Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

Real Madrid's defenders clearly didn't expect Messi to be able to dribble the ball out in such a narrow space, and didn't have time to foul him before he entered the penalty area.

Messi had already suddenly entered the penalty area, and it was too late for a tactical foul.

Messi, having completed the breakthrough, skillfully dribbled past Casillas' block and slotted the ball into the far corner, leveling the score at 1-1.
Messi was beaming with excitement after scoring, and he made a double-pointing-to-the-sky celebration gesture.

Since Lin Feng scored his first goal, Messi has been under considerable pressure.

And at this moment, this pressure was finally released.

Messi's goal sent the Camp Nou stadium into a frenzy. Barcelona fans in the stands held up their scarves and Messi posters, chanting his name like fanatics to their god.

It must be said that Messi's goal was truly spectacular.

Even from a neutral perspective, this was an unparalleled goal, even more stunning than Lin Feng's previous goal.

To single-handedly break through Real Madrid's defense and score against Casillas, a goalkeeper widely recognized as one of the world's top goalkeepers, in such a confined space, using his powerful dribbling and breakthrough abilities, is an extraordinary feat.

But Messi did it!

It's no wonder Barcelona fans were so excited. Messi's goal not only turned the tide for Barcelona, ​​but the process of scoring was also a superb individual performance!

Such a goal brought fans an ultimate enjoyment, making them cheer spontaneously for Messi's performance.

Those fans who couldn't get tickets felt cheated after seeing the goal.

If I had known I would be able to see such a spectacular goal live, I would have definitely bought a ticket to Camp Nou, even if it meant paying extra to get one from a scalper.

Although Camp Nou hosts twenty or thirty matches each season, there are very few as exciting as this one.

"Damn it, this guy!"

Pepe stood in the penalty area, hands on his hips, watching Messi's back as he celebrated with his teammates, his face full of displeasure.

Even when he and Thiago Silva teamed up, they couldn't stop Messi.

This guy is as cunning as an eel; he's impossible to catch.

Pepe couldn't understand how someone could have such good dribbling skills.

The ball didn't look hard to steal, but every time they stretched out their foot, the opponent would always pass the ball before them, causing them to misjudge and expose weaknesses that the opponent could exploit.

Thiago Silva, standing to the side, agreed wholeheartedly, a look of apprehension on his face.

The thought of potentially facing Argentina, with Messi, in the Copa America and the World Cup qualifiers in South America made my sister-in-law feel a little heavy-hearted.

With Ronaldo and Ronaldinho aging, the Brazilian team's strength has declined significantly compared to previous years, while neighboring Argentina is on the rise, with a large number of outstanding young players emerging in recent years. If this continues, the landscape of South American football may undergo a dramatic change.

"It's the frequency of ball contact!"

Lin Feng, who had overheard their discussion, spoke up to offer a reminder:
"Messi touches the ball very frequently. If you are not absolutely sure, do not make a move. Making a move rashly is just giving him an opportunity."

Peipei and her sister-in-law nodded repeatedly after hearing this, clearly having learned their lesson.

The goal conceded late in the first half disrupted Mourinho's plans, as he had intended for his team to play conservatively and hold onto their lead.

But now the advantage is gone, and the opponent's momentum has increased after scoring, so it is very likely that the scenario of besieging Real Madrid's goal will repeat itself.

If Barcelona manages to score another goal, Real Madrid will be in a very passive position.

Thinking of this, he recalled the advice Lin Feng had given him in his office earlier.

Maybe, you can give it a try?
As Mourinho predicted, after the match restarted, Barcelona, ​​riding high on their momentum, launched a fierce attack on Real Madrid.

Real Madrid hadn't even had a chance to launch an attack after kickoff when they lost possession under relentless pressure from the opposing team.

Seeing their team regain possession, the Barcelona fans in the stadium shouted excitedly, anticipating the ensuing attacking frenzy.

They were very familiar with this rhythm; Barcelona had played out similar scenarios many times in other matches, including against Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.

