World Cup of Great Powers

The victory in Phnom Penh greatly boosted morale.

After the game, local Chinese fans excitedly told reporters: "Our national team is so strong, it really makes us happy!"

Not only am I happy about the score, but I also enjoy the privilege of watching the game.

The Phnom Penh Stadium can only accommodate about 6,000 people, but dozens of people crowded in.

Before the game started, after Cambodian Bamboo Shoes negotiated with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, people from the Chamber of Commerce shouted through the loudspeaker:

"Attention Chinese fans across from the rostrum, please move to the sides of the rostrum and take seats under the guidance of the police."

About a thousand Chinese fans lined up on the track and walked towards the podium with loud gongs and drums.

As they joined hundreds of Chinese fans on the podium, the cheers in the stadium were deafening.

Local fans do not have this preferential treatment.

They stood quietly on the slope stand, basking in the sun, watching their team being scored one goal after another by the Chinese team.

The atmosphere of the game was completely dominated by Chinese fans, and the Phnom Penh Stadium became the home court of the Chinese team.

What local fans care about is only the results of betting on football.

After the victory over the Cambodian team, Zeng Zheng followed the "agreement" and led the team to visit Angkor Wat.

Because of the war, the heads of the Angkor Wat statues were removed.

Only the figures on the murals were left, staring at the passing tourists with complex expressions.

Entrance fees to Angkor Wat and Angkor Wat total $20.

Visitors can smoke, litter and touch the murals here.

Seeing the condition of Angkor Wat and Angkor Wat, known as the "Seven Wonders of the World", Zeng Zheng felt a sigh of relief after taking the photo.

...

The next day, Zeng Zheng led the team and flew out of Phnom Penh.

Transfer from Guangzhou and fly directly to Kunming.

It is said that the entire Indonesian team has been waiting here for a long time.

Kunming is more than 2,000 meters above sea level.

In order to resist altitude sickness, the Indonesian team not only came here in advance to adapt, but also specially carried more than 100 oxygen bottles.

It is enough to see that Indonesia attaches great importance to this game.

The day after arriving in Kunming, Zeng Zheng led the team into training.

When reporters hurried over, Zeng Zheng was leading the team in set-piece training.

Because the first three games were all big wins, many overseas foreign players clamored to return to their home countries to compete.

In addition, the European leagues have come to an end.

Overseas players such as Sun Jihai and Li Tie have all returned to the team one after another.

When reporters arrived, there were already many student fans watching the national football training on the sidelines, most of them girls.

These students started chirping as soon as they saw the national team. It turned out that they were practicing shouting to their favorite national team players.

"I'll shout 'Yang Chen' first, and then you'll shout 'Well done'."

"I call you 'Li Jinyu', and you call me 'Dayu'."

"I call 'Sun Jihai', and you call 'My Sun'."

...

After practicing, they started shouting.

"Yang Chen~~"

"Well done!

"

"Li Jinyu~~~"

"Dayu!

"

"Sun Jihai~~~"

"I...I love you!

"

The girls behind did not carry out the original plan, but shouted out their hearts.

On the court, Sun Jihai, who was passing the ball, was stunned and almost missed the ball.

Zhang Minghua, who was responsible for picking up the ball, heard it and quickly shouted back.

"Like Mice Love Rice!"

"Hahahahaha~~~"

There was hearty laughter on and off the court.

In the penalty area at this time, the "heading king" Xie Hui made many achievements.

General Fan, who has excellent jumping ability, also scored goals one after another.

Not to mention Xiao Wang Tao, Yang Chen, Li Weifeng, Zhang Yuheng and others.

One by one, as if their heads were covered in starch, they smashed the door that Ou Chuliang was guarding into holes.

"Fuck, why are you kicking me so high?"

"The Indonesian team does not have such tall players."

"Just kick at 1.9 meters!"

After General Fan missed a header, he complained to Xu Liang, who was taking the penalty kick.

