Chapter 3 A Third Reminder, March 3rd is Definitely Not an Auspicious Day in Korea

Park Ji-sung took the corner kick, but Cao Bingju, the tallest player on the team, didn't come up. Liu Peng easily headed the ball out. Zhao Pengyu, positioned outside, jumped up, and Kim Jung-yong, number 14, also rushed up to compete for the header. The football was still headed by Zhao Pengyu, who didn't flick it forward but instead directed it to the sideline. Wang Yu received the ball and, without hesitation, passed it to Lin Feng. Lin Feng was closely marked by Choi Won-kwon and couldn't turn around. But he didn't intend to turn. Lin Feng directly flicked the ball sideways to Li Yongle, who had quickly inserted himself into the play.

In four seconds, the Chinese team completed the transition from defense to offense with four passes, involving both the center back and the midfielder.

It really was a fast counterattack! Cao Bingju was both relieved that his judgment was correct and shouting the names of his teammates, "Quick, get back! Kim Dong-jin, get tight!"

Zhang Jun and Li Jie were also active, drifting left and right towards the sidelines, which put the two remaining defenders, Cao Bingju and Park Yong-ho, in a difficult position. Should they follow the forwards out wide, or should they defend the center and force China to direct their attack to the flanks?

China's counterattack was so fast and sudden that Korea found themselves in this situation. Generally speaking, the defending team always wants the attacking team to pass the ball to the sidelines, as that is less threatening. But now, even if the ball was passed to the sideline, China could still directly threaten the goal with a simple movement—cutting inside after receiving the ball.

Since it was a fast counterattack, they couldn't give the opponent too much time to think. So, Li Yongle quickly made his choice between passing and breaking through in the middle.

He lowered his head and dribbled the ball!

He was going to break through the middle! Cao Bingju thought, then he shouted Park Yong-ho's name, telling him to press up. But as soon as Park Yong-ho made a move to close in, Li Yongle passed the ball! A diagonal pass, in the direction of Zhang Jun!

Cao Bingju immediately raised his hand, wanting to signal to the referee that Zhang Jun was offside, but in reality, he hadn't even seen Zhang Jun's position. He made the gesture purely out of experience, hoping to confuse the referee.

Unfortunately, it was a beautiful late run.

"The Chinese team is on a counterattack, and in the blink of an eye, they're in front of the Korean penalty area! Now Zhang Jun has the ball!" Wang Jianxiang's voice was a little excited. He knew that if the ball went in, the history of not beating Korea for over twenty years would really be overturned.

Zhang Jun extended his left foot to gently stop the ball in front of him. The Korean goalkeeper, Kim Young-kwang, also came out. It was a showdown between the striker and the goalkeeper, and the moment to break through that layer of paper.

Cao Bingju didn't want to give up. He rushed towards Zhang Jun at high speed. Even if it meant a foul, he couldn't let him score. The score difference couldn't widen any further!

Seeing the goalkeeper rushing out, Zhang Jun swung his left leg, and Kim Young-kwang immediately thought he was going to shoot. As the top scorer in the UEFA Cup so far, his shooting accuracy was astonishing. The goalkeeper's reaction had to be quick! Kim Young-kwang dived!

But when Zhang Jun's left leg came down, it wasn't a powerful shot, but a gentle chip. The football drew an arc, soaring high over Kim Young-kwang's head. Cao Bingju's flying tackle didn't hit anything. He didn't even touch the shadow of the ball. Zhang Jun, like the football, jumped lightly, elegantly stepping over Cao Bingju.

Carrying the frustration and pain of the Chinese people for over twenty years, the football, in the despairing eyes of Korean goalkeeper Kim Young-kwang and captain Cao Bingju, gently fell into the empty net, into the Korean goal.

The Koreans were in dead silence, only the thousand or so Chinese fans in attendance were cheering.

2-0! The Chinese team extended their lead in the seventieth minute! The goal was scored by Zhang Jun, who ended China's twenty-year winless streak against Korea with a clever chip. Just a light touch, a seemingly ordinary chip, perhaps only the Chinese would know its weight.

Zhang Jun, who scored the goal, didn't seem to care that he had broken through the window. He just pointed both hands at Li Yongle, waiting for his old opponent from their student days to come up and celebrate the goal together.

