Chapter 874: How Can You See the Brilliance of Life Without Persisting to the End

Dongqiu Di pinned post: China vs Netherlands penalty shootout in progress, current score tied 1-1, Fan Daike and Tang Ye have both scored.

The leaders on both sides have stepped up, and both performed exceptionally well—neither allowed the goalkeeper to guess their shooting direction.

The pressure on fans of both teams is immense, with the host nation, the Netherlands, feeling relatively more of it.

Because the Netherlands held advantages in every aspect, yet now they must rely on a penalty shootout full of uncertainty to decide the final winner, which is truly terrible.

The purpose of a penalty shootout is simply to determine a winner for knockout matches; whether the promotion result truly reflects the relative strength of the two teams is not something the penalty shootout concerns itself with.

The penalty shootout only cares about ending the match!

Van Gaal and Escrivá exchanged a glance, then quickly looked away.

To be honest, neither side is confident about winning the penalty shootout.

The Netherlands had not studied China's penalty tactics, and China had done the same regarding the Dutch.

Because before the penalty shootout actually arrived, no one expected the match to turn out this way.

One can only say that if anyone is to take the blame, it must be placed on Tang Ye's head; it was this guy scoring two goals in five minutes that threw the match into chaos!

"The Netherlands' second penalty taker, Frenkie de Jong!"

"Beep!"

"De Jong, run-up..."

"Shoots to the left!"

Wang Wang Dalei leaps out.

He guessed the direction correctly!

However, Wang Wang Dalei's outstretched hand failed to reach the ball; De Jong's penalty rolled directly along the edge of the post and went out.

"Oh!"

In the stands, the Dutch fans wore expressions of utter disbelief.

"De Jong! He pursued the angle too deliberately!"

"The Netherlands failed to convert their second penalty!"

"Yes, actually we cannot blame the player; I feel there is a problem with Van Gaal's arrangement. De Jong has been playing since the start, and during extra time we could already see he could barely hold on..."

Both are midfielders from Manchester United, but De Jong clearly does not possess Tang Ye's exaggerated stamina and exaggerated recovery speed.

The Netherlands has fallen behind!

【Is this really happening?】

【Holy crap, my heart rate is definitely at 200 right now; don't let our side make a mistake too. King Wu, stay steady! Don't pursue the angle too much!】

【De Jong's performance today is truly hard to describe, but I like it. Go China!】

【How is King Wu's penalty success rate in La Liga this season? Any brothers watching La Liga come out and speak up.】

Checking the data, a box quickly appeared in the bottom-left corner of CCTV-5.

This year Wu Lei has taken only two penalties, with a success rate of 50%; two last season and zero this season, so the situation for this season remains unknown.

"Wu Lei..."

"Shoots!"

"Goal!"

"Beautiful! Very steady! Wu Lei locked onto Noppert's center of gravity shift!"

After two rounds trailing by one goal, the Dutch goalkeeper is now sweating profusely.

During this World Cup, they simply did not practice penalties.

As for the Chinese team...

What many people do not know is that while preparing for the match against Spain, the Chinese team did practice penalties.

They were not needed against Spain because Spain's performance was too abysmal.

Now against the Netherlands, Escrivá was surprised to discover: this round of penalty practice was just perfect.

"Gakpo was also sent off during extra time; for the Netherlands' penalty taker, hmm, we can only put Koopmeiners up first."

Koopmeiners bent down to place the ball steadily on the penalty spot, stared at Wang Wang Dalei before him, then began to retreat.

"Come on!"

Bang!

Wang Wang Dalei clapped his hands, seemingly fully prepared.

"Beep!"

Koopmeiners runs up...

Slap!

Slap!

The shot hit Wang Wang Dalei's chest; the Chinese goalkeeper, extremely excited, curled his body to hug the ball directly to avoid any accident.

"Wow!!!!!"

Screams came from the away fan section in the distance.

The Netherlands has missed two consecutive penalties!

China now holds a huge advantage!

