Chapter 158 Liu Xiang appears at San Siro, heroes appreciate heroes If Lazio could still fight Inter Milan back and forth in their home court in the last game, now at Inter Milan's home court, the Blue Eagle can only fold its wings and turn from an eagle into a chicken. At the beginning of the game, Inter Milan skipped the trial stage and launched a direct attack on Lazio's goal amid the cheers of tens of thousands of fans on the scene. Although Materazzi and Adriano were unable to play due to red card suspensions, Inter Milan's strength was not greatly affected. The frontcourt combination of Lin Feng + Martins + Figo + super substitute Cruz has a chemical reaction with each other that is even better than when Adriano is on the court. Lin Feng continued his excellent form and perfectly took on the role of Inter Milan's brain and commander on the field. Under his dispatch and control, Inter Milan always firmly controlled the rhythm on the field, using the width of the field to continuously launch fierce attacks on opponents from both sides. Lazio's two full-backs were beaten to death by Inter Milan's attacks from the flanks and were running around in a hurry. The defensive pressure on the flanks also radiated to the middle, and their midfielders had to devote more energy to assisting in defending the flanks. But in this way, their central defense became weak.
In the 9th minute of the first half, after Lin Feng got the ball on the flank, he did not pass it to his teammates on the wing. Instead, he seized the opportunity when the opponent's midfielder was close to the wing and the middle was empty, and suddenly cut inside. This choice caught the opponent off guard. Lazio's midfielder was thrown away by Lin Feng and failed to stick to him in the first place. Lazio's two central defenders were shocked, and one of them rushed up quickly, trying to hold off Lin Feng. But after seeing the opponent's actions, Lin Feng decisively chose to take a long shot. Before the opponent's central defender rushed up, the ball had already gone straight to the goal. The quality of the shot was extremely high and the goalkeeper just managed to save it. If he had reacted a little slower, Lazio would have fallen behind at the start. There were exclamations and sighs in the stands, and many Inter Milan fans felt sorry for this ball. Liu Xiang couldn't help but sigh. From his angle just now, he really felt that the ball was successful. I didn't expect the opponent's goalkeeper to react so quickly and save the ball with extreme speed. Lin Feng's long shot startled everyone on Lazio's defense. After seeing the power of Lin Feng's long-range shot, they no longer dared to leave such a large gap for the opponent in the middle. But in this case, defense on the wing becomes a problem again! In the 15th minute of the first half, Lin Feng deliberately guided the opponent's defensive formation to move to the left side by controlling the ball. After the opponent's right wing was vacant, he suddenly made a long diagonal pass and found Inter Milan's right-wing god - Figo! Figo quickly dribbled the ball towards the penalty area. After the opponent's defender came out, he seized the opportunity to pass the ball through the crotch and gave it to Inter Milan's striker Cruz. Jin Cruz did not waste his teammate's wonderful pass. After receiving the ball, he pushed the ball into Lazio's goal. The score became 1:0, and Inter Milan broke the deadlock first. The moment Cruz scored the goal, the entire Meazza Stadium was boiling like boiling water. Liu Xiang was caught off guard and was startled by the sudden and huge noise. He was secretly surprised in his heart and couldn't help but sigh: It’s worthy of being the world’s number one sport, it’s really crazy! But I seem to have heard that the Bird's Nest, the main venue of the Beijing Olympics, has a larger capacity and can accommodate more than 9 spectators. I wonder if I can get even crazier applause and cheers when I perform at the Bird’s Nest?
