Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

Chapter 696 The knockout stage begins, the unlucky British...

The semi-finals are still too far away for the Chinese team right now. Their primary goal at this stage is to defeat their opponent in the round of 16!

After the group stage, two of the five participating Asian teams were eliminated.

Only the three East Asian brothers, China, Japan, and South Korea, remain.

However, on June 26, the day the knockout stage began, the South Korean team also suffered a crushing defeat, being eliminated by Uruguay 2-1.

The South Korean team didn't perform badly in this match, but their opponents were too strong.

Uruguay fielded a formidable attacking trident of Suarez, Cavani, and Forlán, making them one of the most luxurious attacking teams in this World Cup.

Facing Uruguay's attacking trident, South Korea conceded a goal just eight minutes into the game.

Uruguay continued their attacks thereafter, and if it weren't for a wrong offside call and a missed penalty by the referee, South Korea would have been down 0-3 in the first half.

After the start of the second half, the South Koreans caught their breath and successfully capitalized on the opponent's clearance error to equalize the score.

If this score holds until the final whistle, the South Koreans might have a chance to drag the game into extra time or even a penalty shootout.

Unfortunately, Uruguay's attacking trio didn't give them that chance. In the 80th minute, Suarez scored again with a curling shot, completing his brace and helping his team take the lead once more.

In the final stages of the match, the South Korean team was unable to mount a comeback, and the score remained 2-1 until the final whistle.

Although they were eliminated, this result is not particularly bad for the South Koreans; it is much better than being eliminated in the group stage of the last World Cup.

Given the strength of the South Korean team, making it to the round of 16 is already an exceptional performance.

It's practically impossible for them to go any further in the knockout stage given their current level.

As for why the South Korean team was able to reach the semi-finals during the Japan-Korea World Cup?

I don't know!

Compared to the group stage, the knockout stage saw a significant increase in attention due to the stronger teams competing.

The match between Uruguay and South Korea was just an appetizer; the two knockout matches on June 27th are the main event.

At 8:30 p.m. local time (2:30 a.m. Beijing time), the match between the United States, the top team in Group C, and Ghana, the second-place team in Group D, kicked off.

The Americans, who relied on luck to beat England to take first place in their group, were unable to continue their good fortune in the knockout stage.

Ghana scored a goal just five minutes into the game.

The Americans then used every trick in the book to finally equalize the score in the 61st minute of the second half, but neither side was able to change the score for the next thirty minutes.

After 90 minutes of regular time, the score was 1-1.

The game went into overtime.

However, just as extra time began, Ghana scored again in a lightning-fast move, taking the lead.

This time, the Americans failed to equalize again, ultimately losing 1-2 and becoming the 18th team to be eliminated in this World Cup.

Fans didn't have time to feel sorry for the US team's elimination, because the highly anticipated England-Germany match was about to take place.

Beijing time, 6 PM on June 27th.

This match, which has attracted the attention of hundreds of millions of fans worldwide, was held at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein.

Normally, according to the expected plot, England shouldn't have faced a strong team like Germany so soon.

But they were too unlucky, or rather, too disappointing, in the group stage, handing over the top spot to the group.

Having qualified as the second-place team in their group, they were forced to face the group winners from other groups ahead of schedule.

Unfortunately, they encountered Germany.

Due to historical reasons, every major battle between Britain and Germany attracts a lot of attention, and this time is no exception.

Although, in terms of market value, the England team is almost twice as valuable as the German team.

But since the door-line mystery of 1966, the British seem to have run out of luck.

Since then, whenever they encountered Germany in international competitions, they always lost more often than they won, and even had an embarrassing record of not being able to beat Germany for 34 years.

If the Chinese team suffers from a severe fear of South Korea, then the British team's fear of Germany is probably even more severe.

The British team's bad luck seemed to continue in this match.

Shortly after the start of the match, Germany's star striker Miroslav Klose opened the scoring with a sliding shot.

A dozen minutes later, the Germans extended their lead to 2-0!

Upon seeing this, German fans had already begun celebrating prematurely.

If they continue playing like this, the German team will completely crush the English team.