After finishing the book, Xu Liang quickly bowed her hands and apologized.

Seeing this scene, the reporter on the side couldn't help but asked cautiously:

"Coach Zeng, are we going to play this way with Indonesia?"

Zeng Zheng laughed loudly and waved his hand.

"Of course."

"There are no tall players in Indonesia."

"Of course I have to take advantage of the air superiority."

Although Zeng Zheng answered frankly, the reporters around him all looked at each other in confusion.

Is it really okay to speak out the essence of your tactics so openly before the game?

As if sensing the reporters' doubts, Zeng Zheng waved his hand.

"If you can tell, it doesn't hurt if I tell you."

"I can't tell you. I hope you won't ask too many questions."

"When the time comes, everyone will be embarrassed, and no one wants to, right?"

The reporters nodded repeatedly.

"Don't think it's the world preliminaries."

"But this is the group stage, and the opponent's strength is really not as good as mine."

"There is no conspiracy in this case."

"Let's use conspiracy openly and push it through in a fair and just way."

"Winning the game with dignity and dignity, wouldn't it be beautiful and happy?"

All reporters were moved by Zeng Zheng's heroic words.

One after another, they raised their thumbs and said, "That's right! That's right!"

"We are the Asian Cup champions."

"If we are bothered by these trivial small teams again."

"That's so inappropriate!"

Even so, some reporters still couldn’t help but remind them:

"Coach Zeng, having said that, be careful not to capsize in the gutter!"

Zeng Zheng glanced at him and said, "You mean the Yemeni team, right?"

Schlapner was high-spirited that year, and the Chinese team got off to a great start in Yirby.

On May 22, they beat Pakistan 5-0 in the first match, and on May 25, they easily won 3-0 against the host Jordan.

In the first two games, he scored 8 goals without conceding a single goal.

At this time, the Chinese team began to burst with confidence, and both players and coaches became proud.

Coach Schlappner even treated his opponent as worthless before the game against the Yemeni team.

He commented on his upcoming opponent: "The Yemeni team is just a little snake, we can cut it off with just one click!"

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! As a result, in the third game against Yemen on May 28, although the national football team took the initiative from beginning to end, the impetuous Chinese team failed to score 26 shots in the game.

One win, but the deadlock has not been broken yet.

The players became more and more anxious as they played, but it was the Yemeni team that resolutely played defensive counterattack and took advantage of the free kick opportunity to score the first goal.

At this time, the Chinese team was helpless and capsized in the ditch.

The same history repeated itself a few days ago.

In the group stage of Group 8 of the Asian World Cup preliminaries, the United Arab Emirates, which was guaranteed to win, unexpectedly lost 2-1 to Yemen.

If they fail to defeat Yemen at home in the last game, they may not even advance to the top ten.

Now the whole UAE is in turmoil.

Alfang Bamboo Shoes also quickly announced that if they still cannot defeat their opponents after returning to home court, the national team, from the coach to the players, will all have to pay a corresponding price!

A lesson for the past and a guide for the future.

In people's traditional concepts, there is no so-called absolutely strong team and absolutely weak team in Asia.

Whoever wins or loses is possible.

What's more, the national football team has never had a strong foundation and always brings "surprises" and surprises to fans.

Nowadays, there are overwhelming reports outside that "Zeng's army massacred Indonesia at home."

This reporter also kindly reminded Zeng Zheng.

Be careful of compliments from your peers, and don't follow Schlappner's old path.

"Thanks for your reminder."

"but..."

"I am different from Lao Na."

Zeng Zheng smiled and shook his head, "My confidence does not come from blind trust in myself, nor does it come from the hype of the Spring Festival Gala sketch."

"My confidence comes from the strong strength of the players, from the contact and accumulation with the players for so long, and from the skills and tacit understanding accumulated by these players on the court."

After saying that, Zeng Zheng shouted to the court.

"Ji Hai, kick the door directly!"

Under Zeng Zheng's order, Sun Jihai in the corner kick changed his right foot to his left foot.

