Chapter 68: Conspiracy
Genk, returning from Liverpool, plunged straight into the 32nd round of the Belgian Pro League, facing Sint-Truiden, a team from the city of Limburg in Belgium.
After the intense matches, Wang Feng continued his excitement in this game. Just 5 minutes into the game, Carl Bess dribbled the ball to the front and passed it diagonally to Jason Aldridge on the left. Aldridge lost his balance under pressure from the defenders but managed to pass the ball into the penalty area while falling.
Wang Feng, lurking in the penalty area, suddenly sprang into action towards the ball's trajectory. The defenders beside him hurriedly closed in. The ball was flying low, making it impossible for a header. If he controlled the ball and dealt with it, it would waste time and lead to being surrounded.
Wang Feng's mind raced, and in an instant, he made a decision. He lifted his left foot, swept the ball backward as it descended, exerted force with his leg, and struck a scorpion-like shot.
The ball was fast and sharp, flying towards the bottom left corner of the goal. Although the Sint-Truiden goalkeeper tried his best to save it, he could only watch the ball go past him. 1-0, Genk made a perfect start.
In the 34th minute, after Gareth Barry intercepted the ball in midfield, he made a long pass straight to Wang Feng. With his speed, Wang Feng raced ahead, beating the offside trap, and caught up with the ball in the penalty area.
Facing the onrushing goalkeeper, Wang Feng calmly slotted the ball through the goalkeeper's legs, into the net.
Celebrating his second goal, he pointed to Barry, indicating that Barry's precise pass contributed 50% to the goal, while the other 50% was Wang Feng's unmatched speed advantage.
The first half ended with Genk in the lead. Just when everyone thought Genk would easily win, the situation took a sharp turn in the second half.
In the 51st minute, Wang Feng was brought down by a rough tackle while in possession of the ball. Although the referee only gave a yellow card to the opponent, coach Aimee Anonis was still sweating nervously.
Because the next match against Liverpool in the Europa League semi-final was crucial. Although Genk had gained an advantage in the first leg, it was hard to imagine what the situation would be like without Wang Feng.
So Antonis decisively substituted Wang Feng with a backup defender to strengthen the team's defense.
With the lead, Genk's players became somewhat complacent, and with Wang Feng off the field, they lacked someone to keep the Sint-Truiden defense busy. In the 69th and 81st minutes, Sint-Truiden scored two goals to equalize.
In the end, Genk only got 1 point instead of 3, while their competitors Anderlecht, under pressure, defeated Brussels in this round, reducing Genk's lead on the points table from 4 points to 2.
In the dressing room after the game, coach Antonis was furious: "With this kind of mentality and level, what are you talking about beating Liverpool? Have you forgotten the scene of falling behind by a big margin?"
He rarely left the dressing room, explaining to each player the mistakes made during the game until late at night. Then he demanded that everyone report to the training camp early the next morning for intensive training to prepare for the match against Liverpool.
After all the players had left, assistant coach Quik Martin said, "Mr. Antonis, are you being too harsh on them, causing extra pressure on the players?"
Antonis shook his head and sighed, "I don't want to be like this either, but since we've already seen the dawn of victory, why not give it a try? In fact, many of our players lack a bit of skill, but as long as they give their all, we can still compete with the top teams."
Three days later, the Luminous Athletic Stadium welcomed the challenge from Liverpool. In a sea of blue, there was a red area, where the away fans were located. Although they were few in number, they cheered loudly for the team.
This was the first time Genk's players had seen the madness of English fans. Soon, they also showed their spirit, singing their team's song loudly, announcing to everyone that this was their home ground!
Amidst this lively scene, the two teams took the field. The faces of Liverpool players showed no signs of despair or confusion from the previous defeat; instead, they were full of confidence.
Before the match, coach Gerard Houllier said to them, "The only mistake we made in the last match was not containing Wang Feng well. So, in this match, as long as we focus on him and render him ineffective, the others are not a concern."
"Believe in yourselves, we will surely overcome Genk and win our trophy!"
After the match began, Liverpool's defense against Wang Feng could be described as crazy. When he didn't have the ball, there were one or two players marking him, and once he received the ball, there were four or five players converging on him.
Of course, this created a lot of space for other Genk attackers, which would easily translate into goals in the Belgian Pro League matches, but now they were facing Liverpool, one of the best defensive lines in the world.
The situation in the match was completely different from the previous one. Genk created several shooting opportunities in the first half, but unfortunately, they were either off-target or went wide.
On the other hand, Liverpool, abandoning their possession-based style, used counterattacks and set pieces. Gary McAllister and Michael Owen each scored a goal, easily reversing the aggregate score.
Genk's coach Antonis looked at Houllier on the opposite bench, understanding the old fox's tactics. This was clearly a deliberate move to completely isolate Wang Feng from the other players, even equivalent to driving Wang Feng completely out of the field with several players.
Because Houllier believed that without Wang Feng, even if Genk had 10 players against Liverpool's 8, or even 7, they would have no chance of winning.
At the end of the first half, Wang Feng felt powerless, feeling the pressure of being surrounded by three or four world-class defenders.
The other Genk players also felt frustrated; they realized what Liverpool's strategy was, but they didn't have a good solution, as they were clearly outmatched in terms of ability.
"Damn it!" Carl Bess punched the locker in the dressing room, unwilling to accept it: "Are we just going to watch the team step into the abyss of failure?"
Jason Aldridge and Gareth Barry were also frustrated, realizing that their abilities were only good enough for dominating in the Belgian Pro League.
Coach Antonis didn't have time to come to the dressing room; he and the coaching staff were discussing strategies anxiously, but no matter how they discussed, they felt it was an unsolvable problem.
In the end, it was still a matter of overall strength. Relying on good luck and Wang Feng's superhuman performance, Genk had reached a level that was not commensurate with their abilities.
Just when the atmosphere in the dressing room reached its lowest point, Wang Feng stood up and said, "Everyone, I'm sorry, my performance in the first half was terrible, but please continue to believe in me and entrust the attack to me."
Upon hearing this, Bess said, "Wang, you don't need to apologize; this isn't your fault. Brothers, let's focus on defense in the second half and never let Liverpool score another goal!"
Everyone nodded solemnly, and they all raised their arms, forming a circle. Captain Aaron Abigail said, "Let them witness the perseverance of us Genk players."
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