Chapter 481: Joy
At midnight, the capital time, the normally quiet streets across the country surged with crowds of people. Fans took to the streets to celebrate the Chinese team's second entry into the World Cup quarterfinals, especially the 4-1 victory over England!
For this team, it seems like it's really possible! The long-repressed hopes of many Chinese people, which they dared not speak aloud, seem to be gradually coming true!
From drawing against Germany in the group stage, to a big win over Ghana, and a comeback victory against Serbia, the Chinese team continuously surprised supporters, achieving an unprecedented first-round result.
Although the "consequences" of this first place were somewhat troublesome, forcing them to face traditional powerhouses like England, a big victory finally made everyone understand that our team is not afraid of any opponent!
This game not only received extensive coverage in the domestic media but also sparked intense reactions in European football. Germany's "Kicker" magazine believes that under Wang Feng's leadership, the Chinese team has undergone a transformation, becoming a truly world-class team.
"We can no longer look at them with old eyes. Reaching the quarterfinals once is a surprise, but doing so twice shows true strength!"
"The contribution and role of the Chinese superstar to the entire team are extraordinary. In addition to his dazzling eight goals, his presence always inspires other teammates' fighting spirit and potential."
"This is based on facts. In the World Cup qualifiers and the Confederations Cup matches where Wang Feng was absent, the performance of the Chinese team was only at an Asian level. They struggled against opponents like Australia and Japan, not to mention traditional powerhouses like England."
"Once Wang Feng joins the team, both their strength and morale will greatly improve. It's hard to imagine a player reaching such a level. Looking at the history of modern football, it's extremely rare."
England's "Sky Sports" believes that Capello's coaching was not effective and he should resign. "When the Chinese team started aggressively and achieved results, he should have made timely lineup adjustments to reassure the players."
"But the Italian's reaction was slow by several beats, and it was the same in the second half. He let the team gradually slip into the abyss without doing anything. His performance was extremely unsatisfactory."
Under tremendous public pressure, Capello announced shortly after the match that he had officially submitted his resignation to the English Football Association. "The Chinese team performed very well, especially Wang Feng. Although we made many tactical arrangements against him before the match, we failed to limit the performance of the Chinese superstar, which was my mistake."
"After pulling back one goal, England actually had many good opportunities, but the players failed to seize them. The opponent also adjusted their strategy in time to focus on defense and counterattacks, while we showed more weaknesses."
Regarding the on-field quarrel between Rooney and Defoe, Capello refused to comment, only saying that everyone wanted to turn the tide for England, and no one would intentionally hold back.
Compared to the desolate Capello, Ar?kan was much more spirited. Shortly after the match, he expressed his joy at the victory: "Yes, I am very satisfied. This was an unparalleled game."
"Especially against a team like England, a traditional powerhouse in the World Cup, experienced and star-studded, I can imagine this game bringing immense joy and hope to Chinese fans."
"Next, we will work even harder to face strong opponents and respond to everyone's support. You know, the Chinese team has the largest fan base in the world."
As for causing England to suffer the biggest defeat in World Cup history, Ar?kan believed that the primary contributor was Wang Feng. "Not only did he perform well on the field, but in fact, we often discuss match tactics off the field, and his suggestions are always very effective."
"There's no need to hide it. I dare to assert that if Wang chooses to become a coach in a dozen years, I wouldn't be surprised at all. He will definitely become a top coach in world football."
The confrontation between Argentina and Mexico, the two old rivals in South America, ended with Argentina winning 3-1, but the process of the match sparked controversy.
The most talked-about incident was Tevez's offside goal. In the 25th minute, Messi sent a direct pass to Tevez, who headed the ball into the net to help the team take a 1-0 lead, but replays showed that he was clearly in an offside position when he took the shot.
A large number of Mexican players surrounded the assistant referee hoping to change the decision, but to no avail. Marcos also received a yellow card for his unbecoming behavior.
After that, the Mexican players seemed visibly upset, and their actions on the field became more aggressive. Just before the end of the first half, Heintze was maliciously pushed down by a Mexican defender, almost causing a large-scale conflict.
The situation, which had just been calmed down, quickly exploded again a few minutes later. As both teams walked into the player tunnel, a substitute player from Argentina and a substitute player from Mexico had a dispute and began shoving each other. In the chaos, Argentine defender Clemente was inexplicably punched.
Seeing this scene, Argentine main players rushed to support, and Heintze and Romario threw punches at a member of the Mexican coaching staff, only to be captured by on-site photographers.
International Football Federation officials said that if the referee's report mentioned the two players' irrational behavior, they were likely to be banned from the next match and miss the quarterfinal match against China.
This is indeed a good thing for China. Heintze is Argentina's main full-back, and Romario is an irreplaceable goalkeeper.
The round of 16 match between the Netherlands and Slovakia did not produce an upset, with the Dutch winning 2-1. "Little Flying Man" made his first start of the World Cup and contributed a landmark goal to secure the victory.
It was in the 33rd minute when Robben initiated a quick break from halfway along the sideline, cutting inside after four moves and then unleashing a cold arrow shot. The ball pierced through the flying tackles of two Slovakian defenders and rolled into the corner of the goal, just past the fingertips of the goalkeeper.
Of course, due to his recent recovery from injury, he did not play the full 90 minutes and was substituted shortly into the second half by coach Van Marwijk. Otherwise, the Netherlands would not have won so narrowly.
Brazil and Chile also played a South American derby, with the Samba Army winning 3-0. The two teams' strength levels differed significantly.
Juan, Fabiano, and Robinho formed the attacking trio and each contributed a goal, although the overall performance of the team was mediocre.
The speed of the "Son of the Wind" is no longer stunning, and his dribbling and offensive threat have greatly decreased. Coupled with the club's poor form over the past year, people can't help but wonder what happened to him.
The round of 16 clash between Japan and Paraguay was rather dull, with both sides battling for 120 minutes without a winner. In the end, Paraguay advanced 5-3 on penalties.
This is the first time in history that a <anno data-annotation-id="eed2e1dc-d522-affc-10d8-7728473f403d">South American team has advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals</anno>, while Japan has fallen at the doorstep of advancement for the second time. After the match, everyone had tears in their eyes.
The Iberian Peninsula derby between Spain and Portugal ended with a victory for the Matadors, winning 1-0.
The only goal was scored by Villa. Similarly, this goal was also controversially offside, and there have been several misjudgments in the South African World Cup so far. For a while, there was an outpouring of public anger, and everyone eagerly hoped to introduce more advanced technology to assist referees.
<annotations style="display: none;"><li>Honestly, I don't know what the author was trying to say here...</li></annotations>
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