"Goal! 2-0! Zhang Jun scored a crucial goal! There are still twenty minutes left, and the Korean team is suffering another blow!"

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"Goal! 2-0! Zhang Jun scored a crucial goal! There are still twenty minutes left, and the Korean team is suffering another blow!"

Hefei, Anhui, inside the US University cafeteria, there was jubilation. Everyone was cheering for Zhang Jun's beautiful chip. Because CCTV5 reporters were there to film, some even held up banners: "Zhang Jun, you are the pride of US University!"

Amidst the celebrating crowd, Sophie sat quietly in her chair, simply looking up at the television hanging above.

Everything's normal, that's good, Zhang Jun.

Keep scoring, keep winning. So I can keep watching you play like this.

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After the restart, Kim Ho-kon made another adjustment, bringing on Park Gyu-sun, number 6, to replace Choi Won-kwon, number 12, removing a midfielder but adding a defender. It seemed that Kim Ho-kon was completely frightened by Zhang Jun, to the point that he was willing to reduce his midfield strength against China, just to add a defender to stop Zhang Jun.

With that, the Korean team's formation changed again from 3-4-3 to 4-3-3. Kim Ho-kon was a little lost, changing formations for the third time in the game.

But the Korean players on the field were unwilling to give up just like that. Their characteristic fighting spirit led them to launch a more intense attack in the last twenty minutes, but even so, Qiu Suhui still asked Zhang Jun to stay up front, not to come back to defend. Everyone knew how dangerous Zhang Jun was; he alone was enough to contain a defensive line.

This was real defense, not just eleven players shrinking into a thirty-meter area and not coming out.

Attack, the more fiercely you attack, the bigger the loopholes in your defense will be.

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And the Chinese team wasn't just defending passively. They always seized any opportunity to launch a counterattack. A major change in midfield was that the two defensive midfielders no longer solely relied on Li Yongle to go up; Wang Yu also guarded. When Wang Yu rushed up, Li Yongle would honestly protect from behind. When Li Yongle went up, Wang Yu defended. Of course, sometimes, when they got excited, they would both rush up at the same time, and that was definitely when the Chinese team had the upper hand.

The Korean team needed two people to defend against one Li Yongle, but with two active defensive midfielders taking turns inserting themselves to assist in the attack, the three-man Korean midfield was under a lot of pressure.

Hu Li looked at this change on the field and turned to look at Qiu Suhui: "Is this your instruction?"

Qiu Suhui shook his head: "No. They're making their own judgments based on the situation on the field."

"But it's very effective, very clever." Hu Li chuckled.

"People will grow."

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Zhang Jun raised his hand to ask for the ball, and Cao Bingju tensed up again. Now he was responsible for marking Zhang Jun. Park Gyu-sun, who had just come on, told him the coach's instructions, to use his experience and physicality to suppress Zhang Jun. But Cao Bingju thought in his heart that it was just Kim Ho-kon's wishful thinking. Could he really suppress Zhang Jun? In terms of experience, how could he compare to Zhang Jun, who had been playing in Europe for a year and a half? Perhaps his only advantage was his physicality. If all else failed, he would just foul!

The ball was passed to Zhang Jun, who didn't accelerate with the ball. He just protected the ball and slowly advanced forward. He didn't make any moves, and Cao Bingju didn't know what to do, so he could only retreat step by step.

Zhang Jun did a bicycle kick feint, but he didn't do it repeatedly like Denílson. As a forward, especially a forward with great explosiveness, one bicycle kick feint was enough, because the opposing defenders were very passive. They wouldn't know which time you would push the ball away. Even if they were careful, they couldn't stop a forward who relied on explosiveness, even if they could guess the movement. Zhang Jun didn't touch the ball, and Cao Bingju was indeed shaken and swayed. This was what people called the killing intent of a top striker.

The opportunity appeared, and on the third feint, Zhang Jun pushed the ball out and accelerated for a breakthrough!

Even if you know I'm going to break through at this time, can you stop me? Zhang Jun was just taking advantage of the center back's slow turning speed.

Seeing that he was about to be broken through, Cao Bingju simply pressed his entire body against Zhang Jun, hoping to stop the attack by fouling.

But Zhang Jun, who was fighting against those strong-as-ox defenders in Europe every day, wasn't so easily knocked down. Besides, he had a terrifying desire to win and a never-give-up spirit.

