Chapter 428: A full arsenal of weapons and an unpreventable scoring method

Chapter 428: A full arsenal of weapons and an unpreventable scoring method
"aoaoaoaoooooooo——"

The starting players from both sides of the game held their respective caddies and followed the referee team into the court. Huge cheers rang out over Sochi's Fisht Stadium.

Reporters on both sides of the player tunnel, separated by red cordons, kept pressing the shutter in their hands to record the wonderful moments in their cameras.

World-renowned stars appeared on the broadcast screen one after another, and the commentators of each TV station with broadcast rights spoke their own lines prepared in advance, fully exaggerating the atmosphere of the World Cup.

Martin, Cristiano Ronaldo, Modric, Rakitic and other players are the players who receive the most attention from reporters in the mixed zone.

The fans in the auditorium also focused their attention on these famous stars. They pointed their mobile phones at the players who entered the stadium with their heads held high. At the same time, they also fully released their energy and cheered for the players who stepped onto the stadium.

The fanatical atmosphere of the World Cup has begun to show its edge, and the next process is going very quickly.

Playing the national anthems of the two teams, shaking hands with each other, taking photos of the first team members, guessing the ball from the referee...

A series of highly ceremonial procedures ended. Players from both sides stood on one side, waiting for the whistle of Brazilian referee Sandro Ricci.

"Beep~"

Just after nine o'clock in the evening local time, the referee Richie, who was holding his breath, blew his whistle hard.

"Dragon Country TV, Dragon Country TV, what we are broadcasting for you now is the live broadcast of the last quarter-final match between Portugal and Croatia of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The ones wearing traditional crimson jerseys and crimson pants are Portugal. They Attacking from the right side of the broadcast screen to the left, wearing black and dark night blue jerseys..."

Central 5 commentator He Wei blurted out the iconic opening remarks.

Fans watching the live broadcast of the game focused on the court.

To be more precise, I saw Martin who had just gotten the ball.

Just as many media and fans laughed at themselves before the start of the World Cup, except that the national football team did not go to the fighting country, everything went there, especially the strongest Dragon Country players.

Although Martin is now representing Portugal in the World Cup, everyone knows why he represents Portugal.

In a sense, he represents himself in the World Cup on behalf of the Dragons.

The handsome face, the meticulous tilt of the head, the passing and receiving skills of a master...

Every time he plays the ball on the court, he attracts worldwide attention.

You never know what he's going to do with the ball.

Connection, organization, transition, fatal pass, advancement with the ball...

Croatia's defense against Martin was very targeted, as if surrounding him tightly in a circle, completely cutting off contact with the outside world.

Such tactics can certainly have the effect of weakening Martin, but other Portuguese players are not vegetarians.

Moutinho, B Fernando, who shouldered the responsibility of organization, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who frequently returned the ball, began to become active, posing a certain threat to the Croatian defense through tacit cooperation in passing and cutting.

Fortunately, Subasic was in very good condition. He defended the ball with a high pitch and tried to keep the goal.

Martin has a strong ability to capture the situation and mainly focuses on transition when being closely monitored.

Unless the opportunity is particularly good, he will not easily move forward with the ball.

The game has just begun. The Croatian players are full of energy and focused. This team is also known for its tough style of play. It is difficult to create absolute scoring opportunities in head-to-head encounters.

The game is a ninety-minute battle. If you want to win, you must have a lot of patience.

The two sides played very openly, and the fans at Fisht Stadium were particularly excited. The energy released by the ingredients brought the atmosphere of the entire stadium to its peak for the first time since the game started.

At the 14th minute of the game, Croatia unexpectedly took the lead.

The quick counterattack from defense to offense failed, and then decisively turned into a positional battle organized from the backcourt.

It was originally a very ordinary cross from the left side to the center. After receiving the ball, Perisic decisively swept the pass to the center.

Unexpectedly, Pepe, who was in the passing route, swung his leg and missed the ball due to the interference of Mandzukic. Rebic seemed to have expected this situation. He jumped in front of Wundt and used it in the middle of the small penalty area. A poke of the toe.

Patricio suddenly felt a cold feeling under his crotch, and his legs suddenly closed together. However, due to his height and long legs, his reaction speed was slow, which caused him to be half a beat slower.

The football hit the snow-white net, and the Croatian fans in the audience instantly went crazy. The red and white plaid shirts they wore were like surging waves of people surging crazily in the sea.

On the other hand, the reaction of Portuguese fans was a bit dull.

Why did he suddenly lose the ball?
Pepe made a mistake in the penalty area and waved an apology with a look of remorse.

Of course, since everyone is part of a collective, they will naturally not blame Pepe. On the contrary, they will offer some words of comfort.

