World Cup of Great Powers

Chapter 139

Um. I’m positive. I’ve had a fever for the past two days. I hope the fever will subside when I wake up tomorrow. Now my head hurts like hell.
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With three whistles, the referee finally blew the whistle for the end of the game.

2 to 1, the Chinese team still kept the score.

The moment the whistle sounded, the players opened their arms and ran to the sideline like crazy, embracing the members of the coaching staff warmly.

The fans in the stands also burst into applause and cheers.

"Today is really not in vain!"

"Yeah, these guys are really good at fighting! But if they are short, they can't make it to the present!"

"Okay, with this performance, the next 20 years can be expected!"

"If you ask me, Ou Chuliang defended better. If he hadn't saved the ball in the end, it might be overtime!"

"At the critical moment, the veteran has to step in!"

After hugging the players one by one, Zeng Zheng stepped onto the field and walked towards the goal.

At this time, Ou Chuliang, whose head was wrapped in circles of white gauze, was leaning against the doorpost, staring into the distance with empty eyes.

"Ouge, what are you thinking?"

"Ah! Coach Zeng, I didn't think about anything." Ou Chuliang shook his head with a smile on his face.

It was a relieved smile.

"Why don't you come and celebrate with your teammates if you don't think about anything?"

Zeng Zheng blinked deliberately, grabbed Ou Chuliang's arm, and pulled him to the sidelines.

"Come on, I suggest to give us the biggest hero of today's victory - Ou Ge, a top-notch celebration, how about it?"

"it is good!"

Before Ou Chuliang could react, the team members hurried forward and lifted his limbs.

"123 Ohh!!"

With a chants, Ou Chuliang was thrown high into the air by his teammates.

Looking around, the stadium is full of dull-eyed Iranian players.

Not only did they fail to make it to the World Cup, they also stopped in the semi-finals of the Asian Games.

After returning to China with such achievements, the media will inevitably criticize him.

The news of the win spread back to China, and the fans were all surprised.

If the top ten team wins Iran, they are not surprised at all.

But it is shocking enough that this youth team under the guise of the Chinese team can beat Iran.

Judging from the overall data, the Iranian team is completely crushed.

Except for the Chinese team who played well for about 10 minutes after the whistle opened in the first half, they basically kept defending at other times.

The Iranian team shot up to 19 times in the whole game, while the Chinese team only had 6 times.

Iran shot 11 times and China 4 times.

However, under such disparity of data, it showed completely different results.

From the news headlines of the domestic media, we can also see everyone's views on this game.

"The young Chinese team won by surprise"

"Amazing Coach's Coup to Break Iran"

"Magic One Saves the National Football Team"

"Iran loses to Bangkok carelessly"

It seems that even the media did not expect that this young Chinese team would really cross the mountain of Iran.

Of course, this game brought Zeng Zheng more than the usual rewards such as victory and redemption points.

After the game, Zeng Zheng also received two notification sounds from the system.

【Ding! 】

[Zheng Zhi comprehends passive skills: add assists]

[Insert assist LV1 (triggered when the position is in the midfield): Improve the shooting and passing ability when entering the opponent's penalty area]

【Ding! 】

[Ou Chuliang comprehends the passive skill: God's Pounce]

[One of God's Punch LV1: There is a certain chance to save the world wave kicked by the opponent]

Naturally, Zheng Zhi needless to say, he is Zeng Zheng's internal decision to train young generals in the future, and the use of dream training cards is of course indispensable for comprehending the first passive skill so quickly.

But Ou Chuliang is different.

Ou Chuliang has only cooperated with Zeng Zheng in the national team, and Zeng Zheng basically never used the dream training card on him.

Even so, he could still comprehend passive skills, which also reminded Zeng Zheng.

It seems that as long as the goalkeeper is willing to work hard, 30 years old is not too late!
After returning to China this time, do you want to kidnap Ou Chuliang to your team?
Zeng Zheng thought about it, but still gave up the idea.