Cao Bingju didn't knock Zhang Jun down. Instead, he was pushed aside by Zhang Jun's wave. Zhang Jun staggered and looked like he was about to fall, but after running a few steps in such a stumbling manner, he gradually regained control of the ball.

The referee ignored the boos of the home fans—they thought Zhang Jun had fouled and pushed Cao Bingju down—but the referee stretched out both hands and made a "play on" gesture, then followed Zhang Jun forward.

Park Gyu-sun, number 6, the defender who had only been substituted on in the seventy-first minute, was the fittest player on the team, and he desperately chased after Zhang Jun. But Zhang Jun didn't want to give him a chance to perform in front of so many hometown elders. Park Gyu-sun rushed out diagonally, wanting to reach out and pull Zhang Jun. It looked like he would succeed. But Zhang Jun accelerated again, like a gust of wind, passing by his hand. Park Gyu-sun's outstretched hand only grabbed the shadow of the wind, while the wind slipped through his fingers.

"Zhang Jun is very fast! Park Gyu-sun didn't stop him! He broke into the penalty area, but Kim Chi-kun is still inside!"

Kim Chi-kun rushed up to defend. Now there were less than ten minutes left in the game, and he couldn't care less about whether there would be a leak behind him after he tackled.

The situation now was no longer a question of winning or losing the game, but a contest of youthful spirit. They absolutely couldn't let this Chinese player score in front of them again!

Zhang Jun slightly swung his foot, and Kim Chi-kun and goalkeeper Kim Young-kwang thought he was going to shoot again. Although he had been tricked once before, in the contest of false and real, the striker always had the upper hand. The two were fooled. Kim Chi-kun flew in for a tackle from far away, and Kim Young-kwang dived towards the far corner. But Zhang Jun slammed on the brakes, pushed the ball to the right, and then powerfully shot with his right foot!

The football slammed into the net! No one could stop this ball. It went in, flying into the Korean team's goal for the third time!

This time, Zhang Jun even skipped the celebration. What was up with the Koreans, who had been entangled with Chinese football for over twenty years? They were so easily defeated with three goals.

He just waved his hand to indicate that he had celebrated.

Having experienced European football, when Zhang Jun looked back at his neighbors, the Korean football that had been described as incredibly terrifying by countless media outlets, it was nothing more than this. Suddenly, there was a sense of loss. So many people used to shout, "Break Korea! Break Korea!" Now that they had really broken through, they didn't have the excitement they had expected. Why was that? Could it be that the entanglement between Chinese football and Korean football was just the process, not the result?

But his teammates seemed extremely excited. This goal sealed the victory. When they were leading 2-0, everyone was still a little worried, after all, it was in Korea's home stadium, and they still had the ability to counterattack. But when it was 3-0, no one would doubt anything anymore. Yes, they won, they beat Korea!

In the subsequent game, the Chinese team relaxed a bit, which gave the Korean team a few good opportunities, but Sima Hongxin's stable performance stifled the Koreans' hopes of salvaging some face.

The referee blew the whistle three times, ending the entire game. The Chinese Olympic team defeated the Korean Olympic team 3-0 away from home! A complete victory! A convincing victory!

Zhang Jun was the best player of the match, even though he only played half the game. His name and photos would also appear in the newspapers of both China and Korea tomorrow. Zhang Jun, who scored two goals alone, would be a nightmare for the Koreans and a hero for the Chinese for a long time.

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Sure enough, in the reports of the next day, Zhang Jun became the focus. The media spared no words in praising their "Korea-conquering hero." There was only one theme: the twenty-year "fear of Korea" has finally become history, and Zhang Jun has made Korea "fear China" from now on!

Even ordinary fans and people discussed last night's game as they went to work and school in the morning. Some people even bought firecrackers to set off after the game ended, just to hear the bang. In addition, according to a media report, some people named their children born yesterday "Po Han" (珀韩), taking the homophone of "Breaking Korea" (破韩).

Apart from October 7, 2001, Chinese football had never been so proud as it was yesterday. According to incomplete statistics, beer sales in various places suddenly soared in the hours after the game ended last night. These aspects showed how happy and crazy the Chinese fans were last night. And all of this was brought about by a boy with the ordinary name "Zhang Jun." He was the hope of Chinese football, he was the hero of Chinese football, he was the pillar of Chinese football… The fans never spared words of praise for Zhang Jun.

