In the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, the match between Ajax and Monaco had reached the last 20 minutes of the game.
The scoreboard showed two scores.
3:1
5:3
As per international practice, the home team was first.
If Monaco wanted to reverse the situation, they had to score at least two goals.
Qin Xiong's mentality was very calm. He thought that victory was in his hands.
But he would not relax.
His bright eyes bloomed with confidence. As long as Ajax carried out the current play style, Monaco would not have any chance!
However, in the 74th minute of the game, Monaco's defensive midfielder, Cissé, rushed into Ajax's penalty area regardless of the defense. He received Giuly's pass and almost scored with a header. Qin Xiong was shocked!
What was Cissé doing?
Did he not want to defend?
Did he ignore Ajax's fast attacks?
He should know that if Ajax scored another goal, Monaco would not have any possibility of a comeback!
In the consideration of the balance of offense and defense, it was clear that Cissé's rush into Ajax's penalty area put Monaco's defense in a very dangerous situation!
Before Qin Xiong could recover from his shock, a minute later, even the defender, Givette, suddenly rushed to the front of the penalty area and completed a long shot!
Qin Xiong felt a little confused.
But he quickly realized that this might be Monaco's last fight. Maybe it was Monaco's dying struggle!
If Monaco played like this at the start of the game, they would definitely be turned into a sieve by Ajax's counterattack!
They would die without a place to be buried. Not to mention returning to Monaco with bruises all over, they might be crushed to ashes by Ajax!
But Qin Xiong calmly analyzed the current situation. He was stunned to find that perhaps Monaco's chaotic frenzied offensive momentum at this time, which completely abandoned reason and radical oppressive attacks might be the most effective way to break the deadlock.
Because the physical fitness of the players on both sides had just passed the critical point, in terms of impact, Ajax's long-distance raid and fast attacks would be less powerful than before.
Another point was that Ajax's defensive line was not unbreakable. If Monaco continued to attack wildly according to the predictable offensive pattern, it had already been more than seventy minutes. Under the situation where Ajax's rear defensive line was already coping with the opponent's attack with ease, the effect might not have significantly improved.
However, it was this kind of chaotic punch that didn't play by the rules that caused the scene to become chaotic.
Ajax's defenders could no longer determine who to mark. In the chaotic battle, even a defender like Givett could send the ball into Ajax's goal.
It had to be said that the experience of the Monaco players still played a key role at this moment, allowing them to create chaos. After the orderly local war collapsed, they actually performed better than the Ajax players!
In the chaotic scene, Monaco's wild attacks and scrambles made the Ajax fans in the stands shudder with fear. They could not calm down at all.
In the 79th minute of the game, Bernardi and Cisse bravely charged to the front line at the same time. They bravely charged into the penalty area, causing the pressure on Heitinga and Eskud to increase sharply, and they retreated step by step.
This order created a partial gap between the rear defensive line and the midfield line in Ajax's rear defensive system.
The effect of Evra's insertion of assists so far in the game was not too ideal, but at this moment, he passed a good ball.
He did not pass the ball into the penalty area, but instead passed it across the front of the penalty area. Under the cover of Cisse and Bernardi's charge into the penalty area, Roten only needed to get rid of Dion's close marking. Dion was also a little confused. He only cared about being moved to defend against Roten, but he forgot the most important point, which was to pay attention to the direction of the ball's movement!
He was left behind by Roten, who had a good space to shoot from the penalty area line.
Qin Xiong keenly noticed Morientes' sneaky movement near the penalty spot during this defense. He also looked for a gap to receive with the cover of Heitinga and Eskud marking Cisse and Bernardi.
Therefore, Qin Xiong's main defense was to defend against Morientes.
But at this moment, Qin Xiong had to give up on Morientes and stop the threatening shot that Roten could create.
When Qin Xiong took a step forward, Morientes, who was originally blocked by him and Roten, also took a step forward.
Qin Xiong saw Roten move his leg and made the choice to pass the ball, and when the ball rolled behind him less than a meter away from him, Qin Xiong knew that Morientes must have also moved!
