Chapter 285: Chapter 284: The Hat-trick Assist
"Actually, with Maniche’s playing style, if he moves back a bit, he can have a greater impact on the defensive end. But as a forward, he often can’t fall back in time to defend."
"So it seems that Deng Kai really does understand Maniche. He said last season that there were times when Maniche should play as a holding midfielder. No one agreed with him then, but recently, if you take the criteria for a holding midfielder and apply it to Maniche, the more you look, the more it fits!"
After Ibrahimovic received the ball on the left.
He turned and sprinted with a touch of the ball.
The Benfica right-back immediately picked up speed.
Then Ibrahimovic’s attempt to get to the byline was just a feint.
After one step in his sprint with the ball, he cut in with his left foot, tapping it with the outside of his right foot.
He cut inside!
The towering forward Ibrahimovic cut inside again on horseback!
He had cut in from the right in the first half.
Now, he was doing it again on the left!
Still in his usual manner, Ibrahimovic, not the fastest, took control of the inside route, carrying the ball forward while shielding it from the opposition.
The Benfica right-back could only panic.
As Ibrahimovic dribbled, he continuously observed the field.
Ronaldo started a sprint in the penalty area.
Anxiety gripped the Benfica defense.
They had to guard against Ibrahimovic’s long shots, as well as his passes to Ronaldo.
Bang!
Ibrahimovic passed the ball!
But it seemed too strong?
No!
It was meant for the far post!
Ronaldo was just a decoy.
At the far post, Quaresma hurried into position.
Quaresma: Am I applauding myself?
Despite his short stature, Quaresma’s header on goal was hard to miss with no one marking him at the far post.
The football drilled into the back of the net.
The Benfica goalkeeper didn’t even have time to make a save.
"Well done! 3-2! Sporting Lisbon takes the lead again!"
"Deng Kai’s tackle was crucial! It was this interception that transformed Benfica’s scoring chance into a scoring opportunity for Sporting Lisbon!"
"Ibrahimovic played like an extremely aggressive winger."
After the goal, Ibrahimovic looked at Deng Kai while celebrating.
He was somewhat concerned about Deng Kai’s reaction.
Because Coach Kai had just asked him to reduce his touches on the ball.
Yet his assist still utilized his dribbling and physical strength, meaning he held onto the ball for a relatively long time.
Although the result was good, if Coach Kai wasn’t happy, he feared he might be substituted out.
However, Deng Kai gave Ibrahimovic a thumbs up and even winked.
The meaning was that he played well, but don’t forget to simplify things afterwards, to bring some variation into the play.
Ibrahimovic immediately relaxed.
He dreaded those teammates who would get upset over any triviality.
It was nerve-wracking.
Ronaldo: Who are you implying?
The 70th minute.
The other striker of Benfica’s front two, Sabri, exerted his effort.
This was a speed-oriented player who had clashed with Deng Kai’s team last season; he was quite distinctive.
Sabri received a pass from a teammate, relying on his speed to get past Barzagli and explode forward.
Pepe covered too large an area and couldn’t make it back in time.
Then Sabri, taking on Feng Te one-on-one, was brought down by Feng Te.
But Feng Te lowered his head and it dawned on him that this was inside the penalty area.
Whistle!
The referee blew the whistle, showed Feng Te a yellow card,
and pointed to the penalty spot.
Feng Te clasped his head, extremely dismayed.
How could it be a penalty?
At this point in the game, a penalty... it would be tough for the team to secure a victory.
This shouldn’t have happened!
In Feng Te’s regret, Gomes netted a shot, completing his hat-trick!
Three to three!
This time, Benfica truly gained momentum!
"Gomes is really strong! Simply unstoppable!"
"Gomes has overtaken Ronaldo, equaling Jia De’er at the top of the scorers’ list!"
"Gomes! Gomes! You are the invincible Gomes!"