He took a few steps back, took a quick run, and spun the ball into the air with one kick.

Facing the incoming ball, Ou Chuliang, who was standing in front of the goal, and several top players stood there with their waists pinched, watching the ball fly quickly over their heads.

Whoosh!

The ball dropped rapidly and spun into the far side net.

That is to say.

If the goalkeeper fails to concentrate on the ball and chooses a good position, it will directly result in conceding the ball.

"sharp!"

The reporters put down their cameras and gave thumbs up.

It seems that this Chinese team is really different from the past!

Now the team not only has players who can play where they want.

And a coach who knows which players can point where to play!

Recalling the magic of Zeng Zheng in the last World Cup.

Journalists' concepts have gradually changed.

...

The day before the China-India war, groups of fans could be seen everywhere outside the Tuodong Stadium in Kunming, making comments.

Groups of ticket dealers also mingled among them, preparing to make "war fortune."

It is reported that tickets originally priced at 60 yuan have been sold for 200 yuan.

Around the stadium, children divided into two teams can be seen competing in street football from time to time.

“Damn it, look at the weather, it’s likely to rain in Kunming tomorrow!”

"Who says it isn't!"

"Our Chinese team is not good at playing rain balls, while the Indonesian team is more adaptable to water battles."

"I wonder if Coach Zeng is prepared for this. If not, it will be difficult for us!"

When a fan heard these words, he couldn't help but retort:

"rain?"

"What's wrong with the rain?"

"Against a team like Indonesia, even if you use a knife, you still have to win the game."

"If we can't win, the Chinese team will be disbanded immediately!"

When the fans around heard this, they grinned.

"Brother, judging by your accent, you're from the Northeast, right?"

"Yes, from Dalian, what's wrong?"

"He's still a fellow coach Zeng! Why don't you have more confidence in coach Zeng than us Kunming people?"

The elder brother blushed when he heard this.

"Hey, aren't you afraid that Coach Zeng will embarrass our Dalian team?"

"Brother, what you said is wrong!"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately retorted, "If Coach Zeng is really embarrassed, it will be embarrassing for our whole country."

"And vice versa."

"Every time Coach Zeng grows a face, he also grows the face of our whole country!"

"What's this called? This is called sharing the prosperity with each other, and losing both!"

The eldest brother nodded quickly when he heard this, "Yes, yes, both will be prosperous, and both will be prosperous..."

Don't look at the Chinese team scoring so many goals in the first three games.

But most fans believe that the Chinese team should normally beat Indonesia by 2-3 goals in this game.

If you play well, you can even win 4-5 games.

...

On May 13, in the World Cup qualifiers, the Chinese team ushered in the most powerful opponent in the group stage, the Indonesian team, at home.

It rained lightly in Kunming, but the fans were enthusiastic.

Outside the stadium, a huge red flag was held to cheer for the national football team.

Due to the excellent performance of the national football team in the first three games, Zeng Zheng did not take the Indonesian team seriously.

Facing the Indonesian team, the biggest opponent in the group, Zeng Zheng did not have the strongest lineup with the return of several international players.

The goalkeeper is Ou Chuliang, the defenders are Sun Xiang, Li Weifeng, Shu Chang and Sun Jihai;

Midfielders Zheng Zhi, Li Xiaopeng, Qi Hong, Shen Si.

Forwards Yang Chen, Xie Hui.

Before the game, the Indonesian team threatened to take away a point in the away game, and the players were all holding their breath after hearing this.

In the first minute of the game, Yang Chen made a high-speed breakthrough from the left and forced the first free kick and corner kick.

After Shen Si took the corner kick, Li Weifeng set off the Chinese team's offensive with a powerful charge.

Two minutes later, Xie Hui received a long pass from Sun Jihai and entered the penalty area, but was promptly destroyed by his opponent and tackled out of the baseline;

One minute later, Qi Hong met the ball from the top of the penalty area after a corner kick, but unfortunately the ball went over the crossbar.

