Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

The final score of the match was 0-0, with both teams earning one point and both satisfied with the result.

Although Zhu Guanghu wanted more three points, the opponent didn't give him the opportunity, and the team couldn't break through the opponent's solid defense, so there was nothing he could do.

Although the Australian team was somewhat overwhelmed by the Chinese team's attack in the final moments, especially Lin Feng's free kicks in the second half, which gave them a real scare.

But securing a point gave them the initiative when facing Japan.

According to Welbeck, since the Chinese team failed to score points against Australia, they will have to go all out in their next match against Japan.

If Japan loses this match, they will fall three points behind Australia in the standings, giving Australia a huge advantage and room for error.

As long as they don't falter when facing the Japanese team, they can maintain this 3-point advantage until the end of the group stage!
The Japanese were clearly the most unhappy with the result of this match.

They were originally looking forward to a clash of titans, and regardless of who won, it would be advantageous for the Japanese team.

But the result is that the two teams drew, thwarting Japan's attempt to reap the benefits.

This means that the next match against China is a must-win game for the Japanese team.

If they lose this match, their points will fall three points behind the Chinese and Australian teams.

If they don't win their next game against Australia, the gap between them and China will widen further!
Under immense pressure, the Japanese team arrived in China early after their match against Uzbekistan to prepare for the upcoming China-Japan showdown!
Because their opponent was the Japanese team, the domestic media and the public paid close attention to this match.

Even before the match started, major media outlets had already begun generating buzz for it.

"A Clash of Old Rivals: Asian Cup Final Opponents Meet Again in World Cup Qualifiers!"

"Data Tells You Who is the Strongest Team in Asia?"

"Japan Killer? Lin Feng Maintains a Perfect Record Against the Japanese Team!"

Zhu Guanghu declared he would make the Japanese team develop a phobia of China!

Before the match, major media outlets either chased after the players and coaches on both sides, trying to get some sensational news from them.

Alternatively, you could delve into the data yourself and analyze the historical head-to-head records of the two teams to determine who is stronger or weaker.

Before the 2005 East Asian Cup, the Chinese national football team had a dismal record against Japan, having not won for seven or eight years.

However, since defeating Japan to win the East Asian Cup, the Chinese team has never lost to Japan in international competitions.

This includes the 2005 East Asian Cup and East Asian Games, as well as the 2006 Asian Games and the 2007 Asian Cup.

The Chinese and Japanese teams faced off four times in these four competitions, with the Japanese team losing all four matches.

Even setting aside competitions with lower prestige like the East Asian Cup and East Asian Games, looking solely at the Asian Games and Asian Cup, the Chinese and Japanese teams met twice in the finals, and both times the Chinese team defeated the Japanese team.

The last time the Japanese team defeated the Chinese team was in the 2004 Asian Cup final.

That was four years ago. In other words, the Japanese team has not won against China for four years.

I can't wait to see the Chinese team slaughter the Japanese team on the field!

[Hehe, let's try to score as many goals as possible, don't give the Japanese team any face, and try to win back all the games we've lost in the past in one go!]

[That's right, that's the height. The Japanese like to worship the strong and despise the weak. If you don't beat them to a pulp, they'll look down on you. On the contrary, the harder you beat them, the more they'll admire you!]

Someone came up with a wildly imaginative hypothesis:
[Hehe, do you guys think that if there's a really big scoreline, will the Japanese team start switching sides and learning from our football development experience?]

Hey, you know what, you really can't believe it, given the Japanese national character, something like this could actually go wrong!

Given the Chinese national football team's excellent record against Japan in recent years, fans are generally optimistic.

Of course, there are also some less optimistic voices:

We still can't be careless. Looking at the FIFA rankings, China and Japan are very close, meaning the difference in their strength isn't that significant. The Chinese national team absolutely cannot underestimate their opponents, otherwise they might repeat the mistake of the Asian Cup final years ago!

Yes, Japan is, after all, a top Asian team, having been number one in Asia for the past few years. They have a wealth of experience in the World Cup qualifiers, far surpassing the Chinese national team in this regard!

