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Chapter 239 Sharpen a Knife First
"Son, will you be able to start tomorrow's game?"

When Liu Jinxuan saw his mother ask this question during the video call, he had a bad feeling:
"Mom, you're not going to brag to those aunties and uncles again about me starting, are you?"

The mother's expression was a little unnatural. She scolded, "What kind of person do you think I am? Do you think I'm such an unreliable person?"

That's hard to say...

Liu Jinxuan mentally complained about his mother.

At the same time, the father, who was behind the mother in the video, also looked up at her.

Clearly, the father and son are on the same page when it comes to this.

Liu Jinxuan asked his mother, "Then why are you asking this?"

"Hey, can't I ask? Can't I care about my son?"

"The key is that I myself don't know if I'll even be a starter..."

"How could I not know? There are always some clues. For example, your performance in training, is the coach paying more attention to you...?"

"No, it's the same as usual, there's no difference." To make his words more convincing and to convince his mother as soon as possible, Liu Jinxuan pretended to think for a moment before answering her.

But the mother was clearly still not convinced: "Hey, how can there be no difference? The Chinese team has already qualified, so this last game is just garbage time, a friendly match, right? In this kind of situation, wouldn't the head coach usually choose to rest the key players and give the substitutes a chance to play?"

"No, Mom." Liu Jinxuan shook his head after hearing his mother's words.

"What do you mean by 'not'?"

"Our match against Australia is not garbage time or a friendly."

The mother was amused by her son's childish words: "So what? Is Coach He planning to field his full strength team in this match and go all out?"

Liu Jinxuan shook his head: "I don't know if Coach He will field his full strength, but we will definitely go all out."

"That's right, substitutes finally get a chance to play, so of course they have to give it their all to earn more playing time..."

Seeing that his mother had misunderstood him, Liu Jinxuan did not correct her, but smiled without saying a word.

The mother didn't press further, but instead instructed her son: "Whether you're a substitute or a starter, you have to play well. This is a rare opportunity, don't waste it. This time you were called up to the national team because someone else got injured. If you perform well, you might be called up directly next time, understand?"

Liu Jinxuan nodded repeatedly: "Okay, don't worry, Mom."

After ending the video call with his mother, Liu Jinxuan did not immediately return to his room, but instead stood where he had answered the phone.

This is a glass walkway, through which he can see the Sydney street scene.

However, his attention was not on the exotic scenery.

He thought about his mother's reaction to what he had said.

Sure enough, most people wouldn't have guessed that we had such a huge ambition...

If Wang's goal of winning the World Cup were to be publicly announced, even with his current form, it would likely cause a huge uproar in public opinion.

Many people probably neither believe it nor understand it.

Let alone outsiders, not everyone in the team believes it either...

So, compared to the last training camp, isn't the only difference that some people didn't come this time?
Although Coach He told those who couldn't come that the national team's door is always open for them, and that as long as they show fighting spirit, they still have a chance to rejoin the team before next year's World Cup.

However, Liu Jinxuan felt that perhaps some of the players who left the national team would be dismissive of this and would not feel that not being selected for the national team was such a big loss for them.

Compared to constantly facing life-or-death situations, they might prefer to relax at their clubs and enjoy all the benefits of their current status, without regretting missing next year's World Cup.

Because they didn't really believe that Captain Wang could lead the team to achieve that astonishing goal...

Therefore, Coach He did the right thing.

This should be done not only this time, but for every remaining national team training camp and competition.

Remove those who do not believe in their cause from the ranks.

In the end, those who will remain in the national team will definitely be the ones who are determined to follow Captain Wang.

Only in this way can everyone unite as one in the World Cup.

To achieve Wang's goal, the team cannot succeed without unity.

After securing qualification for the World Cup, he traveled with the team from China to Australia, witnessing firsthand their performance after qualifying for the World Cup.

The happiest moment for everyone was after winning the match against Iran.

He was particularly excited.

After all, he was only nineteen years old, and on his second selection for the national team, he became a participant in the World Cup qualification process.

His excitement lingered the next day; he felt light-footed, as if he were floating on air, unable to touch the ground.

Then he got scolded by Captain Wang during training...

Yes, after securing qualification for the World Cup, Coach He did not choose to give the players a day or two off.

The recovery training proceeded as usual the following day.

Liu Jinxuan was criticized by Captain Wang for being distracted during this training session.

Of course, Liu Jinxuan wasn't the only one who was criticized.

Everyone who didn't put in the effort during training was scolded.

After Captain Wang finished scolding, Coach He started scolding.

