Chapter 30: The Great Comeback
“…… In a World Cup Asian qualifier match that ended last night, the Chinese team faced the South Korean team at home. This Sino-Korean war has attracted much attention because it is also Gao Zheng's comeback battle...... Gao Zheng suffered a serious injury to the cruciate ligament of his knee during a match between China and South Korea six months ago...... After the start of the game, Gao Zheng was not able to start, and the Chinese team was also very disadvantageous on the field, but the South Korean team, which was playing away, was the main ......"
“…… Gao Zheng didn't come off the bench until the second half of the game, and he turned the tide of the game immediately after he came on. Gao Zheng's outstanding performance made people think that he was not injured at all...... The first touch of the ball caused the Korean goalkeeper Kwon Soon-tae to get out of his hands......"
"In anticipation, Gao Zheng scored his first goal after returning from injury, and it was a very beautiful back-heel shot!"
Then Gao Zheng did not stop his pace of scoring, and just four minutes later, he used a direct free kick to send the football into the goal of the South Korean team again!
“…… Despite scoring twice, Gao Zheng was clearly not satisfied with the result, and he scored a hat-trick in the 86th minute, which was a very, very wonderful individual performance goal. But he shook off Ji Seong-yong, Hong Jeong-yong, Jang so-hyun and Lee in succession near the penalty area to send the ball into the South Korean team's goal...... Gao Zheng's outstanding performance helped the Chinese team finally beat the South Korean team 3:0 at home, which was also the biggest victory for the Chinese team in the process of playing against the South Korean team......"
“…… After the game, the Chinese fans were reluctant to leave the stadium, and the fans sang "Singing the Motherland", and the chorus resounded throughout the audience. The Chinese players went around the stadium to thank the 50,000 Chinese fans for their support......"
“…… After the game, excited Chinese fans marched through the streets of Changsha, holding huge national flags and singing as they left the stadium, filling every corner of the city's streets with laughter. Changsha has become a city that never sleeps......"
After the game, Gao Zheng said in an interview with reporters that he was very happy to be back on the field, and he felt extremely good the moment he stepped on the court. But at the same time, he also said that his body is not 100% well, so it is reasonable for the club not to let him play, but for him, the World Cup qualifiers are too important, so he took the risk to return to China to play. Playing as a substitute in this game was also a decision made by manager Lippi after consulting with him, and he fully respected the manager's decision...... After all, it's true that he hasn't been back to his best yet......"
I wonder how South Korean head coach Stillik and the South Korean players will feel when they hear Gao Zheng's words? The state has not recovered to the best, the body has not recovered well, and he can complete a hat trick in a limited time and beat the Korean team 3:0, so if Gao Zheng recovers to the best condition, what tragedy will it create? ”
At the post-match press conference, Lippi spoke highly of Gao Zheng's performance after returning from injury, believing that this was a great comeback that was rare in his coaching career. Lippi also said that he is now more confident that the Chinese team will qualify for the World Cup finals in Russia. ”
South Korea's head coach Stillik did not attend the press conference after the game, and no one from the South Korean team was interviewed by reporters. We note that Park Chang-ji was the first Korean player to board the bus...... For the South Korean team, this could be a great shame for them. Although losing this game will not make South Korea say goodbye to the World Cup, I am afraid that Stillik will definitely worry about his position......"
"Fans in South Korea were very dissatisfied with the performance of the Korean team in this match, and some fans even shouted extreme remarks demanding that the Korean team collectively disembowel...... There are also many South Korean fans who demand that Stillik be removed from class and demand that the South Korean team be disbanded...... The Korean Football Association was also drowned in saliva. It seems that no matter which country it is, scolding the Football Association after losing is the default choice of fans......"
"After beating South Korea 3-0 at home, China is now in the bottom four points in the group stage. However, since South Korea and Uzbekistan, which were originally ranked second and third, both lost in this round, the gap between the two sides has not been widened. South Korea are second with 10 points after losing to China, while Uzbekistan are still third with nine points after a surprise 1-0 defeat to Syria away from home. Fourth-place Syria has eight points...... With four matches left in the round of 12, the Chinese team still has hope of qualifying for the World Cup! ”
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"The game has been played in the last ten minutes, and the Iranian team is still leading 1:0! The national football team has played six games at the Azadi Stadium, and they have all lost before, and this stadium can be regarded as a real 'hell' for the national football team......" He Ping said in a somewhat helpless tone.
Playing Iran away, many people predicted the result before the game.
This game is probably more auspicious for the Chinese team.
Iran are top of the group with 16 points and a clean sheet so far.
It's again in their game.
Whether it is the right time and place or looking at the historical results, the Chinese team does not want to bargain for anything here.
The match proved predicted, as Iran scored in the 46th minute, and although it was only a one-goal lead, they have maintained it until now.
Gao Zheng still did not start in this game, he was substituted in the 55th minute.
Two consecutive games in a week is indeed a physical burden for Gao Zheng, who has just recovered from injury.
After beating South Korea, Chinese fans saw the hope of qualifying for the World Cup, but the preconditions for this hope were very demanding.
In the remaining four games, even if they win all of them, they will only have 12 points, plus the existing four points, that is 16 points.
The Iranian team does not count the results of the current match with the Chinese team, and it already has 16 points.
South Korea beat Syria 1-0 at home in this round of 12 and also have 13 points, so they can't win just one of the remaining three games, right?
Therefore, if the Chinese team wants to qualify for the World Cup, their only hope is to grab the third place in the group and then participate in the World Cup through the play-offs.
Their rivals are Uzbekistan, which currently has nine points, and Syria, which has eight points.
This requires them to win all of their next matches.
But now it seems that it is almost impossible to win this match against Iran.
If it loses to Iran, the situation is even more unfavorable for the Chinese team.
With three games remaining, they must win all of them if they have any hope of competing with Uzbekistan and Syria for third place in the group.
Just when many people were worried about the difficult schedule of the Chinese team in the future, the Chinese team launched an attack on the field.
Wu Lei relied on his active running in the front court to fight for a chance.
He didn't choose to eat alone, but quickly passed the football to Gao Zheng.
At that time, Gao Zheng was still outside the penalty area, and after receiving the ball from Wu Lei, he did not stop to adjust, but directly volleyed outside the penalty area!
Gao Zhen's decision and suddenness greatly surprised the defenders of the Iranian team, and even the surprise of the commentator He Ping, and for a moment, the sentence "too anxious" was almost blurted out.
At that moment, he saw the football flying against the turf to the back corner of the goal, and he immediately stopped talking and stared at the TV screen.
Gao Zheng shot on the right side of the penalty area, and now he shot the ball to the left side.
Iranian goalkeeper Beiranvand was originally sealed in the near corner on the right, and he didn't expect Gao Zheng to kick so decisively, so the reaction was a little slower, plus Gao Zheng shot at the far corner of the back point, the distance was too far......
Berranvand pounced on one leg but couldn't touch the football.
The soccer ball bounced on the turf and flew into the goal against the inside of the far post!
Gao Zheng!! Pretty!!! He equalized for the Chinese team!! ”
When He Ping was indulging in chanting, he was secretly saying that he was lucky, fortunately he didn't say that sentence just now, otherwise he would have been publicly slapped in the face by Gao Zheng now......
Of course, even if he was slapped in the face, he was willing, and his heart was as sweet as eating honey!
Because this is the last moment!
If the Chinese team can get this point, it will be one point closer to Russia.
In this fierce competition, no one dares to say that this point is useless.
Maybe it's this point that saves lives in the end!