Chapter 65: The Twin Eagles Fight for the Nest (5)
"Come on, come on! Come on!!! β
Looking at the opponent who was getting closer and closer, Santiago's blood was spurting, and a roar of rage came out in his heart, he was not afraid of the big man in front of him, because Santigo already had a plan!
Under the gaze of nearly 100,000 people at the scene, just as Santiago was about to collide with Okoronkwo, he turned around and turned close to Okoronkovo! It looks like the two of them are a pair of sincere lovers who are dancing a beautiful ballroom dance!
Seeing this scene, countless fans who watched this moment let out an exclamation of disbelief, but they did not want to cheer for Santiago, but really let out a cry of surprise, because at the moment when Santiago turned around, the ball that was planned to rush out with Santi was hooked up, hit Okoronkovo's calf, and bounced back!!
Such an unexpected situation almost made Santiago's previous actions useless, and it was simply a failure!
Even Saintie himself was trembling in his heart, but fortunately this guy reacted quickly enough, and before Okoronkwo could come to his senses, he raised his heel with his left foot, which was still spinning in the air, to hook the ball over!
"It's so beautiful!! Santiago, perfect consecutive passes, perfect breakthroughs!! He single-handedly got rid of two Nigerian players, a whole two! This time, the entire Nigerian midfield is in chaos! They wanted to go to the unstoppable Santi, but they didn't dare to let the Argentine players around them run unbridled, and the Nigerian was really caught in a dilemma this time. β
"What choice will Santiago make? Who will he pass the ball to? Oh, and he passed the ball to Messi, who was playing on the right flank!! Messi took advantage of the moment when the defender's heart was lost, and he took the ball and shook off the opponent! He's really fast! β
"Facing Nigerian central defender Apan, Messi directly pulled away and chose to hit the goal!!"
Commentators from all over the world unanimously let out all kinds of exclamations, and the situation changed in an instant, which was dizzying, and when Santo Thiago revitalized the situation, the entire Argentine team moved with it. And this is also the difference between Santhiago and Riquelme in the final analysis, after passing the ball at this moment, Santhiago panted and looked at Messi who was running wildly with the ball, and yelled: "I'll leave it to you!! β
Nigerian goalkeeper Amblusse van Zekin, who is 1.76 meters tall, is not outstanding among goalkeepers, but his bounce is outstanding! This earned him the admiration of VfL Wolfsburg, who leapt to his feet and pounced towards the right side of the goal in the face of Messi's shot.
However, the angle of this shot and the arc of the ball are too tricky, which can be called top-notch, and Fan Zekin is also powerless, and the ball flies into the net!
βgoalοΌοΌοΌοΌοΌοΌ Messi!! Messi opened the scoring for Argentina in the 31st minute! The Argentines found their chance under the relentless pressure of the Nigerian players, and they also seized the opportunity, and after winning the ball, Messi gave Argentina a very solid step towards Olympic gold with a brilliant shot!! β
And in this goal, Santhiago's role was absolutely decisive, it was he who broke through in the crowd and hit the wings of the Nigerian eagle with a heavy punch, so that they could not catch up with Messi's little flea, and could only watch the ball fly into the net! It's amazing! From the breakthrough to the passing to the running shot, the whole process was smooth and flowing, without giving the Nigerians the slightest respite!! β
After the goal, Messi trotted back to find San Tiago on the sidelines and gave him a heavy hug, while San Tiago was excited and cheered loudly, watching the ball he sent turn into a goal, this feeling is particularly proud, super cool!
This goal not only made Santhiago feel very comfortable, but also made all his teammates feel very comfortable.
In the first 30 minutes, except for a few attacks, the Argentine boys were frustrated by the high pressing of the Nigerians, and they could not display their skills when it was difficult to get the ball easily. The Nigerian players, who were as vigilant as kraft candy, would not give them any chance to adjust with the ball, and the extremely hot weather in Beijing in August made the players miserable.
And this goal came just right, not only allowing the players to vent their anger loudly, but also greatly relieving their pressure.
In the ensuing game, the Nigerians, although they did not immediately change their tactics, did not dare to press so aggressively and unscrupulously, which allowed the Argentine players who were gradually getting the opportunity to get the ball to show their superior skills again.
In the 35th minute, Messi cut into the penalty area on the right and fell to the ground, but failed to get a penalty. Nigeria then counter-attacked, Adefemi and Okolonkwo combined on the right to pick up a cross in the middle, and Odenwenji headed high from seven yards in front of goal. Just a minute later, Odenwenji knocked back from the left, Obiena smashed a defender and fired a powerful left-footed volley from 25 yards in front of goal, which was met by goalkeeper Romero. In the 40th minute, it was Odenwengi who curled a ball from the left corner of the penalty area and went wide of the far post.
Three consecutive threatening goals made the Argentine players who had just relaxed because of the goal on their toes again, but fortunately, due to the hot weather at noon, the Hungarian referee Kase made it extremely rare for the players of both sides to drink water on the sidelines, giving the players a chance to readjust.
Back on the field, Nigeria took advantage of the last minutes of the first half to press on a large scale again, and in a few minutes to create a dangerous situation in a row, Odenwenji made a low cross from the left, but his teammates in front of the goal outflanked the ball and leaked the ball! Nigeria got the ball and continued to attack, Adefemi's low cross from the right was missed by two central defenders, but Isak at the back post was not prepared, the ball hit his right foot and bounced up, and was picked up by goalkeeper Romero!
It wasn't until the 45th minute that Aguero found an opportunity 35 meters out on the left side of the penalty area, when a sudden left-footed volley from a tight angle was held up by goalkeeper Van Zekin at the near post.
The Nigerians were scoreless throughout the first half, and everyone thought the weather was favourable for them before the game, and as the game progressed, it seemed to confirm that. However, it is clear that the Nigerian Olympic team did not have the ability to take advantage of their chances, otherwise it would have been difficult to tell what would have happened after the first half.
Argentina, on the other hand, won on the core, such as Riquelme, Messi, and Santhiago are all very experienced players, and they know how to control the pace of the game. Riquelme can get the ball, Santhiago can break forward, and Messi can hit the ball with one shot!
Therefore, although on the whole, the strength of the two sides is very close under the influence of factors such as weather and tactics, Argentina's biggest advantage is precisely the key to the decision of this game, speed, which is vividly reflected in that goal.
The Nigerians had the upper hand in terms of physical strength, but their speed limited their attacking power, while Argentina were patiently looking for opportunities. That goal was a testament to their speed advantage, from the breakthrough after the Santilago win to Messi's rushing shot.
This overall speed of handling the ball is a reflection of the difference in the quality of the real stars between the two sides.
Back in the locker room, both the leading side and the lagging side did not dare to relax, and while replenishing their strength and water, they hurriedly arranged the tactics of the second half.
According to Batista's calculations, the Nigerians will definitely change tactics in the second half, after all, even if the African brothers are physically strong, but there are limits, in this case, Argentina will focus on attacking and sounding the horn of counterattack. Now that he has survived the high pressing, and has survived the crazy counterattack of Nigeria conceding the goal, the time has come to be unforgiving.
In this regard, Saint-Tiago nodded again and again, and couldn't help but say to Aguero beside him: "Look, our coach is still ruthless!" β