Chapter 35 The Battle of Portugal and Belgium (6)
Goal!
Vermaelen felt that his head was a little numb, and he checked carefully. Ricardo was covering his face in annoyance, and the football had indeed landed within the goal line.
Really scored!
Vermaelen's brain was quickly occupied by ecstasy. He wanted to celebrate. As the first goal of his international career, he felt that there should be a cool enough celebration to embellish it.
But before he could figure out what moves he should use to show his extraordinaryness, his teammates rushed over and pushed him to the ground.
A group of pure Belgian men started their celebration in front of a group of mourned Portuguese players in the penalty area of the Portuguese team.
"The goal was scored, and it was Thomas Vermaelen, who represented Belgium in the international arena for the first time! The young central defender from Ajax, he helped Belgium score in this crucial game The equalizer goal."
Although being pressed by his teammates made it difficult for him to breathe, Vermaelen didn't care at all. At this time, he felt that he was the happiest person in the world, able to represent Belgium in the competition, and he could still score quite a few goals. An important goal, what could be more exciting than this?
Now Vermaelen feels completely relaxed. If Belgium loses this game, his mistake will make him a sinner for the whole country. Fortunately, everything is over now, and he will make up for his mistakes. Now the two teams are back together With the same starting line, the next thing he has to do is to show the best of himself on the field, just like the words Degan often said on his lips-leaving no regrets.
After the Belgian team's celebration ended under the intervention of the referee, the game restarted. The Portuguese players seemed a little unmotivated. Seeing that the first half was coming to an end, they were evened by the Belgians at this time. It is not so easy to let go of the breath suddenly, and then try to muster up the energy.
Once a person thinks too much, he will naturally lose concentration. As a result, Pettit passed the ball carelessly, but Digan seized the opportunity, suddenly accelerated, and intercepted the ball.
"Deegan steal! Chance for Belgium! Chance!"
After stealing the ball, Degan didn't even have time to observe the situation on the field and the position of his teammates, and rushed towards the Portuguese penalty area. His speed was getting faster and faster. Deco, who originally wanted to intercept He couldn't even grab the corner of Digan's clothes.
"Stop him, stop him!"
Scolari yelled anxiously on the sidelines. Just now he was annoyed because the team conceded a goal. Now he saw that the team was about to suffer another heavy blow. How could he not be in a hurry.
But can anyone stop Digan who is sprinting at full speed?
In the first half of the game, Degan almost seemed to disappear on the field because he did not get enough support from his teammates. The TV cameras could only capture his figure when the Belgian team was defending, and did not consume too much Physical strength is Degan's greatest reliance.
The Portuguese team hastily organized a defensive line that could not stop Degan from advancing. After Deco, Ferreira and Carvalho failed one after another. Degan was like a full-speed super chariot, crushing all the way Overwhelming the Portuguese line of defense.
Perhaps Degan would not be so presumptuous in a positional battle, but he was fearless in counterattacking when the opponent was unprepared.
go ahead!
go ahead!
At this time, there was only Pepe left in front of him. Like Deco, Pepe was also a Brazilian. He was born in Maceio, a town in the sunny northeastern part of Brazil. Like all Brazilian children, Pepe has been obsessed with football since he was a child. On the warm beach in his hometown, Pepe has developed his superb personal skills and strong body. When the stage shifted from the beach to the green field, Pepe felt the effect of the usual training, and everything became extremely easy and smooth. He played for the famous Brazilian club Corinthians in his youth.
In 2001, the full-fledged Pepe began his career in European football. The first European club he joined was Portugal's Maltimer b team.
After just 10 games, Pepe was promoted to the first team by Maltimer. In the 2002/03 season, Pepe and the Dutch player Van der Garde formed the Maltimer central defender line and won unanimous praise from Portuguese fans.
Pepe's performance in the Portuguese Super League has won him the attention of many clubs, including Galatasaray, the Turkish super powerhouse. However, under the persuasion of the famous Russian coach Beshovitz, Pepe stayed in Maltimer for another season. During that year, Pepe tried multiple roles in Beshowitz's hands, from central defender to midfielder and even forward.
