Chapter 494: Japan's Wing Attack Tactics, Tang Ye's

The long-range shot flew wide, finally grazing the crossbar before soaring into the stands.

"Damn!"

Tang Ye felt unwilling, for he had failed to convert what was, up to this point in the match, the Chinese team's first shooting opportunity.

"It feels awful."

Sighing, Wu Lei, while running back, gave Tang Ye a thumbs-up in passing.

"What a pity; from the replay, Tang Ye's long-range shot was indeed just a hair's breadth away from going in."

"This remains the Chinese team's only shot so far."

"Yes, indeed; at present, it is still unclear what kind of tactics Lippi has adopted."

Right now, many fans in the stadium would glance from time to time in Lippi's direction, for they were truly very curious about Pi De Xiang Fa.

This is a knockout match; to advance, goals are absolutely necessary.

But the tactics deployed by the Chinese team did not look like those capable of scoring.

What does Lippi intend to do?

At present, the fans have two possible conjectures.

1. The Chinese team is playing conservatively, planning to switch to an offensive posture and secure a goal in the second half, catching Japan off guard.

2. The Chinese team intends to drag the match into a penalty shootout!

Of the two conjectures, the first should be the more reasonable one; as for the second...

In terms of stamina, the Chinese team's players would struggle to match Japan's, and since the Chinese team has already used one of its substitution quotas, dragging the match into extra time might well prove extremely taxing.

Of course, no matter how much one speculates now, it is all useless.

The face of the national team's head coach showed no expression; the fans could not fathom his thoughts at all.

【Lippi, what exactly do you want to do!】

The camera switched again to Japan's attack; this time, it was a corner kick.

"Be careful!"

Every time defending a corner kick, Madaloni would shout a few warnings, and this time was no exception.

Tang Ye moved directly to the edge of the penalty area, readying himself for defense at any moment.

Japan's corner kick...

Crack!

It did not go directly into the box; Japan was executing a tactical corner.

Nagatomo Yuto passed the ball to Endo Wataru!

Endo Wataru!

Crack!

A 45-degree cross was lofted into the penalty area, where Minamino Takumi made his preparations.

He controlled the ball with his chest!

Then followed up with a volley!

Boom!

The idea was good, but he had clearly underestimated the Chinese team's defensive setup inside the box.

Minamino Takumi's volley was blocked by Zhang Zhang Linpeng's body!

"Handball! It was a handball!"

Minamino Takumi suddenly began shouting, and the Japanese players immediately followed suit, placing their left hands over their right shoulders to signal the referee.

"Hell, how is that possible?"

Tang Ye saw it clearly: Zhang Zhang Linpeng absolutely did not commit a handball, so he immediately started arguing with the Japanese players.

Tang Ye did not speak Japanese, but he could still utter those few simplest phrases.

"Bakayarou, bakayarou!"

Tang Ye and Endo Wataru became entangled with each other.

The referee held one hand to his earpiece, seemingly listening for advice from the booth.

Beep!

Suddenly blowing his whistle, the referee drew a square in the air with both index fingers.

"Oh, here it comes."

"Let me explain to the fans watching on television: starting from the quarter-finals of this Asian Cup, VAR, or semi-automated offside technology, will be employed to assist the referee in judging potential penalties..."

If VAR is being used starting from the quarter-finals, then why wasn't it used during the group stage and the round of 16?

You would have to ask the AFC about that, for even the commentator does not know.

Tang Ye stood rooted to the spot, feeling extremely angry at the behavior of the Japanese players: "No, didn't you see clearly? It obviously hit the shoulder. Hmph... Bakayarou!"

The referee returned from the sideline and drew the square again.

Beep!!

Clearly, this was not a penalty.

Tang Ye ran up to Endo Wataru: "You guys are very, very bad!"

Well, Tang Ye himself did not know whether the opposition could understand such phrasing, but trying it out certainly couldn't hurt.

The clock reached the 22nd minute; a series of attacks by the Chinese team had slightly recovered their possession rate, but they still could not break through the 25% barrier.

From the start of the match until now, the Chinese team's possession rate had never exceeded 25%.

It felt somewhat awful, but there was truly no helping it.

"I'll take it!"

After Zheng Zhi and Minami Takumi collided, both fell to the ground, yet the referee made no call.

"Take it, take it!"

Signaling Hao Hao Junmin to take the ball, Tang Ye ran straight forward.

Hao Hao Junmin took control of the ball, dragged it back, and shook off the defender.

He ran forward a few steps, then immediately looked for Tang Ye.

Gaku Shibasaki ran alongside Tang Ye; this would indeed trouble Tang Ye's first touch.

Let's see...

Jump!

Thud!

He flicked the ball forward with his heel, then sprinted ahead again.

Gaku Shibasaki reached out as if to drag Tang Ye down.

But Tang Ye dodged!

"Wow!!!"

With another promising attacking opportunity seized, the hearts of the Chinese fans in the stadium hung in the air.

It's up to Tang Ye!

