Chapter 315 - 308: We Qualified

"Shao Jiayi sends a through pass to the left side of the arc at the top of the penalty area."

"Yang Yang receives the ball, with two North Korean defenders closing in on him from both sides."

"Yang Yang dribbles into the box, feinting a run toward the byline before suddenly cutting back inside."

"He gets past one defender, but another North Korean player is coming over..."

"The penalty area is packed with North Korean defenders..."

"Yang Yang keeps dribbling, he hasn’t lost the ball..."

"My god..."

"Yang Yang has brought the ball out!"

"He shoots directly, a strike with his right foot!"

"IT’S A GOAL!!!!"

"IT’S A GOAL!!!!!!"

...

The moment Yang Yang swung his right foot to shoot, he knew the ball was going in.

He immediately sprinted to the sideline, did a knee slide, and stopped right in front of the broadcast camera.

All the fans in the stadium were roaring Yang Yang’s name.

Yang Yang stood up in front of the camera, raised his left wrist, and pointed firmly at the colorful lucky bracelet with his right hand. He then gave a thumbs-up, while his left hand pounded his chest in a fist.

This was the blessing he had planned before the match for Su Xiaomei!

He was quickly swarmed by his teammates, who dogpiled on top of him.

...

"Yang Yang’s footwork is just unbelievably fast!"

"Inside the penalty area, the North Korean defenders didn’t dare to make a reckless tackle. This allowed Yang Yang to dribble horizontally, skillfully weaving and dodging past a full four defenders before scoring with a powerful right-footed shot."

"This was a spectacular display of individual skill."

"The North Korea Team showed incredibly stubborn fighting spirit throughout the first half, setting up an almost impenetrable ’iron bucket’ defense. But against a sharp dagger like Yang Yang, even the most solid bronze wall will be pierced!"

...

...

When Yang Yang’s goal celebration was broadcast on televisions across the country, Su Ye, who was watching the National Team match from her living room, felt her eyes redden as they shone with a brilliant light.

He did it!

He really did it!

"That’s the bracelet you gave him, isn’t it?" her mother suddenly asked from beside her.

Her father, Su Wenhong, and his "brother" Wei Zhen had gone to watch the match live. Since Su Ye had her college entrance exams in a few days, she could only watch the broadcast from home, with her mother, Ye Ziqing, keeping her company.

Hearing her mother’s sudden question and seeing her slightly teasing gaze, Su Ye’s heart inexplicably fluttered. Her cheeks flushed red, and she gave a barely audible hum of acknowledgment, like the buzz of a mosquito.

"So what does the celebration mean?" her mother asked again.

"He said that if he scored a goal, he would dedicate it to me, to wish me luck on my college entrance exams," Su Ye said, shy but also with a hint of pride.

Ye Ziqing took a long look at her precious daughter, then at Yang Yang on the TV, celebrating wildly with his teammates. She had to admit that an outstanding young man like Yang Yang was indeed incredibly attractive to a girl of that age.

’But it seems Yang Yang has a great personality, though he’s a bit slow when it comes to matters of the heart.’

’Forget Yang Yang, even my own husband probably didn’t notice.’

But she didn’t plan on stopping it. After all, she was quite fond of the boy, Yang Yang.

’If I’m not mistaken, this should be my precious daughter’s first love.’

’Whether it works out or not, a girl’s first love should leave behind as many beautiful memories as possible.’

...

...

After the Chinese Team scored the opening goal, the North Korea Team consciously pushed their formation forward in the second half. However, they still played very conservatively and struggled to organize any effective attacks against the Chinese Team’s two defensive midfielders.

It wasn’t until the last ten-odd minutes of the match that they managed to penetrate the Chinese Team’s thirty-meter zone a few times.

But by that point, their feeble attacks could hardly threaten the Chinese Team’s goal anymore.

By the time the final whistle blew, the North Korea Team had failed to create a single threatening offensive play.

In the end, the Chinese Team defeated North Korea 1-0, a tense but ultimately safe victory, thanks to Yang Yang’s crucial, decisive goal.

The moment the final whistle blew, tens of thousands of fans throughout the stadium erupted in a unified cheer.

"We’ve qualified!"

At that moment, the National Television broadcast displayed a celebratory banner congratulating the Chinese National Football Team for once again breaking out of Asia and into the World Cup, extending its congratulations to fans across the nation!

This was the second time in the history of Chinese Football that they had reached the World Cup!

Unlike the last time, the Chinese Team was clearly playing much better this time around.

Although they had some close calls during the round of 40, they navigated the final round of 8 with nervy but ultimately safe passage. They qualified early with four consecutive wins, making them the first team from the Asian qualifying zone to secure a spot in the World Cup.

And Yang Yang was undoubtedly the pillar of the current National Team.

It was his consistent goals and performances over several rounds that helped the Chinese Team overcome strong opponents one after another. He even led them to the monumental feat of a 1-0 away victory against the Iran Team in their fortress of a home stadium, which greatly boosted the confidence of both the domestic players and fans.

