both teams played very cautiously in the opening stages, carefully probing their opponent's strengths and weaknesses without rushing to launch an attack.

After several rounds of probing, Manchester United couldn't hold back any longer.

In the 5th minute, Hargreaves broke through on the wing and sent in a cross. He intended to pass the ball to Rooney in front of the goal, but when he crossed the ball, it was deflected by Real Madrid's left-back Marcelo and unexpectedly turned into a lob shot that unexpectedly fell towards the goal.

Fortunately, Real Madrid goalkeeper Casillas was very focused and reacted quickly, taking the ball and averting the danger.

Manchester United's attack seemed to press the accelerator button on the game, and the pace of the game suddenly accelerated. Real Madrid stopped probing and responded quickly.

In the 7th minute, Lin Feng successfully evaded Carrick in the attacking third and passed the ball to the wing.

Ramos, who had come up for the attack, delivered a cross from the right wing, but Van Nistelrooy was tightly marked by his former teammate Ferdinand and was unable to head the ball.

In the 11th minute, Real Madrid played a brilliant combination in the attacking third. Lin Feng got rid of the defender and received a pass back from Van Nistelrooy before unleashing a long-range shot that grazed the crossbar and went out of bounds.

This shot gave Manchester United fans a real scare; from the spectator's perspective, it really looked like a goal.

If the angle had been just a little bit lower, the outcome of the shot would have been uncertain.

After the start of the game, Lin Feng was very active in the frontcourt.

This gave Ferguson, who was on the coaching bench, a real headache:

Without assigning someone to keep an eye on him, it's impossible to limit his performance.

However, if we assign someone to keep a close watch, then we might not have enough manpower in the backcourt.

Real Madrid's lineup has no shortage of playmakers.

With Sneijder and Gago positioned one in front and one behind, both can serve as Real Madrid's attacking engines. In this lineup, Lin Feng is more like a killer than a midfield commander.

Simply marking Lin Feng closely won't solve the fundamental problem, but if we don't keep a close watch on him, he'll be too active and pose a greater threat to our defense.

After much deliberation, Ferguson had no choice but to make a decision: to have Hargreaves assist Carrick in defending against Lin Feng.

With Hargreaves dropping back, Manchester United's attacking focus shifted to the right flank where Ronaldo was positioned.

Cristiano Ronaldo appeared very excited during the match. Not long after the game started, he showed off his stepover skills on the right wing.

However, before the match, Real Madrid players were forced by Mourinho to repeatedly watch match videos of Manchester United players, especially attacking players such as Ronaldo and Rooney, to learn about their playing habits and strengths and weaknesses.

Seeing Ronaldo start his bicycle kick, Marcelo on the other side remained unmoved and began calling for reinforcements, adopting a stance of "Go ahead and kick, I'll call my teammates to surround and steal from you."

Seeing that his opponent wouldn't fall for his feint, Ronaldo changed his strategy, flicking the ball to the outside and forcefully overtaking Marcelo on a curve, using his explosive power and speed to outmaneuver him.

At this time, Marcelo was still quite inexperienced. After being beaten, he panicked and reached out to pull down Ronaldo, who had successfully broken through.

Cristiano Ronaldo let out a scream and instinctively tried to jump forward to perform one of his signature diving skills.

But halfway through the jump, he seemed to realize that he had been pulled down, not shoveled over.

So, halfway through the movement, he fell onto the lawn with a thud, like a kite with a broken string.

Lin Feng's lips twitched when he saw this.

This guy must have been trying to fake a fall just now, right?

Doesn't he feel pain?

Falling like that could easily break my arm!

Marcelo looked dejected after committing the foul. The foul was actually unnecessary because the opponent was still far from the goal and his teammates had already moved closer. Even if he was beaten, there would be no defensive gaps on the wing.

The referee gave him no chance to explain and promptly pulled out a yellow card, issuing the first penalty of the match.

On the sidelines, Mourinho was already itching to curse.

The player who absolutely cannot afford to get a card in this match is Marcelo, because he is matched up against Manchester United's star player, Cristiano Ronaldo.

The game is only 13 minutes in, and Marcelo has already received a card.

With this yellow card, he will inevitably become more hesitant in the following games, which will further make him a key target for the opponent.

Thinking about this, he even had the urge to replace the person right now.

But he quickly suppressed the thought. The game had just begun, and making a substitution so early would not only waste a substitution spot but also limit his tactical options in the second half.

It could also easily create new problems: if the substitute player gets injured or sent off, Real Madrid will be left without a left-back.

As for whether this substitution would affect his relationship with the player and cause Marcelo to have a problem with him, he hadn't considered that at all.

In his team, he made all the decisions, and the players had no choice but to obey unconditionally.

Seeing that the referee had given Marcelo a yellow card, Ronaldo was very satisfied, but he still groaned twice on the ground before slowly getting up.

He declined offers from Scholes, Hargreaves, and others to take the free kick himself.

Although the position wasn't ideal, Ronaldo felt he was in great form today, and there was no harm in trying; what if he just got lucky?

Seeing that Ronaldo was about to shoot, Casillas quickly directed his teammates to form a wall.

The opponent's knuckleball is famous, having scored in both the Premier League and the Champions League. Although this position isn't ideal, Casillas dared not be careless.

For him, defending free kicks and long-range shots has always been his weakness; there's no way around it, his height is simply not enough.

Cristiano Ronaldo took a few steps back, spread his legs, and looked determined.

After striking what he thought was a cool pose, he began his run-up.

The eyes of tens of thousands of fans at the stadium and countless fans watching on television were focused on his shot.

(End of this chapter)