long live football

No.20 three rounds of Bundesliga, Munich 1860 played against Cottbus at home.

Although there are still more than 20 minutes before the start of the game, the Munich Olympic Stadium, which can accommodate 69000 fans, has an astonishing 80% occupancy rate, and there are still a steady stream of fans coming in from the entrance of the stadium.

The stadium is noisy, noisy, full of all kinds of voices.

But none of this entered Portillo's mind.

The young Spaniard was confused. While doing simple warm-up exercises, he kept asking himself: Why me?Why me again?Why is the boss willing to give me another chance?

Portillo is a good player in training, but he starts to deteriorate in official games. This is almost an accepted fact in the 1860 Munich club today.Although the team is currently implementing a competitive starting method, some people have begun to propose to the head coach Mr. Oston: Given the huge contrast between Portillo's training and games, why not consider giving his starting opportunity to others?

But Karl Oston rejected such suggestions again and again, and he firmly ranked Portillo in the starting list for almost every Munich 1860 game.

And Portillo, let everyone (including himself) down again and again.

It’s not that there have been discussions in the team, and it’s not that the fans have expressed their dissatisfaction. There are many posts on the local German football forums about “Should Munich 1860 continue to use Portillo?” The fans debated very fiercely. Portillo, who is proficient and has started to browse German-language websites, felt uneasy, guilty, and of course hurt when he saw such remarks.

After Carl Alston learned the reason for Portillo's depression, he decisively banned him from the Internet: If you have free time, go to a few more German lessons, sports forums, etc., for the time being. .

In the next few days, Portillo, who was out of sight and out of mind, really felt much more cheerful. Although sometimes he wanted to secretly go online to see how the fans commented on him, but when he thought of what the head coach said, he gave up his thoughts. thought.

Mr. Alston said his problems were primarily psychological, and Portillo increasingly felt that was the case.

He would not go to see a psychiatrist, because Mr. Alston told him, "No one in this world can completely save others, only you can become your own savior." He felt that the boss was right.

For a long time, worry and fear have been one of the two major emotions that troubled him during the game. Now, he is subtly aware that he has become more and more cheerful and confident... It's just a qualitative change, and he always lacks personality. opportunity.

Time passed by every minute, the stadium was full of people, the referees were also in their positions, and teammates warmed up beside him, one after another, hurriedly came and passed.

"Javier! Why are you still warming up?" A teammate outside the court called him: "Come here, the boss said a few words and it's time for us to play."

Portillo walked out of the warm-up area and walked to the coach's bench.

Head coach Carl Oston did not use dramatic actions to boost the morale of the team. After all, Cottbus is not a very strong opponent. He just patted each player on the shoulder and encouraged them gently: "come on!"

When that hand came to Portillo's shoulder, Portillo hesitated for a moment, and still chose to ask: "Boss, what if, what if I don't perform well in this game?"

Carl Oston's face remained unchanged, and he smiled slightly: "Then find me the place in the next round."

It seemed that a warm current poured into Portillo's heart.

He felt that there was suddenly a very solid arm behind him, which could allow him to trust, rely on, and protect him from the wind and rain.

Throw away the restlessness.

cast aside doubt.

With confidence in my heart, the whole world seemed to brighten up.

Portillo steps onto the court, his heart beating strong, powerful, and steady... steady.

……

"Hassler took the ball on the left and gave it to Portillo who dropped back... Portillo was disturbed by the Cottbus defender Bittrov and he kept turning the ball between his feet. , seems to be still considering whether to break through or pass the ball back..."

"Another Cottbus defender Hunemeier came running! Portillo couldn't continue to break through, he knocked the ball back!"

"Hassler received the ball, another long pass, and the ball flew into the feet of Jankel in the middle."

In the 55th minute of the game, although the offensive of Munich 1860 on the field has gradually become a little weak, they still firmly control the rhythm of the game.

The current score is 1:0. In the first half, 1860 Munich relied on Jekas's assist and Lauter scored a goal.