Slowly approaching the edge of the penalty arc, Tang Ye found himself marked by Ritsu Doan.

He pushed the ball forward, closing in.

Dragged the ball back!

Pushed it forward again!

On the second push, Tang Ye leaned his body forward while lowering his center of gravity, took a small hop forward with his left foot, and successfully fooled Ritsu Doan.

"Woww!!!"

The fans screamed; Tang Ye fell to the ground in response.

A tactical foul by Ritsu Doan awarded China a free-kick opportunity in the attacking third.

"Damn!"

Tang Ye pounded the grass with his fist, then stood up again.

The Chinese players gathered at the front.

Tang Ye and Hao Hao Junmin cupped their hands over their mouths and whispered to each other.

"No need, just go inside."

Tang Ye was very confident, so Hao Hao Junmin ran off immediately.

"China still chooses to let Tang Ye take this set-piece."

"If it's Tang Ye, he'll probably shoot directly. Let's see how Japan responds."

Hoo...

Hoo hoo...

Regulating his breathing, Tang Ye positioned himself to the left and rear of the ball.

Before him stood Japan's defensive wall.

At that moment, the broadcast camera suddenly jumped, cutting to the very top of the home team's substitute bench.

Tang Tang Zhengxiong stood together with several Chinese fans; seeing the camera swing over, he hurriedly raised the memorial portrait of Tang Tang Xianmin he held in his hands.

No words were needed; the ancestors were always watching!

"Beep!"

Tang Ye's eyes suddenly narrowed into a slit, and he began his run-up.

3, 2, 1.

Boom!

At the moment of impact, his knee tightened forcefully—a standard knuckleball technique.

The ball soared to its highest point before dipping down over Takehiro Tomiyasu's head.

It grazed the post and flew into the net.

"This..."

"The goal is in!"

"Tang Ye!"

"A goal from Tang Ye!"

"There's no issue with this ball; it's a goal for China!"

"China takes the lead!"

The instant he confirmed his goal, Tang Ye spread his arms and ran toward the stands, using his fastest speed to tear out three stripes.

"Roar!!!!"

Face flushed crimson, Tang Ye scooped up a female fan from the bottom row of the stands and hugged her tightly.

Goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda sat on the ground, sighing.

【Holy shit】

【Damn, we scored first again?】

【The Japanese are too short, but aiming over Takehiro Tomiyasu's head was really smart of Tang Ye; completely unexpected.】

【Direct long-range sniping of the Japs, is it?】

"Come on!"

Breaking free from his teammates' embraces, Tang Ye faced the wildly cheering fans in the stands, clenching his right fist and pounding his chest.

"Tang Ye!"

Boom!

"Tang Ye!"

Boom boom boom!

"... Phew."

Lippi took off his glasses, pulled a cleaning cloth from his pocket, carefully wiped his lenses, and put them back on.

So far, China's counter-attack tactics hadn't been very successful; the biggest problem was failing to execute the counter-attacks after defending.

But one player on the team had alleviated the squad's offensive problems with his individual ability.

In just one minute, with the national team leading Japan by one goal, the term "National Football" shot up to 28th place on Baidu's trending search.

"Daijoubu, daijoubu (It's okay)!"

Moriyasu comforted the Japanese players: "It was just luck. Daijoubu. Tang Sang can't score a second goal like that. So once we're behind, it's our chance."

"Cheer up."

"Ganbatte (Go for it)!"

Clap clap clap!

The Japanese players clapped to encourage each other, walked back onto the pitch, and restarted the match.

"Let's look at the replay again. Hmm, that shot was extremely tricky in both angle and speed."

"Yes, compared to last season, Tang Ye's free-kick technique has improved further this season. This could become a variable in this match."

Match statistics for the game popped up in the bottom left corner of the CCTV screen.

Possession: Japan 73%, China 27%.

Shots: Japan 7, China 3.

Shots on target: Japan 2, China 2.

Goals: Japan 0, China 1.

China trailed Japan in almost every statistical category.

Yet their goal count was ahead!

With possession dropping slightly, Japan quickly picked up their offensive pace again.

In the camera frame, Moriyasu suddenly held a small notebook, and the Japanese head coach began writing in it with a pen.

Tang Ye retreated to the defensive half with his teammates, but Yoshida quickly played a through ball to the edge of the penalty area for Minamino Takumi.

!

The Japanese forward displayed his close-control dribbling and acceleration, shaking off Zhang Zhang Linpeng to enter the penalty box.

However, Minamino Takumi didn't choose to drive deeper; instead, he stopped the ball and halted.

A cut-back pass to Shibasaki Gaku!

Shibasaki Gaku passed again to Osako Okazaki Yuya!

Boom!

Osako Okazaki Yuya's shot was parried away by Wang Wang Dalei's hands.

"Wow!"

A very good save, but China hadn't completely escaped danger yet.

Haraguchi Genki collected the ball punched out by Wang Wang Dalei and then passed it to Minamino Takumi.

