When the time entered 70 minutes, Pan Yi became a little nervous.
Because he understands that at this point in time, negligence is most likely to occur.
The fans think they can win, and the national players think so too.
Such emotions can make players more confident to a certain extent, but if it goes beyond that, it is conceited and arrogant.
And when facing a strong opponent like Iran, if you can't stay focused for just one second, it may be a disaster for the team.
And there is another very important point, that is, after fighting for most of the game, the physical fitness of the national football players will also reach a more difficult period.
After 70 minutes, with the decline in physical fitness, it is sometimes difficult for the players to maintain absolute concentration, including being unable to guarantee 100% accuracy when performing actions.
Therefore, whether it is physical or psychological, it is now a major test for the Dragon Kingdom team!
Pan Yi stood up first and went to the sidelines to shout to the players to stay focused and to play the last 20 minutes of the game wholeheartedly.
Then, he returned to the coaching bench and said to Lippi: "I think Zheng Zhi can be replaced now and replaced with a central defender to play 5-3-2 and strengthen the defense."
This is the conclusion he reached after observation.
That is, the defense is still a bit tight now, mainly because after the decline in physical fitness, it is difficult for the four defenders to completely cover the defensive space in the backcourt, which easily allows the Iranian team to take advantage of it.
When capacity cannot be reached, the simplest and most effective way is to increase the number of people.
Add a central defender to fill this gap in space.
As for why Zheng Zhi was replaced, it was mainly because he fought too hard in the midfielder position. At the age of 36, he could no longer sustain this kind of high-intensity confrontation for a full 90 minutes.
After he comes off the field, it is not a big problem to use the midfield combination of Cai Huikang + Huang Bowen + Wu Xi to defend.
Lippi listened to Pan Yi's words, looked at the court and said: "I feel he can hold on a little longer. Do you think we can't hold on now?"
Lippi's hesitation is certainly justified.
After all, Zheng Zhi's role in the midfield of the Long Guo team is absolutely irreplaceable, including his mental strength that will inspire his teammates on the court.
If Zheng Zhi is replaced at this time, Lippi cannot guarantee whether there will be any unexpected changes on the field.
You can't blame him for wanting stability. Almost any head coach will put stability first at this time!
But Pan Yi is obviously not among this group.
He can become recognized as the number one coach in the world, often because he can detect the upcoming dangers in advance, and then anticipate the enemy and solve these hidden dangers in advance!
Seeing that Lippi didn't seem to agree with him - this was the first time since the two had cooperated - Pan Yi frowned and thought for a while, then proposed another plan:
"Otherwise, let Zheng Zhi retreat and play as a central defender like he did in the 3-4-3 before. Let him fill in the gaps in the middle and deep position, so that there is no need to make substitutions."
Lippi thought for a moment and saw that the defense on the field was indeed a bit tight, so he nodded and said, "Okay, I'll do as you say."
Pan Yi quickly stood up and rushed to the sidelines, preparing to redeploy the formation.
But as the saying goes, "Soldiers are valuable and they are quick," the battlefield is changing rapidly. In such a short period of time, the battle situation has changed.
A throw-in attack by the Dragon Country team in the frontcourt was intercepted. The Iranian team's forward pass did not pose a threat. However, Feng Xiaoting was a little slow in handling the ball and was intercepted by Azmoun who was advancing behind him. Azmon then crossed the ball. Knocking in the middle, Taremi, who was unguarded, pushed and scored!
The score suddenly became 1:1!
Hundreds of thousands of Iranian fans suddenly became excited, and Feng Xiaoting squatted on the ground after his mistake, holding his head in his hands, regretting it endlessly.
This is what Pan Yi is worried about. After such a long period of fierce battles, players' physical fitness and concentration decline, as well as their own relaxation and slackness, make them more likely to make mistakes.
He wanted to add another defender to try his best to make up for such mistakes. After all, the probability of two people making mistakes at the same time was still much lower than one person making mistakes.
Moreover, part of the reason for this conceding was that when Feng Xiaoting was handling the ball, there were no teammates nearby who could pass the ball, which meant that the distance between the four defenders was relatively far.
When he was hesitating where to pass the ball, Azmon, who was extremely fast behind him, showed his characteristics and intercepted the ball as soon as he started, causing the goal to be conceded.
If it had become a back five at this time, with the distance between the defensive players closer and more contact points, perhaps this would not happen.
Pan Yi shook his head, but still shouted to Feng Xiaoting: "Don't panic! Lift your head and keep playing hard!"
This scene suddenly reminded Pan Yi of a game in his previous life.
That was in the 2019 Asian Cup. At that time, Lippi led the national football team to the quarterfinals, but met the Iranian team again.
