Who made him play as a winger/attacking midfielder?

Chapter 121 China vs. Wales: Chang Huan vs. Bale – A Visually Stunning Start! (Includes content about the Chinese national team)

Chang Huan trained with the national football team in Nanning for two days and discovered that the national team's level was truly impressive.

It's hard to say.

Wu Lei, Gao Lin, and Hao Junmin are among the few players in the team who can coordinate well.

But there's no way to pursue more.

The levels of consciousness and technology are already fixed and cannot be changed.

As a world-class head coach, Lippi managed to develop tactics that could inspire the entire team's fighting spirit in a short period of time.

That is, it combines Chang Huan's passing ability, Gao Lin's playmaking ability, and Wu Lei's off-the-ball movement ability.

While Wales may not be a force to be reckoned with in the world of football, it is undoubtedly a behemoth when compared to the Chinese men's national football team.

Ramsey, Bell, Joe Allen, Andy King, etc.

They are all world-renowned football stars, especially in the English Premier League.

Teams that play high-level matches for extended periods are better at controlling the pace of the game, making them a much easier opponent for slow-paced teams.

However, Lippi's coaching team made some targeted plans in advance, hoping that the players could perform at their best on the field.

Combined with Chang Huan's creativity in defensive-to-offensive and positional warfare.

Even if they can't beat Wells by playing at home, they won't lose too badly.

Once Chang Huan creates a scoring opportunity and capitalizes on it, the chances are very high.

The only thing that Lippi's coaching team is worried about now is that the national team players who have been playing in the Chinese Super League for many years cannot keep up with the pace.

The ball wasn't being passed and received at the same point in time, which allowed Wells to score a successful turnover.

Therefore, the core of tactical drills lies in how to pass the ball to Chang Huan.

Wu Lei is responsible for making forward runs during the transition from defense to attack.

The team's numerous drills led to a conclusion that amazed the Chinese players.

As long as the ball is passed to Chang Huan and Wu Lei runs into open space, he can pass the ball in the correct position.

That's why these domestic players admire Chang Huan, who is only 18 years old.

No one has objected to Chang Huan serving as the core of the Chinese national team's midfield in preparation for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in the UAE.

The difference in capabilities is obvious.

5 month 22 day.

The match between the Chinese men's national football team and the Welsh men's national football team took place on the same day.

The football atmosphere is particularly strong in Nanning.

Numerous banners and posters related to the Nanning-China Cup International Football Championship can be seen everywhere.

The situation was particularly exaggerated near the competition venue.

On the day of the match, the already skyrocketing ticket prices increased even further.

By 5 p.m., the plaza surrounding the Yuexi Sports Center, where the competition was being held, was packed with people, and long queues formed at every entrance leading into the stadium.

The fans were in high spirits, taking photos and videos with their phones to share this wonderful moment on social media platforms like WeChat Moments.

Outside the stadium, many fans held up signs begging for tickets, hoping that kind people would give up their tickets.

These people are also being watched by many police officers, who hope to use them as bait to catch some scalpers or scammers who resell tickets.

The highest price for tickets in the four tiers, which was 480 RMB, was inflated to nearly 20 times the original price.

Even the lowest tier, priced at 80 RMB, is close to 10,000 RMB.

The Chinese men's football players arrived at the Western Guangdong Sports Center by bus, and the fans queuing to enter or those outside who didn't have tickets but were just there for the excitement instantly became excited and cheered loudly.

Chang Huan, as the biggest star of the Chinese national football team and a rising star in Europe during the 2017-2018 season, received the most support from the entire audience.

The shouts came in waves.

There were countless banners, slogans, and player posters.

Chang Huan, sitting by the bus window, smiled and waved to the fans who supported him.

This response excited the fans even more.

The shouts were deafening.

"The fans are so enthusiastic."

Chang Huan couldn't help but sigh.

"You have a lot of influence. If it were in the past, we would have burned incense and prayed to Buddha if you didn't scold us."

Wu Lei turned his head and gave a half-smile.

"Brother Lei, are you roasting me alive?"

"Ha~ That's your misconception. I'm just praising your influence."

"I don't believe you for a second, you old geezer, you're a really bad guy."

"Hahaha----"

The two are roommates, and their teamwork on the field is becoming more and more seamless. They also often joke around.

Around 6:30 pm Beijing time, the Chinese national football team players came to the field from the locker room to warm up.

At this time, the Yuexi Sports Center, which can accommodate 55,000 spectators, was already more than 60% full, and the remaining seats were gradually filled by fans queuing to enter.

"Chang Huan!"

"Chang Huan!!"

"Chang Huan!!!"

As Chang Huan walked from the players' tunnel to the synthetic track, the stands erupted in hysterical shouts from the fans.

