Chapter 151: Playing with the South American Champion! Spain Plays Shamelessly!
When the disciples managed to score a goal, Bosque excitedly pumped his fist. Getting an early lead allowed him to stop worrying completely. Spain's play was very stable; they were rarely overtaken when they had the lead. Spain has maintained an unbeaten streak of 73 matches in which they scored first! In these 73 matches, they have a record of 71 wins and 2 draws; scoring first is practically synonymous with victory.
Bosque pondered a bit: Lin Quan's role upfront is really crucial; I definitely didn't see that coming! His organization upfront, connection, and work in the attack were excellent, making Spain's attack exceptionally fluid and very threatening. In the first half, Lin Quan didn't have many shooting opportunities, but he created many chances for his teammates. If it weren't for his teammates wasting opportunities, the game's score would have already changed.
If he could only pass and assist, he wouldn't be so prominent in the Spanish team. Because these midfield maestros also have that skill. What satisfied Bosque the most about Lin Quan was his ability to finish in front of the goal. With this kid on the field, Bosque no longer has to worry as before, fearing his team might not score. This kid has ten thousand ways to put the ball in the opponent's net!
Compared to Bosque, Uruguay's head coach felt dejected seeing his team concede a goal. They are clearly taking advantage of the situation! They just changed to the substitute goalkeeper, he hasn't even had time to warm up or adapt to the game's rhythm, and the opponent has already scored a goal! But, even though they know the other team is taking advantage of the situation, they can't say anything. They can't ask the other team not to attack for a few minutes so their goalkeeper can warm up slowly, can they?
Besides, even if the goalkeeper hasn't warmed up, what are their defenders doing? How can they allow the other team to easily break through the defensive line and threaten their own goal? In the end, it's their own incompetence!
"Really incompetent!"
In the stands, the Brazilian players saw the goal and couldn't help but curse. They thought they were going to witness a high-level clash and this is what they got! From the first half, apart from the initial minutes, Uruguay has been completely dominated by Spain. The constant attack from the opponent is threatening their goal; they can't take advantage of the opportunities created by the opposing team, nor can they withstand the siege from the opponent. If they keep playing like this, Spain will win this game easily; expecting Uruguay to bring out the best in Spain is unrealistic.
However, they came to watch this game not only to see if they could discover any flaws or hidden strategies of Spain. They also have another goal: to assess Lin Quan's skill.
"So, how strong is that kid?"
Marcelo saw his teammates not saying anything and couldn't help but be the first to speak.
"Very strong."
Thiago Silva spoke seriously: "His technical skill with the ball is undeniable, his dribbling and ball control are top-notch, he has an excellent sense of the ball, and his finishing ability in front of the goal is also very sharp. This kid shouldn't be underestimated!"
With Thiago Silva's perspective, the best defender in the world, he feels that Lin Quan is the kind of player that is difficult to mark. He might not be as good without the ball, but once the ball is at his feet, his intimidation ability increases instantly several times; it's hard to stop him one-on-one. To successfully freeze him, teammates' help is needed.
Listening to his son-in-law's words, Barcelona's defender, Alves, also spoke:
"He is right. From what we have seen in these few minutes, he is playing with ease on the field, not even giving his all, so this isn't his best."
"What? This isn't his best yet? Then how terrifying can he be at his best?"
"I don't know, but the Uruguayan defenders haven't put enough pressure on him, they can't force him to give his all, so we probably won't see that in this game."
With Alves' insight, he naturally sees the similarities between Lin Quan's playing style and Messi's. It can't even be said that they are very similar; they are practically identical. Having regularly competed with Messi in team training matches, he understands better than anyone the threat this type of player represents. Once the ball is at his feet, one-on-one, and even two-on-one, may not be enough to stop him.
