"Don't forget the sky in Rostov!" After the dramatic World Cup elimination, Japanese coach Nishino Lang gave encouragement to the exhausted players. This night's sky is unforgettable not only for Japanese football players, but also for fans all over the world. It is a good story full of lofty sentiments and lamentations, which is thrilling and tearful.
In the 20 18 World Cup, the Japanese national team not only signed well (there was no strongman in the same group), but also performed well, and was named as "the strongest in Asia"-the third round of the group stage was controversial, but the result was satisfactory. The opponent of the third "Blue Warrior" is Belgium, a much more terrible opponent than Turkey (2002) and Paraguay (20 10). The price difference between the two teams is 10 times. Almost everyone in the opposite starting team is the main force of European giants. The biggest brand of our team is only one Dortmund rotation player (Kagawa Shinji). After all the top teams of 16 were produced, it was unanimously recognized that this was the most suspense-free dialogue in the final of18.
However, on that passionate night in Rostov, 95 minutes later, the "Red Giant" stumbled, and "Little Warcraft" Lu Kaku even knelt down after the final whistle and pointed to the sky.
This is an intellectual confrontation, from macro strategy to competition policy to technical details. The Japanese began to "prepare for the final of 1/8" from the third round of the group stage. In the first two rounds, coach Nishino Lang led the team with 4 points and faced 6 main players in Poland. There is no point in competing for the first place in the group (the opponent is either Belgium or England), so it is necessary to ensure that the core players are full of physical fitness.
As Makoto Hasebe, who retired from the national team after the game, said, facing Belgium, the Japanese team "has nothing to lose"; The spirit of "getting down and getting up" engraved in the national gene inspires all employees to work hard. Nishino Lang's arrangement in the first half was so steady that the Belgians who were cooked in warm water didn't notice it ... When they saw the confrontation between Maya Yoshida and Lu Kaku, most people thought that the "European Red Devils" would open the situation in the second half. Unexpectedly, after the half-time, the Japanese showed a sharp mountain city: the clever shot of the original mouth showed the wisdom of football, and then Takashi Inui bent his bow and arrow, and the ball shocked the world!
Shortly after the second half, Genki Haraguchi scored the first goal for the Japanese team with a low shot, which was also the first goal of the "Blue Warrior" in the World Cup knockout.
After the game, Belgian goalkeeper courtois admitted that he was a little desperate when he saw "0-2" on the scoreboard-"I feel I can take a holiday early." It wasn't until Lu Kaku's powerful header approached again that coach Roberto Martínez, who was standing on the sidelines, woke up like a dream: Since the ground penetration can't get rid of the entanglement of Japanese players, let's change his life with an average height difference of 8 cm! Fellaini and two Chadli "bombers" whose height is over 1.9 meters appeared at the same time, and the air superiority of the Japanese team in the restricted area was occupied by the players in red again and again. Nishino realized the anxiety and expectation he had never had in his coaching career: he was very excited to push the world's top teams to the last step; Unable to limit each other's simple and rude attack routines, very helpless.
At the last minute of stoppage time, the Japanese player who was equalized by two headers still didn't think about overtime. Keisuke honda's eyes were full of ambition when he took the corner kick. The ball he kicked doggedly flew over the Belgian penalty area, and the "Blue Warrior" tried to replicate the scene of Yuya Osako's header in the first round of the group stage. Unfortunately, the ball was won by courtois, and the story that happened after 14 seconds made all Japanese feel deeply hurt. Countless details determine the last moment of heaven and hell.
In this game, Japanese players' restrictions on Lu Kaku can be said to be enough, but the overall strength of the "European Red Devils" has other winning weapons.
This is the first time that a two-goal lead has been reversed since 1970 in the World Cup knockout. The cunning and courage of the Japanese representatives almost made them make a historic breakthrough, but their fragile dreams were finally ruthlessly shattered by absolute power. The "destruction and rebirth" described by Akihiko Matsumoto in his notes has become a proposition for Japanese football players to think about when they leave the banks of the Don River. ...
Observe and think
Chadli's stunt of reading seconds made the Japanese silent and lost in thought. It took NHK TV five months to analyze the whole process of 14 second counterattack with the lens captured by 28 cameras, and interviewed two teams of players who participated in the attack and defense, making a 50-minute documentary. Little-known changes in players' mentality are one of the highlights revealed in the film.
No one could have imagined that the Japanese team's defeat actually originated from a small passing mistake made by Makoto Hasebe, a leading figure-although it didn't have any direct impact, it made a casual mentality spread in the team.
At the moment when Felton scored the farthest header in the history of the World Cup, courtois's mood reversed 180 degrees: "The goal fell from the sky and the confidence to win was rekindled." Yuto Yongyou and Genki Haraguchi have a premonition about the breeding of fear, as the former said: "Now that such an idea has appeared, it will be very difficult to get rid of it."
Before Chadli scored, Lu Kaku's clever leakage was the key for the Belgians to finish the lore. In this regard, the documentary production team talked with the parties and gained first-hand memories. Belgian No.9 admitted that he turned to observe Chadli's running position and knew that his teammates were following him. Yuto Yongyou constantly lamented that his ability to observe information was not an order of magnitude compared with the world's top stars. The handling and judgment of every detail can change the direction of the game; The difference of observation ability determines the final outcome.
"I have things I can't achieve and heights I can't reach. Instead of regretting regret, it is better to accept yourself cleanly and honestly in a sense. " In the interview, Makoto Hasebe showed another angle of thinking. Indeed, it is meaningless to "beat chicken blood" or "stew chicken soup" Only by facing up to the gap and making real efforts to narrow it can we avoid leaving the same scar in the future.