Chapter 383: Start again in the world preliminaries
"Wang, I hope you can understand the reason I substituted you."
Before the start of the second half, Schuster communicated with Wang Feng: "Recently, the public opinion has been too high-profile, which has made our opponents pay extra attention to you."
"During the game, you should have noticed that many defensive players are making big movements, and this result is unlikely to change. To protect you, I decided to make a substitution. I really don't want you to get injured."
Wang Feng expressed understanding. Although it was regrettable that his record of consecutive hat-tricks was ended, being too high-profile inevitably became a target. He was also worried that his current outstanding form might encounter a bottleneck in the later stages of the Champions League when it resumes. It's time to cool down.
So in the second half, Cassano replaced him and scored a goal in the 69th minute, helping the team ultimately win 3-0 against Almería.
The game itself did not cause any major news, but the behavior of Real Madrid's head coach, substituting Wang Feng at halftime, sparked discussion. He also explained this point in the post-match interview, and most people still believed that his purpose was to protect the player.
However, there are still a small number of conspiracy theorists who like to overinterpret, such as suppressing Chinese superstars, further establishing authority by supporting other factions within the team, and so on. Such arguments are always attractive to some people.
After this round of matches, the Chinese superstar needed to return home to participate in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Asian Zone qualifiers.
In the same group as China are Qatar, Iraq, and Australia. Originally, according to the head coach Arhan's intention, mainstay players like Wang Feng and Dongfang Zhuo did not need to come back. He wanted to test the level of domestic players.
But the team leader insisted on recalling them, even if they were sitting on the bench, it would be reassuring. "If it were just an ordinary warm-up match, I would agree with you, but when it comes to the World Cup qualification, we must not be careless!"
"And our group is very unfavorable. Iraq was the dark horse of last year's Asian Cup, and Australia used to dominate Oceania. Only by finishing in the top two in the group can we advance to the final round of ten. It can be said to be a group of death."
The progress of the game also confirmed the worries of the team leader. In the first round of group stage away against Iraq, the situation could not be opened for a long time with all domestic players on the field, and Wang Feng on the bench was very worried.
Arhan also couldn't sit still and stood on the sidelines directing. He couldn't understand why, after so much training, the actual game was still scattered.
As Wang Feng, Dongfang Zhuo, Zheng Zhi, and others shine on the international stage, domestic professional football is also thriving, with numerous capital influxes into the market, showing a thriving posture.
Needless to say, many excellent talents have emerged, but the capital market is too cruel. Without good management, it's all about making quick money. Both players and clubs are very impetuous, and they will definitely not be able to cultivate good players.
Wang Feng has no ability to change all this because he is not a decision-maker in management, nor can he outsmart those "smart people". However, it is gratifying that many young people who truly love football can choose to go to Europe to participate in more systematic training camps. Wang Feng continues to sponsor young people to go to Belgium every year.
As the first half of the game is about to end, Iraqi forward Nasser seized an opportunity to counterattack and broke the deadlock on the field, 0-1! The Chinese team trailed as they entered halftime!
Arhan couldn't hold on anymore. He walked up to Wang Feng and asked, "Wang, how's your condition? Can you play?" After all, the Chinese superstar had just rushed back from Spain and hadn't had a proper joint training with the whole team.
"No problem, coach, leave it all to me!"
At the beginning of the second half, Wang Feng took the field, not only boosting the morale of his team but also greatly impacting the information of Iraq. It was this superstar who ended their dark horse journey in last year's Asian Cup.
In the 52nd minute, Wang Feng retreated to the right side of the midfield to receive the ball. Faced with Mahdi's close defense, he hooked and sent the ball along the sideline, and he took advantage of this opportunity to break free and quickly follow up from outside the field.
After catching up with the ball, he quickly cut inside horizontally, ran all the way to the edge of the penalty area, and Lakhma and Graham saw the situation and came to defend from the left and right respectively. However, Wang Feng remained calm, lightly pushed with his left foot to change direction, and passed through the two defenders before entering the penalty area.
In Wang Feng's eyes, the Iraqi defense was much inferior to the top European defense in terms of reaction speed and response strategies. For example, just now, they should have chosen to block his path forward and shot, rather than blindly rushing towards the ball.
After entering the penalty area, the Chinese superstar made a delicate chip shot, and the ball went straight into the top right corner of the goal. Although the goalkeeper made a save attempt, he couldn't stop it.
"Goal! Beautiful! Wang Feng scores, I knew he could do it!"
"The Chinese team still can't do without Wang Feng. The current score is 1-1. If we want to advance to the final round, we must not lose to our strong competitors in the same group, Iraq and Australia."
"Let's take another look at the replay of this goal. The attack started from the midfield, and Wang Feng easily broke into the penalty area with the ball. The shot was also relaxed and calm. I'm a bit puzzled why the Chinese team couldn't score in the first half?"
It looks like Wang Feng's goal was easy, but whether it was the initial dribble to get rid of the defenders, the high-speed advance and change of direction, or the final shot. It was full of technical content, honed through numerous major competitions and tough battles. Players who only seek benefits and comfort will never achieve it.
Next, Wang Feng staged another wonderful personal show. It was in the 67th minute when he held the ball and attacked from the center. With a dribble and change of direction, he broke through the central defender Mahdi. Although the Iraqi man intervened successfully with his foot, he tripped Wang Feng, but with excellent body adjustment, he maintained balance and continued to move forward.
This time, the Iraqi defensive players were a little smarter. Graham came to press from the side, and Lakhma stood in Wang Feng's path to block.
But Wang Feng seized the opportunity to suddenly flick the ball with a big foot, and the ball passed through Lakhma's legs and rolled into the penalty area, while he accelerated to chase the ball.
It was too late for Lakhma to turn around, facing the onrushing goalkeeper at the edge of the penalty area. Wang dodged his tackle with another flick, then quickly shot to hit the empty goal on the left side of the small penalty area. The last-minute tackle by the Iraqi defender was a step too late.
2-1! The Chinese team reversed the score!
After taking the lead, Wang Feng chose not to attack the defense alone but to organize more attacks to create opportunities for other players in the team. Unfortunately, their technical skills were not good enough, making the Chinese superstar miss Dongfang Zhuo sitting on the bench. If he were on the field, he should also be able to easily score.
The final score did not change again. Although there were some twists and turns, the Chinese team won the opening match of the World Cup qualifiers. In another group match, Australia beat Qatar 5-0 and ranked first with a goal difference advantage, with the Chinese team closely behind.
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