Chapter 167 - 160: Go for It

"The players of both teams, led by Danish referee Kim Milton Nielsen, are emerging one by one from the tunnel."

"To all our viewers watching at home, the 2003-2004 season’s Champions League final is about to begin."

"We can now get a clear look at the starting lineups for both teams."

"Let me run you through them, starting with Porto’s lineup."

"The goalkeeper is Portuguese international Baia. The back line, from left to right, is Valente, Jorge Costa, Cavaleiro, and Paulo Ferreira. This has been Porto’s main defensive line this season."

"In midfield are Maniche, Costinha, and Mendes. Arenichev has been placed on the bench for this match. The core of the midfield, Deco, will play in a more advanced role, with the two strikers up front being Delray and the young Brazilian, Alberto."

"This season’s Primeira Liga top scorer, McCarthy, has been benched by Mourinho for this match. The Porto head coach has opted for the nineteen-year-old Alberto, which must be an intentional move. McCarthy will likely come on as a surprise weapon in the second half."

"On the Ajax side, the starting formation is the usual 4-3-3. The goalkeeper is Robbent. The back line is Maxwell, Escude, Heitinga, and Talabesi. In midfield, De Jong will play a holding role, with Van der Vaart and Sneijder in the center. The front trident is Wesley Sonck, Ibrahimovic, and Victor Skora."

"It’s worth noting that the seventeen-year-old Chinese youngster Yang Yang, hailed this season as the ’golden substitute’ and the ’best twelfth man,’ is once again on the bench. Barring any surprises, he will come on as a substitute in the second half. I believe all the fans are eagerly anticipating his appearance, which will make him the youngest player ever to feature in a Champions League final."

"More importantly, over the past six months, every time Yang Yang has come on as a substitute, he has managed to change the game for Ajax. By placing him on the bench again, Ronald Koeman is surely showing he has high hopes for him."

"Looking at the tactical setups of both teams, they are sticking to the stable playstyles they’ve used all season. Both squads are also more or less at full strength. Ajax is slightly affected by the suspension of veteran Galasek, while Porto has surprisingly benched their top scorer, McCarthy, in favor of the young Alberto."

"The two linesmen for this match are Logan Jepsen and Genes Laurson, and the fourth official on the sideline is Eric Fosk. Like the head referee, Nielsen, they are all from Denmark."

"Referee Nielsen is most famous for sending off Beckham at the 1998 World Cup in France, a call that made him a household name. He has refereed Porto four times, with the Primeira Liga team’s record being two draws and two losses—winless in all four matches. We’ll see if Porto can break that strange jinx tonight."

"We see the live camera feed focusing on the entrance to the players’ tunnel, where the gleaming golden Saint Berlade Cup is on display. It will belong to the winner of tonight’s final. Will Porto have the edge? Or will Ajax have the last laugh?"

......

......

With a blast of the referee’s whistle, Ajax kicked off.

From the very first minute, Porto deliberately tightened their defense but didn’t drop too deep, clearly wary of Ibrahimovic’s dominance inside the box. Their three lines remained extremely tight and compact.

Ajax controlled possession but couldn’t find an opening until the third minute when Van der Vaart played a through ball into the box. Wesley Sonck tried to run onto it, but Goalkeeper Baia decisively came off his line, diving to smother the ball first.

But Porto quickly launched a counter-attack of their own. A long ball from the back was played towards Delray. The Porto striker was tripped by a back-tracking De Jong while on the ball. The referee blew for a foul, awarding Porto a free kick in an advanced position, but issued no card.

Deco took the free kick quickly, but Goalkeeper Robbent was first to it, plucking the ball out of the air inside his box.

Both teams traded blows after the start, but they were clearly playing cautiously. The tempo wasn’t fast, as both sides were evidently prioritizing stability.

Yang Yang sat on the bench, his attention fixed on the field.

In truth, his view of the pitch from his position was quite limited, not as comprehensive as the television broadcast. So, he had to combine it with his [God’s Vision] to watch and analyze the game.

Porto’s defense was very flexible, mainly thanks to the two midfielders, Maniche and Mendes.

When the Primeira Liga team attacked, both midfielders would actively push forward, leaving Costinha to hold the defensive position alone. Deco still occupied the attacking midfielder role. This made Porto’s midfield resemble a diamond formation, with either Maniche or Mendes sometimes pushing even further up.

The moment they lost the ball upfield, Porto’s front line would immediately start pressing to win it back. The two strikers and Deco were all very aggressive in this counter-press. Maniche and Mendes would instantly drop back to position themselves in front of the defensive line, forming a three-man shield.

Thanks to this aggressive pressing from the front, every time Ajax managed to bring the ball into the final third, they would come face-to-face with Porto’s two stable defensive lines. Counter-attacks were snuffed out, turning into battles to break down a set defense, and their offense immediately struggled to find a way through.