This scene was caught by the on-site director. He Wei, the CC5 commentator who was commenting on Croatia’s goal just a second ago, changed the subject and praised: “The atmosphere in the Portuguese team is really good. They can reach the quarterfinals without any blood. In addition to their excellent performance, The strength of the team is also directly related to the harmonious atmosphere in the locker room.”

The game restarted, and the Croatian team, which was leading the score, had more fighting spirit. They ran without hesitation and walked as fast as flying. They did not give Portugal any chance to create a good opportunity to score.

Martin couldn't even touch the ball.

But he didn't have any emotional changes. Facing Croatia's tougher defense, he saw an opportunity to equalize the score.

Croatia's defensive hardness has increased, and its movements will naturally be affected by the surge of adrenaline hormones and become difficult to control.

In the 19th minute of the game, Portugal got an opportunity to attack in a positional battle. The offense organized by Moutinho and B Fei could not reach Ronaldo's feet, and the cross was also greatly interfered with. Therefore, the offensive style was very traditional, with the left side turning through the middle. Go to the right, and if that doesn't work, go back.

After many consecutive passes, no suitable opportunity was found. Moutinho, who received the ball at the back of the left rib, saw Martin suddenly start to pick up speed and quickly passed the ball.

The power of the pass is very well grasped, with a certain amount of advance, and keeping a distance from Rakitic who is standing behind.

Rakitic instantly caught the ball landing between himself and Martin with his peripheral vision, and he rushed forward without hesitation, intending to clear the ball.

But he forgot the most critical speed.

Martin starts early and has a speed advantage. Rakitic has no speed advantage in frontal defense and needs time to start from where he is and then increase his speed.

However, the distance between them was only about seven or eight meters, and two or three strides highlighted the huge gap.

Rakitic, who was belatedly aware of the situation, immediately realized that the situation was very bad, but his speed and movement rate were shortcomings.

Watching helplessly as Martin used the inside of his raised left instep to spike the ball, it was definitely impossible. As an organizational midfielder, his defensive skills were not very solid and he mostly used fouls to prevent the opponent from breaking through.

"Beep~"

Instinctively, he raised his left foot and kicked Martin's supporting right foot. The referee Richie decisively blew the whistle and gave Rakitic a yellow card.

From his field of vision, Martin, who passed Rakitic, has obvious space to create scoring.

According to the principle of promoting offense, there must be sufficient protection for offensive players.

Croatian head coach Dalic, who was standing in the visiting team's coaching technical area, suddenly thought of something, his pupils shrank, and an unpleasant feeling swept through his body instantly.

The location of Rakitic's foul seemed... not far from the goal.

A rough calculation is within thirty meters.

The shooting angle is also relatively large, about 70° from the left goal post.

Completely within Martin's range!

Captain Modric also had the same premonition, and even Rakitic, who committed the foul, realized that he had made a mistake.

The two played for Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively, and had many encounters with Arsenal, where Martin played, and both had witnessed Martin's free kick skills.

A powerful and heavy falling leaf slash, a curved ball like a full moon scimitar.

But they are all scoring methods that can kill enemies thousands of miles away!
The CCTV commentator looked at Martin who was pulled up from the ground by Ronaldo, and his voice rose twice: "Rakitic's foul was a bit reckless."

"Indeed, as we all know, Martin has a high hit rate on direct free kicks between 23 and 38 meters, and his scoring efficiency is also very high." Fixed partner commentator Xu Yang said solemnly: "It seems that Croatia will soon Portugal will equalize the score."

Not long after, the organizers announced the actual distance from the goal: 29m.

"aoaooaoaooaooooooo——"

The Portuguese fans at Fisht Stadium obviously know how to play football. When they saw Martin, who was kicked down by Rakitic, placing the football at the foul spot, they couldn't help but let out a huge shout to cheer for Martin who was about to take the direct free kick.

Some Croatian fans in the audience felt a little nervous, frowning, and the uneasiness spread throughout the Croatian fan area as time passed.

Goalkeeper Subasic played for Monaco and played against Arsenal in the Champions League semi-finals in the 2016-2017 season. He was penetrated by Martin many times. The five-man wall arranged was unable to determine the specific position, so that the referee Qi had to step in to urge.

He knew that it would be Martin who took the free kick rather than Cristiano Ronaldo, who had taken a good position early.

After all, if it were Cristiano Ronaldo four years ago, he would have needed to be on guard.

After 20 seconds of positioning on the wall, he finally found his position. Martin, who was standing behind the football, began to take steps back.

The process is short, but in the eyes of Croatians it takes a long time.

"Beep~"

Referee Rich blew his whistle.

"wuwuwuuuuuuu——"

Croatian fans spontaneously made harsh boos, trying to affect the efficiency of Martin's penalty kick as he started to run up.