Although the Japanese team hasn't beaten us for four years, there have been very few truly head-to-head matches between the two teams—only two. Judging from the results of these two matches alone to conclude that the Japanese team is inferior to us is somewhat unconvincing, especially considering that we lost to Japan far more often in previous years.

The optimists responded as follows:

[That's alright. As long as the Chinese team defeats the Japanese team twice in this round of the World Cup qualifiers, it will prove that the Chinese team has completely dominated the Japanese team!]

Unlike the previous match against Australia, Zhu Guanghu gave the team a must-win order for this game.

"This match is crucial for our qualification. Japan is our biggest competitor. If we beat them, we can secure first place in the group."

But if we can't win, our qualification will likely be in jeopardy.

The entire nation is eagerly anticipating our qualification for the World Cup. We cannot let them down. We must win this match, and win it beautifully and spectacularly!

Actually, there was no need for Coach Zhu to motivate the players. As soon as they heard that they were going to play against the Japanese team, the players had already mentally prepared themselves.

When playing against a team like Japan, with whom they have a deep-seated grudge, the players are eager to fight tooth and nail and kick their opponents to the bone.

The forwards were already eager and ready for the match.

If they can score in this game, they can brag to their relatives and friends for years to come. Everyone who hears that they once broke through the Japanese team's defense will give them a thumbs up!

Because temperatures had generally dropped in northern China, Qinhuangdao was no longer suitable as the home ground for the Chinese national football team. Therefore, the major match between China and Japan was rescheduled to be held at the Nanjing Olympic Sports Center.

The Japanese team originally had a sliver of hope, but now it's completely gone.

On the day of the match, the huge Olympic Sports Center was packed with fans from Nanjing and die-hard fans of the national football team who had traveled from all over the country.

The large screen at the venue displayed a terrifying number: there were 66779 spectators at the game, but the Nanjing Olympic Sports Center only had a capacity of 63,000.

As for where the extra 3,000 people came from, that remains unknown!
Although it's not a professional stadium, the sheer number of people there created was still quite impressive.

When the Chinese team players entered the stadium, the fans erupted in deafening cheers, while when the Japanese team entered, the stadium was filled with boos.

Keisuke Honda, making his first appearance in the national team's starting lineup, shrank back in fear upon seeing this scene. For some reason, he felt as if the fans and opposing players were looking at him like he was a dead man, sending chills down his spine and filling him with inexplicable fear and unease.

The thought of competing against the person he had been chasing for three or four years filled him with a mix of excitement and unease.

After losing to the Chinese team in the East Asian Cup, Keisuke Honda made Lin Feng his goal to surpass.

Although he followed in Lin Feng's footsteps last year and went to Europe to start his overseas career.

However, compared to Lin Feng's success at Real Madrid, he could only play for an ordinary team in the Dutch second division.

The harsh reality and the setbacks he has suffered in recent years have made Keisuke Honda realize that he may never catch up with Lin Feng in his lifetime.

So when he met his opponent again on the field, he didn't feel the overwhelming ambition to defeat him personally; instead, he felt a deep unease due to fear of his opponent's strength!

"Honda, is that the guy you're trying to overtake?"

The sudden sound beside him interrupted Keisuke Honda's thoughts.

When Keisuke Honda turned around, he saw that it was a newcomer who had just joined the team.

This young man, who had just established himself at Sakura Osaka, had a spirit reminiscent of his own youthful fearlessness, which made Keisuke Honda feel a little dazed, as if he were seeing his younger self.

"Yes, he is the goal I strive for my whole life, but I think the gap between us is probably very small!"

Shinji Kagawa disagreed:

"Honda-kun, you're too pessimistic. I don't think he's anything special. With your talent, you'll catch up to him sooner or later!"

Keisuke Honda shook his head. He felt that this little brother was a bit too arrogant!
"Kagawa-kun, you're wrong. Hayashi is the best midfielder of this era, not only in Asia but also worldwide. I'm at best an Asian-level midfielder, at least a level and a half below him. So don't easily set him as your goal. The gap between us is too big. When you realize this, you'll feel despair and doubt whether all your years of hard work have been worth it."