The entire C section of the stands, located behind the south goal on the side of the stadium, is a striking red.

That was the Dragons' fan club's gathering area, where the atmosphere was incredibly enthusiastic.

Chang Huan stopped, raised his right hand, looked around, and gave a brief response to the enthusiastic fans.

As the players from both sides entered the field to warm up, Chang Huan spotted a familiar face in the crowd.

Ben Woodburn.

Kirkby's U18 teammates.

He took the initiative to go up and greet them, exchanging a few words.

With about an hour to go before the match, the starting lineups for both teams appeared on FIFA's official website.

The home team, the Chinese men's national football team, adopted a 4-4-2 formation.

Goalkeeper: Yan Junling; Defenders: Zheng Zheng, Feng Xiaoting, He Guan, Zhang Linpeng; Midfielders: Wei Shihao, Huang Bowen, Hao Junmin, Chang Huan; Forwards: Gao Lin, Wu Lei. Wells fielded a 4-3-3 formation with a full-on attacking style.

Goalkeeper: Hennessy; Defenders: Chester, Ashley Williams, Ben Davies, Chris Gunter; Midfielders: Joe Allen, Andy King, Ramsey

Forwards: Harry Wilson, Vokes, Bale. Fans who came to the stadium and saw the starting lineups of both sides said it was worth the ticket price!

Many Chinese fans watching on TV prayed when they saw Wells' starting lineup: Please go easy on them!

Bale's Wales team is at best a second-tier team in Europe, but they are a super team in front of the Chinese men's football team, even though Chang Huan started the game in his first time being selected for the national team.

Football is a team sport; individual strength is unlikely to overcome the overall weakness of the team.

It's worth noting that this Welsh team reached the semi-finals of the European Championship in France two years ago.

This speculation was confirmed in the match that kicked off precisely at 7:35.

Wales players are almost all trained by the elite English youth academy, with solid basic skills. Most of their key players are from the English Premier League, and Gareth Bale even joined Real Madrid in the summer of 2013 for over £1 million.

Their overall strength completely overwhelmed them.

Wells, having won the kickoff, played like a strong team, launching an attack from the right flank after a simple midfield transition.

The Chinese men's football team, under Lippi's leadership, employed a very modern tactic at the start of the game, launching a high-pressing attack.

It had some effect at first; Wells' pass to the right wing was too powerful and was intercepted by Zheng Zheng.

The Dragons fans and casual fans in the stands erupted in cheers.

Faced with pressure from Bale and Ramsey, Zheng Zheng felt his brain buzzing and instantly forgot the discipline of transitioning from defense to attack, choosing instead to kick the ball forward with a long kick.

Gao Lin and Wu Lei were unable to win the ball at all against the strong Wells center-backs Ashley Williams and Ben Davies.

Control of the football has returned to the Welsh players.

Sitting on the coach's bench, Lippi waved his hand in dissatisfaction, expressing his dissatisfaction with Zheng Zheng.

I repeatedly told him before the competition that he must stay calm!

When intercepting the ball on the flanks, it's crucial to execute effective transitions between offense and defense.

If every player handles the ball like that, there's simply no way to threaten the Wells goal.

At that time, Yan Junling's goal will likely be smashed by the shots.

Zheng Zheng's situation is not an isolated case. In the ensuing back-and-forth exchanges, Lippi's concerns became a reality in the second minute!

Goalkeeper Hennessey launched a long ball into the attacking third, where striker Vokes headed it on.

Unlike Zheng Zheng, the center-back He Guan, who was trailing behind, seemed to have heavy legs and his clearance movements were too slow.

Little did anyone know that Bale overtook him from behind in a lightning-fast move and intercepted the ball in one swift motion.

Harry Wilson made a forward run, drawing away Zhang Linpeng. Bale, who received the ball, cut inside from the right side of the penalty area, moving diagonally to the left side of the penalty area. He fully utilized his speed advantage to create space and slotted the ball into the near corner.

Goalkeeper Yan Junling was too far away to reach him.

Bale celebrated his goal with his signature heart-shaped hand gesture.

The Chinese players, now relegated to the background, looked at each other in bewilderment.

The live broadcast director cut the camera to Chang Huan for about a second.

The ball hasn't even been touched since the start of the match, and the national team has already conceded a goal.

Head coach Lippi raised his hand to his forehead, clearly disapproving of the players' performance on the field.

They forgot everything they had been told before the game when it really mattered.

The most important element for a center-back in handling the ball is cleanliness and decisiveness; if you can use your shin, never your thigh, especially against a fast defender like Bale.

An incredibly fast attacking player.

The Welsh players retreated to their own half.

"Beep~"

Malaysian international referee Yakubu blew his whistle, signaling the restart of the match.