Martin, who has the characteristic "calm and composed", will not be affected by the outside world at all. He took a four-step approach according to his own rhythm.

The left foot that was finally taken out was about 25 centimeters behind the left side of the football. The ankle of the right foot that was swinging from back to front was locked tightly, and the instep of the foot hit the football placed at the foul spot hard.

Boom~
The crisp muffled sound was like thunder on the ground.

The football shot up from the ground and passed over the head of Mandzukic in the middle of the Croatian wall who jumped instinctively at high speed.

The football that flew into the air did not produce any rotation while flying at high speed, like a cannonball that escaped from the barrel. The three stripes and black and white plaid patchwork of the sports equipment sponsor Adidas were clearly visible.

Goalkeeper Subasic stood in the far corner of the goal. When he saw the football flying towards the near corner, he immediately raised his left foot and took a step to the right. He jumped to the right during the staggered run-up and stretched out his right arm.

However, the football kicked out by Martin flew very fast. Before Subasic could fully extend his arms, the football flew past the ball at high speed with overwhelming momentum, and hit the snow-white net against the upper inner edge of the left upright.

"Goooooooooooooooal——"

The on-site commentary box was the first to hear the elongated voices of multiple commentators.

"Beautiful goal! Martin used his eighth goal of this World Cup to help Portugal equalize the score, 1:1!"

Central 5 commentator He Wei said impassionedly: "Martin, who has been closely guarded most of the time since the beginning, has a well-equipped arsenal and will always seize even the slightest opportunity!"

"What is a world-class superstar? Martin's performance is that of a world-class star! He is a level higher than Ronaldo and Messi!"

Commentator Xu Yang blurted out: "I believe that Martin, who is in extraordinary form, will definitely lead Portugal to reverse the score in the next game! Become the fourth national team to advance to the semi-finals!"

The entire Portuguese fans and most of the fans at Fisht Stadium became excited and shouted hysterically.

The Portuguese players on the field also ran towards Martin excitedly to celebrate the equalizer goal.

Falling behind first in the World Cup quarter-finals brings a huge psychological gap.

The sooner the score is equalized, the higher the probability of turning defeat into victory.

If it fails to equalize the score, it will have a huge impact on the whole team.

The most important thing is that the free kick scored by Martin was brilliant, which greatly improved morale.

Martin, who scored the goal, was very calm. He stood there and opened his arms to hug his teammates who came forward to celebrate.

The Croatian stars looked at each other with helpless expressions.

What can be said about Martin's incomprehensible performance?

The world wave is simply powerless...

Immediately, the on-site director gave playbacks from multiple different angles in accordance with the international practice of live broadcast.

The wonderful pictures frame by frame make the fans in front of the TV feel particularly satisfied.

"Another fantastic goal that will go down in history."

Sky commentator Andy Gray said impassionedly: "It's so beautiful."

"While it was exciting, it also greatly improved Portugal's overall morale. I believe that in the near future, Martin will perform well and lead Portugal to reverse the score."

Henry, who was the guest commentator, said solemnly.

Portugal's goal celebration did not last long and the game restarted.

The score became a draw. Both sides returned to balance in terms of mentality, and both offense and defense became cautious.

Now we are in an invincible position, and no one wants to be the laggard.

After all, no one is sure that they can equalize the score when they are behind.

Croatia still maintains a high-density defense against Martin, and Modric, the playmaker, has no time to take care of it, and the offensive end sacrifices a lot.

Portugal also focuses on stability. When Martin is closely guarded, it is difficult to rely on Moutinho and B Fee to create a scoring opportunity that is enough to score.

To put it simply, there is no second player in Portugal who can create points.

The score of 1:1 remained unchanged until the end of the first half.

"Beep~"

Referee Richie blew his whistle, and the players from both sides walked to the tunnel and returned to the locker room to prepare for the second half.

The substitutes enter the court to warm up and prepare for their possible debut in the second half.

The fanatical atmosphere at Fisht Stadium reached its peak. After all, fans of both teams needed to recuperate, otherwise it would be difficult to sustain them until the end of the game.

Judging from the end of the first half, the two teams may also enter overtime.

If there is too much unnecessary consumption, I am afraid it will be difficult to persist until the end.

By then, the support for the home team in my heart may be weak.

The broadcast footage was shown to the players from both sides walking towards the tunnel, and reporters in the mixed zone kept filming.

Judging from the score, it’s evenly matched.

The game was far from exciting. The core players of both teams were tightly defended and found it difficult to perform on the offensive end.

The fifteen minutes of halftime will become crucial.

Targeted deployment and various countermeasure adjustments will also seriously affect the trend of the game.

The fans and friends who are waiting are obviously bored and boring, and social platforms have become the best place for them to vent...

(End of this chapter)