Chapter 2331 - 592: Italy’s Tradition of Taking Sides
Rizzoli’s view wasn’t clear, so he glanced at the linesman.
The linesman directly pointed to the penalty spot.
At this point, Rizzoli finally blew the whistle and pointed to the penalty spot.
Boom——
Van Bommel went crazy, pointing at Rizzoli and cursing: "Are you blind? A dive and you give a penalty? What the hell are you doing..."
De Jong quickly hugged his captain, looking towards the sideline.
Unexpectedly, Huang Kaiwen was also cursing at the sideline.
Van Persie pointed to the side and said, "Even Torres said it wasn’t a penalty, referee sir."
Xavi and a few others immediately looked towards Torres.
Damn!
Are you aiming for a fair play award?
Whose teammate are you?
Torres shrugged and walked back, no longer participating in the matter.
But Rizzoli still felt a bit uneasy in his heart.
Especially hearing Huang Kaiwen’s shouting from the sideline, and it was in Italian.
He also had some doubts if the linesman made the wrong decision.
But at this moment, he could only grit his teeth and let Spain take the penalty.
Compared to a single mistake, losing control of the match was more serious.
In the Canale5 studio, Crudeli was cursing non-stop: "Damn it, this bastard, it’s outright betrayal, it’s not a penalty at all, we don’t need him to help Kevin, but he shouldn’t create trouble for Kevin. Rizzoli must have been paid off, Italian referees have always had this tradition, the federation should really consider what their young referees are doing."
Many Italian fans in front of their TVs were also very angry.
But their emotions couldn’t change the decision on the field.
Xabi Alonso was pushed to the penalty spot.
Neither Torres nor Ramos intended to take the penalty.
Stekelenburg subconsciously looked to the sideline, hoping Huang Kaiwen could give him some advice, but Huang Kaiwen didn’t look at the field, instead he sat back on the coach’s bench.
At this moment, he could only try by himself.
Recalling the UEFA Champions League final, Huang Kaiwen saving Alonso’s penalty.
Stekelenburg had an idea.
And his body immediately showed it.
Alonso, standing at the penalty spot, narrowed his pupils, through the opponent’s goalkeeper’s body language, he saw the opponent planned to dive to the right side of the goal.
Damn!
Almost became the background again.
Alonso stood still without a trace.
After the whistle blew, he took a run-up and pushed with the inside of his foot.
Sure enough, Stekelenburg dove to the right side of the goal, while the ball rolled all the way to the bottom left corner of the goal, crossing the line and sinking into the net.
Alonso breathed a sigh of relief.
That was close.
The excited Barcelona Gang pounced directly.
"Alonso, in the end, proved himself at the penalty spot. The score of 1:2 hasn’t tied it yet, but this goal gave Spain hope."
"Yes, this goal is crucial. Spain has been playing a bit impatiently recently, but this goal can help Spain calm down. As long as they can stabilize, the match won’t be a problem."
The stadium was filled with deafening boos.
Most Kiev fans still hoped for a Netherlands team victory.
Huang Kaiwen walked to the sideline and waved at Van Bommel.
"Boss."
Van Bommel jogged over and said.
"Don’t move your position, just stay in the middle, let Nigel and Kevin do the running. If Nigel can’t last 90 minutes, I can still make a substitution, but your role on the field is irreplaceable, understand?"
Huang Kaiwen said.
Van Bommel’s age is there, and he hasn’t missed many matches this season.
If he keeps running like that, he might really not last the whole match.
"Got it, boss."
Van Bommel nodded and said.
"Then go back, it’s up to you to cover their positions."
Huang Kaiwen waved.
Van Bommel holds a unique position in this Netherlands team.
He’s not the most technically skilled, nor does he have the best match-reading ability.
But Van Bommel can make good decisions, unlike some players who insist on dribbling even when they can see a teammate.
Mentally, he’s also very competent.
He can even put aside differences and stand up for his teammates.
Simply put, he’s a spiritual leader.
Without Van Bommel, the Netherlands team is like Arsenal without Vieira.
Lacking something.
Someone needs to grow to replace his role.
Spain, having just scored, obviously wanted to ride the momentum, but the Netherlands team’s midfield indeed did very well today, with Sneijder and van Persie frequently falling back.
In addition to the defensive line pushing forward creating a local numerical advantage.
Spain’s passing was somewhat ineffective.
They could indeed maintain possession, but they couldn’t successfully advance the ball forward.
The Netherlands team has defended the area within thirty meters of the penalty box to the extreme, giving them few opportunities.
Xavi and Alba’s positions were getting deeper, moving up to respond to teammates.
But Strootman saw an opportunity.
Xavi had the ball in the middle, pretending not to notice the wing.
At the moment Xavi passed, Strootman went to ground extending his leg, successfully intercepting the ball.
The Netherlands team counterattacks!!!
The Trident was moving forward quickly, the two bald guys running faster than anyone.
Van Persie, seeing this situation, didn’t run but stayed back instead as his position was too deep.
Once Van Bommel delivered the ball to his feet, van Persie, positioned on the left front, swung his left foot.
Just like Sneijder’s pass in the first half, Van Persie also lofted it 45° directly into the penalty area.
Busquets was still a step too slow to press.
The ball quickly fell into the penalty area.
Robben reached out with his right foot, and both Abeloa and Piqué rushed past him.