Chapter 765: Chapter 764: Deng Kai is 100% Stronger Than Zidane!
Figo II is Simon.
Figo III is Quaresma.
Even Ronaldo can be considered Figo IV.
It’s just that these three players can all barely be considered of the same generation.
The French fans became a bit emo for a moment.
Because they were behind again.
And now, there were really less than ten minutes left before the end of the match.
Did they... still have a chance?
...
In the 114th minute, Ribery was sandwiched and dispossessed.
France’s hopeful attack was extinguished once again.
They could only look to Zidane’s side.
The 116th minute.
Lizarazu pushed forward desperately, playing a one-two with Zidane, preparing to cross from the bottom.
However, Deng Kai anticipated Zidane’s pass and intercepted it directly, but the football bounced away.
Zidane lunged for the ball at the first opportunity.
Deng Kai also rushed over.
After a fierce collision between the two, Deng Kai managed to stabilize his posture first, hooking the football away.
Zidane stumbled and, going with the momentum, fell to the ground, then raised his hand for a foul.
Of course, the main referee did not blow the whistle.
This was a fifty-fifty ball, with the intensity of the contention within the permissible range of the rules.
Zidane’s fall was more a problem of his own making.
Lack of stamina, or a diving performance, or perhaps a bit of both.
"This is somewhat unbelievable, Zidane has lost possession again!"
"Maxa presses up, he tries to make up for the vulnerability exposed by Zidane."
"Marseille Turn! Deng Kai pulls off a Marseille Turn, directly bypassing Maxa! He beat the French team using Zidane’s signature move!"
"Gallas steps up."
"Through pass! Deng Kai delivers a through pass!"
"Rui Costa makes a forward run, easily receives the ball, and it’s almost a one-on-one... it’s in!"
"Rui Costa scores with a powerful shot! Five to three! Portugal scores two goals in the second half of extra time!"
"That’s it! France definitely doesn’t have a chance now!"
"Even with added time, they only have about five minutes."
"It’s incredibly difficult to come back and score two goals under these circumstances!"
"France and Portugal were on equal footing. Even in the first ten minutes of the extra time, Zidane dominated Deng Kai! But in turn, during the following period, Deng Kai completely suppressed Zidane!"
"Zidane’s stamina is failing, he’s now at the point where he won’t move if he doesn’t have to. As a team’s core, he actually stood still for two minutes while Ribery was on the ball, which means he truly has no energy to spare."
"But Portugal insisted on letting Zidane hold the ball, letting Zidane go one-on-one with Deng Kai, even letting Deng Kai face not only Zidane but also Lizarazu and Maxa at the same time!"
"However, Deng Kai’s performance was astonishing! He played phenomenally!"
Watching the Portuguese team players celebrate on the pitch, Zidane put his hands on his hips, his mouth slightly puckering.
He was in discomfort.
This was the first time he felt so clearly that he had truly aged.
Deng Kai was not stronger than him.
But Deng Kai certainly had more endurance than him.
Youth is wonderful!
Trigella and Maxa hugged in celebration: "If Zidane is ten percent stronger than Deng Kai, then Deng Kai is a hundred percent stronger than Zidane!"
"The midfield ceiling is still Zidane, no one is stronger than him."
"But Deng Kai... is two ceilings!"
In the following minutes,
The almost immovable Zidane and the still dynamically running Deng Kai in the midfield formed a stark contrast.
The former was thirty-two years old.
He was still one month shy of twenty.
Time was grinding down on humanity.
The first minute of injury time.
Deng Kai carried the ball down the wing, his cross blocked by Lizarazu, sending it out for a corner kick.
The referee awarded Portugal a corner.
All Portuguese players, except for the goalkeeper Baia, were now in France’s penalty area.
On Portugal’s bench, everyone stood up and rushed to the sideline.
With this corner kick, the match was likely to be over.
Everyone was ready to rush onto the field at the first opportunity to celebrate Portugal’s first-ever Delaunay Trophy!
Peep!
The referee signaled that the corner could be taken.
Boom!
Deng Kai took the corner kick with force.
Inside the penalty area, the unfamiliar Feng Te, whom even the Portuguese fans didn’t recognize, leapt high into the air.
He was considered an unknown because if not for this header, many wouldn’t even know he had played in the match.
The football struck Feng Te’s head, ricocheting into the net.
Peep!
The referee pointed to the center circle, indicating the goal was valid.
Peep! Peep! Peep!
The referee blew the whistle three times, two short and one long, signaling the end of the match.
Six to three!
Portugal scored four goals in extra time, completely overwhelming an aging French team.
In this moment, Estádio Alvalade was deafening.
All other sounds in the stadium disappeared.
An unmatched noise drowned out everything else.
Everyone’s mouths were moving non-stop, but no one could hear what anyone else was saying.
"GOAL! Another one! Portugal has scored again in injury time!"
"Feng Te scored the last goal of this European Championship, but that’s not the most important thing."
"The important thing is, Deng Kai has accomplished hat tricks in four consecutive matches!"
"One shot, three assists! Deng Kai created four goals in extra time, slaying the French team with an assisting hat trick!"
"They have defeated France, the defending champions of the European Championship!"
"This is France’s most significant defeat since they failed to qualify for the World Cup in 1994!"
"From the European Championship third-place in 1996, to World Cup champions in 1998, to European Championship winners in 2000... France had its glorious days."
"Their performance in this European Championship has been excellent, achieving third place, champion, and runner-up in three consecutive championships... but... the impact of this match on the French is incomparable!"
"Because France no longer has a Zidane!"
"Because Zidane does not have another decade!"
"And Portugal’s Deng Kai is not even twenty yet!"
"The Kings of Europe! Portugal has ascended to the pinnacle of Europe at Estádio Alvalade!"
"This day may have been fated from the start! When Deng Kai led Sporting Lisbon to become the quintuple champions at this stadium, people called him The King of Alvalade."
"And now, in the same stadium, The King of Alvalade has been crowned the King of Europe!"
"Deng Kai has filled the historical void of European Championship honors for the Portuguese team!"
"Everyone on the team was crying tears of joy!"
On the field, almost all the players were in tears.
French players were devastated by the loss.
Portuguese players were thrilled with the narrow victory.
Players like Rui Costa, Baia, and Bolaita from Portugal’s golden generation wept bitterly.
This group had won all there was to win for the Portuguese youth teams.
However, when it came time to fight for the senior team, they failed to secure any honors.
Watching one after another fall from their peaks, it was possible they might not have another opportunity to play for the national team again.