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous, take a deep breath, take it slow!"

Under Van Gaal's shouts, Fan Daike hugged Koopmeiners' head, patting his teammate's body to comfort him: "Don't worry, our chances are still great."

For the Chinese team, the third player to step up is Zhang Zhang Yuning.

"Go Brother Ning!"

"Go, go!"

Slap!

"Oh!"

"Wow!!!"

"Beep beep beep beep!!!!"

The Netherlands missed consecutive penalties; Zhang Zhang Yuning immediately paid tribute to his opponents by blasting a shot into the stands.

He couldn't keep it down!

"Ooh..."

"Today, the penalty state of both teams' players..."

"Except for Tang Ye, Fan Daike, and Wu Lei, the condition of all other players on the field is very problematic!"

Both sides are extremely nervous at this stage of the match, meaning only those who can steady their minds will stand until the end!

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

Tang Ye and Feng Feng Xiaoting hugged Zhang Zhang Yuning: "We are in the lead! We are leading!"

For the Netherlands, the fourth player to step up was Weghorst.

Slap!

Wang Wang Dalei guessed Weghorst's shooting direction correctly, but he didn't expect this guy to strike so fiercely.

Goal!

The Netherlands demonstrated their stature as a top-tier European powerhouse, successfully pulling the situation back despite being two goals behind.

Netherlands: √××√

China: √√×

"Currently, both sides have scored two goals. The next player for the Chinese team is Feng Feng Xiaoting. If Feng Feng Xiaoting scores this penalty, the Chinese team can guarantee at least a draw in this round of the shootout!"

"Hiss... The Chinese team must seize this opportunity; if it goes to the next round, the Netherlands likely won't make such huge mistakes as they did in the first round."

Feng Feng Xiaoting, the fourth player to take the field, became a key figure in the penalty shootout.

The Dutch players are quickly adjusting and adapting to the penalties; if the national team draws with their opponents in this round, there may not be such a good opportunity later.

Feng Feng Xiaoting and Tang Ye embraced.

With a forceful push, Feng Feng Xiaoting looked at Tang Ye before him: "I will take you to the semifinals; we won't drag you down, I promise!"

"I will take you to the semifinals!"

After speaking, Feng Feng Xiaoting first fist-bumped Tang Ye, then pounded his own chest with his fist.

Gritting his teeth, he walked forward.

【Feng Feng Xiaoting!!! We're counting on you!】

【My hands are shaking, brothers, my hands are shaking】

【Damn, these mistakes by the Netherlands, is De Jong thanking Big Brother for his educational grace?】

【Holy crap, how are we still leading? Did the Netherlands kick until they ran out of energy?】

"The fourth player for the Chinese team is Feng Feng Xiaoting."

"Beep!"

"Here it comes!"

Duang!

"Oh!"

Seeing the ball hit the post scared the commentators out of their wits; fortunately, the ball rebounded afterward.

Goal!

"Beautiful!"

"Three goals!"

"So, the Chinese team can now guarantee they won't be eliminated in this round."

"If the Netherlands' fifth player misses their penalty, or if the Chinese team's fifth player scores theirs, then the Chinese team will directly secure victory in this penalty shootout!"

In the lens was Feng Feng Xiaoting roaring toward the home stand; the national team defender pointed his thumb at his own head, seemingly emphasizing his goal to the fans watching the live broadcast.

The national team players waiting near the center circle also let out shouts.

Wu Lei could clearly feel Wei Wei Shihao beside him trembling.

In Escrivá's initial arrangement, Wei Wei Shihao was the fifth player to take the field.

"Are you okay, Brother Hao?"

"Hiss... I'm not too good."

The current situation is 2:3; Wei Wei Shihao seems destined to decide whether the entire team advances.

"Brother Hao."

Tang Ye and Chi Chi Zhongguo placed their hands on Wei Wei Shihao: "If you feel you can't do it, just say so directly; it's fine. We can still make a substitution. Guangtai can also play; he's not bad either."

"I'll take it."