Turning the tide

Just after winning the UEFA Super Cup, Inter Milan couldn't afford to rest. They boarded an international flight to the Libyan capital, Tripoli, to play the Italian Super Cup against last year's Italian Cup champions, Parma, on September 7.

Tripoli is the largest international city in Libya, characterized by its Mediterranean atmosphere and Arab-Islamic charm, facing Italy across the sea.

At this time, Tripoli's situation was very stable. The club gave everyone a day off to enjoy the charm of this ancient city.

Since Wang Feng toured major European landmarks in the summer, he seemed to have developed a liking for this kind of travel. "No wonder my sister always wants to travel everywhere. But by now, they should have already started school. I'll call home later and ask." Walking the streets of the old city, Wang Feng silently pondered.

Tripoli's old city retains its ancient Arab Eastern color, dotted with mosques of all sizes and many characteristic cuisines.

The hotel where Inter Milan stayed was located in Tripoli's new city area, with tall buildings, wide and straight streets, palm trees shading the roadsides, forming a sharp contrast with the old city.

For this match, Cooper sent out a partially substitute lineup, with Pasquale replacing Cannavaro, Vivas replacing Materazzi, Zanetti replacing Di Biagio, Emre replacing Dalmat, Konscia returning, and Wang Feng sitting on the bench, with Recoba and Vieri forming the frontline.

This arrangement wasn't because he didn't want to win the trophy, but because Parma suffered significant setbacks in the summer transfer window, with many of last season's key players sold off, likely significantly weakening their strength, so there was no need to field all the main players.

However, things often develop unexpectedly. When the game reached the thirtieth minute, the score on the field was 0-3, with Parma in the lead and Inter Milan trailing.

The audience in the stands and Cooper on the coaching bench were shocked. Was this the debt-ridden Parma that sold stars to make ends meet?

The frontline trident of Adriano, Mutu, and Gilardino displayed astonishing strength, easily tearing through Inter Milan's defense. Adriano scored twice, Gilardino added a third goal, and within thirty minutes, Inter Milan couldn't keep up.

As Parma launched another attack and Mutu's shot after breaking through the defense hit the post, Cooper finally couldn't sit still. He successively substituted Cannavaro and Materazzi, replacing the sleepwalking Konscia and the underperforming Vivas.

At this point, Inter Milan's formation changed to a 5-4-1, barely keeping the goal from conceding before the end of the first half, entering halftime with a huge 0-3 deficit.

The dressing room was silent, as no one had expected Parma's frontline to be so fierce. Adriano and Mutu, who could be considered Inter Milan's castoffs, managed to overwhelm their former team, which was truly thought-provoking.

Coach Cooper said, "We conceded too early in the first half, and our defensive formation was a mess. Fabio, your led backline must withstand Parma's attacks in the second half."

"Actually, Parma's defense is very weak, but our forwards didn't play a good deterrent role, allowing them to attack with all their might. Wang, I'll send you in the second half. You must launch attacks." Wang Feng nodded solemnly. The team was at its most critical moment.

After the break, Parma's frontline trident remained active, but Wang Feng exerted great pressure on their defense, causing their midfielders to tighten their defense and disconnect from the front line, thereby somewhat suppressing Parma's offensive momentum.

The rhythm on the field gradually returned to Inter Milan's familiar pattern. In the 57th minute, a long pass from Inter Milan's backcourt found Wang Feng's back. He turned, shrugged off Bonera, and charged into the penalty area.

He performed a one-two combination with Recoba in the frontcourt, then personally kicked the ball into Frey's goal.

Inter Milan pulled one back! Cooper was right; Parma's defense indeed had significant issues. Although Bonera was a mainstay in Italy's under-21 team, he still fell short against Serie A-level attack and defense.

Moreover, their defensive positioning was poor, easily allowing Inter Milan to use one-two combinations. Wang Feng believed that as long as they continued to work hard, everything would still be possible!

Eight minutes later, Zanetti dribbled near the midfield line. Seeing Wang Feng being defended by only one player in the frontcourt and standing relatively far, he sent a high pass.

Wang Feng controlled the ball with his head, pushed it forward, evaded the defenders, and accelerated into the penalty area.

The goalkeeper, Frey, quickly rushed out when he saw the situation, but Wang Feng flicked the ball with his right foot, sending a lob shot. Frey raised his right hand high, trying to push the ball out, but it was just out of reach.

In the 82nd minute, a through ball from Emre found Wang Feng near the center line. Wang Feng received the ball with his back to the goal, then passed it horizontally to Vieri in the center. Vieri dashed into the penalty area and equalized the score for Inter Milan.

From 3-0 down to 3-3, Inter Milan staged a stunning comeback!

After Vieri's goal, he excitedly circled the field in celebration, then tightly hugged Wang Feng, saying in his ear, "This is all too unbelievable, we did it!"

Compared to the ecstatic Inter Milan players, the Parma players seemed very frustrated, especially the new recruits in the defense and the mentality of the frontline trident, who were entrusted with heavy responsibilities for a short time and still needed to gain more experience.

Just when everyone thought the game would go into extra time, in the 93rd minute, Inter Milan launched an attack. Zanetti passed the ball to Wang Feng in the frontcourt, who first flicked it to the left to evade Nakata's block.

Then he passed the ball to Recoba near the arc, and he ran to the right side of the field. Although Recoba failed to control the ball well under Ferrari's interference, falling to the ground, he still managed to use his right leg to push the ball towards the right side of the defense.

Wang Feng burst out like lightning, received the ball, continued to the right, evaded the defenders in the penalty area, and scored with a low-angle shot.

"Hat-trick!! Near the end of the second half, Wang Feng staged a stunning comeback for Inter Milan!"

"Seven days ago, at the Louis II Stadium in Monaco, Wang Feng helped the team win the UEFA Super Cup with a hat-trick. Now, he has helped the team lift the Italian Super Cup with another hat-trick."

"Who can stop his crazy performance? We look forward to what excitement Wang Feng will bring to us in the upcoming league!"

The commentators on the scene already believed that Inter Milan had secured the final victory, and indeed it was. Shortly after the game restarted, the referee blew the final whistle.

Inter Milan defeated Parma 4-3, lifting their second-ever Italian Super Cup in history, with their first cup won in 1999.