"I'm sure you can see that in today's game, we want to win, and Uzbekistan also wants the three points."

In front of the tactical board, Pan Yi's gaze swept over the players in the locker room.

'Obviously, in the second half, Uzbekistan will also press aggressively, and what we have to do is to defend them and find opportunities to break their goals.

"And we also have to make some changes in our strategy in the second half, which is not to play against them, but to come up with the defensive counterattack that we are better at."

"I hope you remember how you beat South Korea and Iran with a counterattack. You haven't forgotten it, right? ”

There was a burst of laughter in the locker room.

It is precisely because of the successive defeats to South Korea and Iran that the situation of the Dragon Team is now stronger than that of its opponent Uzbekistan.

Regardless of the result of the match between Iran and South Korea, as long as the dragon country does not lose to Uzbekistan in this game, it can always hold them down in points.

Even if they are overtaken by South Korea in the end, Dragon Country can at least finish third in the group and still have a chance to participate in the World Cup, but Uzbekistan will be eliminated directly.

So from the current mentality, the Dragon Nation team has the confidence to play defensive and counter-attacking play, at least for the perception of Uzbekistanis.

"Since it's a defensive counterattack, then each of us has to be patient enough and have to be patient and wait for the opponent to make mistakes."

"The opponent must think that we can accept a point, and that's our psychological advantage, especially when the game is stalemate, we have to stay calm."

"Of course, you all know, I've never liked to really ask for a draw, especially at this critical moment, and what I have to do is to hold down South Korea and go straight out of the group!"

"If Koreans are unhappy, then we will be happy, won't we?"

Everyone laughed again.

Dragon Country Football has been pressed by Korean football for so many years, and this time I finally have the opportunity to press them under him, as a national football player, I must be proud.

So, this game is all about winning!

Pan Yi also made it very clear that the defensive posture was just to confuse the opponent and expose more loopholes of the opponent, not really to defend for the sake of defending.

Uzbekistan's attack mainly consists of two flanks, focusing on the opponent's flanks and ribs, which ensures that they can win in Syria and Qatar before, but the offensive routine is a bit too one-dimensional and lacks effective changes.

In the second round of the game against Qatar, Uzbekistan was deflated in front of the opponent's targeted defense, and none of the twelve crosses succeeded;

In the third round, Iran was beaten by the latter, who also used the same blockade tactics, resulting in Uzbekistan's sixteen crosses not succeeding.

In other words, as long as you can defend against the opponent's cross tactics, there is not much of a problem.

This point, in addition to allowing Feng Xiaoting and Deng Hanwen, the two central defenders, to pay special attention to the scramble for the first point in the middle, will also allow the three midfielders to retreat slightly to protect the wings and ribs.

After all, compared with Iran and South Korea, Uzbekistan's strength is indeed not so strong, and it has advantages, but its shortcomings are also obvious.

Pan Yi is convinced that as long as the team can strictly implement his tactics, as long as the international players themselves do not make mistakes, there is no problem in holding the second half.

'What I want to tell you is that I didn't score in the first half and I'm just as sorry as you are.

"But as long as you can keep the goal in the second half, I guarantee that Uzbekistan will make mistakes. When the time comes, we can catch their mistakes and crush them in one fell swoop! ”

In the end, Pan Yi clenched his right hand and swung it out hard, and all the national football players also jumped up from their chairs and rushed out of the locker room excitedly with this punching action! ——

In the second half, as Pan Yi expected, Uzbekistan really pressed the attack.

It's just that the defensive formation composed of four defenders and three midfielders by the Dragon Country team at this time makes it difficult for the opponent to take advantage of anything.

After all, after Lippi coached the national team, the first thing to transform was defense, and the concept of Italian defense was instilled into the brains of national football players;

And Pan Yi passed on all his experience in the club to everyone.

This is obviously very useful, after all, when facing strong teams like Arsenal and Chelsea, if you don't defend well, you can't have a chance to beat your opponents!

This kind of guidance also allows the Dragons to hold the goal firmly in the face of South Korea and Iran's attacks.

This time, facing Uzbekistan, whose overall strength is not as good as that of South Korea and Iran, the players are of course more confident.

This made the Dragon team look at a comprehensive disadvantage after the second half, but it was very stable on the field and did not give Uzbekistan too good a chance.