"This is the strength of Portugal’s national team’s starting striker! Not something those little kids from Sweden or black forwards from France can compare to!"
"Another one! Let’s have another one from Gomes!"
Benfica seized the moment, launching several minutes of frantic attacks.
They were close to scoring again.
Seventy-seventh minute.
Pepe made a crucial block.
Deng Kai passed to Viana just before the interception, a moment later, and it would have been cut off.
Viana quickly returned the ball to Terry.
Terry passed back to Deng Kai, Deng Kai to Viana.
That somewhat slowed Benfica’s pace.
For the first time since conceding, Sporting Lisbon brought the football into the opposing half and began organizing an attack.
They had this opportunity mainly because the Benfica players were worn out from the skirmish.
Ronaldo tried his luck on the left flank, but his electric scooter move and long shot were straight-up blocked by the opposition.
Darn, he didn’t manage to trick anyone.
Ronaldo hurriedly passed the scorching football to Viana, his god-like skills still in the making, requiring him to stay low-key for now.
Meanwhile, Ibrahimovic took the initiative to move out wide.
Quaresma ran into the penalty area to fill Ibrahimovic’s spot, but just as he entered, he immediately made a turn and pulled back out, standing on the right flank asking for the ball.
The moment Viana passed, Quaresma would have a chance for a long-range shot.
His long shots from this area were indeed threatening.
Bang!
Viana lofted a pass.
But he didn’t give it to Quaresma; instead, it was for Ibrahimovic who had pulled out of the penalty area and then dashed back towards the far post.
Turns out this switch between the two was a feint.
The tactic was incredibly complex.
Viana’s lofted pass was strong, or perhaps he didn’t expect Ibrahimovic to be so agile; actually getting into position, the pass from Viana ended up being too far behind.
By the time Ibrahimovic turned to reach for the ball, it was truly too late.
Bang!
At the critical moment, Ibrahimovic hooked his right foot backward, executing a scorpion’s flick, and sent the football into the penalty area.
Ronaldo made an unmarked cut inside but was on the left side of the goal.
The scorpion’s flick by Ibrahimovic lobbed the football to the right side of the goal.
Due to some distance, and with the penalty area crowded, Benfica’s goalkeeper did not come out.
In the middle of the penalty area, Deng Kai also made a dash to attack the ball.
With the continuous pulls from Ibrahimovic, Quaresma, and Ronaldo, he only had one center-back near him, and that defender hadn’t completely covered him.
But precisely because of this, Deng Kai charged too close to the goal.
By the time Ibrahimovic’s lob came, Deng Kai had already overrun it.
Bang!
The football landed.
Deng Kai half turned, facing Ibrahimovic, side-on to the goal, and hooked his leg that was trailing behind.
A reverse scorpion flick.
The football rolled from behind him towards the goal.
The speed was not fast.
But it was too unexpected.
The Benfica goalkeeper virtually watched the football roll into the net, and then it was too late to adjust and kick the ball out.
Deng Kai and his teammates raised their hands to signal the goal.
The head referee also blew the whistle, pointing to the center circle, indicating the goal was valid!
The football had completely crossed the goal line!
"Four to three! Sporting Lisbon has taken the lead for the third time in the game! Their opponents are tough, but so are they!"
"Ibrahimovic and Deng Kai consecutively executed two different types of scorpion flicks to complete the relay!"
"This is the similar reaction of genius players when faced with special situations; they can think of it, and they can do it!"
"Oh! This is extraordinary! Ibrahimovic has three assists in this match already! An assist hat-trick!"
[PS: I really couldn’t help it with today’s update, please bear with me. I can only stay wrapped in blankets, feeling nauseous with the slightest chill, my body temperature fluctuating between 37.5 and 38.5 degrees. I originally planned to delete last night’s afterword, but seeing so many readers encouraging Peach, I felt very touched and decided to keep it as a memento. Thank you, everyone. Peach’s readers are really compassionate, to my surprise. Ha.]
