Chapter 357: Skyrocketing fans
After the match against South Korea just ended, the domestic Internet platforms exploded once again, with everyone discussing the performance of the national team, including Dong Fangzhuo's brace and that sequence of consecutive passes.
Since the miraculous advance to the semi-finals of the World Cup last year, football has been rapidly expanding in the domestic market, with more and more people falling in love with the sport. However, due to China's large population base, new fans are still rapidly growing, far from reaching its peak.
"A newcomer timidly asks, has the Chinese team always been this strong? Why can we dominate against South Korea? Didn't we just enter the World Cup twice, and like South Korea, only achieved fourth place?"
Many veteran fans, upon seeing such questions, inevitably feel a sense of pride. Someone responded, "Since Wang Feng joined the national team, China's strength has been getting stronger and stronger, and they clinched the Asian title in recent years."
"As for South Korea's fourth place in the World Cup, please, how can we compare with them? We rely on our own strength, while they rely on referees. You can search for related news; there's a whole bunch of it!"
"Yeah, Wang Feng, I know him. Three-time World Footballer, too awesome, on par with alien Ronaldo. But I see the top scorer on the Asian Cup list is someone called Dong Fangzhuo, is he that strong too? Which top club does he play for?"
"You can tell you haven't been into football for long. Dong Fangzhuo is also a rising star in recent years. He won the Golden Boot in the J2 League, was originally eyed by Manchester United, but he wanted more playing time to develop himself, so he went to Eredivisie, where he's now a hotshot striker!"
"Thanks for the explanation, I'll look up more information."
Conversations like the one above are happening every moment in various corners of the internet, providing very useful assistance in spreading the sport of football.
The next day, both domestic and foreign media praised the Chinese team, acknowledging that they have indeed reached the top level in Asia, seeming unstoppable in their quest for glory.
So far, it's somewhat surprising that Wang Feng's goal tally only ranks second on the top scorers' list. Media evaluations suggest that he hasn't even exerted himself much; for Chinese superstars, the Asian Cup probably feels more like entertainment than a serious challenge.
It's actually Dong Fangzhuo's performance that's surprising. His dominant display of 7 goals in the tournament has led some radical media outlets to even shout "China's next World Footballer!"
Of course, most people are still very rational. They comment that while Dong Fangzhuo's performance is excellent, he hasn't yet experienced the baptism of top clubs and stages like the Champions League, and there's a huge gap between him and Wang Feng. For now, the most important thing is to continue improving oneself and plan for a professional career in the future.
In the other three quarter-final matches of the Asian Cup, Japan battled Australia, the new addition to the AFC, for 120 minutes, ultimately winning 5-4 on penalties to advance to the semi-finals.
With China's strong rise and Australia's intervention, the situation in Asian football seems to have become more chaotic, and the competition will become more intense.
Iraq easily defeated Vietnam 2-0, who had accidentally reached the quarter-finals. They will meet China in the semi-finals, while Saudi Arabia defeated Iran 2-1, winning the West Asian derby.
Iraq, amidst the flames of war, is the biggest dark horse of this Asian Cup. No one expected them to perform so well, but facing China, everyone shook their heads, indicating that the dark horse's journey was coming to an end.
However, Iraqi coach Ambitza does not think so. In an interview, he said, "Iraq fears no tough battles. We will do our best to bring the Asian Cup back to our homeland!"
On July 25th, the highly anticipated semi-finals of the Asian Cup officially began, with Iraq vs. China, and Saudi Arabia vs. Japan.
The confident Chinese players immediately felt the opponent's strong fighting spirit, these players who emerged from the battlefield indeed had a completely different momentum from other teams.
In the 17th minute, central defender Abdul Amir intercepted Zhao Junzhe's ball and immediately made a long pass to the edge of the penalty area for Iraq's forward Yunis, who dribbled past Li Weifeng and chipped the ball to the back post.
Karl rushed towards the ball and, despite being about to collide with the goalpost, remained unfazed and managed to touch the ball at the last moment, deflecting it past Li Leilei's fingertips.
But he couldn't control his momentum and crashed into the goalpost, blood streaming down instantly, unable to continue the match. Coach Ambitza had to replace him with Munajed.
"A spirited goal, Karl helps Iraq open the scoring! Although he's an opponent, we still admire his actions."
"This goal easily reminds people of the scene of Wang Feng shedding blood on the battlefield last year at the World Cup without retreating. We also have such great players in our team, even stronger than him!"
Conceding the first goal didn't make the Chinese team lose their composure. They gradually showed the demeanor of champions, still calmly controlling the pace of the game.
In the 30th minute, Wang Feng suddenly broke through with the ball, shaking off two defenders in succession. The second defender Abbas even tried to trip him, but the Chinese superstar stabilized his body with extremely strong balance and control.
Immediately, he shot, but the Iraqi goalkeeper Nor managed to parry it out for a corner. China earned a corner kick.
Wang Feng personally took the corner kick, finding Zheng Zhi lurking in front of the goal after hanging it in the penalty area. With a gentle nod, Zheng directed the ball into the net, 1-1! China equalized!
At halftime, the score remained level. As they returned to the field for the second half, the Chinese team launched unexpected attacks. Wang Feng received a through pass from Shao Jiayi and successfully infiltrated the Iraqi defense.
He then deftly dodged the onrushing goalkeeper and, despite the narrow angle, slotted the ball into the empty net, 2-1!
After being overtaken, Iraq plunged into a frenzy. Their challenges became more aggressive, resulting in successive yellow cards. Even Zhang Yaojun was injured in a duel with the opponent, forcing Alihan to substitute him.
Their efforts paid off. In the 73rd minute, Iraq managed to equalize again through a corner kick opportunity. Forward Yunis headed the ball past Li Weifeng to grab the equalizer.
As the match grew more heated, Wang Feng calmly observed the situation, urging his teammates to maintain a good mentality and play cleaner and faster, avoiding getting entangled with the opponents.
"The advantage is still in our hands!" he said. As the time was about to run out, China launched an attack from the back. Zheng Zhi sent a long pass from the back to the midfield.
Zhao Junzhe immediately passed the ball to Shao Jiayi nearby without entangling with the opponents too much. Shao then slanted it to Wang Feng in front.
Wang Feng received the ball with his back to the goal, immediately passed it back to Dong Fangzhuo, then turned to shake off the mark of Rehema. His explosiveness and speed were far above the Iraqi defenders. Even if Rehema wanted to grab the Chinese superstar's shirt, he only felt his palm slip and couldn't hold him.
Dong Fangzhuo understood and sent a straight pass directly into the Iraqi territory. Wang Feng then lifted his foot to shoot furiously, and the ball swiftly flew into Iraq's goal.
"The ball's in! In the final moments of the match, Wang Feng scored the winning goal!"
"Although it seemed like we were heading into extra time, the Chinese team tore open the Iraqi defense with a brilliant combination, settling the match with one strike!"
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