Chapter 360: Poor condition
The new season of Real Madrid began training in mid-July, but Wang Feng, due to the delay of the Asian Cup and other affairs, did not return to the team until early August.
"Your various physical indicators are completely normal, you're doing well," said the team doctor as he packed up his equipment. Assistant coach Deldi, who accompanied Wang Feng for the examination, breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. A Chinese superstar like Wang Feng couldn't afford any mistakes.
Later on the training ground, Wang Feng met his new and old teammates, who greeted him one after another. Raúl smiled and asked, "How's married life?"
"It was rushed, no honeymoon at all, sigh~" Wang Feng complained playfully. "The summer vacation this year was really short, plus you had the Asian Cup to participate in. But there's plenty of time ahead, as long as the people in love are together, every day can be a honeymoon," Raúl said, touching his ring.
Before Wang Feng's return, the Galaxy battleship had already played several warm-up matches, and Schuster adjusted the best starting lineup based on the players' performances.
After he returned, the head coach quickly arranged an internal training match, hoping to test the results and also to assess the best combinations.
However, the Chinese superstar didn't seem too excited. Although his physical condition was good, the packed summer schedule still brought a lot of fatigue.
In the end, Wang Feng only contributed one assist to the newly joined Dutch forward Robben, who scored the goal, without any personal gains.
"No need to be too anxious, you can adjust slowly," Schuster said, comforting Wang Feng, who seemed a bit discouraged. He nodded, having experienced similar lows before, knowing that maintaining a calm mindset was the most important thing.
On August 12th, the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup was held at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium, with Real Madrid challenging last season's Spanish Cup champions, Sevilla, away.
Head coach Schuster fielded a new starting lineup, with Casillas in goal.
The defense consisted of Ramos, Pepe, Heinze, and Ashley Cole.
In midfield, there were Robben, Diarra, Sneijder, and Guti.
Up front were Raúl and Wang Feng.
This lineup featured many new signings brought in by the club in the summer, indicating that they had earned the coach's trust with their performances.
It was also expected that Cannavaro did not make the starting lineup. The Italian had already shown signs of fatigue last season, and since then, he had shown no improvement. Schuster was gradually losing patience with him.
Real Madrid controlled the main possession of the ball after the game started, but the connection between the midfield and defense still needed refinement, and the frontline couldn't mount effective attacks due to Wang Feng's poor form.
In the 30th minute, Sevilla completed a wall pass on the right, and then Robbie went into the penalty area, passing back from near the baseline, and Fabiano followed up with a shot to open the scoring for the home team.
In the second half, in the 68th minute, there was a miscommunication between Pepe and Ashley Cole, as their cooperation had not yet fully formed, leaving a gap in defense.
Sevilla's forward, Kanoute, seized the opportunity to score another goal for the team, making it 0-2! The Galaxy battleship was in a very unfavorable situation!
It wasn't until the 84th minute that Real Madrid pulled one back through Robben. Wang Feng received the ball outside the penalty area with his back to the goal, turned and dribbled past the defense, then passed it sideways to the flank.
Robben, who had surged forward, received the ball near the baseline. With an almost zero-angle shot, he broke through Sevilla's defense, giving the Galaxy battleship hope of a comeback.
Losing the first leg 1-2 to Sevilla, both teams continued their battle in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup at the Bernabéu.
Schuster adjusted the starting lineup, replacing Heinze and Ramos with Salgado and Marcelo in defense, and replacing Guti and Sneijder with Gago and Reyes in midfield. Raúl sat on the bench, and Higuaín took his place.
It was clear that the German coach was not satisfied with the team's performance in the first game, so he wanted to try out other combinations, but it turned out that this lineup also had its flaws.
Although Salgado had more experience than Ramos, he was inferior to the young Spanish star in both ball sense and technique. Although Sneijder had not fully integrated into the system yet, he and Gago were not comparable.
Sevilla scored in the first half with goals from Robbie and Navas, establishing an absolute advantage.
In the second half, Wang Feng's form finally improved. In the 56th minute, he dribbled past the defender Dragojevic on the left and crossed to the penalty area, where Higuaín scored with a left-footed shot from 8 meters out.
Then, in the 81st minute, during Real Madrid's attack, Reyes lofted the ball into the penalty area. Sevilla defender Alves cleared it to the edge of the penalty area.
The ball fell near Reyes again, and he once again rose to contest the header in the penalty area. Wang Feng, positioned near the goal line, stopped the ball with his chest as it dropped to knee level, then lifted his left foot and volleyed it into the net!
"Goooooooooooooooooal!! Wang Feng's spectacular side volley pierces through Sevilla's defense!"
"He finally scored! In the Spanish Super Cup series, Wang's performance has been low, and even in the first game, his rating fell out of the top three in the team."
"This has made many Galaxy battleship fans uneasy because Wang Feng is the soul and guarantee of victory for the team, and now he has announced his return with a brilliant side volley!"
Although Wang Feng regained his form, there was too little time left, and he couldn't help the team achieve a comeback. In the end, the two sides drew 2-2, with a total score of 3-4 over two legs, and the Galaxy battleship lost the series, regrettably missing out on the Spanish Super Cup.
At the post-match press conference, Schuster seemed quite upbeat. In his view, the Spanish Super Cup was just a side dish, and while winning it was good, losing it wasn't a big deal.
"Real Madrid introduced many players in the summer, and now is the time to gel them together. Although we didn't lift the trophy, the two rounds of the series gave us very good experience."
Regarding Wang Feng's fluctuating performance, the German coach chuckled, "You can't expect a player to always be in top form, that's a machine, not a player."
"I only care about Wang's physical condition. The team doctor told me he's very healthy, and that's enough. We will still be strong contenders for the league and Champions League titles."
Some reporters also believed that the Galaxy battleship's attack relied too much on Wang Feng, which was a very bad phenomenon, but Schuster dismissed this notion.
"Wang Feng's attacking efficiency is among the best in European football. He doesn't hog the ball, and even when he's not in form, he actively creates opportunities and assists for his teammates."
"Moreover, he's only 24 years old. He scored 50 goals in La Liga last season. It's a problem if the Galaxy battleship doesn't make him the focal point of the attack."
Wang Feng also attended the press conference. Regarding questions about his form, he explained, "As you know, there have been too many things happening this summer, I've been busy all the time, and maybe the mental fatigue has affected my performance."
"After the start of the new season, I will do my best to adjust myself to the best condition. Please rest assured, all the fans."
This chapt𝙚r is updated by fr(e)ew𝒆bnov(e)l.com