Fifth Update!
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When Van Der Vaart cut into the penalty area from the right flank, the running position in the middle received Qin Xiong's pass. This time, Ajax's offensive had a very good effect.
At the same time, it also told Qin Xiong that his initiative to change was correct.
Give up the middle and focus on the flanks.
It was hard to say that Ajax was playing as a winger against Monaco's winger style, because Ajax's use of wingers was even more unorthodox. That was the change of role on the front line. The foundation of the tactics was still based on the Dutch football's full offense and defense, and the flexible switching of roles and positions.
Van Der Vaart had moved from the winger position to the shadow striker position, and also from the winger to the shadow killer.
Ibrahimovic's movement from left to right in the penalty area, looking for openings, caused the center backs Rodriguez and Giveway to follow him like shadows. Their choice was not wrong, but the mistake was that the two players' running paths were too obvious under Ibrahimovic's lead.
This gave Van Der Vaart the initiative to further develop his offense.
The Dutch golden boy cut into the middle from the right. After controlling the ball, he took the opportunity to dribble the ball into the left side of the penalty area, which happened to be in the opposite direction from Ibrahimovic's running position.
This allowed Van Der Vaart to easily charge into the penalty area, diagonally facing the goal with no one marking, and had a very good opportunity to shoot.
Van Der Vaart raised his leg to shoot, and the football shot to the inside of the goal near the post. The Italian goalkeeper, Roma, had abandoned the goal before. He expanded his defensive area and raised his hand to block the ball out of the end line just as it flew into the penalty area. It did not look like a standard save, and was completely subconsciously reaching out to block. Fortunately, Roma did it. He resolved Van Der Vaart's threatening shot!
"Ajax missed an excellent opportunity to break the goal. Van Der Vaart's running position and dribbling to break through were no problems. It could even be called perfect. Unfortunately, he did not choose a good angle to shoot, and Monaco escaped!"
Deschamps' heartstrings trembled. Ajax, who had been suppressed, suddenly burst out with a strong counterattack.
The midfield blockade had failed!
He did not expect that the core of Ajax's midfield, Qin Xiong, would react so quickly. Furthermore, he was very decisive and did not continue to force himself to try other offensive methods in the middle. Instead, he used speed to drive the offense after pulling the sides. It was very effective!
Three minutes later, Monaco's offensive came back. Ajax paid more attention to the defensive midfielder's assistance in the defense of the ribs of the penalty area, focusing on limiting the threat of the opponent's winger cutting inside. However, Qin Xiong, the defensive midfielder in the middle, seemed to be unable to hold the fort alone. He was not a pure defensive midfielder. He could do organizational tasks in the defensive midfielder area and cooperate with the defensive defensive midfielders for joint defense. However, if he acted as a front screen to resist the opponent's attack, it would be difficult for him to do so.
In terms of defensive skills alone, he was not as outstanding as De Rong. Perhaps he was only slightly more outstanding in his awareness of the overall situation. But without skills as a foundation, it was useless no matter how good his awareness was. It was just like if a striker's shooting skills were terrible, then no matter how good his awareness of positioning was or how strong his ability to seize opportunities was, what was the use? If the shot couldn't go in, it would only waste a good opportunity.
Ajax's long shot in front of the penalty area almost pierced through Ajax's goal. Lobonte made a world-class save, allowing Ajax to escape the disaster.
Ajax's main flanks in the counterattack became more and more effective. When the opponent's three midfielders began to pull the sides in the face of the switch between offense and defense, Qin Xiong suddenly made a long straight pass in the middle in the 29th minute, subverting all of their predictions of Ajax's offensive methods.
Qin Xiong was not a rigid offensive organizer. He either played effectively in the flanks or fought the opponent to the death in the flanks.
When he saw that Ibrahimovic retreated and had more space to receive, he would decisively make a long pass with his leg.
Ibrahimovic and Van Der Vaart played a two-two combination. In the penalty area, Ibrahimovic used his nimble footwork to flick past Givitt, but under the circumstances of a narrow angle, he shot out explosively.
The fans in the stands continuously cheered for the team.
This passionate game had become a tug of war, with both sides going back and forth and attacking each other continuously.
In the 36th minute of the first half of the game, De Rong ferociously intercepted the ball from Roten's feet and successfully won a better opportunity for Ajax to attack quickly.
Qin Xiong quickly went around the flanks and rushed forward along the right flank.
He received De Rong's pass and dribbled the ball forward on the flank. He and Van Der Vaart did a two-one in the front field and easily broke through Evra's defense.