After 60 minutes, Lippi also replaced Hao Junmin with Wu Xi, and replaced Zhang Xizhe with Huang Bowen, which further strengthened the defense and running of the midfield, and the team's defensive hardness has been improved to a certain extent.

Under the leadership of Zheng Zhi and Feng Xiaoting, the midfield and backline have organized the defense in an orderly manner, and the distance is well maintained.

In addition, the three offensive players in the front court have always been at the front, interfering with the opponent's defenders, and Wu Lei and Lin Liangming have frequently retreated to participate in the midfield defense, and it is difficult for Uzbekistan to create a threat.

However, the counterattack of the Dragon Country team also failed to play an effective role.

The most threatening one occurred in the 70th minute, when the Dragon Country team launched a long pass, Zhang Yuning grabbed the first drop point in the penalty area, but there were no teammates around to answer, and the opponent hurriedly cleared the ball and pushed the ball out of the penalty area.

But at this time, Wu Xi, who was inserted in the back row, suddenly appeared on the periphery of the penalty area and shot directly at the ball.

Wu Xi has just come on the field, and it is also his forte to insert the attack later, this shot is very good, and the angle is very tricky, straight to the bottom left corner.

But the opponent's goalkeeper reacted very quickly, fell directly to the ground to save the ball, and then quickly got up to chase after him, and blocked all the shooting angles before Wu Lei picked up the leak and made up the shot, blocking Wu Lei's shot from the bottom line.

Two very threatening shots in a row, but they failed to score, and the Dragon Country team was quite depressed.

Uzbekistan seemed to be annoyed, and soon further strengthened the attack in the front court through substitutions, which suddenly put the back line of the Dragon team under great pressure again, and the field was more passive.

Standing outside the field, Lippi also had a dignified face.

At this point in the game, as the head coach of the national team, there really wasn't much he could do, and he could only rely on the players on the pitch to play.

If they were under pressure, they would have had a chance, but if they didn't wait for the opportunity to appear and the goal was already broken by Uzbekistan, it would have been all for nothing.

It can be said that by this time, the two sides have basically played all the hole cards, and then it depends on who can survive better.

Pan Yi, on the other hand, was more calm, just standing on the sidelines shouting and gesturing at the players, asking the players to continue to be patient.

Pan Yi could see that by this time, the Uzbek players had begun to become impatient.

At this time, the news of the other game is that the South Korean team and the Iranian team are also inseparable, and like this game, the score is still 0:0.

And if such a result is maintained until the end, then there will be no change in the points and standings of these four teams.

Uzbekistan, which is in fourth place, is clearly the most passive.

They will go head-to-head against South Korea in the final round, when they will have to beat their opponents to have a chance of squeezing them out of the top three.

The final round opponent of the Dragon Country team is Qatar, which has already been out, and it is clear that the Dragon Country has a higher winning rate.

Therefore, if Uzbekistan wants to fight for the top two in the group, in addition to fighting South Korea in the final round, this game must also be won today!

So after playing for more than 70 minutes, the Uzbek players' desire to attack became stronger, and even the fouls on the field became bigger.

But it's also an opportunity for the Dragons.

As long as they are impatient, the probability of making mistakes will also increase, and then it will be the opportunity for the Dragon Team to fight back!

The current Dragon Nation team still has one chance to make a substitution, but Pan Yi also suggested that Lippi put it in his hands for the time being.

The reason is simple, this is the last substitution, whether it is to prevent fitness problems or injuries to the players on the field, or to see the opponent's flaws before delivering the final blow.

If you replace them all now, it will be difficult to deal with the unexpected situation later.

——

Time is passing bit by bit, Uzbekistan has been unable to attack for a long time, and the mood of the players is becoming more and more anxious.

This anxiety is not only reflected in the increase in fouls.

As the game progressed, they gradually exposed more problems, especially after 80 minutes, and the attacking coordination errors in the midfield began to increase.

Pan Yi was not surprised by this situation.

In the final analysis, Uzbekistan's players are not much better than the Dragon players, but now the points situation of the entire group is forcing Uzbekistan to win the Dragon Country team.

Sometimes, the more anxious you are, the more likely you are to make fatal mistakes.

"They're a little bit out of breath and we can think about a change."

