Chapter 291 Brazil team unexpectedly overturned, Spain VS Chile!
Although it was a big victory, there are still hidden dangers for Spain.
Diego Costa's old injury recurred, leaving Spain with less upfront resources than before.
Without Diego Costa, Spain lacks a strong center and scoring point on the front line, and the scoring pressure on other positions in the frontcourt, especially Lin Quan, will be greater.
After the game, Bosque immediately sent someone to the hospital to understand Costa's injury and confirmed that he had a recurrence of an old injury in his right thigh.
Based on the results of the examination, the national team's doctor judged that Costa would have to rest for at least two weeks before he would have a chance to continue playing.
Two weeks means that he will not only miss the remaining two group stage games, but he may not even make it to the quarter-finals.
However, after hearing the news, Bosque breathed a sigh of relief.
In his opinion, there will be no problem for Spain to qualify from the group.
After getting first place in the group, the opponents in the first knockout match will not be very strong and it will not be difficult for them to advance to the quarterfinals.
The quarter-finals will be held on July 5th and 6th, which is more than 20 days away, almost 3 weeks.
This time should be enough for Diego Costa to recover, and there should also be time for him to get into shape with the team.
However, to be on the safe side, Bosque decided to decide whether to let him play in the quarter-finals based on his recovery.
If it really doesn't work, just delay it for a few days, and let him play in the semi-finals and finals after he recovers well enough.
Of course, the prerequisite is that Spain can make it to the semi-finals.
On June 18, the Brazil VS Mexico match started first.
Compared to the first opponent Croatia, Mexico is much stronger.
So, this game is a real test for the Brazilian team.
The outside world is paying close attention to this game because it is a key match to judge the quality of the Brazilian team.
Judging from the performance of each team in the first round of group matches, there are four favorites to win this World Cup, namely Spain, Brazil, Germany and Argentina.
If it weren't for the terrifying dominance shown by Spain, the host Brazil team would most likely become the biggest favorite to win the championship.
Even though it was not the biggest favorite, the Brazilian team's game still attracted countless spectators.
When the game started, there were more than 60,000 fans in the stadium.
Countless Samba fans who support the Brazilian team came from all over the country to cheer for their home team.
When the Brazilian national anthem sounded before the game, the 60,000 fans in the stadium, the players on the field and the coaches on the sidelines sang together in unison, showing the unprecedented unity of Brazil.
Brazil's top star Neymar was even moved to tears when the national anthem was played.
The world's number one defender Thiago Silva sang with his eyes closed, feeling that every drop of blood in his veins was boiling.
He couldn't wait to beat the Mexican! However, 90 minutes later, Thiago Silva felt cold inside, and Neymar, who had shed tears before the game, was crying again.
The big screen in the stadium showed a number that all Brazilian players and fans could not accept - 0:0. After 90 minutes of play, the second favorite to win the championship, Brazil, was actually tied by Mexico.
It would have been fine if they had just tied the game, but the key point is that they were shutout.
The Brazilian team, which is always known for its strong offensive firepower, performed very poorly in this game, and their powerful forward line was completely silenced.
Despite being in control throughout the game, Brazil's shooters wasted countless chances and were eventually punished.
After losing this victory, they have the same points as Mexico, and both teams have the chance to win first place in the group.
If Brazil does not want to face other strong teams that are the first in the group in the knockout stage, they must win the last round of the group stage and score as many goals as possible, otherwise they are very likely to fall to second place in the group.
According to the rules of the World Cup, the first place in Group A will play against the second place in Group B, and the second place in Group A will play against the first place in Group B.
Spain is currently the first in Group B. If Brazil fails to qualify as the first in the group, they will face Spain in the round of 16! Given the current state of the two teams, Brazil's chance of defeating Spain is probably less than 30%! Therefore, this score of the Brazilian team not only hurt themselves, but also affected Spain next door.
Originally they only had to play against a second-rate team like Mexico in the quarter-finals, but now, because of Brazil's upset, the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds may have to meet in advance.
This intensity was at its maximum! For Mexico, they could totally accept this score.
After all, compared to losing, the current score is more favorable for them to compete for the first place in the group.
