Becoming a football god from Arsenal

Chapter 223: Italy is out of character! Mahel's mysterious smile! It can never happen again!

"Hello, audience friends! The match between France and Italy has started, with Italy serving first in the first half.

"Balotelli sent the ball from the centre circle and he was the hero in helping Italy reach the quarter-finals.

"Pirlo made a long pass directly to De Rossi! De Rossi headed it, but it went out of the French team's goal line!"

Inside the Gdansk Arena, Lori took a football from the ball boy, placed it on the small penalty area line and prepared to make a short pass for the goal kick.

He was suddenly stunned a moment before serving, then a hint of hesitation appeared on his face, and the foot that was about to pass the ball landed again.

He saw that the Italian team's midfield and frontcourt defense did not retreat, but instead deployed a formation ready for high-pressure pressing, pressing into their half.

This is somewhat surprising, as everyone knows that Italy's strengths are their tight chain defense and counterattack.

Why are you going against your usual style today and wanting to play oppressive football?

"Oh!"

Lori thought about it and felt that this might be a smoke bomb, so he tentatively kicked the ball to Koscielny beside him.

“Press, press, press!”

"on!"

As a result, the Italian players who were just about to retreat rushed up quickly under the leadership of Balotelli, and two of them even quickly entered their penalty area.

It's high pressure pressing!

"Bang!!" Koscielny did not play with fire in the penalty area. He kicked the ball to Giroud in the forward position with a long pass.

Giroud failed in the header, and the ball was passed back to the goalkeeper by Bonucci, and the ball returned to the Italian team.

Koscielny turned his head and looked at Lori, then shook his head slightly, indicating that they should not pass the ball from the backcourt anymore, as the opponent was completely different from what they expected.

On the edge of the court, Deschamps leaned back, raised his head and placed his right hand on his chin, feeling a little caught off guard.

He did not give any new tactical instructions. The game had just begun and there was no way he would mess up.

He also believes that the French players are top-notch and have a certain ability to respond.

But what exactly is the Italian team up to?
Deschamps looked back at Prandelli in the distance. Could it be that this mediocre coach was hiding something dirty?
"Clap clap clap!"

In the frontcourt, Maher saw Giroud was a little frustrated after losing the first header, and waved at him to attract his attention.

After seeing him turn around, he smiled and encouraged: "Giroud, give them some more strength! We are relying on you today, you must work harder!"

Giroud smiled shyly, waved to Maher, turned his head and said, "I have been looking forward to my first goal in the European Cup for a long time. I hope I can make it happen with your pass today."

Maher spread his hands to indicate that it was no big deal, then ran towards his own half to prevent Italy from making a direct long pass attack.

"Bang!" As he expected, Buffon kicked a long pass directly on the goal line to Balotelli.

He ran back quickly and collided with Abate who was defending him. The two looked at each other and said nothing.

Balotelli then overpowered Koscielny to successfully compete for the header, and he headed the ball to Marchisio on the other side, who ran towards the baseline with the ball before Clichy could react.

"Oh!"

When he completed the cross, four Italian players had already entered the penalty area to grab the ball, and one was outside to make a flanking move. This made the French team's defense a little distracted and caused a panic in front of the goal.

"Snap!" Fortunately, Lori was focused and flew out from the front position and hugged the ball directly in his arms.

"Italy played very actively today. When I first saw their 4-1-3-2 formation, I thought it was a variation of 4-3-1-2, with De Rossi and Marchisio both playing in deeper positions.

"But they didn't, they kept standing at the left and right midfielder positions, which put a lot of pressure on the French team.

"I think through this opening period, we can also see their intentions. They want to take advantage of your misfortune! They want to kill you while you are ill!
"We will take advantage of the turbulent period of the French team and force you with unexpected methods! We will make you uncomfortable and lose your composure, and finally achieve a surprise victory!
"Prandelli's tactical setting is successful. Some positions of the French team have already been in chaos!"

"."

In the stands, in the VIP area, Wenger and some French dignitaries appeared here. He is old friends with these people, and he will receive invitations from them to watch the game together every time there is a major competition.