Compared with the first three games, the Chinese team also maintained a huge offensive after the opening, trying to defeat the opponent in one fell swoop.

Yang Chen and Xie Hui frequently threatened the Indonesian team's defense with wide-ranging runs on the front line, and their teammates also worked together to deliver artillery shells to them.

But in the face of Indonesia's intensive defense, the goal always missed.

In the 12th minute, Sun Jihai took a corner kick from the right. Li Weifeng jumped on the spot and headed the ball wide under the pressure of his opponent;

In the 17th minute, the Chinese team got another corner kick, and Xie Hui's header in the penalty area went wide again.

Judging from the results of winning the top position in the frontcourt time and time again, Zeng Zheng's "outrageous conspiracy" was very successful.

The short Indonesian team had no way to deal with the Chinese team's high-altitude bombing.

But the problem is that several top scorers seemed to have forgotten their shooting boots.

Even after several attempts, the ball failed to enter the opponent's net.

This made the fans who came to cheer on the scene look anxious.

Every time a header fails, the camera switches to Zeng Zheng on the sidelines.

At the beginning, fans could still see Zeng Zheng holding an umbrella and pointing at the players in the rain.

But after ten minutes, I don’t know whether it was because it was raining too hard or because Zeng Zheng had already said everything he needed to say.

Except for Han Tao who occasionally ran around, the Chinese coaching staff could not see a single coach on the sidelines.

In the 19th minute, after Yang Chen received a direct pass from the backcourt from General Fan, he drove the ball directly towards the opponent's penalty area.

Under the close guard of the opponent's two defenders at Huluding, he directly took the shot.

Unfortunately, the ball missed the far post.

The Indonesian team is very skilled at their feet.

From the scene, it can be seen that they are more adaptable to the slippery venue in the rain.

They deployed heavy troops in defense and paid special attention to blocking the Chinese team's high ball routes from both sides.

When the Chinese team was unable to attack for a long time, the Indonesian team also began to launch a counterattack towards the Chinese team's position.

In the 23rd minute, Sun Xiang made a mistake when making a tackle.

Indonesia's number one star Kurniyawan got the ball and ran straight to the Chinese team's gate from his right wing. Li Weifeng, who was quick to defend, used his physical advantage to destroy the ball.

Kurniawan took advantage of the situation and took a dive, and was shown the first yellow card of the game by the referee from Xiaotian.

Three minutes later, Sun Jihai also made a mistake in the defense and passed the ball directly to Kurniawan.

Facing three defenders including General Fan, Kurniawan cleverly penetrated the gap in the middle.

No. 15 Riyadi of the Indonesian team went to the meeting alone. Fortunately, Ou Chuliang attacked in time and destroyed the ball.

Indonesian right back Setyabudi hit the ball and shot the ball over the crossbar!

The Chinese team immediately launched a counterattack after escaping the disaster.

Qi Hong and Shen Si had three threatening long-range shots, but Indonesian goalkeeper Hendro, who was selected for this year's best Asian team, saved the balls one by one with extraordinary skill.

The following corner kicks of the Chinese team did not pose much of a threat. Instead, in the 29th minute, Yang Chen hit the goal post when taking a corner kick in the penalty area and was injured in the battle.

Seeing Yang Chen come back on the field after being covered with bandages, the fans in Kunming gave the warmest applause since the game started.

Even though the team couldn't win for a long time, the Kunming fans who came to the scene were still very cute. They cheered for the national team in unison.

In the 37th minute, Yang Chen used a fake move to pass the opponent's defender at the front of the penalty area, and was pulled down from behind by the opponent.

The referee did not arrive in time on Xiaotian, so the ball was not awarded a penalty kick.

Then in the 39th minute, the Indonesian team got its first corner kick.

When the Chinese team had a numerical advantage of 6 defenses and 2 players in the penalty area, a player from the opponent's backcourt nearly succeeded in a header.