Standing next to Lippi, Pan Yi said suddenly.

It's been more than 80 minutes now, but the score of the two games is still 0:0.

Uzbekistan is certainly a little anxious, but why doesn't the Dragon Kingdom want to win these three points?

Although it would be beneficial for the Dragons if both sides were tied, after all, there were still ten minutes left in the game, and it would be too unreassuring to hand over fate to another game like this.

Who knows if South Korea will take advantage of their home advantage in the final stage to bomb indiscriminately and then enter Iran?

If the South Korean team overtakes the points at the last moment, it will really fall short.

Therefore, now that the opponent is a little impetuous, desperately pressing up and exposing more defensive holes, it is time to take out his last trump card.

And this trump card is - Huang Zichang!

After Lippi nodded, Pan Yi immediately began to ask Huang Zichang to warm up.

In other words, Huang Zichang's first time playing for the country was at such a critical moment!

Although Lippi didn't know the player, Pan Yi did.

It is precisely because of his trust in Pan Yi that Lippi now trusts Huang Zichang - just as Lippi believed in Pan Yi and called Lin Liangming into the national team.

As for Huang Zichang, he is not only outstanding in speed, technique and breakthrough ability, but also has strong self-confidence, which has always been valued by Pan Yi.

Although he is young, he has the style of a big man on the pitch, and when he was in York City, he often came off the bench without any stage fright, and now Pan Yi believes that he will maintain such a normal heart when playing for the national team.

'Their full-backs are tired and it's hard to get back into position when attacking. When you go up, you rush him desperately, pass or shoot when you have the chance, don't hesitate! ”

After Huang Zichang finished warming up, Pan Yi gave him his final advice.

Pan Yi is talking about Uzbekistan's right full-back Denisov, and his side is Uzbekistan's main attacking direction, so he is particularly hard up and down.

In addition, this right-back is already a veteran in his thirties, and his physical recovery is relatively slow.

And after Huang Zichang went up, he replaced Lin Liangming and played the position of left winger, and then he burst out of this Denisov!

This is the opportunity that Pan Yi has been waiting for.

Soon, Huang Zichang came on the field, and then stood on the left side.

At this time, the Uzbeks didn't care who came up at all—besides, they really didn't know Huang Zichang very well—they were just anxiously waiting for the end of the substitution of the Dragon Country team, and immediately began to launch another wave of offensives.

It's just that this time the ball entered the 30-meter area of the Dragon Country team, and under the interference of Zheng Zhi and Wu Xi, Uzbekistan made a mistake in passing and receiving, and the ball was intercepted by Feng Xiaoting halfway.

What's even worse is that Uzbekistan was supposed to press forward step by step, but at this time, there was a mistake, leaving Feng Xiaoting in an unmarked state.

The vice captain of the Dragon Country national team was obviously a little stunned by this, but he quickly reacted and immediately strode forward with the ball.

Feng Xiaoting has the ability to rush forward with the ball with one hand!

"There was a lapse in Uzbekistan's defense, and no one went up to grab Feng Xiaoting in the first place."

"Feng Xiaoting rushed forward with the ball by himself, and the speed was very fast."

"The Uzbek defense line is rapidly retreating, and we see that Zhang Yuning, the center of the Dragon Kingdom in the front, is sticking to the opponent's defense, and Huang Zichang and Wu Lei on both wings are also rushing forward quickly."

"Wu Lei's speed is fast, everyone knows it. And we are not familiar with this Huang Zichang, but don't look at his height, judging from the start, it should be extremely fast! ”

"On the left side, Feng Xiaoting passed the ball to the left side and gave it to Huang Zichang's feet!"

"The opposing right-back Denisov just pressed up and there was a gap on their right side."

"Now that Huang Zichang has the ball, Denisov hurriedly rushed back to defend, but he was out of breath and was shaken to the ground by Huang Zichang!"

"Huang Zichang took the ball forward for another five or six meters, and then looked up, and passed directly into the penalty area......"

"The Dragons have a chance to ......"

Wu Lei also plugged in at this time...... He catches up with the ball, he goes in, he shoots! ”

"The ball is in!!!! The ball is in!!!! ”

"In the eighty-eighth minute, in the eighty-eighth minute, the Dragon Country team finally took advantage of a counterattack opportunity and knocked on the goal of the Uzbekistan team!"

