Chapter 247: Qualifying for the European Qualifiers Still Depends on Allies, Part (Explosive Update

Thuram was mainly in a subconscious state of danger awareness. He thought it was very dangerous to continue allowing Li Qi to touch the ball with his back foot in front of the top of the penalty area, and wanted to drive Li Qi out.

According to Thuram's plan, it was enough for Escude to keep an eye on De Rossi, who was a defensive midfielder, while he would interfere with Li Qi's passing. At the same time, Vieira blocked Li Qi's passing line to Del Piero, and Makelele blocked Li Qi's passing path to Perrotta, forcing Li Qi to pass back, and the crisis was naturally resolved.

In fact, even if Thuram had not made the suggestion, Li Qi had not thought of a better offensive plan and would have had to pass the ball back sooner or later, because Vieira and Makelele's positioning and defensive support were very good, with one always blocking and the other protecting, without leaving too many loopholes.

And De Luo actually chose to go to the side at this time, obviously overlapping with Zambrotta. Could it be that he allowed Zambrotta to play the role of a forward more than ten years ahead of time? Li Qi couldn't understand it. It would be a waste to pass the ball to him again, as he would definitely mess it up.

Perrotta on the other side chose a good position, but Abidal was already on his guard and Malouda also retreated to assist in defense. It was okay to pass the ball to him, after all, Oddo also came up to help, but there was a high probability that he would be forced to pass back.

So just when Li Qi was at a loss, the triggering point made him realize that Thuram was pressing him. This made Li Qi very happy. Li Qi understood the principle that one monk carries water to eat, two monks carry water to eat, and three monks have no water to eat.

Thuram's help was definitely more of a hindrance than a help, and it also gave himself space to run forward! With Thuram pressing forward, Vieira had to give him space, and since both of them were defending Li Qi, Makelele would definitely relax his vigilance against him...

De Rossi, your cake is here!

Li Qi pulled the ball and turned around, facing the French goal, using his butt to block Vieira, blocking the latter in front of Thuram who was about to come up. Both of them were blocked by Li Qi's 1-meter tall body and could not see the ball. Then Li Qi shouted, "Daniele!"

Hmm? Who is this? Who is the one who wants to fight you? Oh! Yes, it's De Rossi!

Not to mention that the French defensive players didn't react, De Rossi himself was stunned for a moment. Why did Li Qi call his name?

The ball was hit hard by Li Qi's right heel, passed between Vieira's legs, slid past Thuram's foot beside Vieira, and was about to hit De Rossi's instep!

Fortunately, De Rossi was a tough but delicate defensive midfielder, and Li Qi called him out in advance, so he was mentally prepared. Subconsciously, he stopped the fast-moving ball with the arch of his foot, and without being taught, De Rossi also knew how to stick out his big butt and push away Escudé behind him, leaving himself space to handle the ball.

After Li Qi kicked the ball out, Vieira was too close and did not see the ball being sent away from his crotch, while Thuram was still between Vieira and did not react where the ball went; only Makelele, who was about to leave the defensive position, noticed the clue, but it was too late to remind his teammates, so he could only chase back!

Because Li Qi used Vieira as the axis, he turned flexibly and inserted into the gap behind Thuram, and once again used Vieira to make a single block, separating Thuram from possible close entanglement...

When De Rossi saw Li Qi turning around and moving forward, even a fool knew what to do. However, it can only be said that De Rossi is worthy of being a defensive midfielder. This pass was very powerful and directly helped Li Qi send the ball into the penalty area.

This almost made Li Qi burst into curse: Damn, why do you need to use so much force in such a small space?

No matter what, based on Li Qi's speed, he is definitely not offside and will definitely catch up with the ball before Landro.

But even if Li Qi caught up with the ball, the angle of the shot was already very small. However, when Li Qi was worried about whether Escud would come to defend, Escud had already put down a shovel to block Li Qi's shot from the far corner. As Li Qi's former teammate, the latter knew the delicate footwork of this Italian boy. If he didn't help goalkeeper Landro to block a corner, the goal would definitely be penetrated.

However, Li Qi never thought about finishing the ball by himself, waiting to attract the goalkeeper and the last central defender. Then Li Qi repeated the same trick, pulling the ball slowly but actually quickly, using his body to separate Landro from the attacking and Escude from the flying tackle, and then sent an inverted triangle with his back heel back to the edge of the penalty area, facing Daniele who was smiling foolishly at the half-empty goal!

However, Li Qi looked back and found that De Rossi was not prepared at all. The latter subconsciously chose to stop the ball first, and then wanted to swing his leg to shoot! Li Qi knew that this big cake was going to be vomited by him. In the hinterland of the French penalty area, surrounded by a group of defensive elites, he still wanted to swing his leg to shoot? Can we only say that he is worthy of being an ace midfielder?

Li Qi was still thinking about turning around to take advantage of the opportunity, but the French defense would not give Li Qi another chance. Makelele took the risk of flying tackle from the side and blocked the ball that De Rossi had just shot. Then Abidal, who had returned to defense, headed the flying ball directly out of the baseline!

De Rossi was knocked down by Makelele and was stunned for a while before he sat up and complained loudly to the referee for a penalty...

Li Qi couldn't help but sigh: Facing a big empty goal, why stop the ball, why exert force? Just pick a part, hit, touch, or poke, and push the ball towards the goal! As long as it doesn't hit the goalkeeper, it's a sure win!

Daniele! You misunderstood me! If brother Philip, who can use all parts of his body to score fancy goals, was here, this goal would be a sure win...

After the French team escaped, Li Qi returned to the center position. However, it didn't take long for the Italian head coach and the French assistant coach to notice the problem.

