The Prince of Inter Milan starts with Brother Xiaosa

Chapter 354 The Confederations Cup opens

Four days later the Italian team arrived in Brazil and played a friendly match against Haiti at the San Genario Stadium in Vasco da Gama.

It is worth mentioning that the linesman Lillian Fernandez Bruno in this game is a woman. This is also the first time in the history of the Italian team that a female linesman has officiated the game.

In this game, Prandelli was mainly used to check the status of the players, and no main players were involved.

In the end, the Azzurri and Haiti ended in a 2-2 draw.

On June 2013, 6, the Confederations Cup is about to kick off.

At the National Stadium in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, FIFA President Sepp Blatter and Brazilian President Rosell all attended the opening ceremony.

However, when the host took the microphone to greet all the fans, the response he received was uniform boos from nearly 70,000 fans in the audience.

Brazilian fans held banners high and angrily accused the government of ignoring the country's serious wealth gap, high stadium construction costs and exorbitant ticket prices, while whitewashing the situation by hosting major competitions such as the World Cup and the Olympics. Peace.

Brazil has successively hosted the Confederations Cup, World Cup and Olympic Games, but it is obvious that these grand sports events cannot inspire any enthusiasm from the Brazilian people.

This stark contrast further aggravates people's dissatisfaction and disappointment with the government.

Star players such as Hernandez, Guardado and Dos Santos from the Mexican side also started.

"In this land that has given birth to five World Cup champions, I hope that everyone can be united by this football festival."

After the game in Brazil, Leo also sent messages to his Inter Milan teammates in the Selecao to congratulate them.

Two minutes later, Mexican defender Rodriguez made a mistake in a cross pass from the backcourt under Italy's pressure!

As Brazil's most watched star in this cup, Neymar proved his worth with beautiful goals.

Just the renovation of the National Stadium, which hosted the opening game, cost $4.75 million.

Marcelo passed the ball from the left, Fred removed the ball from his chest in the arc of the penalty area, Neymar followed up and volleyed sideways, and the ball hit the dead center on the upper right side of the goal!

Along with boos in the stadium, the protestors outside the stadium were also suppressed by riot police and security personnel.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter's carefully prepared speech failed to win the fans' understanding.

The National Stadium in Brasilia instantly turned into a sea of ​​carnival!

The high cost of stadium construction has already made people extremely dissatisfied.

When Leo and the others arrived in Brazil, they stayed in a luxury hotel and all they saw was the glamorous side of Brazil.

As the invited dignitaries from various countries entered the stadium one by one, the Brazilian fans in the stands once again set off a climax of protest.

Today Prandelli did not change his usual formation, still playing 4312.

The next day, in the first round of Group A of the 2013 Confederations Cup, Italy played against Mexico at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

In the end, the host Brazil easily defeated the Japanese team 3-0 and won the Confederations Cup.

However, after the game started, the situation changed somewhat.

The boos from the fans turned into cheers and shouts the moment Neymar scored.

Gilardino and Balotelli partner up front.

This may be the power of football!

The moment Russell announced the opening of the Confederations Cup, the boos from the fans reached their peak.

Except for Gilardino, who replaced Shaarawy in the starting lineup, the other positions remained unchanged.

And in countless dark corners, the people at the bottom of Brazil are entangled with gangs, gangs, and crime in the slums.

The opening match of this Confederations Cup is between the host Brazil and the Asian champion Japan.

Born there, the only way out was football.

Even if there are many disappointments in life, going to watch a wonderful game with family and friends can release some stress and leave everything behind for a short time to simply enjoy the happiness brought by football.

Less than three minutes into the game, Neymar, the new Brazilian star from Inter Milan, knocked on the Japanese team's goal with a world wave!
World wave!
Neymar opened the scoring for the team with a world wave, which was also the first goal in this Confederations Cup.

Leo is the attacking midfielder, with Pirlo, De Rossi and Marchisio behind him.

Especially the people at the bottom of Brazil, who have no expectations for the three major events, even gathered outside the stadium to criticize the Brazilian government for only doing "image projects" and completely ignoring people's livelihood.

The last time the Azzurri visited the Maracana was a warm-up match in 1956, when the Italian team lost - to the home team Brazil.

But it is very funny that when the football competition actually comes to this football kingdom, it seems to have nothing to do with the slums of Brazil.

Compared with Italy, which has a solid record, Mexico performed poorly in the World Cup qualifiers, drawing five of the last six games and having four goalless draws with its opponents.