Let Ou Chuliang, a native southerner, go to Harbin to develop from scratch like other [-]-year-old boys. He has not been trained yet, and the weather alone has to freeze him to death!
While Zeng Zheng was pondering the abilities of the other team members, Wang Junsheng opened the door and walked in.

"Xiao Zeng, you won the ball in time!"

"The domestic side just sent a message of congratulations, let's make persistent efforts and make another success!"

"Tsk tsk, is this the hope of winning the championship?" Zeng Zheng said calmly, "Where's the promised bonus?"

"Hey, you kid, how come you are always rich! Can you still owe you this bonus?"

After Wang Junsheng finished speaking, he seemed afraid that Zeng Zheng would continue to talk about this issue, so he quickly changed the subject and said:

"Xiao Zeng, I didn't say that, it was your Uncle Xu."

"As soon as you win against Iran, all the public opinion in the country will focus on you, and his job will be much easier!"

After hearing this, Zeng Zheng nodded again and again, which was also one of his original intentions.

At this moment, Ma Yuanan also knocked on the door and walked in.

"Old horse, what's the matter?"

"I knew Coach Zeng was here." Ma Yuan'an smiled, "Tomorrow the women's football finals will be played, and the girls are all arguing for Coach Xiao Zeng to pay attention!"

Wang Junsheng and Zeng Zheng looked at each other, "Xiao Zeng, since this is the case, then you can go over and say a few words."

After arriving at the women's dormitory, the women's football girls have been waiting for a long time.

As soon as Zeng Zheng entered the door, he immediately shouted: "Welcome Coach Zeng!"

"Don't, don't, don't make such a big fight! I'm not used to it."

After Zeng Zheng finished speaking, he asked the team members to find a place to sit down.

But there were not so many seats in the small room, and Zeng Zheng came to the front amidst the crowd.

"Tomorrow is the final, and I won't tell you anything too false."

As soon as Zeng Zheng opened his mouth, he got to the point.

"The North Korean team is a team with a balance of strength, stamina and speed, and its simple and practical technical style is well known in Asia."

"She can fight aggressively, her movements are almost rough, and she is easily injured when colliding with them on the court."

"I remember that there was a man named Li Jie who had just been selected for our national team. After playing a game with the North Korean team, he suffered a calf fracture and retired, right?"

"So they will definitely take advantage of the time when they are physically strong to strengthen their offense!"

“We just have to get through this period.”

"However, we don't need to be afraid of our opponents at all."

"Whether it's tactics, willpower, physical fitness, or mental state, we are no worse than them!"

"As long as you play steadily and give full play to your strengths in usual training, it will not be difficult to defeat your opponent."

"It should be noted that the North Korean team has the strength of a long-range shot, and we must pay attention to this."

"Less give free kicks to the opponent. Even if you want to give them, you should foul as early as possible, and don't let them have the opportunity to directly attack the goal."

"In addition, considering the perseverance of the North Korean team, everyone has to be prepared for extra time and even penalty shootouts."

"It's best to practice penalty kicks in the warm-up before the game tomorrow, maybe in the end we will win by relying on this!"

Sure enough, as Zeng Zheng expected, the North Korean team launched a fierce offensive as soon as the game started the next day.

Three consecutive shots within 10 minutes were all saved by Gao Hong.

After listening to Zeng Zheng's suggestion, Ma Yuan'an immediately set about arranging the players to defend firmly, and put the defense on the side.

Soon, the basic style of play of sideways movement and quick return to defense was kicked out. With the team's defense stable, the game entered a stalemate.

In the second half, the Chinese team changed sides and fought again. The Chinese team, which had been conserving its strength, began to gradually take advantage of the field, but it has not scored.

When the game was about to end with 10 minutes left, No. 8 of the North Korean team hit a free kick on the crossbar under a feint attack by two teammates.

With a "snap", the ball seemed to hit the chests of Ma Yuanan and Zeng Zheng.

It wasn't until they saw the ball fly out of the bottom line that the two of them recovered.

