Chapter 292: Crushing the Opponent Again, Spain's Strength Terrifies the World!
Bravo realized Lin Quan's intention, but he had no choice. If he stayed on the goal line, Lin Quan would get closer and closer. When Lin Quan shot, Bravo would have very little time to react. Even if Bravo had lightning-fast reflexes, it would be nearly impossible to save such a close-range shot.
So, he had to make a move. But his decision to charge out played right into Lin Quan's hands. One-on-one, Lin Quan feared no one.
Bravo lowered his center of gravity, spread his arms wide to cover as much area as possible, and kept his eyes fixed on the ball at Lin Quan's feet. He was waiting for the perfect moment to make his move, ready to pounce.
As Lin Quan neared the goal, his pace slowed. He stepped forward with his left foot, shifting his weight as if preparing to switch the ball from his right to his left foot.
Now!
Bravo seized the opportunity and lunged towards the ball like a hungry tiger. But Lin Quan was even quicker. Just as Bravo moved, Lin Quan retracted his left foot and nudged the ball with his right, lifting it over Bravo's head and sending it towards Chile's unguarded goal.
The crowd went wild! A rainbow flick! Someone actually used such a flashy move on the World Cup stage!
After beating Bravo, Lin Quan chased the ball towards the goal line. He didn't need to touch it again, watching it roll into the net before spreading his arms and sliding across the grass in celebration.
The Spanish players were ecstatic, rushing over to celebrate with Lin Quan on the sideline. The score was now 1-0! Spain had finally broken through Chile's defensive wall!
Lin Quan's goal was met with thunderous applause and cheers from the crowd, except for the Chilean fans. Goals are common in the World Cup, but such a spectacular goal is rare, especially from a top star like Lin Quan.
"Wow, is that Lin Quan? In another jersey, I'd think it was Brazil!"
"That's some skill, he's really good at this!"
"See, it's not that Lin Quan can't do these tricks, he just chooses not to!"
Lin Quan usually played with a straightforward style, so many fans thought he lacked the flair of players like Neymar and Ronaldinho. But now, he showed that he could use these flashy moves if he wanted to.
"Stepovers, rainbow flicks, Lin Quan is getting fancier!"
"He's adapting to South American style!"
"Haha, Neymar often uses rainbow flicks, but I've never seen him score with one. Lin Quan is just better!"
"Actually, in that situation, a rainbow flick was perfect!"
Online, Lin Quan's goal left many people astonished. Given his usual straightforward style, it was hard to imagine him using such a flamboyant trick.
Chilean goalkeeper Bravo was also shocked. After being beaten by Lin Quan's move, his confidence was severely shaken.
When Spain's celebration ended, the first half soon concluded. Scoring before halftime left the Spanish players in high spirits as they returned to the locker room, laughing and chatting.
In contrast, the Chilean side was downcast. Conceding the first goal while playing defensively meant their strategy had failed. They needed to change tactics and could no longer rely on their defensive setup.
Given the gap in strength between the teams, even changing tactics offered little hope of breaking through Spain's defense.
Chilean coach Jorge racked his brain but couldn't come up with a better plan. So, he opted for a standard 4-3-3 formation to try an offensive approach in the second half. With Sanchez, they might have a chance to equalize, especially with Spain down a player.
However, Spain also made adjustments. After dealing with Chile's defensive strategy in the first half, they were now ready to switch to counter-attacks, putting the Chileans on the defensive.
When the second half began, and Spain pulled back to defend, the Chileans were stunned.
Really? You're the world champions, and you're parking the bus? Where's your pride?
But the Spaniards didn't care. They were a man down; why not defend? If they had all eleven players, they'd use their possession game to dominate!
With Spain's defensive setup in place, there was no going back. The Chileans had to switch to offense.
Seeing this, both the spectators at the stadium and those watching on TV had strange looks on their faces. The team that attacked relentlessly in the first half was now defending, and the team that defended in the first half was now attacking. Because of the field switch, all the action seemed to happen on one side, making it feel like a déjà vu if you ignored the jerseys.
Of course, there were differences. Against Spain's defense, Chile couldn't make any headway. They attacked for 20 minutes without creating significant chances. In contrast, Spain's counter-attacks were devastating.
In the 61st minute, Spain quickly moved the ball upfield after a defensive stop. The ball passed from Lin Quan to Iniesta to Silva and into Chile's penalty area in seconds. Chile's defenders managed to contain Lin Quan, but he backheeled the ball to the oncoming Iniesta, who smashed it into the net, making it 2-0.
Bravo couldn't replicate his first-half heroics, seemingly shaken by Lin Quan's rainbow flick. Iniesta's goal all but sealed the match. With over 30 minutes left, it seemed impossible for Chile to recover two goals.
Sanchez was a great player, but he couldn't single-handedly take on the Spanish team. With Spain's defensive focus, his space was limited, and his club teammates knew his style too well, marking him out of the game.
Chile dominated possession and shots but couldn't score. Spain's counter-attacks, however, were always threatening. In the 78th minute, Alonso switched the play to the wing, Silva fed Iniesta, and a one-two with Lin Quan saw Iniesta's shot blocked for a corner.
Spain then executed a tactical corner, with Xavi passing to Lin Quan, who evaded a challenge and crossed into the box.
Ramos jumped high and outplayed Mena, the opposing defender, heading the ball into the goal.
3:0!
Spain is starting to look unstoppable!
After scoring, Ramos was extremely excited and instinctively prepared to take off his jersey to celebrate.
For a defender, scoring in a World Cup match is something worth celebrating in any way possible.
But at the last moment, he calmed down.
In the previous match against the Netherlands, he received a yellow card. According to World Cup rules, if he got another yellow card in this match, he would be suspended for the next one.
