Chapter 973: Chen and Ronaldo Meet Again

But Portugal’s offensive was like waves, one after another.

The two full-backs Cancelo and Nuno Mendes advanced significantly, especially Cancelo on the right, frequently swapping positions with Silva, making it extremely difficult for Sun Fei to defend.

In the 15th minute, Cancelo and Silva executed a one-two on the right flank, leaving Sun Fei easily passed! Cancelo, at high speed, reached the bottom line and swept a low ball towards the goal!

Who was charging in the middle?

Cristiano Ronaldo!

His signature powerful sprint to seize the point! Wang Xiaolei quickly went to the ground to block the near corner, but Chen Zhong acted even faster! Almost by instinct, with an extreme sliding tackle, he took the ball out of bounds just fractions of a second before Cristiano Ronaldo could touch it! The ball rolled out over the sideline, grazing the outside of the post.

Cristiano Ronaldo shook his hand in frustration and then looked toward Chen Zhong, a complex expression flashing in his eyes—is it admiration? Competition?

Or is it amazement at maintaining such a state with a former opponent as time passes? Their eyes briefly met in the air, without words.

The corner was taken, Ruben Dias leapt over Hao Chen, heading towards the goal!

Wang Xiaolei reacted swiftly, pushing the ball over the crossbar with one hand! Another corner!

Portugal’s corner tactics were extremely threatening.

This time, Fernandez sent the ball to the far post, and Inacio leaped high!

But this time, Chen Zhong stayed closely marked, and both fought fiercely in the air, ultimately neither reaching the ball, which went straight out of bounds.

After resisting the initial bouts, the Chinese team attempted to organize some counterattacks.

Sun Fei, relying on his speed, made a breakthrough on the left wing, but facing Cancelo’s experience and return speed, his cross was easily cleared by Dias.

Zhao Mingzhe made several dribbles in midfield, trying to use his agility to break free, but Neves and Vitinha’s cooperative defense was flawless; his attempts were thwarted or forced to pass back.

Rooney was working hard on the right flank, but facing the world-class left-back Nuno Mendes, his physique and technique seemed inadequate, and he was at a disadvantage in several head-on confrontations.

The midfield was completely controlled by Portugal. Zhang Wenxuan and Li Ji were exhausting themselves covering and intercepting, paying a huge physical price, barely maintaining the integrity of the midfield line, but almost nothing was moving forward.

Chen Zhong had to push further to the defensive midfielder position to support, to ensure possession wasn’t easily lost, which somewhat weakened his protective role in the central defender position, but Ding Li was able to compensate well for this.

The turning point of the match came in the 38th minute.

After patiently passing in the middle, Fernandez suddenly launched a penetrating long diagonal pass behind China’s defensive line!

Nuno Mendes understood and charged up fast! Xu Ping, the Chinese right-back, was completely left behind! Mendes caught up with the ball near the left baseline of the penalty area, facing the covering Shi Hai, he didn’t blindly cross but calmly cut the ball back!

Bernardo Silva followed up at the edge of the penalty area, unmarked! He made a slight adjustment and curled a beautiful arc with his signature right foot! The ball went straight to the top right corner of the goal!

Wang Xiaolei leapt desperately! His fingertips seemed to touch the ball! But Silva’s shot was too precise and powerful! The ball slightly changed direction, hitting the underside of the crossbar with a bang, bounced on the goal line, and then into the net!

1-0! Portugal broke the deadlock!

The goal was scored by Bernardo Silva! He and his teammates celebrated wildly, the Manchester City core showcasing his world-class finishing ability.

The Portugal fans erupted, a massive roar sweeping through the stadium. This goal was a perfect demonstration of overall strength and individual ability—Fernandez’s lethal pass, Mendes’ sharp advance, Silva’s calm handling and exquisite shooting technique.

Chen Zhong stood in the box, helplessly watching the celebrating Portugal players.