Team Spirit

Chapter 249 The iconic scene may be late, but it has arrived; Lippi is a fan of China.
In the 44th minute, the first half was about to end.

The Italians have possession of the ball.

Cannavaro launched an attack with a long pass from behind the center circle.

And Grosso was the one receiving the ball on the left front.

As a tall full-back, he actually moved up to the winger position.

Carragher and Grosso battled for position, but neither of them touched the ball, which bounced forward.

Grosso, on the outside, caught up with the ball first.

Carragher positioned himself on the inside and began to defend.

Grosso cuts the ball with his left foot and heads towards the penalty area.

The technique wasn't flashy, and the movements weren't confusing, but it made full use of physical advantages to push Carragher aside.

Carragher stumbled but continued the pursuit.

Grosso broke into the penalty area from the side and made a sweeping motion.

Campbell is relatively slow, so he can only make sliding tackles to block and expand his defensive area.

However, Grosso dribbled with his left foot again, kicking the ball just like Ronaldinho.

The football went over Campbell.

Grosso, however, was unable to dodge it; his agility was ultimately insufficient.

Grosso was brought down by Campbell.

The referee blew his whistle and pointed to the penalty spot.

"Penalty! Grosso has won the penalty!"

"Oh! The players from both sides immediately rushed toward the referee, with the England players trying to explain."

"It's no use, the referee saw it very clearly."

"Totti has stepped up to the penalty spot; he's going to take the penalty."

"Robinson's ability to save points is not outstanding."

"Alright, let's look at this goal... Totti unleashes a powerful shot, hitting the left side of the goal... Robinson's judgment was correct... Goal!"

"GOAL!"

Totti scores from the penalty spot! 1-1, both sides are back on equal footing!

"This penalty kick, shot into the top left corner, was of very high quality, reflecting Totti's shooting skills and confidence."

"Grosso, Grosso, he's an absolute hero for the Italian team!"

"Alright, the first half is over, and the score is currently tied. It's quite a coincidence that the goals were scored by both non-mainstream full-backs – Ashley Young and Grosso."

The players from both sides returned to the locker room.

Fifteen minutes later, the two sides switched sides and started playing again.

England have the ball, Hargreaves passes it to Beckham.

Beckham played a through ball.

Lu Kai received the ball on the right and cut inside. He had previously switched positions with Ashley Young, and now they were going to switch back, making a cross-run.

Pirlo was in a defensive position, but Lu Kai would overtake him with a single touch of the ball and squeeze him out of position with a single cut inside, leaving Pirlo virtually useless behind Lu Kai.

Materazzi was pulled away by Ashley Young for a moment, and when he wanted to come back, Lu Kai touched the ball quickly two or three times in a row, adjusted his direction, and made a breakthrough feint.

Left, right, left!
If Materazzi turned around, he would be completely unable to keep up with Lu Kai, so he could only face Ashley Young and Lu Kai from the side, and keep retreating.

This posture simply cannot be maintained for long.

After two or three passes, Materazzi was unable to continue.

Lu Kai then swerved to the left, squeezing past Pirlo behind him, and unleashed a left-footed shot.

boom!
Cannavaro anticipated that Lu Kai wouldn't go to the less crowded area on the right, because the shooting angle was too small and lacked a direct threat to the goal.

So he brought his shovel ahead of time.

His prediction turned out to be correct.

The football hit Cannavaro's thigh and flew up, changing its trajectory and slowing its speed.

Buffon then tipped the ball over the crossbar with one hand.

The two best players on the Italian team so far combined to stop Lu Kai's powerful attack.

The applause was constant, for both the attackers and the defenders.

In the 52nd minute, Grosso still had the ball on the left side.

He pulled the ball away from Ashley Young and then prepared to dribble forward.

Ashley Young then kicked the ball away with his back leg.

Beckham rushed over to take control of the ball, leaving Grosso with no choice but to foul him.

Grosso received a yellow card.

"Grosso is no ordinary defender, but Ashley Young is no ordinary striker either."

"Grosso underestimated Ashley Young's defensive abilities; he's a seasoned veteran who's played both left and right full-back positions for two or three years."

Pirlo witnessed the entire scene.

Ashley Young, Beckham, Carragher... England's right-wing defense has clearly improved.

The plan to use Grosso to launch an attack could not proceed.

But even if you only succeed once, it's still worth it.

After all, they had already changed the score.

In the 56th minute, Pirlo made a long pass to the right side.

Camoranesi, Totti, and Pirlo made a series of diagonal passes from right to center, and Toni finally received the through ball and fired a shot.

Offside, shot disallowed.

In the 61st minute, the English army pressed forward.

Neither side wanted to go into overtime; both wanted to finish the game in regulation time.

Hargreaves passes the ball to Barton.

