Ground football: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him

"Sporting Lisbon has now turned things around a bit."

"Up front, they lack some toughness, and Porto has been very successful in limiting their attacking line so far. Yin Bu has the ability to handle the ball, but the opponent doesn't give him that space."

"The opponent allowed Yoon Bu to touch the ball anywhere except with his feet, but Yoon Bu is at his best when he touches the ball with his feet."

"Pepe was very aggressive and fierce in defense, but Deco was just too agile. Pepe's defensive style was not very effective except for giving away free kicks."

"Instead, it might be a better attempt to bring in Deschamps, who has a better sense of positioning, better interception ability, and more reliable defensive choices."

"Okay, Sporting Lisbon has completed the substitution."

Shortly after this substitution, Drogba, who had been away from the field for a long time, proved his worth.

Thirty-seventh minute.

Deng Kai delivered a through ball.

This type of pass, which involves a powerful through ball from the middle and behind the defense, was a first in this match.

The reason is simple: Yin Bu doesn't like this way of passing the ball.

Among center forwards, Yin Bu has good explosiveness and speed, but if you ask him to charge like Labrador on the wing, he will resist and cannot do it.

Cristiano Ronaldo: ? ? ?

Drogba... may be far inferior to Yin Bu in terms of agility and flexibility.

But pure speed and passion are stronger.

He pushed aside the defender, turned and accelerated, while simultaneously making a violent collision with another defender using his shoulder.

Just like a Transformer, it's a trail of sparks and lightning.

Ultimately, Porto's defensive midfielder, Pequez, reached out and pulled down Drogba.

He was covered in sweat and looked quite helpless.

Drogba won a free kick in a very good position for the team.

Quaresma stands in front of the ball to take the penalty.

Unfortunately, he didn't quite manage to curl the ball properly; it hit the wall and bounced back.

The wall of players immediately chased after the football.

Deng Kai's shot, though lacking power, met the ball...

The football flew into the stands.

Many fans are mocking Deng Kai for how outrageous his shot was.

But Deco, who was on the field, was a little surprised.

He had assumed that a young midfielder like Deng Kai, whose position was not secure, would be a player who cherished his reputation very much.

Unexpectedly, Deng Kai didn't seem to care much about other people's opinions.

That last shot was less of a long-range effort and more of a defensive maneuver by Deng Kai.

There was simply not enough time to get a shot off, nor was there a suitable shooting angle. If you just swing your gun and shoot, it's certain you won't score, and you might even injure the player's thigh.

But Deng Kai had to do it.

If the ball falls into the Porto wall, it will be a classic counter-attack opportunity.

Deco is very good at handling this kind of blitzkrieg.

In the first two years after Deco arrived at Porto, he couldn't play with the same decisiveness as Deng Kai.

In the same situation, he would try to control the ball himself and retreat.

However, situations can also occur where someone flips you over from behind, steals the ball, launches a counterattack, and scores a goal; Deco has experienced this firsthand.

Some referees were more lenient during counter-attacks.

It can be said that Deco's series of analyses of Deng Kai are all correct.

Aside from... Deng Kai's position being unstable.

According to Deco, not only is the right attacking midfielder position played by Deng Kai not irreplaceable, but the key issue is that Sporting Lisbon's lineup is redundant and can be replaced at any time.

If Sporting Lisbon were to truly streamline its squad, it would be normal to have one or two fewer attacking players in the midfield and forward positions.

So who is the most likely to be reduced?

It's obviously Deng Kai.

Viana has better organizational skills, Quaresma is indispensable on the right wing, and Ronaldo at least has a distinctive presence on the left.

In the 44th minute, Porto launched a series of passes.

Deco took on the crucial role of making key passes and then delivered a superb pass that tore apart Sporting Lisbon's defense!

Postiga and Jardel arrived one after the other.

Postiga arrived earlier, but he came from the side and could see Jardel's expression as he was about to arrive.

Jadel: Get out of here, let me do it!

Postiga could only slow down and avoid it.

But once you've already secured the spot, how easy is it to get it to open up?

boom!

Jardel, now in the correct position, unleashed a powerful shot, leaving Schmeichel somewhat desperate.

But the ball went at least a meter over the crossbar, giving Sporting Lisbon a chance to escape from a desperate situation.

"Fuck!" Jardel was furious when he realized his shot had gone wide.

Postiga seemed to have given him space to shoot, but the shooter also has to consider the space for his leg to swing after the shot, which Postiga couldn't provide in such a short time.

Postiga turned and left with a gloomy face. Fuck your mother!

I was here first!

This is the problem with the center forward being switched to the winger position. Postiga's movement overlaps too much with that of center forward Jardel, which not only fails to provide enough support but also encroaches on Jardel's opportunities.

However, even when there was no chemistry in the attacking third, Deco was still able to create a steady stream of attacking opportunities, which shows just how dazzling his performance was.

During halftime, Trigrat gave him a briefing.

The defense needs to pay close attention to the link-up runs between Postiga and Jardel, as this position is easy to intercept.

When facing Deco, try not to rush in; Deco is too good at finding openings. Everyone should retreat, maintain the defensive line, and then consider dispossessing Porto. Don't rush.

The second half begins.

In the 52nd minute, Quaresma put on a brilliant performance.

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He dribbled repeatedly down the right flank, finally bursting out of his lane to outpace Rubens and break into the penalty area from the byline.

Quaresma then delivered a cutback pass, finding Drogba inside the six-yard box.

In the previous Europa League match, Quaresma also had a similar brilliant performance, but he used the outside of his foot to send a high ball, assisting Yin Bu to head the ball into the goal.

This has almost become Quaresma's signature dribbling move.

However, the next moment, Sporting Lisbon fans covered their heads in disbelief.

Drogba was clearly unprepared for the ball, and his touch was too heavy, causing him to miscontrol the ball, which was then caught by the Porto goalkeeper.

Drogba himself cannot forgive his mistake.

"Trigera really shouldn't have substituted Imb!"

"Yin Bu can definitely handle this kind of ball!"

"He might even pull off a scorpion kick! He's definitely thinking of that!"

"Drogba is too dull! He's not a naturally gifted player!"

Almost only Deng Kai remained calm outside the penalty area.

While it might sound a bit teasing, this goal... really wasn't Drogba's fault.

At the very least, Drogba's slightly stiff footwork and lack of adaptability in tight spaces are issues that cannot be changed.

Honestly, I've been using a source-switching app to read and follow my favorite books lately. It offers various source switching options and different reading voices. The .huanyuanapp works on both Android and Apple devices.

Instead of hoping Drogba will change things, it's better to let the passers change things. Just pass a ball that's not too close to your feet.

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