Bang!

The football barely rotated as Wu Lei, about eight meters from the goal, kicked it towards the far corner.

The football soared higher and higher, going over the crossbar…

Zhao Gang squatted down, already seeing the trajectory of the ball.

Wu Lei hugged his head and knelt on the ground, desperately pounding the turf.

The Qatari goalkeeper froze for a second, startled, before reacting and moving to retrieve the ball.

The terrifying roar that had been building in the Mingkun Stadium vanished instantly.

The fans covered their heads in disbelief; the shot had missed…

Fans watching the game on screens at home felt a surge of adrenaline, their hearts racing.

That kick knocked many fans onto their beds, motionless.

"Wu Lei, a one-on-one! Just the goalkeeper to beat!"

"This ball… If Wu Lei had adjusted, the chances of scoring would have been higher, but the defender was already closing in. Adjusting would have meant he'd likely be interfered with and blocked. So, Wu Lei shot directly upon receiving the ball, which was a bit awkward…"

The commentator's words provoked angry outbursts from some hot-tempered fans.

Making excuses like that?

You're a football player, a forward! How can you waste a chance like that?

Do you need an empty net and someone to guide you to it before you can score?

The defender was gone; there was only a goalkeeper left. Even Sterling could have put that one away!

Oh my god!

What do we do?

If we can't seize opportunities like this, how can we win?

Zhao Gang broke through all that way, perfectly shaking off all the defenders with his speed to create such a chance, and it's wasted?

How many chances like that will we get in a game?

After this failed defense, the Qatari players will definitely adjust their tactics. Will we even get another chance like this?

Wu Lei pounded the ground, filled with regret. Yan Junling, on the goal line, dropped to his knees.

The two were teammates in the national team, and previously in the same club team.

Who would have thought that after Wu Lei went abroad, his shooting skills seemed to have gotten worse?

Zhao Gang walked over to Wu Lei and helped him up.

"It's okay. There will be more chances. Confidence is the most important thing! Your positioning is definitely world-class; you can definitely establish yourself in one of the top five leagues. This kind of shooting opportunity looks good, but it's not as easy as it seems. I'm a forward; I know this situation best!"

Zhao Gang comforted Wu Lei, pointing out that managing to get into that position was already excellent.

Because the defender was already closing in, Wu Lei had to shoot as soon as he received the ball. Combined with some nervousness, his movements weren't stable enough, so missing the shot was normal.

Wu Lei was still full of regret, which had a considerable impact on him.

He had gone abroad the season before last, playing in Spain, but things hadn't gone smoothly. His abilities were still a bit lacking, and his relationship with his teammates wasn't very harmonious.

Although he was older than Zhao Gang, he had always seen Zhao Gang as an idol, a true role model.

He hoped that one day he could be like Zhao Gang, a city hero, a core offensive player!

Someone who could face all kinds of big shots and chat with them freely.

But he felt the chances were slim. In those mid-to-lower-ranked teams, he still had to rack his brains to fight for a starting position. The possibility of standing out was too small.

His confidence was being eroded bit by bit. Now that he was in the national team, his shooting skills seemed to be even worse than before!

"That was a truly wonderful series of speed-based escapes! Majid and Júnior probably rarely see breakthroughs like that. They stood there like wooden stakes. Júnior at least reacted a bit, reaching out to pull, but Majid was completely stunned…

Finally, facing a three-man defense, Zhao Gang even had the presence of mind to make a feint, feigning an attack to the east while striking in the west, drawing all the defenders to the right. The three defenders had no time to block Wu Lei… What a pity that Wu Lei's shot went flying!

The Dragon Team missed a very good opportunity to take the lead!! Alas…"

"Yes, this kind of breakthrough… It seems no Dragon players in the Dragon Super League or the national team can pull it off. One reason is that their technique itself isn't good enough, and another is a lack of confidence.

Don't think this is just pure speed. Just that moment of poking the ball forward requires a level of control that most people don't have. If the speed is too slow or the force is too weak, it's likely to be disrupted by the defender head-on.

If the power is too great or the speed is too fast, you basically lose control.

Zhao Gang… in just these few minutes, he's shown a level several tiers above the other players.

Whether it's his teammates or his opponents, the gap between them and him is visible to the naked eye.

I think there are still opportunities. You can see from Qatar's defensive strategy that they are disregarding everyone else and desperately defending against Zhao Gang.

This kind of opportunity will definitely appear again. As long as Wu Lei or other players can seize the opportunity, they can definitely score!"

Zhao Gang wasn't too disappointed that Wu Lei wasted the opportunity.

What he was worried about was that his teammates would lose confidence and fighting spirit, becoming lazy and lax on the field.

From the looks of things, that wasn't happening.

A big reason for that was Lippi's reputation and aura. Another reason was that most of these players were making their first starts in this World Cup qualifier.

These players were eager to prove themselves.

As long as their spirit was still there, that was enough for Zhao Gang.

As for technical skills, there was nothing he could do.

It wasn't that they didn't want to work hard to improve, but the Dragon's football system simply wasn't likely to produce top technical talents.

It could only be done little by little.

The Qatari team had been trying to slow down the pace, because a faster pace would create the possibility of defensive positioning errors, and gaps could be found.

But Lippi had obviously anticipated this, so he started with a high press, forcing the Qatari players to not be able to control the ball and dictate the pace as they pleased.

This kind of pressing not only consumes the Dragon Team's stamina, but also may cause defensive loopholes, but the payoff is huge. If Wu Lei's shot had been a bit more accurate, they would have taken the lead.

"Both sides have started pressing in midfield, even to the point of chaos. Qatar doesn't want the battle to spread to their own backfield.

Wu Xi is pressing very aggressively. Huang Bowen, Zheng Zhi… Zhang Linpeng is also coming up! Zhang Linpeng is holding his position, he got the ball, can he get it out!"

Zhang Linpeng is the top right-back in the country. His peak strength would definitely allow him to gain a foothold in a mid-to-lower-level team in the top five leagues.

But for various reasons, he didn't go abroad.

Zhang Linpeng withstood the defender and managed to pass the ball to Zheng Zhi with difficulty.

Zheng Zhi is full of experience and has good footwork. Apart from a slight disadvantage in stamina, everything else about him is top-notch.

He found Zhao Gang, who was cutting in on the wing, with one kick.

This time, Zhao Gang didn't break through along the center, but instead accelerated directly on the wing, preparing to look for an opportunity to cross from the byline!