When the Olympic team arrived at Wuhan Airport, they were warmly welcomed by countless fans. A reporter exclaimed, "Even when Real Madrid came to China last summer, there weren't so many people!" Most of the fans, especially the female fans, were there to express their support and admiration for Zhang Jun. Wherever Zhang Jun went, he would cause a burst of screams. Although Zhang Jun was not handsome and belonged to a very ordinary type, in the eyes of Chinese fans, this sunny boy who smiled was the most handsome person in China!

But Zhang Jun didn't like this special treatment very much. When he scored goals in every round of the UEFA Cup and led Volendam into the top sixteen, this situation would not occur when he walked on the streets of Volendam. After Li Yongle joked that Zhang Jun was now the "idol of thousands of middle-aged and elderly women," Zhang Jun frowned: "I don't like this."

"What are you worried about, Zhang Jun?" Li Yongle didn't understand. "Are you worried about Sophie being jealous?"

Zhang Jun gave his old friend a glare: "Do you think Sophie is that kind of person? I just think that everyone is focusing on me alone, as if winning the game is all my credit. What will the other teammates think?"

Li Yongle smiled: "So you're worried about this! Don't worry, you're the team's number one star, and it's only natural to receive such treatment. Everyone won't say anything."

"But you are also a great contributor to the victory! But many people don't mention you at all. Look at the recent reports, you've hardly been seen. Don't you think it's unfair?" Zhang Jun spoke up for Li Yongle.

"This is normal, the media and fans will always only cheer for the stars, they still have a wait-and-see attitude towards young newcomers. Actually, it's quite good, so we don't have to bear too much pressure, so these pressures are all borne by you alone for the team, haha!" After laughing, Li Yongle continued, "The main thing isn't what the outside world says, it's yourself. With your personality and your relationship with everyone, do you think everyone will think of you as that kind of person?" Li Yongle patted Zhang Jun on the shoulder, "Have you been reading too many novels? People aren't as bad as those writers write, always scheming against each other, haha!"

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The seventeen days of training in Wuhan were carried out in a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere. Due to the successful "breaking Korea," the Football Association was very satisfied with the Olympic team, and their evaluation of Qiu Suhui had changed from "difficult to manage" to "excellent young coach." And the fans, who had always been very demanding of the men's football team, gave the team great trust and support.

Outside the training ground, there were always a large number of fans from all over the country holding banners to cheer them on. Some people even brought caricatures of the Olympic players to express their love. The young Olympic players were gradually becoming idols in the hearts of fans, especially student fans. After their defeat in Syria, facing the overwhelming accusations, how many of them could have imagined this?

Wang Yu excitedly announced to everyone on the bus that he had just taken a photo with a beautiful female fan. But he was met with merciless boos from everyone.

"You're so excited about taking a photo, if you were forcibly kissed, would you go and crash into a wall? You're really useless!" Xiang Tao snorted disdainfully.

Wang Yu was unwilling to "be humiliated": "Could it be that you were forcibly kissed?"

Xiang Tao raised his head and snorted: "Sorry, it wasn't forced, they offered it willingly."

"Ah!" Wang Yu felt lost.

"But the one who forcibly kissed you was an ugly woman." Li Rui was not going to let go of any opportunity to attack Xiang Tao.

Xiang Tao, who had been holding his head high, suddenly deflated like a football that had been punctured, because that was indeed the case.

Wang Yu perked up: "Hahaha! I'm really sorry, she must really admire you!"

There was a burst of laughter in the bus. Qiu Suhui didn't care, he just smiled with Hu Li as he looked at these lively and lovely players. In fact, he also encouraged the players to interact more with the fans after training and meet their requests. These were also part of his transformation, because many teams in Europe had such high popularity, which was inseparable from these small details. Chinese football used to not pay attention to these small details, small details that could be ignored.

The driver who drove the Olympic team was an old master. He usually drove the teams of the local professional team in Wuhan, and he also drove the national-level teams when they came. From the club team to the national men's football team to the national women's football team, it was the first time he had seen such an energetic group of people, such a lively atmosphere in the car.

Maybe this was also an important reason why they could beat their old enemy, Korea, away from home?

