Competition Video Exposed
Alberto is a die-hard fan of the Brazilian team. Like many Brazilians, he has loved football since he was a child and unwaveringly supports his national team.
This Confederations Cup is being held in Brazil, naturally attracting the attention and discussion of countless Brazilians.
As a loyal fan of the Brazilian national team, Alberto never misses a game. Whenever the Brazilian national team plays, he always watches the match live.
Before the last group stage match between Brazil and Italy began, Alberto, as usual, arrived early at the stadium and found his seat.
There was still some time before the game started, so he took out his phone and browsed social media to check the latest updates from the players and influencers he followed.
The debate about who is stronger, Neymar or Lin, has garnered increasing attention and discussion online.
Brazilian fans naturally support Neymar, believing he is stronger.
Meanwhile, most European fans support Lin, thinking he is the better player.
As a Brazilian fan, Alberto has always been following Neymar's performance.
So, he has full confidence in Neymar's abilities!
"What nonsense about the Spanish rising star, how could he be stronger than Neymar?"
"He's not even fit to carry Neymar's shoes!"
Thinking of this, he commented on the discussion thread:
"Heh, Spaniards should learn some skills before bragging. Only when they can use moves like the step-over, elastico, and pendulum dribble like Neymar can they qualify to compare with him!"
Alberto had never watched Lin's games but heard from others that Lin had no skills, making him look down on him a bit.
This opinion is still quite popular in Brazil.
Brazilian players have delicate footwork, can perform various tricks, and have abundant creativity on the field.
European players emphasize discipline, and those who can perform tricks are rare, making them look like a bunch of robots with no features.
Such a playing style is not favored by Brazilians!
After commenting, Alberto came across a video.
It was a video shot by a tourist on a beach with a cell phone.
In the video, a group of people is playing beach soccer.
This sport is very common in the football kingdom of Brazil. Brazilians who love football can't resist bringing a ball to play on the beach even when basking in the sun!
At first, Alberto wasn't too interested in such videos and clicked on it casually.
But when he saw that the players were Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, his attention was immediately captured.
Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, one known as the Alien and the other as the Elf on the field, have a huge following among Brazilian fans.
They once teamed up to win a World Cup for Brazil, and that Brazilian team is hailed as the strongest ever.
Thinking of this, Alberto couldn't help but feel nostalgic.
He thought that with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, their team should easily win.
But when he saw the final score, Alberto was stunned:
3:2, Ronaldo and Ronaldinho's team actually lost?
How is that possible?
Could it be that the opponents were a group of professional players?
He then patiently watched the entire video, and after watching, Alberto was amazed.
The young player on the opposite team was just too outrageous!
Using a pendulum dribble in front of Ronaldo and an elastico in front of Ronaldinho!
And he actually succeeded both times!
Wait, why does this guy look familiar?
It seems he's seen him somewhere before?
Alberto suddenly slapped his forehead, remembering who this person was!
Isn't this the Spanish winger who is as famous as Neymar?
He actually knows how to use elastico and pendulum dribble?
Thinking of his previous comment online, Alberto suddenly felt like he had been slapped in the face, feeling a burning pain...
He wasn't the only one who discovered this video. Because it was tagged with Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Lin, the video received a lot of clicks and shares.
The video quickly broke the million and even ten million views mark and spread rapidly from South America to Europe, attracting even more attention.
"Wow, is this King Lin? His pendulum dribble is amazing!"
"Haha, Ronaldo was dumbfounded. Pendulum dribble can be used like this?"
"King Lin's elastico is not bad either!"
"Heh, now those who said King Lin doesn't know techniques like elastico must be feeling embarrassed, huh?"
"I didn't expect King Lin to know so many tricks, but why haven't we seen him use these techniques in matches?"
"That's because he has better dribbling techniques. Moves like elastico and step-overs are ultimately just to help players get past defenders, right?
King Lin can achieve that without using these moves, so why bother with these tricks?"
As this video continued to spread, Lin's popularity soared.
Several sponsors approached Perry, wanting Lin to endorse their brands.
...
"Neymar, take a look at this."
In the Brazilian team's locker room, Neymar's teammate handed over his iPad, which was playing the beach soccer match between Lin, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho.
"What is it?"
Neymar curiously took it and glanced at it, his gaze freezing instantly!
It seems I have underestimated him. This guy is much stronger than I imagined!
But no matter, I will prove in the upcoming matches who the best player in this Confederations Cup is!
Half an hour later, the match between Brazil and Italy began.
Neymar was exceptionally serious and very active on the field.
Not only did he frequently dribble into the opponent's penalty area, but he also retreated to defend near his own penalty area when Italy attacked.
He even received a yellow card from the referee for a reckless defensive action.
This proactive attitude immediately caught the attention of the fans and the Brazilian coaching staff.
"What's gotten into Neymar today? Why is he so active?"
Scolari curiously asked his assistant. In just twenty minutes, he had seen Neymar participate in defense multiple times.
Such a thing was rare before!
"I don't know, maybe it's that Spanish kid who stimulated him?"
The assistant coaches had no idea what was going on and could only make such a guess.
The outside world always compares Neymar and Lin, so perhaps Neymar's change is due to this?
"Heh, if that's the case, it might be a good thing for both of them!"
Scolari said with a smile.
Supernovas like Neymar, who are exceptionally talented, can easily develop an arrogant and complacent attitude because they are too outstanding among their peers.
