"Beautiful!"

It's my intuition, and when Miller and Xuexue stand in front of that set-piece, I have a vague feeling that this goal will definitely go in. Xuexue's fake run shook a shot from the human wall of Jieqi Middle School, and when he actually took charge of Milliden, he shot with his right foot, and the ball crossed a perfect arc and crossed the barrier of Jieqi Middle School. The goalkeeper made a sideways pave, but the speed of the ball and the tricky angle caught him off guard. It was a blockbuster and Miller got off to a good start, scoring his first goal of the season and our team's first goal of the season. If it weren't for the fact that the two of us were so far apart, I would have rushed up and hugged him like everyone else does. But he did not forget me, and compared to me from a distance the original celebratory hand shape: two hands in front of him, four fingers together, only the two thumbs touching diagonally together to form a "W" shape, and his twinkling eyes peeking out from the gap between his thumb and forefinger.

W stands for the pinyin initials of "Wei", and the goal was given to me. During the summer vacation, Miller couldn't hold back after all, and told me about the celebration that he had not been able to do. He originally wanted it as a surprise, but he still said okay, if I didn't understand the meaning, I would not know what to do even if I saw it. So, I feel very happy to witness this unique celebration at this moment. The efforts of the summer were not in vain.

For a whole month, Miller did not return to his hometown. He and I went to the cram school of mathematics and physics every morning, found a classroom at the Jiangyuan Art Institute in the afternoon to study and write homework, and in the evening, when the hot sun was about to set, we took advantage of the warm wind to sneak to the football field of the art academy to practice. Miller said that he had to practice his shooting well, not only to surpass Puyun, but also to take over the captain's mantle of taking free kicks. Words must be believed, deeds must be fruitful. We did what we said we would. Despite making his first start, Miller struck the back of the opposition's position in the fifth minute of the game, and a stunning free-kick silenced the stands of Yuki High School, who were excited to return to the Mayor's Cup.

Time is ticking, and instead of standing still, we are coming out stronger. After Mu Zheng expanded the score to 2:0, I firmly believed in this idea even more. It was a brilliant goal, too, but it wasn't the final shot that was the excitement. First of all, I volleyed the ball in the corner kick defense, and seeing that Yan Xi had already run to the no-man's land on the left side with a clear understanding, I desperately squeezed everyone around me, rushed to the edge of the penalty area, opened my right arm, and threw the ball in front of Yan Xi like a grenade. When I got up because of inertia, I fell to the ground and witnessed the new No. 9 swinging back on the wing, he still maintained his balance after the physical confrontation, shook off the opponent who rushed to block from the side, spun like a meteor like an arrow, ran wildly with the ball in the side corridor at high speed, and used a wonderful "croquette" to wipe out the intercepting Yuqi defender. The other party was shaken by him and fell to the ground without chasing a few steps. Yan Xi, who entered the penalty area, formed a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, and just when everyone thought he was going to shoot with his feet, he gently pushed the ball to the right, and Mu Zheng had already arrived from the back row. Although his stoppage was substandard, there was nothing in front of him but an empty gate. He scrambled to catch up with the ball that he had stopped and rolled forward, and pushed it into the empty goal. As soon as the goal was scored, Mu Zheng did not run to celebrate as before, but walked to the door and picked up Yan Xi, who gave the assist. Our No.7 and No.9 were a golden pairing, and the one-off goal was a textbook counter-attack. From the goalkeeper quickly throwing the ball to the side blaster, promoting, breaking through, and scoring the goal, we used the most simple and direct way to destroy the defense of Jieqi Middle School in more than ten seconds.

It seemed that everything was too easy, and last year when we faced Polytechnic High School at home, we were like big enemies, and it seemed that if we lost, we would be out of the group. Today, however, we are strolling around, perhaps because our opponents are all junior high school juniors, who are too young. After the offense failed to concede the goal, they were also more impatient, and it was difficult for them to effectively organize the counterattack. "I'm still a little tender in the end", I finally reached the age and grade where I could think of others in this way.

"What 'cherry blossoms are in full bloom', it will become a broken flower and a willow before half time!" After returning to the locker room, Ye Ruiyang finally laughed, "At this level, you are embarrassed to say that you are a 'Young Guard'?" ”

As he spoke, he looked back at Yue Yin and said that the title of tonight's press release had been thought of for her, and it was called "Spicy Hands Destroying Flowers". Yue Yin smiled and poked his head, saying that it was really humiliating for him not to go to work on the marketing account.