Qin Xiong did not waste time on the front flank. The opponent's three midfielders had already returned to the front of the penalty area. If he dribbled the ball and cut inside, it would give the opponent enough time to form more defensive players in the penalty area and construct a tighter defense.
It was a race against time for a quick attack!
Ibrahimovic's starting position was closer to the back of the penalty area. He had Rodriguez by his side to defend closely. Givitt nervously watched Qin Xiong's side and used his body to block Ibrahimovic at the same time, but his attention was mostly attracted by Qin Xiong. There was no other way. Qin Xiong had the opportunity to cut inside, and Givitt had to be ready to rush up to intercept at any time.
At that moment, Ibrahimovic suddenly moved and rushed forward from the back of the penalty area. As soon as he moved, he shook off Rodriguez and brushed past Givitt when he was caught off guard.
At the same time, Qin Xiong passed from the flank and sent out a hurried half-high ball.
The football landed at the front of the penalty area, near the top corner of the penalty area.
Ibrahimovic quickly rushed to the landing point and did not stop the ball. He did not make any obvious leg movements. He directly used his foot to shoot, causing the football to refract and fly to the inside of the goal near the goalpost!
The goalkeeper, Roma, was not prepared for the ball. He was paying attention to Ibrahimovic's position, but when Ibrahimovic took the initiative to run forward from the back, he was passive and did not appear to be fully prepared to deal with the shot.
He clearly did not use all his strength in his pounce, and he could not exert all his strength. He hurriedly jumped and pounced, reaching for the football with one hand. It looked like he did not have much jumping ability, and his outstretched hand was a beat slower.
The football went into the net!
Ibrahimovic saw the football fly into the goal and ran in the direction of Qin Xiong with a restrained and cold expression. He stretched out his hand and pointed at Qin Xiong along the way.
When the two men met, Ibrahimovic smiled. Qin Xiong also smiled. The two men raised their hands and high-fived each other.
This was the offensive style that they had practiced in preparation for the game. Ibrahimovic suddenly broke free in the penalty area, and his teammate also sent a wonderful pass into the empty area. BOOM!
"Ibrahimovic equalizes the score for Ajax! From Qin Xiong's side pass to assist! With a simple and effective combination, Ajax's counterattack was like a whirlwind. Qin Xiong dribbled the ball in a straight line from the back flank. When there was no one in front, he would try to kick the ball far away and chase at full speed. To a large extent, it was because he ensured that he was in a state where he had less possession of the ball and more sprinting during the counterattack that he could make Monaco's midfielders appear pale and powerless when they returned to defend. After a tacit two-pass with Van Der Vaart, Evra's defensive zone was declared lost. Qin Xiong had the opportunity to cut inside on the flank, but he trusted his teammate more. He comfortably sent the ball to the area where Ibrahimovic was running in. Then, after witnessing his teammate score, they celebrated together! 1: 1, Ajax gets the away goal. Monaco needs to work harder at home, or this score will be very dangerous. When they go to Amsterdam, Ajax will definitely not miss a ticket to the final! "
Deschamps's face was solemn. He began to make on-the-spot adjustments.
The midfield defensive plan made before the game to target Qin Xiong's creativity was completely ruined after Qin Xiong changed the direction of the main attack on the spot.
If Ajax launched from the flank every time he got a chance to attack, and Monaco's midfielders ran back in a straight line but were unable to form defensive support in the penalty area, then Monaco's defensive line would be in danger!
He had to make adjustments to limit Ajax's fast attacks from the flank.
In this kind of fast attack, no matter which side Qin Xiong went, as long as he had enough space to cooperate with Snede or Van Der Vaart, then Monaco's full-backs' defense would be defeated without any suspense!
The midfielders had to help defend the flank. Moreover, they could not go to the front field to press so aggressively. They had to ensure that when dealing with Ajax's fast attacks, at least their starting positions were guaranteed. Even if they could not help defend the flank, they had to be able to absolutely retreat to the penalty area when Ajax pushed the attack into Monaco's penalty area to compress the space!
Deschamps was still shocked.
He was not Wenger, who did not pay attention to Qin Xiong until the knockout game. He was also not Ranieri, who thought that with Makelele or the omnipotent Lampard to form one or two defensive midfielders, they could limit Ajax's attack.
He attached great importance to Qin Xiong and was also very vigilant, but he was still shocked.
The young Qin Xiong's thinking on the field changed too quickly!
The game had not finished in 14 hours, but he had already changed the team's offensive strategy and effectively helped Ajax turn the situation around bit by bit!
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