Chapter 100: Chapter 99: Double Ghosts Knocking on the Door (Sixth Update)
Bang!
Wu Xudong caught up with the football and made a pass before rolling forward.
Due to his high speed, he rolled several times and crashed directly into the advertisement board.
The players from Ajax signaled that the ball went out of bounds.
However, the linesman decisively shook his head, indicating to the referee that there was no issue.
The cross that Wu Xudong made was powerful.
The arch was slightly off, but the speed was fast.
Most of the Ajax players, still not having recovered, were unable to make a defensive move in time.
So much so that when Ronaldo dashed into the penalty area, the Ajax center-back was still discussing the next defensive strategy with his teammates.
Bang!
Ronaldo leaped high and struck a powerful header, breaking through Ajax’s goal.
"GOAL! Beautifully done!"
"Ronaldo scores a double, giving the fans of Sporting Lisbon a glimpse of hope!"
"Sporting Lisbon’s counterattack was razor-sharp!"
"Veloso’s interception, Deng Kai’s long pass, Wu Xudong’s save-and-cross, and Ronaldo’s goal... The whole process took no more than seven seconds! It was a lightning-fast counterattack!"
"Wu Xudong’s save is worth special mention—he exhibited the undying spirit of the Chinese!"
"This goal was like an accident, but this accident happened because of Wu Xudong’s perseverance. When all the Ajax players thought the football was definitely going out of bounds, only Wu Xudong was still sprinting relentlessly!"
"His speed was truly fast!"
After scoring, Ronaldo immediately rushed to the goal to retrieve the football.
However, the Ajax’s goalkeeper pushed Ronaldo away.
Losing two goals had left him resentful towards Ronaldo.
What kind of temper does Ronaldo have?
Tends to be quite volatile due to his obsessive nature.
Ronaldo then shoved the goalkeeper back, and the two collided.
The players from both teams quickly rushed over to separate them.
Especially Deng Kai, who forcefully dragged Ronaldo away, "Don’t do this, come to your senses. It doesn’t matter if they lose a goalkeeper, but we can’t afford to lose our top scorer!"
The words "top scorer" brought Ronaldo back to his senses.
That’s the nature of the obsessive.
For success, they can disregard others’ interests and feelings, as much as they can sacrifice their own benefits, comfort, and emotions.
If the so-called obsessive you meet in life is only the former, then don’t show them any kindness—those are merely pretentious, selfish scoundrels.
But the latter, although sometimes annoying, wins in sincerity. If you handle them well, they make you feel it’s worth it.
This conflict was a minor issue; since the players from both sides retreated quickly and there were no severe actions, the referee didn’t even issue any cards.
But as Deng Kai pulled Ronaldo away, Sneijder’s eyes were fixed on Deng Kai.
"This guy is really annoying!" Van der Vaart thought Sneijder was looking at Ronaldo and came over to complain, "After scoring two goals he acts like he’s the best in the world, doesn’t he know they are still the ones trailing!"
Sneijder shook his head: "I’m not looking at Ronaldo."
Van der Vaart was slightly stunned.
"It’s Deng Kai," Sneijder said, "He’s orchestrating everything, we’ve been had."
Van der Vaart didn’t quite understand what Sneijder meant, not because Van der Vaart wasn’t smart, but because he was in the thick of it.
Sneijder didn’t elaborate further, realizing it a bit late that everything had already progressed.
Van der Vaart was clearly unable to keep up physically.
However, Ajax’s forward attack had to rely on Van der Vaart; Sneijder only hoped his teammate could hold on a bit longer. Just one more goal, and Sporting Lisbon would completely collapse.
...
The 78th minute.
Sneijder made a long pass from the backfield.
Even though Lorenzo and Wu Xudong were consciously helping to press Sneijder, not giving him room to pass, Sneijder’s passing was too crisp, sometimes resembling Deng Kai’s style.