The 0-0 score was finally maintained until the end, and soon, overtime began.

At this moment, Wang Junsheng's network bell rang.

No need to think about it, the first guess is the result of the call from Dalian, the regiment headquarters.

"Ah yes, a draw."

"It's overtime!"

"Yes, it's the golden ball system."

"It's the kind of way that whoever advances wins"

At this moment, Amao Zhao Lihong, who has the "first violinist", quickly responded to Liu Ying's through ball. With a beautiful rhythm, he rushed away from the opponent and made an arc with his left foot before the ball went out of the bottom line. The line passes to the middle.

In the penalty area of ​​the North Korean team, Fan Yunjie jumped high, a lion shook his head, and directly smashed the ball into the goal of the North Korean team.

Seeing the ball hit the net, Ma Yuanan, Zeng Zheng and others were stunned for a moment, then opened their arms and rushed into the court.

"Win, we won!"

Wang Junsheng also held the phone and shouted loudly: "Champion! We are the champion!!! Hahahaha~~~"

Thousands of fans who came to the scene also jumped up from their seats, cheering and sharing this hard-won victory together.

That night, after Wang Junsheng reported his work to the team, he came to Zeng Zheng's room with a proud face.

"Xiao Zeng, the letter from above said that we have achieved great results in the two Asian Games, play hard and don't put too much pressure on us!"

After speaking, he deliberately put on a "chief" face.

"There is no pressure, but I want to create pressure for you!"

"I have already let the word out, saying that we will definitely beat the Thai team!"

"How? Are you confident?"

Zeng Zheng gave Wang Junsheng a blank look. Both you and your superiors said that you will definitely win the game. Does my head coach say that it still works?
On December 12, the national football team left the arena where they have been playing for the past few days and came to a small southern town 19 kilometers away from Bangkok to play.

There are not only national football players on the plane, but also the opponent Thailand team.

Looking at the Thai players with their eyes closed and resting their minds, the international footballers talked a lot.

"This Thai team is also really interesting! They used all means to win the championship!"

"Yeah, first arrange the opponents in the semi-finals, and then move the venue to another place for the finals!"

"This is a decision for us!"

Hearing the discussion of the international players, Han Tao couldn't help poking at Zeng Zheng: "Boss Zeng, this Thai team is actually playing such tricks!"

Zeng Zheng didn't even raise his eyelids, "Don't we have an old saying? In the face of absolute strength, all schemes are futile!"

"Isn't the reason why the Thai team did this because they were afraid of us?"

"Let's play hard and win the Thailand team is not a problem at all!"

"What's so scary about a third-rate team?"

"I'll squint for a while, and call me when I get there!"

After landing, the team members found that in this remote small town in Songkhla Prefecture, photos of Thai football stars were hung everywhere.

Whether it's the airport, the station, or the restaurant, there are enthusiastic fans flocking to ask the players for their autographs.

Whether it is an adult or a child, they will all smile after getting the signature, as if they have obtained the greatest satisfaction in life.

Such a football atmosphere really opened the eyes of Wang Junsheng and others.

"There is such a high enthusiasm for football in such a remote place. It seems that our country is lagging behind in this regard!"

At 4:[-] p.m., the game officially started.

Facing the host Thailand team, which had created a nine-to-eleven victory in the quarter-finals, Zeng Zhenghe was uncharacteristically compared to the previous game, and asked the players to defend with all their strength after the start.

Facing the attack of the Thai team, the international footballers really played in a hurry after the start.

However, the Thai team's shooting crosshairs were not very good. Several shots in a row were either high or wide. The goal behind Li Jian was not fatally threatened.

Faced with Wang Junsheng's doubts, Zeng Zheng explained: "This is the home court of the Thai team, and their desire to win the championship must be stronger than ours."

"As long as they keep the score, they will only become more and more anxious."

"When this player is in a hurry, he is prone to making mistakes."

"We just need to seize a few opportunities to score a few times when they make mistakes, and that's enough."