"Can you shut your crow's mouth, you want to open champagne in the middle of the show? Don't make a mistake to give a gift later. "Brother Chuan still doesn't forget to hurt him. In all fairness, Lao Ye's performance in the first half was quite perfect, and all the high-altitude balls were handled steadily, making me completely forget that "Coach Yuan" had retired. If I hadn't been the captain, I might have stood on Ye Ruiyang's side, saying that Brother Chuan was a crow's mouth like him.

There couldn't have been a more perfect half than today.

"Actually, I think Jieqi's classmates are still very clean, a little too civilized or too polite." Ming Ming, who was sitting on the side, said, "Just like I did at the beginning of my first year of junior high school, I was timid, I didn't dare to foul, and I didn't dare to have too much physical contact." ”

"yes, it doesn't feel like they're as excited as their own fans." The winner of the first goal was lying in a chair, arms crossed, and I was putting my hand on his shoulder.

"If it were me, I would never let Yan Xi go over on the second ball, just put it down with a foul, don't even think about it." This is really in line with the character of Xuexue. He still sat with Mu Zheng, but the latter didn't say anything, just silently looked at the ceiling, not at all like he had scored a goal.

Hopefully he's not thinking about the captain's armband. I've always admired Mu Zheng, not only for his skills, but also for his bold and reliable personality, which is calm and gentle. Probably because we are all a year older and have matured a lot, Mu Zheng is more like a general, and his joy and anger are invisible.

The coach didn't make too many arrangements, just told us not to underestimate the enemy and to make persistent efforts in the second half. We did exactly that, and after the first 20 minutes of the second half, Yuki stepped up their attack and the 'young players' gradually adapted to the rhythm of the game, creating some chances and holding us down in the half at one point. But they missed a couple of shots and while the situation was a bit passive, it seemed like we were certain to win the game as the game wore on.

The students in the first year of junior high school are finally about to make their debut. Taking advantage of the ball out of bounds, Xiao Qi waited with a lunge on the sidelines, and Jieqi's classmates deliberately emphasized the remaining time of the game after the substitution information was broadcast. Ten minutes, including stoppage time, will not exceed fifteen minutes. Hold for a quarter of an hour and you'll be on your way to your first win. In the second half, our attack was sporadic and lacked threat, and Xiao Qi came on to replace Yan Xi, adding new vitality to the forward line. He made a wide break as soon as he came on, slotted into the box and fired a shot into the side-netting. I heard the coach shouting several crosses on the sidelines, and it was true, if he was as selfless as Yan Xi, maybe the outflanked Mu Zheng would be able to rewrite the score to 3:0 at this moment. However, it is always good for strikers to have a desire to shoot, and in the opening game last year, Mu Zheng also chose to shoot himself instead of passing, and the result was a brilliant goal from a tight angle that gave me the only assist so far.

When the game is over, I have to encourage Xiao Qi. Just as we were thinking, our second substitution came, Luka came on for Xuexue, he went to the left, and we changed to a back four. The opponent's MC is also more agitated, and now there are only seven minutes until the end of the game. Maybe the tone will be more urgent later, Jieqi has used up the three substitutions, no surprise, it will be our third substitution in a few minutes, Ah Hui should have a chance to play.

But things didn't go so well. Luka, who came on the pitch, turned a little slower to defend the opposition striker one-on-one on the flank, allowing the opposition to wipe it out. He hurriedly chased back and took down Yuki's player. The referee awarded a set-piece on the wing. The ball was driven into the box and our man-to-man defence was leaky, with a knotted midfielder sandwiched between Luka and Chuan Ge unguarded. It was he who burst out of the crowd and made a header in front of goal. With a muffled thud, the ball was pushed in the opposite direction of mine. It's too close for a save to be made.

Kind of shouldn't. Conceding a goal at this point in time is the most troublesome. The gloomy stands boiled over almost the entire game, and at the end of the game, hope was finally rekindled at Yuki Middle School. The scorer didn't celebrate, picked up the ball in the net and ran to the center circle with his teammates.

"Luca! What are you doing? ”

"Sorry, I...... It's not ......"

"How do you keep an eye on people?"

