Chapter 123: Going forward to the final
Feyenoord Stadium was filled with cheers as the first leg of the UEFA Europa League semi-final unfolded as scheduled.
Feyenoord, playing at home, lined up in a 4-4-2 formation with Cillessen as the goalkeeper.
The defense comprised of Kian, Van der Linden, Bouvy, and Lezaza.
In midfield were Kalou, Bosvelt, Ono Shinji, and Van Persie.
The forward line consisted of Van Hooijdonk and Tomasson.
Inter Milan continued to employ a 3-5-2 formation, with Ronaldo on the bench.
Wang Feng had encountered South Korea's Ahn Jung-hwan and Japan's Hidetoshi Nakata on the stage of Serie A. Now, facing Japan's Ono Shinji in the UEFA Europa League semi-finals, he couldn't help but feel nostalgic, wondering when he could witness a Chinese derby in such high-level competitions.
This year's UEFA Europa League final would be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Therefore, if Feyenoord could eliminate Inter Milan, they would gain the advantage of hosting the final.
So, they started the game very actively, launching wave after wave of attacks against Inter Milan's defense amidst the roaring cheers of the crowd.
In the 2nd minute, Feyenoord won a corner kick. Van Persie delivered the ball into the box, and the current top scorer in Eredivisie, Van Hooijdonk, collided with Inter Milan's Gresko, both falling to the ground. After getting up, they confronted each other.
The referee, German Torsten W?hrle, quickly ran to separate them and issued a warning. Materazzi and others also restrained Gresko, preventing him from escalating the conflict, which could add uncontrollable factors to the game.
In the 4th minute, Feyenoord got a free kick in the attacking third, again taken by Van Persie. The ball entered the penalty area, and Bosvelt won the first touch with a header. He headed it back, and Van Hooijdonk's looping shot from close range went over the bar, missing a chance to open the scoring.
The transition from defense to attack was swift. In the 9th minute, Inter Milan also had a good chance. Zanetti passed from the back to Di Biagio, who dribbled down the left and crossed directly.
Feyenoord goalkeeper Cillessen decisively came out and punched the cross away. Vieira received the ball near the penalty area and took a shot, but it ended up as a high shot.
Inter Milan dominated the field but struggled to break through Feyenoord's defense. The first half ended in a 0-0 draw.
After the break, Coach Cooper substituted Conchita with Ronaldo, aiming to strengthen the attack.
In the 60th minute, Wang Feng dropped back to midfield to receive the ball. After passing it to Di Biagio, he quickly moved forward. Di Biagio stopped the ball at his feet and gently pushed it to Wang Feng passing by him, while blocking the defense of Kalou.
Wang Feng dribbled forward, first feinting to the right to evade Feyenoord's left-back Bosvelt, then immediately performing a nutmeg to shake off Lezaza's challenge, catching up with the ball inside the penalty area.
Facing the challenge from Kian, he easily held off the opponent, fell to the ground before goalkeeper Cillessen reached the ball, and shot, piercing Feyenoord's goal.
"Goal!! Fantastic!! Wang Feng staged a solo dribble goal!!"
"In this Inter Milan attack, Feyenoord's defensive positioning was greatly flawed, giving Wang Feng ample space to dribble, allowing him to pass four defenders and score."
With this brilliant goal, Inter Milan ultimately won 1-0, taking home a victory and an away goal.
Back in Italy, in Serie A Round 33, Inter Milan faced Piacenza at home. It was an intense match with both sides playing aggressively.
In the 17th minute, Wang Feng scored with a long-range shot, opening the scoring for Inter Milan. In the 34th minute, Amoreli equalized for the away team.
Towards the end of the first half, Ronaldo contributed another brilliant solo dribble and scored a goal past Piacenza's goalkeeper, Gardellini.
Just a minute into the second half, Piacenza launched a swift counterattack while Inter Milan players were still not in position. Hubner's shot found the net, equalizing the score again.
In the 85th minute, Wang Feng dribbled on the right, performed consecutive stepovers to get past defender Lamaki, cut inside the penalty area, and passed to Vieiri in the middle, who easily slotted the ball into the net.
In the end, Inter Milan won 3-2 against Piacenza, while Juventus swept Brescia 5-0. Both teams had the same points, but Juventus lagged behind Inter Milan by three goals difference, meaning the title race would be decided in the final round.
In the last match, Inter Milan faced Lazio, while Juventus faced Udinese. Lazio was striving for a Champions League spot, while Udinese was fighting against relegation.
In terms of the fixtures, Inter Milan was at a disadvantage, but they would play first. If they won, all the pressure would be on Juventus, who needed to score at least three goals against Udinese to have a chance to compete for the title.
In the second leg of the UEFA Europa League semi-final, the match was held at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.
Feyenoord, trailing from the first leg, had no choice but to fight back, but when they pushed forward, their defense inevitably became vulnerable.
This provided an opportunity for Inter Milan. In the 31st minute, Inter Milan launched a quick counterattack. Di Biagio received the ball in the midfield and directly passed it to the right-back. Wang Feng sprinted past Van der Linden and received the ball inside the penalty area.
He pretended to shoot, bypassed Van der Linden's slide tackle, then shot with his left foot.
Goalkeeper Cillessen dived but missed by a hair, failing to stop the ball from entering the net.
After scoring, Wang Feng slid on his knees to the sidelines, arms spread, accepting the roaring cheers from the stands. His teammates rushed over, embracing him.
This goal was undoubtedly a heavy blow to Feyenoord. After the game resumed, their attacking organization also became less smooth.
The first half ended with no further goals from either side. In the second half, in the 75th minute, Inter Milan once again displayed superb teamwork in the attacking third. Recoba received the ball outside the penalty area, 30 meters away. He passed it to the middle for Vieiri and ran into the penalty area.
Vieiri passed the ball to Wang Feng, who received it with his back to the goal. He held off the defensive player before passing it to Recoba, who had entered the penalty area.
Recoba received the ball and scored with a one-on-one against the goalkeeper before he could make a save.
2-0! Inter Milan secured victory!
This score remained until the end of the match. In the end, with a total score of 3-0 over two legs, Inter Milan advanced to the UEFA Europa League final. Their opponent would be Borussia Dortmund from the Bundesliga.
A dramatic scene unfolded as Wang Feng and Jan Koller, who emerged from the Belgian Pro League last year, unexpectedly met on the stage of the UEFA Europa League final, adding many highlights to the match.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m