In addition, some Arsenal players also sat in front of them, watching their three teammates' European Cup journey.

The atmosphere here was a little depressing. They obviously found that the Italian team's arrangement at the beginning of the game made the French team a little uncomfortable and fell into a disadvantage.

Many people's palms were already sweating, and it would be bad if Italy took advantage of the chaos to steal one or two.

It is difficult to score goals in the European Cup, and Italy is good at defensive counterattacks. If you let them score first, even if you adjust in the end, it may be of no avail and you will be dragged to death by them in powerlessness.

"Wenger."

The current President Hollande was sitting in the center. He sensed that the atmosphere was not right. He smiled and pointed to a young man to change the subject. "This is my newly promoted deputy secretary-general, in charge of the economy. He looks good, right?"

Wenger looked in the direction of his finger. There was a young man watching the game very seriously. He nodded and chuckled, "I know him. He is the person in charge of the Nestlé acquisition. He is very talented and famous."

"Haha." Hollande crossed his legs and shouted over there: "Michel! Don't you like football very much? The expert is sitting next to you, why don't you chat with him?"

Wenger waved his hand at him, shook his head and said with a smile: "You finally get to watch a game, just relax and don't talk about these things, just enjoy the European Cup.

"You guys are so busy on weekdays, I don't want to disturb you at this time."

Michel turned around and nodded to Wenger, apparently agreeing with this statement, then turned to look at the court and continued to concentrate.

Hollande shook his head helplessly and had to pull Prime Minister Ayrault to chat with Wenger. His main reason was that he didn't want to be in such a silent atmosphere, which would make him feel that his relaxation was in vain.

Not far from these people, Loew, some officials and players of the German team were sitting in a box, secretly observing the technical and tactical play of potential top four opponents.

For fans, watching a game live and watching a live broadcast are completely different experiences, especially for them.

If given the opportunity, they would definitely choose to come directly to the scene in order to obtain information, style, techniques and tactics of their opponents more intuitively and up close.

Loew has been writing something in his notebook. This year is his sixth year coaching the German team. Unfortunately, he has not achieved any good results, which has also made him quite controversial.

Naturally, this European Cup became his last straw in his mind.

He feels he will leave the team if he fails to achieve results that satisfy the fans.

Fortunately, the team had done well before this, making it to the semi-finals, with only two games left to win the championship.

"What to write?"

The way he was writing furiously caught the attention of Matthäus, the German superstar once nicknamed the perpetual motion machine, the head of the troika, who enjoyed a high reputation in the world of football.

"Just some random things. I don't know." Love shrugged, his eyes blurry, looking like he was suffering from stress. "Write first, and then sort out and summarize when I get back."

Matthaus patted him on the shoulder and consoled him: "Write what you need to write, but don't feel pressured, we don't even know who our final opponent will be.

"Besides," he lowered his voice, "your emotions will affect the team. This is not an exaggeration."

Loew glanced at the German players who were watching the game seriously, straightened his back, and cheered up a little. "I will pay attention. Thanks for the reminder."

"Yeah." Matthäus turned his head to look at the court, and after a while asked: "Who do you think our opponent will be?"

"Italy."

Loew said without hesitation, "They are stronger and more stable as a whole. Although they lack a superstar like Maher, they have all proven themselves in major competitions and are capable of standing on their own.

"It was clear from the opening period that the French team, which was in a period of turmoil, could not gain an advantage over them."

Matthaus nodded, turned to look at the serious-looking German players, and smiled to cool everyone down: "Who do you think will qualify? Klose? Schweinsteiger?"

"Italy."

“I think it’s Italy.”

Most of the German team's players have leaned towards Italy. Only the youngster Gotze, who once competed with Maher for the Golden Boy title, has a different opinion. "I think it's the French team. Maher hasn't shown his strength yet. He is testing the waters.

"I've studied his football and I know him well, I don't think he will be silent for a whole game."

Matthaus nodded slightly, not thinking there was anything wrong with this different opinion, and continued: "Indeed, I can see that as soon as he gets the ball, the Italian defenders will be very nervous.

"The same goes for Chiellini and Bonucci, they will be wary of this young man who is hard to figure out."

