Chapter 408: The World Cup Life-or-Death Match Arrives, Namo Greatly Compassionate Guanyin

#NationalFootballTeamWorldCupLifeOrDeathMatch, #ChinaVsSweden, and #NationalFootballTeamAndBrazil-related topics easily dominated the trending search lists.

The reasoning is simple: if the Chinese team can draw or even defeat their opponent in the final round, they will have a chance to enter the knockout stage of this World Cup!

This would be the first time in history that the Chinese Men's National Football Team enters the World Cup proper!

People's Daily — Creating the Impossible: A New Chapter of "Great Tang Prosperity," Will the Chinese Team Perform Another Miracle?

Defeating Germany 2:1 to secure the first World Cup victory was the first miracle produced by the Chinese team.

Will a second miracle appear today?

Dongqiu Di Hot Discussion: If they advance to the knockout stage, the National Football Team will face Brazil directly. (Comment count: 87321)

【6】

【Stop with all this nonsense; let's talk about entering the knockout stage first anyway, losing to Brazil isn't shameful.】

【To speak plainly, Sweden is not easy to play against; let's handle the group stage first.】

【It doesn't matter; my brother Tang Zhengxiong said the National Football Team has already taken out a loan for the knockout stage, so a win is guaranteed.】

【I went to a temple to draw a lot for the National Football Team, and the result was a lower-lower lot, but it doesn't matter; I transferred 200 yuan to the abbot, and it directly turned into an upper-upper lot.】

The comment section was lively, with fans from all over the country predicting the outcome of this match in their own ways.

Dongqiu Di Poll: Who do you think will win the China vs. Sweden match?

China: 99%.

Sweden: 1%.

Good heavens, the Chinese team's win rate could be described as leaving everyone else in the dust.

But the fans' opinions are not equivalent to the team's actual win probability.

Looking at the sports lottery data, the odds for a sole Chinese team victory have reached 1 to 5.25.

The match against Germany boosted the fans' confidence, causing many fans to side with the Chinese team when buying lottery tickets.

Hangzhou Lingyin Temple.

Since yesterday, Lingyin Temple has been extremely bustling; the Zhejiang government, being understanding, allowed tourists from all over the country to enter Lingyin Temple without buying tickets during the World Cup period.

"Walk faster, walk faster, squeeze through, squeeze forward, don't block the middle of the road."

Both sides of the stone steps were a sea of red, with wooden plaques hanging from the trees bearing phrases like "China Must Win," all prayed for by fans for the Chinese team.

Thick smoke rose, and the area before the temple gates was also a sea of red.

Tourists knelt before prayer cushions, holding three sticks of pure incense in their hands, silently murmuring with their mouths.

"Chinese team must win, Chinese team must win, Chinese team must win..."

Fans stopped a monk inside the temple.

"Master, Master, can you cast a divination for the National Football Team? Can we beat Sweden?"

Being called 'Master' made the young monk somewhat happy: "This... this I cannot do, but I can give you something."

Having said that, the young monk fished a wooden plaque out of his pocket.

The tourists gathered around.

【Guanyin Bless】【Guanyin Bless】

【Amulet】

【Disaster Elimination】【Longevity Extension】

Noticing the tourists' expressions change, the young monk quickly took the item back.

"Took the wrong one, took the wrong one, not this one. It's this one, this one."

He pulled out a new wooden plaque.

This wooden plaque was very clean, appearing to be newly made.

The plaque needed to be viewed vertically; at the very top were the four large characters "Guanyin Bestows Blessings," and at the very bottom was written "Good Luck Talisman," which represented the type of plaque, capable of bringing good fortune to people.

Then came the middle, which was also the most critical part; let's see what was written on this plaque.

【National Football Team is Awesome】

【Tang Ye is Invincible】

The two sentences, one on the left and one on the right, looked extremely arrogant.

"This, this..."

Holding the wooden plaque, the tourist's hands were trembling: "M-Master, is this talisman of yours genuine?"

"Of course!"

The monk flipped the plaque over, pointing to the three large characters "Lingyin Temple" on the back: "This is officially certified by the temple; look over there."

The monk pointed to a long queue winding into an S-shape on the distant mountain, saying: "Everyone over there is buying this; it's 25 yuan each. You count as lucky; I'm giving it to you for free, so you don't need to queue."

"By the way, let me tell you how to use this."

Saying this, the monk held the wooden plaque in his hands, clasping them tightly together.

"Namo Greatly Compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva, Namo Greatly Compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva..."

"Tang Ye is Invincible, Tang Ye is Invincible, Tang Ye is Invincible."

Under the shocked gaze of the tourist, the monk completed his prayer: "It's a pity the match starts tonight; if you had come a day earlier, you could have chanted twice, and the effect would have been better."

"This..."

Taking the wooden plaque back, the tourist glanced at the long queue lining up on the distant mountain.