Then in the game, it was because of Feng Xiaoting's error in handling the ball that Taremi scored, giving the Iranian team the lead.
Next, the national football players seemed to be infected.
Soon, Azmoun took advantage of Liu Yiming's mistake to score another goal, and in the final stoppage time, the Iranian team took advantage of Shi Ke's mistake to score a single goal from Ansarifard.
In one game, three mistakes led to a 0:3 defeat. This game also made Lippi so angry that he almost vomited blood.
Now, Pan Yi must not let such a thing happen "again" in today's game.
"Zheng Zhi, come to the central defender position and help stabilize the defense!"
Following Pan Yi's shout, Zheng Zhi quickly understood the coaching staff's intention and ran back.
He also pulled up Feng Xiaoting who was still squatting on the ground, patted his shoulder to comfort him, and then said: "Listen to Boss Pan, don't take this mistake to heart, and continue to play well!"
Feng Xiaoting nodded, and the firm expression that had been lost reappeared on his face.
He is already 31 years old this year and has experienced many battles. He still has such psychological adjustment ability.
He became famous at a young age. In 2002, when he was only 17 years old, he had become the team's main central defender and emerged in the Chinese Super League.
In 2003, Feng Xiaoting was selected for the national team, becoming one of the few players to be selected for the National Football Team, National Olympics and National Youth Team at the same time.
In 2005, Feng Xiaoting participated in his first international competition-the World Youth Championship. In this competition, the Longguo National Youth Team performed well, winning all three group matches and advancing to the top 16.
In the end, they lost to the host Germany team 2-3 in the knockout round.
Under the leadership of German coach Krauchen, the Dragon National Youth Team showed an advanced overall style of play. The players dared to make moves and perform, and the game scene was very exciting.
This generation of the National Youth Team has brought many good memories to Longguo fans and is also known as the "Super Platinum Generation".
As captain, Feng Xiaoting plays a key role in the defense. He has shown excellent defensive ability and stable performance.
Later, FIFA's official website rated him as one of the top ten most anticipated new stars, tied with Messi, which shows that his technical characteristics in the game have been highly recognized.
There is a famous scene of this National Youth Team, that is, in the warm-up match with the German team before the World Youth Championship, Feng Xiaoting showed his outstanding breakthrough ability.
He stole the ball near the center circle, passed several opponents in succession, and finally scored a goal! Such a one-stop goal is really rare in the history of national football.
After the World Youth Championship, Feng Xiaoting also had the opportunity to play in the Bundesliga, but due to the club's excessive transfer fee, the trip failed.
Later, he first went to South Korea to play in the K-League, and finally returned to China, where he has been playing for Changzhou Hengtai and helped the team win many important championships, including two AFC Champions League championships.
In the national team, he has always been the best choice for the main central defender.
Feng Xiaoting is 1.86 meters tall, but his body is not strong, and his defensive ability with frontal headers is not his strong point.
However, his defensive awareness and anticipation are excellent.
Due to his previous experience as a forward, Feng Xiaoting is very skilled at his feet. He has broad vision and accurate long passes.
It can be said that he is an excellent organizational central defender, and such a ball-playing central defender is of course also favored by top coaches like Lippi and Pan Yi.
Now, he has made a fatal mistake, and of course he cannot be denied everything.
Let me ask you, which player in the world of football has never made a mistake, and who has not made a stupid mistake in conceding the ball specifically to the goalkeeper and defender positions?
"Secure your defense first, then think about other things!"
Under Pan Yi's command, the Long Guo team's formation was also adjusted to 5-3-2, including the forward Wu Lei and Zhang Yuning. After all, there is one less person in the midfield and more reinforcements are needed.
Seeing that Pan Yi was still so calm, everyone gradually stabilized their mentality and began to set up a defensive line to prevent their opponents from taking advantage of the victory.
Lippi certainly has no objections to these adjustments.
At this time, he even felt a little regretful. Why didn't he listen to Pan Yi earlier? Of course he can also see the problem with the ball just lost. If he had really switched to five defenders earlier, it might have been fine.
But it is useless to say this now. In short, the situation on the court must be stabilized as soon as possible. The Iranian team may continue to attack!
On the Iranian team's side, Queiroz's ideas are not as radical as Pan Yi or Lippi thought.
After Taremi scored the ball into Zeng Cheng's goal, Queiroz's tense nerves finally relaxed.
Finally scored, finally equalized!
He also understood that if it weren't for the mistake made by Long Guo's central defender, it would be really difficult for Iran to find a better opportunity to equalize the score.
Therefore, Queiroz is not only excited about this goal, but also feels lucky.
When facing this team coached by Lippi and Pan Yi, it is really difficult to play, and it is really not easy to score a goal!
