Chapter 19 (1/2)

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Lin Ling stumbled as he broke into the area and drove in an effort! Zhang Lintao did not extend his hands but merely caught the ball tightly in his arms. It was the fourth time Lin Ling tried for a goal, but Lintao did not concede even a single corner.

At this point, when Li Yongle saw Lin Ling trying for a goal, he was so indifferent that he did not bother to interfere; a Lin Ling who had lost himself was just another ordinary player.

This time, Lin Ling got a pass from a teammate; he broke into the area but did not shoot or pass. He kept running with the ball and Luo Bin moved in, forcing him towards the baseline. When he was almost forced out, Lin Ling made a shooting pose and the defender quickly extended a leg for a block. However, Lin Ling did not shoot and back-passed instead!

A Tong Xing striker rushed forward, there was just a 5-meter distance towards the goal! The Zhongyuan defenders never thought that this would happen and could only watch as the player struck. And yet, Zhang Lintao once again came to the rescue with another gorgeous save by palming the ball away. Zhang Yang quickly followed up and cleared with a long ball.

Zhao Defeng got to the ball and delivered a diagonal pass to Li Yongle, who was dashing up the field. Maintaining his run at breakneck speeds, he shook himself off a defender who tried to stop him and fired another ground shot from outside the area! Flustered, the keeper tipped the ball away and over the line. Corner.

The Zhongyuan players, who seemed to have been largely kept inside their own half, moved into the opposition’s box in the blink of an eye. Even Zhang Yang went to join in on the fun.

Zhao Defeng took the corner and the ball curled in the air. In front, Li Qiang jumped just slightly ahead but missed! And so did Luo Bin in the center! But towards the end was Zhang Yang, who appeared and dropped down for a diving header! The ball went in from a very tight angle!

4: 0! Zhang Yang put the icing on the cake!

The teammates enveloped him excitedly, celebrating his first goal.

“Brat! You’re no sham!” Luo Bin laughed, patting his head.

“Yeah! I’m not going to forgive you if you ever say that you’re a newcomer ever again! What a beautiful header!”

“Such a difficult shot!”

“Really couldn’t tell!”

“Hidden talent!”

But, there was no joy in Zhang Yang’s face. He shrugged off his teammates and rushed at the Tong Xin goal, shouting, “F*ck! Who pushed me from behind just now!”

Everyone fainted!

“And I was just about to praise you,” Li Yongle said. “I guess it’s fine now.”

It was then that Zhang Yang suddenly turned happy. “Well, to be frank, the goal wasn’t bad at all! I’ve made my choice, it’ll be called ‘The Zhang Way of the Half Squat Dashing Header’!”

“You really are a newbie…”

…

Yang Pan was holding back his rage, believing that the other team had hurt Zhang Jun.It was as if he forgot the “raging corner” he took in last week’s match. He made for a hard breakthrough between two defenders, dashed into the area and crossed the ball!

Zhang Rui took a shot! The ball was pushed away by the keeper, but a defender’s ensuing clearance fell to Wang Bo, who then passed it to Ren Yu De. While Yu De himself had few chances to put on a show in this game, he was much more active when he was moved up front to the striker’s position. He was facing a three-man encirclement but with his dazzling control, he moved with ease; he turned, lowered himself and dashed away. With a prompt pull of the ball with his right foot, he tripped a midfielder, who came diving in.

Ren Yu De was forced to the baseline and looked as if he had nowhere to go. But he lightly poked the ball and nutmegged his marker! Then, he made a spin with his body to bypass his marker―a flick turn!

The keeper came diving out as Ren Yu De gently leaped. And the ball went over the goalie. When it dropped, it was already in Bai Ma’s net.

1: 1! Shu Guang had equalized the scores at the sixty-seventh minute through a solo performance from Ren Yu De!

But instead of celebrating the score, Ren Yu De picked up the ball and dashed towards the center circle. There were 13 minutes left―his team had to score another goal in order to progress to the next round.

It was after they leveled their scores that the Shu Guang players displayed their true depth as dark horses; with the Bai Ma players surrounded, they attacked, pinning the home team within their own area in the time that remained.