Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 643 Shan Yongzhuo walks towards the corner kick spot

Maracanã Stadium.

As the match was about to begin and the players from both teams lined up to walk onto the field, the entire stadium erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

The huge cheers came from Chinese fans.

After reaching the round of 16, the Chinese national football team's domestic reputation reached an unprecedented peak.

Looking around, the stands at the Maracanã Stadium were filled with people wearing the red jerseys of the Chinese national team, completely overshadowing the Uruguayan fans in terms of both presence and momentum.

The pre-match ceremony proceeded according to procedure.

Shan Yongzhuo also felt the hostile gazes directed at him by the Uruguayan players on the other side.

But he didn't care at all.

He had accumulated 1.8 points, and he used 1 point to upgrade his shooting skill, which he then used to acquire the Sacrifice skill, intending to unleash its full power in the knockout stage.

In Shan Yongzhuo's view, once the Sacrifice skill is used, he will be able to fight even the world's top teams.

After the kickoff, commentator He Wei began to introduce the starting lineups of both sides.

There were no major changes for the Chinese team. Except for Du Wei, who was suspended due to accumulated yellow cards, and veteran Li Weifeng, who got a starting opportunity, the rest of the team were the starters.

Gao Hongbo immediately deployed a 4-4-1-1 formation.

Wu Xi, Li Weifeng, Feng Xiaoting, and Sun Xiang, the four guards lined up in a row.

The four midfielders are Yu Hai, Zheng Zhi, Huang Bowen, and Yu Hanchao.

Hao Junmin moved forward, lurking behind the lone spearhead, Shan Yongzhuo.

After the matches against Greece and Colombia, Hao Junmin has fully earned the trust of head coach Gao Hongbo.

This is also easy to understand.

Among the Chinese team's midfielders, he is a rare player who can hold onto the ball, protect it, and deliver brilliant passes, providing significant support to Shan Yongzhuo.

This is something that other players on the Chinese team would find difficult to do.

Especially against teams in the World Cup finals, being able to hold onto the ball, protect it, make breakthroughs, and pass the ball well under the opponent's defense is really too difficult.

Hao Junmin's footwork is indeed outstanding among the national team players, and his physical strength is also not weak. Therefore, Gao Hongbo decisively promoted him to the starting lineup and placed him behind Shan Yongzhuo as Shan Yongzhuo's biggest support.

Uruguay, on the other hand, fielded a 5-3-2 formation.

The presence of three renowned center-backs—Gimenez, Godin, and Cáceres—demonstrates Uruguayan coach Tabárez's wariness of Shan Yongzhuo.

The three midfielders, Gonzalez, Arevalo, and Rodriguez, are solid defensively and have a tough playing style, but their only weakness is a slight lack of attacking ability.

Forlán and Cavani partnered up front.

This is the best lineup Uruguay can field at the moment.

The referee was the Dutch referee Kuipers, who officiated the dramatic Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

However, this is the first time this golden whistle has officiated a World Cup match; he previously officiated Italy's victory over England and France's victory over Switzerland.

This match was the last one that Dutchman Kuipers officiated in this World Cup.

He Wei introduced the starting lineups for both sides and the referee, and couldn't help but feel a little emotional: "This is our first time facing Uruguay in the World Cup, and also our first knockout stage match. How far can this Chinese team, with world number one star Shan Yongzhuo at its core, go? Let's wait and see..."

After the match began, Uruguay took advantage of the first kickoff and launched an attack on the Chinese team. In this match, the Chinese team did not adopt the extreme 8-1-1 formation they used against Colombia. Although the four midfielders were positioned deeper, they would also move forward as a whole when attacking.

When Uruguay's first attack was stopped, and the Chinese team steadily launched their own offensive, the media and fans noticed this.

The Uruguayan commentator jokingly remarked, "It seems even the Chinese team has abandoned its extremely pragmatic football tactics..."

Uruguay held a slight advantage in the match.

Their players are generally stronger than the Chinese team. Although their formation is more defensive, they still pose a significant threat to the Chinese team when they launch an attack.

Especially Cavani.

Cavani was very active in this match.

This is evident not only on the offensive end but also on the defensive end.

In the 3rd minute, Cavani received a pass from Forlán, turned and fired a shot inside the penalty area, almost breaking through the Chinese team's goal.

In the 4th minute, Cavani headed the ball in the penalty area, but Zeng Cheng tipped it over the crossbar.

In the 6th minute, Cavani reappeared in the second half, successfully dispossessing Hao Junmin and ending one of China's attacks.

In the end, Hao Junmin had to foul from behind to stop Uruguay from launching a counterattack.

Referee Kuipers called a foul on Hao Junmin and gave him a verbal warning.

"Cavani is different today. With Suarez unable to play, Cavani stepped up. The Chinese team must pay attention to him..." He Wei said with some concern.

If we're talking about who, aside from Suarez, is the biggest star and the most feared player on this Uruguayan team, it's undoubtedly Cavani.

Although Cavani was completely overshadowed by Ibrahimovic after arriving in Paris, and even received a lot of criticism for being willing to play a supporting role.

However, there is no doubt that Cavani is still recognized as one of the best strikers in football today.

His active and energetic play brought a lot of vitality to Uruguay's attack, and also put the Chinese team in a difficult situation at the start.

However, despite being in a difficult situation, the Chinese team was not completely on the defensive.

Uruguay's strength was not overwhelming for the Chinese team, and the Chinese team was still able to launch effective attacks.

Uruguay's attack was ineffective, instead allowing China to launch a quick counter-attack and earn a corner kick.

"China's first corner kick of the game, Shan Yongzhuo walks to the corner flag!" Commentator He Wei was very excited.

Chinese fans at the stadium and watching on television were on tenterhooks.

Veteran coach Tavares also sensed something was wrong and immediately went to the sidelines to stand, nervously watching the situation on the field.

Goalkeeper Muslera nervously directed his teammates to defend.

The Uruguayan commentator said nervously, "A corner kick! This is really bad news. Muslera has to be careful. He absolutely must get a corner kick..."

Without any hesitation, Shan Yongzhuo kicked the corner kick directly.

The football soared high, first rushing towards the center of the penalty area, then spinning and spinning again, finally hurtling at a very strange angle towards the point where the grass meets the post below the far corner.

In the end, neither Muslera nor any of the Uruguayan players could stop the ball.

The football bounced on the grass and went into the goal.

(End of this chapter)