Chapter 880: Fernando
“Beep——！！！”
In front of him was French goalkeeper Lloris; Tang Ye was adjusting his breathing.
Under a two-goal deficit, the importance of this penalty was obvious; Tang Ye knew he absolutely could not miss.
“Tang Ye!”
“Run-up…”
Still using short, quick steps, Tang Ye arrived at the penalty spot.
This was a psychological battle between penalty taker and goalkeeper; Tang Ye judged based on Lloris’s weight shift and eye movement.
Left side!
Snap!
He slotted it low.
The angle wasn’t ideal, but Lloris was completely deceived.
“Goooo——aaaa——llll！！！”
“Goal!”
“Beautiful!”
“Tang Ye!”
“China scores from the penalty!”
“1:2! China pulls one back!”
Live update: Wei Shihao wins the penalty, Tang Ye converts it in one go—the score is now 1:2!
【66666】
【Damn, GGBond’s penalty is still rock-solid】
【Blackie, speak up!!!】
【Hey, I think we’ve got a plan—just like against the Netherlands, focus on free kicks and penalties. Lloris can’t stop my GGBond’s penalties】
“Awesome!”
“Awesome, King Tang!”
“Tang Ye! Tang Ye!”
“Damn, awesome!”
China’s penalty goal ignited the fans’ passion, but the players on the pitch still dared not lower their guard.
After scoring, China didn’t celebrate at all; Tang Ye immediately ran to the goal to retrieve the ball.
“Come on, come on!”
As he shouted to his teammates, Tang Ye raised a clenched fist: “There’s still a chance! Keep going!”
“…”
“Beep!!!”
The match restarted; on the bench, Escrivá’s mind raced.
With the current situation and the players’ determination…
Hss!
Escrivá wanted to fight for third place in the third-place playoff, but he didn’t want to betray the players out there fighting.
He gritted his teeth and made a bold decision.
“China makes a substitution.”
“Jiang Guangtai replaces Zhu Chenjie!”
“Is China seeing a chance to equalize with this change?”
As the substitution happened, Tang Ye glanced at the bench—Escrivá was looking right at him; their eyes met in that instant.
Tang Ye said nothing, only gave a small thumbs-up. Escrivá nodded in response.
Although they had pulled one back via penalty, anyone with eyes could see China was still in massive disadvantage—they had no idea where their next opportunity would come from beyond set pieces.
Escrivá’s substitution…
Considering China’s goal of securing third place, the head coach’s move was quite aggressive.
Time: 68th minute of the second half.
Hernandez made a 45-degree run toward the penalty arc, surrounded by several defenders.
Hernandez’s ball control was excellent—he carried the ball forward over ten meters, finally passing it to Griezmann, who had moved into position.
Snap!
Snap!
Griezmann and Hernandez executed a lightning-fast one-two, and Hernandez received the ball again, preparing to enter the box.
Jiang Guangtai stood ready.
Snap!
A feint shot sent Jiang Guangtai tumbling; Hernandez passed to Dembélé beside him.
Dembélé stopped abruptly, drew Wang Dalei’s attention, then passed back to Griezmann, who had surged forward.
!!!
France’s front-line passing combination was flawless; Wang Dalei now felt surrounded on all sides.
Boom!
“Gooo——aaaa——llll！！！！”
Goal!
Griezmann sprinted out with arms spread, then slid into a kneeling celebration.
“Roar!”
Boom!
Griezmann punched the corner flagpole.
“Antoine…”
“Griezmannnnnnn!!!”
Deschamps, having witnessed the goal firsthand, threw a furious uppercut, his expression electric.
France regained a two-goal lead; they no longer needed to be as tense as they had been minutes ago.
It proved that even without understanding China’s tactics, France could still respond perfectly.
“Allez les bleus!”
“Allez les bleus!”
Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom!
Live update: Mbappé’s run down the flank was contained; he eventually drove the ball out of bounds.
Live update: Controversial call? Tang Ye and Wei Shihao switched positions on the flank; Chu Aimen shoved Tang Ye out of bounds—the referee showed no card.
Although not as brutal as the match against the Netherlands, today’s game was still extremely tough for Tang Ye.
Less than three minutes after Chu Aimen shoved Tang Ye out of bounds, Dembélé committed another foul on him in the center.
Boom!
Tang Ye fell to the ground and rolled half a turn.
“Beep!”
Yellow card: Dembélé (FRA).
Dembélé knew he was at fault; he didn’t argue with the referee, but bent down to help Tang Ye up: “Sorry.”
Tang Ye patted Dembélé’s shoulder, saying nothing.
“…”
“Mbappé!”
“Into the box!”
“Moving toward the post!”
“Trying a zero-degree shot?”
No sooner had the commentator finished than Mbappé unleashed a powerful shot—right into Jiang Guangtai’s head.
The ball bounced out!
“Look at that!”
End of Chapter
