Chapter 160: The Confederations Cup final begins with an impressive performance!
Pelé's prediction caused a great stir in the media. And it's not for nothing, Pelé is infamous for being a jinx. Since the 1990 World Cup, Pelé has always made predictions. And without exception, all the favorite teams have fallen because of him.
In the 1990 World Cup, Pelé bet on Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia was eliminated by Argentina in the quarter-finals. But that wasn't the worst part; the worst part is that after that World Cup, Yugoslavia disintegrated and never had a chance to seek revenge. In 1994, Pelé predicted that Colombia would win the World Cup, but Colombia was eliminated in the group stage. Furthermore, their defender Escobar was murdered in his country after scoring an own goal, which became one of football's greatest tragedies.
Apart from these two regrettable cases, teams like France, Argentina, and even Brazil itself have also suffered from his predictions. Pelé's reputation as a jinx is so strong that fans fear and respect him equally. In the previous World Cup, Pelé predicted that Brazil would reach the final. After hearing his prediction, Brazilian media announced the next day that Brazil had been eliminated, even though the tournament hadn't started yet!
In the end, Brazil was eliminated by the Netherlands, confirming Pelé's bad omen once again. Spain also suffered from Pelé's predictions in the 1998 World Cup, when he predicted they would win the tournament. Spain lost in the group stage and didn't advance. Upon hearing that Pelé predicted Brazil would win this time, the Spaniards breathed a sigh of relief. On Pelé's social profile, Spanish fans left comments thanking him:
"Thanks, Pelé, for not cursing us!" "We are grateful!" "Grateful +10086!" On the other hand, in Brazil, upon learning of Pelé's prediction, everyone was very nervous. "Why didn't you curse Spain?" "Why are you cursing us?" "This is like a death sentence for us!"
"We are very angry, we want to scream, but we can't! We have to hold it in." Pelé has made great contributions to the Brazilian team, leading them to win three World Cups. Of the five stars on Brazil's jersey, three are thanks to him. Faced with such a legend, Brazilian players couldn't complain, even if they were frustrated. A Brazilian journalist interviewed Pelé, indirectly asking him why he cursed his own team.
"Why does everyone think I'm a jinx? I've made many correct predictions," Pelé said, surprised. "Yes, I've made many mistakes in my predictions, but I've also had successes. For example, in the last World Cup, I predicted that Germany would defeat Argentina, and they did." The journalist timidly reminded him: "But you also predicted that Brazil and Argentina would reach the final, and both teams were eliminated in the quarter-finals..."
Pelé got upset: "I'll say it again, I believe Brazil will win! I'll be at the stadium cheering on our boys." Brazilian fans were already nervous about Pelé's prediction, but knowing that he would be present at the stadium, they almost burst into tears. "Please, King Pelé, forgive our team!" "At first, I was confident in Brazil, but now..." "Thousands of requests for Pelé not to go to the stadium!"
Despite the pleas, Pelé didn't back down. On the day of the final, cameras caught his presence in a box at the Maracanã stadium. Pelé was really there. He himself was nervous too. "Could it be that I really am a jinx? If Brazil loses this match..." At exactly 7:00 p.m., the Confederations Cup final officially began. As the players entered the field, the cameras focused especially on Neymar and Lin Quan. Obviously, the protagonists of this match were the two of them. Whoever won would have the advantage over the other.
Before the match began, Lin Quan had already scored 7 goals in this Confederations Cup, equaling the tournament's historic record. Neymar, on the other hand, had scored 4 goals fewer, a significant difference. Even if Brazil won this match, support for Lin Quan would still be high. But if Lin Quan led Spain to victory, there would be no more debate about who was better between him and Neymar.
In terms of goals, assists, and team performance, Neymar couldn't compete. Neymar seemed to understand this, so he looked at Lin Quan with a mix of hostility and determination. In the pre-match greeting, Neymar didn't let go of Lin Quan's hand immediately, staring at him intently, as if challenging him.
"I'm going to show my skills in this match! The trophy is for Brazil!" Lin Quan responded calmly, nodding slightly, as if to say, "Alright, good luck with that." This calm response left Neymar perplexed. "Haha, Neymar was ignored by Lin Quan!" "Yes, it seems like Neymar wants to prove something, but Lin Quan doesn't consider him a rival." "And of course, Lin Quan's rivals are players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi, Neymar isn't at his level."
Because of Neymar's playing style and his inferior performance to Lin Quan in this Cup, neutral fans were more supportive of Lin Quan. But in Brazil, the majority still supported Neymar. Seeing Lin Quan's indifference, Brazilian fans began to boo him. They felt that Lin Quan was acting arrogantly. "Isn't he also a young player? Does he think he's a superstar?"
After the pre-match rituals, the players took their positions.
Lin Quan observed the opposing team's positioning and noticed that Brazil was using a 4-2-3-1, a balanced formation in attack and defense.
Spain, on the other hand, was using a 4-3-3, but without a traditional forward.
The most advanced players, Pedro, Lin Quan, and David Silva, were not traditional forwards, so the 4-3-3 was just an initial tactic. Once the match started, Spain would switch to a formation without a fixed forward.
Brazil had already anticipated this tactic from Spain.
Chapter 160: The Confederations Cup final begins, a dominant performance that surprises the world!