A minute later, the Chinese team's defense paid a heavy price for the mistake just now.

This time, the Indonesian team chose a low kick for their second corner kick.

Kurniawan, who was grabbing the lead, forced his foot to shoot with someone behind him. He was knocked down in the penalty area by General Fan.

The foul was immediately caught by the Xiaotian referee and a penalty kick was awarded directly.

The ball flew to the other side of Ou Chuliang's save.

In the 41st minute of the game, the Chinese team fell behind by one goal at home.

After falling behind, the team played more impatiently.

The opponent's several hasty shots from the top of the arc in the penalty area all missed the mark.

In desperation, the team and fans could only accept the ending of falling behind 0-1 at halftime.

Liu Jianhong, who commented on half the game, couldn't help but sigh when he looked at the terrible score.

"It seems that the Chinese team is less adaptable to altitude sickness than its opponents!"

At the same time, the camera lens on the sidelines also captured Wang Junsheng's face in the stands.

Looking at the gloomy expression of the bamboo shoes and bamboo mats, fans speculated whether he was also regretting at this moment, putting his home court on such an "outrageous" plateau.

Can Zeng Zheng still perform magic?

In these 15 minutes, the fans had a great time.

As soon as the second half began, the fans noticed the changes on the field.

Zeng Zheng replaced Qi Hong with Zhang Xiaorui, seemingly to strengthen the attack in the midfield and frontcourt.

Seeing Zeng Zheng's substitution, the fans immediately sang the national anthem loudly, hoping that the team could cheer up.

In the 49th minute, Zhang Xiaorui dribbled the ball in the frontcourt and flashed left and right.

The fans were all dazzled by his continuous turns while pulling the ball.

Just when some fans thought he was holding the ball too long, Zhang Xiaorui, who had just turned around in Marseille, suddenly lifted the ball over the head of the Indonesian defender with his toes.

At the same time, Xie Hui rushed over.

Almost with his head lowered, he used his forehead to hit the ball directly into the Indonesian gate in a diving posture.

1 to 1!

The Chinese team equalized the score!

A minute later, Zhang Xiaorui repeated his old trick.

After attracting three defenders to defend closely, he then tiptoed the ball into the penalty area.

This time, it was Yang Chen who reached the top.

Like Xie Hui, he didn't even jump, he ran forward and hit him with his forehead.

It's just that this time I was a bit unlucky, and I was directly in the arms of the opponent's goalkeeper.

Hendro reacted quickly and held the ball in his arms.

In the 55th minute, the same move, the same style of play.

The Chinese team patiently controlled and transferred the ball in front of the opponent's penalty area, and looked for opportunities to initiate crosses.

Xie Hui's header in the small penalty area was once again saved by Hendro;

One minute later, Hendro took the initiative and reluctantly saved Shensi's cross from the penalty area with a single punch.

Zhang Xiaorui got the ball and shot hard. The ball hit the post and bounced off the baseline.

Although several consecutive attacks did not lead to a lead, the team completely controlled the situation on the court.

The changes brought about by Zhang Xiaorui's appearance also made the fans realize that Zeng Zheng was becoming serious now.

In the cheers of the fans, the goal came quickly.

In the 56th minute, Sun Jihai stepped in on the right and attracted two defenders, and calmly sent the ball to Zhang Xiaorui's feet with a sweep.

After Zhang Xiaorui got the ball, he deliberately moved in the opposite direction to the two Indonesian players who were defending, attracting the opponent to speed up the attack.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, he caught up with the ball and then swung it with his right foot, then swung the ball towards the penalty spot again.

What a great Yang Chen!

At the penalty spot, he picked up green onions on dry ground and hit the goal with a powerful head-swinging shot straight to the lower right corner of the goal, giving the Chinese team a go-ahead score of 2-1!

After the Chinese team took the lead, Zeng Zheng made another substitution and replaced Li Xiaopeng with Li Tie.

