Chapter 526 The Italians are in tears!

“This kid…”

In the coaching booth, Bosque saw Ramos miss the penalty and his beard stood up in anger.

If the ball had been scored just now, Spain would have been able to re-establish its lead and the rest of the game would have been easier.

But who would have thought that Ramos missed such a good opportunity. I really don’t know what to say.

The score between the two sides was tense, and Spain made the first substitution.

Thiago came on to replace Fabregas who was exhausted and performing poorly.

Perhaps because he had a bad year playing for Chelsea in the past year, Fabregas's form has declined compared to last year.

This made the old coach frown even deeper. Born in 1987, Fabregas is considered a relatively young player among the 1985 generation.

If he is not in good form, Spain will have one less player available in the midfield.

When the fans in the stands and in front of the TV saw Spain preparing to make a substitution, they were all looking forward to the man coming on the court.

However, to their disappointment, it was Thiago instead of Lin Quan who came on the field.

After Thiago came on the pitch, Spain's attack was still not going well.

Croatia played very tenaciously, using active running and fierce tackles to resolve crises time and time again.

Croatia even launched a very threatening counterattack during this process, but unfortunately the final shot lacked some power.

The game time quickly passed the critical point of 85 minutes, and there were less than five minutes left until the end of regular time. Even if injury time was included, there were less than 10 minutes left.

At this time, the score of the other game was still 0:2. Türkiye had a two-goal advantage and victory was in sight.

If the other game ends with this score, Croatia and Spain will advance together.

After learning the news, the head coaches of both teams wanted to call it a day.

Anyway, we have already qualified, and it seems unlikely that we will win this game. In this case, we might as well save some energy to deal with the upcoming knockout rounds.

With this thought in mind, Bosque replaced Morata and Nolito.

However, as soon as he made the substitution, Croatia immediately replaced Kovacic to strengthen the attack.

The signal of this substitution is very clear. The Croatians are not satisfied with a draw and qualifying for the group stage. They want to win and be first in the group!

After Kovacic came on, Croatia's offensive threat increased greatly.

With his abundant physical strength and outstanding ball-protecting ability, Kovacic can hold the ball in the frontcourt and complete accurate passes in a small area.

In the 87th minute, Croatia launched a counterattack. Kovacic made a key pass and assisted Perisic who came in from the left to score from a small angle.

The score on the field became 2:1, Croatia reversed Spain!

This result was beyond everyone's expectations. Few people could have imagined that Spain, which had maintained the advantage throughout the game, would be defeated by the opponent before the final whistle!

Ramos was very depressed and kicked the ball hard that rolled to his feet.

De Gea knelt on the ground and pounded the grass in frustration, feeling guilty about the save he had just made.

Alba stretched out his right hand apologetically, indicating that the previous ball was his responsibility.

After scoring the goal, Perisic and his teammates were all crazy. They actually defeated the arrogant Spain! This was a feat that countless top teams had never accomplished. I didn't expect that they would be able to achieve it one day! It was incredible! No matter what the final result of Croatia was, this victory alone was enough for their fans to remember it for a lifetime! In the coaching booth, Bosque's face was very ugly.

He felt a little guilty, blaming himself for being too arrogant.

If I had known this, I shouldn't have used up all three substitutions so early.

If he still had a substitution quota, he could still replace Lin Quan and give it a try! Lin Quan's expression was very calm. It was just a group match. If he lost, he lost. It was no big deal.

As long as they are first in the group, it would be better if they can, but it doesn’t matter if they don’t. Anyway, if they want to win the championship, they cannot be afraid of any opponent.

Moreover, the Spanish team has won too many times in the past. It is time for them to lose a game to wake up the teammates.

In the end, Spain lost 1:2 to Croatia and finished second in the group by one point.

According to the rules of the European Cup, their opponent in the round of 16 will be the first in Group E.

The only teams in Group E that could potentially compete for the top spot are Italy and Belgium. Judging from the current points situation in Group E, it is more likely that the opponent will be Italy.

After the game, at the post-match press conference, the number of reporters who wanted to interview or watch Bosque's excitement was more than in the previous two games.

Spain losing the match in the finals was in itself a sensational piece of news.

In addition, he brought Lin Quan to this game but did not give Lin Quan a chance to play, which made the outside world have too many questions to ask.