In fact, in the past half-time, 1860 Munich has created 7 shot opportunities, which were completed by Jekas, Portillo and Lauter, but only one of them was on target, and it was Lauter. That kick made the only goal on the field now.

Cottbus's formation has long been adjusted by their coach, and has been replaced by a defensive counterattack. The reason why they have not completely retreated into an iron barrel formation is probably because the Cottbus coach realized that although Munich 1860 continued to attack, they However, Cottbus's offense was not so lethal. If Cottbus used counterattack tactics, he might be able to take a chance to tie the score.

The fans of 1860 Munich at this moment naturally hope that the home team will continue to attack and expand their advantage, which also makes them complain about the players who have been wasting opportunities on the field.

Karl made a gesture on the sidelines, indicating that there seemed to be a defensive loophole in the side of his own player Katebus, allowing them to attack from there.

So the full-backs began to advance frequently. Shao Jiayi and Meyer, who were moved from the midfield to the wing by Karl, were both fast and good in technique. Yekas and Portillo deliberately made way for them. Shao Jiayi and Meyer broke through into the Cottbus half while dribbling the ball, running without the ball and waiting for an opportunity to attack.

Finally, Shao Jiayi hit the ball in the middle with a long pass!

After receiving the ball, Portillo dribbled forward quickly. After he and Yekas made a two-for-one cooperation, he firmly controlled the football under his feet.

The commentator is both worried and looking forward to him: "Portillo faced Cottbus defender Brinkman with his right foot and slid the ball away, then made a fake move past Brinkman and passed directly !His aura looks very good, is this a long-distance attack?"

While speaking, Portillo had brought the ball to the Cottbus penalty area. Facing the goal guarded by only one defender and goalkeeper, he did not pass the ball to Jekas who was standing parallel to him as before. , but took the ball forward again to meet Cottbus's goal!

15 meters in front of the goal, Portillo raised his right foot, looking like he was about to shoot.

Cottbus defender Hunemeier was two or three meters away from him. Seeing this, his head became hot, and he aimed at the ball at Portillo's feet with a vicious sliding tackle!

As soon as Portillo pushed the ball towards the goal, he encountered a tackle from Hunemeier. He himself did not suffer any injuries because he stopped his foot in time, but the football rolling towards the goal was affected a little and directly wiped it. The goal frame flew out of bounds.

"Munich 1860 can consider replacing it with a striker to strengthen their offensive. For them who are firmly in control of the situation on the field, the score of 1:0 seems a pity..." commented by the commentator of Bavaria Sport road.

The implication is that Munich 1860's striker is not strong enough at this time, and Karl may consider replacing Portillo.

……

After 5 minutes, Karl did make a substitution off the court.

But instead of replacing Portillo, the team's new aid Ozil replaced the tired core Hassler.

Carl's decision drew a suggestion from assistant coach Garrard: "Maybe we should replace Portillo with Lars Bender? Both he and Ozil have good offensiveness in the midfield and can give Ye Cass gets more assists."

Carl shook his head: "Didn't you see it just now? Portillo has been improving. I can't replace him now. That may make my previous efforts fall short."

Seeing that he couldn't convince Karl, Gallus gave up insisting-in his opinion, Karl Oston has brought so many positive changes to Munich 1860 this season, which is enough to show that he is a powerful and powerful player. A talented head coach, the opponent is so determined to use Portillo, maybe there are some considerations that I don't understand.

Portillo stopped in midfield and cast his eyes on the dugout.

He met Carl's gaze once.

The other party threw him a faint smile, which contained no sign of dissatisfaction.

Portillo felt peaceful.

Just now he has found a sense of shooting. Although outsiders think that his kick being tackled by the opponent is still a waste of opportunity, Portillo himself understands that as long as he kicks the ball, Nine times out of ten the ball will go into the net.

He is not someone who has no sense of football. A few years ago, he was called the "number one genius" in the Real Madrid youth training camp where monsters gathered. It is said that many forwards have a keen intuition to know whether to score or not after the football leaves their feet.

And Karl Alston's support for him as it has made him feel peaceful and feel that he can maintain the state just now-if the boss replaced him just now, Portillo's mood may go to Another extreme direction.