He really did not have eyes in the back of his head, and at this moment, he had no choice. If he kept staring at Morientes and ignored Roten, it would be equally dangerous.
When he turned around and wanted to force or interfere with Morientes, he saw that the other party had already finished shooting when he ran to Morientes' side!
The Spanish striker shot a shot through the gaps between the defenders and the ball into the goal guarded by Lobonte!
The Ajax players' mood took a turn for the worse at this moment, and they felt frightened!
"Morientes blasted open Ajax's goal! The game is not over yet, and the suspense is not over yet! Monaco, who is trailing by a total score of 4: 5, only needs to score one more goal to eliminate Ajax and advance to the final! This is a wonderful offensive battle. Monaco and Ajax have already contributed nine goals to the world's fans in the two rounds. Will there be any more goals? Deschamps is encouraging the team to continue working hard. The Monaco players have never given up. The fighting spirit that has not been defeated by Ajax has made their blood boil! They have the hope of creating a miracle, just like the miracle that they eliminated Real Madrid! "
Qin Xiong wiped the sweat off his face and saw that the Monaco players did not celebrate at all. They retreated like the tide and quickly set up their formation in their own half of the field, preparing for the next wave of attacks.
Compared to the nervousness of his teammates and the excitement of the audience, Qin Xiong was extremely excited at this moment. The offensive battle of these two games required him to be fully involved, and it also made his blood boil.
On this stage, no one would give away an opportunity so easily.
Comain dared not act rashly at this time. He was worried that any changes to the players might make him a sinner for all eternity.
However, he still made gestures on the sidelines to keep the players calm. He also pointed to his temples and reminded the players of the things that he had been emphasizing recently before and after the game.
Mentality!
Before the kickoff, Qin Xiong told Pinard to come back and participate in the defense, and asked Van Der Vaart and Snede to stay in the front line and not to come back!
Wealth comes from danger. If the whole team retreated and no longer posed a threat to Monaco's offense, then Ajax would most likely lose!
This was the experience that Qin Xiong had summed up in many previous games.
Ajax could defend, but they could not defend to the death. If they defended to the death, they would not be able to defend at all!
Previously, Ajax could not make a counterattack threat because the position of the players in the front line was very awkward. The starting position was not good, and the defense could not provide effective assistance. It only looked like it increased the number of defenders in Ajax's backfield.
When Ajax restarted the ball, Snede kicked the ball back to the rear. Qin Xiong controlled the ball, and Morientes took the lead to rush up. He calmly pulled the ball horizontally to get rid of him and continued to control the ball in his original position. He did not look anxious. After Roten rushed over, he, Grygera, and Galasek carried out a triangle pass in the backfield.
Monaco wanted to score another goal in one go, but there was not much time left for them.
The midfielders rushed up naturally, and the full-backs also rushed up. They were going to suppress the backline of the Jax Defense and counter-steal the ball.
When most of the Monaco players on the field rushed toward Qin Xiong's area, the scene was spectacular. It was as if Qin Xiong was ambushed from all sides.
But at that moment, Qin Xiong lifted his leg and carried out the long pass that would defeat all of Monaco's dreams in this game!
The football that flew out of the crowd rolled unimpeded to the left side of the front field.
Snede suddenly moved horizontally on his running route, stopping and passing to shake off Rodriguez.
In front of him was a one-on-one opportunity. Giveway wanted to create an offside trap to make Van Der Vaart's running miss, but he was too focused on Van Der Vaart's position, and his offside trap was successfully created.
Unfortunately, Snede did not pass the ball at all.
Snede easily broke through from his side. Then, under the gaze of tens of thousands of fans in the Amsterdam Athletic Stadium who had already stood up, Ajax played two against one in Monaco's penalty area!
Snede and Van Der Vaart maintained a reasonable distance. When the goalkeeper, Roma, abandoned the goal, Snede selflessly passed the ball horizontally. Van Der Vaart scored an empty goal!
Qin Xiong, who saw this scene in the backfield, could not help but raise his fists high. He closed his eyes and revealed an innocent smile.
The Champions League final. Ajax is here!
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