All-around center

Portugal is moving forward quickly, and they want to disrupt Croatia's midfield passing rhythm.

"Force it! Force it!"

Ronaldo was directing his teammates while running hard himself.

He knew very well that there was a strength gap between Portugal and Croatia, so it was better to actively seek opportunities in the first half than to play passively.

And once a team like Croatia takes control of the rhythm, the game situation will only get worse.

The Portuguese players are all running hard. Obviously their high-position pressing quality is very good and they can quickly form an encirclement and suppression trend.

But the problem is that Croatia's conduction is still very stable.

Here the two midfielders Rakitic and Modric play their roles.

With these two people in the center, one behind the other, the front and back fields are closely connected.

The wings are drawn in, the center retreats, the entire formation becomes more compact, and the distance is just right.

Snapped! Snapped! Snapped!

Croatia's passing frequency has an inexplicable rhythm. It doesn't seem that fast, but it is reasonable and just right.

Every time, when Portugal's attack was about to take shape, Croatia was able to get the ball away just right.

At the same time, they will not let themselves fall into dangerous situations.

At the moment when Portugal's entire formation was squashed.

Modric suddenly ran forward two steps. Ronaldo noticed this and immediately reminded him:

"Defender, watch your back!"

Sure enough, the next second, Modric rubbed the ball gently.

The ball crossed the back line and landed accurately in the space behind the right full-back.

And there, Perisic stepped forward immediately.

With Ronaldo's reminder, the Portuguese left back Pereira would not lose his position and immediately caught up with Perisic and blocked his horizontal position.

At the same time, single defensive midfielder Veloso also rushed over immediately.

Seeing that there was no room to break through, Perisic frowned slightly. He stopped the ball. He was not in a hurry and simply made a fake move. When he found that Pereira was not staggering, he stood up straight and directly hit the ball. The ball was passed back to Rakitic in the rib area.

Rakitic received the ball, turned around, and passed it to Modric again.

Modric moved the ball to the left, and this time it was Suker who launched a tentative attack.

Before I knew it, 8 minutes had passed.

During this period, Portugal also intercepted the ball, but it was only a touch of the ball. If it failed to stop the ball, it would immediately lose the ball, and the ball was always firmly controlled by Croatia.

“The situation in Portugal is very bad!”

The Portuguese commentator couldn't help but say.

Not only is it bad, it is simply suffocating!

For eight full minutes, Ronaldo didn't even have a chance to touch the ball!

Always passively defensive.

Croatia is not a pass-and-control team, but that does not mean that their pass-and-control team is not a threat.

Suker, Rakitic, and Modric, these three are all No. 10 in the true sense!

And behind them there is a defensive gate named Vukojevic, who can allow them to conduct with confidence.

It can be said that Portugal's situation at this time is much heavier than the fans think.

For Croatia, Suker kept running left and right. He mostly touched the ball with one foot and did not make too many dribbling breakthroughs.

After all, the current situation is mainly based on testing. Compared with offense, ball control is more critical.

However, during this process, Su Ke also felt a little emotional.

Rakitic, Modric, Mandzukic, including Perisic, these guys suddenly feel like they have gained the ball.

Although they also played together during the European Cup qualifiers, they were far from this state.

I feel that everyone is particularly confident after getting the ball. They dare to make moves, and in complex situations, they can pick the ball out in the simplest way.

Modric dictated the tempo, despite not launching a threatening attack.

But several trials have made Portugal break into a cold sweat.

It can be said that if this kind of testing continues, Portugal's defense will collapse sooner or later!

Rakitic's dribbling is also excellent, the most important thing is confidence!

In the past, Rakitic, although he also liked to stick to the ball, he would not play with such confidence.

Today's movements are very smooth, and the midfielder's escape is also extremely exciting.

Compared to Modric, Rakitic plays more of a technical role.

It can even be said that because of Rakitic, Portugal's midfielder Veloso did not dare to get too close to Suker's wing.

Once he leans too far to the left, Rakitic can step to the back line. In the meantime, Portugal's back line is almost exposed to the Croatian forward.

but

Suk turned to look at the side road where he was.

"It's time to slowly exert your strength!"

Thinking of this, Suk began to take the initiative to retreat back.

He still couldn't get the ball too far forward. Once Suker appeared in a forward position, the entire Portuguese defense stuck to him as if in an emergency.

Therefore, Su Ke needs to retreat some positions, and he also needs some space to start.

Speed ​​can not only help you break through on the wing.

Emergency stops and changes of direction also give Su Ke more choices.

Suker retreated, and Modric grasped this keenly. He now glanced at Suker's position, called for the pass, and shouted at Rakitic; "Come forward! Press up!" "

Rakitic didn't know why, but he immediately moved forward.

After all, Modric is the conductor!

When Rakitic moved forward, Portugal's defensive midfielder Veloso immediately followed up and stuck to Rakitic.

At this time, Rakitic and Modric have formed a passing line, and he cannot let Rakitic receive the ball in the dangerous area.

Seeing this scene, Modric raised the corners of his mouth slightly.

