"Penalty kick! The referee from Germany, Merkel, has blown for a penalty kick! "
"This is a penalty kick! The referee has given a penalty kick! "
"A penalty kick! This is a huge blow to Sporting de Gijón! "
Li Ang suddenly jumped up from his seat and angrily rushed to the sidelines, waving his fists in protest.
His team had not been defeated by Sporting Lisbon. The players were working hard and everything was still under control, but they could fall at the hands of the referee!
He could not accept such a result. Absolutely not!
Li Ang insisted that the referee was taking care of the host team. Grosso definitely did not commit a foul. He had shoveled the football first. This was a misjudgment!
Like Li Ang, Sporting Lisbon's manager, Peseiro, was also emotional. He also rushed out of the technical area and waved his fists, but not in anger. He was celebrating the penalty kick.
He didn't care if Pinto had dived or if there had really been a foul. He couldn't see it clearly from his position. Anyway, the referee had given a penalty kick. This was Sporting Lisbon's chance to reverse the score once again. To exceed the score again towards the end of the first half, this was really important for Sporting Lisbon!
Sporting de Gijón's goal was a mess.
The Gijón players were protesting the penalty, while the Sporting Lisbon people were celebrating.
In the slow-motion replay, it was clear that Grosso had indeed shoveled the football first. When the football was shoveled out by him, there was indeed physical contact with Pinto. However, no one knew if this level of physical contact was enough to cause Sa Pinto to lose his center of gravity and fall. In short, Sa Pinto's fall was a little exaggerated.
*****
In the VIP box, many Portuguese club presidents were congratulating Sporting Lisbon's president, Cunha Dias. Diaz expressed his congratulations, and the latter accepted everyone's congratulations with a smile. He enjoyed the feeling.
Sporting Lisbon had completely lost the chance to compete for the league title after losing in the previous league tournament. Under such circumstances, the people of Lisbon were determined to win the UEFA Europa League. For this reason, they did not hesitate to put down their grudges of many years and publicly called on the Portuguese football world to cheer for Sporting Lisbon in the finals. The "public relations statement" had been officially announced on the official website. Sporting Lisbon had played the image card of "friendly football" and "representing the Portuguese Super League in Europe." This was the first in history to invite all the chairmen of the Portuguese Super League and Portuguese La Liga clubs, a total of 36 clubs, to gather at the Estadio Alvalade.
Racing Team Chairman Cunha? Diaz was rather scholarly. The "Portuguese final" that he initiated this time was to take the opportunity to bridge the gap between him and Portugal's domestic football scene. Due to the conflicts of interest between the two teams, the Portuguese Professional League had been rife with scandals in recent years. From violence on the field to bribery of referees, the various teams attacked and exposed each other, forming many grudges. All the Portuguese teams responded enthusiastically to his suggestion. Even Vieira, the president of Benfica, who had been entangled in grudges for almost a hundred years, readily agreed. At present, the only president who maintained an ambiguous attitude was FC Porto's old president for 28 years, the "Godfather of the North", da Costa. Many media speculated that it was because he was still involved in the "Golden Whistle Case" and had lost a large number of elite players such as Mourinho, Decaux, and Carvalho after winning two European awards in a row. It was inevitable that he would feel awkward. But it did not rule out the possibility that he would suddenly change his mind and appear in the VIP stands at the last moment. This was also one of da Costa's styles.
The final result was similar to the media's prediction. Da Costa came to the Estadio Alvalade at the last moment of the day. Just now, da Costa also congratulated Cunha Diaz.
"This back door is very good," da Costa joked.
The name Cunha happened to mean "through the back door" in Portuguese. The Sporting Team was able to occupy the home advantage. "El Globo" joked that he had used the back door to UEFA.
Obviously, even the Lisbon people themselves believed that the penalty kick had a certain factor in the host team being taken care of.
*****
Grosso defended himself to the referee, indicating that he did not commit a foul. The referee ignored him. He complained to the assistant referee, but did not get a response.
The referee's decision could not be changed. The referee and the assistant referee both agreed that it was a foul. This was the final decision.