Spain's tactical scheme in this Confederations Cup has hardly changed. When facing strong teams, they use their favorite formation without a fixed forward. They take advantage of numerical superiority in the center of the field to maintain ball possession and use constant passes to open the opponent's defense and achieve a lethal strike.
Only when facing weak teams do they place traditional forwards like Torres in the starting eleven, using him as a reference point in the attack.
To limit Spain's midfield advantage, Brazil has fielded two defensive midfielders in this match. Both are midfielders with great endurance, wide coverage on the field, and strong tackling ability. One is Gustavo from Bayern and the other is Paulinho, signed by Tottenham for £17 million.
Lin Quan has played against Gustavo before. As for Paulinho, he has seen his games at Guangzhou Evergrande and knows he is a box-to-box midfielder, with good endurance, strong defense, tackling ability, good passing, and long-range shooting, known as "the Vulture".
Although he hasn't yet shown his talent in the major European leagues, if he's been selected for the Brazilian national team, he's definitely not a weak player.
The battle in midfield is expected to be very intense in this match.
Lin Quan thought it would be a tight game, but he didn't expect Brazil to start attacking forcefully from the beginning. They avoided the midfield and started with long balls from defense to their forwards.
Hulk, known as the "Green Hulk", won the ball using his physical advantage, passed it to Oscar, and surged forward. Oscar made a deep pass into the area, but the Spanish defense cleared the ball. However, the clearance wasn't far and fell to Neymar's feet.
With a feint, Neymar dodged the defender and shot upon entering the area. Casillas, well-prepared, jumped and stopped the shot, but the rebound was captured by a Brazilian player. Fred, who was following the play, shot and scored into the empty goal.
Brazil took the lead in just 1 minute. Seeing the referee confirm the goal, Brazilian fans in the stadium shouted with joy, unbelieving.
Is this real? A goal in the first minute? Spain doesn't seem so strong after all.
At that moment, Brazilian fans felt overwhelmed by happiness. Spain, nearly invincible in the pre-match rumors, seemed to be at their mercy.
In the box, Pelé, excited, began to dance upon seeing the goal. What did I tell you? Brazil can beat Spain and win the title at home! Who dares to call me a jinx now?
Pelé felt that he had finally shaken off that stigma. But the Spanish players were not willing to accept it.
"I'm sorry, it was my fault, I left Neymar unmarked," admitted Alba, taking responsibility.
"It wasn't your fault, I was the one who didn't control the rebound in time," said Ramos. "If I had been more alert, Fred wouldn't have had a chance to shoot."
"Alright, let's stop blaming ourselves. We still have plenty of time. Instead of blaming, think about how to equalize," said a teammate, infusing confidence.
The good atmosphere in the team, forged by consecutive victories, gave them great confidence. Although the score didn't favor them, they didn't despair. They saw that their teammates showed no signs of anxiety or frustration.
Del Bosque, seeing the calmness in his players, relaxed. He had feared that such an early goal would affect the team, but it seemed that his concerns were unfounded. The Brazilians could enjoy their momentary joy, but soon they would know the power of control and passing football.
...
After the initial kick-off, Spain didn't rush to attack, but instead maintained possession, patiently seeking an opportunity. The Brazilians couldn't allow them to control the ball so freely. If they didn't regain possession, they couldn't attack.
So, with the two defensive midfielders included, Brazil pressed with six players, attempting to break Spain's possession tactic. This pressure wasn't a problem for the Spaniards, whose cohesion was extremely high. The ball moved quickly among the Spanish players, while the Brazilians could barely touch it.
The rapid pace of Spain's passes made it impossible for the Brazilians to keep up. That's the power of control and passing football. Brazilian players and fans felt the pressure of the Spanish style.
Brazilian players ran tirelessly, but rarely managed to intercept the ball. Spain continued to control the game, and the pace of the match was in their hands. With the ball constantly in motion, the Brazilian defense began to open up.
In the 15th minute, Lin Quan received the ball in the forward position. He moved laterally to the right, attracting defenders and then passed to Xavi. Without stopping, Xavi delivered the ball to Iniesta on the left. Iniesta made a pass into the area for Pedro.
Pedro passed diagonally back to Lin Quan, who returned to Silva on the right. This series of quick passes completely disoriented the Brazilian defense. Silva found himself unmarked and with a goal-scoring opportunity.
The Brazilian goalkeeper, Cesar, felt overwhelmed. The passes were too fast. As a last resort, he came out to confront Silva. Brazilian defenders also threw themselves desperately to block the shot. Surprisingly, Silva didn't shoot but passed to Lin Quan, who was free in the area.
Lin Quan received the ball in a perfect position and without defenders nearby. With a gentle kick, he scored into the empty net.
The score was tied 1-1. Spain only needed 14 minutes to equalize, and unlike Brazil's somewhat lucky goal, this goal was a pure display of skill.
Before the goal, Spain had made six consecutive passes, tearing apart the Brazilian defense. Anyone in Lin Quan's position would have scored easily. Faced with this display, the Brazilians seemed to have forgotten how to play football, running desperately after the ball, leaving gaps everywhere.
This goal showed the absolute dominance of the world champion, making it clear how powerful Spain's control and passing football can be.
(End of chapter)
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