Chapter 456: Chapter 455: Hat-trick, the First Striker of Tongliao
You might say that Wenger’s idea was actually quite scientific.
It was like the prior Hollywood investment in directors; they would never invest in a director who had failed. They only favored those with a successful track record without failure.
But the paradox was that the more successful one became, the greater the likelihood of failure in the next project.
Because it’s impossible for one to never fail.
Wenger had gotten past that initial stage and had grown accustomed to both scoring and conceding.
He was steadfast in his tactics.
This is the biggest difference between the academics and the practitioners.
The former view the latter’s flexibility as a lack of confidence in their own research.
The latter see the former’s confidence in their research as an inability to adapt.
In the seventy-second minute, Wenger’s confidence in his tactics was shattered.
Deng Kai executed a Marseille Turn to escape from the double team of Bogkamp and Parlour, then delivered a long pass to Drogba at the edge of the penalty area.
With the tugging by Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Ibrahimovic, Drogba found himself in a fairly relaxed situation.
Keown rushed out to challenge Drogba, hands and feet flailing, and not with a small range of movement.
Bang!
The football flew as Drogba and Keown both leapt up to compete for the header.
Eventually, it was Drogba who got his head to the ball, but he misdirected it, and it rolled out of play.
However, Keown who had managed to stop Drogba was now down on the ground, clutching his ankle.
Arsenal’s medics immediately came onto the field.
Through the slow-motion replay, it was clear that Keown had lost his balance in the air whilst contesting with Drogba, resulting in a twisted ankle upon landing on one foot.
In such a sensitive condition, even without a severe injury, it is not advisable to continue playing; otherwise, minor issues could accumulate into a serious problem.
Wenger was forced to make a substitution.
Kolo Toure came on to replace Keown.
At this moment, the camera found Yaya Toure on Sporting Lisbon’s bench.
The Toure brothers had both entered the game but perfectly missed each other.
Everything seemed to be an arrangement by fate.
Yet, this forced substitution ended up having a good effect.
In the seventy-seventh minute,
Ashley Cole tore down the left flank, single-handedly breaking through the defense.
In such a pure speed contest, Deng Kai simply had no right to participate.
Fortunately for Sporting Lisbon, they had Wu Xudong.
This substitute, Chengji Sihan, was very willing to run and actively chased back.
Ultimately, through his advantage in physical fitness and a bold prediction, he slid in and deflected Cole’s cross out for a corner kick.
Otherwise, with Henry finding space in the penalty area, there was a high chance of a goal.
In the stands of Estádio Alvalade, the fans gave Wu Xudong a round of applause.
But ten seconds later, the stadium fell silent.
Because the corner kick taken by Pires was headed into the net by Kolo Toure, who had only come on five minutes before.
Sporting Lisbon’s players had overlooked this brother who was not nearly as tall as his brother.
However, Kolo Toure showed the world why Arsenal had chosen him with his actions.
Beep!
The referee blew the whistle, signaling that the goal was disallowed.
The Arsenal players were dissatisfied at once, surrounding the referee.
But the referee made it clear that he had already blown the whistle before the goal was scored.
Kolo Toure had committed an offensive foul, pushing Wu Xudong down before the header.
Arsenal had no choice but to accept the dismissal of the goal.
But they also indicated that they would appeal after the match.
Similarly, Sporting Lisbon had previously expressed their intention to appeal against Ashley Cole’s long-range goal.
Both sides had various dissatisfactions with the judgments.
The 81st minute.
Deng Kai passed to the approaching Ronaldo, who turned and deftly chipped the ball over the defender after beating his man.
Ronaldo went for the ball and half-volleyed with high difficulty.
But England’s goalkeeper Himan demonstrated a high level of shot-stopping, successfully parrying the ball away.
The first to get close to the ball was Kolo Toure, whose mind was void of any beautiful football, instinctively booting the ball out of the penalty area with a big kick.
A big kick to clear the danger.
This was not the way Arsenal liked to play.
But the next moment, the sparse number of Arsenal fans were thrilled.
Because the ball had flown over the halfway line, and Henry had overtaken Vidic, closing in on the ball quickly.
"Breakaway! Henry’s got the ball! This is a breakaway chance!"
"Ronaldo’s shot didn’t go in, and Arsenal immediately launched a counterattack!"
"Kolo Toure inadvertently produced a high-quality counterattack."
"This is the inevitable problem for Sporting Lisbon when they leave their defence so open. Now all they can do is pray that God is wearing Schmeichel’s number one jersey today!"
"Henry shoots... he’s taken him on! Henry has beaten Schmeichel!"
"A low shot into the goal! This is a perfect example of going solo for miles!"
"Henry! The unstoppable express train of Highbury, Henry! He’s sliding on his knees to celebrate on the pitch because this is the third goal he’s scored in this game!"
"Hat-trick! Henry has completed his hat-trick! He’s totally destroyed the opposition on this pitch today!"
"He’s the master of this game!"
"Five-three! With less than ten minutes left in the game! Arsenal have almost secured the win!"
"Sporting Lisbon has taken this blow hard, and it’s very difficult for them to get back into the game now."
And indeed that was the case.
In the 83rd minute, Henry had another chance and nearly scored four.
Thankfully, Vidic successfully blocked Henry’s shot.
Sporting Lisbon’s One Star, Six Arrows strategy might be extremely strong in the offensive end, but their defense was truly left unguarded.
Just a single Deng Kai, who barely managed to hold onto the ball and make passes, was already impressive, what else could he defend?
In the 84th minute, Sporting Lisbon made a substitution.
They brought on the swingman from midfield, Veloso, to replace the forward Ibrahimovic, whose energy levels were dropping.
Sporting Lisbon reverted to a 3232 formation:
Ronaldo, Drogba
Kaka, Ronaldo, Wu Xudong
Veloso, Deng Kai
Pepe, Vidic, Barzagli
Schmeichel.
But if Wu Xudong fell back to defend, it became a 4222.
If Wu Xudong pushed up and played as a right winger, it was a 3223.
This demanded a lot from Wu Xudong.
Maicon could do the same thing.
But the subtle difference between them was that Maicon’s body, ball control, dribbling, and crossing were all slightly better.
While Wu Xudong had a bit more raw speed.
This bit might not look like much, but sometimes it’s the difference between whether a defender can keep up with you or not.
Additionally, Wu Xudong’s forward runs were more extreme; he had the habit of driving towards the box, as he started out as a forward.
Being the top striker from Tongliao No.1 Middle School and the leading right winger for Wahaha wasn’t for nothing.
The 87th minute.
The regular match time was coming to an end.
With Veloso’s help, Deng Kai was completely liberated and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the offensive end.
First, he played a one-two with Kaka in the middle, getting past Parlour, and then another one-two with Ronaldo on the left, bypassing Vieira.
Facing Campbell, who had charged out to challenge him, Deng Kai pulled off a Marseille Turn.
