Chapter 433 From ultimate defense to horse-mule connection

Chapter 433 From ultimate defense to horse-mule connection
"aoaooaoaoooooo——"

The scoreboard at the Luzhniki Stadium still showed the score 0:0. Fans from both sides and neutral fans in the auditorium were affected by the wonderful game and let out deafening shouts.

Portuguese fans are full of expectations, while English fans are worried.

Although Martin only lightly participated in the attack when being marked to a certain extent, he was still able to put huge pressure on England's defense.

Although Lingard has plenty of physical fitness, he is an offensive player after all, and his defense can only focus on being close to the player.

In many cases, he does not dare to foul easily.

After all, for Martin, any free kick within thirty-five meters is an effective range.

Southgate stood in the command and technical area with his brows furrowed and his mouth pursed. His eyes were fixed on the court, hoping to find a way to break the game.

In fact, he knows that everyone knows that the way to break the game is actually very simple, it is nothing more than limiting Martin's performance.

But how to limit, how to limit.

No one has been able to do it so far.

Football is a team sport that pays great attention to details. In the ever-changing peak matchup, almost no one can be 100% accurate.

It is also true that Martin can always find a way to turn the tide when the opponent makes the wrong choice.

"I hope I can score first..."

After a brief thought, Southgate still pinned his hope on offense.

If we can take the lead, at least the pressure will be reduced a lot.

When the event reaches the semi-finals, Martin and the entire Portuguese team will be under tremendous pressure, and there will be a high probability of winning the game in one fell swoop.

Of course, he also knows that this is an ideal situation. To turn the plan into reality requires not only the efforts of the whole team, but also some luck.

Seeing that the situation was almost stable, Portugal head coach Santos had returned to the coaching bench and sat down with his legs crossed, just like an ordinary football fan.

The commentators in the on-site commentary box were all eloquent and gave wonderful comments based on the real-time competition.

Martin was closely monitored, and Ronaldo and Seat B became particularly active.

As top players, they have extremely strong personal abilities.

Fortunately, Pickford was in excellent condition, otherwise the city gate would have been lost.

As time passed and Portugal's statistics continued to increase, the England fans in the audience became nervous.

Cristiano Ronaldo once again received Martin's non-stop ball at the front of the left penalty area, passing through the ball without stopping, swaying Henderson away and shooting directly.

The kicked football was like a cannonball. Pickford, who was very focused, flew up and lifted the football with one palm, just in time to lift the football that was flying almost against the lower edge of the crossbar.

"wowowowooooo——"

The overwhelming exclamations instantly resounded throughout the Luzhniki Stadium.

"England should pose a threat to Portugal's defense on the offensive end, otherwise the goal will be penetrated by Ronaldo sooner or later!"

Central 5 commentator He Wei said it very seriously.

The England fans in Dragon Country in front of the TV frowned, obviously having taken it in.

Watching the Premier League regularly, they know how perverted Martin can be.

Naturally, it is necessary to restrict Martin as much as possible, but Ronaldo should not be underestimated.

You must know that before Anding was born, Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi were known as the two heroes of the green field.

"Corner kick attack is also an important means for Portugal to score. Portuguese fans in front of the TV can look forward to it..."

Guest commentator Xu Yang said loudly.

Moutinho jogged to the corner kick area on the left side of the attack. The English players in the penalty area were extremely dignified. They followed the corner kick defense tactics formulated before the game to mark Martin, Ronaldo, Pepe and other players.

Among them, Martin and Ronaldo are the most closely guarded.

The high-intensity defense of the English players still played a certain role. The corner kick did not reach the heads of Martin and Ronaldo. Pepe did not have the upper hand under the pressure of Kyle Walker. Pickford, who was focused on the football, was relaxed. Get it.

Pepe shook his head regretfully. Pickford accelerated to avoid Maguire in front of him, took two lunges, swung the right hand holding the football tightly, and threw the ball hard to the left wing, which was already speeding up. Sterling!
"aoaooaooooooo——"

When the English fans at the scene saw that there were no Portuguese players near Sterling, they immediately became energetic and started shouting hysterically.

Sterling, who was at full speed, used his chest to lead Pickford's well-timed throw in the direction of travel in front of him. Portugal's defensive right back Cedric naturally did not rush forward recklessly. He retreated at high speed and waited for support. .

England invested a lot of people in corner kick defense, and there was a lack of offensive players who actively participated in the attack at the moment of transition from defense to offense.