So he wanted to thank the boss for his tolerance.

He wants to return with goals.

When Ozil walked past Portillo, the Spaniard stopped his teammate and said in slightly jerky German: "Mesut, can I ask you to do me a favor?"

Ozil asked suspiciously, "What's the matter?"

"In a while, I will look for more opportunities in the Cottbus penalty area. If you have the ball at your feet, pass it to me."

Ozil was a little surprised, because this was the first time he heard a request for the ball from Portillo. Compared with other forwards who are good at finding opportunities for themselves, Portillo is really unique in the world. There is no contest.

The round-eyed Turkish teenager nodded decisively: "Okay, no problem!"

Portillo gave him a grateful smile.

After the game restarted, Ozil did as promised to Portillo, as long as he got the ball in the midfield and broke through to the Cottbus half, he would give priority to sending the ball to Portillo near the penalty area Location.

Every ball passed from the midfield, even if the position is not good, Portillo desperately fights and tries.

The other players of 1860 Munich first noticed the cooperation between the two, and then joined in spontaneously. They began to deliberately increase the number of passes for Portillo.

With 20 minutes left before the end of the game, 1860 Munich's shots suddenly increased.

In just 10 minutes, there were three shots, and one shot was in a very positive position. If the Cottbus goalkeeper hadn't played suddenly and bravely, the score would have been added to 2:0.

And Portillo's unique desire to score goals has gradually been noticed.

The fans began to whisper to each other.

The commentator exclaimed: "Portillo's performance in this game is really desperate!"

The head coach of Cottbus was annoyed. He pointed at his penalty area and yelled: "There is an extra person here, haven't you noticed? Mark me one-on-one! Immediately!"

Carl, on the other hand, smiled as expected while sitting on the coach's bench.

Cottbus defender Hunemeier was assigned the task of tracking Portillo, but he gradually found that the opponent was not easy to guard, because Portillo's foot skills trained in La Liga allowed him to throw off the defense with all his strength. Sometimes it is as slippery as a loach.

In the 73rd minute, 1860 Munich launched another attack.

Yankel passed the ball to Shao Jiayi, and the latter sent the ball to the side to Özil.

Ozil broke through from the side, and when he broke through to the front of the penalty area, he handed the ball to Yekas. Yekas took the ball with his back, and then cleverly knocked it with his heel. Portillo has rushed to the football landing point .

Although Hunemeier frantically tackled Portillo, the latter still grabbed the ball in front of the former——

A volley hit the lower middle of the football!

The football flies towards the Cottbus goal with a strong spin!

2: 0!

After a few seconds of silence in the Munich Olympic Stadium, loud cheers broke out suddenly!

"It was Javier Portillo who killed the opponent for Munich 1860!" The Bavarian commentator shouted: "The former Real Madrid player finally dedicated his German first goal! And Cottbus in the away game 0:2 behind, they are powerless in this game!"

"Portillo's brave performance in the second half, will his running without the ball, his offense and shooting be short-lived? Or, the Spaniard has been completely activated in the German professional league?!"

After scoring the goal, Portillo chose a different way to celebrate. He ran to one side of the fan stand at a very fast speed, and then faced the outside of the field and knelt down on the lawn.

Polti closed his eyes slightly, breathing quickly, and a crystal clear tear slipped from the corner of his eye.

The atmosphere around him was so sacred that the teammates who wanted to throw him down to celebrate also stood far away, casting smiles and blessings on him.

"Portillo knelt down facing the home fans' stands. Is he thanking the fans for their tolerance and support all the time?" The commentator thoughtfully expressed his understanding.

However, if he had taken a look at the fan forum of Munich 1860 in the past month or so, he would definitely not have said that.

In the stands, many fans were moved by Portillo's move, but more people felt guilty and regretted: We were too harsh on Portillo a while ago?

No one knows what Portillo really thinks, except himself.

But the young Spaniard had only one thought in his mind just now. He wanted to go off the stage and say to Mr. Alston: Boss, you said something wrong. Apart from God, there really is a savior in this world.

Like you.