Their head coach De La Torre is also under tremendous pressure.

Left back David Thornton, right back Abate, Chiellini and Bonucci partnered with center back and goalkeeper Buffon.

Guardado broke through from the left and fired a low shot from outside the penalty area that missed the far post.

The Brazilian government's investment in next year's World Cup may exceed US$150 billion.

Although Brazil is the largest, most populous, and most economically developed country in South America, to be honest, ordinary people in Brazil do not live a prosperous life.

Seeing that the situation was out of control, they even threw tear gas directly at the crowd.

As soon as the game started, Leo sent a very penetrating through ball in the frontcourt!
Balotelli stepped in from the left, and Mexican defender Flores successfully intercepted the ball.

Especially when Blatter and Russell entered the room, the boos were loud, and both of them looked a little embarrassed for a while.

The ball just rolled to Balotelli's feet, and Balotelli directly took off his foot and lobbed the goal slightly above the crossbar.

Then the Italian team cooperated again on the left. After David Thornton took the ball, he advanced to the left side of the penalty area and crossed the ball. Balotelli followed up in the middle and hit the goal but was punched out by Mexican goalkeeper Corona!
Then Leo and Balotelli once again played exquisite cooperation in front of the opponent's penalty area!
Bashen's powerful volley with his right foot caused Corona to miss!

However, Corona quickly got up and controlled the ball before Marchisio's supplementary shot.

The Azzurri are wearing a white away jersey today. They are equally handsome, but in average condition.

It looked like they had the upper hand on the field but never created a chance that could decide the outcome.

Dos Santos stole Abate near the bottom line on the left and passed in. Guardado's left foot volley from a small angle outside the penalty area hit the top edge of the crossbar and popped out!
Mexico almost breaks the deadlock!

Pirlo sent a long pass over the top, and Gilardino curled the ball on the left side of the penalty area and shot into the far corner and missed the baseline.

Giovanni dos Santos dribbled the ball upfield and was tackled by De Rossi. Mexico got a chance to set the ball in the frontcourt.

Dos Santos personally took the free kick he created and it bounced directly off the Italian team's wall.

Dos Santos is also a weirdo. He was extremely talented when he was young. He joined the La Masia youth training camp at the age of thirteen. He played and scored goals in the Barcelona first team at the age of eighteen.

But the subsequent development was staggering. In the four years after joining Tottenham, the Mexican never got many opportunities.

The reason is not only that he cannot adapt to the Premier League, but more importantly, that this genius has "fallen". Dos Santos enjoyed partying, arriving late to practice and paddling competitions.

Such unprofessional behavior also caused Tottenham Hotspur to completely give up on this young man who once had high hopes.

Finally last season, Dos Santos returned to La Liga again and made more than 20 appearances in the Mallorca League and scored six goals and seven assists.

Despite this, today's Dos Santos is far from the La Masia genius of yesteryear.

If that's all, forget it, but while this guy is performing poorly at the club, he suddenly seems to be able to play football again every time he comes to the national team.

With the salary from the club, he did not work hard on the green field and hung out in bars and nightclubs. On the contrary, he did his best in the national team games.

Which club would like such a player?
Thinking about it, he is now twenty-four years old. If he can realize his own problems and seek changes, he may still be saved.

In the 22nd minute, the Mexican team played a fast break. Dos Santos dribbled the ball to the left side of the penalty area and made a pass. "Little Pea" Hernandez followed up with a close-range push!

Italian goalkeeper Buffon fell to the ground to make a save and kept the ball firmly under his body.

Bonucci made a long pass from the backcourt, and the Azzurri counterattacked quickly!
Balotelli caught the ball and got rid of the defense, but was immediately tackled to the ground from the side by Moreno who returned to defend!
Bashen's breakthrough earned the Italian team a well-positioned free kick in the frontcourt.

Leo did not hesitate to take a free kick and hit the goal directly!

A confident kick went over the wall and hit the lower edge of the crossbar and into the blind spot of the goal!
One to zero!

It was Leo's direct free kick that helped the Italian team break the deadlock on the field!

Teammates on the field surrounded Leo and ran to the corner flag area to celebrate their first goal in the Confederations Cup.

But Prandelli didn't have time to be happy for long, as the Mexican team won a penalty kick.

Chiellini controlled the ball too much in front of the penalty area and made an inappropriate mistake. Dos Santos quickly entered the penalty area and stole the ball!