Sporting de Gijón's protest was ineffective. The referee stood at the penalty spot with a serious expression and asked the Sporting de Gijón players to leave. At the same time, he asked the Sporting Lisbon players to quickly take the penalty kick.
Sporting de Gijón's captain, Hierro, asked the players to leave. He knew that the decision could not be changed. If they continued to pester the referee at this time, they might receive a card. That would be one disaster after another.
"The penalty kick decision cannot be changed," Dagestino said. "However, from the slow motion, the penalty kick decision is questionable. Sa Pinto's fall is too exaggerated."
"This is a blow to Sporting de Gijón," González said. González said. "They can only blame and pin their hopes on their goalkeeper, Valencia!"
Sporting Lisbon's spot-kicker was Sa Pinto. After the Portuguese Old Jiang placed the football, he retreated and prepared to run to shoot.
Except for him and Sporting de Gijón's goalkeeper, Valencia, all the players from both sides were asked to leave the penalty area.
The referee, Merkel, glanced at the striker and the goalkeeper. Both sides nodded to him. Then, Merkel blew the whistle in his mouth.
Sa Pinto ran up and raised his leg to shoot!
The Portuguese striker kicked to the left side, and Valencia pounced to his own left side. There was no doubt that the goal was going to be scored.
However, perhaps he was too focused on the angle of the shot. Sa Pinto's shot hit the left pillar.
"The goalpost!"
The Sporting de Gijón fans burst into loud cheers, while the Sporting Lisbon fans were silent …
The penalty kick was missed!
The many chairmen in the VIP box were suddenly speechless. The scene was really embarrassing.
*****
"Sporting Lisbon has wasted an excellent opportunity to reverse the score!"
"The goalpost rejected Sa Pinto's shot! Sporting de Gijón has escaped! "
On the sidelines, Li Ang jumped up and waved his fist. That's right, that's it. Don't even think about taking the penalty kick that you cheated!
God has eyes!
Missing the penalty kick was a big blow to Sporting de Gijón, while Sporting de Gijón's morale was greatly boosted.
In the end, at the end of the first half, the score on the field was still one to one. Liedson had taken the lead for Sporting de Gijón, but Ribéry's wonderful goal had equalized the score for Sporting de Gijón. Furthermore, Sporting Lisbon had missed a penalty kick near the end of the first half, which put the Sporting de Gijón in a good mood at the end of the first half.
During halftime, whether it was in the locker room, the stands, the beer stalls, the bars, or the taxis … everyone was enthusiastically discussing Ribéry's equalizing goal. That goal was really beautiful. It equalized the score and directly stabilized the team's morale.
Ribéry's reputation had soared this season. The Frenchman had become one of Sporting de Gijón's favorite players. The fans loved to see Ribéry gallop, break through, shoot, and score on the left side of the field.
Li Ang stood at the door of the locker room. He did not interfere with the players' discussion of Ribéry's goal and the opponent's penalty kick. He thought it was a good situation, which showed that the team's morale was good.
Ribéry's goal and equalizing the score greatly reduced the pressure on the team, and they saw hope for victory.
Sporting de Gijón was overjoyed that Sporting Lisbon had missed the penalty kick. Some of the "superstitious" players even began to think that God was on Sporting de Gijón's side! It was wonderful.
*****
On the other side, Sporting Lisbon's chairman, Diaz, came to the home team's locker room to encourage the players to play well in the second half of the game and help Sporting Lisbon win the UEFA Europa League trophy.
Later, Sporting Lisbon's manager, Peseiro, was even more direct with his words of encouragement. As far as he knew, there were many scouts in the stands at the Estadio Alvalade today. It was a good opportunity for Sporting Lisbon's geniuses to perform!
His words were very useful. Many of the players' eyes shone.
Although Sporting Lisbon was the only club among the top three in Portugal that had not won the UEFA Champions League, they were unique in the cultivation of star players. Benfica, Sporting Lisbon, and FC Porto's logos were the eagle, lion, and dragon, respectively. The "lions" that came out of Sporting Lisbon's youth training camp included Futereiro, Figo, Sá? Pinto, Simão, Quaresma, C? Ronaldo was a string of stars. Quaresma, Hugo? Viana and C? Ronaldo's three "little lions" had earned the club a transfer fee of up to 40 million euros.
