Ultimate Demon Sword

Chapter 318 Attack First
After defeating Sweden 2:1, the Chinese team ranked second in Group F after the first round. In another match in the same group, defending champion Germany defeated Mexico 3:1.After the first round, they led the Chinese team by a goal difference and climbed to the top of the list.

The current situation in Group F is that the German team and the Chinese team have the same three points. The goal difference of the German team is +2, and the Chinese team is +1. Both Sweden and Mexico lost their first game, and the points are still zero.

According to the schedule, in the second round of the group stage, the Chinese team will move to Kazan to face the North American powerhouse Mexico, and the whole country is highly concerned.If the Chinese team can play at a high level against Mexico and do not lose, they can even seize the absolute initiative to qualify for the group stage!

The ideal is nothing but the media's talk on paper. Sometimes there is a thin line between ideal and reality, and sometimes it is like a gap.Mexican players are not only super strong in personal ability, but also have completely different styles from Sweden. They are known for their flexible running interspersed and small-scale pass control.

Early the next morning, the Chinese team departed from Sochi to Kazan.On the afternoon of the day of arrival, Lippi arranged a large-capacity training session. There was not much training time between games in the tournament system, and the coaching staff could only do targeted training.Lippi focused on rehearsing the dense defense in the middle and backcourt and the quick pass and counterattack between two or three players in the frontcourt.He Chao, who didn't get a chance to play in the first game, put on the yellow vest that symbolizes the starting lineup. Lippi hopes to exchange for a certain initiative through formation and personnel changes.

The atmosphere within the team is far from as relaxed as the media portrayed. Both the coaching staff and the players are aware of the pressure of the next game against Mexico. On the surface, the current situation is very favorable for the Chinese team.Really reach that step, for the Chinese team, it is not the end of a narrow escape, but an absolute death.

However, the mentality of the whole team is still very relaxed. The players can keep abreast of the reaction of domestic public opinion after the first victory. Even if they lose all the next two games and go home, it is a perfect match. There is no pressure from the outside world. Every player faces the next two opponents with an enjoyment mentality.According to what everyone joked in private, we won't lose if we lose, and we can earn a point if we can fight.

While preparing for the battle, the team members were also very concerned about the competitions of other groups, and watched the live broadcast in their hotel rooms at night.

In the first round, the Chinese team was expected to be the only Asian team to win. Although the Japanese team was determined to perform better than the Chinese team, they lost to Colombia 0:2 in the first round of Group H, and they suffered a blow in the first round. The other two opponents, Poland and Senegal, were only strong but not weak.

The first round of the eight groups ended, and the second round began immediately. The eight groups in this round did not have a recognized focus battle, and the results of the first three games of the second round were not too surprising.The least competitive Group A has already determined the teams that will advance to the top 22 after two rounds of competition.The South American powerhouse Uruguay and the host Russia have both won two consecutive victories, and the two teams will have a direct dialogue in the final round to compete for the top spot in the group.The African "Pharaoh" Egypt and the Asian Saudi Arabia, who returned to the World Cup after a lapse of [-] years, will go home after the group stage.

But on the second match day of the second round, there was an upset that no one expected, and it was created by an Asian team!

Iran's 0:0 draw with Spain!
Wen Zhihao also watched the game. He personally prefers teams with low skills like Spain, and he also pays attention to the performance of Atletico Madrid teammate Saul.

But as the game progressed, Wen Zhihao kept shaking his head.

Just looking at Spain's 60.00% ball possession rate in this game, it is indeed a bit surprising that they failed to win the Iranian team. The midfielder Iniesta's pass organization is very hard-working, but the overall strength of Spain's current midfielder is not as good as it was in the peak period with Harvey as the core.More importantly, the hardness and discipline of the Iranian team's defense is really surprising.In the last World Cup, it was almost a draw with Argentina, and now it really deflates Spain.The defense of the Asian boss does have two brushes.

However, for the Chinese media and fans, they were only surprised when they saw the results, and they did not follow up with enthusiasm for detailed attention. After all, it has nothing to do with the Chinese team for the time being.

……

The second round of the Group F group kicked off on June 23. The Chinese team took the lead in kicking off the group match against Mexico. Like the first game, Chinese fans created a huge momentum outside the Kazan Central Stadium early.

This game puts pressure on both sides to take the initiative to qualify. Mexican coach Osorio is full of confidence: "Although there are a large number of Chinese fans, we are facing as much momentum as the hosts, but only the players decide the game. Our players are better than the Chinese team. This is our greatest confidence!"

Osorio’s voice was very loud, and it was obvious that he was very confident in winning the Chinese team. Faced with reporters, Lippi also conveyed his further belief: “No one thought that we could beat Sweden before, but the players did it. In my coaching career, in the dictionary of my coaching career, facing any opponent, only offense can win. Whether facing Mexico or Germany, they are stronger than us, but we will let everyone see a strong and aggressive national team. I hope to leave some memorable moments for fans all over China.”

Chinese reporters and fans are full of expectations for Lippi's statement. In fact, they don't really value winning or losing, but want to see the national team dare to attack no matter how powerful the opponent is. The national team has not had such courage in the past for a long time.But now the biggest change in this national team is that they have the confidence to attack. The players know that the biggest task on the field is not to keep the fruits of victory, but to strive for more goals.

The formation of the Chinese team in this game is close to 4-3-1-2. Except for the goalkeeper Zeng Cheng and the four defenders, the three defensive midfielders in front of the defenders have only changed. U23 captain He Chao starts with Liang Xin and Zheng Zhi.However, Lippi's requirement for the three defensive midfielders is to press all of them immediately when the defense turns to offense, and collectively invest in counterattacks.

All the players looked at each other. Although Lippi didn't say much, they all knew that Lippi was not satisfied with a draw that was acceptable to everyone.

(End of this chapter)