Chapter 473 The most desperate thing is to take a penalty kick against the Germans
Chapter 473 The most desperate thing is to take a penalty kick with the Germans
Author: Ant who watches football ruthlessly
Chapter 473 The most desperate thing is to take a penalty kick with the Germans
When the British referee Webb blew the whistle to end the game, all the fans outside the Bordeaux Stadium, which can accommodate 42,000 people, stood up from their seats in unison, raised their arms and shouted loudly.
.
Whether it is German fans or Swedish fans, they are all cheering for their teams.
The scoreboard at the Stade de Bordeaux shows the time and score between the two teams in that game.
The number in the name of the German team on the left is 0, and the number in the name of the Swedish team on the right is... 0!
And the time in the East shows... 120+1 minutes!
That means that in the much-anticipated quarter-finals of the European Cup between the Swedish team and the German team, there was no winner until the end of overtime!
It turns out that this is actually not beyond the expectations of many people.
Before the game, obviously most people believed that the powerful world champion German team would win over Sweden and successfully enter the semi-finals.
The two teams met once in a world series, in the quarter-finals of the 2006 World Cup, when Germany easily defeated Sweden 2:0.
But during tomorrow's game, the Swedish team caused a lot of trouble for the German team.
Pan Yi set up a -2 formation with three midfielders, and strangled the German team's double midfielder combination of Khedira + Kroos, which made the German team's offensive organization a bit chaotic.
Moreover, the Swedish team's back line can also focus on defense and not easily provide assists in front, which means that the Swedish team's defense line will be tightened at the edge of its own penalty area for a long time.
That also made the defense in front of the Swedish goal very dense. As soon as the German team's ball entered that area, it was like a mud cow entering the sea, making no sound.
Even those who thought the German team could easily win before the game would change their minds after halftime.
Because Sweden's defense is really good!
At that time, they would have thought that the German team's offense would really be unable to break through the Swedish team's defense, and the game would probably enter overtime or even a penalty shootout.
But when the game reached the east half, they felt that the Swedish team had more hope of winning?
Because at that time, Sweden's two-forward tactic began to show its power.
Lindelof began to frequently launch long passes from the backcourt to find Ibrahimovic or Isak in front, and Forsberg also used through balls from the midfield to threaten the German defense from time to time.
Ibrahimovic and Isak, two strong centers with comprehensive skills, often play with each other to find the space between Hummels and Boateng.
Including the two wings, Sweden's strikers will also intersperse on both sides to attack Hector and Kimmich.
At that time, one of the shortcomings of the Swedish team's three-back midfielder strategy was also reflected, that is, the support provided to the frontcourt was too little.
Except for Ibrahimovic and Isaac, it is basically unclear whether Forsberg will join the team, while Ekdal, Weinblum, and Larsson are mainly tasked with sweeping the team and do not often participate in the attack;
And if the two fullbacks didn't have Pan Yi's instructions, they would definitely not be in front!
This results in the Swedish team basically being able to play more with less in the frontcourt.
Isaac's powerful impact and Ibrahimovic's unparalleled shooting skills gave the Swedish team a lot of shooting opportunities.
Even German goalkeeper Neuer was not a vegetarian, saving the balls one by one and trying to keep the goal.
When the game reached about 65 minutes, Loew made a substitution.
He replaced Khedira with the tougher Bastian Schweinsteiger, and replaced him with the young player Draxler.
At the same time, Loew also changed his tactics, began to slow down the pace, and began to pursue fast, slow, orderly and stable performance. The German team would even take the initiative to withdraw the defense line, release the Swedish team, and then counterattack.
After the substitutions, the German team's offense began to show its power.
With the transition in the middle of the midfield, the breakthrough from the wing, and the support and cooperation in the middle of the frontcourt, the entire offense began to show a more three-dimensional coordination routine, fully blossoming, and much more effective than the previous monotonous and dense defense, especially when pulling and looking.
