Chapter 2334 - 593: Royal Netherlands Air Force
Barca players put on a lively performance.
The Milan duo remained unmoved.
Mata and the youngsters watched from afar.
Casillas came up to try to mediate.
But no matter who tried, no one could shake Rizzoli’s resolve; it was as if he held an Otto M42, determined to turn against Spain’s tank today.
To prove he wasn’t joking, Rizzoli even showed Casillas a yellow card, warning: "If you keep pestering, I’ll give you more cards."
Spanish players suddenly lost their temper.
Torres and Ramos cursed under their breath as they walked back, feeling as if they’d suffered a huge injustice.
If Ramos hadn’t hung his head, he would have laughed out loud.
The Kiev Olympic Stadium was filled with cheers, as fans had forgotten about Rizzoli awarding Spain a penalty.
Rizzoli breathed a sigh of relief.
This will definitely have repercussions after the match.
But he also had his reasons.
At this stage of the game, the teams were getting intense, forcing him to maintain control.
Indeed.
This reasoning is faultless.
But in combination with the scoreline, it’s obvious what he meant. The trailing Spain was certainly anxious, so when they get anxious, he blows the whistle, and when they make a move, he shows them a card.
This is the art of officiating; silently handling Spain to compensate for the penalty mistake.
Rizzoli looked towards the sidelines.
Huang Kaiwen was clapping.
He too breathed a sigh of relief.
"This is not a red card action, damn it, this is targeting us..."
Bosque’s spittle landed on the fourth official’s face.
The fourth official still squeezed out a smile.
Being an old master and world champion, the fourth official showed him respect.
But if you want to have the decision overturned, there’s no way.
Bosque had nowhere to file a complaint.
The first referee team decided before the final that the main referee would be Rizzoli, a key figure cultivated by the Italian Football Federation, and the referee team comprised entirely of Italians.
Unless Italy made it to the final, an alternative scheme would be used.
In national teams and European competitions, it’s never the case that a country’s referee officiates their own country’s team’s match.
Bosque really had nothing to say about Huang Kaiwen.
Huang Kaiwen wasn’t even Italian.
𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
If you say Rizzoli favored Huang Kaiwen, then why don’t you reflect on why Rizzoli didn’t favor you?
Bosque certainly understood this logic.
That’s why he felt so aggrieved now.
Iniesta’s absence already had a big impact.
Xavi subbed out?
Spain was done!
In this Spanish mid-forward field, the most important were the two Xavis and one Iniesta.
Xabi Alonso’s style is tougher, while Xavi is the backbone and core of Barca’s national team.
If the core is subbed out, then why bother?
Bosque returned to the coaching seat and made the final adjustment.
Cazorla warmed up, preparing to fill in the three midfield spots.
Bosque instinctively looked towards the Netherlands team, almost spitting blood.
Huang Kaiwen again called up all substitutes to warm up.
This warm-up tactic made it impossible to guess Huang Kaiwen’s intentions, what position he intended to substitute, and how he planned to adjust the tactics on the pitch.
Spain is trailing by two goals, even down a player, was there a need to be so serious?
The regular time of the match was almost over.
After kick-off, the Netherlands team began to pass around in their backfield.
The Dutch fans in the stands couldn’t help but get nervous.
Soccer is like that; until the last minute, you can never determine the outcome.
The director’s camera notably framed Suo Hai in the stands, it’s unknown what kind of thoughts Matthäus, watching from the TV, would have; thinking the game was decided and asking for a substitute, only to be reversed, becoming the world’s biggest joke.
Many players from the Netherlands, at this moment, their movements started to deform.
"Cazorla was very active once he was on the field, a long shot!!!"
"The ball was blocked out by Flaar, Flaar cramped, Spanish players demanded a quick restart, and another confrontation ensued between the teams."
Van Bommel’s leadership charisma shone brightly.
He led De Jong to stand in front, Spanish players truly dared not approach.
Xabi Alonso saw De Jong and felt a faint pain in his chest.
Rizzoli couldn’t watch anymore, he came over to remind the Dutch players to get up quickly.
This time, nearly the entire Spanish team rushed into the penalty area; corners weren’t their strong suit, but they had to seize every opportunity at this point.
Xabi Alonso ran up and delivered the corner kick with a strike.
Ramos leapt up and nodded.
"The ball is in!!!"
"In the 88th minute of the match, Spain pulled back to 2-3, showing the Netherlands their unyielding will, the game isn’t over yet!"
"Sergio Ramos stood up, this AC Milan wing-back showed exceptional attacking ability, this is his second goal in this European Cup, alongside delivering two assists, even more than most midfield players."
"The game’s suspense is back, Ramos merely celebrated simply before running back to the midfield."
"The fourth official raised the stoppage time board; with quite a few unexpected incidents in the second half, there are 6 minutes of added time, for Spain, this is the last chance."
Huang Kaiwen stood on the sidelines with hands in his pockets.
Took a breath.
At least Ramos scored to avoid taking the blame.
But still needed to remind the Dutch players.
Huang Kaiwen glanced at Cocu.
Cocu immediately understood what to do, he shouted on the field: "Are you damn not wanting the championship? Damn bastards, if you lose the championship in the final phase, I’ll twist all your heads off, idiots, this is the European Cup final, not joking with you, if you don’t wanna play, get off early, maybe you can catch a charter back home with Van der Vaart..."