Besides the midfield, the two flanks were also interesting. Valente on the left was more active, making overlapping runs whenever he had the chance. In contrast, Paulo Ferreira on the right was more conservative, mostly staying back. This meant Porto almost always had three defensive players at the back. As soon as they won the ball, the full-backs and Cavaleiro would actively look to play long balls to the strikers.

The two strikers’ roles in receiving the ball were also fixed: Delray would generally challenge for the header, while Alberto roamed around him to fight for the second ball.

’Porto’s style is too conservative,’ Yang Yang thought. But he also had to admit that this conservative, pragmatic tactical approach had played a crucial role in getting them to the Champions League final.

For the most part, Porto’s overall tactical style was just as the Ajax coaching staff had predicted. In this match, their press was mainly concentrated around the halfway line, only dropping back to the thirty-meter area as a last resort.

This had to be a conscious pressing strategy from Mourinho, born from in-depth analysis.

Ajax, on the other hand, played more dynamically, actively trying to play balls in behind the defense. In the first fifteen minutes, Ibrahimovic, Wesley Sonck, and Victor Skora were each caught offside once.

The most threatening shot of the game so far came in the twenty-first minute. Wesley Sonck passed back to Van der Vaart, and the Dutchman distributed the ball to the left flank. Maxwell made a quick overlapping run from deep and sent in a left-footed cross to the far post.

Unfortunately, Ibrahimovic, who was sandwiched between Cavaleiro and Jorge Costa, couldn’t get to it in time.

Afterwards, Ajax actively worked the ball down both flanks. In the twenty-ninth minute, Talabesi made an aggressive overlapping run. After receiving a pass out wide from Victor Skora, he dribbled straight for the byline.

Valente desperately tracked back and brought down Talabesi with a sliding tackle from behind, giving Ajax a set piece in an advanced position. Referee Nielsen also showed Valente a yellow card, but Ajax’s subsequent free kick went straight into the wall.

Not long after, Porto quickly responded with a counter-attack.

Valente pushed forward on the left flank to join the attack. After receiving the ball, he crossed it into the box, but Escude headed it clear. However, Mendes collected the ball on the right and played it back. Ferreira sent a 45-degree cross into the box. Alberto controlled the ball with his back to goal, turned, and shot, but his attempt was blocked by Escude. De Jong then got the ball and cleared it with a big kick.

In the final opportunity of the first half, Ajax’s Victor Skora broke into the box from the right. After receiving the ball, he was brought down by Goalkeeper Baia, but the linesman had already raised his flag, signaling that both Victor Skora and Ibrahimovic were in an offside position.

The first half ended in a goalless draw.

......

......

After hearing Nielsen’s whistle, Yang Yang quickly rose from his seat and jogged to the sideline.

Players from both teams trickled off the pitch, every one of them already drenched in sweat and gasping for air.

As the Ajax players passed Yang Yang, they reached out to high-five him and the other teammates on the bench before heading down the tunnel and back to the locker room.

Yang Yang and the others, however, remained on the pitch to warm up.

The first half had been dull. Neither side had created any good scoring opportunities, and both had played rather conservatively.

That went without saying for Porto, but Ajax was also deliberately protecting its own defensive line. Ronald Koeman knew just how fragile his defense was. This was the Champions League final; there was no room for complacency. So, he had been restraining the positioning of Heitinga and Escude, while also telling Van der Vaart and Sneijder not to push up too far if possible.

In contrast, the two flanks were more active, with Maxwell and Talabesi looking particularly energetic.

From the expressions on his teammates’ faces as they left the pitch, Yang Yang could read the pressure they felt in the first half. It would only get heavier in the second.

"Maxwell just told me he was gassed after twenty minutes," Vermaelen said with a light chuckle.

Yang Yang narrowed his eyes. "Is he exaggerating that much?"

Vermaelen shrugged. "Must be the pressure."

Yang Yang nodded. Pressure was like a heavy set of shackles, causing every action on the field to consume more energy than usual. But what Maxwell said, being gassed after twenty minutes, was likely more of a psychological factor.

After all, he had made it through all forty-five minutes just fine.

"I really hope I get to go on and feel that suffocating pressure," Vermaelen muttered to himself.

Yang Yang tilted his head back. ’Don’t I feel the same way?’

’But actually getting on the pitch and facing a fortress like Porto would be a massive headache.’

’Ajax didn’t just have to figure out how to break down their opponent’s defense; they also had to guard against their counter-attacks. They had to look forward while watching their backs, especially in a match this important. It was enough to make a person’s hair turn white overnight from the stress.’

He turned and looked back at the packed stands. Yang Yang could guess that, at this very moment, his parents, relatives, and friends must be watching him. Though he couldn’t see them, he could feel their expectations.

And then there were the more than thirty thousand Ajax fans from the Netherlands in the stands. They too must be hoping for an Ajax victory.

This made Yang Yang grit his teeth once more. It seemed as if he were speaking to himself as much as to Vermaelen.

"Let’s go!"