The loophole is.
After that, the German team launched several offensive climaxes and created several good shooting opportunities.
But like the past few games, the Swedish team's defense performed well in that game as always.
Although the defense line composed of Olsson, Lindelof, Granqvist, and Lustig lacked offensive capabilities, they played more and more tacitly in defense, making the defense very solid.
Moreover, there are three strong defensive midfielders, Ekdahl, Weinblum, and Larsson, protecting them in front, allowing the Swedish team's defense to avoid being directly exposed to the enemy's artillery fire, which is also a big deal.
Reduces the risk of Isaksson directly facing the wrong German striker.
And even if Gomez gets the ball sometimes, he will immediately encounter the double insurance blockade of Lindelof and Granqvist, which makes it difficult for him to shoot comfortably, let alone score.
That actually goes against Pan Yi’s strategy.
Then we should focus on defense outside the 90 minutes and drag the game into overtime!
Since Sweden got sufficient rest in the last round of the group stage, and also avoided fatigue in the round of 16, the Swedish team's physical strength will have an advantage over Germany.
If it can be postponed to overtime, the balance of victory will naturally tilt towards Sweden.
Just then, when the game went into overtime as Pan Yi wanted, Pan Yi discovered that it was really difficult for the German team to be beaten down.
They have inherited the traditional German spirit of perseverance and have been gritting their teeth and persevering, and their technical level has not dropped too much!
No wonder they can win the World Cup, and it’s no wonder that there is a saying that “a football match is a game where 22 people from both sides play for 120 minutes and the Germans win in the end.”
It is indeed difficult to defeat the Germans based on their will and quality.
Of course, there is a very important reason for that. The Swedish team's offense was really not very good in that game.
Since he always wanted to carefully prevent the German team from attacking, Pan Yi never changed his formation to attack aggressively.
The basis of the three-back midfielder system is that even if Sweden wants to attack, the route is too single. Most of the time, long passes from the center are the main ones, which is inefficient.
There are likely to be problems with the transition between offense and defense and the control of rhythm.
Speaking of which, I have to mention Ekdal.
His position today is in the middle of the three defensive midfielders, which is the key to the Swedish team's offensive and defensive transitions, but he can obviously complete the "defensive" task.
His strength actually lies not in his strengths, but in his average. He can play in any midfielder, left, center, right, front, center and back, and in any midfielder.
He can play, and he can play a role in everything. There is almost nothing he can't do.
But the problem is exactly that. When it comes to the overall situation and the ability to control the rhythm of the game, he is not as good as Kjellström. When it comes to passing precision, he is not as good as Forsberg, but he has those
The defensive ability, excellent physical ability and running ability that the player does not have.
His type of midfielder is actually very interesting. If he plays well, he can play at any time, but once he encounters a problem or needs a flash of inspiration to break the deadlock, he can
It won't work if it's very cocoa.
Playing against Germany actually exposed the gap in his ability to control the game situation and the rhythm of the game.
At least in the overtime, the Swedish team seemed to be gradually taking advantage of its physical advantage to take the initiative, but it was unable to create an obvious winning opportunity. Maybe it was because of problems with the rhythm and the lack of forward personnel.
It is difficult to get threatening passes.
In fact, at that time, experienced and capable organizers would often adjust the rhythm according to the situation on the court. They would disrupt the German team by dividing the ball from left to right, by appropriately retracting, by deliberately slowing down the rhythm, etc.
The defensive pace makes the defense of the wrong leg lose its predictability.
Everyone knows that once the defense loses its predictability, it is too slow to wait until the moment the wrong leg is attacked to react!
But throughout the half, Ekdal was obviously caught up in the overall rhythm of the team instead of controlling the team's rhythm!
Pan Yi is not aware of the problem, but whether he can maintain the toughness of defense can allow him to continue playing in that position.
There's no one on the bench! Hiermark? Levitsky? It's almost boring.