Gao Lin passed the ball to Wu Lei, who quickly passed it to Chang Huan outside the center circle.

Bell and Vox pounced on them from the left and right respectively.

Chang Huan passed the ball back to Hao Junmin, who had seen many big games, and then moved to the right to create space for receiving the ball, while calling on right-back Zhang Linpeng to push forward boldly.

Hao Junmin continued to pass the ball back to Feng Xiaoting.

The Welsh players executed manager Giggs' tactics perfectly. In addition to Joe Allen pressing forward, the midfielders Ramsey and Andy King stayed in midfield to mark potential supporting players Hao Junmin and Huang Bowen.

Feng Xiaoting is a veteran in the national team with rich experience in matches.

He was once called one of the "Top Ten Promising Stars" alongside Messi at the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the Netherlands. Facing Vokes' pressing, he remained relatively calm and passed the ball to Chang Huan, who had moved to the right-back position to receive it.

Joe Allen, who had moved to the left midfield position, continued to press forward, attempting to create a cross-court press with center forward Vokes, who had finished pressing center-back Feng Xiaoting.

A pincer attack.

Chang Huan remained calm and composed, using the outside of his left foot to deflect the ball to the left to create lateral space, followed by a smooth push forward with the inside of his left foot.

Joe Allen, who lunged too hard, realized his legs were too short when he needed them, and all he managed to kick was air.

"Oh oh oh 5"

Chinese fans in the stands instinctively erupted in a huge cheer, cheering for Chang Huan's brilliant dribble past the defender.

"The sudden change in pace had a very noticeable effect. Chang Huan got past former Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen. Oh? There was a large open space in front of him. He advanced at high speed—"

As commentator He Wei from CCTV-5 shouted, Chang Huan accelerated and dribbled the ball towards the center circle.

Ramsey and Andy King were drawn to Hao Junmin, who was making a forward run, and Wei Shihao, who was tucked inside, respectively.

When they realized they should put more pressure on Chang Huan, it was too late.

With a wide field of vision, Chang Huan easily captured the running routes of both teams in a relaxed environment.

In the blink of an eye.

Find the best passing route!

He raised his left foot about two meters from the center circle, his lower leg swayed slightly, and he quickly struck the lower part of the football with the inside of his left foot where the instep meets the arch.

The football, propelled by the force of the ball to knee height, arced with high-speed inward spin, and passed through the space between Ramsey and Andy King, who were intentionally closing in on both sides of the center circle, like a white rainbow piercing the sun.

Ben Davis, who had just handed Gao Lin over to his partner Ashley Williams to guard, turned around, his pupils constricting involuntarily.

Driven by a conditioned reflex, he attempted to clear the bouncing football.

Unexpectedly, the football accelerated significantly on the watered grass!

"Shit!"

This situation simultaneously startled Ben Davies and right-back Gunter.

The ball, landing and swooping forward, rapidly approached Wu Lei, who was making a diagonal run behind the two players.

One by one, the Chinese fans in the stands stood up excitedly.

"Beautiful through ball!"

CCTV-5 commentator He Wei exclaimed excitedly, "We've breached Wells' entire leaky defense!"

Chang Huan's through ball, which stretched over 50 meters, seemed to be precisely calculated, with just the right amount of lead time.

Wu Lei didn't even need to adjust; he sprinted at full speed to the edge of the penalty area, adjusted his footwork, and met the ball as it slowed down considerably.

Left center-back Ashley Williams attempted to disrupt the defense with a sliding tackle from the right.

With his attention focused entirely on the ball, Wu Lei adjusted his footwork and, about two meters to the left of the penalty spot, swung his right foot to curl a shot into the far corner.

Hennessy's belated save was too late.

next second.

The Chinese fans at the Yuexi Sports Center erupted in cheers, with excited national football fans shouting hysterically.

Head coach Lippi stood up excitedly, raised his clenched fists high, and shouted, releasing the pressure brought by equalizing the score.

"Chang Wu successfully connected! Wu Lei! Helping the Chinese team quickly equalize the score!"

Overwhelmed with emotion, He Wei shouted, "1:1!"

The Chinese players huddled together, and Bale was very dissatisfied that the midfielders hadn't pressed Chang Huan.

Ramsey and Andy King shrugged and spread their hands, indicating their helplessness.

That's how head coach Giggs sets up his tactics, what can you do?

The live broadcast recreated the entire goal-scoring process.

Fans watching the live broadcast on TV once again experienced what it means to have the ultimate visual enjoyment.

CCTV-5 commentator He Wei eloquently remarked: "Wells clearly hadn't done their homework before the match, giving Chang Huan such a passing opportunity. His world-class positioning and movement with Wu Lei created an effective connection! Wu Lei seized this one-on-one chance, helping the Chinese national team to quickly equalize!"