Harry Kane knows very well that with great ability comes great responsibility. He runs at all costs, but after all, he is not a fast player and his support is limited.

Portuguese players are extremely quick to return to defense, and they all know the important role of Harry Kane in England's offensive system. They also consciously pay attention to it while retreating.

Sterling originally wanted to use his speed to eat the opponent alive. He has been successful in the Premier League many times. Nico Hedrick performed very steadily and did not want to fight alone with you at all. He chose to retreat and wait for support.

So he had to take the second option.

[Coordinate with teammates]

Dribbling the ball along the left sideline and past the center line, Sterling slowed down, spotted Lingard who was running forward at high speed in the ribs, and passed the ball without hesitation.

But I regretted it as soon as the ball left my feet.

He saw a figure that he had never dreamed of avoiding flashed out of Lingard's left rear at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The center of gravity of the body sinks, and then the left foot pushes hard on the ground. The right foot stretched forward is close to the ground, making full use of the inertia to close the distance with the football.

Lingard prepared the technical movements of catching the ball and moving forward in one go, but out of the corner of his eye he caught a red figure flashing out from the lower left, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Martin!!!"

Following a shout from Sky TV commentator Andy Gray, Martin, who still had top defensive awareness, blocked Sterling's cross pass to Lingard and stood up with both hands on the ground at the moment when the inertia ended.

Without making any adjustments, he directly took off his right foot and passed the ball diagonally.

Ali, who was originally actively attacking, seamlessly connected and actively defended, but Martin did not give him a chance to get closer, so he could only turn his head and look in the direction of the flight of the football.

The football shot up from the ground and quickly flew towards the left rib of the offensive penalty area with top-down backspin.

Martin's time from intercepting the ball to launching a counterattack with a long pass was so short that England's defense had no time to arrange it.

It did not have any impact on Portugal's transition from defense to offense. On the contrary, it had a tacit and active effect.

The footage switched by the live broadcast just covered the entire England defensive half. Fans in front of the TV could clearly see Youdao's red figure standing out from the white defensive line.

"Cristiano Ronaldo!"

Sky TV commentator Andy Gray looked at the familiar figure and blurted out. The fans at the Luzhniki Stadium saw it very clearly. The Portuguese fans were immediately ecstatic and made hysterical shouts.

The reaction of the English fans was almost the same. Their pupils shrank and they felt bad.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Martin cooperated tacitly. The moment Martin intercepted the ball, he accelerated back from the offside position and then ran according to the cooperation often practiced in the training ground.

as predicted!

Martin's pass came over...

Maguire and other English players, who were almost at the back, had no idea what was going on. In order to confuse the audience, he raised his right hand to remind the assistant referee that Ronaldo was offside.

I don’t know if the assistant referee was affected and raised the side flag immediately.

VAR was introduced in this World Cup. Even if the assistant referee raises the flag to indicate offside, he will not blow the whistle until the end of the attack.

If a goal is scored, replays will be used to determine whether the goal is valid.

Ronaldo, who ran towards the penalty area from outside the penalty area on the left, was not disturbed by the outside world. He only had football in his eyes. During the run, he used his chest to pass Martin's long pass to the direction in front of him, and then used his right foot to Step out to support the body and hit the ball with your left foot.

Boom~
Pickford, who was attacking, did not expect Ronaldo to be so decisive. His subconscious save was half a beat too slow. The powerful and low ball passed by his armpit as he fell to the left side of his body and hit the goal. The snow-white ball net at the far end...

"Gooooooooooo——"

Sky TV commentator Andy Gray was halfway through his speech. When he saw the broadcast screen showing referee Cakir raising his right hand, he suddenly exclaimed: "Offside?"

Ronaldo, who was about to do the 'siu' celebration, saw Cakir blowing the whistle to indicate offside, and ran over excitedly.

Other Portuguese players also shrugged and spread their hands and said something.

Only Martin, the great hero, slowly ran forward to prepare for the next goal celebration.

The referee Cakir has very good professional skills. He explained calmly and pointed at the headset with both hands, indicating that whether it was offside or not would depend on the VAR review.

At the same time, the on-site director showed the camera to the VAR screen that was played back from multiple angles.

At the moment when Martin passes the ball, you can clearly see from the white line that Ronaldo is one full body away from Ashley Young who is trailing behind at the far end.

So, Cakir drew the shape of a TV set in front of him with his index fingers, then turned around to face the center circle, and while blowing the whistle, he pointed at it with his right index finger in a relaxed manner.