"Okay, okay, defend seriously. Just keep it. ”

Luca was anxious and panicked, his face flushed, and his tongue was almost knotted when he spoke Chinese. I patted Xiao Qi and Luca on the head with my gloves in front of the door, and gently pushed their backs. It's a good thing to have a heart, it can be seen that Xiao Qi wants to win the game, but the ball has been lost, now is not the time to complain about his teammates, and he will analyze it after the game if there is a problem. I thought so and watched everyone walk back to their positions and kick off again.

I clapped vigorously and called out to them from behind. Concentrate and don't be careless.

Just hold on for a few more minutes. Last season's stoppage time by Pu Yun is still vivid, people can't fall in the same place twice, and this time everyone will not make the same mistakes again.

The ball is out. Mu Zheng passed it to Brother Chuan, and Brother Chuan returned to Mi Le on the side. No. 3 swept his gaze, observed the situation on the field, sent a long pass with his right foot, and found Xiao Qi who pulled to the left side impartially. Xiao Qi brought the ball to the front, and this time he spotted Mu Zheng who was diagonally inserted into the penalty area and took the ball forward for a point, who received this exquisite pass. The defender who was following closely was shaken by one of his backs, and at this moment Mu Zheng's eyes were already open, and only the goalkeeper of Jieqi remained. The moment he shot the goal, everyone's hearts went to their throats. It was our best chance of the second half, if not the only one. Jieqi Middle School has just won a city and is trying to catch up with the score, but when it has not established a stable foothold, it will come to a price due to a little negligence.

The goal didn't go in. Mu Zheng stumbled a little after completing the turn, and he didn't eat the ball when he shot, the ball was like a stubborn child, and he deviated from the goal range very disobediently. I heard a sigh of relief from the frightened stands, and half of our team members clutched their heads in frustration.

"Good shot! Back! Back! Come back and defend! ”

I slapped my gloves again and shouted at them. The goalkeeper had already picked up the ball and kicked it away.

"Keep an eye on people! It's time to solve the siege! ”

I don't know if it's because I've become the captain, or because the pressure created by Yuki is getting bigger and bigger, and my shouting is frequent and impatient. "There is a penalty for wasting opportunities." The coach stresses this point with us in almost every training and game, and everyone takes it to heart. This sentence took root in our hearts, and a not-so-good premonition seemed to spread in everyone's hearts.

But this feeling is unreliable. The fate is in our own hands, as long as we defend well and maintain the score of 2-1, the first victory of the new season is within reach. Seeing that Luka's defense on the side is a little difficult, he obviously consciously comes to help defend, and Brother Chuan will fill the gap left after Ming Ming stepped forward, our defensive system should still be in order. But the accident happened, Jieqi's cross happened to hit Mingming's arm, and the referee showed a yellow card and gave Jieqi a free kick.

At the last moment of the tight score, it is most taboo to give the opponent such a calm attacking set-piece opportunity, and the luck is really a bit bad.

The referee's whistle did not blow, and the fourth official raised a substitution card on the sidelines. Sure enough, it was Ah Hui, who was on the sidelines preparing to replace Mu Zheng. But I shouted a few words into the dugout and asked the coach to make a substitution after he had finished defending. There has been a leak in the defense after the substitution, and when the ball is defended, the substitution will consume a little bit of game time, which is my judgment at this moment. Miller and Ye Ruiyang also gestured to the sidelines, and the coach nodded to us.

I believe this is a reasonable judgment.

It's just that no matter how rational the choice is, there is no guarantee that everything will go as expected. Yuki's set-piece was unleashed, this time a little further away from the goal, and there was a scuffle and someone headed the ball towards the goal. It's a bit off, I don't fly into the net, and I'm on this side, and Luka is also following up. However, a man in a rose-red jersey happened to rush to the path of the ball and jumped to his feet. Luka jammed in front of him, and although he suffered a bit in height, he could interfere with him just by jumping.

Lukka couldn't jump. As if he were pinned to the ground, the No.10 was just a few metres from goal to finish with a header. I spread my hands to the ball, but nothing was found in the air, and the ball flew into the net again, and the sound in the stands was like a thunderstorm, and my brain and ears were buzzing. Maybe it was the roar of the scorer after the equaliser was too big, but he didn't do anything to celebrate, but quickly fished out the ball.