In Barcelona's games, Messi often faces multiple opponents and still manages to score after evading them. Hearing the words of the two older brothers, Gustavo, who plays for Bayern Munich nearby, coughed lightly and spoke:
"Last season, the Werder Bremen led by Lin Quan faced us four times, won twice, drew once, in the draw and in the victory in the German Cup, it seems they gave their all. I will go back to find the video tape; everyone can watch it."
Everyone nodded in agreement. The two older brothers who play for the top clubs in Europe have spoken; naturally, the other Brazilian players won't dare to underestimate Lin Quan. As a team that aspires to win the championship, they must fully study the strongest opponent in this Confederations Cup. Otherwise, if they meet in the knockout stage or even in the final, they might suffer due to a lack of understanding of the opponent.
However, if the opponent has such a formidable player, we also have one! Many Brazilian players couldn't help but look at their team's superstar, who had been courted by both Barcelona and Real Madrid, Neymar. Both are superstars, both play as wingers, who is stronger on the field?
Neymar looked at the figure dressed in red with the number 30 on the field, and his fighting spirit began to rise. In literature, there is no first, in war, there is no second; who is stronger between us will be decided in the knockout stage!
...
On the field, the Spaniards continued to attack Uruguay's goal. In the 20th minute of the first half, Spain obtained a corner kick. Xavi and Lin Quan talked a bit; Lin Quan decided not to take the corner kick but stood outside the penalty area, ready to receive the ball. The Uruguayan forward Cavani, seeing Lin Quan's movement, quickly exited the penalty area and stood beside him to mark him closely. Whether Spain really wants to execute a tactical corner or not, they can't give this guy the opportunity to comfortably receive the ball.
Xavi glanced at Lin Quan, took a few steps back, ran, and struck the ball firmly. The ball described a beautiful curve and fell into the penalty area. When Xavi was about to take the corner kick, Lin Quan deliberately ran towards the left side of the area, giving the impression he was going to make a tactical combination with Xavi. The Uruguayan players on the left side of the penalty area were attracted by Lin Quan and unconsciously moved closer to him. But when Xavi launched the corner kick, they realized they had been deceived. The ball was going to the far post; it wasn't intended for Lin Quan at all.
Martinez, Spain's tallest player, won the jump, but his header bounced off the crossbar and out. The ball exited the area and landed at the feet of the Spanish winger, Pedro. Pedro saw the ball flying towards him, and without stopping it, performed a volley shot. The shot was from about 25 meters, but Pedro hit it hard. The Uruguayan defender Diego Lugano saw that the ball's trajectory was close to him and tried to clear it. But his clearance was unsuccessful; the ball hit his leg and changed direction, entering the net from the lower left corner of the goal.
2-0!
Since Pedro's shot was towards the goal, it wasn't considered an own goal but was credited as a goal to Pedro. This was Pedro's 13th goal for the Spanish national team, averaging 0.45 goals per game, a fairly high goal rate among Spanish internationals. However, compared to a certain person, there is still a big difference.
With two goals against them, the Uruguayan players were a bit dazed. In the last friendly match, although they eventually lost 1-3, wasn't the other team not as dominant, right? How is it that after just a few months, the opponent seems much stronger?
Clearly, the lineups on both sides are almost the same, with almost no changes in personnel, but why does Spain seem to have qualitatively changed?
Not wanting to be left behind, Uruguay launched a series of attacks against Spain. In the 24th minute, a long shot by Cavani was deflected by Casillas over the crossbar, earning Uruguay their first corner kick of the match. The corner was taken, and Cáceres' header was deflected by Casillas towards the right post. Uruguay wasted the best opportunity of the first half.
Seeing that Uruguay's attack seemed to gain momentum, Lin Quan asked for the ball from his teammates, signaling them to slow down the game's pace to reduce the opponent's intensity. Everyone nodded, and the game's pace immediately slowed down. The reason: the Spanish players began to pass the ball in their own defense...
The Uruguayan fans, seeing the opposing team, having the advantage, deliberately delaying time with passes in defense, were furious, booing the Spanish players on the field.