However, to their surprise, Real Madrid did not retreat to their own penalty area and take the beating as they had done before.

Instead, they pressed Barcelona very aggressively in the midfield and attacking third, with a pressing intensity no less than Barcelona's earlier pressing against them.

Barcelona was caught off guard by Real Madrid's sudden change, and Pique even made a mistake when he received a long pass from his teammate and was about to pass it back to the goalkeeper.

Benzema made a clever interception on the edge of the penalty area, then broke into the box on a one-on-one, and slotted the ball into the far corner before Valdes could react.

The score became 2-1, and Real Madrid took the lead again!

This scene terrified the Barcelona fans in the stands and shocked Barcelona's manager, Pep Guardiola, who stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

Is this a lost ball?
Why did Real Madrid score so easily?
"This is a super, super, huge mistake! Pique, how could you make such a basic mistake in a match!"

Inside the studio, both commentators were stunned when they saw the ball.

Zhan Jun shook his head in confusion: "Pique's mistake ruined Barcelona's hard work in the first half, making Messi's goal meaningless! This kind of mistake should never happen in a game of this level. No professional player should make such a basic mistake!"

How difficult could it be to pass the ball back to the goalkeeper, who is more than ten meters away, from outside the penalty area?

Even amateur players wouldn't make such an outrageous mistake!

Zhang Lu chuckled and shared her opinion:

"Hehehe, Barcelona was caught off guard by Real Madrid's sudden change of tactics and pressing. They had been dominating Real Madrid, which made them feel that Real Madrid would only passively take the beating and would not fight back. Now it seems that this was a tactic by Real Madrid to deliberately feign weakness and lull the enemy into a false sense of security. Judging from the result, Real Madrid's tactics were very successful!"

"Mourinho is no ordinary player; this match is going to be exciting!"

On the Real Madrid coaching bench, Mourinho excitedly pumped his fist and roared.

He genuinely hadn't expected this tactic to be so effective!

Barcelona presses so hard against other teams, so why do they lose their composure when they're being pressed themselves?

Real Madrid have now regained the lead and have also secured two away goals, giving them a clear advantage!
Mourinho's heart began to swell with excitement: perhaps they really could take a victory from Camp Nou?
Despite his team falling behind again, Guardiola remained calm.

He called Harvey over and whispered some instructions in his ear.

High pressing is not a new tactic, and Barcelona has encountered it in previous matches.

But why was Barcelona so thoroughly defeated when Real Madrid used this tactic? It was mainly a matter of timing!
Real Madrid used this tactic at the perfect time, just when Barcelona had equalized and were riding high on their momentum, ready to press their advantage.

Barcelona hadn't faced much pressure from Real Madrid when they had possession, so they were less alert and focused entirely on attacking. They were unprepared for Real Madrid's counterattack, which led to the goal they conceded.

Guardiola did not blame the players on the field, not even Pique, who made a big mistake.

As the head coach, he also needs to take responsibility for this situation, because his coaching experience is not rich enough and he failed to anticipate the possibility of this happening.

But consider it tuition; having been fooled once, he won't fall for it again!
Benzema was ecstatic after scoring the goal, rushing to the sidelines and diving to celebrate. After getting up, he even pulled up the corner flag as if aiming for a shot.

To be honest, he didn't expect to be selected by the coach and start in such an important game.

But that's precisely why Benzema played so hard after coming on.

Just now, when Real Madrid was executing their high-pressing tactic, it was Benzema's sprint that startled Pique, causing him to panic and make a mistake. This goal was entirely Benzema's own doing.

"Well done, Karim!"

That's how you should play!

His teammates swarmed in from all directions, surrounding Benzema and showering him with praise.

"Be more confident, be more domineering, don't be a Benzai cat, be a Tyrannosaurus Rex!"

"That's right, that's right, the captain is getting old, you should encourage him!"

"Hey, hey, hey, your captain is still here. Are you saying bad things about me to my face because you don't respect me as your captain?"

