Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

"Is Barcelona going to lose again?"

"I'm pretty sure it's true. Look at the expressions on their players' faces, something just doesn't look right!"

Because it involves their own efforts to catch up, Real Madrid's players are paying close attention to this match.

When Barcelona took a two-goal lead in the first half, everyone secretly felt it was a pity, thinking there was no chance to further narrow the gap between the two teams.

Who would have thought that Barcelona would suddenly collapse in the second half!

Although they were still ahead in the score, the Barcelona players were clearly losing their composure.

That feeling of confusion, panic, and even fear is immediately recognizable to anyone who has played football.

Barcelona's morale has collapsed!
On the other hand, Atletico Madrid, after scoring two goals in quick succession, were riding high on their momentum.

Even if you bring on a team like Real Madrid, who excels at defense, at this point, they might not be able to withstand the opponent's attack.

Playing football is a lot like fighting a war; once morale is high, no one can stop you.

Atletico Madrid's offensive continued. In the 60th minute, Forlán broke through to the edge of the penalty area, cut inside to get rid of the defender, and fired a low shot with his left foot into the far corner, which was tipped over the bar by Valdes with one hand.

Simão's tactical corner kick was delivered to the edge of the penalty area, and Raúl García's long-range shot was once again blocked by a defender.

Barcelona, ​​known for their ball control, surprisingly struggled to hold onto the ball and stop the opponent's attacks.

On several occasions, Barcelona players were forced to resort to fouling tactics to stop the opponent.

At the crucial moment, Henry stepped up once again.

In the 72nd minute, Eto'o made a through pass from midfield, and Gudjohnsen, after drawing the Atletico Madrid goalkeeper out on a one-on-one situation, passed the ball across to the far post. Henry, with great effort, shook off the Atletico Madrid defenders and shot like an arrow into the penalty area, sending the ball into the empty net.

3-2, Barcelona take the lead again, Henry scores twice!

Henry's goal not only pulled Barcelona back from the brink of defeat, but also gave them hope of winning the game.

At this moment, regardless of their previous impressions of Henry, all Barcelona fans cheered and applauded him from the bottom of their hearts.

If Barcelona can defeat Atletico Madrid in this match, he will definitely be the team's number one hero.

Guardiola breathed a long sigh of relief when he saw Henry score again.

For the past ten minutes or so, he was so nervous he felt like he was suffocating.

At this time, Guardiola was not yet the world-class manager who would later become accustomed to all kinds of big occasions, tasted the bitterness and sweetness of life, and experienced the vicissitudes of human relationships.

Right now, he's just a newcomer who's just started out and has only recently taken the reins of the team!
This is the first time in Guardiola's coaching career that he has encountered a team going on a winless streak for several rounds.

He had neither experienced this feeling nor had the experience to deal with such a thorny problem.

So he could be said to be the most panicked person in the entire Barcelona team, because the players on the field have all experienced this situation to some extent, but Guardiola, this rookie, has not.

As a coach, he must constantly reflect on and summarize the team's experiences and lessons learned from their losses, and adjust the team's tactical details in a targeted manner based on the schedule and the team's personnel situation.

But it's much simpler for the players. They just need to train hard according to the head coach's requirements, and then execute the tactics arranged by the coach on the field.

Therefore, lack of experience is Guardiola's biggest weakness.

That's why veteran Thierry Henry, who stepped up at such a crucial moment, was practically Guardiola's savior.

Guardiola had to start reflecting on whether his previous thinking had been too extreme.
Is there too much reliance on newcomers while neglecting the role of veterans?

When the game was at a stalemate, or even when the team was clearly at a disadvantage, the newcomers were all anxious and performed poorly.

On the contrary, the veterans, because of their rich experience, can withstand the pressure and even step up when the team needs them most.

……

"Oh dear, what happened? How did they manage to leave someone unattended?"

"Does Atletico Madrid even know how to play? They commit so many fouls, so they should focus on set pieces and shoot directly at them from free kicks!"

"Come on, do you think Atletico Madrid is like us? They don't have a top-class free-kick master like Lin Feng!"

"That hits the nail on the head! If Atletico Madrid had a player like Lin, they would have won this match a long time ago!"

"I couldn't agree more. Just from the number of free kicks Barcelona gave us, it feels like Lin could have scored several!"

Seeing Barcelona take the lead again, there was a chorus of groans in Real Madrid's locker room.

