I Am Scouted by Real Madrid

Chapter 151: Chapter 50: Ball-Blind Filter_2

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In the stands of Camp Nou, the Barcelona fans kept their eyes fixed on the player tunnel, expressing their displeasure with huge noise every time a player emerged.

The second half began, and Barcelona’s performance visibly grew anxious on the field, with the price of this anxiety being an increase in mistakes.

Faced with this situation, Schuster’s eyes lit up as he paced back and forth on the sidelines, urging his players to put more effort into the attack.

For the first five minutes, Barcelona managed to maintain some restraint, repeatedly creating chances, but after two threatening attacks were neutralized by Real Madrid, their play began to unravel.

”Chen Zhong!”

”It’s Chen Zhong again.”

”Eto’o attempts a breakthrough into the penalty area.”

”But Chen Zhong intercepts the ball straight from under his feet.”

”Robinho takes the ball, dribbles past Deco, and Valdes abandons the goal to advance.”

”He’s gotten past them again!!!”

”An open goal!”

”Oh no, the touch was a bit heavy, pressured by Max.”

”Robinho stumbled over his own feet and fell in the box.”

”How can he shamelessly ask the referee for a penalty?”

Robinho kicked at the turf; at that moment, he might have thought he’d been tripped by a defender, trying to draw a penalty.

However, the referee saw clearly, and even his teammates looked befuddled.

Finally, Chen Zhong ran over and whispered, ”Buddy, stop it, look over there.”

Following Chen Zhong’s finger, Robinho saw a small divot on the turf, and instantly understood what had happened.

At this moment, Rijkaard could no longer sit idly by. He glanced over Messi, Dos Santos, and Bojan, finally settling his gaze on Dos Santos.

This player, hailed as the ”new Ronaldinho,” had been in excellent form lately, and many thought he would start the game. Yet in the end, Rijkaard opted for Ronaldinho and Deco.

”Barcelona made a substitution.”

”Dos Santos replaces Deco, who was inconspicuous throughout the match.”

”For Deco, this match might have been a nightmare, as he never found his footing.”

”Rijkaard may have made a mistake in trying to grow Italian flowers in Cruyff’s entrenched Barcelona.”

”Beautiful.”

”Dos Santos.”

”This young player came on, making Iniesta more agile.”

With Dos Santos on the field, Barcelona, who were effectively playing with a man down, suddenly seemed to have two extra players. With Dos Santos’s assistance, Iniesta regained agility, and Barcelona displayed a more positive outlook on the field.

Yet just as things seemed to be looking up, Ronaldinho hit a snag.

This was a Barcelona attack. Dos Santos, carrying the ball, passed it to Iniesta. Iniesta, in possession, sought to coordinate with Ronaldinho, but Ronaldinho remained stationary, missing out on a good opportunity.

”Huff, huff, huff.” Rapid breathing escaped. The now heavier Ronaldinho stood on the sideline, bent over.

Sweat the size of beans trickled down his forehead, over his cheeks. The once nimble Ronaldinho, having gained considerable weight, was no longer the sprite he was, unable to run after less than 60 minutes on the field.

During this stretch, Ramos also felt the pressure ease significantly.

After resolving the Deco issue, Barcelona stumbled into a new problem.

This thwarted Rijkaard’s dream of a two-winged assault, reverting to single-sided exertion, causing Barcelona’s offensive momentum to stagnate once more.

”Yaya Toure attempts to head the ball.”

”Chen Zhong leaps high from the side, challenging for the header.”

”The ball is cleared.”

”Marcelo takes the ball, gives it back to Chen Zhong.”

”Chen Zhong receives and opts for a direct pass.”

”Baptista turns with the ball, delivering another direct pass.”

”Van Nistelrooy, on the left side of the penalty area, strikes!”

Outside the small penalty box, Van Nistelrooy took the ball, skillfully turned, and fired at the goal.

”Bang!”

The ball rocketed towards the goal, and if it had gone in, it would have sealed the match completely.

However, Valdes, like a man possessed, saves the shot, with Puyol securing the second ball and clearing it. Subsequent exchanges saw both teams attacking and defending. In the 68th minute, Milito fouled Baptista outside the box, allowing Sneijder to take another free kick.

Yaya Toure marked Chen Zhong, yet this time Sneijder opted for a direct shot.

Sadly, it sailed over the crossbar.

By the 70th minute, Barcelona’s offensive lost its steam, with Real Madrid gradually seizing control. Chen Zhong, incessantly receiving and distributing passes, wove a net trapping Barcelona.

In the 73rd minute, Chen Zhong, holding off Yaya Toure’s physical challenge, passed the ball once more to Baptista. Baptista, facing a sliding tackle, preemptively passed the ball to Sneijder on the flanks.

”This Chen Zhong is unbelievably composed!”

”There’s no restlessness about him, excellently orchestrating the midfield.”

”I never thought I’d describe a 16-year-old player as a ball-blind filter.”

”With this sense of the game, vision, and character, as long as Chen doesn’t act foolishly, he’ll be a significant presence in the football world.”

Many noted Chen Zhong’s presence. Positioned deeper, he adeptly handled difficult balls, consistently protecting possession and using the ball to unsettle an anxious Barcelona.

He might not score or assist, but his rhythm, feeling, and composure in the backfield left a lasting impression.

Barcelona finally mounted a promising counterattack. Young Dos Santos dribbled past Marcelo on the wing and cut inside, but collided with Chen Zhong, who utilized his body position effectively, pressuring Dos Santos.

Despite being older and more experienced, Dos Santos found himself clearly at a disadvantage against Chen Zhong.

”So this is the Chen that Bojan talked about?” Dos Santos’s eyes bore a hint of astonishment.

In the 77th minute, Rijkaard substituted Zambrotta for Puyol, who was on a yellow card, as Barcelona attempted to attack Real Madrid’s goal using arcs outside the penalty area.

This gave Casillas a great chance to showcase his skills.

In the 79th minute, Schuster made a substitution, replacing Sneijder with Gago and pushing Chen Zhong further forward.

But quickly, Schuster reversed his decision, realizing Gago in the backfield couldn’t replicate Chen Zhong’s impact.

”Barcelona almost equalized.”

”If it weren’t for Yaya Toure’s errant volley.”

”Gago is no match for Chen Zhong!”

Schuster winced with a bit of fear, while Yaya Toure seemed to be reflecting.

It wasn’t that he had weakened, it was just that Chen Zhong was rather strong!

This attack gave Barcelona renewed hope for a comeback. Rijkaard hesitated long over Messi and Bojan, eventually opting not to field the injured Messi and chose Bojan instead.

Bojan pursed his lips, casting a deep glance at Chen Zhong. This time, he was determined to avenge his past humiliation.

”In the 80th minute, Barcelona replaced Xavi with Bojan.”

”They’ve used up all their substitutions, surprisingly not choosing Messi.”

”Bojan is on.”

Seeing Bojan on the field, Schuster turned his attention to Robben, intending to replace Robinho with Robben and then swap Ramos for Torres.

With little time left in the match, if they won...

The points gap with Barcelona would widen to 7 points.

The thought was enough to bring joy.

Bojan’s presence immediately made Barcelona’s offense much smoother. He had no defensive or organizational duties; his sole task was to find space, find space, find space.

This truly allowed Bojan to find an opportunity.

”Abidal’s pass.”

”Bojan, how did he end up in that position?”

”Barges into space in the box.”

”One-on-one with the goalkeeper!”

”He shoots!”