You can't let Forsberg play as a defensive midfielder, right? He doesn't deny Pirlo...
And even if Pirlo is not included, in the current defensive-oriented three-midfielder system, it is actually not very easy to use.
After all, he himself needs more protection, which will weaken the sweeping power in the midfield.
In short, with the two sides in such a tug of war, the game time gradually moved towards the first 120 minutes.
And that time also means...
The two teams are about to enter a brutal penalty shootout!——
If we say that a football match is played by 22 people from both sides for 120 minutes, it is a game in which the Germans initially won;
So, taking a penalty kick against the Germans seems to be the most desperate moment in football.
The Germans are clearly better at penalty kicks than any other national team in the world.
Before this campaign, in the international competitions of the World Cup and European Cup, Germany participated in penalty shootouts 6 times and achieved 5 wins and 1 loss. The only time it lost was in the distant 1976 European Cup final.
At that time, the current Bayern Sich Weiss missed a penalty kick, but the Czech team made all five free throws. Panenka scored the first penalty kick in history, causing the German team to lose.
Since then, Germany has continued its 40-year unbeaten record in penalty shootouts in international competitions.
It is worth emphasizing that Germany only missed 2 of the 28 penalty kicks they took in international competitions!
This fully illustrates the iron will of the German tank. After all, penalty kicks depend more on mentality and who can withstand pressure and remain calm than on foot skills.
Therefore, the penalty shootout was not what Pan Yi expected.
But now that it has really reached that point, Pan Yi can go and face his mistakes.
Having said that, his team is indeed not as good as Germany in terms of strength, but he is satisfied with the fact that he has played that well.
"Boss, is it time to arrange the roster for the penalty shootout?"
Arteta walked to Pan Yi and asked.
Scaloni also looked at Pan Yi.
Maybe they thought Pan Yi had already prepared for the penalty shootout.
But Pan Yi shook his head and smiled: "Let the players decide for themselves."
Arteta and Scaloni took a wrong look and immediately understood Pan Yi's intention.
In fact, many coaches will do the same thing, that is, let the players decide whether to take penalty kicks.
After all, there is too much pressure to take penalty kicks. If you don't want to do it, then it's better not to do it.
"Well, let them decide later."
When the overtime period reached 1 minute of stoppage time, referee Webber finally blew the final whistle, and the brutal penalty shootout was about to begin!——
"He is the first to appear, and we will punish the others!"
When all Swedish players and coaches gathered in a circle, Ibuma said domineeringly.
Does that actually show the responsibility of a veteran?
Because in a penalty shootout, the first one to appear has the greatest pressure!
"He's fifth," Granqvist also said.
Pan Yi nodded slightly.
Granqvist's mental quality is excellent and his penalty kick skills are also good.
The fact is, after Ibrahimovic withdrew from the Swedish national team, Granqvist took over the position of captain of the national team, and he also became the first player to score a goal!
Therefore, there must be no problem if he is asked to guard the fifth level.
The fifth player to appear is under less pressure than the first player, because that is often the moment when one goal determines the outcome.
Often some stars choose first when they want something, and fifth when they want something.
For example, Messi usually plays first, while Ronaldo likes to play fifth.
After Ibrahimovic and Granqvist, the two captains and vice-captains, have spoken, please confirm the penalty kick legs No. 2, 3, and 4.
"He comes. He kicks the second one." No. Weinblum shut up at this time.
"He kicked the third one." That's Larsson.
"Then he is the fourth one." Ekdal.
It just so happens that today's three defensive midfielders are all among the group with the best psychological quality.
"He also begged to be kicked..."
"It's very him..."
One of the people vying for a job is Augustinsson, who came as a substitute in the east half. His footwork will definitely be no problem in kicking penalty kicks;
There is a young player named Isaac. In fact, he will also be at Real Sociedad in the future, Newcastle's first goalkeeper.