Everyone felt it was a great pity. They thought Atletico Madrid had a good chance of defeating Barcelona, ​​and they were even calculating the points difference between them and Barcelona after Atletico Madrid beat Barcelona, ​​and when they could catch up with Barcelona.

As it turned out, Atletico Madrid faltered!

Conceding a goal at this point in time is crucial, because Atletico Madrid doesn't have much time left.

They need to score at least two more goals to beat Barcelona.

Given Barcelona's confused state just now, this possibility existed.

But now, encouraged by Henry's goal, Barcelona's morale has rebounded, and it's unlikely that Atletico Madrid will be able to launch such a reckless attack again.

After all, Barcelona has just proven that with speedy strikers like Henry and Eto'o, their counter-attacks are also very sharp.

If Atletico Madrid doesn't pay more attention, they might continue to concede goals.

Now the ball has been kicked back to Atletico Madrid's feet. Let's see if they dare to continue their attack.

Atletico Madrid's choice was clear – continue attacking!
If you chicken out, you're not Atlético Madrid!

Seeing this, Guardiola quickly called Messi over and whispered some instructions in his ear.

Messi nodded with a serious expression and then relayed the coach's instructions after entering the field.

Henry's goal played a huge role in stabilizing Barcelona's morale; at least now, facing Atletico Madrid's attack, Barcelona's players are less panicked.

In the 74th minute, taking advantage of the opponent's high press, Barcelona launched a quick counter-attack.

After receiving the ball, Messi showed no intention of dribbling and passed it to Gudjohnsen in front of him with one touch.

The latter also didn't hold onto the ball, passing it straight forward to Eto'o.

The African cheetah, like a wild horse, used its speed to outrun Atletico Madrid's two defenders.

But Atletico Madrid's goalkeeper made a crucial save, instinctively stretching out his leg to block the ball when Eto'o took a shot from the left side of the penalty area.

Messi followed up and took a shot in the middle, but ridiculously missed the open goal, squandering a golden scoring opportunity.

Upon seeing Messi's shot, Henry on the field, Guardiola on the sidelines, and the Barcelona fans in the stands all clutched their heads in disbelief.

They never expected that the ball would miss!

This is an open door!

Messi himself scratched his head in frustration, clearly very dissatisfied with his performance. If he had scored that goal, it would have sealed the victory.

The Atlético Madrid fans in the stands broke out in a cold sweat!
As expected of Barcelona, ​​they are indeed very strong.

This kind of rapid counterattack is truly impossible to defend against.

However, Atletico Madrid fans looked left and right, and something just didn't seem right.

Finally, someone realized what was happening and succinctly revealed the secret:
"Isn't this Real Madrid's tactic?"

"Now that you mention it, it does seem to make sense. A series of forward passes, delivering the ball to the opponent's penalty area at top speed, leaving them no time to defend—that's Mourinho's style!"

Mourinho, who was watching the game, couldn't help but sit up straight when he saw Barcelona's familiar counter-attack.

"Pep claims his tactics are the best, but secretly he's been studying mine. Tsk tsk, I guess he still thinks I'm pretty strong!"

The two have a good relationship in private and know each other very well.

Mourinho knew that Guardiola was someone who appeared approachable on the surface, but was actually an arrogant and self-centered guy.

The fact that one's tactics can be studied and imitated by the opponent is enough to prove one's importance in the opponent's mind.

Barcelona's fast counter-attacks were too threatening, forcing Atletico Madrid to temporarily suspend their attack and focus on stabilizing their defense first.

As time ticked away, the score remained 2-3, and many Barcelona fans were already celebrating in their hearts.

Finally, I can escape this damned quagmire!

If they continue to fail to win, not only will Real Madrid catch up in points, but even the players on the team will start to doubt their own abilities.

When Atletico Madrid were worried about counter-attacks and had to focus on defense, their threat to Barcelona's goal decreased significantly.

However, at this moment, an unexpected event occurred.

In the 78th minute, Antonio Lopez delivered a cross from the left wing at a 45-degree angle, and Pongoller collided with Henry at the far post and fell inside the penalty area.

At first, no one paid attention to what was happening, until referee Vázquez rushed into the penalty area and pointed to the penalty spot, at which point the Barcelona fans and players on the field realized that something was seriously wrong.

Penalty kick!

That's a penalty kick!
The Barcelona players on the field surrounded the referee, visibly agitated, trying to get him to overturn the decision.

But how is this possible?
The referee stood by his decision and showed yellow cards to Puyol and Henry, who were both agitated.