If they want to reach the quarterfinals, they must not meet Spain.
Therefore, in the next game, they will fight Croatia to the death, try to defeat Croatia and get enough goals.
The best player of the match was awarded to Mexican goalkeeper Ochoa.
In this game, he made a total of 6 great saves.
In the 26th minute of the game, Neymar headed the ball into the blind corner, but it was miraculously saved by Ochoa.
Slow-motion replay later showed that he fished the ball out of the goal line almost at the moment it crossed the goal line!
This is not the most amazing thing. At the end of the game, Ochoa had a subconscious reaction as if assisted by God on the goal line, and blocked Thiago Silva's close-range header on the small penalty area line with his right hand.
This save made the Brazilians feel extremely desperate, and their commentator exclaimed: The person standing on the goal line for the Mexican team today is not a man, but a god!
The draw between Brazil and Mexico is definitely good news for Croatia and Cameroon.
As long as the two teams can defeat each other, they can keep their hopes of qualifying until the last round. As long as they defeat their opponents in the last round, they will be able to qualify smoothly.
As a result, both teams played very vigorously in this game, and in the end, Croatia, which was stronger, had the last laugh.
In the game, Modric and Mandzukic contributed 3 goals together, helping the team to sweep Cameroon 4:0.
After winning this game, Croatia can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
As long as they beat Mexico in the last round, they will qualify from the group. If Brazil loses, they can even qualify as the first in the group.
Cameroon, which lost both games, was eliminated one round early and became the first team to be eliminated in this World Cup.
The changes in Group A alarmed Bosque: "Damn Brazilians, how did they flip over?"
Brazil doesn't want to encounter Spain too early, and Spain doesn't want to encounter them too early.
Diego Costa has not yet returned from injury. If Spain faces Brazil in the first round of the knockout stage, it will be even more difficult to defeat their opponent.
So, he planned to make some preparations in advance.
"We will go all out in this match. After we beat Chile, we will send out substitutes in the final round to let the main players rest for as long as possible. After recuperating, we will be better able to deal with the opponents in the knockout stage!"
The knockout matches of the World Cup are all decided in one game, regardless of home or away, so the margin for error is very low.
Even a strong team can easily fail.
What's more, facing an equally strong opponent, it would be even easier to fail.
For the Chilean team, being placed in Group B, which brings together the champions and runners-up of the previous World Cup, is definitely the biggest misfortune.
However, as a strong team in South America, they will not give up easily.
The Netherlands team is currently in poor form. In the first game, they were slaughtered by Spain 5:1. In the second round that just ended, they only barely defeated the weakest team Australia with a score of 3:2.
This gave the Chileans hope of qualifying! On paper, the Chilean team is definitely not as good as the Spanish team or the Dutch team.
But the ball is round and anything can happen on the field.
If they unexpectedly beat the powerful Spain, their chances of qualifying would be very optimistic! Of course, even if they lose, it is not the end of the world.
Currently Chile has a goal difference of 4, while the Netherlands has a goal difference of -3.
This means that in the final round they will face the Netherlands team, and as long as they beat or draw with them, they will advance.
The prerequisite is that you don’t lose this game too badly!
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So, of course, the Chilean team parked the bus for this game.
Losing less is winning, and if you can force a draw with the opponent, that would be even better!
Even if they lose, they have to limit the number of goals conceded to less than 2, so that their goal difference will still be higher than that of the Dutch.
Seeing the opponent's iron bucket formation, Bosque's mouth twitched slightly.
It turned out to be an iron bucket formation, he was right.
Breaking through dense defenses is a problem for all teams in the world, and Spain is no exception.
In this game, the opponent's defense was even more exaggerated than the Netherlands team in the previous game. Spain had no choice but to adopt a ball possession and pressure style, trying to find opportunities around the opponent's goal.
The first 30 minutes of the game were uneventful. Spain had an astonishingly high possession rate and the players' pass success rate was also very high, but they just couldn't score.
Their attacks were blocked by the opponent again and again. Even if they couldn't be blocked occasionally, the opponent would use decisive fouls to disrupt Spain's attack.