At that time, Pan Yi came forward: "Let's go on a first-come, first-served basis. The few of us in the back row may be good at playing in the sixth or seventh round. So even Isaksson, I want to be prepared."
, don’t think you don’t have to take penalty kicks because you’re a goalkeeper!”
Everyone couldn't help but laugh.
The sound couldn't help but make the Germans look askance.
We are about to take a penalty kick, can we be more serious? Why are we laughing so hard???
And this is something that Pan Yi is very satisfied with the Swedish team.
As expected of the descendants of the Vikings, they have a strong psychological quality and are not afraid at all.
Some team players' legs become weak when a penalty kick is taken, and many times they ask the coach to name them one by one so that they can take the kick.
But the Swedish side is very good, everyone is rushing to be kicked, and they look very unhappy when they are not kicked.
"Whether the penalty shootout is important is important, but let's just kick it when we see the right direction. Don't think too much. Leave more thoughts to the girls waiting for us in the hotel!"
That would negate Pan Yi’s initial instructions.
After causing another burst of laughter from the players, Pan Yi pulled goalkeeper Isaksson aside.
Isaksson is a very stable goalkeeper and rarely makes mistakes on the court. In terms of FM attributes, his "nervous index" is very low.
But that also means that he rarely performs at a super high level, including not being particularly good at saving penalty kicks.
Therefore, Pan Yi needs to give him a small start.
"I'll take a look first to see if the German team will have a list of players who will take penalty kicks, as well as their accustomed penalty kick methods."
Pan Yi handed Isaacson a small note and warned: "Put it away, don't throw it away."
Then the Swedish coaching staff collected information before the game and made an analysis and summary based on the recent penalty kicks taken by German players.
In fact, when Sweden entered the knockout rounds, they would do this in every game. After all, no one could predict that the two sides would not decide the victory through a penalty shootout.
Today's scene is a bit special, as the host's advice was not given by Pan Yi.
Because he remembered very well in his previous life, when Germany met Italy in the quarterfinals, and they decided the winner through a penalty shootout.
The reason why Pan Yicuo was so impressed by that game was first of all because the penalty shootout was so thrilling that the two sides didn't decide the winner until the ninth round!
And for another reason, if it weren’t for a famous scene, it would be Italian striker Zaza.
It was not until the 120th minute, at the end of overtime, that Zaza came off the bench to replace Don Chiellini.
Obviously, Conte deliberately asked Zaza to play in the penalty shootout, but that kind of forced arrangement turned out to be a big mistake.
In the first round, Italy's Insigne and Germany's Kroos both scored penalty kicks;
In the second round, Zaza took the penalty kick in front of him. The Juventus forward started his run from the penalty area line and was only 6 yards away from the penalty spot. Zaza's running made people laugh and cry: he was walking in small steps.
, just like a marionette, running a full 18 steps for a distance of 6 yards, it seems that everything is the same.
Perhaps, when Zaza's running was replayed in slow motion and he covered a distance of 5.5 meters in 4 seconds, Italian fans already felt an ominous feeling.
Sure enough, Zaza's left foot shot flew directly over the crossbar!
That penalty kick has been complained about the most in the history of the game. It was later parodied by netizens from all over the world and became a famous and enduring meme.
Therefore, how could Pan Yi forget that game?
I even remember who the players on the German team are and which side they play on.
Therefore, the note given to Isaksson can be said to be more detailed than any other referee in the history of football.
"Kross, the goal is on the left corner; that is: to my right leg. Dongtong."
"Thomas Müller, east right corner of the goal;"
"Draxler, east right corner of the goal;"
"Hummels, east right corner;"
"Schweinsteiger, right in the corner;"
"Kimmich, left east corner..."
After guessing the coin, the German team will take the penalty first.
The first one to appear was indeed Kroos!
He slowly walked to the penalty spot, took a deep breath, ran, shot, and scored!
"It's a bit surprising that Kroos took the first penalty for the German team."
