Speed Was Also a Top-Tier Talent!

Football matches were like this: forwards only needed to run desperately forward, while defenders had far more to think about.

Facing the China Youth Team's counterattack, the opposing defenders had to keep an eye not only on the ball, but also on the China Youth Team attackers around them.

However, distracted by trying to do both, they neither won the ball nor stopped the attacking players.

The faster Lin Feng was the first to emerge from this race.

To the despair of the opposing defenders and fans, his powerful long legs pumped furiously, as though he had Wind Fire Wheels beneath his feet. He caught up to and overtook the opposing defender at incredible speed.

The Argentina defender marking him was utterly hopeless. As Lin Feng was about to pull away from him, he reached out, trying to tug at Lin Feng's jersey.

But Lin Feng was simply too fast. Before his outstretched hand could even touch the corner of Lin Feng's shirt, Lin Feng had already sped away.

Argentina's coach sprang from the bench, utterly stunned.

How was this guy so fast?

He was far faster than he had looked on the tapes!

If Messi had shocked the entire China Youth Team with his overwhelming individual ability, then Lin Feng now deeply shook the entire Argentina team with his rocket-like speed!

With speed like that, once he got going, there was simply no stopping him!

Under the despairing gazes of the Argentinians, Lin Feng caught up with the ball.

Quite a few Argentina fans painfully shut their eyes, unable to keep watching.

Other than the goalkeeper, there were no defenders left in their own penalty area.

What could they use to stop the other side from scoring?

Boom!

The entire stadium erupted in an earth-shaking roar. It was the cheers of the Chinese fans!

The Argentinians slightly parted their fingers and peeked at the scoreboard.

The 1:1 score was especially glaring.

No miracle came. Argentina's goalkeeper, Ustari, failed to stop the goal.

The score was level again, and both sides were back at the same starting line!

"Beautiful!"

"What a shot!"

On the China Youth Team bench, after Lin Feng scored, everyone leaped up excitedly and raised their arms in celebration.

Even Klopp, who usually kept his emotions hidden, lost his composure for once. Excitedly, he hugged several Chinese coaches in celebration, not even sparing the translator assigned by the Football Association.

"I knew that kid could do it!"

"Hehe, Old Klopp, bringing Lin Feng into the Youth National Team was truly a masterstroke!"

"Of course! Do you even know who Old Klopp is? His eye for talent is beyond anything we could match!"

The Chinese coaches truly liked Lin Feng more and more. When had the National Football Team ever produced an attacking player with such terrifying scoring efficiency?

As long as he played, he would definitely score!

Thankfully, Klopp had recognized his talent. Otherwise, the China Youth Team might have missed out on such an outstanding prospect.

Without Lin Feng, they might have been eliminated by the German team in the very first knockout match.

Thinking of that, they found it even easier to flatter him, without the slightest psychological burden.

At that moment, all kinds of posts were rapidly refreshing on domestic Tieba and forums:

"Brother Linzi is awesome!"

"You can always trust Lin Feng!"

"That goal was fucking inspiring!"

"Keep playing like this! Don't be timid, just go for it! If Argentina can score, so can we! Who's afraid of who!"

"So you're Argentina? So you're Messi?"

"Fun fact: so far, Lin Feng has scored four goals in this Youth World Cup, tying Messi's goal tally!"

"And Brother Linzi did it in only three matches, while Messi has already played six. Brother Linzi's scoring efficiency is twice Messi's!"

"Hehe, by that logic, Messi isn't all that impressive!"

Lin Feng's goal once again ignited the atmosphere on domestic forums and Tieba.

When the China Youth Team had been behind earlier, the mood on the forums and Tieba had been utterly gloomy.

Everyone had been in a heavy mood. Aside from a few people openly mocking the China Youth Team, no one else had any desire to speak.

But now, after Lin Feng scored, the Tieba regulars who had previously remained silent all became active again.

As for those who had openly mocked them, they disappeared and slunk back into dark corners, waiting for their next chance to strike.

When Messi saw Lin Feng score, his expression became extremely grave.

He admitted that he had indeed underestimated his opponent before.

The way Lin Feng had scored just now gave Messi quite a shock: speed was also a top-tier talent!

Such unreasonable speed possessed astonishing power on the pitch.

To score, he had to dribble the ball while taking enormous risks, weaving through crowds of opponents and searching for that sliver of opportunity that might exist.

His opponent only needed to accelerate, accelerate again, and accelerate once more, leaving every defender behind.

In terms of difficulty, his goals were harder to score.

After all, no matter how capable he was, he could not charge through every obstacle every single time.

But as long as Lin Feng got a counterattacking opportunity, taking it meant a goal.

At that thought, Messi suddenly grew nervous.

I'm not going to lose to this guy, am I?

Eighteen-year-old Messi was far less mature mentally than he would become later.

The tension and anxiety in his heart soon practically showed on his face.

Perhaps Lin Feng's goal had shocked him too much, because Messi kept unconsciously watching Lin Feng's movements.

He even personally joined in defending Lin Feng.

And nervousness was contagious, especially when the Team Core became nervous first. The entire team would be affected.

After the China Youth Team scored, the Argentina team failed to organize any decent attacks for the next several minutes.

After all, Messi had started neglecting his proper role. Without their central pillar, Argentina was naturally greatly affected.

Argentina's performance was below par, but the China Youth Team's performance improved.

As the attacking pressure from their opponents decreased, the China Youth Team's formation gradually pushed forward.

With Cui Peng and Zhao Xuri providing cover, Chen Tao gained relatively safe room to operate.

Combined with Lin Feng's timely support and playmaking up front, the China Youth Team's midfield began to flow smoothly through the close cooperation of the two of them.

With strong support from midfield, the China Youth Team's attacking opportunities rapidly increased.

From the 22nd minute to the 35th minute, for more than ten minutes, the China Youth Team once formed a sustained siege around Argentina's goal.

During that stretch, Zhu Ting, Lin Feng, Zhou Haibin, and the others all had chances to shoot. Unfortunately, none of their shooting opportunities were especially good, and they failed to pose much of a threat to the opposing goalkeeper.

Instead, Zhao Yijiao fired a long-range shot from outside the box that struck the crossbar, sending a cold sweat down Argentina fans' backs.

During the group stage, Zhao Xuri had scored a spectacular goal from a long-range shot outside the penalty area, helping the China Youth Team snatch a last-gasp victory over the Turkey team.

He had a powerful shot and was fearless about taking them.

Although he often blasted his shots high, once he found his touch, he could sometimes bring a real surprise.

When Klopp put him into the starting lineup, he had intended to use his long shots to break the deadlock at critical moments.

Zhao Xuri's long-range effort seemed to wake the Argentinians, pulling them completely out of their dazed state.

If this continued, the China Youth Team would take the lead!

As fellow South American teams, Argentina's players were just as technically gifted at their feet as Brazil's players.

But unlike the Brazil Team, Argentina had a clear core within the team.

Under Messi's leadership, Argentina began using their polished technique to seize control of midfield.

While enduring the harassment of the China Youth Team players, Messi patiently organized attacks in the final third.

Seeing that the China Youth Team had heavily packed the middle and that penetrating through the center would be difficult, Argentina decisively shifted the focus of their attack to the wings.

Especially on the right side where Messi played, there was not only Messi, but also Zabaleta, a fullback with outstanding attacking support ability.

Their combined efforts exposed a massive gap in the China Youth Team's defense on the left flank.