Such an attitude undoubtedly hinders their further progress.
If they can realize that there are stronger opponents out there and change their bad habits to become more motivated and diligent, it would be beneficial for both the players and Brazilian football.
In the stands, seasoned Barcelona scout Josep Minguella nodded in satisfaction after seeing Neymar's attitude on the field and said to Barcelona's sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta:
"We made a great transfer. Neymar's strength and talent are top-notch, and his arrival will undoubtedly provide great help to the team!"
With Messi in his prime and this supernova Neymar, Barcelona can aim to reclaim the long-lost Champions League trophy next season!
Hearing Minguella say this, Zubizarreta felt extremely pleased and subconsciously asked:
"So, what do you think, who is stronger, Neymar or Lin?"
Letting Lin go was destined to be an indelible stain on him and Rosell.
And as Lin continued to grow stronger on the field, the pressure on the two of them naturally increased.
Therefore, more than anyone else, Zubizarreta hoped Neymar could completely overshadow Lin.
For this, he could even support Brazil winning the championship, abandoning his own country Spain!
Minguella frowned, seemingly not liking others comparing Neymar and Lin.
But judging from their current performance, Minguella still truthfully said:
"Lin is stronger, but if Neymar pairs with Messi, perhaps they could create an effect where one plus one is greater than two!"
Zubizarreta seemed to only hear the first half of the sentence, and his face instantly turned very ugly.
...
On the field, the proactive Neymar finally reaped his reward as the first half was about to end.
In the 45th minute of the first half, Neymar assisted his teammate Dante to score with a free kick.
Brazil temporarily led 1:0.
Although the goal wasn't scored by Neymar himself, it was his assist, and he had also won the free kick.
In the second half, Italy equalized with a counter-attack goal by Giaccherini.
After equalizing, Italy's defense became more solid, and their chain defense began to show its power.
Seeing the game was about to become deadlocked, Neymar stepped up again.
He scored directly with a free kick, breaking Buffon's ten-finger barrier and changing the score to 2:1.
After scoring, Neymar achieved the feat of scoring in three consecutive matches, becoming the first player to do so in this Confederations Cup.
He also tied Lin with three goals on the top scorer list.
After Neymar's goal, Brazilian fans fell into a frenzy.
More than seventy thousand fans at the scene chanted Neymar's name in unison, as if crowning him king at that moment!
Since Ronaldo retired, Ronaldinho faded from the top leagues, and Kaka's peak was gone due to injuries, the once star-studded Brazilian team had gradually lost its star quality.
Although their team still had many stars playing in the top leagues, they lacked a top star like Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.
This was unacceptable and intolerable for the football kingdom of Brazil!
At this moment, Neymar's emergence gave them hope!
Therefore, countless Brazilian fans pinned their hopes on Neymar.
They hoped Neymar could lead the five-star Brazil to rise again and return to their throne!
Alberto, like other Brazilian fans, was extremely excited. He shouted until his throat was dry and clapped until his palms were red
.
After calming down, he couldn't help but wonder:
If it were that Spanish guy facing Italy, what kind of performance would he deliver?
In a box inside the stadium, the Spanish players watching the game couldn't help but discuss Neymar's performance.
"This guy looks amazing!"
"No wonder Barcelona spent 57 million euros to buy him, he indeed has something!"
They hadn't paid much attention to Brazil's previous matches, but this match between Brazil and Italy would directly determine their next opponent.
So, Spain had to pay attention.
Even without watching Neymar's previous games, just from this match, one could already see his talent and skill.
His playing style is very fancy, full of wild imagination, typical of South American players.
But unlike those flashy but impractical South American players, his style, though fancy, is very lethal.
Italy's situation of trailing in the score had a lot to do with Neymar.
"Can Italy equalize?"
"Don't know, they have a maverick like Balotelli. If this guy goes crazy, no one can stop him, but if he's out of form, he's completely useless!"
David Silva, who had previously been teammates with Balotelli, couldn't help but complain.
Balotelli's talent is outstanding, with top-notch footwork and physical qualities.
But he lacks a smart brain!
If he had a slightly more normal brain, his achievements in football would be far beyond his current level.
Just as David Silva finished speaking, Balotelli fell in the Brazilian penalty area, and the referee blew the whistle for a foul.
But in the moment the referee blew the whistle, the following Chiellini scored.
The referee was stunned and didn't know how to rule this goal.
Balotelli quickly got up from the ground, excitedly took off his shirt, and ran to celebrate.
In the end, the referee ruled the goal valid.
This decision made the Brazilian team very dissatisfied. Their goalkeeper Cesar said he didn't make a save because he heard the referee's whistle.
So, the goal shouldn't count!
But the referee believed that Chiellini's shot was completed before the whistle, so the goal should count.
The Brazilian fans booed, and the Brazilian players were very emotional, protesting to the referee for a long time.
Despite the controversy, the referee did not change his decision, and the game continued.
Twice leading and twice being equalized, one would think Brazil's momentum would be affected.
But surprisingly, the enraged Brazilian team scored two more goals in the next five minutes, making the score 4:2.
Italy had no chance of coming back.
In the end, the game ended with Brazil defeating Italy 4:2, advancing to the semifinals as the group's first place with three wins.
Italy, as the group's second, would face Spain in the semifinals.
The highly anticipated showdown between Spain and Brazil would have to wait until the final!