A penalty kick and two yellow cards – Barcelona really lost out!
Uruguayan striker Forlán took the penalty himself. Although Valdes guessed the right direction, the ball was too fast and he was unable to save it.

The score is now 3-3, Atletico Madrid has equalized once again!

With Fran's goal, the atmosphere in the stadium became tense again.

Including stoppage time, there are about fifteen minutes left in the game.

If Atletico Madrid scores another goal within these 15 minutes, Barcelona will suffer their second consecutive league defeat!
In the final stages of the match, Atletico Madrid mobilized almost their entire squad, launching their fiercest attack on Barcelona.

In the 81st minute, Forlán passed the ball to Simão, who cut inside from the left and unleashed a powerful right-footed shot, which Barcelona defender Marquez blocked with his face!

In the 83rd minute, Assunção's long-range shot was blocked out of bounds by a defender. Simão took the corner kick from the right, and Aguero's header at the near post went high.

In the 85th minute, Pablo intercepted the ball in midfield and made a through pass, Aguero went one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but his touch was too heavy and he was tackled and cleared by Valdes...

Barcelona's goal was under pressure almost every minute, and Valdes became the busiest person on the field, while his teammates tried every means to stop and disrupt the opponent's attack.

But when Atletico Madrid went berserk, they were like mad dogs and there was no way to stop them.

In the 88th minute, Maniche made a through pass, and Aguero dribbled into the left side of the penalty area. Puyol intercepted the ball, but it bounced back to Aguero's feet. The Argentine then scored with a low shot into the far corner with his left foot.

4 is better than 3!

Atletico Madrid pulled off a miraculous comeback!

The Calderon Stadium has gone completely wild, with the entire stadium celebrating wildly.

Meanwhile, the Barcelona coaching staff looked devastated, with Guardiola bowing his head and remaining silent.

The players on the bench had bewilderment and fear in their eyes, their expressions seeming to say: We actually lost?
A perfect start, leading twice, but in the end, they were defeated at Calderon.

Which Barcelona fan could accept this kind of storyline?

"Haha, well done Atlético Madrid!"

"Holy crap! No way, Atletico Madrid really pulled off a comeback?"

"Atletico Madrid's players are simply divine; Barcelona truly deserved to lose this match!"

"Referee, please end the game quickly! Don't let them play anymore!"

"If Barcelona loses this game, does it mean their lead over us will only be three points?"

"Hehe, I feel like Barcelona is really out of sorts right now. With their current form, it feels like any team in La Liga could bully them. They might even lose the next game!"

"Yes, Barcelona's next opponent is Athletic Bilbao, and the Basques are not to be trifled with. But it's a pity that the next game is at Barcelona's home ground. Basque teams are notorious for being strong at home but weak away. I wonder if they can create a miracle."

"Actually, it's okay. Reducing the gap to 3 points is enough. Don't forget we still have one more chance to play against Barcelona!"

An optimistic mood filled Real Madrid's locker room, as if everyone thought Barcelona was about to collapse.

But only Lin Feng knew that Guardiola's tactics not only did not collapse, but also led Barcelona to the top of Europe.

Messi's poor performance in these few games is simply due to the impact of his injury during national team matches, which has led to a slump in his own form!
Once Messi steps out of his slump and unleashes his full potential, Barcelona will immediately escape their predicament and teach other teams a lesson.

But can Messi recover his form in a short time?
Urged on by the referee, the Atletico Madrid players reluctantly ended their celebration.

The match had just resumed when Atletico Madrid immediately made a tactical substitution to further delay the game.

With time running out, the Barcelona players were very anxious.

Henry kicked off from the center circle and passed the ball across to Eto'o, who then unleashed a long-range lob shot from midfield, which, of course, posed no threat.

Barcelona had pressed forward with their entire team, determined to equalize the score.

But how could Atletico Madrid let their opponents have their way?

They used various delaying tactics, lying on the ground, and even fouling to waste time.

Barcelona's players were eager to win possession and launch an attack, and in their haste, they made very large movements, which drew frequent whistles from the referee, thus falling right into the opponent's trap.

As time ticked away, Messi, eager to attack, even made a stomping motion during a challenge in the second minute of stoppage time, earning a yellow card from the referee.

When Lin Feng saw that Messi's movements were all distorted, he couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

After this match, it's predictable that Messi will face a torrent of criticism from the outside world. (End of Chapter)