super storm

Chapter 105

Amsterdam Arena, [-]th February.

Ajax vs Feyenoord in Dutch Cup quarter-finals.

75 minutes into the second half, the score is still one to one.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who returned from injury, scored a goal for the home team in the No. 20 minute, but after 9 minutes, Dirk Didier equalized the score for Feyenoord, and it was the left winger van Persie who assisted him.

Subsequently, the two teams once again fell into a stalemate on offense and defense.

Many Ajax players were drawn by the national team. The absence of the main right back Trabelsi caused the team's right defense to encounter very big troubles, especially the left attack combination composed of Feyenoord left forward Van Persie and left back Patrick Mtiliga, which made Ajax's defense frequently fall into danger.

Before the end of the first half, Escuder's injury made Ajax worse. Fortunately, Vermaelen, who came off the bench, performed bravely and partnered with Heitinga to firmly defend Ajax's defense.

But on the offensive end, Ajax is still unable to open the situation. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is closely watched by Feyenoord's two central defenders Van den Berg and Van Vendren in the frontcourt. It is difficult for Ajax to send the ball to the Swedish center.

Subsequently, Ronald Koeman replaced the starting Mitya with Wesley Songk, hoping to add an offensive point in the frontcourt, but Feyenoord coach Van Marwijk made two consecutive substitutions and once again froze Ajax's offense.

"There is not much time left in the game. At present, both sides have failed to come up with effective offensive methods. Ronald Koeman and Van Marwijk each have a chance to make a substitution. I believe this will be their last chance to change the trend of the game."

"But neither seems to be particularly in a hurry to make a substitution yet."

"If the 10-minute regular game is over, according to the rules of a single knockout match, the game will enter overtime. If there is still a tie, it will finally enter a penalty shootout."

"Although the penalty shootout is full of unpredictability, for Ajax with a younger average age, the unfavorable factors will undoubtedly be heavier, and this is their home court, Feyenoord will be more mature and stable."

"We can see that Ajax's No. 99 substitute Yang Yang has been warming up on the sidelines, and many fans in the stands are shouting his name. He has come off the bench in the past five games, and every time he has changed the trend of the game."

"But this time, I wonder if Ronald Koeman will replace him?"

…………

…………

"It's almost eight or ten minutes."

Luther Carroll walked to Ronald Coman and whispered a reminder.

Ronald Koeman glanced up at the time, which had slipped silently into 79 minutes.

How time flies!

"Van Marwijk is waiting for me to make a substitution," said Ronald Koeman, frowning.

In terms of strength, Ajax is not inferior to Feyenoord as a whole, and even has a slight advantage, but the team ushered in a two-line battle just after the winter break, coupled with injuries and the impact of the Africa Cup of Nations, making the team lineup difficult.

Escuder's injury in the first half also used up a valuable substitution quota for the team, which caused Ronald Koeman to become very passive now, wanting to make a substitution, but worried that after the substitution, what if another player is injured or unable to survive?
Also, Van Marwijk still has a substitution in his hand, and he is also motionless, obviously waiting for Koeman's action.

"You mean, he still hides a card to restrain us?" Luther Carroll couldn't help turning his head, and glanced at the guy in front of the coaching bench of the visiting team not far away. Although he was only in his early fifties, his hair was already gray.

"It should be a card to restrain Yang Yang." Coman guessed.

Luther Carroll's face also became serious.

If it is really as Ronald Koeman said, the game will be tricky now.

"It should be Ramon Van Halen." Luther Carroll noticed the veteran sitting on the Feyenoord bench.

The 31-year-old veteran Van Halen made his debut in Wahlwijk, then went to Roda JC, and joined Feyenoord through outstanding performance in [-], but he was never reused and always played a substitute role.

But as a player who can be valued and introduced by Feyenoord, Van Halen's ability is beyond doubt, but he is not fast, better at defense, and is not liked by the head coach Van Marwijk, so he has to play as a substitute.

Judging from his performance in many appearances, this is a full-back with strong marking ability.

At the age of 31, his physical function is still good, but his game experience is extremely rich. In addition, he is a player with excellent defensive ability. If Van Marwijk uses Van Halen to stare at Yang Yang, it is absolutely possible.

But now, if you don't change Yang Yang, who else can you change?

…………

…………

"Yang Yang is just a fledgling kid, and only the media that catches the wind can praise him so well."

In front of the coaching bench of the visiting team, Van Marwijk stood upright and said with a smile.

Feyenoord's scouts have focused on Yang Yang, analyzed all the game videos of him coming off the bench, and finally came to a conclusion that the player's strengths and weaknesses are very obvious.