Who are they playing next?
Australia?
Alright, taking off the jersey to celebrate should be fine!
Ramos paused for a moment and then took off his jersey.
The referee didn't hesitate to give him a yellow card, but judging by Ramos's expression, he didn't mind at all.
A yellow card is just a yellow card. It's a good chance to clear his yellow card record against Australia.
This way, when the knockout stage comes, he can play to his strengths without any worries!
"Sergio, did you just deliberately get a yellow card?" Lin Quan saw Ramos's action and asked curiously.
"Hehe, no, I was just too excited to control myself!" Ramos said with a sly smile. He would never admit such a thing openly.
Lin Quan gave him a knowing look. Though deliberately getting a yellow card isn't looked upon favorably, it's a smart use of the rules. Many players do it in leagues and the Champions League.
Yellow card suspensions in the World Cup are stricter than in leagues or the Champions League. In the Premier League, a player is suspended after five yellow cards, and in the Champions League, after three. But in the World Cup, a player is suspended after just two yellow cards.
Moreover, these yellow cards carry over until the semifinals, including those from the group stage.
For front players like Lin Quan, it's not a big deal as they don't have heavy defensive duties and are less likely to get cards.
But for defensive players like Ramos, the chances of getting cards are much higher.
Ramos is a key defender for Spain, and his suspension in crucial matches would be a big blow to Spain's defense.
After falling behind by three goals, Chile's morale completely collapsed.
In the final stages of the match, although Sanchez was still fighting hard, trying to change the outcome, other players had lost their fighting spirit. They just wanted the match to end as soon as possible so they could prepare for the last match against the Netherlands.
With Chile losing their will to fight, Spain didn't want to waste energy either.
But the substitutes who came on were very aggressive in their attacks.
In the 80th minute, Mata tried a long shot from outside the penalty area.
The shot was of high quality, but luck wasn't on his side as the ball brushed past the post.
In the 84th minute, Koke, who replaced Xavi, also tried a long shot.
Bravo seemed to regain his form in the final stages of the match, flying to save the ball and preventing Spain from scoring their fourth goal.
Losing by three goals is a heavy defeat, but losing by four would be a complete rout!
Chile didn't want to suffer a disastrous defeat, especially since they were competing with the Netherlands for second place in the group. Every additional goal conceded could reduce their chances of advancing.
In the closing stages of the match, Spain took their final corner.
Lin Quan's corner was cleared by Chile's defenders, but the ball still fell to a Spanish player outside the penalty area.
Mata controlled the ball and sent it back into the box.
Ramos jumped up again, and his header hit the post.
Before he could feel disappointed, the ball bounced off his leg and into the goal.
Seeing the ball in the net, Ramos was stunned.
Chile's goalkeeper Bravo was stunned too!
All the players and fans in the stadium were stunned!
Is this even possible?
No one expected that the player with the most goals in this match would be a defender!
With two goals in this match, Ramos rose to third place on the top scorers' list!
Only Lin Quan with four goals and Thomas Muller with three had more goals than him.
Ramos had always been known as an attacking defender, but this World Cup had solidified that title.
After all, he, a defender, had scored more goals than most teams' forwards. You have to respect that.
Although Chile didn't want to be routed, they couldn't avoid it.
After being beaten 4-0 by Spain, their goal difference dropped to minus two.
Even with a negative goal difference, they still had a better goal difference than the Netherlands.
After all, the Netherlands also lost by four goals to Spain, but they only managed to get a one-goal difference against Australia, while Chile got a two-goal difference.
This means that in the final round, Chile had a one-goal lead over the Netherlands in goal difference.
So, for Chile, a draw in the last match would be enough to advance.
However, history has shown countless times that when a team only needs a draw to advance, they are very likely to be eliminated.
The national football team of a certain Eastern civilization would agree!
Even though the loss was hard, the Chilean players were somewhat prepared for it.
After the match, many players approached the Spanish stars to exchange jerseys.
The Spanish players couldn't refuse, having already defeated them so badly.
Many players wanted to exchange jerseys with Lin Quan, but one request surprised him – Chile's number one player, Bravo!
"Can we exchange jerseys?"
Bravo didn't seem to be in a good mood after losing, and it was unclear if he asked to exchange jerseys because Lin Quan played well or to remember the humiliation and motivate himself to improve.
Lin Quan was surprised but agreed, "Sure!"
They quickly exchanged jerseys.
Bravo said politely, "Thanks, you played really well. Keep it up!"
Lin Quan nodded, "You too, keep it up, and beat the Dutch!"
Bravo smiled at Lin Quan's encouragement.
"Don't worry, I won't let them score easily!"
Bravo clenched his fist and swung it hard.
Lin Quan silently pitied the Dutch for a moment. If Bravo played fiercely, it wouldn't be easy to score against him.
The Dutch team was strong, but after being thrashed 5-1 by Spain, their morale seemed shaky. They barely managed to beat Australia. In this state, facing Chile, the outcome was uncertain!
But this had nothing to do with Spain!
After the match, coach Bosque announced a break and released the starting lineup for the next game early.
This meant that the main players who weren't in the next lineup could rest well before the knockout stage!
The locker room erupted in cheers. Bosque was thrown into the air by the players for his 'wise' decision, which scared the old coach.
The locker room floor was hard, unlike the grass on the field. If the players slipped, Bosque could be seriously injured!
...
After two consecutive matches where Spain thrashed their opponents, the world saw their terrifying strength.
Especially in the match against Chile, where they still secured a convincing victory despite being a man down early. This kind of dominance made other teams feel suffocated!
As a result, after this match, Spain's odds of winning the championship soared.
The latest odds from betting companies placed Spain's chances of winning at 1.95, meaning the outside world believed their chances of winning were over 50%!
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