I AM the Football Star-Chapter 470 - 129: Clash of Titans, King Versus King (Part 4)
"But Enriquez has actually shifted the ball, this pass was very clever, catching Pirola off guard!"
"Spain’s number eight is making a forward run, and Pirola’s slow turn speed is once again clearly exposed; he gets overtaken by Spain’s number eight... a shot... it’s a goal!"
"The great number eight of Spain! He’s equalized the score for Spain! The great Enriquez, he’s controlling the game!"
"The match isn’t over yet! Three to three! The score is now three to three!"
The commentator is hysterical!
This is definitely a visual feast!
This is a showdown between warriors.
No one is giving up, everyone is persisting.
And the result mirrors the scene.
The seemingly dominant Spain has finally achieved the number of goals they deserve.
The seemingly disadvantaged Italy indeed cannot maintain their lead.
Superstars are superstars after all; they have the ability to decide the match at any stage.
Mancini is like this, and so is Enriquez.
From this point on, the Spain U-21 National Team is filled with fighting spirit.
They seem to have already seen the dawn of victory.
The most difficult stage has been endured, and next, it’s time for them to pull ahead in the score.
...
"Italy has paid the price for their conservativeness." The old man in the box speaks up, "If when they had the lead, they allowed Sevajos and Pompey to push forward against Spain’s defense to create some killer opportunities, there might still have been a chance now."
"Of course, with ball possession on Spain’s side, Italy didn’t really have such opportunities."
"This is what makes Spain strong; you might be able to see pathways to break through, but you can’t execute them. If Italy had competed for ball control with Spain earlier, the score might have been equalized long ago."
The old man is very professional.
Spain loves teams that press them fiercely, as they find countless vulnerabilities to exploit in such teams.
Facing Italy today, Spain’s passing and control system didn’t really come into play. The three goals they scored were completely thanks to Enriquez’s extraordinary performance.
Yet their system restricted Italy, so much so that Spain’s backline hasn’t received a single yellow card.
A backline without yellow cards faces no pressure when defending.
This allows Spain’s backline to adequately deal with Italy’s attacks in the next twenty minutes.
If Spain’s backline had picked up one or two yellow cards previously, Italy’s attacks would be much easier at this moment.
That’s the difference.
"Create damage! Fight for set pieces!" Morici, as the midfield core, naturally knows that what Italy should do now is to attack.
Today’s Enriquez is too dangerous; what if constant defense ultimately fails?
If Italy concedes another goal, then with Spain’s ball control system, trying to equalize would be truly difficult.
It’s better to take advantage of both teams wanting to score and engage in a bit of mutual offense now.
"Hmm, let Sevajos go all out." Lu nods.
Open the door, release Sevajos!
Thus, in the next ten-plus minutes, both sides were attacking each other’s defenses.
Spain, due to their pursuit of ball control, had players physically drained, making overtime unfavorable for them.
Moreover, Enriquez had already outdone himself in this match, and his stamina might not hold for exceptional performance in overtime.
Similarly, Italy was wary of Spain scoring first, so they also pushed to score. Otherwise, after Spain scores, they could pass the ball until the next European Youth Championship ends!
Thus, the temperature on the pitch soared.
First, it was Lam, who firmly brought down Spain’s central forward attempting to cut in, earning a yellow card.
Then it was Pompey, who was booked for a sliding tackle during his defensive run.
Next, over on the Spain side, their defensive midfielder committed a tactical foul, bringing down Morici during a counter-attack, and picked up a yellow card.
In the blink of an eye, three yellow cards appeared, and both sides were fired up.
On one hand, this is a match concerning the European Youth Championship trophy.
On the other hand, both sides are young; you tackle my brother, of course, I’ll hit back.
People were playing football, gradually mixed with kicking each other.
One could say that to win, both sides have become rather obsessed.
Such football might see a dip in technical and tactical quality, but the level of excitement has soared.
The fans on site were also ignited by the passionate battle, and from the seventy-fifth minute on, the enthusiastic cheers on the pitch never ceased.
Until... the eighty-second minute.