In thirty minutes, the Chilean team had received three yellow cards.
Judging from the number of cards they received, they still felt the tremendous pressure brought to them by the Spanish team.
In this game, Chile's goalkeeper Bravo performed very well.
In the 15th minute of the game, he saved a one-on-one shot by Torres, and in the 27th minute he saved a long shot by Lin Quan.
Both shots were very threatening. If it weren't for Bravo's heroic performance, Spain would have been leading by now.
On the World Cup stage, in addition to the fans who are keen on watching the game, there are also scouts from major clubs.
With his outstanding performance, Bravo won praise from many scouts, including some from top clubs, such as Barcelona!
Faced with the opponent's iron-clad defense, the Spanish team began to try to use set pieces and long shots.
In the 35th minute, Lin Quan created space in front of the penalty area and suddenly shot a high-quality long shot.
It was Bravo again. He lifted the ball over the crossbar with one hand and once again resolved the team's crisis.
Seeing the opponent's save, Lin Quan put his hands on his hips, feeling a little helpless.
Why does this guy feel more powerful than Buffon and Neuer?
Every time the World Cup comes, there are always a lot of goalkeepers who perform brilliantly.
Xavi took a corner kick and there was chaos in the penalty area. Ramos and the opponent's defender Venna both fell to the ground during the fight, but the referee did not make any comments.
Pique got the chance to score, but his header was not strong enough and was easily caught by Bravo.
The latter was bold and careful. Seeing that most of the Spanish players were in their own half, he rushed out directly in front of the goal and threw the ball to winger Sanchez with a hand throw.
Sanchez dribbled the ball along the sidelines, accelerating like a sports car and quickly heading towards the Spanish half.
The Chilean team did park the bus today, but that doesn't mean they gave up attacking.
With a trump card like Sanchez, how could they give up their advantage? The Spanish defense was empty, and the two central defenders were trying to score in the opponent's penalty area! At the critical moment, Busquets stood up and knocked down his club teammate with a tactical foul.
Although Busquets admitted his mistake very well, the referee still gave him the maximum penalty - a red card! Seeing this penalty, Busquets was stunned.
He committed the foul on the wing, quite far from the goal, and Sanchez had not yet had a one-on-one opportunity. This should be a yellow card, not a red card, right?
He tried desperately to explain to the referee, trying to get him to change his decision.
But the referee insisted it was a red card and did not accept Busquets' protest.
His judgment was simple: Sanchez had already passed the half court and was about to dribble inside, and Busquets was the last defender. His foul ruined Chile's one-on-one chance, so this was a red card! Seeing this penalty, Bosque on the sidelines was also a little excited.
He ran to the fourth official and protested loudly, but to no avail. It was obviously impossible for the fourth official to stop or change the referee's decision.
Just like that, before the end of the first half, Spain was one man short.
In desperation, Bosque could only make a passive substitution.
He replaced Torres with Xabi Alonso.
The opponent's tight defense made Torres lost again. His performance in this game was very bad and he was almost invisible in the frontcourt.
Replacing him will have the least impact on Spain's lineup, but the key position of defensive midfielder is absolutely indispensable.
Torres, who was substituted, seemed a little depressed. He also felt that he was struggling in his play.
He does not have the excellent dribbling and passing abilities of Lin Quan. In the face of dense defense, it is difficult for him to get the ball and to run out of space.
Therefore, he had no complaints about Bosque's decision to replace him. If he had to blame someone, it was only his own lack of strength.
However, Torres was obviously very unwilling in his heart.
The team was missing one player, and the opponent set up a solid defense again.
The situation of the game became very unfavorable for Spain, which made the fans who came to the Maracana Stadium worried: Could it be that Spain would also follow in the footsteps of the Brazilian team and be tied by Chile? However, at this moment, someone stood up.
In the 43rd minute, Lin Quan and his teammates made a wonderful cooperation in the frontcourt, broke into the penalty area and received a pass from Iniesta.
Facing Bravo, who had saved his own shots countless times before, Lin Quan did not shoot directly, but continued to dribble inside! He actually wanted to pass the goalkeeper!
(End of this chapter)