Do they want to get into the third?

When I picked up the overpowered Luka from the turf, I heard the goal message from Yuki High School, and the MC was completely rejuvenated and kept insisting that the stoppage time was four minutes and four minutes.

We conceded two goals in seven minutes.

The coach did not replace Ah Hui again, and Mu Zheng remained on the field. But his steps are getting heavier and heavier, and the huge consumption of a game has made it a little difficult for each of us. Xiaoqi and Luka, who had just debuted, also seemed to be dragged into this slow and clunky rhythm, and Yuki Middle School seemed to forget its fatigue and approached our goal again in the joy of scoring goals and the drumming of the crowd. We became cattle who walked by the nose and changed formations with their attacks tired. At this moment and then, maybe no one could have imagined that there would be such a sudden change on the field fifty minutes ago.

Maybe that's football, you never know the outcome until the last second.

One blow of strength, then decline, three and exhaustion. Are we at the end of the crossbow? As we get closer to the referee's final whistle, there is no room for error and if we concede a goal, we simply don't have the time or the ability to equalise. Although he was not yet behind, the opponent's knife was already on his neck. The more the players played, the more confident they became, and the frustration before the end of the first half was the same as the two teams. It was our own mistakes that gave them confidence and we could no longer organise the offensive and we had to try to hold on to the draw. But the fact is that the more you want to defend, the more difficult it is to defend, everyone's confidence has been hit a lot, Luka's performance is particularly obvious, several touches of the ball are like a time bomb that is about to explode at any time, and I can't wait to pass it out immediately. However, he did not choose to clear the siege with a big foot, but wanted to stuff the ball to Xiao Qi and Mu Zheng in front of him in a panic, but was intercepted by Jieqi Middle School and hit our counterattack on the spot. In the face of repeated mistakes, I kept directing my teammates in front of goal, but everyone's fitness seemed to be unable to keep up with the hearing.

The cost of wasted opportunities and needless mistakes is too great. Yuki split the ball down the right after a steal and Miller came up to defend and he was solid on both ends of the pitch today and should have been the man of the match. His defense on the side this time also followed people, and even raised his foot to rub the opponent's cross, so that all the players in the penalty area who were ready to grab points were pounced, and Ye Ruiyang took advantage of the situation to push the ball out.

However, at this time, the front of our Great Forbidden Zone is empty. Brother Chuan followed the opponent's forward midfielder into the penalty area, and there was no one to make up for his position. I saw Lukka rushing there, but he stumbled and didn't stand still. The opposition full-back stopped the ball and by the time Luca tried to block it, he had already opened his bow.

It was a very high-quality "cloud-piercing arrow", high and fierce, through the dense crowd in the restricted area, with a slight fall. As I leapt into the air, I felt myself touching the ball, but it was so fast that it flew into the top edge of the goal with unshakable force, and the sound of rushing into the net was clearly discernible. The partners who looked back and watched the ball go into the net were almost frozen in place. Once again, we saw the goalscorer take off his shirt and run frantically across the pitch, the roar of the stands drowning us like a tidal wave that flooded us.

I bit my lip and scooped the ball out of the net and kicked it into the middle circle, encouraging everyone to seize the last minute to equalize. Xiao Qi was saying something to Luca again, but I didn't bother to listen, just urging them to attack. But the referee didn't give us another chance, and after the ball was kicked out, we didn't have time to pass it to the Yuki half, and three long whistles sounded. Returning to the Mayor's Cup stage, the students rushed onto the pitch with their coaches to celebrate their hard-earned victory. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom, and the stadium and stands at Yuki Junior High School seem to be painted in a vibrant light red. Shaking my head in vain and bitterness, I walked among the group, my gloves flapping incessantly. I felt like I should do it, and I should say something. But what can I say? I just had to clap my hands louder and hopefully make everyone feel relieved from this loss. But what I saw was confusion, confusion in everyone's eyes. To lead by two goals and lose the game, or to concede three goals in ten minutes, was unimaginable in the past.

We didn't lose a game in the whole season last year.

Maybe everyone doesn't know how they got back to the locker room. Miller leaned next to me, his head drooping. After Ye Ruiyang entered the door, he fell heavily on the chair, without saying a word, and even Xuexue seemed to have lost his usual heart, just put his hand on Mu Zheng's back.

