World Cup of Great Powers

On October 10, Maojiawan Stadium, the final round of the Asian Cup Group A group stage.

The Chinese team sits at home and faces Kuwait, the last opponent in the group.

For the Chinese team, this game is just a formality.

Whether he wins or not is the first in the group, so Zeng Zheng sent a full substitute lineup to prevent someone from being suspended due to the accumulation of yellow cards in the group stage.

No matter how the Chinese team plays here, they are the first in the group, so the only task of the players is to play a beautiful game that is recognized by the fans according to the tactical arrangement given by Zeng Zheng.

Kuwait is fully armed and ready to go.

If they want to advance to the group, they must win the Chinese team.

Otherwise, even if there is a tie, it will be difficult to qualify as third in the group with 3 points.

So at the beginning of the game, Kuwait put on a defensive and counterattack posture, waiting for an opportunity to find the loopholes in the Chinese team's attack.

In this game, Zeng Zheng changed his usual commanding habit of standing on the sidelines. Instead, he held an ice pack next to his cheek and sat in a daze on the coach's bench.

Even though defender Zhou Ning almost lost the ball in the opening game due to a mistake by defender Zhou Ning, Zeng Zheng didn't say a word.

Such an abnormal move naturally attracted Er Li's attention.

"What happened to Coach Zeng today? Why is he so listless?"

"You see he hasn't put down the ice pack since the beginning, does it mean he has a toothache?"

"If you have a toothache, you should go to the dentist as soon as possible."

"Yeah, toothache is not a disease, it will kill you when it hurts!"

After the two made a decision, Li Huajun came to the bench and sat down next to Zeng Zheng.

"Coach Zeng, what do you think of this game?"

"How else can I see it? Play normally."

Seeing Zeng Zheng's indifferent appearance, Li Huajun continued: "Coach Zeng, do you know how many Olympic players are in the Kuwait team?"

"I didn't count them carefully, but I remember quite a lot."

"That's right, there are nine of them, and among the 9 main players on the field, there are six of them."

Zeng Zheng nodded.

For a national team, having more Olympic players in the team means the success of youth training.

"It's the same in the little days next door. There are 7 Olympic players on their team." Li Huajun continued.

"I remember there are many of us, right?" Zeng Zheng asked casually, "Most of the players asked me to bring them to the Asian Cup."

"Yes, there are 12 Olympic players in our team!" Li Huajun took the opportunity to sigh, "It seems that the Chinese team is really a world of young people."

"That's right, is it possible that the 02 World Cup can't be played with the veterans from 98?"

Seeing that Zeng Zheng finally regained his energy, Li Huajun took the opportunity to say.

"Coach Zeng, do you know that Kuwait actually has a serious 'neophobia'!"

"Of course I know this. After all, Kuwait hasn't defeated us for many years!"

Zeng Zheng knew about this during the 97 World Cup preliminaries.

Kuwait and the Chinese team have also been invincible for ten years, so many members of the Kuwait team suffer from "neophobia".

This is why Kuwait is so anxious to update.

"Coach Zeng, have you heard?"

"Daral-WATAN media in Kuwait said in this game that since we can overcome Korean fear, Kuwait must also overcome Sinophobia."

"They want to take us down in one fell swoop!"

Zeng Zheng raised his eyebrows after hearing this, "Oh? As long as they have the ability, let them take it down!"

During the conversation between the two, Qu Shengqing picked the ball to the goal after stopping the ball with his back and chest in the penalty area. The Kuwaiti goalkeeper made a misjudgment and did not get the ball.

How could Xie Hui, who was rushing to grab a spot later, miss such a good opportunity?
To keep up is to shoot with one foot and poke the ball into the empty goal.

In the opening 8 minutes, the Chinese team took the lead 1-0.

"Ah, a goal!" Li Huajun was surprised.

In these three group matches, the Chinese team scored goals within 10 minutes of the opening game. This kind of scoring efficiency naturally attracted applause.

"Just score the goal." Zeng Zheng still had an indifferent attitude, "Brother Jun, go tell the players to pay more attention to the left side."

"The No. 16 on the opposite side is very fast. It seems that their coach is planning to use a breakthrough from the right to tear apart our defense."

"Let Zhou Ning retreat a little bit, he has no offensive mission in this game."

Li Huajun nodded, taking advantage of the gap between the players celebrating after the goal, came to the sidelines to convey Zeng Zheng's meaning to the players.

"Brother Jun, how are you doing? What advice does Coach Zeng have?"

Seeing Li Huajun leave the coaching bench, Li Hui asked.

"I didn't even ask." Li Huajun shook his head, "But don't look at Coach Zeng's listlessness, but the situation on the field is in decline."

"No, let me tell the players to pay more attention to the defense on the left."

"It seems that we are worrying too much. Coach Zeng may just want to take a good rest."

Li Hui nodded, "Since that's the case, let's direct this round and don't bother Coach Zeng."