With Li Tie's personal marking, Kurniawan was completely helpless, and even Zheng Zhi had the opportunity to provide an assist.

Facing the strong control of the Chinese team, the Indonesian team, which was tired of defense, played for 20 minutes in the second half, but did not even attack in front of the penalty area.

In the 64th minute, Zhang Xiaorui passed three opposing defenders at the front of the penalty area and then passed straight into the penalty area. Xie Hui, who got the ball in time, also passed a high ball to the center.

The ball came to Yang Chen's head safely. Hendro, who lost his center of gravity, couldn't catch up and could only watch the ball being pushed into the net again by Yang Chen.

3 to 1!

Yang Chen scored twice, and Xie Hui also shot and passed.

Facing the Chinese team's high-altitude ball bombing, the short Indonesian really had no power to fight back.

In the 75th minute, Shen Si made a pass from the left. Yang Chen forced his way over and the ball was pushed sideways by Hendro.

One minute later, Yang Chen, who came on the field sick, was finally replaced by Xiao Wang Tao.

Looking at the white gauze on Yang Chen's head, the fans in the audience gave him warm applause.

On the other hand, look at the Indonesian team on the other side.

After seeing Xiao Wang Tao's height, everyone fell silent.

Even Yang Chen, who is 1.85 meters tall, can't guard against him.

Who can defend Xiao Wang Tao who is 1.94 meters tall?

Although Zeng Zheng still took shelter from the rain under the coaching bench.

But this substitution has made his attitude clear to everyone.

If you dare to score the lead in an away game, you will have to bear his greatest anger!

In the 77th minute, Sun Jihai assisted and passed Xie Hui directly from the front of the penalty area.

The latter fell to the ground and made a pass under very difficult circumstances, also playing in the upper third.

Facing the ball coming from high in the sky, Xiao Wang Tao barely moved. He just shook his upper body and hit it hard with his head.

When the ball hit the net, the head of the defender of the Indonesian team who jumped high was less than his chin!

In the 80th minute, Sun Jihai took a corner kick from the left with an excellent landing point and an excellent arc. Xiao Wang Tao, like a wooden stake, perfectly replicated the goal he had just scored.

There was no jumping or earning.

Just stand there and move your upper body to hit the ball.

Faced with such a "cheap" offensive from the Chinese team, the entire Indonesian team remained silent.

The visitor is a guest.

In the first half, Zeng Zheng treated you like a guest, but you really treated yourself like the host!

In the remaining 10 minutes of the game, the Chinese team won two consecutive free kicks and a corner kick.

A total of 7 headers were scored, 2 of which were successful.

There is one for Xiao Wang Tao and one for General Fan.

At this point, Xiao Wang Tao, who came on as a substitute, scored a hat trick in 15 minutes to bring the game to a perfect end.

7 to 1!

The Indonesian team scored 1 goal in the first half, and the Chinese team scored 7 goals in the second half.

At the moment the final whistle blew, Liu Jianhong was filled with emotion.

"Coach Zeng once again performed his magic..."

Is it really magical?

At the press conference after the game, Zeng Zheng said frankly.

"What happened to the leading team?"

"Who said players are not allowed to header the ball on the field?"

"My tactic today is to header the ball. Do you have any opinions?"

"It was still raining in the first half, and the road was slippery in the rain. The players' sight was blocked by the rain, so their headers were not accurate."

"The rain stopped in the second half. I can see clearly and the top is accurate. Is there any problem?"

Zeng Zheng's strong speech put the final label on this game.

The next day, when reporting on the game, Zhumater 5 sets said:

"The first half of the China-India war was like the football version of the fable "The Donkey of Guizhou."

"The Indonesian team is that donkey. It once made the Chinese team forget that they were tigers."

"Fortunately, the tiger woke up in time and finally defeated the Indonesian team with a score of 7 to 1."

"After this game, many netizens began to support Coach Zeng's remarks."

"We don't need to be so serious about the World Preliminary Group Stage..."

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