In 2004, Porto won the UEFA Champions League. However, in the summer of that year, from the head coach Mourinho to the core players Deco, Ferreira and Carvalho all went to Europe to seek gold, which made the new European champions have to transfer. The market digs new mines. Pepe, who is physically strong and flexible, is the number one candidate for signings by Chairman Da Costa. In the end, the "dragon" won the Brazilian central defender for 1 million euros.
The first season in Porto was hardly a success. The newcomer Pepe did not win the full trust of the Dutch coach Adriance. At the Dragon Stadium, he had to provide for Pedro Emmanuel, George Costa and Ricardo Costa and others acted as substitutes. The Brazilian only played 14 times throughout the season.
However, due to the serious decline in Porto's record in 2005, Adrianse was under tremendous pressure. The Dutch also had to adjust the team's formation to a 343 with stronger attack power, while Pepe was a three-back. An important candidate, Pepe won 24 starts in the second season.
In the 06/07 season, although Adriense, who gradually trusted himself, dismissed get out of class sadly before the season, this did not affect Pepe's bright future. In the hands of the former Boavista coach Ferreira, he is still indispensable Get the player.
Pepe's compatriot and friend Deco switched to the Portuguese team after failing to play for the national team and became a world-class star in one fell swoop. Pepe, who performed well in the Portuguese Super League, became Scolari's second goal for the Portuguese team. However, Pepe still rejected Scolari's invitation under the influence of the World Cup. In the future, he has the ability to win a foothold in the Brazilian national team!
However, after losing the 2006 Brazil World Cup squad, Pepe was disappointed. In August 2007, he officially became a member of the Portuguese national team and played the first official game on August 31 on behalf of the Portuguese team.
During the transfer period this summer, Ma defeated many competitors and got Pepe at a sky-high price of 30 million euros. This is the first person signed by Real Madrid's new coach Schuster. Once the news came out, the football world was shocked. Everyone suspected that Real Madrid paid such a price for a Brazilian defender who played in the Portuguese league!
Pepe is tall, but he is a central defender who plays with his brain. With body but not limited to body, a healthy Pepe is the nightmare of all forwards. Pepe's steals are not the most vicious, but the success rate of steals is one of the best. At the same time, Pepe's height determines that Pepe is a good header. Speed is not Pepe's strong point, but he has good explosive power.
Pepe's weakness is that he occasionally makes some low-level mistakes, and he has a lot of defensive moves, and he is easier to get cards because of his hot temper.
After switching to Real Madrid, Pepe also made a lot of progress under the guidance of German coach Schuster and Cannavaro's precepts and deeds, but he still did not make any progress when facing Digan. No advantage at all.
Pepe has all the potentials of an excellent central defender, but he does not have a good mentality. Facing Digan at this moment, he made a fatal mistake, leaving too much space for Digan.
When Digan stepped into the Portuguese penalty area with one foot, he suddenly made an emergency stop, followed by a sudden kick with his right foot that was beyond everyone's expectations.
Different from ordinary lob shots, Degan's kick is very powerful, with a high arc and fast speed. Although Pepe jumped up to block after reacting, he was still powerless.
Ricardo, whose sight was affected by Pepe, was even more caught off guard. When he realized that the football suddenly threatened his goal, it was too late to make a save.
Degan, who had been in a state of disappearance for most of the first half, actually scored a goal. Less than two minutes after Vermaelen's goal passed, and when the first half was about to end, Degan actually scored a goal.
After the goal, Degan once again showed people his naked celebration, waving his arms non-stop, and ran towards his teammates. All the Belgian players rushed over and hugged into a ball.
Antiiennis was taken aback for a moment. He hadn't expected this to happen. He didn't react until he saw his coaching staff rushed to the sidelines and was hugged by Francois.
Belgium overtakes!
A surprise, definitely a surprise!
Looking at Degan who is being worshiped by his teammates, Antiiennis' eyes are almost wet. He has reasons to be excited and even more proud. It was because of his persistence that Belgium had the best player in the world. Digan.
Antiiennis is once again convinced that Belgium, with Degan, will definitely create a whirlwind in world football.
Go-ahead!
Belgium leads mighty Portugal by one goal away, so what's next?
It's time for a full counterattack!