The Dutch head coach, Arie Haan, was also enthusiastically mobbed by his players after the match. They repeatedly tossed him into the air as if they had won a championship, creating an incredibly lively scene.

...

...

The day after the Chinese Team’s 1-0 victory over the North Korea Team, media outlets all over the country were reporting on their qualification for the World Cup. From National Television and authoritative Party publications to local TV stations and newspapers, the coverage was practically wall-to-wall.

The entire nation celebrated as Chinese Football once again broke out of Asia and made it to the World Cup in Germany.

Qualifying for two consecutive World Cups was undoubtedly a major, morale-boosting event.

Meanwhile, journalists and fans alike were frantically praising Yang Yang, who had dribbled past four players to score the crucial, decisive goal.

The eighteen-year-old phenom continued his outstanding form from the Eredivisie and the European Arena with the National Team, unstoppably leading the Chinese National Team on a wild charge into the World Cup.

National Television and reporters from several domestic media outlets all rushed to interview Yang Yang after the match.

Regarding his own performance, Yang Yang said it was decent, but he believed the team’s victory was primarily due to the efforts of all the players. As for the World Cup a year from now, Yang Yang stated that they should go with the mindset of students eager to learn.

"Frankly, once we step outside our country, we have no advantage against strong teams—not just the powerhouses from Europe and South America, but even teams from Africa and North America. And football is a contest of overall strength."

After the humiliation of the last World Cup, both the domestic fans and the media had adopted a more rational attitude toward the tournament. They all agreed with Yang Yang’s analysis.

As for their goal in the World Cup a year later, Yang Yang felt they should strive to break their duck.

"That’s the World Cup, the highest stage for national team competitions in the world, filled with superstars. Just being able to participate in such a grand event is an affirmation of our strength, as well as an opportunity for us to learn from and exchange with the top teams."

"I believe we need to establish our own football philosophy. We must learn to accept defeat and tolerate mistakes. When we win, we need to understand exactly why we won. And when we lose, we shouldn’t be discouraged; we need to figure out why we lost, so that the next time the same situation arises, we can ask ourselves: can we win?"

"I think this is a very serious issue."

Regarding the improvement of Chinese Football, Yang Yang believed that more young players should be encouraged to go abroad—and the sooner, the better. He felt the most important thing was to go to European Teams where they could get actual playing time.

"At the same time, we must also focus on learning and bringing back advanced football experience from Europe."

"I think the most important thing is still to get our domestic league and youth training right."

"I know the Football Association has a partnership with Germany. I think we can try to learn from Germany’s advanced experience in this area. They went through a slump and a talent gap in the mid-nineties, but their Football Association management, including the ’Football Emperor’ Beckenbauer, quickly realized the problem."

"After about ten years of preparation, they began to push forward with major youth training reforms. When I was at Ajax, I often heard the coaches discussing Germany’s youth development revolution. It was a massive, vigorous reform, and I think it’s very much worth studying."

"Then there’s Spain. Their youth training has been excellent in recent years. We’re about to play in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, and I did some research beforehand. I found that Spain’s youth teams have been very strong these past few years, with consistently great results, producing world-famous talents like Fàbregas, Reyes, Torres, and Iniesta."

"I believe we can no longer be muddle-headed, aimless, and disorganized in how we handle our youth training and our league. We should learn from the advanced experience of others, adapt it to our domestic environment, and work hard to improve our own league and youth development systems."

At a time when the Chinese Team had once again qualified for the World Cup, these earnest words of advice from their number one hero, Yang Yang, during an interview with National Television, immediately caused a huge stir across the country.

From the top brass at the Football Association to the average fan, everyone was moved by Yang Yang’s words.

The last time they made it to the World Cup, the entire country, from top to bottom, was muddle-headed, utterly blind, and even overly optimistic.

What followed were several years of painful blows and decline, and even more problems were exposed in the domestic league.

This time, Yang Yang’s words had undoubtedly torn open the old scars and hidden dangers lurking beneath the celebratory frenzy of qualifying, making everyone realize that reaching the World Cup didn’t mean everything.

Once, twice... it’s meaningless on its own.

If the Chinese people wanted to consistently qualify for the World Cup, and even become one of the world’s football powerhouses, they had to be down-to-earth and get their youth training and domestic league in order. That was the absolute foundation.

In response to Yang Yang’s appeal, both the Football Association and government officials successively stated that they would take it seriously.

...

...

「Five days later, back in Tianjin.」

The fifth round of the final-eight group stage.

The Chinese Team, having already qualified, faced Iran. The two sides played to a 1-1 draw over ninety minutes.

In the forty-eighth minute, Yang Yang took a free kick from the right flank and sent in a cross, assisting Li Weifeng, who scored with a header at the far post.

But the Iran Team later equalized.

In the end, the two teams shook hands on a 1-1 draw.

The day after this match, Yang Yang and his three teammates, Chen Tao, Zhou Haibin, and Feng Xiaoting, boarded a flight to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The world-renowned FIFA U-20 World Cup was about to begin.