"Go comfort Luca." After everyone came in, Miller saw that No. 10's eyes were red, and he secretly whispered in my ear.

"I don't speak much English." I whispered in response.

"You're the captain. If you don't go, I'll go. "He gave me a sneak push.

I went, and it turned out to be worse, Luca looked at me from a distance, panicked, probably thinking that I had come to settle accounts with him, and kept saying sorry, and then there were some very strange words, unlike English, which I didn't understand. Two tear streaks quickly appeared on his cheeks. I didn't know how to explain it, so I could only say "It's OK" and gently stroke his curly chestnut hair. Seeing this, Xuexue also came over to say a few words to him. Fortunately, with him as a rescuer, he can communicate with Luca. After choking for a while, the junior finally figured out what we meant, but his tear-filled eyes were still a bit like broken gems, and it was uncomfortable to look at.

"Cry, cry, cry, know to cry. What's the use of crying? That is, a foreigner, the light will be used to it. ”

I heard someone muttering as they opened the door and walked out to the bathroom. I don't know if Lukka heard it, and I don't know if he could understand it. After a while, the coach came in, saw a room full of frustration, and told me to let everyone change their clothes first, and then she would summarize it. With that, she went out and the locker room was handed over to me. The toilet man returned, and an atmosphere that I didn't like very much gradually spread.

To be honest, as the coach joked, our team is a "good baby", and with the team playing smoothly last year, the atmosphere in the dressing room has always been relaxed. But we lost today, still in this way. That feeling of recrimination and suspicion was the first time in our team. No one told me what to do in such a situation. In all fairness, Luca did take responsibility for today's defeat. But who wants to lose? Everyone is inevitably a little nervous for the first time, and if there is a mistake, it is easy to change mentality. Once the mentality collapses a little, there may be this kind of mistake one after another, and this is still the case for professional players, not to mention that everyone is a twelve or thirteen-year-old child.

But...... Could it be that as the man said, I took Luca so seriously because he was a foreigner? Probably not, I will comfort anyone who has a problem. It's just that Luca and we don't speak the same language, so I might have to be a little more patient.

What to do? I looked at Mi Le and Ye Ruiyang from a distance, and they lowered their heads. Too bad. Maybe I'm not fit to be the captain at all, and I cringe as soon as there is such an uncomfortable sound in the team.

What would he do if he were? Maybe he wouldn't have allowed that to happen at all. String can drive every teammate on the field, even in adversity, he doesn't need to shout as often as I do, just silently and single-handedly change the world and carry the team forward. I don't have the power to turn the tide, nor the courage to stay quiet.

I'm completely different from that person.

"Guys, I'm sorry. I didn't take my chances and the team lost. I'll definitely try my best next time. ”

It was Mu Zheng who said this. He suddenly stood in the middle of the locker room and bowed to everyone very standardly. He was really the first choice to be captain and he set an example at this moment. I walked to the side silently and apologized to everyone for not being able to make a save at the last minute today.

Mu Zheng gently patted me behind the back. I looked at him in shame, as if I had stolen what was rightfully his. But there was no blame in his eyes, but there was a bit of trust. Anyway, the whispers finally stopped. After all, losing is never just one person's responsibility, but each of us needs to bear the consequences. I made up my mind that I would listen very, very carefully when the coach came in and summed it up.

Group A Round 1

Jieqi Middle School 3:2 Jiangyuan No. 1 Middle School

Jiangyuan Foreign School 3:0 No. 1 Middle School Branch

Jiangyuan Mayor's Cup Football League (Junior High School Group) Group Stage Standings (Group A)

Jiang Yuan Foreign School 1 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses, scored 3 goals, conceded 0 goals, won 3 goals, accumulated 3 points

Jieqi Middle School 1 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses, scored 3 goals, conceded 2 goals, goal difference 1 goal, total 3 points

Jiang Yuan No. 1 Middle School 0 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss, scored 2 goals, conceded 3 goals, goal difference -1 goals, total 0 points

No.1 Middle School 0 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss, 0 goals scored, 3 goals conceded, goal difference -3 goals, total 0 points

Data within Jiang Yuan's No. 1 Squadron

Scorer charts

The number of goals scored by the player

Millet 1

Mu Zheng 1

Assists

Player assists

Yan Xi 1