Now in Queiroz's mind, this Dragon Country team is even more difficult to deal with than the South Korean team!
So, what to do next?
Queiroz soon had his answer.
That is - to maintain a tie and win!
This really goes back to what Queiroz said before the game, that even one point is acceptable.
Now Iran has a certain lead in the standings. If you take into account the intricate relationship between the wins and losses within the group, in fact, as long as Iran does not lose in the next games, it may be able to qualify.
Can third-place Uzbekistan win the remaining games? It's almost impossible.
Today's Long Guo team is so difficult to deal with. He only relied on the opponent's mistakes to gain unexpected joy. If he attacks recklessly at this time, Long Guo's sharp counterattack will definitely not give him good results.
In the first half, Long Guo had many counterattack opportunities and finally scored a goal.
Therefore, Queiroz also chose to seek stability.
After the game restarted, everyone could see that the Iranian team clearly began to reduce the pressure in the frontcourt and began to pay more attention to the close connection between the three lines. At the same time, the defensive line also moved back to avoid being caught. The Dragon Kingdom team attacked the space behind them.
At the same time, the two full-backs also began to reduce their forward penetration, and focused more on defense. The purpose was to contain the Long Guo team's two-sided attack.
All signs are sending a signal to everyone: Iran is really satisfied with the 1:1 draw, and they actually started to play defensive counterattack!
Don't look at the fact that the Iranian team behaves like a fierce big brother in Asia-wide competitions, rushing up and beating up anyone they see;
When he's out there, especially at the World Cup, he's like a little brother.
Therefore, defensive counterattack is their special skill in the world!
His masterpiece is still the 2014 World Cup against Argentina. Queiroz relied on this style of play to prevent the Argentine team from losing their temper for the entire 90 minutes.
Queiroz also used it to deal with Pan Yi's Dragon Kingdom team.
Reducing the pressure in the frontcourt is equivalent to giving the Dragon Country team more possession of the ball, but this does not mean that the Iranian team focuses on defense.
They were just retreating to advance, allowing the Dragon Kingdom team to press out so that they could counterattack.
It has to be said that Queiroz's move is very pragmatic, but also very deadly.
I'll make sure I don't concede the ball first, but if you take the risk and miss the opening, then I'm also happy to score a counterattack. Wouldn't it be nice to turn one point into three points?
Moreover, the Dragon Country team is not Argentina! They have no Di Maria, no Aguero, and no Messi.
With their offensive strength, do they really have a chance to attack Iran, which is firmly defending and counterattacking?
As long as Long Guo dares to press out, its back line of defense may be broken by the opponent before scoring a goal.
This puts the question to Lippi and Pan Yi: one point or zero points?
——
Want one point.
This is what many Dragon Country fans think in their hearts.
At Iran's home court, where the Dragon Kingdom has lost five consecutive games, taking one point is really not an unacceptable result.
Although it is indeed a pity to lose points due to the defender's mistakes, considering that in the past, whether the Dragon Country team played against Japan, South Korea, or Iran and Saudi Arabia, they always played with trepidation and fear, and they always lost in the end;
Like today, they were able to play evenly with their opponents, and even when they were tied by their opponents, they actually didn't pursue the victory...
Obviously, the Iranian team chose to retreat because they were afraid of the Dragon Kingdom's counterattack ability, and they chose to score one point each with the Dragon Kingdom!
This in itself shows the progress of Longguo. In the eyes of opponents, this team is no longer a lamb that can be slaughtered by others. They are not just taking three points from you.
Besides, since the arrival of the new coaching staff, they have won two and drawn one of the three games. The winner has drawn with Iran and has not yet been eliminated early. This has far exceeded the expectations of all fans.
Moreover, such a difficult away game against Iran can be a draw. Next, we will play Uzbekistan, Syria and Qatar, three relatively weak teams, and the hope of victory is still high.
In other words, even if you only get one point in this game, if you play well in the subsequent games, there is still hope of qualifying from the group!
However, this is what the fans want.
What are the national football teams thinking at this time?
Especially what did Lippi think? What did Pan Yi think?
As if he had read the fans' thoughts, the live TV cameras at this time were also frequently aimed at the visiting team's coaching bench.
Well, in fact, even the director in charge of the broadcast wants to know what they are thinking at this time!
From the camera, it can be seen that Pan Yi was holding a piece of paper and gesticulating, and then turned his head to discuss something with Lippi. Lippi nodded frequently as he listened.
Because Pan Yi covered his mouth with great experience when speaking, even a lip-reading expert would not be able to understand the content of their conversation.
In fact, facing the current situation on the court, Pan Yi did hesitate.
The current situation is that if Iran is willing to score a point, it depends on whether the Dragon Kingdom cooperates or not.