"It's the last game, don't just think about winning, you also have to think about the health of the players, right?"

"We can't go home to celebrate the New Year wrapped in gauze like Brother Ou?"

Wang Junsheng pursed his lips.

He would like to say that wrapping gauze on the court is like a military medal on the battlefield, it is an honor!

But when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back.

Because he was afraid that Zeng Zheng would retort, "Why don't you go back with an honor?"

Sure enough, as Zeng Zheng expected, in the 35th minute of the first half, the Thai goalkeeper was awarded an indirect free kick in the penalty area by the referee for holding the ball for more than six seconds.

Zhang Xiaorui flicked the ball lightly, followed by Li Jinyu with a powerful volley, the ball shot through the Thai team's wall and broke the net, opening the scoring for the Chinese team.

In the second half, they changed sides and fought again. In the 62nd minute, Zhao Jun, who was unattended on the right side outside the penalty area, deflected Li Jinyu's goal and scored another point against the goalkeeper.

In the 79th minute, Zhang Xiaorui advanced from the left to the edge of the Thai team's penalty area, and shot a cold arrow with his left foot. After the ball bounced off the ground, it went into a dead corner.

In the end, the Chinese team defeated the Thai team with a score of [-] to [-] and won the men's football championship of this Asian Games.

The men's and women's football teams both won the championship and won two gold medals in the football event of this Asian Games. This can make Wang Junsheng more confident.

But so far, there is one thing that puzzles the Chinese team members.

That is, after the game ended, the organizer announced the disbandment directly after awarding the Thai team.

It was not until the evening that the organizing committee notified the team to go to Huamu Sports Center to receive the award at 2 pm the next day.

This notice is very strange: after the match between Iran and Kuwait yesterday, the awards were presented on the spot, and today Thailand also ended on the spot. Why did the Mauritius Chinese team go to the Huamu Center to receive the awards?

With doubts, Wang Junsheng and Zeng Zheng led the team members to set off from the Asian Games Village on time at 13:[-] noon.

On the way, Zeng Zheng learned from the receptionist sent by the organizing committee that the award ceremony was originally prepared for the Thai team, and it was specially arranged to be held at the closing ceremony venue before the closing ceremony started.

But who knows that the host country failed to win the Chinese team, and the award plan is not easy to cancel, so it can only be "given away" to the Chinese team.

After hearing Zeng Zheng's explanation, the team members were ecstatic.

"Hey? No wonder we changed places! It turns out there are special arrangements!"

"Ha, you are indeed a champion! This is what a champion should look like!"

"It's so cool! It's the first time I've been treated specially!"

The team members were elated along the way, and all they thought about was how to speak a few words of English under the media interview and show themselves to the world.

Or facing the screen, thanking the elders and others in my hometown for their support.

Unexpectedly, after the international players arrived at the Huamu Center on time, no one received them at all.

After the accompanying receptionist made an excuse to leave, until 5:[-] in the afternoon, the team members were bored wandering around the stadium, foolishly waiting.

In the end, some people even just lay in the shade and squinted, and several people regretted not bringing poker out.

Zeng Zheng asked all the people around him, but no one told him "when, where, and who will present the award".

After waiting for a long time, someone finally came to welcome the players into the stadium.

Looking at the empty stadium, the hearts of the players were cold.

What about the fans?
What about photographers and reporters?

Not even a fireworks salute? ? ?

Looking at the lonely podium on the field is like a row of shoe boxes covered with a red wool carpet that has not been washed in 10 years.

"Team China, let's clear it up!" The leader impatiently pointed to the podium, signaling the team members to hurry up.

Looking at his appearance, I am afraid that the slow movements of the international players will affect his get off work.

Soon, the gold medals were hung around the players' necks, and then the national anthem was played.

When the national anthem was over, the 10 staff members disappeared without a trace, leaving behind a stunned Chinese team member.

After a while, Zeng Zheng spat.

"Fuck! If I knew it was so shabby, I might as well sell Thailand and let them win the championship!"

(End of this chapter)