Ashley Cole also came up and received the ball at the byline.

However, they didn't pass the ball in immediately.

Because Italy's defensive line is quite tall, ordinary crosses are not very effective.

Ashley Cole made a breakthrough move in the penalty area, and then used his right foot, which he is not good at, to pass the ball across the double-team defense.

Italy's defense still had some problems, with errors in positioning and teamwork.

Lu Kai received the ball at the near post inside the penalty area.

Materazzi followed Lu Kai, trying to shove him into a high-intensity confrontation.

But Lu Kai met the ball with his left foot, pulled it back, and performed a half-lateral Marseille turn, shaking off the defense and facing the goal directly.

boom!
Lu Kai, positioned outside the left corner of the penalty area, curled a shot with his right foot towards the goal.

The stop-fire sequence was executed flawlessly in one smooth motion.

Materazzi became a stake.

But... Buffon is not a wooden stake.

boom!
Buffon made another incredible save.

Barton attempted a follow-up shot from outside the penalty area, but unfortunately the ball flew over the stands.

"Incredible save!"

"Buffon and Cannavaro were definitely the best players on the Italian team today. They repeatedly thwarted certain goals created by Lu Kai and others!"

"If the Italian team can go all the way, then I have no objection to giving the Ballon d'Or to Buffon or Cannavaro this year!"

On the field, Barton walked to the edge of the penalty area and sat down abruptly.

His thigh was a little uncomfortable.

That was also the reason for the shot just now.

"Has Barton strained his muscle? That's not good."

England's team doctor came onto the field to treat Barton and concluded that he did not have a muscle strain.

Out of a conservative mindset, Lu Kai replaced Barton with Gerrard.

In the 69th minute, Camoranesi and Totti launched an attack on the right side, but failed and passed the ball back to Zambrotta.

Zambrotta made a lateral pass to Cannavaro.

Cannavaro launched another attack with a long pass, connecting with Toni on the left side of the penalty area.

Tony outmaneuvered Campbell to receive the ball, and while dribbling towards the edge of the penalty area, he passed it back.

Perrotta, who had made a run into the box, curled a shot at the ball.

Robinson successfully caught the ball.

"Oh! What a pity, this was a very good opportunity."

"Perrotta is good in every way, especially in his running, but his shooting skills need improvement."

After all, he's just a blue-collar player, not a talented one.

The camera also focused on Del Piero on the bench.

The area where Perrotta just shot is also known as the "Piero Zone".

His curling shots from this position have a very high arc and a very high success rate.

In the 73rd minute, Pirlo delivered a long pass over the top from the backfield.

Toni dropped back and headed the ball to Totti on the side.

Totti played a through ball without stopping it.

Perrotta found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper inside the penalty area.

However, before he could catch up with the ball, Robinson rushed out and smashed it away with both fists. Italy continued to break through England's defense.

Hargreaves' physical condition caused a significant slowdown in his movement, which weakened England's midfield defense.

So Lu Kai substituted Lampard for Hargreaves.

Lampard, Gerrard, and Beckham stood in their respective positions.

The British and German duo finally made their appearance.

However, everyone knows their role; they are actually three defensive midfielders.

Center forward Lu Kai dropped slightly back to play as an attacking midfielder.

This is a 4-3-1-2 formation that the Italian team is very familiar with.

In the 75th minute, Lu Kai passed the ball to the right side.

Ashley Young dribbled continuously on the right flank before delivering a cross after his teammates came up to him.

Italy cleared the ball with headers three times in a row.

The final header sent the ball flying outside the penalty area.

Joe Cole controlled the ball with his chest from more than 25 meters away from the goal, then fired a shot into the air with his right foot.

It was like a passing game, yet also like shooting.

The football soared into the sky, but suddenly plummeted near the far end of the goal.

"That's... a sharp, downward shot!"

"Joe Cole's shot had such a sharp drop that it was almost like a knuckleball!"

"Buffon was caught off guard... and he pounced!"

"The ball is in!"

“GOAL!!!”

"Buffon's save was futile."

"Joe Cole, Joe Cole, that kick was even more spectacular than Zidane's legendary volley!"

"England has taken the lead again!"

The Italians could no longer sit still.

Quickly make two replacements.

Del Piero replaced Perrotta to strengthen the attack.

Gilardino replaced Luca Toni.

Tony is not a top-tier striker, not even a first-rate one.

However, Lippi focused on his tactical effectiveness, so he became a starter for the team in this World Cup.

In terms of individual ability, Gilardino, who was thriving at AC Milan, was indeed stronger.

In addition, the combination of Ferdinand and Campbell in the England team today also put a lot of pressure on Toni. His physical strength is depleted much faster than before, and he is currently sweating profusely and his level has declined.

Therefore, there is no problem with either of these substitutions.