2:0的比分绝对不是终点，3:0甚至4:0、5:0都有可能发生。

However, this England team had a large number of top stars, and after being awakened by the German offensive, the British began to launch a counterattack.

In the 37th minute, less than five minutes after conceding their second goal, England pulled one back from a corner kick.

After scoring, the British team, riding high on their morale, played even more aggressively.

Just one minute later, they threatened the German goal again.

But during this attack, the most controversial refereeing decision of this World Cup occurred!

In the 38th minute of the match, Lampard chipped the ball over Neuer in the penalty area, and his subsequent shot hit the crossbar, bounced off the grass behind the goal line, and went out of the goal.

Neuer caught the ball, but the English players near the penalty area had already begun celebrating their goal.

However, the English were disappointed, as the referee did not award a goal.

Slow-motion replays on television showed that the ball had clearly crossed the goal line, but the referee stubbornly ignored the goal.

This ruling directly affected the course of the game.

Shortly after the start of the second half, an unlucky Lampard hit the crossbar again, which was England's last chance to score.

After that, the British, whose mentality was out of balance, were no longer able to organize any threatening attacks.

The Germans, however, began to exert their strength, with Müller scoring two goals in the 67th and 70th minutes to extend their lead to 4-1.

The score remained unchanged until the final whistle, with Germany eliminating England by a large margin to become the third team to advance to the quarterfinals of this World Cup.

However, no one paid attention to Germany's advancement; all the focus after the match was on the referee's missed call!

If it weren't for that missed call, the final outcome of the game might have been completely different.

But 44 years ago, the British defeated Germany in the World Cup final thanks to a goal-line controversy, winning their first World Cup title.

It can only be said that what goes around comes around, and no one escapes the wrath of heaven. However, things are different now. Under the frenzied hype from Fleet Street media and the immense pressure from fans and media worldwide, FIFA finally relented and agreed to introduce Hawk-Eye technology from tennis matches to prevent similar goal-line injustices!

……

"If the referee makes a wrong call or misses a call during the game, don't waste time arguing with the referee. Stay calm, focus all your energy on the game, and don't let your mentality collapse like the British team did!"

Although the national football team's match is yet to come, everyone, from the coaching staff to the players, is closely watching the other knockout matches.

After watching the British team's match, Coach Zhu specifically called the players together for an internal meeting, emphasizing the importance of maintaining focus during the game and minimizing the impact of other factors on their mentality.

The British team's strength was not that much different from the German team's. If they hadn't lost their composure, the outcome of this match would have been hard to predict. However, due to the chain reaction caused by a wrong call, the British team lost so badly.

The Chinese national football team is a newcomer to the World Cup, with very limited experience in participating in the World Cup, and even less experience in the knockout stage.

In this situation, the only option is to learn from and summarize experiences from other teams to avoid falling into the same trap again.

Everyone nodded in agreement. Compared to other teams, the Chinese team was a very ordinary team. Apart from Lin Feng, a big-name star, the rest of the team were relatively unknown.

When they protest or appeal to the referee, they not only fail to receive preferential treatment, but are also punished by the referee.

Since we can't gain any advantage, there's no need to waste time.

As for the matter of appealing to the referee, that was naturally left to Lin Feng to handle.

He is very experienced in this area and knows when to negotiate and when not to provoke the referee.

Furthermore, he is famous enough that the referees will likely give him some leeway, and if he communicates amicably with the referee, the probability of him getting a card is relatively small.

……

After Germany took to the field, several of the favorites to win this World Cup began to appear in the knockout stages.

On June 28, Argentina defeated Mexico 3-1, becoming the fourth team to advance to the quarterfinals.

The Netherlands followed closely behind, defeating Paraguay 2-1 to secure the fifth ticket to the World Cup quarterfinals.

June 29th arrived quickly, a day Chinese fans had been eagerly anticipating for almost a week!

The reason we're so looking forward to this day is not only because the knockout match between China and Japan will kick off tonight, but also because there's another major match tonight – Brazil vs. Spain!

