Chapter 108: Chapter 43: One Man’s Soccer
Lu Yang joked back, "Then you have to help me calm down your good friend, Mr. Sotu."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Lu Yang was implying that if he became the coach, there would be nothing for Sotu to do.
How interesting!
...
Soon, the match officially began.
When Team AB clearly saw the opponent’s formation, Team A was somewhat shocked.
And Team B was somewhat excited.
As the match kicked off, Team A gained possession, and Aguirre dribbled all the way, charging towards Team B’s left side with an air of determination to break through.
However, he lost the ball three times in a row under the defense or interference of Lu Yang, causing his attacking path to become a dead end.
He couldn’t break through Lu Yang one-on-one, even during the match.
In fact, Canyes and Parrot’s professionalism is very high, and they invariably appear beside Aguirre in time. As long as Aguirre cooperates with them, it’s not that he can’t get past Lu Yang.
But Aguirre had no intention of cooperating.
Could the right winger of a prestigious Serie A team in Rome not get past a left midfielder from the Italian D Division?
What a joke!
But he really couldn’t get past.
This made Canyes, who several times stepped forward to assist, look grim.
Similarly, after Parrot made two runs to the side and received no passes, he chose to cooperate with Sevajos on the left instead of coming to Aguirre’s side.
And soon, Team A reaped the benefits on the other side.
Sevajos’s dribbling and breakthroughs are excellent, directly overpowering Bai Zhami who Lu Yang placed at the right-wing back position.
Versachi is a versatile midfielder who can play as a left-wing back on the other side.
Bai Zhami, as a forward-line player, obviously couldn’t stop Sevajos.
Morici filled the position, and Sevajos immediately accelerated, bypassing Morici.
But he also veered from the original direction, allowing Lu Yang, who caught up, to successfully intercept.
Sevajos was undeterred, giving a signal to Parrot beside him.
Soon after, Sevajos made a comeback.
Following almost the same steps, only this time he spent a little more effort passing Morici.
But as Lu Yang charged towards him, he made a cross, astonishingly taking a shot.
In the center, Parrot instantly initiated, successfully taking the ball amidst a confrontation with the central defenders, about to shoot.
But Lu Yang timely slide-tackled from the side, kicking the ball away.
Another perfect defense!
Lu Yang was performing outstandingly during the match.
But the five mentors knew that Lu Yang wouldn’t last long.
Sevajos is very perceptive, and Parrot and he have a great connection, along with Aguirre and Canyes distracting on the other side, Lu Yang alone couldn’t defend it all.
But Lu Yang couldn’t swap positions with Morici.
Because if even Sevajos couldn’t be stopped by Morici, how could he possibly stop both Aguirre and Canyes?
Especially Canyes, who is also very fast and could overtake Morici just as quickly.
Morici’s defense is not bad, but compared to Lu Yang, who is very good, there is still a gap.
Finally, Sevajos once again dribbled to break through, suddenly making a long pass to the other side after attracting defenders.
Lu Yang was marking the advancing Aguirre, but then Canyes joined in to receive the ball, and sent another long pass to the center.
The two long passes showcased the wide vision and precise kicking skills of the two players.
In the center, Parrot seized the opportunity, making a diving header to score.
Team A leads one to zero!
This was a perfect example of individualistic cooperation.
It was somewhat reminiscent of the goal during the 2018 World Cup knockout between Uruguay and Portugal.
However, that was cooperation between two divine strikers, while this was between three top young players.
But as Lu Yang said.
Team A also found it hard to defend against Team B’s attacks.
In the thirty-second minute of the first half, Lu Yang intercepted, then passed the ball to Morici with one kick.
Morici launched a counterattack with a long pass, directly penetrating Team A’s defense.
Bai Zhami took the ball, almost forming a one-on-one with the keeper.
Unfortunately, it was similarly disrupted by Lam’s slide tackle, losing a good scoring chance to equalize.
In the thirty-ninth minute, under Morici’s pressure, Lu Yang intercepted Aguirre and then made a heavier spin pass, kicking the ball to the left winger Versachi in front of him.
Versachi attempted to dribble forward but couldn’t break through Canyes.
The gap between S-level players and A-level players immediately stood out in the match.
But it didn’t matter; Versachi didn’t lose the ball, choosing to pass back and make an unmarked run to the baseline, sending the ball to the open middle area, and Lu Yang broke through with the ball.
Canyes and the midfielders coordinated to defend Lu Yang, yet a low pass from Lu Yang broke through them, Versachi received the ball at the baseline and crossed it.
Central forward Sogel in Team B contended against two central forwards but ultimately couldn’t prevail.
Lam finally won the first touch point.
The gap between S-level players and A-level players was equally reflected in them.
In some details, the 1.85-meter tall Lam did better than the 1.88-meter tall Sogel.
Canyes and Lam’s strength forced Sogel to seek cooperation with Bai Zhami on the right in attack.
However, Bai Zhami wouldn’t cooperate, leading to a loss of ball possession two to three times.
This irrationality began to show in Bai Zhami.
He lost the will to challenge Lam and chose to pass back in the next few opportunities, losing his cutting edge.
In the forty-fourth minute of the second half, as the front lines failed to gain an advantage, they naturally got pressed by the other team.
Team B’s defensive line was on the verge of collapsing.
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