"Although he is among the players with the best footwork, some people have criticized him for his poor mental quality and sometimes refusing to take penalty kicks."
"But obviously he feels very good tomorrow. He opened the scoring for the German team and stabilized the morale of the army."
"Isaksson misjudged the direction, but his save didn't seem that decisive. Kroos' shot was also at a very tricky angle, so it went into the net from Isaksson's fingertips.
"
The first penalty kick for Sweden was of course captain Ibrahimovic.
He looked at German goalkeeper Neuer with a relaxed expression and even smiled.
After the referee's whistle blew, he took a run, raised his leg, then flicked his ankle and made a fake move. Neuer pounced in the wrong direction and the ball went in!!
The whole audience burst into cheers at first, and then quickly fell into silence due to nervousness.
The penalty shootout can be ravaged by nerves, especially for everyone present, and not just for the players...
Germany's second penalty kicker was Thomas Muller.
When he bent down to place the ball, Isaacson began his own mental activities:
"Oh my god, all the players that the boss predicted to play for the German team actually came to play, even in the same order!"
"I almost pounced on the Poker Rose thing just now. It's all because of his doubts."
"That time, he was going to attack wherever the boss told him to go!"
By the time Muller kicked the ball out, Isaksson had even pounced on the right east corner of the goal in advance.
"Pounced out!"
"Isaksson saved Thomas Muller's penalty!"
"Thomas Muller hid his face and regretted it, but Isaksson raised his arms and shouted!"
"The goalkeeper who is not good at saving penalty kicks will have a miracle tomorrow!"
"The Swedish players and coaches standing in the center circle and on the sidelines were also in jubilation, and the stands set off yellow waves!"
But no, Neuer's ability to save penalty kicks cannot be overemphasized.
Soon, he also saved Weinblum's penalty kick!
Weinblum didn't control his footwork well, and the ball he kicked happened to be in the goalkeeper's favorite mid-air position. Neuer made a side dive and pinned the ball to his body.
The second round of penalty kicks ended, and the score was still 1:1!
In the third round, the German team substituted Draxler to take the penalty. The ball he kicked was very heavy and went straight to the east right corner of the goal.
Although Isaksson fought hard to save, it was not enough.
And Sebastian Larsson, who played for the Swedish team, also fulfilled his mission and succeeded in one fell swoop.
2:2!
In the fourth round, the German team's defender Hummels took the penalty, and he also took the penalty to the right east corner.
Then Liao Kesong reacted very quickly and blocked the ball directly out of the baseline!
But the same plot happened again, Neuer also rejected Ekdal's penalty ball!
No flat legs!
"Tomorrow's penalty shootout is really suffocating."
"In the first four rounds, both sides scored two penalty kicks, and each had two penalty kicks saved!"
"Neuer once again showed his strength as the world's number one goalkeeper. When the German team faced unfavorable situations twice, he turned the tide and allowed the German team to maintain the hope of promotion!"
"And what is even more worthy of mention is Swedish goalkeeper Isaksson."
"The career trajectory of the former Manchester City goalkeeper after leaving the Premier League was not particularly smooth. After leaving Eindhoven in the Eredivisie this season, he will go to play for Kasparsa in Turkey. It can be said that he has entered the end of his career."
"But he performed very well in tomorrow's penalty shootout!"
"Not only did he miss the penalty kicks of Thomas Muller and Hummels, but he also made the wrong judgment in the other two saves!"
"Four saves, all in the wrong direction, doesn't that mean they think Isaksson is not good at saving points?"
"Oh, now the director has shown a shot. They can see that before the penalty shootout started, Pan Yi handed Isaacson a note... Is that the secret?"
"It seems that Pan Yicuo was very well prepared for the penalty shootout!"
"Is that not the level of a world-class coach? You can even tell which side of every penalty kick a player on the wrong leg took???"
Germany's fifth penalty kick went to captain Bastian Schweinsteiger.
When Piggy was taking a run-up, Isaksson pounced on the right corner almost at the same time.