In the 77th minute, the Italian team launched an attack down the right flank.

Zambrotta made a short, lobbed pass forward.

Camoranesi receives the ball by holding off Lampard.

The two stumbled and tangled together, and the football bounced away.

Joe Cole dropped back aggressively and kicked the ball back into his own half.

At the same time, Camoranesi also tried to kick the ball, but ended up kicking Joe Cole's leg.

The ball returned to England's backfield.

But Gilardino beat Ashley Cole to the ball.

The two engaged in a fierce confrontation.

Gilardino forcefully broke past Ashley Cole and drove along the baseline into the penalty area.

Cunning as Inzaghi, strong as Vieri!

Before Gilardino joined Green Gunners, this assessment was more like a mockery of him.

But with Green Gun, he truly achieved that.

His potential has increased.

Inzaghi cut inside from the byline of the six-yard box, shaking off Ferdinand who was tracking back, and then shot from a tight angle.

Robinson stood in front of the goal to defend.

But Gilardino actually asked for a small angle.

The more crucial the moment, the less room there is for distraction. If a player can be distracted and think about how to play the ball better, then that player is definitely not simple.

This is also the most valuable thing Gilardino learned at Green Gun.

The football grazed Robinson's shin and flew towards the near post.

when!
It bounced off the pillar after hitting it.

Fortunately, Robinson was stunned by the shot and stood still, allowing the ball to roll away from behind him.

If he had reacted even a little faster, retreating or turning back, the bouncing ball might have been knocked into the goal by himself.

boom!
Carragher, who had come over, immediately kicked the ball away to clear the ball.

“Gilardino is very strong, which is why Lippi insisted on the 4-3-1-2 formation before.”

“Not starting a player like that is almost a crime.”

"He almost changed the score right from the start."

"But there's nothing we can do about it. It's said that the current 4-4-1-1 formation is the result of the entire Italian team's efforts."

"It was the players who took the initiative to approach Lippi and request a change in formation."

"Huh, is Joe Cole... injured?"

"Oh no, this is bad!"

"Joe Cole is one of the few players in England's attacking line who can create a chemistry with Lu Kai. He is also the team's attacking core, independent of Lu Kai."

On the court, Joe Cole looked somewhat uncomfortable.

The team doctor shook his head after examining the patient.

It's not a big problem, but they can't last through this match.

"The England team's plans have been disrupted by this injury."

"Vardy replaces Joe Cole."

"While such a substitution should have been made at this point, it means that England is no longer capable of playing in extra time."

In the 81st minute, Italy won a corner kick.

After several clearances, the ball was finally cleared by Zambrotta from outside the box, who then unleashed a long-range shot.

when!
The football hit the crossbar and bounced away.

Italy repeatedly threatened England's goal and had clearly gained the upper hand.

England's performance was somewhat lackluster.

They became somewhat weaker after De Bruyne and Ginobili came on.

The main reason is that the players also have doubts about the "Double De Bruyne formation" and are worried about its defensive weaknesses.

If every player leans a little more towards defense, then the overall England team's attack is affected.

“No, not entirely,” Guardiola said from the sidelines. “This was also Lu Kai’s own choice. Although England is on the back foot, they now truly have a chance to counterattack.”

"This kind of environment is conducive to Vardy's performance."

"Moreover, if the game unfortunately goes into overtime, Lu Kai's current actions can help the team gain more energy."

"In the long run, it is a wise move."

However, football has never been a sport where "wise" decisions can be made.

The 89th minute, the last minute of regular time.

Gilardino won a corner kick.

After Italy took a corner kick, Gerrard headed the ball clear to the edge of the penalty area, making a crucial contribution.

But Pirlo is right at the top of the arc.

He first feinted a shot, then dribbled laterally to the right, drawing four England players to the penalty area.

He then sent a through ball.

Grosso met the ball on the right side of the penalty area with a half-turn and a left-footed shot.

The football flew straight into the far corner of the net!

"Break the door!"

"The ball is in!"

"Number three, Grosso! It's him again! He's changed the score again!"

"He put the ball into England's goal in the final moments, securing a last-minute equalizer!"

"All the players on the Italian team, including the substitutes and coaches, rushed to the sidelines to celebrate the goal."

"The scales of victory have tipped in the favor of the Italians!"

"That ball came at just the right time!"

The large screen repeatedly played images of Pirlo and Grosso.

“A left-back positioned on the right side of the penalty area. Although it’s a corner kick, it’s hard to say whether this positioning was specially arranged.” Southgate pondered. “After all, this position is the most suitable for Grosso to shoot.”

Guardiola shook his head: "Lippi is really willing to learn. Italy's use of Grosso was completely based on Dartford's use of Ashley Young and Maicon."

"This guy is a fan of mainland China!"

(End of this chapter)