It's a pity that after losing the game, Bosque was in a bad mood. After answering a few questions hastily, he hurriedly ended the press conference and did not respond to any questions about Lin Quan.

The more he ignored the reporters' questions, the more curious they became.

They wanted to interview the player directly, but Lin Quan had already returned to the hotel on the team bus and did not give them a chance to interview him.

Lin Quan had just returned to the hotel when De Bruyne called.

"Will you play in the next game?"

"I think so. What's wrong? Why are you asking this question?"

"Well, because our next opponent is likely to be you, I wanted to call and confirm in advance!"

De Bruyne looks righteous!

"Haha, as far as I know, you have three points less than Italy. It won't be easy to reverse the situation and defeat Italy!"

Italy has won both games, and a draw in the next game will secure first place in the group. Even if they lose, they may still be able to take first place in the group based on goal difference.

Belgium not only needs to defeat their opponents, but also score as many goals as possible. Otherwise, even if they qualify, they can only get second place in the group.

They didn't play well in the first game. If Belgium had won the first game, they would be the ones who can rest easy now.

"Don't worry, we will definitely win the next game!"

De Bruyne is full of confidence, and his mentality is completely different from a week ago.

Lin Quanke remembers that De Bruyne was very lonely and confused on the court at that time.

It seems that Belgium's internal problems have been resolved, otherwise De Bruyne would not have such strong confidence.

"Okay, then you guys should work hard. Don't lose to Sweden and fail to qualify. That would be embarrassing!"

"Tsk tsk, you don't wish us well, do you? Are you afraid of meeting us in the knockout rounds, so you hope we'll be eliminated early?"

De Bruyne acted as if he could "see through" Lin Quan's thoughts.

Belgium is indeed very strong. If we just look at their strength on paper, they can rank among the top three in this European Cup.

However, the Red Devils' performance in major competitions in recent years has not been very good, and the problems within the team are not so easy to solve.

"No, no, I wish you a successful start tomorrow and win first place!"

…

After hanging up the phone, De Bruyne looked at his teammates and coach, and everyone was looking at him.

"How is it? Will Lin play in the next game?"

Facing everyone's questions, De Bruyne nodded heavily: "Based on my understanding of him, he will definitely play!"

After De Bruyne finished speaking, the scene fell into silence.

Belgium's head coach Wilmots clapped his hands, attracted everyone's attention and said, "We have to change our strategy for tomorrow's game!"

In Group E, in addition to Belgium, the Italians are also paying special attention to information about Lin Quan.

“Although there were rumors that Lin Quan was seriously injured and could not play, he appeared on the bench for Spain in the last game.

This makes me a little worried. If he really plays in the next game, Spain will become a complete team. I think everyone has seen how powerful the Spanish team is in this state! "

Spain is Italy's nemesis. In the 2012 European Cup final and the 2013 Confederations Cup semi-finals, Italy was defeated by Spain.

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The two disastrous defeats have made Italy suffer from Spain phobia. Now they are a little scared when they meet the Spanish team and don’t know how to deal with it.

So the best way is to avoid Spain and not encounter it!

"Boss, just say whatever you want to say, we all listen to you!"

The Italian internationals all looked at Conte, as if they were following his lead.

Conte nodded: "According to the rules, the first in Group E will play against the second in Group D. If we win tomorrow, we will definitely face Spain, but if we lose tomorrow, we may fall to second in the group, and then we can avoid Spain!"

"So, I will use the substitutes in the next game and try to lose the game!"

After Conte finished speaking, no one at the scene spoke up to object, and everyone seemed to agree with this decision.

The head coach has always emphasized how to win, but this is the first time I have encountered a head coach who wants the team to lose. I have never seen such a thing in my life!

…

The next day, the final round of Group E began.

As soon as the two games started, the fans smelled something unusual.

"It's strange. Italy is so confident. They sent so many substitutes. Aren't they afraid that Belgium will take away their first place in the group?"

Compared with the previous game, Italy made personnel adjustments in as many as eight positions in this game.

The main players like Chiellini, De Rossi, Pelle, Candreva all sat on the bench. If these are still considered normal rotations, then even the absolute main goalkeeper Buffon sat on the bench, isn’t it a bit too much! ?

Buffon is an absolute main force for Italy. He has no injuries and no ups and downs in form. It seems strange to suddenly put him on the bench to rest.