But he missed it.
While Isaacson felt his heart sinking, the Swedish fans in the stands let out roaring cheers.
Bastian Schweinsteiger did hit the right corner of the goal, but it missed!
The ball hit the stands directly and didn't go in!
Schweinsteiger knelt down in frustration, while Sweden's vice-captain Granqvist had already moved forward.
That was certainly a huge test for Granqvist.
As mentioned before, in a penalty shootout, both the first and fifth player to appear are very important.
The first player asked for a good start for his teammates who came to take the penalty. If he could kick the football in, it would also release the psychological pressure of everyone behind him. If the first player failed to kick the ball, then
The teammates behind me will naturally become nervous instantly and carry heavy mental baggage.
As the fifth person who took the penalty kick at the end, he also made the same request, because he was very likely to decide the life and death of himself and the wrong leg with one goal.
Just like in the current situation, the fifth player on the wrong side has already shot away. If the fifth player on our own side kicks in, the game will be over and Sweden will advance!
Just like that, when everyone saw Granqvist walking at the penalty spot, many people were a little surprised - almost no one had seen Granqvist take a penalty kick...
Many people are even wondering whether Granqvist has ever kicked a penalty kick or scored a penalty kick?
At least not in the Swedish team, because the first goal kicker outside the team was Ibrahimovic.
Arranging for a person who has rarely or even never taken a penalty kick to take the fifth key penalty kick? And it is not a central defender who seems to have rough footwork.
Is Pan Yifou crazy?
At this time, with countless people watching, Granquist had already reached the penalty spot. He hooked the ball directly with his foot and stepped in front of the penalty spot.
Many players will place the ball very seriously before taking a penalty kick. Some people insist that the ball's valve core be misaligned with them. This can ensure that the ball is kicked to the hardest part of the body and increases the speed of the ball.
But Granquist didn't do that.
He is very casual, as casual as whether he is doing penalty kick drills in training.
Then he stepped away and turned to look at the referee.
And the German goalkeeper Neuer, who was standing opposite him, was also a little stunned.
As Germans known for their rigorous work, they certainly made various preparations, including shooting penalty kicks.
Therefore, due to the Swedish team, Neuer will also get corresponding information, such as who can take penalty kicks and how they will probably take them.
But their preparations were obviously not as accurate or comprehensive as Pan Yi's.
Because there was no information about Granqvist’s penalty kick before!
Is he good at kicking penalty kicks to the left or to the right? To the face or to the east?
Is he better at kicking with his right foot rather than his left? Does he volley hard or prefer lob shots? Does he like to pursue angles or does he focus on safety?
None of those Neuers know...
A central defender who plays for the Krasnodar team in the Russian Super League, who knew he would take penalty kicks? Many people can’t even name the name of that team!
This will lead to Neuer's guessing when he saves a penalty kick.
He felt a little unsure.
There was no time for Neuer to think anymore, the referee had already blown the whistle.
The whole place suddenly fell silent.
Granquist started to run... no, or it would be more accurate to say "assisted walk", because Granquist didn't run at all, he took one step forward, then another step, only two steps in total, more like No. Walking in stride.
Then his right foot struck the ball.
Everything happens very quickly.
Neuer pounced before Granqvist's foot hit the ball. He guessed the direction to the left of his body and guessed that Granqvist would hit the east corner, so he pounced decisively.
But Granqvist kicked the ball to the right side of his body, and it was in the corner!
The football flew into the goal from the angle between the goal post and the crossbar!
"Granquist!!! Beautiful! Blind spot!!"
"The game is over!!! Sweden eliminated Germany with a score of 3:2 in a cruel penalty shootout and advanced to the semi-finals!!"
On the TV screen, all Swedish players swarmed towards Granqvist to celebrate the hard-won victory.
Pan Yi also raised his arms high.
They did it! The Swedish team reached the semi-finals of the European Cup!