The China fans who came to Johannesburg's Ellis Park stadium were naturally looking forward to a showdown.
But the Spanish fans and the majority of neutral fans did not think so.
In the end, perhaps only Paraguay was a worthy opponent that China had eliminated.
As for defeating Cameroon and Denmark in the group stage, sorry, they were not regulars on the stage of the summit.
Spain definitely had the qualifications and confidence to look down on China!
But on the field, the Spanish team should do what their manager, Vicente del Bosque, said: they would never underestimate any opponent!
This was the attitude of the strong. They could look down on their opponents, but they would never underestimate or despise them!
"Today, China's starting lineup is relatively conservative.
China's starting lineup is 4-5-1.
Goalkeeper: Yang Zhi.
Defenders: Sun Jihai, Li Weifeng, Feng Xiaoting, Sun Xiang.
Midfielders: Zhao Xunyi, Zheng Zhi, Huang Bowen, Liu Yi, Zhao Junzhe.
Striker: Qin Xiong.
Han Peng, who was injured in the last game, sat on the bench. We knew that he had a minor injury and could not play before the game. The substitute striker, Gao Lin, did not have enough experience, which was why Ali Khan did not dare to let him play.
In addition, China's team almost put up a defensive formation, leaving only Qin Xiong in front to look for opportunities to counterattack. This is also because Spain's control of the game is too strong. Everyone knows that Spain's control of the game is overwhelming. China must first defend well before they are qualified to counterattack!
Spain's starting lineup is 4-5-2.
Goalkeeper: Casillas.
Defenders: Ramos, Pique, Puyol, Capdevila.
Midfielders: Busquets, Xavi, Alonso, Iniesta.
Strikers: Torres, Villa.
It can be said that Spain's team is full of superstars, while China's team only has one superstar, which is Qin Xiong. The disparity in strength between the two teams is obvious to all.
The game is about to start. Let's cheer for China! "
China's team kicked off first.
Qin Xiong stood in the center circle and stepped on the football amidst the thunderous cheers.
Zhao Junzhe walked up and prepared to kick off with him.
Qin Xiong looked at Spain's half of the field, and the familiar faces came into view. He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
For some reason, images of him playing against the Spanish players as an opponent flashed through his mind.
In his career at the club, he had been the opponent of all the starting players of the Spanish team today!
And there was one thing in common. Although he had lost before, he was the victor more often than not!
They had tasted the taste of failure, and even their current teammate, Torres, was no exception.
Now, he was representing the China team against the Spanish team. The tables had turned, and the Spanish players had a chance to take revenge!
A superstar welcomed the revenge of a team of superstars!
Presumably, the Spanish players also attached great importance to this game. In addition to the team's pursuit of victory, they also had the purpose of attacking Qin Xiong!
Because Qin Xiong was merciless when creating pain for them. At Bernabéu, at Camp Nou, at Mestalla, at Anfield … Some people were even nailed to the pillar of shame by Qin Xiong!
Even Casillas and Ramos were no exception.
The game began. After China's team kicked off, they passed the ball in the midfield to quickly get the team into the rhythm of the game.
But after the fifth pass, China's team made a mistake.
Huang Bowen's pass to Zhao Junzhe was successfully intercepted by Ramos.
Then, Spain began to dominate the situation on the field, and China's team fell into a complete passive position.
If Spain wanted to block Qin Xiong, they only needed to do two things. One was to intercept the ball from China's point of release, and the other was to target Qin Xiong's blockade. Busquets, Puyol, and Pique's three-man defense was enough to make it difficult for Qin Xiong to show his skills.
The disadvantage of China's team was too obvious!
Spain's team was not a fledgling team. They had honed their skills and tactics to dominate the field to the point of perfection.
Alonso, Xavi, Iniesta, Capdevila, and Ramos. Just these five players passing the football back and forth quickly and accurately would make China's defensive players fall into a rhythm of running for their lives.
Vertical passes and horizontal passes. The two types of passing methods to tear apart the opponent's defensive line were intertwined. It was easy to create gaps in China's defensive line.
In the 11th minute of the game, Villa received Ramos's pass in front of the penalty area and took a shot. His shot deviated from the goal.
But Spain's team was not discouraged. It was as if they were warming up.
Their mentality and temperament were completely the characteristics of the strong!
Qin Xiong was isolated and helpless in the midfield.
It was difficult for China's team to organize an effective counterattack. It was not that there were no space opportunities, but that Spain's team had been honing their high pressing for many years. In terms of defense, their stronger ability to read the game allowed them to block and block the passing route. Their ability to cut the opponent's formation was even more amazing!
The gap in the overall skills of China's players was magnified to the extreme in this game.
Even if Paraguay belonged to South America and should have more powerful technical characteristics, they still had to concede defeat in front of Spain's team.
China's midfielders were completely unable to steadily stop the ball and pass a good ball.
This caused China's team to not have a single shot in the first 30 minutes of the first half.
Qin Xiong could not retreat!
He could only wait for an opportunity in front, but he could not wait for an opportunity at all. If he retreated, even if he had a chance to control the ball, it would be impossible to break through Spain's defensive line layer by layer without the help of his teammates!
Spain's team knocked on China's door in the 38th minute of the game.
Iniesta, Xavi, and Capdevila completed a quick and smooth triangle pass.
Capdevila received Iniesta's pass after he went down the sideline. Then he used his footwork and speed to break through Sun Jihai in the process of charging into the penalty area. Immediately after, it caused China's defensive line to retreat in a wide area, almost blocking the small penalty area.
Capdevila passed the ball back to the front of the penalty area, and Xavi ran up to receive and pretended to do a long shot. This caused China's defensive line to start to move forward to defend, but the calm Xavi did not shoot at this time. He actually chose to block diagonally!
The football rolled from Feng Xiaoting's side to the right side of the small penalty area.
Villa, who quickly cut into that area, faced the half-empty goal and directly pushed the ball into the goal!
China's players were still raising their hands to signal that Villa had committed a foul, but even the audience could see that Spain's attack had completely destroyed China's defensive line in terms of thinking and rhythm!
Spain's team quickly passed the ball and was able to calmly create the best chance to score after creating a threat. Coupled with the team's tacit understanding and the players' individual abilities, Villa's cutting into the small penalty area was a complete contrast to China's marking thinking. He was not offside at all!
China's team felt a bone-chilling powerlessness!
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