Chapter 129: Chapter 128: Beginning the Counterattack
Violante pondered for a moment and then nodded, "We can give it a try. Ronaldo, Almeida, Quaresma, Viana, come over here, I..."
The coaching staff then designed a specialized header strategy.
They asked Viana and Quaresma to attempt more crosses, primarily aiming for Almeida as the target.
Almeida led the attack.
As Almeida tangled with the opposition, Ronaldo proactively duplicated his runs, creating dual threats!
But as soon as the second half started, Poland changed their defensive strategy in advance.
They still parked the bus, but they also assigned someone to closely mark who they believed to be the biggest threat – Quaresma.
Quaresma struggled to receive the football.
The crossing strategy hadn’t even started before it was stillborn.
If one side didn’t work, they would try the other.
But there were problems on Viana’s side too.
As an attacking midfielder, Viana had to swap positions with Ronaldo to execute the crossing strategy from the flanks.
Ronaldo had no issues.
But Viana wasn’t a speed-type player; he relied on technique.
Getting to the baseline was difficult for him.
He was skilled at cutting inside and beating players after getting to the baseline, but crossing from there was also challenging.
In the end, it was Ronaldo who more easily found crossing opportunities.
In the fifty-sixth minute, Viana passed the ball to Ronaldo, who easily raced down the flank and made a successful cross.
The football went wide of the goal line.
The quality of that pass made Violante feel cold in his chest.
In the sixty-second minute, Ronaldo delivered another cross.
This time there was some improvement; it went through.
But it still couldn’t be called high quality.
It was cleared by the opposition early at the near post.
In the sixty-sixth minute, after Ronaldo’s cross was blocked, Poland launched a counterattack.
Eventually, Feng Te proactively tackled and made a crucial interception.
The players of the Portugal team began to lose their composure.
Poland played it cool, their form getting better as the game went on.
"Portugal is in trouble now, they don’t have a reliable crosser. Or to be more precise, their crossers are being restricted, unable to perform."
"The double attacking midfielder strategy has a lot of variation in the attack itself. But when the opposition completely gives up on attacking and adopts defense, double attacking midfielders become meaningless."
"Additionally, Almeida alone in the box contesting headers is a bit stretched, Ronaldo must enter the box to compete for headers as well."
"Viana should be doing more; he needs to free up Ronaldo instead of always having Ronaldo go wide to cross."
The seventieth minute.
Portugal made no headway with continuous plays on the left flank.
The football returned to the feet of Meireles.
Meireles noticed Deng Kai’s movement and suddenly made a penetrating pass.
Deng Kai surged forward in the right channel, and after receiving the ball, he didn’t attempt to dribble past his opponent but instead passed it directly to Quaresma and then continued his sprint into the penalty area.
After Quaresma got hold of the ball on the flank, he switched to cutting inside.
Almost at the same time, Deng Kai turned right from inside the penalty area and ran out of it.
This allowed the Polish defenders to focus all their attention on Quaresma, with some applying pressure, others covering, and a few blocking.
Quaresma knew that cutting inside wouldn’t succeed this time, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw Deng Kai slip out of the box along the baseline and move to the right flank.
Quaresma immediately recycled the ball.
The Polish full-back raised his hand, signalling for Deng Kai’s offside.
However, Deng Kai was right next to the linesman, who saw the situation clearly.
No offside.
Bang!
Deng Kai crossed without adjustment.
Wing crosses, precise passes, De Bruyne’s Conscious Flow Pass, increased spin passes, and low-flying passes were all activated.
The ball had a significant curve, and after bypassing the defender at the near post, it plummeted sharply.
Almeida didn’t even jump, the football landed right on his head.
It seemed not so much that he was searching for the football,
but that the football was seeking out his head.
Whoosh!
A close-range header, full of attacking power.
The Poland goalkeeper couldn’t stop this goal from happening.
"GOAL! A goal at last!"
"Almeida, coming off the bench, has helped Portugal even the score!"
"However, ninety percent of the credit for this goal has to go to the assister, Deng Kai!"
"His crossing technique is incredible! Almeida hardly needed to jump to easily meet it with his head."
"Almeida didn’t even need to exert much force; the football itself was very fierce."
"The precision of Deng Kai’s crosses makes one think of Manchester United’s star, Beckham, who just won the treble."
"Although their techniques are wholly different, the effects are surprisingly similar."
"As we know, Beckham thinks highly of Deng Kai, and they have had several photo ops at the Champions League award ceremonies."
When Poland was leading, there appeared to be no hope for Portugal to win.
But now that the score was one to one, Portugal had victory within their grasp.
A draw would inevitably lead to Poland’s elimination.
Even if they were lucky enough to finish second, a mere four points would not qualify them as one of the top two second-place teams, nor allow them to advance with such a score.
Poland had to attack.
The 74th minute.
There were clear issues with the Polish defense.
Deng Kai repeated his trick, cutting inside from the flank, instantly disrupting Poland’s defensive setup on the right.
Portugal’s right-back, Bosingwa, easily reached the byline to create a crossing opportunity.
Poland was forced to concede a corner to Portugal.
The storm of Portuguese attacks began.
The 81st minute.
Ronaldo made consecutive breakthroughs on the left but, finding no opportunity to shoot, could only pass it back to Viana.
Everyone thought Viana would dribble and then shoot, but he displayed excellent vision and instantly shifted play, passing the football to Deng Kai who had switched positions with Quaresma on the right.
Deng Kai’s faux cross feint shook off the Polish left-back.
Following that, Deng Kai’s left foot nudged the ball towards the penalty area.
Facing the defenders, Deng Kai touched the ball continuously with his left foot, eventually finding a gap in their retreating pace, and played the ball through their legs, completing a nutmeg.
"Over here!" Quaresma cut into the penalty area, calling for the ball.
As long as the football came to him, whether he aimed for a tight-angled shot at the near post or curled it with the outside of his foot to the far post, it would be incredibly dangerous.
The Polish center-back immediately moved towards Quaresma.
But they hadn’t even fully extended their legs, only just shifting their balance,
when the football flew out.
Miles away from Quaresma.
Lobbed to the far post!
"Ronaldo! Ronaldo has suddenly picked up speed in the penalty box, charging forward to meet the ball!"
"Unmarked! Ronaldo leap high, without a defender in sight!"
"It’s in!"
"Two to one! Portugal has turned the game around and taken the lead!"
"Another header!"
"Poland’s number two had a chance to stop Ronaldo, but Almeida blocked him effectively! Almeida executed a beautiful screen for Ronaldo."
"But it has to be said, the goal wasn’t as good as the pass. Deng Kai’s lobbed ball was full of finesse and carried immense pressure."