If the Dragon Country team also plays more safely, then it is logical that the two teams will get one point each, Iran will retreat, and the Dragon Country team can draw with a strong enemy.
Not only that, I am afraid that domestic fans will be proud of the performance of the national team, and the domestic media will also praise the national team for playing well, but regrettably being tied because of a mistake.
Three matches, two wins and one draw. Compared with the previous three losses and one draw, this kind of result is a world of difference, and it is enough to gain the respect of all people in the Dragon Kingdom.
All of this looks so good, and a draw doesn't seem unacceptable.
But the question is, is one point really enough?
If this score is maintained until the end, Iran's points will reach 15 points, while Dragon Kingdom will have 8 points.
There are still three games left. Assuming that they can win three consecutive games, the Dragon Kingdom can reach 8+9=17 points.
It is extremely unlikely that Iran will not score more than 2 points in the next three games. It can be said to be almost impossible, so their points will basically be higher than those of Dragon Kingdom and grab a qualifying spot.
Then there is South Korea.
The current situation is slightly different from when the scores were analyzed before the game, because the game between Dragon Country and Iran started later, and at this time the other two games were already over.
The South Korean team also played a game first. After the coaching change, they did not seem to be greatly affected. They defeated Syria 1:0 at home.
In this way, South Korea's points have reached 13 points.
Then there is only 4 points difference between them and Dragon Kingdom's theoretical maximum score of 17 points.
With three games left, can South Korea not score 4 points? It's not impossible, but it is very dangerous for the Dragon Kingdom team.
This means placing all hope on the opponent, and completely losing the initiative.
But if the Dragon Country team can defeat Iran today and get 2 more points, it may be different.
In this way, the points needed by the Korean team become 6 points! There may be more, because after two consecutive 3-0 games, the Dragon Country team has a huge goal difference advantage.
That means at least 7 points.
In three games, they have to win at least two and draw one, which is not so sure for the Korean team.
What's more, South Korea still needs to have a face-to-face confrontation with the Iranian team!
In this powerful dialogue, it is still unclear who will win.
In short, although the final fate of the Dragon Kingdom team still has to wait for others to make mistakes, the difference of 2 points more and 2 points less is still quite big!
In addition, don’t forget that even if Iran and South Korea make no mistakes in the end and qualify as the top two in the group, Long Guo will still have to finish third to play in the play-offs.
Uzbekistan, currently ranked third with 9 points, has just defeated Qatar 1:0, raising its score to 12 points.
This guy is also a fierce rival for a spot!
Therefore, one more point is one point, and you must not give up any point, because that may give up the hope of qualifying!
At this time, Pan Yi was talking to Lippi about his analysis and put forward his own ideas: One point is not enough, you must strive for three points!
Lippi also agreed with Pan Yi's statement.
However, if you want to get three points, you need to be strategic.
As the saying goes, if you are prepared for the week, you will be lazy, but if you are familiar with it, you will not doubt it. This comes from the first plan of "Thirty-Six Strategies", "Crossing the Sea".
When used in the art of war, it is a tactic of showing false soldiers and concealing real soldiers. It is used as a camouflage in battle. After observing the opponent's omissions and laxity, he can take advantage of the situation in order to achieve unexpected combat effects.
Now Pan Yi is preparing to fight such a battle.
First, stay put and still face the enemy with 5-3-2, giving the illusion that both sides have understood each other, finished the "garbage time", and then each takes one point home;
After the opponent is paralyzed, suddenly change players and formations to launch a sneak attack!
At this time, Pan Yi suddenly remembered the 1996 Asian Cup. At that time, the national football team played against Japan in the final round of the group stage. If the two sides tied, they could join hands to qualify - the one who wanted to join forces at that time was the Korean team in another group. . (At that time, the third place in the group could also qualify. Compared with each other's results, the Dragon Country team had the advantage)
But in stoppage time, Japanese defender Soma Naoki suddenly shot a long shot through the national football goal. Japan finally defeated the national football team 1:0...
Although in the end, Syria, which had lost two consecutive games in the same group, used its style to defeat Uzbekistan (of course, if they could win a big victory, they would have a chance to qualify), and still sent the national football team to the quarterfinals, but it was a pity that South Korea also qualified.
Of course, in the end, the national football team had no better results. After entering the quarterfinals, they were eliminated by Saudi Arabia 4:3.
The scene in which the young player Liu Yue, who was only 21 years old at the time, was beaten by the Saudis on the wing and was then scolded by captain Fan Zhiyi, can be regarded as one of the famous events in the history of the national football team.
Today Pan Yi just wants to recreate the famous scene where Japan defeated the national football team.
Of course, the victim may have changed from the national football team at that time to Iran today...