Sporting Lisbon's "youth academy" was located in Alcocetti, 40 kilometers away from Lisbon. The base covered an area of 25 hectares and was surrounded by beautiful fields. From the hotel room, one could even see grazing cattle. The "academy" included seven training grounds, a competition ground with a stand, and a hotel. The interior also included facilities such as a library. Sporting Lisbon searched for talents from all over Portugal, Africa, and South America to let them receive the best football education in the "academy." The academy maintained a scale of 200 players and let 50 of them undergo a week of closed-door training according to the order. At the same time, the players had to study hard. Sporting Lisbon also provided convenience in terms of education.
In fact, this model was very similar to the "Ajax model." It was not the Portuguese's creation. But the difference was that unless the player's ability was outstanding, Ajax only recruited youth players from around Amsterdam. Sporting Lisbon's youth came from all over the place. For example, C? Ronaldo came from the island of Madeira, which ensured that the club could get more talent resources.
Also, like Ajax, Sporting Lisbon's adult team was very good at promoting young people. For example, the 18-year-old Coutinho was given his first opportunity to play in the Portuguese Cup against Benfica in the middle of the league season. He immediately became a main player. Even the national team manager, Scolari, said that he would "give him a chance."
In today's game, Coutinho was in the starting lineup, but his performance could only be described as average. At this moment, when he heard the manager's words, Coutinho secretly gritted his teeth. He had to perform well in the second half of the game!
He wanted to show those scouts, to show everyone, that he, Coutinho, was a genius!
*****
Li Ang and the players chatted and laughed for a while before he began to speak.
He repeatedly emphasized one word — patience.
"We have to be patient because Sporting Lisbon is the host. They are very eager to get the championship trophy on their home ground. A draw or even a penalty shootout is definitely something they want to avoid. You've seen the Portuguese's penalty shootout in the first half of the game," Li Ang said. His last sentence caused a burst of laughter in the locker room.
"Sporting Lisbon will definitely want to finish the game in the regular game time, so they will definitely come out to attack. That will be our chance … "
Li Ang repeatedly emphasized patience because he knew what Sporting de Gijón lacked the most. It was experience!
Sporting Lisbon was a frequent participant in European matches. They had much more experience than Sporting de Gijón.
In such a final game, to a large extent, it was a competition of who made the fewest mistakes and who was more patient!
The game could easily fall into a tug of war. At this time, it was a competition of patience and perseverance.
*****
Before the start of the second half of the game, in the VIP lounge at the Estadio Alvalade, Inter Milan's boss, Moratti, and the club's chairman, Facchetti, were whispering to each other.
"Giacinto, tell us your thoughts and impressions," Moratti asked the team's chairman, Giacinto Facchetti.
With Li Ang leading Sporting de Gijón's results as outstanding as ever, with the La Liga title in sight and the UEFA Europa League and Copa del Rey finals in the UEFA Europa League and Copa del Rey finals, Moratti's pursuit of Li Ang was even more eager and eager.
Moratti knew that he had to strike first to gain the upper hand. Not to mention whether Sporting de Gijón could win the Treble or not, the Copa del Rey title was less valuable. Not to mention, with the remaining two titles, the La Liga title and the UEFA Europa League title, if Li Ang's team could win either, it would be enough to make this Chinese a delicious piece of cake in the eyes of many teams. At that time, more powerhouses would send invitations to Li Ang. Inter Milan had to be one step ahead of the others before they made any substantial moves.
"His on-the-spot command and adaptability are excellent," Facchetti said matter-of-factly. "Now it's time to see the second half of the game. Some coaches are very good, but they won't be able to handle the final!"
Facchetti's meaning was clear. Li Ang could lead the team to lead the La Liga standings, which showed that Li Ang could lead the team well in the long term. Then, the UEFA Europa League final, a European final, could reflect Li Ang's ability in another way.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