As Love listened to their words, he began to think, and one of his hands unconsciously went to his nostrils.

He felt that what they said made sense, and sometimes you had to believe that such talented young superstars could bring something unexpected to the game.

Now it all depends on luck. Will the Italian team, which operates like a precision machine, make the first move through targeted arrangements, or will Maher, who is as sharp as a sword, find a breakthrough through his personal glorious moment?

"."

"Italy's attack is back! They rely on a strong midfield and frontcourt combination and can often quickly counterattack after losing the ball!
"De Rossi, Montolivo, Marchisio, Balotelli, etc., these are all very powerful and tough attackers!

"Prandelli's idea is very clear: I want to make it very difficult for the French team to attack from the ground and cross the half court!
"And they have more than that, in the backcourt, they have four top defensive defenders and a central player in Pirlo who connects the entire team!
"Such a team! It's terrifying! Look at this shot, Balotelli! Ah. He actually pushed the ball wide. This is undoubtedly a good opportunity to take the lead!
"After doubting his life in the first round of the group stage, it seems that he has not fully adjusted yet and still occasionally suddenly thinks about life!"

"."

"Oh!"

On the field, Lori kicked the ball out of the goal, and the ball flew to the front field and was stopped directly by Giroud with his chest.

Under pressure, he could only try his luck by lobbing the ball behind Abate.

Maher started along the sideline and squeezed behind Abate, with a strong desire to control the ball.

Abate tried his best, even trying very covertly to tug on Maher's jersey, but still failed to stop him.

"Snapped!"

Maher finally managed to stop the ball and get rid of Abate.

Realizing that the opponent was chasing back quickly, his diagonal run into the penalty area would definitely be slower than his straight run. He waited for a moment, and after the opponent came up, he suddenly lifted the ball high with the outside of his foot.

"Shh!"

Abate felt the breeze on his face as he rushed over, but he had no time to enjoy the moment because the football had already flown over his shoulder and behind him.

"He dribbled past the defense! And from a very high altitude! Maher was really daring when he dribbled past the defense, and he really dared to do so!

"He is more Italian than the Italians themselves, because he has an angelic face and elegant demeanor! But now, he is going to rush into the Italian team's penalty area like a devil!"

"."

"Ohhh!" The fans in the stadium shouted passionately. Many French people had already stood up, waving their fists and knives heavily at the Italian goal, hoping that Mahel could seriously injure the opponent.

After Maher passed Abate again, he looked back out of habit, but inadvertently it added some provocation, just like the time when Vinicius passed the Korean player.

It wasn't that he was trying to be cool or to provoke, he was just turning back to observe out of habit.

"Bang bang bang!"

He dribbled the ball quickly into the penalty area, and then saw Chiellini and Bonucci coming up to block his shooting angle.

The combination of these two is a classic pair of central defenders in football, and their combined strength is definitely ranked among the top five in history!
Fighting against them made Maher feel both difficult and excited.

He was afraid that the opponent would directly steal the ball with his foot, so he slowed down and used all his body's ability to change direction, swaying left and right, sometimes making a bottom move and sometimes cutting inside, as if he was ready to shoot at any time.

Chiellini and Bonucci were no longer so nervous after the opening period. Besides, both of them were standing in their own positions at the moment and were not afraid of Maher at all.

Apart from the occasional embarrassment of almost losing balance, they still completed their work and blocked Maher's various breakthrough and shooting routes.

Maher wanted to rush to the penalty area to solve the problem, but out of the corner of his eye he saw Buffon staring at him hungrily, ready to attack and support the defender at any time to confiscate the ball he dribbled out.

"Bang." He didn't have any better ideas, nor did he want to try his luck by shooting through the crowd, so he passed the ball to Giroud in the middle.

Chiellini and Bonucci quickly turned around and took position, blocking all of Giroud's ball handling routes and forcing him to pass the ball back.

Giroud did not step back. He struggled a step and passed the ball to Mahel on the side with difficulty.

"Bang!!"

Before Maher received the ball, he knew that he would face great defensive pressure if he stopped the ball. He turned sideways in advance, met the relatively stable ball with his left foot, and shot it with the outside of his foot.

