Chapter 741: Osako Okazaki Yuya's Bowing Ceremony

"Wow!!!!"

The second goal of this match was thus born.

From the Japanese team, the forward Osako Okazaki Yuya!

Amidst the screaming fans, Osako Okazaki Yuya performed a sliding knee celebration on the pitch, while Muroya Sei and Endo Wataru ran over and jumped onto him.

"Nippon!!!"

"Nippon!!!"

The Japanese fans were now absolutely the most excited.

To be honest, most Japanese fans had never expected their team to lead China by two goals in the first half.

Their opponent was the champion of the 2019 Asian Cup!

"Wow!!!!"

Osako Okazaki Yuya clenched his right fist and pounded his chest, as if emphasizing his identity as the scorer to the fans.

Players from the substitute bench also came over to celebrate, while Moriyasu Hajime kept clapping continuously.

After the celebration ended, Osako Okazaki Yuya led the players back to their own half.

Along the way, he encountered Tang Ye, who was also walking toward his position; Osako Okazaki Yuya suddenly thought of something and, under the witness of the fans, quickly ran over to Tang Ye.

Hm?

Tang Ye frowned, not understanding what Osako Okazaki Yuya meant.

"Tang-kun!"

After speaking, Osako Okazaki Yuya bowed ninety degrees to Tang Ye under the gaze of tens of millions of fans.

"Oh!!!"

The stadium cameras locked on; Tang Ye's face immediately turned dark.

"The Japanese team, this..."

The commentators dared not speak.

Because they also had not expected Osako Okazaki Yuya to be bold enough to perform such a mocking celebration.

【Damn it, what do these bakas want to do?】

【Unbelievable, so arrogant; do they dare to go to the Premier League and exchange words with our Tang Tang Qiuwang?】

【Who said Japanese people are humble? You tell me, is this humility?】

【The devils have lost their minds; they can't afford to lose an Asian Cup, is that it?】

Osako Okazaki Yuya's mockery of Tang Ye enraged countless Chinese fans watching the live broadcast.

Some fans pointed out in the comments section that Osako Okazaki Yuya did this to avenge the Asian Cup from two years ago.

Setting aside whether the hatred from the Asian Cup could extend to the present, Osako Okazaki Yuya's act of bowing was absolutely wrong.

Bowing after scoring a goal was no different from stepping on Tang Ye's face.

"Okazaki Yuya!"

Yoshida Maya shouted toward Osako Okazaki Yuya.

Before Osako Okazaki Yuya could return on his own, Shibasaki Gaku went over directly and dragged him back: "You are a bit too impulsive."

"..."

Osako Okazaki Yuya walked toward his own half, saying nothing.

He seemed to realize that he had been a bit too impulsive.

But since the action had already been made, he needed to bear the controversy that such an act might provoke.

"Wasn't their celebration a violation?"

Feng Feng Xiaoting approached Du Du Zhaocai to lodge a complaint, arguing that Osako Okazaki Yuya's celebration was too provocative and hoping the referee would issue a yellow card.

Now it was the referee's turn to feel awkward.

He had never encountered such a situation before.

In Japan, a bow is a sign of respect, but bowing to an opponent after scoring a goal...

If such a ruling were to be made, the subjectivity would be far too strong, leaving the referee in a dilemma.

In the end, no card was given; he merely reminded the Japanese players.

"Xuuu!!!"

"Referee, what are you doing!"

"Referee!!"

Escrivà also wanted to lodge a complaint with the referee, but since he already had a yellow card, he was firmly held back on the substitute bench by Martí: "Calm down, Ferran, calm down!"

"The second half is the key! We wait for the adjustments in the second half!"

"Don't be like this!"

"... Damn!"

The director naturally knew what the fans wanted to see now; first giving a shot of Osako Okazaki Yuya and Tomiyasu Takehiro, followed by a long-focused shot of Tang Ye.

Tang Ye frowned, his face stiff as he glanced in the direction Osako Okazaki Yuya had left, then turned his head back to discuss something with his teammates.

