Ground football: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him

Deng Kai took the corner kick, but unfortunately the opponent won the first header, and the ball flew out of the penalty area.

Moreirense's left midfielder Emerson controlled the ball. He wanted to organize a run, but the opponent's pressing was too strong, so he could only pass it back.

In fact, if it were Deng Kai, he would have shot the ball into the penalty area, because there was a defensive gap when the opponent pressed forward.

But just because Deng Kai can catch him doesn't mean Emerson can catch him.

The team's left-back, Serafim, received the ball, and Deng Kai ran out of position and dropped back to receive it.

After receiving the ball on the left flank, Deng Kai dribbled laterally, looking for an opportunity.

Feirense had also done his homework on Deng Kai and knew that the player's passing was very threatening, so he did not continue to press, but instead prepared on the defensive line to prevent Deng Kai from passing the ball suddenly.

This honest and straightforward defensive habit doesn't seem to be unique to Moreirense.

When a weaker team sees the opponent preparing to pass the ball, they assume the opponent will pass it and thus give up pressing and return to their defensive line early to prepare to contest for the first ball.

It may seem like a visionary act, but in reality, it skips the effort process and goes straight to pursuing the result, giving others more room to maneuver.

If they continue to press for the ball, Deng Kai will only be able to pass it back meaninglessly.

But since they didn't come up, Deng Kai had more time with the ball.

"Here! Over here!" Deng Kai pointed to the left side of the penalty area with his left hand, clearly indicating that Anderson should run to the left to receive the ball.

Anderson immediately made a run, drawing away a center-back and attracting everyone's attention.

While talking to Anderson, Deng Kai suddenly swung his right foot, sending the ball flying towards the right side of the penalty area.

After the corner kick, right-back Alex, who had been roaming around the edge of the penalty area, suddenly surged forward and, unmarked at the far post, unleashed a low shot at the ball.

It was a very comfortable game.

The football went into the net.

One to zero!

Moreirense scored the opening goal in two consecutive matches.

"Oh! Ferrens made a mistake; they gave Duncan too much space to handle the ball."

"Deng Kai and Moreirense's players don't yet have that deep understanding, but if you give him enough time to communicate, he can still deliver those brilliant passes that directly tear apart the defense!"

"Look at the whole process from Alex's start to Duncan's pass—the entire team at Ference just stood by and watched!"

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"However, to put it bluntly, taking the lead isn't necessarily a good thing for Moreirense. In less than 30% of the games they've taken the lead this season, they've managed to hold onto the victory!"

"They are clearly not very good at adapting to advantageous situations."

As expected.

Next, Moreirense fell into his old habit again, and the players began to instinctively retreat.

"Defend out! Defend out! Show your passion! Don't just retreat!" Triguera reminded the players from the sidelines.

Deng Kai also made a gesture to the defenders to step back, but then followed it with a gesture to charge forward.

It means everyone should retreat, but once the opponent crosses halfway, they should pounce on them.

This is actually how Real Madrid will play in the future.

Possession-based teams like to pass the ball around in their own half, luring opponents out.

Counter-attacking teams also like to park the bus in their own half to lure opponents out.

It means almost the same.

As expected, with Moreirense's defenders pressing aggressively, Ferrens failed to create the attacking opportunities they had envisioned after gaining possession of the ball.

They didn't have as many shots on goal as before.

During this time, Morelens also launched two very threatening counterattacks.

One time, Ronaldo kicked it wide.

One instance was when Flavio took a heavy touch while attempting to get a touch on the ball, and the opposing goalkeeper caught it.

But in the seventy-second minute...

The lack of coordination among Moreirense players in their runs ultimately led to serious consequences.

Macedo was drawn out by the opposing midfielder and pressed.

Kirop had been helping Alex defend, leaving the area at the edge of the penalty area open for a moment.

Feirense pushed up in the defensive midfield position and unleashed a long-range shot from that spot, a very graceful movement.

He scored a stunning long-range goal to help his team equalize the score.

One to one!

In the seventy-eighth minute, something even worse happened.

The team's versatile midfielder Emerson went down after colliding with an opponent and was unable to continue the game.

Triguera replaced Emerson with substitute defensive midfielder Cordeiro.

With two defensive midfielders and one Duncan, Moreirense's midfield technical level has been significantly reduced.

If Deng Kai wants to lead the team in offense, the team's frontcourt and backcourt will become disconnected.

Therefore, Deng Kai was even less able to go to the front.

Morelens' firepower further diminished, and the opponent began to attempt more attacks.

The two sides fought fiercely until the eighty-ninth minute.

Cordeiro made a crucial steal.

Feirense played a through ball down the middle; if the ball had been passed, their striker would likely have been able to get a one-on-one opportunity by beating the offside trap.

However, Cordeiro is not Emerson; the latter is merely described as capable of both offense and defense, while the former is a true defensive engineer.

On a single level, Cordeiro is stronger.

boom!

After receiving the ball, Deng Kai immediately made a through pass to Anderson.

Moreirense has a 3-on-4 advantage in the frontcourt!

Considering the distance between the two full-backs, this is almost a three-on-two situation in the attacking third.

boom!

Anderson passed the ball.

Deng Kai almost stopped before he could leave.

Because he knew it was gone.

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Anderson passed the ball too early.

When Anderson passes the ball without drawing the attention or movement of the opposing defenders, isn't that essentially turning a three-on-two situation into a two-on-two?

Moreover, the quality of this pass was quite poor.

No wonder the report said he lacked the ability to act as a pivot; his vision and passing were both poor.

It can only be used as a receiving point and a battering ram.

Anderson passed the ball to Ronaldo.

Ronaldo accelerated, but the opponent was in a better position.

Ronaldo managed to get to the ball first, but was immediately knocked to the ground by the opponent.

The referee blew his whistle, awarding Moreirense a free kick in a good position, which he could take directly.

But in reality, this should have been a sure scoring opportunity.

With Anderson's ability to make passes that result in an 80% success rate in attacking opportunities, it's no wonder he plays in the Portuguese Second Division.

Portuguese Second Division player: So, Coach Kai, you're playing in the Portuguese Super League?

With Emerson gone, the team is without a first-choice free-kick taker.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Duncan were both standing near the free kick.

"Come here, my foot hurts." Cristiano Ronaldo came over to cover for Deng Kai.

The players from Ferrens began to form a human wall.

A whistle blew.

Cristiano Ronaldo started running.

He ran past the soccer spot.

The human wall did not react.

Ference was right; they believed Duncan was the real free-throw shooter.

boom!

Deng Kai followed up and kicked out.

Ferrens' wall of men still didn't jump.

Because when they were studying Deng Kai, they discovered that this player's long-range shots didn't have much arc, and all of his free kicks were low, ground-hugging shots.

Therefore, they were certain that Deng Kai would do it again this time...

I like playing football on the ground: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him.