Chapter 30 The Finals Begins
After morally blackmailing head coach Casiraghi with a letter of recommendation last night.
Li Qi returned to the room and first contacted Uncle Charles, Cousin Francis, Lapang and Pimenta. He received their congratulations on Li Qi's entry into the finals and their best wishes for him to stay calm and keep working hard to win the championship in the finals...
Li Qi naturally said directly: "Nonsense, if you don't deal with the referee committee for me and blow the whistle for me, I will explode on the spot at the final. Oh, no, I will roll on the spot. Do you believe it?"
The four of them swore and vowed that they would communicate with the representatives of the sponsors and report the situation to the referee committee, and that it would be fair and just, but they would not make it public.
Finally, Li Qi finally made up his mind and told Pimenta to arrange the 23 tickets for the final in one area...
Li Qi was thinking: "If we score a goal, we can't use our shadow clones to celebrate in different areas, right? If we celebrate in one direction and make a vague gesture, Sarafina, Julian, and Chiara should all get the message...
As for whether there will be a fight... Sarafina has formed a group with 7-8 friends this time, so they should be able to keep a certain distance, right? "
Pimenta replied later that the number of tickets was fine and had been arranged, but due to the hot sales, although they were all in the same area, they were divided into several non-adjacent sections...
"Great! Yes! God bless! Separate naturally!"
"Oh, no, Pimenta, thank you, it's good enough, that's all, thank you very much, please help me transfer the tickets to..."
After recording the phone numbers of several people who needed to hand over the tickets separately and whose locations were far apart, Pimenta was thoughtful...
Are you so extravagant at such a young age?
Never mind, this is normal, scumbag, I have played too much, oh no, I have seen too much...
……
The day before the game, in the afternoon tactical training session, Casiraghi had already determined tomorrow's starting lineup and made specific arrangements for Nigeria's possible lineup tomorrow.
As for the Nigerian lineup tomorrow, based on the large-scale suspensions and injuries in Nigeria, it is actually easy to guess. After all, there are only 15 players left on the other side, and 3 of them are goalkeepers...
……
That night, Li Qi received encouraging messages from his parents, brother, uncle, Sarafina, Julian, and others, all wishing him good luck...
Everyone thought that since they had made it to the finals, winning the championship would be a piece of cake. And didn’t the media overwhelmingly believe that Italy had the upper hand? They had everything going for them…
Li Qi, you'll be fine. You're good at shivering. No, you're good at winning. You must be lucky!
Only Chiara's encouraging message was the most sincere... It was an attractive and imaginative abstract yet realistic encouraging photo:
Under the sexy flaming red lips, a pair of slender fingers painted with bright red nail polish gently pulled the collar of the slightly transparent beige shirt, revealing the unfathomable V-neck hidden inside but unable to be completely covered up...
It is indeed a great victory! The white color is too dazzling... No, it is too eye-catching... I can't resist it...
Li Qi was moved! He looked at it carefully for a long time...
……
Because Utrecht is the center of the Dutch railway system network and the intersection of international rail travel, Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport, the world's fourth busiest airport, is only a 1.5-hour drive away.
Moreover, the final of this World Youth Championship will be held at 8 pm local time.
Therefore, most of Li Qi's relatives and friends who were cheering for him flew to Amsterdam on the morning of the game and then took the train to Utrecht.
As for whether most of the relatives and friends who departed from Milan took the same flight, Li Qi didn't know... He was preparing for the final in the evening step by step!
The morning warm-up training also included penalty kick practice, followed by a lunch break. In the afternoon, after emphasizing tactics again and shouting "Fuck!!", we set off for the Galgenward Stadium, where the game was held, to warm up on the field.
The final warm-up match for the 3rd and 4th place finals also started early at 5pm...
……
7月2日，荷兰世青赛进入收官之日，摩洛哥与巴西争夺第3名的3/4名决赛率先开打！
Brazil lost 1-2 to Italy in the semi-finals. Although it was a bit regrettable that the opponent scored the winning goal in the last minute, it is realistic to say that this Brazilian team does lack strength, especially compared with Italy's stronger overall teamwork and mature style of play, it clearly lacks highlights.
Morocco lost 0-3 to Nigeria in the semi-finals. Two players, including the "rising star" Yayol, received red cards. Including the rest of the accumulated yellow card suspensions and injuries, a total of 5 positions in the Moroccan lineup were changed in this game.
After the start of the game, the two sides confronted each other steadily in a technical style. Compared with the individual talent display of the Moroccan players, the Brazilian team seemed to lack fighting spirit.
In the 6th minute, Morocco's El Zaar launched an attack by passing the ball continuously on the right, and Bendam who followed behind him shot at a small angle where the cross was made, but the shot went wide.
Two minutes later, Rabeh's free kick was blocked by Brazilian goalkeeper Renan.