Tang Ye basically never hid his emotions, meaning one could directly analyze his current inner thoughts from his expression.

Hm, with just a little observation, it was clear that Tang Ye was now furious.

As the match entered the final stage of the first half, Moriyasu Hajime directed the Japanese players to make adjustments, shifting their focus from offense to defense.

Although the Chinese team accelerated their offensive rhythm while trailing by two goals, due to Moriyasu Hajime's adjustment, the Chinese team indeed failed to find any good opportunities.

Look at Escrivà.

The Chinese team naturally needed to make adjustments, but unlike the Japanese, they needed to make large-scale adjustments and could not improvise temporarily like Japan did.

"Mm... What the Chinese team needs to do now is first get through the first half."

"..."

"Beep, beep-beep—!!!"

Check Dongqiu Di Halftime Report: The national football team trails Japan 0:2 at halftime; Kyogo Furuhashi scored, Okazaki Yuya Osako extended the lead with a controversial celebration. (182,388 comments)

With 180,000 comments in five minutes, you can imagine how chaotic the report section is right now.

The clip of Okazaki Yuya Osako bowing to Tang Ye has already been turned into an animated GIF by fans.

The comment section is filled with curses; unsurprisingly, this must be the most severe mockery Tang Ye has experienced in his professional career.

"Are... are you okay?"

The Chinese team players cautiously observed Tang Ye's condition, the pressure nearly about to explode.

The scene of Tang Ye losing his temper against Germany during the Russia World Cup still lingers in the minds of many national team players.

"Actually, I think... like this, actually..."

Zhang Zhang Yuning didn't know what to say either; fortunately, Tang Ye waved his hand first, signaling his teammates not to discuss this matter: "It's fine, it's fine, let's go inside first."

"..."

Back in the locker room, the atmosphere remained extremely oppressive; the national football players occasionally glanced in Tang Ye's direction, wanting to gauge the current emotions of the Chinese team captain.

"Actually, don't let that affect you too much; we can make it back in the second half."

Li Tie suddenly spoke up, and the Chinese team players expressed their support one after another.

"No, that's not the main point!"

Tang Ye spread his hands: "Ever since we entered the tunnel just now, you've been talking about this nonstop; the main point isn't this at all, so stop letting it distract you, okay?"

"If he wants to bow, let him bow; I don't care. The main point is the second-half match."

Tang Ye held up two fingers on his right hand: "We are currently trailing in score, and damn it, we're trailing by two goals!"

"Can you focus on the match?"

"..."

The locker room was very quiet; Li Tie, who had been standing, silently sat back down.

"Also, you keep saying their offense is strong, but I don't know where exactly they're strong. Just handle things normally; where are they strong? Plus, as soon as they pass the ball, we get chaotic, so how are we supposed to play? With our heads?"

"I said if you can't find an opportunity, try to get the ball to me, but instead, even when you clearly have opportunities, you pass to me, and it's always a back pass."

"No, why keep making back passes? Are we not going to attack anymore?"

"Our advantage was supposed to be offense, yet we spent the entire first half defending. Nothing but defense, so how am I supposed to play? I have zero sense of involvement; if I want to score, I can only create chances myself. And even my goal was disallowed!"

"..."

Tang Ye leaned against the cabinet behind him; no one in the locker room spoke.

This lasted for more than ten seconds.

Knowing halftime was short, Escrivá cleared his throat twice.

"Mm... I think you really should consider Tom's suggestion; some of our players are playing too timidly. You could learn from Wei; at least he dares to make moves. If our offensive players don't even dare to make moves, how are we supposed to equalize the score while trailing?"

Although things were urgent during the match, Escrivá could still maintain his composure in the locker room.

"So what I need you to do now is stop thinking about the first half; we start fresh in the second half."

"It's fine; just treat today's match as if it's only just beginning."

Escrivá picked up a marker and continued drawing on the whiteboard: "In the second half, we'll play a 4-4-2 formation."

The players, who previously hadn't dared to make a sound, all lifted their heads.