"Brother Tao, you're so lucky to have run into such a thing! You're buying tonight, right?" Someone started to heckle.

"Buy you a hammer!" Xiang Tao called out angrily. "If you want someone to buy, let Zhang Jun buy, he's the idol of thousands of middle-aged and elderly women!"

"Then you are the idol of thousands of middle-aged and elderly men, Xiang Tao." Zhang Jun, who hadn't spoken for a long time, made a surprising remark.

"Hahaha!"

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In this relaxed atmosphere, the Chinese team welcomed their opponent in the second match: the Malaysian Olympic team. In the last game, this team was scored on six times by the Iranian Olympic team. The title of the weakest team in the group was indeed well-deserved.

No one cared about them, because they were born to be supporting characters. But at the beginning of this game, the Chinese team was first hit with a sap.

The referee from India ruled Xiang Tao's beautiful tackle in the penalty area as a foul, turned a blind eye to the Malaysian captain's dive, and unhesitatingly, even eagerly, awarded a penalty.

"Fuck your ancestors!" Xiang Tao was furious. He jumped up and planned to rush towards the referee, but he was held back by Liu Peng, who wrapped his arms around his waist. "Let go! I'm going to fuck this Indian! How much money did Malaysia give him?" Xiang Tao was still shouting and screaming. He was really impulsive. How could this kind of behind-the-scenes transaction be shouted out on the field like this, so lacking in atmosphere?

Li Ruizhi slapped Xiang Tao on the back: "If you want to fuck, don't do it here, it's live broadcast! The game has just started, if you want to leave early, I don't mind you rushing up."

Xiang Tao seemed to have been woken up by this slap. He turned his head to look at Liu Peng: "Why are you hugging so tightly? Do you want to get intimate with me? Let go, I'm afraid people will misunderstand."

"Damn it! You're taking kindness for malice!" Liu Peng pushed Xiang Tao away with a smile. The fact that he could make such a low-level joke meant that he was fine.

The Indian referee seemed to know that he was in the wrong and didn't give Xiang Tao a card, just urging the Chinese players to leave the penalty area quickly.

Sima Hongxin failed to stop the penalty, he dived in the wrong direction. The Chinese team was 0-1 behind just four minutes into the game. The Wuhan Sports Center was in dead silence, with only the cheers of the Malaysians. The scene from the Seoul World Cup Stadium seventeen days ago seemed to be replayed with a different object. But quickly, the Chinese fans shouted slogans in unison, and at the same time, a huge five-star red flag was paraded between the stands.

Zhang Jun, who started the game, showed the Chinese fans his excellence just three minutes later. After receiving a pass from Zheng Chuan, he forced his way into the penalty area, swung his foot, and shot. The football flew into the goal over the head of the unprepared goalkeeper! The Malaysians' lead lasted only three minutes, and Zhang Jun poured a bucket of cold water on them.

In the subsequent game, the Indian referee showed much favoritism towards Malaysia. Every one of his penalties aroused boos from tens of thousands of Chinese fans in the home stadium. But the Olympic team, led by Zhang Jun, ignored the referee and turned the anger towards the misjudgments into the motivation for attack, causing the Malaysians to suffer an even more severe defeat in a crushing manner.

In the twenty-first minute, Lin Feng was maliciously fouled by the opponent, but the Indian referee only gave a verbal warning, indicating that the Chinese team should take a free kick. Zhang Jun, facing the gift from the referee, was not polite. He used a beautiful direct free kick to penetrate the opponent's goal for the second time. "Smiling" appearance in China! 2-1!

In the forty-fourth minute, Li Ruizhi used a corner kick opportunity to head the ball into the Malaysian goal for the third time. Li Yongle's corner kick was obviously bullying the Malaysians for being short, kicking it very high. Li Ruizhi, who was 1.87 meters tall, was almost fighting with Liu Peng, who was 1.88 meters tall, and Li Jie, who was 1.89 meters tall, for the header. In the end, he defeated his teammates and scored his first goal in the top twelve. 3-1.

In the second half, the sides changed again. In the sixty-fifth minute, Li Yongle crossed from the sideline, and Zhang Jun once again bullied the Malaysians for being short. He jumped high and made a powerful lion's head swing! The football smashed against the inside of the goalpost and bounced into the net. 4-1. Zhang Jun also completed his first hat-trick in the national team! The stands were filled with thunderous applause and shouts.