After practicing so many shooting tricks, it’s time to try just kicking the ball!

"Swish!" Unexpectedly, Chiellini, who was closer to him, caught up with him and completed a sliding tackle at the moment he shot.

He was shocked. These top Italian defenders were indeed different. It seemed that it would not be easy to defeat them.

However, Chiellini failed to tackle the ball. The ball still spun towards the far corner of the goal, passed Bonucci and flew towards the far post of the goal, seemingly going to hit the post and bounce into the net.

The Italian players suddenly froze in place and looked back nervously.

"state!"

Just as Mahel's eyes showed anticipation, Buffon made his move, stretching his body to the extreme sideways, and steadily caught the shot, which was not very fast, with both hands.

Got it!
Maher looked at Buffon who stood up confidently and quickly threw the ball to launch a quick attack, and he was a little shocked.

He quickly turned around and chased back, and at the same time he understood why Buffon was the Wall of Sighs and a strong contender for the title of the best goalkeeper in football history.

Such a goalkeeper will enable the back line to build stronger defensive confidence and a more resolute defensive strategy. The defense they form will scare ordinary offensive players.

But he will definitely not be discouraged. He will only have a stronger desire to score and wait for the next shooting opportunity with more excitement.

"Italy's counterattack opportunity! Montolivo gets the ball! Passes it to the wing and kicks it out! In the middle! Koscielny clears the ball out of the penalty area!

"But De Rossi is following, 30 metres away, should he just shoot the ball?
"Nasri is chasing back, but he still can't outrun De Rossi, here he comes!!"

"."

"Bang!!"

De Rossi rushed to the front of the penalty area and slashed the football with the outside of his right foot, giving the shot a speed of 150km/h and a very strong arc.

At first, the football seemed to be heading towards the middle, but when it approached the goal, it suddenly turned and headed towards the upper right corner of the goal, hitting the blind spot.

Lowry was full of confidence at first, but when he saw the ball change direction, he was stunned.

Mael also raised his hands and held them towards his head.

There is definitely an element of luck in this ball, but it is obviously useless to say this at this moment. Every ball has an element of luck, it is just a matter of how much. If someone hit it, then it was definitely hit.

"Clang!" The sound of hitting the ball spread throughout the stadium, and the violently spinning ball hit the crossbar and flew back out of the penalty area.

Beam to the rescue!

"Ah!" It was the turn of the Italian fans to hold their heads. Countless of them showed regret. If they failed to advance in the end, this goal might become their eternal regret.

De Rossi was helpless when he saw the ball missed the target, but as a defensive midfielder, he did not forget his duty and quickly rushed forward to counter-attack.

In the Italian backcourt, Mahel breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that luck would not always be on their side and they were often favored by the goddess of luck.

"Boom!"

He turned around and ran towards the opponent's backcourt, waiting for any possible opportunity.

The continuous offensive and defensive transitions made most people a little breathless, but it obviously had no effect on him.

He was hoping for a few more rounds of this kind of transition, making everyone out of breath, and then he could easily rush over and score.

"Oh!"

In the French team's penalty area, Rami, who started the game, kicked the ball to the frontcourt. Giroud and Bonucci confronted each other again, preparing to compete for the header. This will be a crucial battle to determine whether the two teams can achieve their tactical goals.

"Bonucci! Foul!!"

Chiellini is older and more mature. He advised his partner to pull Giroud down directly, "Foul! Don't take the risk. We are so few!"

Bonucci obviously heard what he said, but looking at Giroud's young face and thinking that he seemed to have no impression of this person, he still chose to believe that he could get the ball back for the team.

Just like that, near the center circle kick-off point, the two men jumped up at the same time and headed for the spinning football.

"Snap!" A barely audible sound was heard, replacing the dull sound of the hard contact with the ball.

The football did not fly back to the French team's half as Bonucci expected, but was rubbed to the right side of the Italian team's backcourt.

Giroud wins!

Perfect header!

In a flash, Maher had no time to praise his teammates' performance. He picked up the ball with his right foot and rushed quickly towards the opponent's penalty area.