This... it probably doesn't make much difference whether he joins once more, right?

"I feel like Guanyin is about to recognize Tang Ye,"

the tourist said.

"That is certain."

The monk nodded repeatedly, pointing inside the temple, where thick gray smoke seemed poised to engulf the entire palace.

"Although I don't understand football, I feel the Chinese national team's opponent won't be able to withstand Guanyin Bodhisattva's divine power."

"This amount of incense offerings is already enough for Tang Ye to ascend to immortality in broad daylight."

……

China announced its starting lineup for the third group stage match, led by Tang Ye, with Zhang Zhang Yuning and Hao Hao Junmin starting and Zheng Zhi on the bench.

"Damn, if we win, we play Brazil!"

In the locker room, Tang Ye and his teammates sat on benches, chatting about what had just happened.

"It doesn't matter; the main thing is this match."

Feng Feng Xiaoting chewed the gum Tang Ye had given him.

His view aligned with that of the fans.

Regardless of whether the knockout round opponent was Brazil or Switzerland, the Chinese team's primary task was first to break into the knockout stage.

Once they entered the knockout stage, these twenty-three names on the roster would become heroes in the history of Chinese football.

The kind that fans would remember forever!

"Want a banana?"

Madaloni, eating a banana himself, walked over, handed all the bananas in his hand to Wu Lei, who then distributed them to Tang Ye and Zhang Zhang Yuning.

"You don't seem nervous at all, Mr."

Tang Ye slowly peeled the banana, surprised by Madaloni's current state.

"Because I know we will definitely win."

Madaloni smiled and said, "Come on, eat faster; once you're ready, come over here, to my side!"

The players quickly gathered together, and Lippi reiterated some match details to them once more.

"We don't yet know if this is our final match, but what I do know is that we have no retreat left. Sweden is strong, very few people favor us, but we must win, we must win this match."

After Feng Feng Xiaoting finished speaking, the players unanimously looked toward Tang Ye.

Being stared at by his teammates like this, Tang Ye felt somewhat embarrassed: "Um... I think Brother Ting is absolutely right."

"Come on, come on!"

Tang Ye placed his hand on top.

"Let's do this, brothers!"

"Go!!!"

As the players walked out of the locker room, Madaloni suddenly called out to stop Tang Ye: "Tom!"

"Hmm, what is it, Mr.?"

Tang Ye turned around; Madaloni pointed at Lippi: "Marcello has something he wants to say to you."

All eyes turned to Lippi.

"Unleash yourself."

"Haha."

Tang Ye fist-bumped Lippi from across the distance.

……

"Running within the crowd, I cannot see,"

"Occasionally meeting loneliness, spinning in circles right here~~"

"……"

"I! Chasing the glimmer of dreams~"

"It is because we have courage that we fear no danger."

"Glimmer of Dreams," voted today by Chinese fans, is the theme song of the animated series "Divine Weapon Little General."

This song was clearly requested by fans for Tang Ye, hoping to boost his performance.

Regrettably, when the song began playing, the players were still in the locker room, so Tang Ye did not hear it.

The entrance music prepared by the organizers was in English.

The CCTV-5 feed switched, showing both teams walking out of the tunnel together.

"I'm unstoppable!"

"I'm a Porsche with no brakes!"

"I'm invincible!"

"Yeah, I'll win every single game!"

This song was also on Tang Ye's playlist.

The song was highly energizing; combined with the roaring cheers of the fans, Tang Ye felt he had entered an excellent match-ready state.

"Go, go!"

……

"China Central Television, China Central Television! Here is the live broadcast of the FIFA World Cup..."

"The match has begun; now I will introduce the starting lineups for both sides in this game, starting with the home team, Sweden!"

Sweden (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Olsen

Defenders: Augustinsson, Granqvist, Lindelöf, Lustig

Midfielders: Forsberg, Ekdal, Sebastian Larsson, Claesson

Forwards: Toivonen, Marcus Berg

Head Coach: Andersson

"And now, the away team, China!"

Like Sweden, China's lineup hasn't changed much; Zheng Zhi has been replaced by Hao Hao Junmin as the starting defensive midfielder.

In the first two matches, Zheng Zhi exposed too many problems.

There's no help for it; that's what happens when you get older. Since China needs to play at a faster tempo in this match, Lippi had to bench Zheng Zhi.

The camera cuts to Lippi on the sideline.

In the previous two matches, China's tactics have varied.

It remains to be seen what Mr. Marcello will do in this crucial final group stage match.

Lippi is very calm; Sweden's coach Andersson is his complete opposite.

"Let's go, let's go! Hurry, hurry up!"

Simonsson shouted loudly at the players on the field, making the assistant referee constantly monitor his position, fearing Simonsson might rush onto the pitch.

Boom!

Lustig played a straight through-ball, pushing it forward to Marcus Berg ahead.

"Hey, beautiful!"

"That pass was incredibly accurate; right at the start of the match, Sweden has already launched their attack."