This goal also completely broke the Malaysians, who had been harboring illusions. In the following thirty minutes, the Chinese team, who were going crazy, dedicated a satisfying shooting performance to 60,000 Chinese fans. Long shots, chips, sliding shots, push shots, finesse shots, volley shots, lion's head swings, diving headers, bicycle kicks... One had to admire the effort Qiu Suhui put into shooting practice. Not only the forwards, but even center backs like Xiang Tao had a beautiful long-range shot.

For the purpose of protecting Zhang Jun, Qiu Suhui replaced the increasingly "cared for" Zhang Jun in the seventieth minute. He replaced him with right back Wang Liang and played 4-5-1. But the Chinese team's scoring momentum was not weakened.

In the seventy-second minute, Li Yongle, who scored the first goal in the previous game, scored again, still a long shot from outside the penalty area. The ball suddenly fell in front of the goalkeeper, and the unprepared goalkeeper failed to stop the ball, actually letting the football go through his legs into the goal! Nutmeg! 5-1.

In the seventy-seventh minute, powerful center Li Jie finally scored. He headed in a goal in a goalmouth scramble. But from the slow motion, it was hard to say whether he used his thigh or lower abdomen to knock the ball into the goal. But one thing was certain, he definitely didn't use his hand. 6-1.

In the eighty-third minute, Wang Yu casually chipped the ball from outside the penalty area, and it actually went over the jumping Malaysian goalkeeper and fell into the empty goal! Even Wang Yu himself didn't expect this goal, and he shrugged helplessly: Scoring goals is really unavoidable. The Malaysian goalkeeper's amateur positioning caused the team to fall behind 1-7.

Even the Chinese fans on the scene didn't expect this score, and they looked at the big screen in disbelief. Although many people thought before the game that the Chinese team could easily defeat the weakest Malaysia in the group, they didn't think it would be so easy. It was crazy, any shot could lead to a goal.

But it wasn't over yet. In the eighty-fifth minute, Li Yongle broke through strongly in the center, and the Malaysian defender wanted to stop him with a foul. But he crashed into him and fell down, while Li Yongle was fine. He continued to dribble the ball, broke into the penalty area, then dribbled past the goalkeeper who came out to attack, and easily pushed the ball into the empty net! 8-1.

It should be over, right? No, not yet. Xiang Tao still didn't give up his efforts as the game was about to end. He wanted to score a goal, he wanted to demonstrate to the Indian kid. In the ninetieth minute, Lin Feng took the ball, seemingly waiting for something, until Xiang Tao inserted himself from behind, then he pushed the ball out with one foot. Xiang Tao received the ball unmarked, the Malaysian defense seemed to have no order at all.

Xiang Tao naturally wouldn't let go of this great opportunity. Facing the goalkeeper who had already come out to block the angle, he still chose to shoot powerfully. The football bounced off the goalkeeper's arm, but still bounced into the goal. 9-1! An amazing score!

Most of the Malaysian players on the bench had already covered their faces with their hands, unable to bear to watch any longer. And their coach sat weakly in his chair. It was a crushing defeat, but he couldn't change anything, he could only watch helplessly as the team was cut into pieces in front of tens of thousands of people, a full nine pieces.

The away team players on the field had long since stopped focusing on the game. They couldn't wait for the game to end sooner, so as not to embarrass themselves here.

The Indian referee finally blew the final whistle, and the Wuhan Sports Center was in jubilation. The fans waved the national flag to pay tribute to the team. After experiencing the blow at the beginning of the game, the young players didn't continue to sink as some people had expected, but instead came up with a beautiful big explosion. The score of 9-1 was enough to make everyone happy for a long time.

The Chinese players lined up on the sidelines to thank the fans for their support. No one paid attention to the Malaysian players and the Indian referee anymore, and no one even went up to shake hands with the referee.

It was truly a great victory, and for those Football Association officials in the home stadium, there was also a lesson: they must do a good job in receiving the referees in the home stadium in the future, and don't give them the opportunity to wear small shoes and go on a rampage.

And there were also the Wuhan beer stall owners, they couldn't even count all the money.

9-1, a victory that everyone needed.
Hu Die Lan