Chiellini followed in bitterness, with Nasri and Menez advancing behind him, but the only defensive player left was Barzagli.

Two against three!
Weak defense!

This gap may not be obvious when playing street football, but in the European Cup where all the players are top players, this gap is fatal.

Chiellini had to painfully balance Maher and the man behind him, making defense very difficult.

“Bang, bang!”

Soon, Maher took two steps to the penalty area line and looked like he was going to shoot from an angle.

Chiellini had to give up all thoughts of blocking the route and rushed towards him with all his might, betting that Mahel would go it alone this time.

But Maher is certainly not stupid. Since there are better options, he will not give Chiellini a chance to fight for his life. This is the European Cup. No one will be a lone wolf in this. Everyone's first goal is to win, except Benzema, who aims to win the final championship.

You know, Kane is willing to exchange all his career goals for a championship.

"Oh!"

Maher kicked the ball back to the inverted triangle position, turned his head and saw Nasri following.

Chiellini tried to block the ball with his foot halfway, but the ball had already rolled behind him when his foot came out. He could only pray to God to let the French team hit the crossbar once.

"Bang!!"

Nasri stretched his body near the penalty area line and kicked the ball into the far corner of the goal.

There was a strong desire for scoring in his eyes, and he really hoped to score a goal for the team in the knockout round.

"Swish!" It was a close-range shot without any interference. It was obviously the kind of shot that even Buffon could not do anything about. The football hit the post and slammed into the blind corner.

The ball went in!
One to zero!

"France is leading!! Beautiful transition! Perfect header, perfect push, perfect shot!!
"They had a textbook counter-attack, which is what Deschamps wanted!
"Who would have thought that Giroud, who was not optimistic about the team, stood up and played his role as a center forward, Maher was as lethal as ever, and Nasri's shot remained stable!!"

"Yeahhhh!" Inside the Gdansk Arena, the French fans set off a cheering storm. Their enthusiasm swept across the entire stadium like a raging wave, with great momentum.

Nasri kissed his fingers and ran towards the corner flag area to celebrate. He did not forget to turn back and pull Giroud towards Mahre together.

The three scorers then reunited and slid down on the grass on the field together.

Despite the adverse situation during the turbulent period and under the pressure of public opinion, they still relied on their sharp attacks to take the lead!

Mahel somehow slid to his knees in the middle. Giroud and Nasri beside him turned to look at him with a smile, then opened their mouths at the same time as if to surprise him, "Vamos!"

"Ha ha.!"

He laughed, pulled the two of them together and went to the fan area, cheering for the French players again, venting all the pressure and emotions during this period, "Vamos!!!"

After turning around, they hugged the French players who rushed up to celebrate, and many of them were trembling.

“We are still us!”

"Yes! Keep going!"

“You’ll advance!”

"Mael, will you let us hear one more vamos?"

Looking at Kabaye asking the question, Maher smiled and nodded, then looked up and took a deep breath of fresh air. Now that he was in the lead, he naturally felt that everything was good and he dared to boast.

"Fola!"

Deschamps on the sidelines raised his right arm high, shouted, turned around, and hugged his assistant coaches.

"It was a sudden goal! It instantly sent the French team to heaven, but it silenced the Italian team. They had played well for almost half the game, but lost to the French team in terms of chances!
"Prandelli calmly drank water on the sidelines, with a nonchalant attitude, as if he was used to falling behind.

"I believe this will give the Italian players a shot in the arm and allow them to hold their heads up and keep fighting.

“But we must admit that they still have a lot of work to do at halftime!”

"."

More than a minute after the kick-off, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.

After 15 seconds, the players from both teams returned to the court, stood in their positions, took deep breaths and adjusted their state.

Their images are different. Some have their hands on their hips and their heads down, some look up at the sky with firm eyes, and some keep making the sign of the cross on their chests in prayer.

In short, these may be the last 45 minutes. Whether we can enter the top four depends on the next half!

"Beep!"

The referee blew the whistle to start the game, and Giroud kicked the ball out from the center circle, starting the second half of the game.

Everyone's heart tensed up, and even when they breathed, they felt like there was an extra barrier to the air. Even if they tried very hard, they could only breathe in a little bit of air. It might be an illusion.

