Fox in the Penalty Area

No. 1 is difficult

"...According to Italian media reports, Italian national team coach Caviglia is likely to remove Caesar from the starting lineup in the second group match. This news has been confirmed by many parties and is very credible. If If it is true, then this will be a very sensational news and it means the end of an era..."

"... Our reporter tried to contact Caesar's agent to understand the situation. But as of press time, no response was received from his agent... In the past year, Caesar has been very silent on social media. He I did not respond to this matter... Only Italian head coach Caviglia refuted the rumors and said that the starting lineup has not been decided yet, and all news about the starting lineup is speculation..."

"Holy shit, Caesar isn't starting?"

After the Chinese team players finished a day of training and returned to the hotel for dinner, they saw the news that Caesar might be adjusted out of Italy's starting lineup.

This incident immediately became a "hot topic" at dinner today.

"Ah? Isn't it? Why! It's a record of 101 consecutive starts for the national team. Don't you want it anymore?" Someone started wailing.

"Do you think Caesar doesn't want to start? It must be Caviglia's intention..."

"If I were Caesar, I would definitely not do it. I would definitely have a good fight with Caviglia..."

"Don't they have a very good relationship? Caviglia was once a teammate of Caesar whether he was in the national team or the Turin Bulls..."

"Oh, I feel sorry for Caesar! A legend of Italian football is treated like this! He is abandoned like a worn out shoe!"

"Fuck, are you really complaining for Caesar? You clearly don't want Italy to reduce its burden!"

"Hahaha!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

Caesar cannot start, which is indeed not good news for the Chinese team.

After all, based on Caesar's performance after playing, Italy was like ten against eleven at the beginning, and its offensive threat was reduced by half.

It will be much easier for the Chinese team to compete against such an Italian team.

So when they heard that Caesar was going to be kicked out of the starting lineup, the Chinese players couldn't hide their disappointment.

Even Chen Xingyi, who had played against Caesar in a game and exchanged jerseys after the game and posted on social media to support Caesar, had to admit that it would be a major benefit to the Chinese team if Caesar could continue to start.

Now...

"Isn't this good?" At the coaching staff table, Dillon understood what his players were talking about from translator Yu Jintao.

Talk to the coaches. "At least we don't have to worry too much about the team underestimating Italy..."

The coaches present all laughed.

Dillon said to them seriously: "No, I am not joking, gentlemen. I am very serious. We must be careful of the possible arrogance and underestimation of the enemy in the team. After we defeated Spain with three goals, the team The atmosphere was upbeat and relaxed. If it was before the first game, I would be happy to see that emotion. But if it was after our first win..."

He shrugged, curled his lips, and did not continue.

But everyone understood what he meant.

Qin Lin said: "I will warn them not to be too relaxed."

Dillon nodded.

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There is no break between the second round and the first round of the World Cup group stage.

After the first round of the group stage, the next day was the second round of the group stage.

Portugal, which lost in the first round of the group stage, is facing a last-ditch battle. They must win in the second round of the group stage to have a chance to advance to the top 16. Otherwise, they may face the embarrassing situation of the host country being unable to advance from the group.

Although in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Qatar, as the host country, has won the first prize of "the host country will not qualify for the group stage", "the host country will definitely qualify for the group stage" has become history.

Portugal does not want to compete for this "third prize" - the second host team that failed to qualify from the group is Canada, one of the 202 hosts.

In this game, the Portuguese team quickly entered the state from the beginning of the game.

In the end they defeated Senegal 3:1.

Ricardo Barea scored a goal in the game.

He was very excited after scoring the goal and released all the pressure he had suffered after the failure in the first game.

As Portugal's most anticipated star, 26-year-old Ricardo Barea has entered the golden stage of his career. Naturally, he is regarded by Portuguese fans and media as someone who can carry the entire country in the World Cup. Onward heroes.

As a result, Portugal lost the first game, and Barea missed good opportunities in the game and performed poorly.

After the game, he was scolded by the media and fans in his own country.

But that's the way football is. If you don't perform well in a game, you may fall into hell. But if you perform well in the next game, you will be redeemed immediately and go straight to heaven.

After winning this game, Portugal will be able to qualify smoothly as long as they defeat Colombia in the last round.

Norway was tied 2:2 by Colombia in the second round and failed to advance from the group.

This draw also allowed Colombia to retain the hope of promotion. They are currently tied with two points in two consecutive games. So they will definitely have to fight Portugal in the last round.

Regardless of the fact that Norway currently ranks first in the group with four points, it still has to fight against Senegal in the final round, otherwise it may be eliminated.

The situation in the entire group is complicated. No one dares to say that they will definitely qualify, and their opponents will definitely have no hope of qualifying.

In addition to Portugal's Ricardo Barea, another high-profile star is Brazil's top star Kabangca.

Brazil started the second round in Group B, also following Portugal in Group A.

The situation in this group is relatively normal.

Mainly because the Brazilian team is too strong.

※※※

Dudu Carlos dribbled the ball forward in the midfield, and Kabangkara went to the wing to meet him.

This is Brazil's attack.

The commentators in the commentary box praised:

"Although they are already two goals ahead and there is not much time left before the end of the game, after the Brazilian team got the opportunity to attack, everyone is still very active in attacking forward! This is Samba football! Always pursue beautiful offensive football!"

"The Brazilian team's attack is coming again! They want to score a third goal! Kabangka is raising his hand to ask for the ball. Does he have a chance to score twice?"