"York City youngster Huang Zichang, who just came on as a substitute, assisted Wu Lei to score the only goal so far in this game."

"What a brilliant counterattack!"

"The Dragons have finally broken the deadlock on the pitch! We're ahead! ”

After Wu Lei scored the goal, he was so excited that he quickly rushed out of the stadium, and ran all the way to the bottom of the fan stands that came to the Tianhe Sports Center, and a beautiful kneeling slid directly to the bottom of the stands.

Behind him, the internationals rushed up quickly, surrounding him one by one, and everyone got carried away and partyed.

Not far away, the members of the coaching staff are also in a group.

Lippi lost his usual elegance, and grabbed Pan Yi's shoulders with both hands and swayed: "We have scored!" You're right, you're right!! ”

Pan Yi, on the other hand, quickly calmed down, and he immediately shouted at the international players celebrating on the sidelines, asking them all to come closer.

"At this time, we must be calm, Uzbekistan will definitely fight back wildly, we must do our best to stabilize the position, just like our previous defense, understand?" Pan Yi shouted vigorously.

The internationals shouted in unison: "Understood! ”

——

After the restart of the game, Uzbekistan, which was down by one goal, launched a frantic offensive.

They can't accept a single point, let alone a zero point??

This is absolutely unacceptable for Uzbekistan.

Babayan quickly used up his last substitution and brought on a striker, apparently to further strengthen the offensive up front.

But the whole team of the Dragon Kingdom also obeyed Pan Yi's arrangement, and the whole team retreated, but did not give Uzbekistan the slightest chance.

As the clock ticked by, Uzbekistan looked to have the upper hand but were never able to find an effective way to get the ball into the box, let alone create a threat.

Three minutes of stoppage time passed quickly.

After Uzbekistan's Akhmedov's outrageous long-range shot, the referee also blew the final whistle!

In the end, with Wu Lei's goal, the Dragon Country team defeated Uzbekistan 1:0 at home and scored three valuable points!

And almost at the same time, the other two games were over.

Syria beat Qatar 3-1, which makes Syria still ranked fifth in Group A with 3 wins, 2 draws, 4 losses and 11 points, while Qatar is at the bottom of Group A with 2 wins and 7 losses and only 6 points.

South Korea were still unable to break each other's goals after 90 minutes of fierce battle with Iran at home, and the final draw was 0:0.

As a result, the Iranian team's result has become 5 wins, 3 draws, 1 loss and 18 points and is still in first place, while the Dragon Country team, which won this round, is still in second place with 5 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses and 16 points.

South Korea ranked third with 4 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses and 14 points, and was opened up by the Dragon Country team by 2 points.

Uzbekistan, which lost to the Dragons, is still in fourth place with 4 wins and 4 losses and 12 points.

Since the Iranian team that won the group and the South Korean team that ranked third already had a 4-point difference, it was impossible to be kicked to the third position with only one game left, so the Iranian team got its wish and successfully crossed the line one round in advance!

The other direct qualification spot will be between the Dragon Team and the South Korean team.

But it is clear that the balance of victory has now tilted to a large extent in favor of the Dragons.

First of all, the Dragons have secured the third place in the group and can at least participate in the play-offs.

But because the last opponent of the Dragon Country is Qatar, and this team that has lost consecutive games has lost its qualification early, and now they are at the bottom, I am afraid that they have no morale, and they have no ability to compete with the current fierce momentum and the Dragon Team that has won consecutive battles.

Therefore, the chances of the Dragon Nation team finishing second in the group are infinitely higher!

And South Korea's last opponent is Uzbekistan.

Considering that Uzbekistan are only two points behind South Korea, they can overtake their opponents and finish third in the group if they can beat them, so they will definitely give it their all.

Regardless of the outcome of this match, there must be at least one team that exceeds 15 points, which is a point that Syria cannot reach anyway, so Syria have also been eliminated early, and their last round match against Iran is just a friendly match.

Therefore, the situation in this group is almost certain before the final match of Group A on September 5.

That is, Iran qualified early, while the Dragons and South Korea competed for the last direct qualifying spot, and Uzbekistan is also competing with South Korea for a play-off place in the third place in the group!