“The French team attacked aggressively, but they still gave the ball to Mahel.

"There's no other way. When you have a good player like this next to you, giving him the ball is the easiest way to handle it. Let's look at this breakthrough.

“Abate was very aggressive and he seemed to understand that he couldn’t defend like he did in the first half.

"This is really effective. When you can't keep up with the offensive player's rhythm, then break his rhythm. Maher passed it! Ouch! A beautiful pass!

"Abbate didn't disrupt his rhythm, but instead trapped himself in it!"

"."

At the Gdansk Arena, Maher cut inside quickly and resolutely this time, created a little shooting angle, and quickly kicked his foot to prepare for a lob, trying to use this angle to arc the ball into the goal.

The power of a long shot is greater than that of the outside of the foot. As long as the quality is good, even Buffon may not be able to do much about it.

"Oh!"

"boom!"

The two voices sounded almost at the same time. When shooting, he felt Chiellini's strong physical confrontation with him, which caused his body to lose balance at that moment.

The football, which was supposed to have a sharp arc and speed, flew towards the middle limply and weakly, as if it had been kicked out.

Into physical confrontation?
After Maher completed the shot, he turned to look at the referee and spread his hands towards him, indicating that it was a foul.

But the referee ignored it and just kept backing away, still choosing his position for officiating.

Maher could only swallow this loss. Since the referee did not react, it could only be said that Chiellini's action was covert enough, he controlled the scale well, and he pushed him ambiguously.

Six minutes later, it was Italy's turn to launch a massive attack. They seemed relatively calm at the start of the second half and did not seem to lose their composure due to falling behind.

But after gradually feeling the passage of time, they obviously could not stand any longer and chose a more aggressive style of play.

"Bang bang!"

Montolivo, who is somewhat handsome like Mahel, made a wall pass with Pirlo in the midfield. After taking a few steps forward and feeling that the chance was not good, he passed the ball to Pirlo again.

Pirlo observed for a few seconds and saw De Rossi break into the back of the penalty area, then he lowered his head and sent a long and elegant pass.

"Oh!"

As a historical-level midfielder, his footwork is undoubtedly top-notch. The ball perfectly bypassed the French team's defense and began to fall slowly in front of De Rossi.

The strong player De Rossi did not choose to shoot at the first time. His shooting angle was very small, and shooting rashly would only waste the opportunity.

"Bang!" He headed the ball back into the small penalty area, looking for his teammates who were rushing forward to grab the ball.

The ball was really found, Cassano cut in from the front point, and dived to head the ball beside Sagna. This was definitely a chance to score a goal!
"suffer!"

Sagna shouted to cheer himself up, pressed his whole body backwards, interfered with the opponent while turning around, stretched his foot to reach the football, and squeezed the player who was shooting with his legs in the process.

He used all his tricks just to interfere with the opponent's players!
"Bang!" Cassano headed the ball out, but with the interference of Sagna, he headed the ball towards the bottom line.

Didn't make it!

"Hit!" The players of the Italian team quickly ran to the referee and asked him for an explanation. Although the fans didn't see it clearly, they still stood up and joined in the booing.

The referee kept backing away. He didn't make a call for Maher's move just now, so it was even less likely that he would make a call this time inside the penalty area.

The Italian players looked helpless. This was almost a sure-shot goal. After adjusting their state, their expressions became different, as if they were competing with the referee and the French players.

Now that they knew the referee's standards and how the French team played, they might as well play that way and make it difficult for the opponent during their offense.

They naturally don't think that they were the first to use this tactic, or that it is a reasonable confrontation when the penalty is severe.

A sure goal was missed due to interference, and a penalty was missed. All they had was resentment.

This resentment may not be directed at the French team or the referee of this game, but only at this incident.

But no matter what, the seeds of fighting back took root in their hearts and grew at a very fast speed.

In the 69th minute of the game, Maher continued his duty as the explosive point on the wing, forcibly blasted Abate, and then sent a crescent-shaped cross.

"Bang!!"

Giroud in the middle position seized this extremely comfortable spot, but just before heading the ball, he was blocked up by Chiellini's body.