Li Huajun's eyes lit up when he heard this.

He didn't want to miss such a good exercise opportunity.

The Kuwait team, which was one goal behind, launched a counterattack immediately after the kick-off.

In the 10th minute, No. 16 Osman made a cross from the right, but Hou Vardy, who followed up, missed the ball;

One minute later, Osman found another chance and kicked on the right.

Neither Houvardi in front of the goal nor the defenders of the Chinese team hit the ball. Abduraz Bashar, who followed up from behind, flew up and hit the ball high without any defense.

Seeing that Osman was still allowed to pass twice in a row under his own reminder, Li Hui and Li Huajun couldn't help whispering on the sidelines.

"What happened to Zhou Ning this week? I feel that I have always been out of tune with the team."

"Yeah, I have reminded him several times, but I always miss people."

"It seems that the level of players studying abroad is not the same!"

"I guess after this Asian Cup, if Zhou Ning hadn't played in Germany, Coach Zeng would not have recruited him."

The Chinese team didn't have much desire to attack, and Zeng Zheng's pre-match instructions were also to avoid cards and injuries.

Therefore, after leading by one goal, the overall formation recovery is larger, and the ball possession time is greatly enhanced.

Kuwait didn't dare to make a big move, so the scene tended to be flat.

Seeing that Li Xiaopeng's kick that was supposed to go straight into the penalty area turned out to be a back pass, Zeng Zheng sighed for a long time.

He wasn't worried about the players' poor performance on the court, but Miss Qian's question, which he didn't answer well.

Qu Shengqing was born in 75, 5 years younger than Zeng Zheng.

But now the A-A top scorer not only shines in the club and the Asian Cup, but also wants to marry his beloved girl after returning home.

It can be said that both love and career have a good harvest.

Seeing Qu Shengqing's marriage, Miss Qian, who was the same age as Qu Shengqing, couldn't sit still.

Speaking of which, she has been in contact with Zeng Zheng for more than a year.

When you graduate, you can also say that you are busy with your "career".

But now he has started his career, earned money, and got a boyfriend.

As we get older, it is natural to talk about marriage.

But although the two were sweet, they didn't even get married.

For Ms. Qian, it was even more out of reach for Zeng Zheng, who was so devoted to football, to suddenly kneel down on one knee and pull out a ring to propose marriage.

After being asked this question by Ms. Qian yesterday, Zeng Zheng's brain crashed immediately.

Just like before, it just got stuck.

Seeing Zeng Zheng's gradually sluggish eyes, Miss Qian's expression changed from anticipation to doubt, and then to anger and annoyance.

Finally, there was a "pop" sound in the private room.

The right half of Zeng Zheng's face instantly became red and swollen.

"Ah, don't go!"

"Let go of me!" Miss Qian said hysterically, "Since you don't want to marry me, why are you dragging me?"

"Who said I don't want to marry you?"

"Well, tell me, when will you marry me?" Miss Qian turned around, looked at Zeng Zheng angrily, and gave him another chance.

"this, this"

Facing Miss Qian's angry gaze, Zeng Zheng hesitated.

"The World Cup is coming soon, you see"

"The World Cup, the World Cup, if you open your mouth, it's the World Cup!"

As soon as she heard the word "World Cup", Miss Qian's anger rose again.

"Could it be that you want to marry me after the Chinese team wins the World Cup?"

Miss Qian's angry words actually made Zeng Zheng laugh.

"Oh, sure not."

"Then what do you mean by that?" Seeing that Zeng Zheng was still laughing at this moment, Miss Qian became even more impatient.

Lifting his foot, he stomped hard on Zeng Zheng's right instep.

Zeng Zheng endured the pain, still holding his girlfriend's hand.

"Come, come, don't be angry, sit down and talk if you have something to say."

While coaxing, Zeng Zheng said, "Yingying, look, the Asian Cup just caught up with the Olympic Games."

"After the Asian Cup is over, the Asian Youth Championship is still waiting for me to take it!"

"The Chinese New Year will be after the Asian Youth Championship, and the world preliminaries will be in the next year."

"You also know how many years we have been planning for this World Cup in Japan and South Korea."

"Nothing can go wrong this time."

Miss Qian nodded, "Oh, oh, the surname is Zeng, I can recognize it."

"According to what you mean, do you plan to end it after the 02 World Cup?"

Upon hearing this, Zeng Zheng nodded hastily.

"Yeah, that's what I mean."

"Well, I'm not such an unreasonable person." Ms. Qian sat down on the stool, and then crossed her legs, "Then what if you didn't qualify for the World Cup in 02? I remember that by this time next year, the world preliminaries will basically be over. It's a baby, isn't it?"

"Impossible!" Hearing this, Zeng Zheng stood up abruptly, "It's impossible not to make it. I've worked so hard for this World Cup for so many years, it's impossible not to make it!"

"Don't worry, I mean 'if'!"