After the first goal, the second goal came quickly. In the 22nd minute, Inter Milan won a corner kick. Lin Feng's pass accurately found Cruz who was lying in ambush at the back post. The Brazilian, like pulling up onions in dry land, used a lion's head shake and sent the ball into the opponent's goal again. The score became 2:0, and Inter Milan's super substitute scored twice in just fifteen minutes. Since renewing his contract with Inter Milan during the winter break, Cruz has been in very excited form. Not only did he continue his excellent form from the first half of the season, but his overall performance even improved, and he played more actively, proactively and desperately! Although Cruz is 190cm tall, he is not a fulcrum-type striker with particularly strong physical confrontation ability. On the contrary, his footwork is very delicate, so delicate that he can play as a second striker or even a front midfielder. But now, Cruz can not only cooperate with his teammates with his delicate footwork, but also actively use his body to fight for the ball, act as the fulcrum of the team and create space for his teammates. Even when he is fully fit, he can do some dirty work in the frontcourt. By running and pressing, he can interfere with the opponent's backcourt players' passing and put more psychological pressure on the opponent. Inter Milan's third goal was scored through the pressing of the players in the frontcourt! In the 36th minute of the first half, Lazio's defender made a pass error under the continuous pressure of Lin Feng, Cruz and others. The passing route was predicted by Inter Milan players in advance, and after the ball was intercepted, it was immediately passed to Lin Feng's feet. After receiving the ball, Lin Feng got rid of the opponent's interception laterally, accelerated and ran all the way with the ball, heading straight for the opponent's goal. The Inter fans in the stands have stood up collectively, craning their necks in anticipation: "Here it comes, the attack that Lin Feng is best at!" The reason why the fans are so excited is that they know very well that as long as Lin Feng is given enough open space and allowed to increase his speed, he will be invincible on the court! The same is true! After completing the acceleration, Lin Feng rode away, leaving all the pursuers behind, and rushed into Lazio's penalty area like a charging knight. Lazio's goalkeeper chose to attack, but it was too late. The moment Lin Feng entered the penalty area, he aimed at the upper right corner of the goal and completed a lob shot. The goalkeeper was helpless in dealing with the ball that passed over his head and could only watch it go into the net. 3: 0! The total score is 4:1. Considering that Inter Milan has an away goal, the opponent must score three goals in the next game to advance to the next round. Throughout the first half, Lazio's ball possession rate was less than 3% and they only had 3 shots. Inter Milan killed the game in the first half! "nice shot!" "Going in beautifully!" Liu Xiang, who was completely infected by the hot atmosphere at the scene, clapped his hands excitedly and cheered loudly like an ordinary fan.
In an environment like a football stadium, even the most reserved person can easily be infected by the passion and enthusiasm of the fans. What's more, this goal came from Lin Feng, which made Liu Xiang even more unable to remain calm. Coincidentally, when Liu Xiang stood up to applaud Lin Feng, a camera at the scene just captured him. The appearance of yellow people is very easy to distinguish in such occasions, let alone a celebrity like Liu Xiang. So, the camera locked its lens firmly on Liu Xiang's face, and the director immediately switched his lens to the big screen on the scene. "Oooh!" “The Chinese flying man!” Among the Inter Milan fans at the scene, some recognized Liu Xiang. Liu Xiang was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect to be discovered so quickly. But he is not an introvert. When he saw the camera was focused on him, he waved at the camera generously and greeted the fans at the scene. A hospitable Inter Milan fan nearby presented him with a hat with the Inter Milan badge printed on it. Liu Xiang took it and put it on his head without hesitation. This move won the favor of all Inter Milan fans at the scene, and they began to applaud and cheer for Liu Xiang. Lin Feng, who was celebrating the goal on the sidelines, was also a little surprised to see this scene. Brother Xiang is really something! He has captured the hearts of Inter Milan fans so quickly! Seeing Liu Xiang looking at him, Lin Feng gave him a thumbs up. Liu Xiang laughed, raised his hands and gave him two thumbs up. The interaction between the two was captured by the broadcast camera and spread to thousands of households through the live TV broadcast. "It's Liu Xiang!" "Why is he there?" "You didn't come here specifically to watch Lin Feng's game, did you?" "When did they meet?" "Looking at their interactions, they seem to have a very good personal relationship, but why have we never heard of them having any contact before?" "As the saying goes, heroes appreciate heroes. One of them is the number one in Chinese track and field, and the other is the number one in Chinese football. It's normal for them to appreciate each other, right?" "Haha, I hope they can keep up the good work and strive to win glory for the country in different events at the Beijing Olympics!" At this time, Liu Xiang had no negative news and the public's attitude towards him was all unconditional support. As for Lin Feng, he also has a very good reputation in China. The audience all support the interaction between these two athletes with strong professional abilities and good conduct. "If we add Yao Ming, it will be complete!" …… After the start of the second half, Lazio tried hard to launch a counterattack.