This caused him to lose his balance, and the ball headed out flew towards the stands at an incredible height.

Giroud was also a little depressed after landing. This was definitely not his true level, but he knew that it was useless to protest at this time.

Four minutes later, Mahel realized what strategy the Italian defenders wanted to use to defend them, and chose to shoot directly from a distance of 4 meters from the goal.

He thought that at this distance the other party might be careless and would not take any measures to defend against him.

"Bang!!"

As a result, when he kicked out, he felt a huge force coming from the side, knocking his body over as he could only maintain his balance on one leg.

After falling to the ground, he was too lazy to even look at the ball he hit. After getting up, he looked for Marchisio who had just hit him.

If it keeps going like this, it's bound to be a bit too much. At this moment, he certainly won't think about whether his team has used similar methods. As a victim, he just wants to vent his anger.

He challenged Marchisio, but the opponent was a little scared and turned around and ran away.

"Beep!" The referee blew the foul whistle this time, as if he wanted to control the situation on the court.

The French players quickly gathered around and anxiously negotiated with the referee. When the negotiations failed, they looked at the Italian attacking players thoughtfully.

The game seemed to change from this moment on. Everyone's moves were getting bigger and bigger, as if they had nothing to worry about.

Deschamps was standing on the sidelines with his arms folded. He felt a little uncomfortable watching the scene, but he didn't say anything for the time being.

The team is still leading and is not in a hurry.

Prandelli on the other side did not stop his disciples, but just kept waving his hands to signal the players to press forward and seize the time to counterattack.

80 minutes passed by, and the tension and gunpowder smell on the field became more and more serious. Everyone seemed like a powder keg that could explode at any time.

"Oh!"

In the 85th minute of the game, Nasri made a wonderful over-the-top pass into the penalty area before he ran out of energy.

Maher suddenly made a sideways move and appeared behind the defense line like a ghost.

"Straight pass and diagonal penetration! A classic combination between the midfielder and the winger, the French team's chance to kill the game has arrived!
"Buffon's attack was very decisive. It was impossible for Maher to stop the ball, and it was also unlikely to volley. He had to use a difficult move to complete the shot!"

"."

In the penalty area, when Maher came near the ball, he felt as if his world had become quiet. Everything that was noisy just now disappeared, and everyone disappeared.

Only the football above his head and the opponent's goal still exist in his heart.

He lost all ability to think and instinctively threw his body out, shooting the ball like Roberto did in his winning goal against Paris.

"Snapped!"

"Oh!" It was not until the shot was kicked that he regained all his hearing and vision. All the emotions surged back to his head, making him stare at the trajectory of the football.

He knew that this would most likely be the key goal that would help the French team advance to the semi-finals!

"Snap!" But a pair of hands with five fingers spread out blocked his dream of killing the game. Buffon, it was Buffon again, who lost his balance and jumped hard to drag the ball to the back of the net.

Gone!

so close!

"state!"

As Mahel fell from the air, regret appeared in his eyes. He then felt that the shin bone of his left leg seemed to hit Buffon's knee after he jumped up, making a crisp sound.

After landing, he felt a sharp pain and he couldn't help but roll around on the spot holding his calf.

"Beep!"

Under the worried gaze of France's Didschamps and French fans, the team doctor quickly came on the field in the chaos. After examination, he found that there was no major problem, and it was not the same serious injury as last time.

"Huh!" At this moment, countless people breathed a sigh of relief.

After spraying the pain-relieving spray, Maher was helped by the team doctor to walk out of the court. After a few steps, he shook off the team doctor and tried to walk on his own.

He knew that the team still needed him, and he had to adjust quickly on the sidelines and try to get back on the court as soon as possible.

The knockout stage is different from the group stage. The team needs more goals to kill the game, and it is like that until the moment before the game whistle blows!
"Beep!" The referee blew the whistle, indicating that the French team could take a corner kick.

Nasri stood in front of the ball and waved his hand towards the French players in the penalty area. While observing the running positions of his teammates, he also saw the eager expressions of the Italian players. They seemed ready to counterattack and win.