Minamino Takumi surged down the left flank!

"Watch it, watch it!"

Tang Ye shouted a warning.

Liu Liu Yiming was tracking him.

Minamino Takumi shifted left then right to throw off the defenders' balance, then delivered a cross.

Slap!

It was a low-driven cross; Zhang Zhang Linpeng slid in to tackle.

He touched the ball, but that slight contact with the tip of his toe couldn't alter the ball's trajectory.

Osako Okazaki Yuya pushed the shot home to score.

"..."

The Japanese players were celebrating, and the score had changed from 1-0 to 1-1.

"Wasn't that offside?"

Tang Ye appealed to the referee, but soon received an answer from the official's mouth.

The pass originated from an offside position, but a Chinese player touched the ball during its flight, so this goal did not count as offside for Japan.

"Uh... alright."

Tang Ye waved his hand.

There was nothing to be done about it.

"Why did you let him in!"

Wang Wang Dalei shouted at his teammates, clearly dissatisfied with the performance of the defenders inside the penalty area.

Logically speaking, the opposing forward shouldn't have been able to reach a cross in this situation!

"Slower, slower!"

"Defend slowly and cautiously; only be bold when attacking!"

Maddaloni spoke in Chinese.

Tang Ye high-fived Wu Lei beside him.

Time reached the 31st minute of the first half; after the 1:1 score, the situation on the field stabilized slightly.

The Japanese team had not yet launched any particularly good attacks, and the Chinese team's defense had made no major errors.

Soon, thanks to Zheng Zhi's interception in the backfield, the Chinese team regained possession.

Here comes the chance!

Tang Ye decisively called for the ball, but stopped a second before passing.

The original plan was for a one-on-one breakaway, but under the 5-3-2 formation, the positioning of China's two forwards was simply too deep.

Playing a direct through-ball behind the defense was definitely not feasible; the Chinese team could only proceed slowly, step by step.

"..."

"Tang Ye threads a through-ball into the penalty area!"

"Wu Lei!"

Boom!

The shot was saved by Gonda Shuichi, earning the Chinese team their second corner kick of the match.

Tang Ye walked over to take it; Hao Hao Junmin also saw Tang Ye's intention, so he proactively passed the ball over: "Do you want to take it?"

After hesitating for a moment and comprehensively considering all aspects of the situation on the field, Tang Ye ultimately gave up.

"Beep!"

Crack!

The corner kick was taken, with the first point targeted at Shi Ke.

Boom!

He won the header, but unfortunately, Shi Ke did not possess particularly outstanding heading ability, so this ball ultimately did not go in.

The Chinese team players began to retreat.

From the 33rd minute to the 40th minute, during these nearly ten minutes, neither side created a single shot on target.

"If this is the case, then I think this is good news for the Chinese team."

For the Chinese team, a 1:1 result was naturally acceptable; after all, Lippi's plan had never envisioned the Chinese team taking the lead before the end of the first half.

But!

Moriyasu Hajime's plan required them to take the lead in the first half.

Japan still needed to conserve strength for the final against Qatar; they absolutely could not waste time in this semi-final against China!

"Go, go!"

Tightening the core, Shibasaki Gaku threaded a through-ball to the baseline.

It was Minamino Takumi again!

Japan was determined to attack down the left flank; fortunately, the Chinese side had specific defensive arrangements for this.

Liu Liu Yiming and Zheng Zhi moved up together!

Minamino Takumi used a feint to trick the defenders, then slipped directly through the gap between Liu Liu Yiming and Zheng Zhi into the penalty area.

"Oh!"

Boom!

The cross came in again, aimed once more at Osako Okazaki Yuya in the penalty area.

Osako Okazaki Yuya stepped on the ball!

A fake shot!

Then he passed back to Shibasaki Gaku, who struck the ball on the volley.

"Goooo——aaaaa——lllll!!"

Wang Wang Dalei stood on the goal line watching the ball fly past him.

It wasn't that he didn't attempt a save; rather, there was truly nothing he could do.

2:1!

The Japanese team completed a score reversal before the end of the first half!

The players ran out to celebrate, with Shibasaki Gaku pumping his right fist upward.

At the moment when the camera should have focused on the Japanese players, the director chose to cut to Tang Ye; the Chinese team's number 10 stood with hands on hips, head bowed.

"Listen to me, we can win, but you need to focus!"

Tang Ye found Shi Ke and Hao Hao Junmin: "We shouldn't be playing like this; we can play better, so why aren't we playing better?"

In Tang Ye's view, the performance the Chinese team was currently displaying was unqualified.

Every time they focused solely on defense with no offense, Tang Ye would lose his temper, just like he did against Germany during the World Cup previously.

"The defensive line must constantly shift according to their positioning; don't let them score so easily!"

Dongqiu Di Halftime Report: Tang Ye scores first with a knuckleball free-kick; Osako Okazaki Yuya and Shibasaki Gaku score to reverse the result. China trails Japan 1:2.

(End of Chapter)