But Inter Milan's defense was very strong and completely resolved the opponent's offensive. After withstanding Lazio's three-pronged attack, the game returned to Inter Milan's rhythm. During the half-time break, Mancini made some adjustments to Inter Milan's tactical play. With a huge lead in hand, their main task in the second half was not to attack, but to control the tempo of the game as much as possible and reduce physical energy consumption. Although Inter Milan has won 11 consecutive games in the league, fighting on two fronts will consume a lot of physical energy for the players. After this game, they will face the challenge of the next league opponent at home in less than three days. Now that Inter Milan has secured its place in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia, it will naturally focus on the league. However, although the tactics have changed, Inter Milan's offensive threat has not decreased at all. When Inter Milan changed their tactics, they played smooth and even gorgeous passing and cutting combinations in the frontcourt many times. Lin Feng, Figo, Veron and even forward Cruz all have very delicate footwork skills. Under the command and guidance of Lin Feng, the team's brain, Inter Milan even prevented the opponents from touching the ball during the attack. The continuous passes and the clever movement of Inter Milan players caused chaos in Lazio's defense. This kind of fast-paced pass can easily affect the judgment of defensive players, causing them to follow the ball and subconsciously forget their positions and responsibilities. However, this type of offense requires a high level of skills, awareness, and mutual understanding among the players. It is difficult to play such smooth cooperation if you are not the type of people who train and play together for a long time. Inter Milan's first few attacks failed due to lack of tacit understanding between the players and errors in coordination. But after a few attempts, the players gained confidence. In the 67th minute, Inter Milan's attack returned. Lin Feng started the attack from the wing like a dancing butterfly. He relied on passing and cutting along the way to bring the ball to the front of the opponent's penalty area. Cruz stood in position and Lin Feng passed the ball to him. The latter did not turn around, but turned his back to Lin Feng and passed the ball into the penalty area with a flirtatious heel pass. After receiving the ball, Lin Feng did not shoot directly, but passed the ball to his teammates and continued to run forward. Lazio's defense was completely in chaos, with almost all the players running after the ball. But how can a human catch up with the ball at such a fast speed? When Figo passed the ball, there was already an empty goal in front of Lin Feng. Even the opponent's goalkeeper was fooled by his pass and ran to defend Figo! There was no suspense at all. After receiving the ball, Lin Feng easily shot into the empty goal. The score became 4:0, Lazio was completely defeated.
The process of scoring this goal was so exciting that the Inter Milan fans at the scene were fascinated by it. The fans watching the live broadcast in front of the TV were equally shocked! Is this still the Inter Milan I know? If you say this is Barcelona, I will believe it! "Too strong, really too strong!" "As expected of the team that broke the Serie A winning streak, Inter Milan is incredibly strong this season!" “Who can resist the attack of Inter Milan’s frontcourt team?” Inter Milan fans are already very happy. They feel that if the team can continue this form, Inter Milan may really be able to snatch the league title from Juventus this season! Seventeen whole years! It has been seventeen years since Inter Milan last won the trophy! Such a long time has almost caused a complete change in Inter Milan fans. The new fans have never even witnessed the team lifting the trophy, and this year is the year they have the greatest hopes! …… Not long after Lin Feng scored the fourth goal, he and Figo were replaced by Mancini. The outcome of the game has been decided, there is no need to let the main players waste energy on the court. The main reason for replacing Lin Feng is the worry that he would get injured. Now he is an indispensable part of Inter Milan. We can do without anyone else but him. As for replacing Figo, it was mainly because the Portuguese was too old. Figo is 33 years old and is the oldest player on Inter Milan's field. His physical fitness is definitely not comparable to that of young people, so such an old comrade naturally needs extra care. When the two left the field, they received a standing ovation from the fans. When these two people joined Inter Milan, they were both questioned by the outside world. Even many Inter Milan fans have doubted whether these two transfers are worth it? One is an unknown newcomer, and the other is an older star who was kicked out by Real Madrid. It doesn't look very reliable at all. But after most of the season, Inter Milan fans said it was really great! Lin Feng, the newcomer, is incredibly strong, while Figo, the veteran who was kicked out by Real Madrid, obviously still has a lot of gas left in his tank. These two people have injected powerful energy into Inter Milan this season, directly upgrading Inter Milan's front attack group. Many people were originally worried that after the 5000 million euro man Vieri left, Inter Milan’s offensive firepower would decline or even fail. But after watching most of the season, no one will have such concerns anymore! (End of this chapter)