Facing Perisic's pass, Modric stopped lightly with his right foot and stopped the ball about one meter in front of him.

At the same time, his feet immediately connected and swung, and his left foot jerked towards the ball.

A long pass and a wide transfer!

The ball did not go behind the Portuguese full-back, but in front of Suker running forward.

"Well done! Luka!"

Su Ke simply visually measured the distance, and he knew the value of Modric's transfer.

Once the Portuguese full-back comes forward to press, Suker can stop and rush past.

The Portuguese full-back chooses not to get close, so Suker can stop the ball steadily and launch a counterattack.

These two options are both dangerous choices given Su Ke's strong personal ability.

At that moment, Suker saw Coentrao rushing towards the landing point.

Choose to grab the first spot?

At this moment, a sudden change occurred.

Just as Coentrao started to take off, his feet suddenly slipped and he fell sideways.

As soon as Coentrao fell, Suker's front line of defense suddenly collapsed.

"good chance!"

Suk was preparing to stop the ball. He immediately moved forward and placed the stopping position on his chest. When the ball touched his chest, he twisted his waist slightly and turned his chest in the direction of attack.

With this turn, the ball also hit Suker's chest and flew past Coentrao in the direction of the attack.

"Coentrao!! Oh my god!! He fell!!"

Su Ke has already started rushing towards the ball.

But Coentrao stood up in confusion, preparing to pursue him.

But at this time, Su Ke had already rushed into the penalty area.

Facing Pepe's block, Suker changed his rhythm, flicked the ball horizontally, pulled out the shooting angle, and fired with his right foot.

boom!

The ball hit Alves' calf hard and bounced out.

At this time, on the line of the penalty area, Rakitic took small steps under his feet and stared at the falling ball.

The moment the ball hits the ground and bounces, shoot!

"Rakitic's follow-up shot!!——"

With the roar of Croatian commentator Klausiewicz, the ball penetrated into the lower right corner of the goal like a comet.

Faced with such a sudden shot from a reverse angle, Portuguese goalkeeper Patricio was helpless. He spread his hands with a painful expression on his face.

They tried their best to push back the opponent, but they still lost in 14 minutes!

“Goooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaal!!!!”

"Ivan Rakitic's supplementary shot scored! Croatian midfielder Rakitic helped the team score the first goal. After more than 10 consecutive minutes of testing, Croatia scored in the first fierce attack attempt. Scored a goal!”

"Coentrao was too nervous. The moment he fell, Pepe and Alves were destined to cover for him. But in this case, Suker still shot and pulled all the defense. On the left, the ball was blocked by Alves' calf. Rakitic faced the falling ball and hit a reverse angle without hesitation, a wonderful shot! "

"Croatia leads Portugal 1:0!"

At the National Stadium in Warsaw, more than 20,000 Croatian fans burst into violent cheers.

The moment the goal was scored, their enthusiasm was instantly ignited.

They shouted the name of Ivan Rakitic loudly and gave a huge cheer to the hero who scored the first goal for Croatia.

Rakitic also rushed to the corner kick area to celebrate excitedly.

He was soon caught up by Su Ke and other team members and fell to the ground.

Suk rubbed Rakitic's head vigorously.

"Lucky guy!"

"Well done!"

His teammates all gave Rakitic full recognition for this shot.

Based on this goal, Rakitic's self-confidence also skyrocketed.

After the celebration, Su pulled Rakitic up, hooked Rakitic's neck with one hand, pointed at Rakitic with the other hand, and pushed him forward.

It means that this goal belongs to Rakitic, and the applause should also be given to Rakitic.

Today, Suker no longer needs to score goals to prove himself.

Of course, the more goals the better, but we won’t be as extreme in pursuing goals as before.

"The problem of Portugal's single defensive midfielder has begun to be exposed. Veloso is indeed an outstanding player with a good defensive awareness, but our offensive intensity has obviously exceeded his capabilities. We want to rely on a single defensive midfielder to build a A buffer zone in front of the defense, that’s not realistic at all!”

"Of course, Coentrao's mistake in attacking this time was partly due to it, but even if there was no mistake, Suker could still break into the penalty area with his ability."

Van Steyak smiled and said: "From the time Modric asked Rakitic to move forward, the offensive idea has been very clear!"

Besic nodded slightly; "Keep playing like this, there is no need to change tactics suddenly, and the morale is high now, so it's good to let these kids find their form!"

Little kids?

Van Styak turned his head to look at Besic.

Excluding Vida and Perisic, the youngest of Suker's group is already 26 years old, and many of them have children.

But in Besic's eyes, these guys are probably the same group of kids who just joined Dinamo Salage.

Van Styak nodded; "I also think there is no need to change tactics!"

He turned his head to look at the Portuguese coaching bench.

"They should change when they need to! Let's see what happens next!"

The Croatian players scored a goal and began to retreat.

Rakitic was extremely excited.

"Come on! Come on! I feel that I am in a good state now, and I can play any way I want! Keep attacking!"

Rakitic looked excited.

The teammates on the side were also in high spirits.

