Chapter 135: The Battle of Britain and France (3) 10 Minutes of Shine
In the minds of football fans, penalty kicks represent a goal that is sure to go in. But what most people cannot understand is that many big-name football stars have fallen here.
Van Basten in the 1992 European Cup, Baggio and Baresi of Italy in the 1994 World Cup, Dutch strikers Frank de Boer, Kluivert, Bosvelt, Stam in the 2000 European Cup, Spanish captain Raul and so on, these famous superstars almost all have the experience of missing penalties in key matches.
Now, it is the turn of England's new captain David Beckham. This is the 14th missed penalty in normal match time in the history of the European Cup. Interestingly, the last three missed penalties were all awarded by Collina.
Although it is a very disappointing thing for the fans that their favorite star missed a penalty, and it is more likely to affect the outcome of this important group match between England and France, but in fact, the players involved are the most painful, because it will cause a great shadow in the players' hearts and affect their performance on the court.
At this time, the camera was pointed at Beckham on the green field. He was seen squatting on the ground with his hands covering his cheeks. After a long time, he slowly stood up and waved to his teammates to signal that he was fine.
Seeing that the ball did not go in, head coach Eriksson on the sidelines frowned, looked at the bench, and then shook his head. If Beckham was replaced now, it might affect his mentality, and then affect future games. Eriksson finally gave up this idea.
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However, the game did not end because of Beckham's loss, and the French team launched another fierce attack.
Vieira dribbled the ball in the middle, played a wall pass with Zidane, shook off two defenders, and passed the ball diagonally to Gallas on the left. In the second half of the game, the French left back gave up defense and fully fulfilled his duties as a left winger, and his breakthroughs and passes were indeed very threatening.
When he saw Zidane in the middle shake off the player defending him and advance from the left side of the penalty area, Gallas kicked the ball hard with his right foot and the ball flew to Zidane's feet. Zidane didn't even stop the ball. He just kicked it with his heel and the ball changed direction while rolling quickly and rolled towards the front of the penalty area.
There is Makelele, he has raised his right foot and is ready to shoot!
Seeing Makelele's move, Wang Li, who was watching intently on the bench, stood up directly. After carefully observing the game situation, he knew that this shot was very dangerous, because goalkeeper Howard was standing in the left corner of the goal at this time. Blocked by the players' figures, he had no idea that the ball was almost at Makelele's feet and he was ready to shoot.
At this time, something no one expected happened. Makelele was kicked down to the court by Ashley Cole behind him!
Obviously, a very serious foul!
The referee Collina ran over and showed Ashley Cole a red card without thinking!
Ashley Cole knew that his foul was very serious, and he walked towards the bench without further explanation. For England's victory, a red card was worth it. Even Eriksson nodded at Cole, who was walking over. Obviously, he was very satisfied with Cole's reaction. If Makelele had been allowed to shoot, France would have tied the score in all likelihood, and the situation on the field would have been very unfavorable to England.
However, the crisis did not stop because of Ashley Cole's foul. The French team won a free kick slightly to the right of the penalty area and about 23 meters away from the goal. This position was too threatening!
While the French players were whispering to each other, Owen quickly signaled to the head coach that he could no longer keep up physically.
Eriksson turned his head and looked at the bench. The players who were now suitable to play were Wang Li and Phil Neville. He was a little hesitant. Now England was temporarily leading. Of course, it would be safer to replace a defender to strengthen the defense, but the black-haired boy was also a good choice. You know, offense is the best defense.
"Alan, Phil, go warm up." Eriksson asked the two to warm up together after being hesitant. Who will play in the game depends on the free kick of the French team.
Wang Li, who was concentrating on watching the situation on the field, was stunned for a moment, then immediately reacted with surprise. He hurriedly took off his coat, walked to a place a little away from the bench, and started doing some warm-up exercises.
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At this time, on the field, the French team was preparing to take a free kick.
Under the cheers of the French fans in the audience, France's No. 10, the hub of the team's offense, the 'master of art' Zidane stood in front of the ball. Everyone knows that Zidane has a gorgeous level of ball control, but one cannot ignore his free kick level. In the star-studded French team, he is the number one penalty taker.
Under the guidance of the referee, Zidane placed the ball on the foul spot, jumped twice on the spot, then took two steps back, stood with his hands on his hips, looking expressionlessly in the direction of the England team's goal, waiting for the England team to line up their human wall.
Zidane is 32 years old this year. He has experienced too much and gained too much in his career. Under the gaze of tens of thousands of fans, in such an important game, facing such a crucial penalty kick, he did not feel nervous at all.
Yes, no tension, only anticipation.
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After a long delay, the England team finally formed a human wall of five players. However, many "cunning" players took advantage of the opportunity when the referee Collina was not paying attention and took a small step forward by twisting their feet. Do not underestimate this small step, as it will have a huge impact on the free kicker because it will increase the difficulty of the penalty kick.
However, the French players had been staring at this human defensive line. Seeing the England players' small movements, Vieira immediately protested to the referee. At Collina's signal, the players in the human wall could only retreat a little further.
After everything was ready, Collina blew the whistle, signaling Zidane that he could take the penalty kick.
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With a "beep..." sound, and with the referee's whistle, Zidane started to run up, took three steps in a row in rhythm, swung his right foot suddenly, and hit the lower right corner of the ball hard. Then, without even looking at the direction of the ball, he just followed the swing of his body and stretched his right fist towards the sky.
Wang Li, who was walking towards the bench, stopped where he was. He saw the ball sliding in a beautiful arc in the air, bypassing the England team's wall, and going into the lower left corner of the goal along the goal post.
Goalkeeper James tried his best to save the ball, but the ball was too fast and he was completely powerless!
"Yes, it's this kind of ball." Wang Li's current training goal is this kind of arc free kick. He doesn't know when he will be able to kick such a wonderful goal.
But Wang Li immediately became determined. He believed that as long as he worked hard, he would be rewarded sooner or later.
"Goal! Zidane scored a wonderful free kick to help France tie the score!" Graham felt very... sorry when he saw France score. "England led the entire game, but was tied in the final minutes. Now it's the 81st minute. Who will be the winner of the England-France battle? There is a lot of suspense again. Come on, England!"
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While the French team was celebrating, what surprised the audience was that the director switched the camera to a black-haired boy on the sidelines. After a while, they noticed that Owen was slowly walking towards the bench. It seemed that the England team was going to make a substitution.
But who is this young dark-haired guy?
The commentator Francisco Farfis immediately answered the fans' questions, "The England team made a substitution. They substituted No. 21 player Alan Wang. According to research, this young player is only 17 years old, making him the youngest player in this European Championship. Perhaps many fans have never heard of him."
At this point, the commentator's tone immediately became more intense. "However, there is a name that everyone must have heard of, that is, 'The Prophet'! That's right, this black-haired boy is the new player of the England team who predicted the results of three games in a row before the game, and each time was accurate. Before the game, he loudly declared to the media that the England team would definitely win. Perhaps, in the first 80 minutes of this game, we still trust him, but when the French team equalizes the score, will his prediction still be accurate?"
"Let's see what this 'Prophet' will do on the field. But I bet that if he can score a goal, I will let my Harry ride on me in public. By the way, Harry is a German shepherd that I raise."
Farfis's words made the fans at the scene laugh. They just regarded it as a joke. No one believed that a 17-year-old player who had just joined the national team could have any performance, let alone score a goal. Besides, there were less than 10 minutes left in the game.
In the 82nd minute of the game, the England team made a substitution and Wang Li stood on the European arena for the first time.
PS: Thanks to the basketball god BOSS Fei Ge for recommending my chapter, thank you!