"Let's see how China handles this..."

The coaching staff had specifically emphasized Sweden's fast breaks before the match, so when Lustig played the ball out, Hao Hao Junmin was already in position.

Coordinating with Wang Wang Shenchao!

"Hao Hao Junmin and Wang Wang Shenchao are trying to double-team Berg!"

They've closed the door!

Berg is very fast; he passed the ball out before Wang Wang Shenchao could stretch his foot to intercept.

Played back to Larsson!

Larsson passes again toward the byline!

It's going to Claesson near the byline!

"Hey!"

Tang Ye shouted: "Watch the far post!"

Boom!

After reaching the byline, Claesson delivered a cross.

As expected, it was aimed at the far post.

Toivonen!

The Swedish striker controlled the ball inside the penalty area, but his shooting angle was blocked by Feng Feng Xiaoting and Mei Fang.

He pulled the ball back to Forsberg behind him!

Boom!

"Oh!!"

A long-range shot was unleashed.

But it went wide!

The Chinese fans in the stands clasped their hands behind their heads.

Sweden was playing somewhat anxiously; some verbal conflicts erupted among their attacking players.

However, their fast breaks were indeed well-executed.

It's only the third minute of the first half, yet Sweden has already created one dangerous shot on goal!

Sweden currently has zero points and ranks last in Group F, leading many casual viewers to assume Sweden is weak.

But that is absolutely wrong!

Chewing the gum in his mouth, Tang Ye slowly ran toward the front field.

Sweden's offensive intensity exceeded his expectations.

He glanced at Lippi in front of the substitutes' bench.

The coach gave no signal.

That meant they were sticking to the plan!

China's situation was slightly passive, but once they gained possession, the players remained very decisive.

Come on!

A teammate knocked the ball out; with his back to the defender, Tang Ye placed one foot in front of the ball, turned sideways, and directly played it forward.

A familiar one-touch pass!

The fans stood up as Tang Ye's precise through-ball found Wu Lei making a forward run.

China advanced with the ball down the right flank to the byline!

A defender stood before him, but Wu Lei didn't choose to approach actively; instead, he kept the ball under control himself near the byline.

Clearly, he was waiting for someone!

Tang Ye was already on his way!

"TomTom!"

The Swedish coach shouted Tang Ye's name, and the defenders on the field rushed toward Tang Ye.

Look for the opportunity!

Tang Ye used a feint, attempting to shake off the defender!

Failing to shake off his marker immediately, Tang Ye signaled Hao Hao Junmin to come support.

Wu Lei passed the ball to Hao Hao Junmin!

Now it's sorted!

Pointing with both hands at the small open space in front of him, Tang Ye received the pass from Hao Hao Junmin.

Tang Ye moved forward to take the ball!

While making his forward run to receive the ball, Tang Ye kept scanning his surroundings; spotting a Swedish defender intent on charging into him, he quickly dodged aside.

But he was still knocked down!

Thud!

With his arm pressed against the grass, Tang Ye rolled half a turn.

"Beep!!"

The referee blew the whistle for a defensive foul by the Swedish team!

In the broadcast camera, Tang Ye sat on the grass, sighing.

Fans found this shot very familiar, as if they were watching a replay.

Of course, it wasn't a replay; it was simply because so many such scenes had occurred in this World Cup.

"Come on!"

Zhang Zhang Yuning pulled Tang Ye up from the ground, and the Chinese team began to set up for the set piece.

The position wasn't ideal, so Tang Ye opted for a conservative choice.

Crack!

The ball lofted up into the penalty area!

Feng Feng Xiaoting!

Boom!

A header shot by the captain of the Chinese team!

But it was saved away by the goalkeeper, Olsen!

"Damn it!!!"

Clutching his head with both hands, Feng Feng Xiaoting roared furiously at the stands.

Missing a chance to score at the World Cup is something completely unacceptable for a professional player.

A chance to become famous with a single goal!

But unfortunately, it was missed!

"It's okay, it's okay!"

Tang Ye gave a thumbs-up toward the penalty area, then began preparing for the corner kick position.

It was regrettable, yes, but in this match the Chinese team had quickly launched an attack, which Tang Ye saw as very good news.

This was... a sign of a goal!

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: Ekdal's direct free-kick shot was saved by Zeng Cheng; the national team goalkeeper made his 9th save of this World Cup.

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: Kroos took a direct free-kick from the left flank, but it went slightly wide.

【My blood pressure's spiking, bros; I'm watching with my legs shaking.】

【With Sweden attacking this fiercely, how did they lose to Germany? Isn't this more intense than any German war machine?】

【Here's a ghost story: Chinese fans think Germany is weak.】

【China > Germany, Germany > Sweden, therefore China >> Sweden!】

【The incense offerings should have arrived by now; why isn't Guanyin stepping up? My whole family has bought incense.】

(End of chapter)