As the top favorite to win this World Cup, Spain has countless eyes on the world, observing their performance in the tournament.

Despite Spain's somewhat lackluster performance so far in the tournament, they remain highly favored by the outside world, consistently ranking among the top three in betting odds.

Everyone is curious to see how this popular team will perform in a tough match against Brazil.

Will they soar to new heights, decisively eliminate Brazil, and prove their championship-winning potential?

Will they continue their slump and become the target of ridicule after being eliminated by Brazil?

All the suspense will be revealed after this match ends.

Although there is a match tomorrow (June 29th is Beijing time, the local time is the evening of the 28th), given the popularity of the match, the Chinese national football team still organized the players to watch the game together in the hotel's conference room.

Who do you think will win?

"Spain, after all, their squad is worth more than twice as much as Brazil's!"

"I also favor Spain. Brazil's current squad is far worse than in the last World Cup. Apart from Kaká, there aren't many star players left in the attacking line!"

"Yes, in the last World Cup, Brazil's midfield still had Ronaldinho and Kaká, but in this World Cup, there's only Kaká left. The others, like Kleberson, Josué, Ramirez, and Baptista, are all lousy players. There's not a single one who can play!"

Comparing the midfield lineups of the two sides, there's really only one word to describe it—a world of difference!

Spain's midfield lineup is renowned for its strength, and Brazil simply cannot compete with them.

However, there is also a problem that is very troublesome for the Spanish team, namely the form of their forwards.

If Torres hadn't been injured, Spain's lineup would have been incredibly strong, which is why many people were so optimistic about their chances of winning the title.

However, Torres' injury in the Champions League severely affected his form, exposing the weakness of Spain's attack.

Despite boasting the most luxurious midfield in football today, they only managed to score 2 goals in three group stage matches.

Spain's attacking woes can't be described as lacking firepower; it's practically the same as having no strikers at all!

Amidst much anticipation, this highly anticipated battle commenced on schedule.

As expected, the situation on the field unfolded as soon as the game started, with the Spanish team firmly controlling the rhythm of the match thanks to their powerful midfield.

Five minutes into the game, Iniesta and David Silva's attacking combination created a dangerous situation in front of Brazil's goal.

Fortunately, Thiago Silva blocked Iniesta's shot as he broke into the penalty area, preventing the opponent's shot from threatening his own goal.

But just two minutes later, Spain launched another attack.

In the seventh minute, Xavi passed the ball to Villa, who broke into the left side of the penalty area and took a shot from a tight angle, but the goalkeeper saved it.

Xavi then took a short corner, and Torres swept the ball across the right side of the penalty area at the near post, but it went just over the crossbar.

In this match, the Spanish team changed their slow start from the group stage and got into the game very quickly.

The initial offensives were swift and fierce, immediately raising the intensity of the match.

Brazil, unable to control the midfield, seemed somewhat unaccustomed to the opponent's pressing attack.

Fortunately, the Brazilian team under Dunga, while lacking in creativity, had a very strong defense.

Through close marking and pressing, the Brazilian team gradually stabilized their position and created an excellent opportunity in the 20th minute.

Lucio successfully intercepted the ball and launched a long pass into the attacking third. Fabiano headed the ball to Kaká behind him, and Kaká dribbled and accelerated towards the opponent's penalty area.

As Kaká was about to break into the penalty area, Ramos made a decisive sliding tackle, bringing him down outside the penalty area.

Although this foul earned him a yellow card, if Kaká had actually been allowed to break into the penalty area, it wouldn't have been just a simple yellow card.

Kaka, frustrated by his missed opportunity, pounded his thigh. The sharp pain in his groin from running had affected his performance.

If I hadn't been injured, I would have had a chance to break into the paint before the opponent fouled me.

Brazil's free kicks posed little threat, and the game returned to Spain's rhythm.

As the Spanish team passed the ball around on the perimeter, many fans began to doze off.

This tikitaka-style passing and possession football was quite amazing at first.

But now, it just feels like hypnosis.

Especially Spain's style of play, which involves possession but few shots, and repeated passes that fail to penetrate the opponent's defense. (End of Chapter)