Chiellini kicked his opponent down fiercely, and the referee decisively awarded a penalty kick!

Hernandez deceived Buffon with a fake move and accurately hit the ball into the lower right corner of the goal!

One to one!

Mexico equalized the score in the 31st minute!
The two sides returned to the same starting line. Leo intercepted the ball in front of the penalty area and passed the ball to Balotelli.

Bashen swayed in front of the small penalty area and kicked the ball towards the goal. The ball was blocked by Mexican goalkeeper Corona!

Italy's corner kick opportunity, Chiellini, who made a mistake not long ago and lost the ball, wanted to make up for it and stood in front of the penalty area to prepare for a header.

Leo took a corner kick from the right, and Chiellini leapt high to overpower the Mexican center back. His head-swinging attack missed the outside of the post and missed the baseline!
Two minutes later, the Blue Jackets made a comeback.

Abate passed the ground ball from the right, and Corona flew ahead of Balotelli and lifted the ball over the baseline with one palm.

Another corner kick opportunity, Leo's curve ball accurately found the head of his teammate.

Balotelli's feint shot interfered with Corona's judgment, and Chiellini made a diving header from the back point into the left side of the goal!
Two to one!

Italy regains the lead!

Chiellini's efforts were not in vain, he actually scored a goal to make up for it.

At the end of the first half, Italy temporarily led 2-1.

The Azzurri slowed down significantly at the start of the second half.

The Mexican team, which was in a disadvantageous situation, took the lead in making substitutions, with Mir coming off the bench to replace Aquino.

In the 56th minute, Hernandez's shot in front of the penalty area missed the far post.

Guardado made a breakthrough pass from the left, and Dos Santos' long shot from outside the arc of the penalty area was bravely blocked by Buffon!
Continuous attacks were fruitless, and the mentality of the Mexican teammates on the field fluctuated somewhat.

In the 63rd minute, Torado kicked Balotelli over in defense.

Ba Shen had been in a bad mood recently, so he jumped up in excitement and went up to the bull with Torado.

The referee rushed to the scene to maintain order and showed the Mexican midfielder a yellow card.

Players from both sides almost clashed.

After that, something went wrong with the direction of the game.

Hernandez and Balotelli fell into the opponent's penalty area one after another, but the referee ignored them.

Balotelli was dissatisfied with the referee's decision and kicked hard on the edge, knocking away the sneakers he had just dropped on the grass.

The game quickly progressed to the 77th minute. De Rossi stole the ball in midfield and Pirlo made a precise pass.

Leo cleverly used his foot to pass the ball into the hinterland of the penalty area!
Balotelli leaned on Mexico captain Rodriguez to catch the ball and turned around and broke into the penalty area!
Facing Corona alone, his shot from close range went straight into the lower right corner of the goal!

Three to one!

Italy extends its lead!

This is why everyone always has unlimited expectations for Ba Shen!
Even though he has a hot temper, is unstable, and often gets into trouble, God Ba is God Ba!
The brainless Balotelli is the top center in the world!
After Balotelli scored, he was so excited that he took off his jersey to celebrate, and the referee gave him a yellow card.

At this time, the camera captured Italian fans dressed as Super Mario cheering in the stands.

Two minutes later, Praland replaced Balotelli with Giovinco, and Balotelli once again received cheers and applause from the fans.

Balotelli didn't expect that he would be so popular in Brazil. He smiled broadly and couldn't tell that he was in a bad mood before.

Prandelli looked at Balotelli who walked off the field with a proud face, dumbfounded.

He was really worried that Bashen would suddenly have a convulsion and get a yellow card, so he quickly replaced him.

In the stoppage time of the game, substitute Mexican forward Jimenez's long shot from outside the penalty area was confiscated by Buffon as he fell to the ground.

At the end of the game, the Italian team defeated the CONCACAF Gold Cup champion Mexico 3-1 to usher in a good start to the Confederations Cup.

Balotelli still had a smile on his face when he was interviewed by reporters on the sidelines.

“It felt great to receive a standing ovation from the fans and more importantly we won the game.

Also, I'm not really sure that stripping down to celebrate will get you a yellow card. "

The Azzurri coach was also asked about Bashen again in an interview after the game.

“We were focused the whole time and I’m really excited to win the game.

Leo? Any adjective is redundant, he was a role model.

Balotelli performed well, but again we would remind him not to take off his jersey to celebrate after scoring. "

(End of this chapter)