Van der Vaart in the forward line couldn’t be completely stopped, just like Sneijder’s passes.
However, when Van der Vaart received the ball and tried to dribble past an opponent, he was forcefully pushed away by Semedo.
This was a normal physical challenge, but Van der Vaart, due to his physical condition, lost his balance.
Semedo passed the ball to Araujo, who immediately connected back to Ronaldo on the left flank.
Ronaldo swiftly advanced the ball down the wing, creating danger and winning a free kick for his team.
Unfortunately, the tactical free kick taken by Deng Kai was anticipated by Sneijder, who managed to disrupt the football early.
Deng Kai looked at Sneijder, their eyes met, and both understood each other’s intentions.
Sneijder, "I’ve seen through your tricks, you mastermind behind the scenes!"
Deng Kai, "You’ve caught on, huh... but sometimes, seeing through doesn’t necessarily mean you can break through!"
Between the two midfielders, the air was filled with tension.
The eightieth minute.
Sneijder switched play to the flank and continued to distribute from the backfield.
Ajax’s winger tried to find Van der Vaart, but Van der Vaart wasn’t actively running anymore and didn’t create space to receive the pass, forcing the winger to play it back.
The football was lost after several passes.
On Sporting Lisbon’s side, they immediately tried to find Deng Kai; the front trio rushed forward like arrows released from their bows.
At the crucial moment, Sneijder, playing as a defensive midfielder, rushed forward to confront Deng Kai, blocking his path to receive the ball.
If Sneijder was Ajax’s playmaker—
Then Deng Kai was Sporting Lisbon’s playmaker.
The success of counterattacking tactics is highly dependent on having a playmaker.
Teams that randomly boot the ball forward to their forwards on a counter-attack seldom have high-quality counterattacks.
However, finding the playmaker right after getting the chance to counterattack, and letting him deliver long passes and through balls, despite seemingly slowing down the counter speed a bit, enhances the quality of the counterattacks by more than double or triple.
Of course, if all your players could deliver decent counterattack passes, then it wouldn’t matter as much how you start the play.
In this match, seventy percent of Sporting Lisbon’s threatening attacks came from Deng Kai’s distribution.
Sneijder moving to delay Deng Kai could mean a successful interception at best, or at the very least disrupt Sporting Lisbon’s counterattack.
Yet after Sneijder approached, he saw Deng Kai’s mouth curl into a smirk.
Bang!
Unable to pass to Deng Kai, Sporting Lisbon’s right back Duarte, faced with pressure, had no choice but to pass back to the central defender, Manuel.
Manuel met the football and launched it forward with a powerful kick.
Sneijder paused.
No, not passing to Deng Kai?
Then...
This was definitely a low-quality long ball counterattack but...
Up front, two green-and-white figures instantly tore through Ajax’s defense line.
Too fast!
Ronaldo and Wu Xudong, like two bolts of lightning, once they started running, were simply unstoppable.
The football flew toward the edge of the penalty area.
And Ronaldo and Wu Xudong, racing everyone else to the ball like tandem spirits knocking at the door.
Before the football touched the ground, Wu Xudong suddenly sprinted to the right, creating space.
Ronaldo perfectly controlled the ball, charging into the penalty area.
Ajax’s goalkeeper, watching one shadow to his right and one in the middle, was completely confounded.
How the hell do you defend against this?
At that moment, Ronaldo adjusted his steps, half-turned to the right, feigning a pass to Wu Xudong.
A logical move, returning the favor.
After all, Wu Xudong had just delivered a great pass to Ronaldo!
The Ajax goalkeeper, consequently hesitant, chose not to commit.
Bang!
Ronaldo shifted his weight, twisted his body, transforming the pass into a shot, striking coldly at the near post.
The football blasted into the net.
The Ajax goalkeeper hadn’t even had time to hit the ground.
A pass?
Sorry, Cristiano’s controller doesn’t have a pass button!