Donadoni finally used up his last substitution in the 81st minute, replacing De Luo with Di Natale. Although Di Natale also plays as a shadow striker, he can switch positions with Li Qi anyway, which is much more effective than Del Piero's winging effect.

The French team played their first card almost at the same time, replacing Ribery with Lyon midfielder Toulalan, who was losing strength, to strengthen the defense in the middle of the midfield. It was obvious that after Inzaghi left the field, Italy, which lacked a traditional center forward in this game, did not need to worry about the bottom cross, and just blocked the penetration in the middle!

So although Li Qi was still very active in the last ten minutes of the game and made several big shots with Di Natale and Perrotta, he was ultimately unable to break through the French team's door. The two sides ended up shaking hands in a 0-0 draw, each taking one point. This was a result that both sides could accept...

After this round of matches, Italy ranked third in the group with 17 points after eight qualifying matches, France ranked first with two points, and Scotland ranked second with 3 points after defeating Lithuania 1-18. Italy is still two points behind France, while France has 2 points and still ranks first in the group with one point advantage.

However, in the next round, the French team will directly face Scotland, the second in the group...

@

At the post-match press conference, some media pointed out that after the 0-0 draw with France at home, the Italian team fell out of the top two in Group B of the European Cup qualifiers again, and was overtaken by Scotland by one point. They will next challenge Ukraine and Scotland away, and the situation is not optimistic.

However, Italy coach Donadoni said he could accept the result of a draw because Italy drew with the strongest opponent in the group, France, with an incomplete lineup: "We showed our due strength, but we were too cautious in the first 20 minutes and did not attack boldly... Then we strengthened the midfield control and created more opportunities, but in the end luck was not on our side and we failed to break the deadlock."

Donadoni did not comment further on the game, but Italian captain Cannavaro was much more vocal: "I am not satisfied at all. We could have done better and put more pressure on the French. We were too timid at the beginning, which was a shame... and it was too late to replace Li Qi at the end. We could have been more active and achieved better results."

Most media, and even French football experts, agree that if Italy had replaced Li Qi earlier, or if Li Qi had been in the starting lineup at the start, it would have been difficult for the French team to escape unscathed…

The day after the game, Gazzetta dello Sport also pointed out Donadoni's overly conservative and pedantic starting selection, as well as his unclear on-the-spot command.

"In this game, Donadoni chose Inzaghi and Del Piero as the starting striker combination. If time goes back 10 years, this is definitely a striker combination that makes all defenses tremble. However, for this game, the two veterans still contribute irreplaceable roles to their respective teams, but their combined age is 65 years old after all. And football, after all, is a sport for young people.

In the second half, Inzaghi and Piero were replaced by Li Qi and Di Natale respectively, and the Italian attack wave was truly formed. In the final moments, they surrounded the French team and launched a fierce attack. If it were not for the lack of a center forward who could make the final decision, or if they had a little better luck, the score would definitely not be 0-0.

Although Italy has good goalkeepers, defense and even midfield, we currently lack a sharper and more mobile attacking line.

Before the Italy-France match, Del Piero had just scored his first goal of the new season in Serie A and won the Golden Foot Award for the top scorer in Serie B last season. He had a strong desire to fight: "I feel that I am in very good shape."

Donadoni naturally had to follow the wishes of the veteran Zebra Army prince and arrange for Piero to start.

Piero did have a serious attitude towards the game. He was very active in intercepting the ball in the frontcourt and frequently tried to cut inside from the wing to attack the opponent's goal.

But apart from his positive attitude, Piero was more often seen slowing down the pace and wasting opportunities on the field, which did not play a positive role in Italy's attack. Due to his aging, Piero had no advantage in breaking through, and his physique and explosiveness were at a disadvantage. In this game, he repeatedly entered the so-called "Piero zone", but in his best territory, Piero was still slow and threatening, and was easily intercepted and stolen by the French defender.

In terms of cooperation with teammates, Piero also lacks highlights. Donadoni expects him to play as a second striker, connecting the midfield and the front line, especially with Inzaghi. But Piero and Inzaghi don't have much tacit understanding, and his connection with the midfield is limited to the left. No wonder captain Cannavaro pointed out after the game: "Inzaghi fights alone? No, in fact we have a second striker Piero, but he likes to move to the left."

Piero's limitations made Inzaghi more and more lonely, and it was not until Li Qi came on as a substitute that Italy's offense improved.

Piero's age and condition mean that he can no longer make a breakthrough in the national team. Although he made some contributions in the World Cup last year, in general, Piero's career in the Azzurri is about to come to an end. Compared with Totti and Nesta, Piero's loyalty to serve the country is certainly admirable, but he can no longer be a force that the national team can rely on. Donadoni's over-trust in him was a mistake. He replaced the active Camoranesi in advance, and even replaced Inzaghi who could create killing opportunities in front of the goal, and kept Piero until the 81st minute, causing Italy to miss the best opportunity to kill France..."

Turin Sports Daily clearly believes that the responsibility cannot be entirely put on their own prince, Del Piero; the team coach should bear absolute responsibility for the selection and use of players. In this game, Donadoni made many mistakes in his deployment and on-the-spot command:

"From the Berlusconi Cup to the European Super Cup, the 34-year-old Inzaghi has maintained an excellent state since the new season. He was selected for the national team and entered the starting lineup of the Azzurri when Luca Toni was injured. However, Inzaghi's performance in this game was very struggling. Although Inzaghi's flash of inspiration in the 34th minute, a small-angle shot hitting the crossbar of the French team was a lightning in the calm situation in Italy; but overall, Inzaghi did not play his best in the attack.