Chapter 54: Chapter 54 The Great Joy of Four Fours
Deng Kai nodded, "No problem. They want to mark me, right? I’ll go up front and specifically make them mark me there."
"Their midfielders Amorim and Vieira have mediocre creativity to begin with. Once Amorim follows me, Vieira alone can’t support Benfica’s offense."
"Without the creative passes from the midfield, even if the football reaches the feet of Benfica’s forwards, our defense line should still be stable."
"Besides, if I move forward, that leaves a spot in the midfield. Just put in a midfielder who’s good at defense and running."
Maxa took out paper and pen, started to write down Deng Kai’s requests, and also added his own thoughts: "Why take off Marcelino? He’s a right winger, but he can play on the left as well."
"On the other hand, Lorenzo, the center-forward, seemed very uncomfortable playing on the left in the first half."
Deng Kai said, "Let Lorenzo study the playing style of a winger, get him actively involved in defense, and cancel his offensive duties. However, in Benfica’s eyes, Lorenzo is still a center-forward by nature, and his threat is much greater than that of an ordinary winger."
"His presence can still help Ronaldo attract fire."
"Marcelino is too eager to attack. It’s a good thing normally, but since we’re planning to hunker down now, we need to choose players who can hold their positions."
Maxa suddenly realized, "I thought it was because he didn’t help you with the overlap runs in the first half, so you..."
Deng Kai glared at Maxa.
Indeed, a small-minded person sees everything as small-minded.
Would I, the young master Kai, be someone to mix public and private grievances?
Where is the grandeur?
As the second half begins, the adjustments on the Sporting Lisbon side once again exceeded Benfica’s expectations.
Benfica knew that Deng Kai would definitely want to change positions; in the last game, when faced with tight marking, Deng Kai moved back to defensive midfield.
This time, Benfica planned to push Vieira or Amorim to the attacking midfield position to keep marking Deng Kai.
However... Deng Kai not only didn’t drop back, he pushed even further forward.
He sent himself right up to Alexandre and Amorim.
What does this mean?
After playing for a few minutes, the Benfica coach also figured out the situation.
"Oh! The situation on the field is a bit strange. Sporting Lisbon has given up on taking the offensive initiative and is focused on defending."
"But Lorenzo, who’s even weaker in defense than Deng Kai, is participating in the defense now, while Deng Kai is basically staying in the opponent’s half."
"His positioning is making Amorim and Alexandre very uncomfortable; they have to keep at least one person on Deng Kai, and the other can’t be too far away."
"This results in Benfica’s midfield having only Vieira available, so while Benfica may have possession, they’re finding it tough to really advance the football into the attacking third. Dominance without scoring!"
Watching the stalemate on the field, Nuno Gomes shook his head from the stands, "Benfica’s U15 forwards are too mediocre. Without support from the midfield, they can’t do anything."
"In contrast, the team’s midfielders and defenders are a bit better. Especially the full-backs – they’re very fast. To break the deadlock, one must bet on the full-backs!"
Pinto shared the same sentiment, "But by doing so, Benfica completely concedes the flanks in their own half to Sporting Lisbon. If Sporting Lisbon plays a long ball..."
Before Pinto could finish, Sporting Lisbon took action to prove him right.
In the 54th minute, Sporting Lisbon’s central defender Manuel made an interception and directly kicked the football toward the right side.
Amorim bravely contended with Deng Kai to reach the first landing point.
But then Ronaldo actively fought for the second ball.
If Veloso weren’t fast, Ronaldo would have gotten possession in the frontcourt.
Almost launching a beautiful counterattack from defense.
Just how cheeky is that!
If Benfica’s full-backs dare to push up, it’s equivalent to giving Ronaldo an opportunity for a deadly strike.
That’s the strategic deterrent of a top-class front line.
Eventually, under the pressure of the score, Benfica’s coach instructed left-back Simon to move forward to join the attack, while right-back Pereira stayed at the back.
Lurking in the gap left by the absent left-back was Deng Kai, with Amorim and Alexandre watching him – he couldn’t stir up any trouble.
Since most direct counters from the back were aerial balls, and Alexandre and Amorim were nearly twenty centimeters taller than Deng Kai and about as tall as Ronaldo, their advantage was too great.
In the fifty-seventh minute, Simon helped his teammate overlap and then received the ball to cross, but his teammate’s header went over the bar.
In the fifty-ninth minute, Simon drew away Sporting Lisbon’s right-back Duarte, while Vieira sent a through ball from the side, which was collected by Sporting Lisbon’s goalkeeper Pilar coming off his line.
Since Simon came on, Benfica’s threat has been growing.
However, on the counter, Pilar directly cleared the football towards the front.
Ronaldo fell back to compete for the spot, facing the slightly taller defensive midfielder Alexandre with no fear, leaping high to win the first touch.
Ronaldo flicked his head, directing the football to Deng Kai on the left flank and then shrugged off the handsy Alexandre as he turned and surged forward.
Two against four in the attacking third!
Deng Kai touched the ball and took off running.
Amorim watched on the side and quickly caught up.
Bang!
Deng Kai sent a cross with his right foot.
It was a ground pass with a certain curve.
Ding Ding’s instinctive crossing; when it needs to be made, it surely will be.
The football easily bypassed Amorim, rolling from the right towards the center.
Ronaldo and Veloso burst into a sprint, while Alexandre had already lost sight of Ronaldo’s taillights.
"Chris’s speed is too fast!"
"Veloso is not far behind, there are very few center-backs as quick as him."
"The two are jostling each other while moving at high speed, and there’s some hand-fighting too."
"Veloso stumbles! He falls to the ground! Chris takes the ball, he’s one on one!"
"The goalkeeper comes out, Chris shoots decisively, Benfica’s Vieirinha goes down a step too slow, the football rolls between his legs!"
"Grand slam! Chris scores a grand slam! Deng Kai assists a grand slam!"
"This duo is unstoppable! It’s a grand slam indeed!"
"Benfica pays the price for their aggression. They do well in every aspect, except in containing Deng Kai and Chris."
"And these two players are the last ones to be overlooked."
"Four to two, is Benfica facing their first defeat of the season?"
"Bear in mind, this match is of great significance. If Benfica loses, it could even cast a shadow over the future of the first team."
Benfica’s fans are dumbfounded.
Two men, four passes, four shots, have they really been beaten to this extent?
This has almost become the Deng Kai and Ronaldo show, dazzling everyone.
Nuno Gomes can no longer find fault with Ronaldo.
A winger playing as a striker, a hat trick in ten minutes, scoring his first career grand slam before the match is even over.
You could say he can’t coordinate before, but that last goal, he came back to compete for the header and even managed an assist with it!
This textbook pivot role, self-taught?
In the sixty-seventh minute, Simon, whose attacks were no longer decisive, was dispossessed by Sporting Lisbon’s midfielder who had just been substituted on, and the football then landed at Ronaldo’s feet.
Ronaldo dribbled through the center, directly taking on Alexandre—and succeeded!
Thus, Ronaldo initiated a direct assault on Benfica’s defense line.
Facing the charging center-back, Ronaldo mimicked the move, a lob-pass over Veloso’s head, splitting the ball to Deng Kai who cut inside to the right edge of the penalty area without the ball.
Veloso is about to explode.
You can beat me, but you can’t insult my height... twice!