Fast speed, strong one-on-one breakthrough ability, and high-quality crosses are his advantages, but his disadvantages are also obvious, that is, he needs space, and he is afraid of close-up marking.

The most typical example is the game against Nijmegen three days ago. As soon as he came on the field, he planned a sharp counterattack. He cut in from the right and crossed to Van der Vaart, who assisted Wesley Sonke to score.

At first glance, it is really eye-catching, but after careful study, it is not difficult to find that the main problem is that Nijmegen did not pay enough attention to Yang Yang, especially the left back Reva Cabesi, who consumes a lot of energy. He wants to defend Yang Yang in the way he defended Scola before, which gives the Chinese kid space.

After planning a goal, Nijmegen strengthened his emphasis on Yang Yang on the right, and his performance was greatly curbed afterwards.

With Yang Yang's current situation, it is definitely not a good thing to be the main player too early. It is better to let him come off the bench, keep getting opportunities to practice games, continue to polish and improve his skills, and then step into the main position when the time is right.

"This is not like Ronald Koeman's style of cultivating young players, but rather like Van Gaal." When Van Marwijk mentioned Van Gaal's name, a hint of admiration flashed in his eyes. Personal friendship is another matter, but Van Gaal's ability is beyond doubt.

At this moment, he saw the coaching bench of the home team. Assistant coach Luther Carroll finally came to the bench and called a player's name softly. Immediately afterwards, he saw Yang Yang stand up from his seat, take off his long-sleeved sportswear, and reveal the No. 99 jersey.

"Finally I can't help it." Van Marwijk felt a sense of satisfaction over Bao Bao, and turned his head, beckoning to the veteran Van Halen who was sitting on the bench, and the latter also walked over immediately knowingly.

"Did you see that kid with number 99?"

"I saw it."

"Keep an eye on him."

"Okay." Van Halen replied lightly, then ran over to warm up and prepare to play.

Van Marwijk raised his head and looked directly at the field with a confident smile on his lips.

He has been coaching Feyenoord for three years, a league runner-up, a Dutch Cup runner-up, but the most important thing is the UEFA Cup. This is the honor he received in [-], and he also proved his coaching ability to everyone.

With the current strength of Feyenoord, it is undoubtedly extremely difficult to overwhelm Ajax and PSV in the league, so the Dutch Cup is Van Marwijk's breakthrough.

At present, many teams in the four major leagues are extending olive branches to him. He needs to prove himself with another important championship, so that he can take this step in Dutch football and step on it more firmly.

Eindhoven lost to Breda in an upset. As long as Feyenoord can beat Ajax to enter the semi-finals tonight, Van Marwijk has enough confidence to beat other Eredivisie teams.

To beat Ajax, the first thing to do is to freeze the No. 99 who is standing on the sidelines and is about to come off the bench.

…………

…………

"Beep!"

The referee blew his whistle, stretched his hand forward, and awarded a foul by Feyenoord, giving Ajax a chance to set the ball near the midfield. This made the Ajax players very dissatisfied and chased the referee for an explanation.

Yang Yang sat on the ground, pulled down his socks, saw the kick injury on his calf, rubbed his muscles vigorously, rearranged the shin guards and socks, and stood up from the ground.

Just a moment ago, he had just retreated to receive a pass from Sneijder, and before he could turn around, Van Halen stepped up from behind to prevent him from turning around. The two were entangled, and Yang Yang passed the ball, but Van Halen didn't stop, and kicked him directly on the calf.

The controversy of the Ajax players is that the referee should at least give a yellow card or even a warning, but the referee obviously believes that his judgment is very reasonable without any favoritism.

Every referee has his own law enforcement standards, Yang Yang can only accept this, but for Van Halen...

"The Ajax players really need to calm down now."

"There is not much time left in the game, but they seem to be a little impatient. This is not a good sign."

"Instead of chasing the referee for an explanation, it is better to focus on the game and strive to play a threatening offense as soon as possible."

The head coach Ronald Koeman also kept calling the players on the sidelines, signaling them not to worry and go back to the game.

Ajax's players managed to return to the stadium one after another, and the game restarted.

Feyenoord's left back Van Halen, who just came off the bench, still followed Yang Yang closely. No matter where Yang Yang ran, as soon as he received the ball, Van Halen would always stick behind him immediately.

It's okay to catch the ball, but don't try to turn around.

This made Yang Yang play very awkwardly, and he was forced to pass back every time he received the ball.

Not only him, but the players on the Ajax stadium played very awkwardly, and the fans in the stands also looked very awkwardly.

But time is running out.

(End of this chapter)