"What a shame! They are world champions, please have some dignity!"
"Exactly, delaying time with passes in defense, who plays like that?!"
"If they have the courage, attack. What are they afraid of if they're leading by two goals?"
The Spanish fans, seeing their team playing so cunningly, smiled knowingly.
"We play as we want; who said we can't pass the ball in defense?"
"Exactly, if they don't like it, come and take the ball from us, no one is stopping you!"
After arguing with the Uruguayan fans, the Spanish fans applauded and encouraged their team to continue like this. Not only do we want to win, but we also want to play with them, make them feel the fear of Spanish control and pass football.
Neutral fans didn't join the fight, but Spain's tactic of passing the ball in defense was making them drowsy.
Uruguayan coach Tavares, seeing that the opponent was determined to delay time, cursed in his heart and had no choice but to signal his players to press and not give space for passing the ball in defense. The Uruguayan players were already annoyed; seeing the coach's signal, they immediately pressed, trying to intercept the Spanish players' passes.
With the increased pressure, Spain's defensive passes became unsustainable. They were too close to their own goal, and any mistake could be exploited by the opponent for a counterattack. Lin Quan saw this, signaled, and dropped back to receive the ball. His teammates understood and passed the ball to him. The two nearby Uruguayan players pounced on him, trying to take the ball away.
Calm and composed, Lin Quan returned the ball to a teammate in a safe position, defusing Uruguay's pressure. Bosque, on the sidelines, seeing how Lin Quan handled the situation, felt surprised and impressed.
"This kid plays very well even as a defensive midfielder!"
"Yes, his ball distribution and rhythm control are excellent. When he drops back, his teammates have a safe point to pass the ball, and it's difficult for the opponent to take it away while he always manages to pass it to a safe place. This way, Uruguay's pressure loses its threat."
Coach Toni was also delighted; these are defensive midfielder skills, this kid is completely versatile!
"If it weren't for the lack of an offensive core, I would put him as a defensive midfielder to replace Xavi!"
Xavi is 33 years old this year, and due to his age, his performance has begun to decline. Next year, at the World Cup, Xavi will be 34, almost 35 years old. Being so old, it will be uncertain if he can still be Spain's key midfielder.
On the other side, Tavares, the Uruguayan coach, seeing how Spain defused the pressure in defense thanks to Lin Quan's connection, felt powerless. Why don't I have such a genius in my team? If we had a genius in the midfield, wouldn't our forwards get tired of scoring goals?
On the field, the frustrated Uruguayan players finally lost their patience. In the 29th minute, Cavani made a hard tackle on Lin Quan, taking out some of his frustration. The referee didn't hesitate and showed a yellow card to the Uruguayan player. Seeing the card, Lin Quan didn't stay on the ground; he quickly got up. Cavani had indeed been rough, and although Lin Quan's ability to withstand injuries reduced the impact, he still felt the pain in the hit area.
After these minutes of passing the ball in defense, Uruguay's attacking rhythm had been completely disrupted. Lin Quan saw this and decided not to continue passing the ball in defense. When he received a pass from a teammate, he accelerated, surpassing the defender and passing the ball diagonally to Iniesta. Iniesta understood and passed the ball smoothly forward, just as a red figure quickly passed in front of him, intercepting the ball before the defender could clear it.
The receiver was none other than Lin Quan, who had just passed the ball to Iniesta. Lin Quan, after receiving the ball, looked at the goalkeeper's position and from 30 meters launched a powerful shot. The ball turned into a spectacular goal, and although the Uruguayan goalkeeper Juan reacted a bit slowly, he couldn't prevent it. The ball entered the net, grazing the left post!
Spain changed the score again, and before the 30th minute of the first half, they had already scored three goals! 3-0, with this result, Spain already has a significant advantage! It seems that the South American champion is not that strong! It seems they are easier to beat than the French team!
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