However, what is even more outrageous is that Italy showed no desire or ambition in this game.

Obviously, they were far ahead in ball possession, and their number of passes and pass success rate far outpaced their opponents.

However, they did not have many shots. At the end of the first half, Italy had only completed one shot, while the opponent had completed 7 shots.

If you cover the names of the two teams, you might think the left side is Ireland and the right side is Italy! Compared with the indifferent Italians, the Irish, who are facing a life-and-death battle, are obviously much more positive.

They seized every opportunity and actively attacked Italy, trying to break through Italy's unbreakable defense! Ireland now has only 1 point. If they want to qualify, they must defeat the powerful Italy. If they can beat Italy and get 4 points, they may qualify as the third in the group.

But if they lose or tie, they will definitely go home.

Compared with Italy, the battle between Belgium and Sweden in the other game was fierce.

Sweden also has one point in hand. If they can beat Belgium, they will qualify with 4 points! Conversely, the same is true for Belgium. Losing the game means elimination, so they can't lose no matter what! Both teams' offenses were quite resolute, and the offensive rhythm of both sides was very fast. In the first half alone, both sides contributed nearly 20 shots! De Bruyne's condition today is much better than before. Whether it is on the offensive or defensive end, you can see his presence.

He actively returned to defense and even completed a thrilling interception on the goal line. If he hadn't saved the team on the goal line, Belgium might have fallen behind.

The two teams played very fiercely, but the goals were slow to come, which made the players and fans of both teams more nervous and anxious.

As a result, the actions of both sides became more and more intense, and yellow cards were issued one after another.

Soon, both games had passed 80 minutes, but the score remained 0:0 and no one scored a goal.

The fans and head coaches on both sides were extremely nervous. While watching this game, they were also closely following the outcome of the other game.

As time went by, the hearts of fans from the four countries were in their throats.

In the 84th minute of the second half, Sweden and Belgium broke the deadlock.

Belgium's captain Hazard stood up and assisted his teammate Nainggolan to score a goal, helping Belgium take the lead 1:0!

This goal was crucial. Scoring this goal basically ensured that Belgium got a qualifying spot.

Unless Sweden can score two goals in the last few minutes and reverse the game, Belgium can rest easy.

Belgium's goal stimulated Italy and Ireland.

The Italians were overjoyed. Belgium was the only team that could replace them as the top team in the group! But one goal was not enough. Belgium's goal difference was still one goal behind Italy. Belgium needed to score more goals! The Irish were also anxious. The Belgians had already qualified. If they could not score as soon as possible, they might have to go home with the Swedes.

As a result, the Irish, who were greatly stimulated, made a desperate counterattack.

I thought this attack would be as fruitless as the previous ones, but who knew that the "impregnable" defense of the Italians was like a shoddy project and was easily broken with just one poke.

Irish midfielder Brady shot through Italy's defense and helped the team change the score to 1:0!

The Irish went crazy, this was a goal as precious as gold!

After scoring this goal, they basically secured a place in the knockout round.

However, the performance of the Italian opponents left them confused.

After conceding the goal, the Italian was not frustrated. Instead, he quickly rushed into his own goal, fished the ball out, put it back in the center circle, and then ran to urge the referee to let the Irish end the celebration and return to the game.

Seeing this scene, the Irish players stood in awe:

Italy is indeed a traditional strong team. Their players have a strong sense of honor. In such a desperate situation, they still wanted to equalize the score. It is really admirable! However, the real thoughts of the Italians are not what the Irish think!

The reason why the Italians are so anxious is that after Ireland scored a goal, their goal difference is the same as Belgium, and the points are also the same, but because of the win-loss record between the two teams, Italy is still ranked ahead of Belgium.

If Italy wants to rank second, either Belgium scores another goal or they concede another goal, otherwise all their previous efforts will be in vain!

How can Italians not be anxious when thinking about these bad things?

They are in a hurry to start the game and keep losing the ball! But the Irish completely misunderstood their meaning. Seeing the Italians were so active, they were a little scared and tried to delay as much as possible, not giving Italy time to counterattack.

After the restart, they stopped attacking and focused on defense!

For the Irish, one goal is enough, no need to be greedy for more!

All this makes the Italians want to cry without tears! I don’t want to be the first in the group, who can give me death!

(End of this chapter)