"Haha, Captain, what are you saying? We're just encouraging Benzema to learn from you!"

……

Real Madrid's celebration lasted for more than a minute, and they only returned to the field reluctantly after being urged by the referee.

With little time remaining in the first half, and seemingly wary of Real Madrid's counter-pressing, Barcelona did not immediately launch an attack after the restart, but instead tried to stabilize the pace and slowly penetrate forward in a safer manner.

But before they could launch an attack, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.

At halftime, the score was 2-1, with Real Madrid in the lead.

The Real Madrid players were very satisfied with the score and left the stadium in a relaxed and happy mood.

On the other hand, the Barcelona players looked somewhat serious.

This season, Barcelona has rarely been at a disadvantage at home, and has almost never lost a game.

But this match put pressure on their players.

It's not that Real Madrid is particularly strong; it's just that their opponents were incredibly lucky, abnormally so.

One of Real Madrid's two goals was an accident, and the other was due to Barcelona's own mistake, which made the Barcelona players feel very frustrated.

With a bang, Guardiola slammed the locker room door shut and turned on his hairdryer mode:

"Apart from Leo, I was extremely disappointed with your performance in the first half!"

The Barcelona players couldn't help but lower their heads, not daring to look the coach in the eye.

Although Barcelona's performance in the first half wasn't bad statistically, it all became meaningless given their deficit.

“Eto’o, without speed, are you no longer a threat? I didn’t see any outstanding performance from you in the entire first half. If you continue like this in the second half, then you’re off the field, and I will bring on a more threatening player!”

"Henry, there's so much space on the flanks, why do you always have to squeeze into the middle? Do you think the opponent's defense in the middle isn't dense enough?"

"Iniesta, be more decisive when handling the ball. Pass when you should pass, dribble when you should dribble. Don't hesitate, because hesitation is wasting opportunities!"

……

Like a teacher taking attendance in class, almost none of the starting eleven players, except for Messi, escaped Guardiola's criticism.

Among them, Yaya Touré received the most severe criticism.

Yaya Toure is a box-to-box midfielder with abundant stamina, a wide coverage area on the field, an attacking mindset, and is also very good at attacking.

But in this match, Guardiola assigned him the task of defense, leaving the offensive work to his teammates.

However, he couldn't resist and repeatedly dribbled the ball into the attacking third to participate in the attack. While this approach enhanced Barcelona's attacking firepower, it weakened Barcelona's defensive capabilities.

Xavi's first yellow card was given to Yaya Toure.

If Yaya Toure were still in his position, then he should have been the one to intercept Lin Feng.

Compared to Xavi, Yaya Toure is stronger defensively and faster.

If he had stopped Lin Feng at the time, perhaps that foul wouldn't have happened, and Harvey wouldn't have received the card.

As for the second goal conceded, although Pique made a huge mistake, Yaya Toure was also partly responsible, since it was Yaya Toure who passed the ball to Pique.

Yaya Toure didn't accept Guardiola's criticism and even argued back.

Enraged, Guardiola immediately decided to make a substitution. He has zero tolerance for troublemakers who don't follow his tactical arrangements, no matter how big their names are!

At this point, Guardiola was already starting to regret his decision.

Previously, Busquets was not included in the starting lineup because of concerns that he was too young and lacked experience in major competitions.

Now it's proven that his decision was terribly wrong; if Busquets had started, perhaps both goals conceded could have been avoided.

However, Busquets' defensive ability is still a bit weak. If Barcelona had a defensive midfielder of Mascherano's caliber in Real Madrid, that would be perfect.

Compared to the fierce infighting in the Barcelona dressing room, the scene at Real Madrid was much more harmonious.

Mourinho did not criticize his players; instead, he praised them highly, especially Benzema, who brought him an unexpected surprise.

Previously, I thought this guy lacked ability and had a poor mentality, but now it seems that was just my prejudice. In the upcoming matches, Mourinho plans to give him more opportunities! (End of Chapter)