"Facing such an opponent, the Japanese team may only feel desperate!"

While the Brazilian team is advancing as a whole, there are not many players in the Japanese team who can participate in the return defense.

On the one hand, it is because the game has reached the final moment. Most of the Japanese team players have been running for more than 90 minutes and are exhausted.

On the other hand, it is because returning to defense has become meaningless. Losing two goals and losing three goals are both losses now. Before this game, Croatia, which had a 0:0 draw with Japan in the first round, had just defeated Mali, the weakest team in the group, with a score of 4:0. The goal difference between the two teams has widened to six goals. Even if another goal is conceded...is there any big difference between the goal difference of six goals and seven goals?

Of course, not all Japanese team players have this mentality. There are always some who are desperately trying to defend.

For example, Junpei Morikawa.

He was running all the way from the front court to chase back, running towards Dudu Carlos who was carrying the ball.

Originally, Tatsuya Sugiyama was also actively returning to defense, but halfway through he saw Junpei Morikawa getting closer and closer to Dudu Carlos, and he immediately changed his mind.

Slow down and start looking left and right at what's going on around you.

Then he slowly moved towards the opening he thought he had.

Dudu Carlos is still dribbling the ball, and his dribbling speed is not fast. Because he is not a fast player himself, and he also has to observe the situation in front.

As a result, his ability to perceive what was behind him was significantly weakened.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Junpei Morikawa quickly approached Dudu Carlos and tackled him!

He didn't simply shovel the football away. He suddenly accelerated and chased it from behind to the side, and then after getting a little ahead, he decisively shoveled it across with his feet.

Played against Dudu Carlos and kept the football!

The Brazilian midfielder fell forward due to inertia and lost the ball!

Morikawa Junpei followed the inertia and got up from the ground, took the football under his feet a step forward, then looked up and saw Sugiyama Tatsuya in front of him, raising his arms to signal him, and made a diagonal pass!

"Morikawa! Beautiful tackle to save the ball! He blocked the Brazilian team's counterattack! Now it's the Japanese team's turn to counterattack!"

The Japanese commentator in the commentary box was particularly excited.

Even if the goal is scored, it will be difficult to change the result.

But that’s no reason to give up!

Sugiyama Tatsuya received a pass from Morikawa Junpei in the open space, turned around and led forward.

Facing the Brazilian defender Jose Amorim who stepped forward to steal the ball, Sugiyama Tatsuya relied on changes in the pace of his steps and a shake of his shoulders to deceive his old opponent in the Bundesliga, and then went straight to the penalty area. !

But it is a pity that at the front of the penalty area, he faced Tavares Cao, another central defender of the Brazilian team, but failed to break through and was blocked by Cao.

In terms of physical strength, Sugiyama Tatsuya is not as good as Kao. In addition, after running for more than 90 minutes, his physical energy is exhausted and it is difficult to support the pillar in the physical confrontation.

After struggling to protect the football, Sugiyama Tatsuya could only take a shot, and then missed the goal post without any suspense...

"Sugiyama! Ah!!!"

The Japanese commentator held his head in his hands in the commentary box and shouted to the sky.

"This shot missed! What a pity! This may be our last chance to attack!"

The game time was displayed on the big screen at the scene, and the game was in the 97th minute.

There was less than a minute left before the end of the game.

The ball is still on Brazil's side and nothing can change.

I don’t know if I was frightened by Junpei Morikawa’s steal just now. This time when the Brazilian team kicked off again, they did not advance forward as unscrupulously as before, but began to kick in the backcourt.

With a two-goal lead, they only need to delay the final time to get all three points. Why take that risk?

One minute later, the referee blew the whistle to end the game!

"The game is over! Congratulations to the Brazilian team! They became the first team to qualify from the group in this World Cup! The Japanese team that lost this game has very slim hope of qualifying from the group unless they can win in the final round. Defeat Mali with an extremely exaggerated score, and hope that Brazil, which has already qualified early, can beat Croatia with the same score..."

Morikawa Junpei sat on his knees on the turf, hands on his hips, looking straight into the distance. The back looks like a samurai who wants to have his belly disemboweled...

Sugiyama Tatsuya raised his head, unable to conceal his pain and frustration, and tears overflowed from his eyes.

In the last World Cup, he and Morikawa Junpei were just ordinary national team rotation players and did not become the main players. At that time, the Japanese team broke out of the siege and was the only team in Asian football to reach the top 16. Four years later, the two of them became the core of the Japanese team. Unexpectedly, they were not as good as the previous one...

It's so difficult to qualify from the group stage!

Thinking about the neighboring country's 3-0 victory over Spain in the first round of the group stage and the excellent qualifying situation, Sugiyama Tatsuya couldn't help but want to cry.

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PS, the 2022 World Cup is about to enter the final decisive moment. I predicted this year’s champion in the "Starting with You to Watch the World Cup" event!

1,000,000 point coins will be shared on 12/18 and 12/1, and there are also massive World Cup peripherals and point coins waiting for you to redeem!

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Come to the APP and search "World Cup" to enter the event and witness the birth of the new king with me

It’s the last two days of the event, so don’t miss it if you pass by!

In the third and fourth place finals at 11 o'clock tonight, I am optimistic that Croatia will beat Morocco by one goal!

It's Modric's last dance. Let's bid farewell to this veteran with a third place finish in the World Cup...