However, Liu Jinxuan didn't think there was anything wrong with being scolded.

He also has to thank Captain Wang and Coach He for waking him up.

Otherwise, he would be smug, as if he had also obtained a ticket to the World Cup.

But in reality, what does qualifying for this World Cup have to do with him?
He was selected for the national team twice, played once, and had no statistics.

To put it bluntly, he was just a filler; he was only selected for the national team because of Peng Fei's injury, and he benefited from that.

How can you be so ungrateful?
He will need to work hard for the next eight months to actually secure a spot in the World Cup.

Keep fighting, Liu Jinxuan, get ready!
If we eliminate all the wavering people, wouldn't we be able to secure our World Cup ticket?

Wow, I'm such a genius!
※※※

When Tan Xingchang heard his roommate Qin An suddenly laugh out loud, he asked him, "Watching silly videos again?"

"No, I'm just looking at what the Australian media and fans are saying online," Qin An replied with a smile.

"What did they say that was so funny?"

“They said the remaining game is already ‘garbage time’ for us. As long as they can beat us at home, they can directly qualify without having to play any playoffs… Ha!” Qin An said, unable to stop laughing.

After hearing his explanation, Tan Xingchang also laughed:

"That's fine, let them think that way."

What the Australian media and fans said wasn't entirely wrong, but for the Chinese team players who knew the inside story, it was indeed quite laughable. Garbage time?

I doubt any national team player would dare to think that way.

On the contrary, in order to win more favor from the head coach during the game, the non-starting players are more motivated.

Of course, the main players are equally impressive.

After all, they have to prove to head coach He that they have indeed given their all in every game and training session.

Moreover, the main players probably have an even stronger desire for this.

Because they are the main force.

Which key player can accept the embarrassing result of not making the World Cup squad next year?
When the time comes, the news that the Chinese team will win the World Cup will definitely be known to everyone, and the public will also know Coach He's requirements for the players, and why those players who were not selected for the national team were not chosen...

Regardless of whether the public thinks this goal is absurd, at least they will know that those national team players who were not selected did not participate in the World Cup because they were unwilling to win glory for the country, unwilling to give their all in the games, and had a poor attitude in training...

That's really dangerous, okay?
Even when the Chinese team's goal was never the World Cup title, Chinese fans still expected the national team players to fight for every ball and give their all in every match.

This is basic professional ethics and the most basic requirement, and it has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not you win the championship.

In fact, it could be said that even if you lose the game, as long as you've given it your all, the fans will forgive you.

The key players on the national team are all prominent figures in Chinese football.

Who would want to be criticized and condemned by fans across the country?

Who would want to be labeled a "coward" or a "deserter"?

If Australia really thinks they can easily dominate the Chinese team in this match, they're probably in for a bad time...

※※※

Shen Dongsheng was a little surprised when he saw the starting lineup that He Zhenyong and Cai Bokang had jointly drafted: "Full strength?"

He thought that after qualifying early, He Zhenyong would give more substitute players a chance in the final round, partly as a reward and partly to test their tactical understanding in actual combat.

Surprisingly, the starting lineup for this match was almost identical to that of the previous match...

Cai Bokang explained on behalf of He Zhenyong: "Australia will definitely go all out against us in this game, because if they beat us, they can qualify directly without having to play in the playoffs. Lao He and I both believe that Australia is a very strong opponent and can be used to put pressure on the team."

"Then why not give more substitute players a chance to play?" Shen Dongsheng asked.

"We will give it, but in the second half." This time, it was head coach He Zhenyong who answered him. "Our bench depth isn't actually that deep, and we can't field two completely different lineups in the World Cup. The team is still in the stage of integrating new tactics, so we still need to prioritize integrating the main lineup."

After his explanation, Shen Dongsheng understood: "Got it. Let's sharpen the knife first."

He Zhenyong nodded: "It's good enough if we can sharpen a knife. In next year's World Cup, we still need to rely on the main lineup. The substitutes are just supplements to the main players..."

Strictly speaking, it actually relied on a few key players such as Wang Lie, Chi Zhen, and Fu Xiaofeng.

Therefore, unless the team's victory is already assured, He Zhenyong rarely separates these three players.

He always tries to have all three players on the field at the same time, in order to cultivate their synergy within this tactic.

The performance of these three players will be key to how far the Chinese team can go in the World Cup.

※※※

Shen Dongsheng understood why He Zhenyong had arranged such a starting lineup, but everyone else who didn't know the inside story was completely confused and full of question marks when they saw the Chinese team's starting lineup before the match.

