Chapter 470: Bogey
Stepping onto the lawn of Durban Stadium, Wang Feng clearly felt that all the facilities were exceptionally new. This stadium was completed in November 2009 and has only hosted two official matches so far—one was a South African league match, and the other was a national team friendly.
This type of pitch has its pros and cons. The advantage lies in its good elasticity, allowing for perfect bouncing performance in football. However, the downside is that the grass tends to be hard and slippery, making it difficult to control low passes, and it hurts when players fall.
Judging from the warm-up condition of the Chinese team players, they indeed need time to adapt to this venue. The previous three friendly matches were not arranged at this stadium but at another renowned venue in Durban, the Kings Park Stadium. One could say it was a small mistake.
"Good evening, friends in front of the TV. Welcome to watch the World Cup match on the national TV sports channel. I'm your old friend, Zhang Jun, and I will be bringing you the exciting World Cup match along with my partner, Huang Lu, at the scene."
"Yes, I am Huang Lu. The upcoming group stage match is the first match for our Chinese team in this World Cup, and their opponent is the strongest team in the group, Germany."
"Coach Zhang, how do you think we should set the goal for this match?"
"It's hard to say. It still depends on the players' condition. In the last World Cup, the Chinese team miraculously made it to the semi-finals but ultimately fell to the Germans. Unexpectedly, in this World Cup, they meet again in the first match."
"Unlike the knockout round, where it's a do-or-die situation, the group stage consists of three matches, so the players' consistent and stable performance is crucial."
"Now, we can see players from both sides led by the coaching staff coming to the center of the field. The referee for this match is Rodriguez from Mexico."
"Next, we will play the national anthems of both teams. It's the third consecutive time our country's anthem has been played on the World Cup stage!"
Germany's head coach L?w has lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Neuer as the goalkeeper.
The four defenders are Mertesacker, Friedrich, Badstuber, and Lahm.
The double pivot consists of Khedira and Schweinsteiger, with three midfielders including Thomas Müller, ?zil, and Podolski.
The natural choice for the striker position is none other than Klose.
Leaving Kroos, who has fluctuating form due to his youth, on the bench and deploying a more conservative attacking combination also shows how much the German coach values the Chinese team.
"The whistle blows!" Referee Rodriguez signals the start of the match, and Germany kicks off the first half!
The German team launches a strong attack right from the start. Klose passes the ball to the back and runs towards the Chinese team's penalty area. Lahm and Schweinsteiger pass consecutively and suddenly lob the ball forward.
"Dangerous! Klose's header! Fortunately, Sun Ji Hai clears it out of the baseline ahead of time. His focus is very concentrated. Germany wins a corner kick right at the start!"
"As we mentioned before the match, the German team's characteristics are very distinct. They can play combination football and aerial bombardment. And they rely on the 1.84-meter-tall Klose."
"Yes, in the last World Cup, the German striker scored 5 goals, just behind Wang Feng, winning the Silver Boot. In that same year's international matches, he scored 13 goals, officially surpassing the legendary player Gerd Müller's 12 goals."
"So far, Klose's total number of goals for the national team has reached 52, surpassing Müller's 68 goals. It's not an unrealistic dream!"
"Let's see this German corner kick attack. Schweinsteiger sends it to the penalty area. Li Weifeng heads it out. Feng Xiaoting grabs it. Oh, quickly pass it out, find Wang Feng!"
After Feng Xiaoting gets the ball, he hesitates for a moment. Podolski intercepts his passing route sharply. Helplessly, Feng barely kicks it, but it's intercepted by the Germans.
Wang Feng retreats to defend in the backcourt. He commands the defending players to mark tightly and shouts loudly, "Pass decisively. If not, kick it forward to the frontcourt. Don't hesitate."
Next, the German team besieges the Chinese penalty area for nearly five minutes. During this time, including Wang Feng, several players desperately clear the ball, firmly maintaining their defensive formation, causing all of the opponent's attacks to come to nothing.
In the 7th minute, Schweinsteiger's ball is once again punched out of the penalty area by goalkeeper Qiu Shengjing's fists. After Haung Junzhe gets the ball, he immediately sends a diagonal pass to the right front.
Near the edge of the penalty area, the Chinese superstar sprints towards where the ball is going to land, snatching it before Thomas Müller. Without hesitation, he kicks it forward, squeezing past the German midfielder and continuing to charge forward.
"Beautiful! The Chinese team launches a quick counterattack, and Wang Feng has a clear path ahead! The German team is a bit too confident. Their attack is too aggressive!"
The two players run, one after the other. During this time, the 21-year-old German constantly engages in physical duels, using his body to jostle and pulling shirts, trying to force the Chinese superstar to lose the ball.
At this moment, his Bayern senior Lahm is desperately chasing from the other side, shouting frantically, "Foul, foul quickly! It's too late later!"
Unfortunately, the distance is too far away. Thomas doesn't hear it, but seeing the penalty area getting closer, he and Wang Feng's positions are widening. So, he decisively tackles from behind and trips the Chinese player.
The referee immediately blows the whistle and runs to Thomas Müller to warn him, "Please watch your actions. This is a very dangerous behavior." He doesn't want to show a card just at the beginning of the match.
Müller nods. He previously thought his tackling ability was decent, but he didn't expect to feel timid in front of a world superstar. He wonders why there's such a big difference even though they're compatriots.
Lahm comes to him and says, "You acted too late!" After saying that, he runs back to participate in the defensive wall in the penalty area, while Müller scratches his head in confusion and returns to the backcourt.
"The Chinese team has won a free kick about 30 meters from the frontcourt. Let's see how they plan to take it. A friendly reminder, this distance seems to be within Wang Feng's shooting range."
"Yes, so with this unstoppable free-kick technique, once the Chinese superstar reaches the frontcourt, the defending side will be cautious and won't dare to foul easily. Müller is obviously too young. He's been with Bayern for less than a season."
"Oh, we can see Wang Feng signaling his teammates to spread out. It seems they are preparing to shoot directly. The German team forms a defensive wall. This is also a spectacle. Usually, free kicks from this position don't have a wall but are contested in the penalty area. Haha."
"Run-up! Shoot! Goal! Beautiful!"
"A super-fast knuckleball sails over the wall and drops into the net from the left side of the goal, leaving German goalkeeper Neuer no chance to react!"
"Once again, Wang Feng helps the Chinese team score the first goal of this World Cup. He never disappoints! He clearly tells everyone, 'I'm going to shoot directly,' but you just can't stop him!"
"Let's take another look at the slow-motion replay. The ball rotates obliquely in the air, which should be the main reason for its downward force."
"The camera finally focuses on Müller, who is holding his head in disbelief and regret. Kid, you still need more practice."
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