In other words...the goal is valid!
"siuuuuuuuuuuuuuu——"

Cristiano Ronaldo smiled with relief and made his signature celebration gesture, while the Portuguese fans at the Luzhniki Stadium responded with a long and drawn-out sound of 'siu'.

"The match is in the 18th minute!"

Central 5 commentator He Wei said impassionedly: "Martin stole the ball himself and assisted Ronaldo to score! He can not only score goals, but also be a one-man player, and he can even send out exquisite passes! Ronaldo's This goal is definitely the number one contributor!”

"The timing of the long pass was quite good. If I had adjusted it, the opportunity would have been missed."

Guest commentator Xu Yang praised: "The world's number one football star really deserves his reputation!"

The fans of the Dragon Country in front of the TV raised their arms and shouted like they were proud. Then they thought of the senior officials of the Dragon Country Football Association who had been beaten to the end, and they felt even better.

Cristiano Ronaldo at the Luzhniki Stadium completed his signature goal celebration and turned around to hug Martin who sent the pass.

This goal also allowed him to catch up with Harry Kane and tie for second place in the scorer list.

England fans throughout the stadium were devastated, and Southgate, who was standing in the technical command area, looked gloomy.

The team fell behind first, which means that the next game will be more difficult than imagined.

As a former professional player and current head coach, I know that as long as the game is not over, there is a chance. Moreover, the game starts less than twenty minutes, and there are still more than seventy minutes left for them.

Of course, at this time, Southgate was consciously hinting to himself without thinking that Martin's team's lead meant that there was a high probability of winning the game.

Harry Kane and other English stars have played against Martin countless times in the Premier League, and they obviously know what it means to concede the ball first.

Sterling, who lost the ball, kept shaking his head and sighing. His eyes glanced at Martin who was crowded in the middle and felt particularly regretful.

If I had known this was the case, I might as well have gone to the ball to see if I could create an opportunity.

When the Portuguese players celebrated the goal excitedly, the live director restored the entire process of the goal.

It started with Pickford throwing the ball vigorously, then Sterling took the ball and moved forward, and when Cedric blocked his position, he handed the ball to Lingard who moved forward at high speed to join the attack in the ribs.

Under normal circumstances, such a pass is no problem.

The problem is that Martin's tackle was very decisive and his judgment was quite accurate. He made a sliding tackle while running at high speed and intercepted the ball passed by Sterling to Lingard. He then got up and made a long pass in one go.

It's just right with Ronaldo's alert and ghostly movement.

Cristiano Ronaldo's stopping of the ball and shooting also showed the standard of a superstar. Stopping the ball in the chest and connecting with the instep of his left foot to shoot flatly can ensure sufficient accuracy.

The horse and mule combination once again showed a unique style in the World Cup.

The amazing process of making a movie makes every fan in front of the TV feel what visual enjoyment is.

This... is the real enjoyment!

Not long after, the game restarted, and England, which was lagging behind, gained a kick-off advantage.

Considering that the tournament has reached the semi-final stage, impulsiveness will only lead to conceding another goal with a high probability. Therefore, the English players chose to focus on stability and take it step by step to see if they can find Portugal's defensive loopholes through patient passing.

Everyone knows that Portugal's defensive system has shortcomings.

Although Martin has extremely strong defensive ability, other defensive players have relatively average abilities.

William Carvalho seems stable in the past five games. In fact, Martin's commanding role has played a huge role, but there is no way to achieve the effect of Kante in Arsenal.

In other words, William Carvalho is prone to brain short-circuiting in a constantly changing defense.

He plays for Sporting CP, but makes such mistakes from time to time.

The Portuguese players, who were leading the score, were in high spirits and high in fighting spirit. Under constant reminders from senior players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Martin, and Pepe, the whole team seemed to be pumped.

The defense cannot be said to be particularly outstanding, but it is not unusually difficult for these young players in England to tear apart the defense and equalize the score.

In addition, Southgate is also worried about Portugal's quick counterattack, and there are not particularly many people involved in the attack.

This resulted in a stalemate in the offense and defense of both sides, with no one able to knock on the opponent's goal.

Time often passes very quickly in high-level matches, and in a blink of an eye, it’s half an hour into the first half.

The score shown on the scoreboard is still Portugal leading England 1:0.

The Portuguese fans in the audience were singing and dancing, while the English fans were in low mood. Except for the die-hard fans who sang the national anthem, most of them watched the game like gentlemen and kept cheering for the national team in their hearts.

But what is the use of such magical encouragement?
(End of this chapter)