With this goal, Croatia's enthusiasm was instantly ignited.

If we can't contain Croatia at the beginning of the game and let them score first, it's not good news.

The Portuguese players are also very clear about this.

They all look heavy!

Before the game, they had prepared themselves mentally, but they didn't expect to lose the ball after only 14 minutes.

Croatia's sudden change of rhythm caught them off guard.

Veroso looked helpless!

He had no choice!

Rakitic approached from the central axis, and he had to limit Rakitic, and had no time to care about Suker.

If he chose Suker, then Rakitic would be able to face the goal directly.

"We put too much attention on Suker!"

Veroso said; "Stand in your position, don't mess up the defense!"

Stand in your position?

Coentrao looked at Veroso, do you want me to die?

As Suker's teammate in Real Madrid, he knew Suker's threat on the wing better than anyone else.

One-on-one, he couldn't defend at all!

"Veroso, you must look more to the left, we can't miss Suker!"

Coentrao reminded.

The subtext of this sentence is, if you don't move closer to the left, I will die for you to see!

Veroso is also in trouble!

If he moves closer to the left, who will defend Rakitic in the middle?

At this moment, Ronaldo suddenly said; "I will retreat more! Our formation is a little further back."

Hearing this, everyone looked at Ronaldo.

Their eyes were full of helplessness.

They knew very well that Ronaldo was the most threatening in the frontcourt counterattack point.

But in the current situation, Ronaldo's retreat along the side is the best choice.

This can not only help Coentrao relieve pressure, but also prevent Veloso from being led by Rakitic.

They also wanted to say something.

But in the end, they couldn't say anything, but they felt a little guilty.

The gap between Croatia and Portugal is more about the players except Ronaldo.

Ronaldo can offset one Suker, but they can't compete with the remaining Croatian players.

Soon, the game started again.

After Portugal kicked off, they only passed the ball six times, and then Rakitic intercepted it.

After completing the interception, Rakitic immediately dribbled forward. When his teammates on the left and right sides failed to follow up, this guy chose to shoot from outside the penalty area.

With a powerful shot, the ball flew out of the goal post, shocking the Portuguese goalkeeper into a cold sweat.

Rakitic also grinned with some regret.

Suker looked at Rakitic's performance and raised his eyebrows slightly.

Portugal is still very strict in its defense, but this also gives Rakitic in the middle room to play.

Suker turned his head and looked at Modric.

Although the two have not played together for a long time, they still have a tacit understanding.

With just a glance, Modric understood what it meant.

"Pass the ball to Ivan!"

Rakitic was in a hot state at this time. Since Portugal wanted to limit Suker, they would use Rakitic to pry open Portugal's defense.

Rakitic was also excited.

I'm going to be the main C!

Bang!

In the following time, Rakitic's performance was extremely active.

He kept passing, dribbling, and rushing in the middle. He interfered and consumed Portugal's defense again and again.

In the camera, each Portuguese defender was gritting his teeth and holding on.

They put too much defensive power on Suker, and they were destined to be unable to completely restrict Rakitic.

What's more, in this game, Rakitic was in a hot state!

"Come on! I'll be your wall!"

Mandzukic's feet were squeezed dry, his body sank slightly, and he held Pepe tightly with his back, facing Rakitic's pass, and moved to the side.

But before Rakitic caught up, Pepe suddenly yelled:

"Fuck you!"

I saw Pepe quickly retreat, avoiding Mandzukic's pull when he fell, and suddenly put down the shovel, shoveling the ball out one step ahead.

But he still failed to complete the clearance. The ball was received by Suker on the left, and he passed it directly back to Modric to continue organizing.

Rakitic saw this and retreated again to take the ball.

Croatia was surrounded on the field.

"Portugal played too passively!"

The Portuguese commentator frowned.

He thought Croatia would be difficult to play against, but he didn't expect it to be so difficult.

Throughout the first half, they only had two chances to shoot.

Among them, Ronaldo didn't have a single chance to shoot.

At this time, the mood can be described in two words: frustrated!

It was too frustrating.

Forget about attacking, their passes couldn't even exceed five.

Moutinho, Meireles, Nani and others who usually performed bravely seemed to have lost their temper.

Ronaldo also tried to run long distances.

But under Vukojevic's defensive coverage, he completed two consecutive steals.

The last time, Ronaldo was intercepted, and he was so angry that he jumped up and down.

Passing the ball can't find anyone!

The shot is too far from the goal!

It feels like being isolated.

"Ronaldo seems to have not recovered yet!" Van Styak smiled; "They are targeting Suker, and we are targeting him too!"

Ronaldo can't find his teammates, but it's not that his teammates don't respond.

But Croatia is deliberately encouraging Ronaldo.

If Ronaldo is in the frontcourt, it's fine. But when he wants to push the ball forward in the backcourt, his passing lines are all cut off by Croatia after he runs a certain distance.

At the same time, relying on Vukojevic's pressing ability, he quickly completes the steal.

At this moment, the Portuguese fans looked at the stadium and suddenly felt suffocated!

So far, they have not had a single threatening opportunity!