"Why?!" Liu Jinxuan's mother was very puzzled. "This is the last World Cup qualifier. We've already qualified, so why are we still fielding so many key players?!"

The husband chimed in from the side, "I told you, don't make promises you can't keep, don't set unrealistic goals..."

The wife was indignant: "How can you blame me?! No normal person could possibly imagine He Zhenyong doing something like this! Why field the full starting lineup after we've already qualified? What's the point? Will getting these three extra points help us get a better result in the World Cup group stage draw?"

To be honest, her husband also couldn't understand why the Chinese team's head coach did this.

So... it seems we can't simply blame the wife for bragging beforehand.

Australia's head coach, Cyrus Clark, was equally puzzled.

Holding the printed starting lineup for the Chinese team, he repeatedly questioned his assistant coach: "Why? Why? Why? Didn't they already qualify? Why?!"

He couldn't understand what was going on in the head coach of the Chinese team, He Zhenyong.

Wang Lie, Chi Zhen, Fu Xiaofeng, Su Ju, Song You, Feng Qiyuan, Zhuang Yunsheng, Qin An, Lu Changqing, Yue Hang... Except for Chu Yu, who was replaced by another center-back Xu Ang, the other players in the positions were the starting players in the previous game against Iran.

The reason Chu Yu didn't start was because he felt some muscle fatigue after the previous match against Iran.

To be on the safe side, He Zhenyong did not start him in this game.

Looking at this starting lineup alone, you might think that it's China, not Australia, that's fighting for a spot in the knockout stage in the final group stage match...

Cyrus Clark was not only puzzled, but also felt wronged:
You've already qualified a round early, is it really necessary for you to fight us to the death?!
In the final round of qualifiers, Iran will play Thailand at home, and they are expected to win all three points.

If Australia fails to defeat China, they will be overtaken by Iran. To qualify for the World Cup, they will have to go through a lengthy playoff series: two playoff matches in Asia, followed by two more against South American teams…

The longer the night, the more things can go wrong.

Who knows at which stage something went wrong?
The only consolation Cyrus Clark can find now is that his team was well-prepared for this game and was determined to go all out and fight with their backs against the wall.

So thankfully, we weren't truly caught off guard...

He calmed himself down and began to think about how to turn a bad thing into a good thing and how to use this to reverse the situation.

When the players returned from warming up, Cyrus Clark, holding the starting lineup for the Chinese team, announced the "bad news":
"...I know that over the past few days, many people have been fantasizing that our opponents, having already secured qualification, would have no motivation to play against us, and that we would be facing an opponent who had no will to fight at home. But unfortunately, the script didn't go that way—I have obtained the starting lineup for the Chinese team in this match, and it's almost exactly the same as their last match against Iran."

The Australian national team players in the locker room were shocked; they stared in disbelief at what they were hearing.

"I don't want to speculate on the reasons behind the Chinese team's head coach's arrangements; that's pointless. I just want to tell you that fortunately, we were well-prepared for this match, and fortunately, we didn't assume our opponents would give up during our preparations. Actually, it's very simple..."

Clark spread his hands.

"Regardless of how the Chinese team approaches this match, we knew from the start that we needed to give it our all to secure direct qualification. So, we just need to follow our prepared strategy and win this match! Don't think about anything else, focus on the game, focus on winning! We are not the kind of people who rely on our opponents' pity to win!"

Encouraged by him, the Australian national team players regained their morale. Although they still didn't understand why the Chinese team fielded such a starting lineup, they knew that winning was the most important thing right now.

After encouraging the players, head coach Clark and his assistant coach left the locker room first and went to sit on the bench.

As soon as he stepped out of the locker room, Clark's expression turned serious, his earlier radiance gone.

In reality, he was just using an excuse to encourage the team; it doesn't mean he was as confident as he appeared.

After all, he knew all too well how well Wang Lie and Chi Zhen, the two core players of the Chinese team, were performing recently.

Seeing his worried expression, the assistant coach walking beside him comforted him:
"The starting lineup doesn't tell you much, Cyrus. Wang, that fanatic, will definitely give it his all whenever he's on the field, but what about his teammates? It's a fact that the Chinese team has qualified early, but how many of the Chinese players on the field can still maintain the focus and fighting spirit they had in the last game against Iran? They might just be physically on the field, but their minds have long since wandered off somewhere... After all, not everyone can be like Wang."

Clark's furrowed brows did relax slightly when he heard the assistant coach say that.

He sighed:

"I hope so, I hope so..."

(End of this chapter)