Chapter 432: War
Upon seeing the goal easily breached, Barcelona's coach Guardiola had an incredulous expression. Initially, he clutched his head with both hands, crouching on the ground. Then, he swiftly rushed towards their half, roaring, "What are you all doing? Pull yourselves together!"
This kind of passing wasn't the possession play Barcelona prided itself on. It was simply a low-level mistake caused by pressing, utterly unreasonable. Could it be that leading too early allowed the players to lose focus?
The Spaniards forced themselves to calm down. Seizing the moment while Real Madrid celebrated, they loudly directed tactical maneuvers on the field, emphasizing increased vigilance, mindful of the opponents and changing field conditions.
As the game resumed, Barcelona's players, although shaken to some extent, quickly regained their composure amidst the urging of their coach and the cheers from the home fans. Yes, they had the advantage now, why rush?
In the 21st minute, Abidal sprinted along the wing, finally finding space near the baseline and decisively delivering a triangle pass into the penalty area.
Eto'o, closely marked by the Real Madrid defense, pretended to aim for a header but instead cleverly guarded the passing lane and let the ball slip through.
Messi, making a run from the back post to the 14-meter mark, aimed for the bottom left corner with a powerful shot. The ball's speed and angle were tricky, leaving Casillas helpless as it slid past his fingertips into the net. 2-1! Barcelona once again took the lead.
"Messi is on fire too! This season's Barcelona frontline is just like this, scoring goals continuously. It's hard to defend against," remarked Zhang Jun, the domestic commentator.
"Yeah, if Messi is unstoppable, then Barcelona's frontline is impenetrable," agreed the other commentator Wang Ping.
"It's because the Chinese superstar possesses a fighting spirit equivalent to the entire Barcelona frontline, enabling Real Madrid to tightly hold onto them in the league. Many fans are curious about which team is stronger; it seems today's match will determine that," observed another.
"This feels like the Battle of Guandu against Lu Bu, haha."
"Hey, although your analogy isn't quite apt, it does make some sense. Throughout the football world, Wang Feng is an unparalleled figure. It seems only by joining forces with several strong players could anyone challenge him."
Wang Feng didn't disappoint the fans eager for excitement. In the 27th minute, just six minutes after the away team conceded, the Galacticos launched a counterattack.
After a midfield interception by Cole, the ball was passed to the front. This time, the Chinese superstar couldn't reach the first touch, but Iniesta's header sent it back, luckily controlled by Sneijder in time.
Barcelona's defense was fast, but Wang Feng and Iguaín's forward runs were equally formidable. Opting for a ground pass wouldn't work against the Catalonia team, so the Dutchman smartly chose to chip it forward again.
The 1.84-meter Argentine striker played a crucial role, leaping in the penalty area to head the ball towards Wang Feng outside the arc.
At this moment, Barcelona's defensive line of four was aligned, ready to pounce on the Real Madrid attack, with both spacing and coordination between them.
It was difficult to break through! Wang Feng decisively chested the ball forward, aiming for the gap between the two defenders!
With a step forward, he volleyed the falling ball with his left foot directly into the air. As it sailed with an inward curve, the ball hung in the air, hitting the top left corner of the goal, leaving goalkeeper Valdés helpless.
"Goal! Real Madrid equalize once again! The Chinese superstar's powerful volley seals another achievement!"
"This handling was very skillful. In an instant, he chose the best attacking method, easily breaking through Barcelona's defense."
"Of course, to score such a difficult shot requires extremely strong fundamentals. We can see that the ball seemed to be flying towards the center of the goal but then curved towards the left corner midway, with a hint of a leaf-like trajectory. No wonder Valdés couldn't reach it."
Leading twice but being pegged back twice, even the composed Barcelona started to feel anxious. Except for Messi's injury-induced draw against Getafe, they hadn't faced such pressure this season, usually taking an early lead and overwhelming opponents.
Truly worthy of Wang Feng, truly worthy of the two-time champions Real Madrid!
Just in their somewhat dazed moment, the situation on the field stirred again. In the 35th minute, Real Madrid attacked into the Barcelona half, Sneijder sending the ball into the penalty area.
Despite Piqué's efforts to defend the Chinese superstar, Wang Feng seemed to have eyes behind his head, positioning himself perfectly. The ball flew over his head, dropping in front of his left foot.
How could he miss this opportunity? He lifted his left foot and volleyed it into the air. "Bang!" The ball hit the inside of the crossbar heavily, then bounced onto the grass inside the goal line before rebounding off the inner side of the net, a testament to the power of the shot. The successive rebounds left goalkeeper Valdés with no chance.
2-3! Real Madrid, the away team, took the lead again! Wang Feng completed a hat-trick!
After scoring, Wang Feng slid on his knees to the corner flag, pointing to the sky in celebration, paying no attention to the insults and jeers from the home fans in the stands. That was their best praise for him!
Teammates rushed to pile on him, and Iguaín muttered, "How can you be so amazing! How can you be so amazing!"
Messi was about to grind his molars to dust. He would never give up, and neither would Barcelona!
In the 42nd minute, it was Barcelona's turn to attack the Real Madrid penalty area. Eto'o's close-range shot was saved by Diarra on the goal line, with Pepe clearing it with a big kick.
The ball didn't go far, as Iniesta outside the penalty area blocked it and passed it to Messi ahead. The Argentine star, after shaking off Ramos, passed it to the wing to Henry.
The Frenchman didn't opt for a cross but instead dribbled past, then volleyed the ball with the outside of his foot. The ball soared over the goal, evading Ramos and Cole in front of the goal, hitting the inside of the post and bouncing into the net.
3-3! Barcelona's attacking trio all scored, competing with Wang Feng's hat-trick!
"Beep, beep, beep," referee Selca blew the halftime whistle. Whether it was the players on the field or the fans in the stands, they all breathed a sigh of relief involuntarily.
It was too tense, too thrilling! Who could have thought that in just forty-five minutes, both teams would score six goals, and the lead would keep changing?
Barcelona coach Guardiola was the first to lead his players back to the locker room. He needed to carefully consider the tactical adjustments for the second half. The current score was completely unacceptable for the home team, almost all of their pre-match arrangements had been disrupted by Real Madrid's onslaught.
Schuster was relatively satisfied with the overall performance of the first half. However, he also noticed that Barcelona's attacking trio were in excellent form today and had scored goals. This was not good news. The focus of the next game would be to contain their sudden outbreaks.
The atmosphere in the Real Madrid locker room was very harmonious. Everyone relaxed their bodies while discussing Wang Feng's hat-trick in the first half. "You seem particularly excited every time you play against Barcelona," Raúl joked with the Chinese superstar.
"That's because the Camp Nou fans get so excited every time they insult me. I can't disappoint their 'expectations'," Wang Feng shrugged.
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