LRAB Chapter 13: The Do-or-Die Battle for Qualification
Chapter 13: The Do-or-Die Battle for Qualification
The following day, in the match between Costa Rica and Turkey, the two sides drew 1-1.
As a result, Costa Rica, with 4 points and a goal difference of +2, is now in first place in Group C, while Brazil, also with 4 points and a goal difference of +1, is in second place.
Türkiye is in third place with 1 point and a goal difference of -1, while China is in fourth place with only 1 point and a goal difference of -2.
Although the qualification situation seems quite clear at first glance, it's obvious to anyone with a discerning eye:
Costa Rica, the first-place team, is no easier to qualify than China, the fourth-place team!
The reason is simple: in the final round, Costa Rica will face Brazil, the strongest team in the group stage.
Brazil, in order to secure qualification and top the group, will definitely need to fight for victory.
A draw would mean both teams advancing? Brazil wouldn't take that risk.
It is well known that the Brazilian team has always had a significant advantage when facing technically skilled South American teams...
If this match results in a winner, the winner between China and Türkiye will have a chance to advance.
As opponents with the same point total, China and Türkiye have an even clearer goal in the match: they must win!
If you draw or lose, you're out of the game; there's no need to look at the result of the other match.
Therefore, for the Chinese team, a do-or-die match against Turkey is just four days away!
……
On the morning of December 10st.
Yesterday, Milutinovic gave the players a day off to relax, and today is the day to resume training.
Dew still clung to the grass on the training field, but the figures of the national football team players were already moving about in the morning light.
Unlike the anxiety before the match against Brazil, everyone's face was now etched with determination.
The draw against Brazil is more than just a point; it gives the players confidence!
The team atmosphere is also better than a few days ago, and everyone is joking around from time to time during training breaks.
However, this harmony was broken by a sudden news report at noon.
Just then, the entire Chinese national football team gathered to prepare for a tactical meeting. While waiting for the coaching staff to come in, the players saw the image of an old friend on the computer screen—Helidon!
He actually gave an interview to a Spanish-language Chinese channel, and then continued to spout nonsense:
"A 0-0 draw against Brazil? Pure luck!"
"Türkiye's physical play is tougher than Brazil's, and their counter-attacks are sharper. Ye Xian's defensive tactics, which only involve 'huddling in the bus,' are completely useless against the Turkish team!"
"Besides, what's the point of holding on? If we don't score a single goal, we're still out!"
"This Chinese team really lacks fighting spirit! Back in my day..."
The rest of the time was just him bragging.
"Bullshit!" Fan Zhiyi slammed his fist on the table, veins bulging on his forehead. "He got expelled for breaking the rules, and he still has the nerve to spout nonsense here!"
Sun Jihai snorted, "Don't waste your breath on him. Our victory over Türkiye on the field is the best rebuttal to him!"
Li Weifeng laughed and said, "Didn't you see that he was interviewed by Spanish media? This shows that Chinese media don't care about him anymore."
"Maybe he's already thinking that if he can't make it in China, he'll go to Spain, haha!" Ye Xian walked into the conference room at this moment, followed by Milu, Jin Zhiyang and others.
Of course, Ye Xian wasn't just saying this casually.
One day in the future, Helidon really did run away to Spain...
But now is not the time to talk about these things.
Ye Xian continued, "Alright, what Helidon says isn't important. What's important is whether we can prove our strength once again!"
Then, he pulled the tactics board in front of everyone and began to place the chess pieces on it.
Everyone quieted down.
Everyone, including Milu, was looking at Ye Xian.
Ye Xian had already discussed the tactics for this match with the coaching staff yesterday, and everyone felt there were no problems.
Or rather, some coaches felt it might be a bit risky, but still chose to trust Ye Xian.
The match against Brazil has significantly elevated Ye Xian's status within the team!
Therefore, Ye Xian will lead the speech today, and we will practice this tactic in the next few days!
"Everyone should be very clear about the qualification situation. We must defeat Türkiye to have any hope of qualifying."
"So this time, unlike the match against Brazil, we won't defend to the death, but will seize every possible opportunity to attack."
"A draw? That's not an option. Let me reiterate, our goal is to advance from the group stage!"
"The Turks will likely assume we'll still play a 5-4-1 defensive formation, so they'll do this..."
"Then let's do it this way..."
……
At the same time.
Meanwhile, at the Turkish base, a "comprehensive encirclement and suppression" campaign against the Chinese national football team had already quietly begun.
In the conference room, the projector repeatedly played a video of the China-Brazil match. Assistant coach Kolark stood next to head coach Güneš, clutching a thick notebook of tactical analysis notes.
The two looked serious, their eyes fixed on the screen.
"Look here." Güneš reached out and tapped the Chinese national team's defensive positioning on the screen.
"China's 5-4-1 bus formation against Brazil was perfect. The five defenders were compact and compact, the four midfielders formed two defensive barriers, and when everyone was tracking back, even striker Yang Chen had to drop back to his own half, giving Brazil no space to penetrate."
Kolark immediately leaned forward, quickly marking notes in his notebook with his fingertips, and then added:
"I analyzed the entire match repeatedly. Their defensive discipline was extremely strong. Every player strictly executed the tactics and covered for each other in a timely manner. Brazil's attacking duo gave it their all but couldn't break through their defense. It's hard to imagine that this was coached by a translator."
Güneche leaned back slowly in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, his eyes filled with certainty:
"But he's just a translator after all. He might study a particular tactic as he says, but he could never master more than that! Perhaps, that's the only tactic he knows."
"Moreover, since they played so well against Brazil using this tactic, they will definitely continue to use this style of play, even if it's just out of habit."
"Therefore, the Chinese team will definitely use the same 5-4-1 formation and continue to park the bus when they play against us next."
"Furthermore, as a newcomer to the World Cup and a generally recognized weak team, the Chinese team should be relatively satisfied with their current performance."
"In their view, if they can force us to a draw again, they can at least save face even if they fail to qualify. Therefore, they will never put too much effort into their attack, because that could lead to us overwhelming them."
"That's exactly what happened in their first game against Costa Rica. They pressed too high up the pitch in an attempt to score, but instead they conceded a series of goals."
"You're right," Kolak said, flipping through his notebook and reading aloud what he had written: "In the China-Brazil match, the Chinese team only managed two shots on goal throughout the entire game, almost giving up on attacking and focusing all their energy on defense. Their players, especially the defenders, are used to collapsing into defense and are not good at pushing forward to attack. Their wingers only occasionally made runs forward and posed little threat."
Güneš nodded: "This way we can focus more on attacking, but we can't be as foolish as Brazil, only focusing on penetrating through the middle. We need to utilize high balls and crosses from the wings to break down their 5-4-1 defense!"
Kolar immediately understood Güneš's intention: "You mean, use the 3-5-2 formation we've practiced before, arrange for the two wing-backs to push forward and attack, and cross the ball to Suker and Sas when the opportunity arises?"
"That's right, we need to increase our attacking numbers; we don't need to be as conservative as we were against Brazil." Güneš nodded, his tone brimming with confidence.
"We've figured out their tactics. They just pack the defense with lots of players in the penalty area and don't attack proactively. As long as we maintain high pressure and keep attacking their defense with multi-pronged attacks, we'll break the deadlock sooner or later and advance smoothly!"
……