In the 10th minute, Morocco made a clean tackle in the backcourt and quickly counterattacked. They drove straight into the penalty area along the left, but unfortunately the pass was too late and missed the opportunity.
In the 17th minute, El Zar intercepted the ball in the midfield and broke into the penalty area alone, winning a free kick in front of the penalty area, but the free kick was not threatening at all.
In the 25th minute, Morocco took advantage of the Brazilian defense's unclean clearance to launch a second offensive. Bendam's powerful shot from a small angle hit the crossbar and flew out.
The first 30 minutes could be said to be a complete performance for Morocco, who had seven shooting opportunities, including two on target, while Brazil did not even have a single shot.
However, both sides still received yellow cards consecutively even though the competition was not very intense. After Brazilian defender Leonardo was given a yellow card in the 33rd minute, the referee had already taken action five times. The two teams played in a somewhat unrestrained and casual style.
However, the Brazilian team gradually got into the game and began to regain control of the game.
In the 38th minute, Brazil completed its first attack of the game, which was quite threatening!
After continuous passes from both sides, Evandro made a straight pass in the penalty area. Brazilian striker Sobis' close-range shot was too straight and was blocked by Moroccan goalkeeper Boukadi.
One minute later, Eder Carlos made a sudden shot from the outside, but Bucardi was not prepared enough and missed the ball, which hit the post and flew out.
In the 40th minute, Brazil created another threat with a diagonal pass from the right. Bucadi made a desperate save and resolved the danger the moment Renato shot, but he himself was injured.
The game reached a climax before the end of the first half. Brazil organized a series of smooth attacks and two shots from the outside were very threatening. However, Morocco took the lead in the stoppage time!
In the first minute of stoppage time, Morocco attacked from the right and passed the ball to the middle. The player at the front point shot was blocked, and another shot in front of the penalty area line was off target, but Brazilian defender Fabio Santos subconsciously stretched his legs to make the ball change direction and bounce into the net. Morocco luckily led 1-1 into the half-time break.
In the second half, Brazil stepped up its offensive. Although third place was not Brazil's goal, they had the pride of the Samba Army and would not give up the game easily.
In the 49th minute, Brazil completed a shot from the center, and Renato's powerful shot in front of the penalty area was blocked by Bucadi.
In the 59th minute, Brazil had a good opportunity to equalize the score. Rafael Sobis sent a free kick to the center of the penalty area. A player in the crowd headed the ball and shot it towards the back corner of the goal, but Bucadi was very skilled and flew to block the ball.
After a moment of stalemate, the game reached a climax in the 74th minute. A wave of Brazilian attacks caused continued chaos in the Moroccan penalty area!
First, Renato on the right side of the penalty area turned and shot, but was blocked by the defender. After the ball fell to the left, Diego shot from a small angle. After Boukadi saved the ball, the ball hit the post and bounced back. Several players in the middle were entangled with each other and no one could kick the ball out. In the end, the Moroccan goalkeeper took the risk and confiscated the ball in the chaos.
In the 78th minute, Brazil once again launched a threatening attack, with a series of back-hook passes from the right side, but when there was an opening, Diego fired a high shot.
In the 79th minute, Morocco missed the chance to expand the score or even kill the game:
Bendam put the ball into the penalty area, and El Zal "bicycled" to get rid of the defense, but his shot with the outside of his foot facing the goalkeeper went wide of the post.
In the 85th minute, Brazilian full-back Fabio Santos won a free kick after breaking through the frontcourt. He cunningly sent the ball quickly, causing Moroccan Zuchu to touch the ball after the whistle. As a result, the player who just came on as a substitute in the second half received a second yellow card and was sent off...
Fabio Santos kicked the ball into the penalty area again. Bucadi, who had an excellent performance throughout the game, made a fatal mistake when he punched the ball with one fist. The ball bounced back into the goal, and Brazil equalized the score with an own goal.
That’s a lucky two-hit combo!
Brazil's offensive is not over yet!
In the injury time, a Moroccan player committed a handball foul in the backcourt. Raphael Sobis passed the free kick into the penalty area. Renato headed the ball in the middle. Brazilian central defender Ed Carlos headed the ball into the goal from the corner of the small penalty area. Brazil overtook the score at the last moment!
Morocco had a chance to force the game into overtime, but in the final seconds Moroccan striker El Zar's shot from a small angle hit the side net.
In the end, Brazil won the game with a counterattack in the final stage, thanks to Fabio Santos' inspiration and lucky assist that helped the opponent's goalkeeper score an own goal. Brazil won the bronze medal in this World Youth Championship!
With the end of the third place match, the warm-up match before the final between Brazil and Morocco, the final of the 2005 Netherlands U20 World Cup is about to officially begin!
Li Qi, who had taken a short nap as usual after lunch, was already on the sidelines, full of energy and vitality, looking forward to it impatiently and eager to get on the court and do a great job!
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