Football: He suffered a broken leg at the start of the game, but partnered with Haaland!

The fourth official raised the substitution sign.

Zhang Yuning (No. 9) is replaced by Jiang Shenglong (No. 4) for the Chinese team.

Supported by two team doctors, Zhang Yuning limped toward the sidelines. As he passed Sun Yang, he gritted his teeth and patted Sun Yang on the shoulder.

"Yang, the gas tank's empty, I can't take it anymore. You have to bring this damn championship back home!"

Sun Yang nodded, without saying much. He reached up and pulled up the captain's armband that had slipped slightly from his left arm, then, following coach Cannavaro's tactical instructions, turned and strode towards the center circle. He stood alone, blocking the two Saudi Arabian center-backs.

The game has resumed.

The Saudi team, trailing in the score, had tears in their eyes. While Olympic tickets were certainly tempting, being thrashed by the Chinese in the Asian Cup final was an insult the proud and wealthy West Asians couldn't swallow.

Saudi Arabia's two full-backs abandoned defense altogether and recklessly pushed across the halfway line, attempting to tear apart the Chinese team's defense with aerial bombardment from both flanks.

But Cannavaro's 5-4-1 formation change had a surprising effect.

The three center-backs and two wing-backs formed an impenetrable wall of steel in front of the penalty area.

55 minutes.

Saudi Arabia's attacking midfielder, Gharib, received the ball at the edge of the penalty area, feinted half a step, and then unleashed a powerful shot.

The ball whistled past with a whoosh. Jiang Shenglong, who had just entered the game, didn't even blink, directly blocking the cannonball with his chest.

"Bang!" A dull thud that made your teeth ache.

The ball was forcefully smashed out of bounds. Jiang Shenglong coughed twice, clutching his chest, scrambled to his feet, spat, and continued his defensive retreat.

86 minutes.

Saudi Arabia launched a 45-degree attack down the right flank, targeting striker Hamdan inside the penalty area. Zhu Chenjie leaped at the near post and headed the ball out of danger with a powerful header. Huang Zhengyu, outside the box, slid in to intercept the second ball, and without even looking at the attacking third, swung the ball towards the center line.

"Find Sun! Pass the ball to Sun Yang!!" Cannavaro shouted hoarsely from the sidelines, waving his arms wildly with exaggerated Italian gestures.

The football flew high toward the center circle.

At this point, Saudi Arabia's backline only had two center-backs left, Sindi and Tambati. Seeing the ball coming towards them, Tambati immediately leaned his body against Sun Yang, attempting to use his weight advantage to control the first bounce.

Anyone else would have taken the shot head-on, but Sun Yang didn't. He cunningly took a half-step back, creating space for his jump. Tambati, having used too much force, could only awkwardly deflect the ball towards Cindy on the other side.

Sun Yang had been waiting for this moment. He turned around and ran directly towards Cindy. Like a cheetah lying in wait on the savanna, he didn't show his fangs, waiting for his prey to buckle.

The Saudi team, unable to break through after a prolonged attack, had long since lost their composure. Coupled with over eighty minutes of high-intensity back-and-forth running, their muscle lactic acid levels had reached their limit, leading to an explosive increase in passing and receiving errors.

The ball landed right at the feet of Saudi Arabia's center-back, Sindi. He looked up and saw a dense swarm of Chinese players in red jerseys in the attacking third, making it impossible to find a passing lane, not to mention the approaching Sun Yang.

Left with no other option, Cindy could only turn around and intend to pass the ball back to goalkeeper Yami.

This seemingly routine back pass directly tolled the death knell for Saudi Arabia.

Cindy, who had played the entire game, felt like his legs were made of lead. He misjudged the back pass, his ankle went weak, and he kicked a deadly shot.

The ball rolled slowly on the grass, even spinning.

Goalkeeper Yami, positioned far back, saw the weak and feeble ball and his scalp tingled. Without hesitation, he rushed out of his goal to clear the ball with a long kick.

But at the very moment Cindy kicked the ball.

Sun Yang, who had been waiting for an opportunity to act, finally made his move.

Kante's perpetual motion lungs, coupled with his abnormal physical abilities, allowed him to retain the terrifying explosiveness he displayed at the start of the game even in the 86th minute!

Without any unnecessary movements, Sun Yang floored the accelerator, leaving a blur on the grass as he swept past Cindy!