"No if!" Zeng Zheng said angrily.

"Then what if?" Ms. Qian spread her hands, "Everything has a contingency, let alone Chinese football."

"My surname is Zeng, don't think that you have led the team to win several times after the youth training has come up in the past two years."

"But this is Chinese football, you can never be sure about anything!"

"I want a sweet talk from you right now."

"If you didn't score in the 02 World Cup, would you marry me right away?"

Zeng Zheng's face turned blue and red for a while.

"Impossible, we will definitely enter the World Cup!"

Miss Qian nodded, "Okay, I understand what you said."

"That is to say, if you don't make it to the finals in the next World Cup, you still won't marry me."

"I will wait for you until 06 when I co-author it?"

"I'm 25 this year."

"Are you going to make me like you and still not get married at the age of 30?"

"The surname is Zeng, I can see you clearly."

"You are a selfish little man!"

After finishing speaking, Miss Qian stood up directly, slammed the door and left.

This time, seeing the back of his girlfriend leaving, Zeng Zheng didn't get up to chase after him.

"He NND, he cursed me not to enter the 02 World Cup!"

Zeng Zheng muttered.

"Even without me."

"That old Mi guy also brought the Chinese team in, why can't I?"

"Humph!"

"It's been so long with me and you still don't trust me."

"I'll let you see how I led the team out of the 2.5 spots!"

Just as Zeng Zheng was cheering himself up, two whistles sounded from the stadium.

"Boss Zeng, the first half is over."

Han Tao came over to remind him.

"Oh, it's over? How much is it?"

"2 to 0." Han Tao replied in a low voice.

"Oh, help me up."

Han Tao hurried forward and helped Zeng Zheng up.

Instead of going to the sidelines to applaud the players, with Han Tao's support, Zeng Zheng limped into the player tunnel while covering half of his face with an ice pack.

The second half of the game was uneventful.

For the three substitutions, Zeng Zheng gave all of them to young players who hadn't played much.

Even so, the Chinese team still got a good chance in the 87th minute.

After Yang Chen steals the ball in the midfield, the opposing player who passed the frontal defense quickly breaks through to the front of the opponent's penalty area. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Shao Jiayi cuts in at high speed, and after receiving Yang Chen's cross pass, he directly attacks with his left foot.

The ball flew off the right hand of the Kuwaiti goalkeeper and flew into the net. The score was rewritten to 3-0.

After that, the game entered the stoppage time period.

Both sides had no intention of attacking. The referee looked at the time and directly blew the whistle for the end of the game.

"The game is over!" Huang Jianxiang's passionate voice sounded.

"3 to 0, the Chinese team once again finished Kuwait at home."

"So far, all three group matches of Group A of this Asian Cup are over."

"The Chinese team has won all three games, scored 19 goals without conceding a goal, and advanced to the quarterfinals of this Asian Cup."

"Let's congratulate the Chinese team and coach Zeng."

"I hope that in the next knockout round, the Chinese team can make persistent efforts, go further and further, and finally win the championship of this Asian Cup."

"I'm the host Huang Jianxiang, thank you for watching."

"Let's see you next time, thank you."

The news that the Chinese team has advanced to the quarter-finals came, and the fans were calm.

This is a certainty, the difference lies in how many goals are won and how many goals are lost.

But this time, no matter how picky the fans are, they are full of praise.

The big score slaughtered the old enemy South Korea, and defeated Indonesia and Kuwait successively. They did not lose a goal in three games.

What's so dark about it?

So after this game, even the most critical ball critics gave this Chinese team a thumbs up.

Even the darkest conspiracy theorists sincerely hope that the team can win the championship at home.

After the game, the football world was thriving, and fans in many regions even began to celebrate the Chinese team's first Asian Cup championship in advance.

Watching the fanatical fans chanting "China is the champion" on TV, Zeng Zheng directly pressed the switch on the remote control to turn off the TV.

His temples bulged and looked like they were about to burst through the skin.

The team's performance is getting better and better, and his pressure is also increasing.

Coupled with the quarrel with Miss Qian, Zeng Zheng is really in a bad mood these days.

Even the team members hid away when they saw Zeng Zheng's appearance, for fear of being called by Zeng Zheng for a "training camp".

Two days later, the other two teams also finished fighting.

South Korea beat Indonesia 3-0 in the last match, surpassed Kuwait at the last minute and finished second in the group.

其他小组中，B组2胜1平的伊朗队和1胜1平1负的伊拉克小组出线，C组2胜1平的小日子、1胜1平1负的沙特获得前二。

In the third place in the three groups, Qatar scored 3 points in all three games, and Thailand and Kuwait both drew 2 and lost [-] points.

After comparing the goal difference, Thailand, which was only -2, defeated Kuwait, which was -3, with a slight advantage, and won the last place to advance to the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup.

Judging from this point alone, there is still a huge imbalance in the strength gap between Asian teams.