19-year-old Shinji Kagawa had no idea about these philosophies of life!

He felt that his older brother, Keisuke Honda, was boosting the morale of others while diminishing his own!

He even started to look down on his older brother, Keisuke Honda!

Young people generally have a strong rebellious streak. Shinji Kagawa, who was just starting out, was bursting with confidence. The more Keisuke Honda told him not to make Lin Feng his role model, the more determined he became to do so.

Lin Feng, huh? Just wait and see how I surpass you in the future!
Shinji Kagawa has made a decision: when he gets back, he will change his jersey number to 8. He wants to prove to the world that he is the best number 8 player in the world!

……

"Wow, so many people came! It must be so cool to celebrate in front of so many people!"

Gao Lin is a player who gets really excited; the more people there are at the stadium, the more excited he becomes.

This guy is already mentally planning what celebration move he'll make later!

"Make the most of your opportunities in this game, and don't waste my assist, otherwise I won't pass it to you next time!"

Seeing that Gao Lin was being a bit smug, Lin Feng gave him a few words of advice.

Japan will face considerable attacking pressure in this match, so they are unlikely to play too conservatively.

The Chinese team's tactics were also much more aggressive than in the previous match, with Zhu Guanghu arranging a full-scale attack.

This means that this match will be completely different from the last one, and the Chinese team will have a lot of scoring opportunities.

In the last match, Lin Feng conserved his energy at the last moment so that he would have plenty of stamina to perform well in this match.

He will not hold back against the Japanese team and will seize every opportunity to put the ball into their goal!
Anyone who dares to slip up in this kind of competition will really be remembered by Lin Feng.

The Chinese national team's forwards today are Han Peng and Gao Lin, while Dong Fangzhuo has been placed on the bench.

Given Dong Fangzhuo's recent outstanding form, Gao Lin's position as a starter is not secure.

Therefore, upon hearing Lin Feng's words, he dared not be arrogant in the slightest. He immediately corrected his attitude and patted his chest to show that he would do his best.

As the player with the most hat-tricks in the history of the Chinese national football team, Gao Lin hasn't tasted the joy of a hat-trick in a long time.

This match is so crucial and highly anticipated. If he can score a hat trick in such a game, Gao Lin's fame will definitely rise to another level.

Gao Lin doesn't aspire to match Lin Feng's popularity, but becoming the second most popular person after Lin Feng would be quite an achievement.

During the pre-match national anthem performance, tens of thousands of people sang in unison, as if reliving the War of Resistance against Japan.

After the national anthem was sung, the fans and players in the stadium were filled with righteous indignation, as if they had been given a buff. Their fighting spirit and desire for revenge had reached their peak!

The Japanese players were unaware of the danger at this point. Although they felt that the opposing players were behaving strangely, they did not think much of it.

During the pre-match coin toss, the Chinese team chose possession of the ball, while the Japanese team chose the court.

With the referee's whistle, the match officially began!
After the match started, Gao Lin passed the ball to Han Peng next to him and then accelerated straight into the opponent's territory.

The Japanese players didn't seem to care about this; their two forwards pressed forward together, seemingly trying to pressure the Chinese player with the ball.

After receiving the ball, Han Peng passed it back to Lin Feng behind him, and then rushed forward, following in Gao Lin's footsteps.

Seeing this, the Japanese striker rushed towards Lin Feng again. However, Lin Feng ignored the opposing player pressing him and launched a long pass from behind the center circle, transferring the ball to the left flank of the attacking third.

The Japanese player misjudged the pass's trajectory and attempted to intercept it but failed.

The ball bounced off the grass, and Qu Bo, who had come from the wing, chested it down and passed it to Gao Lin, who had already rushed to the center line of the penalty area.

Before the opposing goalkeeper could make a save, Gao Lin unleashed a powerful shot, sending the ball into the net.

The score is now 1-0!

At this moment, less than 7 seconds had passed since the start of the match! (End of Chapter)