A fully healed defender was easily defeated! Cindy didn't even have a chance to tug at the jersey; she could only watch in despair as the red number 10 figure disappeared into the distance.

"A mistake! The Saudi defender gifted them a huge mistake!"

"Sun Yang has caught up! One-on-one!! This is a golden opportunity!"

In the domestic broadcast studio, He Wei's loud voice was transmitted to thousands of households through the signal.

The ball was still more than ten meters away from goalkeeper Yami. With an overwhelming acceleration, Sun Yang got ahead of Yami and, with a flick of his toe, controlled the ball at his feet.

Facing the goalkeeper who lunged at him with outstretched arms, Sun Yang didn't even flinch.

As he advanced at high speed, he swung his right leg high and suddenly tightened his waist and abdomen, assuming a starting stance as if he were about to unleash a powerful cannon shot into the far corner.

Yami was terrified and almost instinctively fell to the ground to tackle the ball at Sun Yang's feet.

however.

Sun Yang's downward kick didn't even touch the front of the ball. The moment it landed, he deftly flicked his left foot back with the inside of his foot.

"Whoosh!"

The ball obediently changed its trajectory, slipping past Yami's glove.

Live a clean and tidy life!

Ahead was a huge empty doorway.

Sun Yang leisurely took two steps forward, saving himself the trouble of even putting in effort, and easily pushed the ball with his right foot. The ball swept across the goal line and nestled steadily into the white net.

2 to 0!!

88th minute. The verdict is final!

On the sidelines, Cannavaro leaped up and jumped onto assistant coach Mario's back. The Chinese players on the bench went wild, tossing their towels and water bottles aside, and charged onto the field yelling.

"We won! Holy crap, we won!!"

"Yang Ge is awesome!! You're a god in China!"

The empty Bangkok stadium had become an isolated island of red revelry. Saudi goalkeeper Yami lay sprawled on the goal line, his gloved fists pounding the grass. Cindy, who had delivered the fatal error, covered her face with her hands and collapsed to her knees on the grass, completely drained of the strength to stand up.

Trailing by two goals, their energy was dwindling, and time was running out. The Saudis' last vestiges of spirit were shattered by this final goal.

"Beep! Beep! Beep—!"

The moment the Japanese referee blew the final whistle.

Most of the Chinese Olympic team players lay down on their backs, looking at the Thai night sky, laughing and crying at the same time.

With six wins out of six, sweeping across Asia! This team, which was criticized as the "worst ever" and was stuck in the group of death before the competition, under the guidance of Cannavaro and the leadership of the god-like Sun Yang, managed to crush South Korea, Iran and Saudi Arabia, and carved out a smooth road to the Olympics!

Due to regulatory constraints, the Asian Football Confederation did not set up a grand awards ceremony stage.

The ceremony was simple. A few tables covered with blue velvet were pushed together on the sidelines, and AFC officials, wearing full-face masks, stood three meters away. There were no handshakes, no hugs, and even the medals had to be collected by the players themselves.

But this does nothing to diminish the true value of the championship.

The announcer's voice echoed through the stadium's loudspeakers.

"The winner of the 2020 AFC U-23 Championship Best Coach award is... Fabio Cannavaro!"

The young marshal walked forward with a smile, picked up the medal, and turned to blow kisses to his disciples.

The announcer paused briefly. A breeze swept through the empty stands, and the entire stadium was eerily quiet.

"We now announce the winners of this tournament's Most Valuable Player and Top Scorer awards."

"With a dominant performance of 13 goals in six games..."

"China's number 10..."

"Sun Yang!!!"

His teammates cheered wildly behind him. Sun Yang straightened his sweat-soaked jersey and walked steadily toward the podium.

He held the golden Golden Boot trophy in his left hand and the crystal figurine representing the U23 Asian Cup MVP in his right hand, raising them above his head.

"Finally, the champion of this U23 Asian Cup is... the Chinese national team!"

Amidst a shower of golden confetti and bursts of fireworks, all the Chinese players, led by captain Sun Yang, lifted the heavy Asian Cup championship trophy together.

Facing dozens of cameras flashing red lights on the sidelines, Sun Yang looked at the lenses.

Even though there wasn't a single fan in the stadium at that moment, he knew very well that behind those broadcast screens, hundreds of millions of Chinese people were enjoying this exciting night with them.