Originally, Ajax hoped to score in the first half, but because of Gao Zheng's continuous harassment, Ajax's so-called "all-out attack" always failed to materialize.

Until the end of the first half, the score was still 0:0.

The score essentially declared the defeat of Franco de Boer's tactics.

But it can't be said that Ajax lost this game because there are still 45 minutes left.

Football is round, and anything can happen. If Sampdoria let their guard down in the second half and think they had the advantage, they could end up being taught by Ajax.

This was repeatedly reiterated by Sampdoria manager Di Francesco to his players at half-time.

The more you feel safe, the more you have to think of danger, otherwise danger will bury you.

Meanwhile, in the visiting dressing room, Franco de Boer is also cheering up his players.

“…… Forty-five minutes to go! The game is not over yet, there is still time and opportunity, as long as we don't give up hope ourselves, hope will not give up on us! Remember, there have been many crises like this in your career, but if you keep your composure, you'll find that those crises are just a small mountain......"

A seasoned former pro, Franko de Boer had a successful career, making more than 100 appearances for the Dutch national team and winning the Champions League at Ajax. When such a manager with such a brilliant career said this in a relaxed and confident tone, many professional players couldn't help but choose to believe their manager, because their manager had never seen any storms and waves.

De Boer's words gave the team confidence that they will need to continue attacking in the second half to try to take the lead.

And they believe that as long as they can take the lead, they will definitely disrupt Sampdoria's rhythm and throw the opponent into chaos.

When the time comes, they can still fish in troubled waters and strive for another ......

With that confidence, the Ajax players are back on the pitch again.

After the start of the second half, there were no substitutions for either side.

However, Ajax's plan to keep Sampdoria under pressure collapsed just ten minutes into the second half.

Sampdoria played a quick counter-attack, passing the ball to Berardi at the edge of the box from the right side of the box.

Berardi received the ball and threatened to break straight into the box from the ribs, but after the deceived Ajax defender took a step back, he swept the ball with his right foot into the middle.

There, at the top of the free throw arc, Gao Zheng, who was inserted in the back, strode up to catch up, and then didn't make any adjustments in the run, and shot directly with his feet!

The ball made a clear arc, bypassing goalkeeper Cillessen's ten fingers and running straight into the top right corner of the goal.

Without any surprises, the ball flew into the goal.

“GAO——OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL！！！” Carresa roared when Gao Zheng shot the goal, and when the ball flew into the goal, his long voice turned Gao Zheng's name into a proper noun for Gao Zheng's goal.

The entire Malassi Stadium was chanting the same words in unison at this moment: "GAOO!!!OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ”

In the shouting, Gao Zheng, who scored the goal, ran to Berardi who assisted him with open arms, and the two hugged tightly at the edge of the Ajax penalty area.

"Gao Zheng! Pretty! Clean goal! This goal opened the door for Sampdoria to reach the last 16 of the Champions League! In such a situation, Ajax, who are playing away from home, will have to score two goals before they can score - even if they tie it, it will be Sampdoria who will qualify in the end! He Ping was very happy. In the face of Ajax's rapid offensive, Gao Zheng's goal reassured everyone.

Just look at how happy Di Francesco was smiling in the dugout with a high-five of his colleagues.

And Franco de Boer was bruised.

All of his tactical arrangements were based on his team scoring first, and now after the attack, Sampdoria has the lead.

How will the next game be played?

It only takes two goals to regain the initiative.

But the question is, are these two goals so easy to score?

Ajax attacked with all their might, but did not score a goal, but conceded a goal.

If you want to score two goals in the future, how can you make sure that your backline will not concede another goal?

If Sampdoria scores again before they score, then the game is over completely.

Franco de Boer put his hands in his pockets, and he was really a little helpless in the face of such a situation.

※※※

As soon as Gao Zheng scored, the tension that shrouded the heads of every Sampdoria fan and Gao Zheng fan was swept away, and the smiles on the faces of the fans in the stands increased.

And the Sampdoria players on the pitch also relaxed because of this.

Relaxation and relaxation are completely different.

If there is any unexpected situation in the game, it will be difficult for the lax team to re-tense up, and then it will really be useless.

It's another thing to be relaxed, the players don't have the anxiety of the game, it's like playing a training match on the training ground. This helps you to perform at your usual level – in fact, the highest level of professional players is definitely in training, and when it comes to the game, due to various factors, they are not playing at the same level as training.

At such times, players with excellent mental quality and experience are often more able to bring themselves as close to the level of training as possible.

And those players who are young and have poor mental quality are prone to playing abnormally.

The current Sampdoria players are very relaxed and play with ease, and against Ajax, they can attack and defend.

Ajax is getting more and more anxious the more they play.

They know very well what the score is going to lead to.

If they can't equalise sooner, the result of qualifying will only get farther and farther away from them as time goes on.

But they can't attack with all their might......

The game time flew by in this rhythm of Ajax's indiscriminate bombardment for a while, and then being beaten back by Sampdoria's counterattack to stop for a while.

In the blink of an eye, the game came to the last moment.

There was only one stoppage time left until the end of the game.

Ajax's attack was no longer ferocious, and the Sampdoria fans in the stands were singing in the air.

Everyone knows they are just four minutes away from the knockout stages of the Champions League.

In those four minutes, it was almost impossible for Ajax to score two goals in a row to overtake the score.

The outcome of the game has already been decided, and there is no chance of any surprises.

'Sampdoria are just three minutes away from reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League again...... No one from any Sampdoria fan was left in the stands, and Sampdoria's substitutes and coaches stood on the sidelines, waiting for the referee to blow the whistle for the end of the game...... It was an exciting time, the last time Sampdoria reached the final of their first Champions League appearance, no one could have imagined that the team would have to wait so many years to return to the Champions League stage, and when they came back, they would be in the knockout rounds! Although the game is not over yet, Carresa can't wait to start announcing the news.

In fact, he was right, because just a few minutes later, the referee blew the whistle for the end of the match.

Sampdoria players and coaches, who had been waiting on the sidelines for a long time, rushed onto the pitch to hug and celebrate with their team-mates.

The Marassi Stadium became a sea of joy.