He couldn't help but feel a little nervous. This kind of chaotic moment was when goals were most likely to happen.

"Bang!" He then kicked a cross to an area further back, hoping that his teammates could get to this point.

The referee then waved towards the sidelines, indicating that the players could enter the field if they were fine.

Maher quickly touched the grass he loved so much and ran towards the front of the penalty area, his eyes fixed on the opponent's goal.

"Oh!"

The ball was cleared out of the penalty area by Italy's Bonucci, and the football once again flew into Nasri's control area. He took the ball and prepared to make another cross.

"Collect! Collect! Collect!!"

Bonucci originally wanted to lead the players to push forward, but when he saw Nasri's look, he quickly signaled everyone to pull back.

Maher's eyes moved, and as he ran to the penalty area, he waved his hand secretly at Nasri.

He seemed to notice that Nasri looked up, but he was not sure, so he could only run along the original route.

"Bang!!"

Near the corner area, Nasri made another cross, which seemed to be a second corner kick.

But this time, both the speed and height of the ball were far from the penalty area, and it seemed that even whether it could enter the penalty area was a problem.

Many people looked puzzled, thinking that this was not Nasri's level.

It was not until they saw the direction Nasri was looking that they suddenly realized there was a receiving point outside the penalty area!
The Italian players were startled and turned to see Mahel rushing towards the landing point of the football and starting to adjust his shooting angle and posture while running.

Danger!

Maher took two steps at a time and came to the ball. He raised his right leg to meet the ball and shot it diagonally in the most comfortable volley.

He also didn't know why he had so many volleying opportunities in this European Cup.

But he was glad that he had mastered this skill last season, and could ensure a very high shooting success rate when no one was guarding!

The moment before he touched the ball, he somehow couldn't help smiling, just like the sunny boy Leo, which was definitely not an appropriate emotion at such a serious moment.

"Bang!!"

He didn't have time to think about why, all his attention was focused on the football, and he kicked the ball hard towards the lower right corner of the goal.

The moment he kicked the ball, a feeling of extreme openness spread throughout his body. He seemed to understand why he was laughing and also knew what the quality of the ball would be.

"Click!" The football quickly rushed into the penalty area, bounced off the ground and headed towards the lower right corner of the goal.

Buffon still reacted quickly, but this time, he failed to stop the ball from entering the net first, "Swish!"

The football hit the lower right corner of the net, making a crisp sound, which also drove all the French fans in the stadium crazy, "Aaaahhhh!! Ahhhhh!!"

The ball went in!
Two to zero!
"Beautiful! Beautiful!! Maher's volley shot went through Buffon's fingers! Two goals ahead! He helped the French team kill the game!!
"Before this, his many shots failed to create a threat for Buffon, but this time, he did it!!
"The French team is about to enter the semi-finals! Maher and Nasri's goal and assist have put this team, which was not optimistic about the championship, on the same level as the favorites!"

"."

Maher knew the ball would go in when he completed the shot. The comfort he felt when shooting could not deceive him.

Seeing the football go into the net, he got goosebumps all over his body, but a bright smile appeared on his face, and he rushed to the edge of the court with his tongue sticking out, "Yeah!! Yeah!!"

It can’t happen again or again!

Buffon can save him once, twice, and three times, but there will always be times when he can't!
The sixth goal of the European Cup helped the French team break through the Wall of Sighs and advance to the semi-finals! !

After arriving at the edge of the court, he did not forget the joke he made with Kabaye in the first half.

He threw a rising dragon punch into the sky, and after landing, he used his signature phrase to celebrate, but this time, he shouted more passionately and heartily than ever before, "Vamos!"

All the troubles dissipated like the passing clouds and smoke, he played a good game, and the French team without Benzema also played a good game. They clenched their fists and continued to move towards the European Cup championship!

Nothing will stop them anymore. From now on, whether others admit it or not, they are the favorites to win the championship!
After completing all this, Mahel turned around and opened his arms towards the Gdansk Arena. He also saw Nasri and Cabaye rushing over and jumping towards him.

"Plop!" He fell to the ground, but the joy on his face was still captured by countless cameras on the sidelines.

(End of this chapter)