Football: The strongest post-2000s Chapter 048

E. Francis chose to seek body contact at the moment Li Qing struck the ball, and according to the rules, this was a brilliant frontal defense, a legitimate physical collision. However, the referee’s whistle suddenly blew, leaving him somewhat at a loss.

Liverpool U 18 head coach Neil Critchley saw the referee point to the penalty spot and excitedly high-fived Gerrard and Mike Garrity in celebration.

In stark contrast, Manchester City U 18 head coach Lee Carsley excitedly spread his arms, his left hand constantly patting his right shoulder, as if telling the referee that it was a legitimate physical contact.

But the referee was very confident in his judgment and remained unmoved by the protesting Manchester City U 18 players, insisting that E. Francis had committed a charging foul.

Li Qing, as the person involved, stood aside, rubbing his still slightly sore left shoulder with his right hand.

Although E. Francis’s charge just now was leaning towards a legitimate collision, there was nothing to say if the referee blew the whistle for such body contact. Who told him he didn’t touch the ball?

Of course, a certain reason why the referee was able to award a penalty was because he possessed the [Diving] talent.

Manchester City U 18 head coach Lee Carsley shook his head helplessly. He had seen it quite clearly just now; the collision was relatively legitimate, but there was nothing wrong with the referee’s decision. Many times, the judgment in a football match lies in the referee’s subjective judgment in a flash.

The live broadcasters repeatedly showed slow-motion replays of the physical confrontation between E. Francis and Li Qing. The commentators from the licensed TV stations were divided into three factions: one believed it was a legitimate collision, another believed it was a charging foul, and the last faction was neutral, believing that it was up to the referee whether to award a penalty or not.

With everything settled, the Manchester City U 18 players could only accept reality. Liverpool U 18’s top penalty taker, Glenn McAuley, should have been the first choice to take the penalty, but he saw that Li Qing had already embraced the ball, clearly indicating his desire to take the penalty.

Glenn McAuley, who had been ineffective in this match, raised an eyebrow. As the team’s top scorer, he had been ineffective so far in this match. If he didn’t perform, he had a strong premonition that he would return to the bench, so he was very eager to score, even if it was just a penalty.

However, at this moment, head coach Neil Critchley blew a large, self-made whistle. He turned his head and clearly saw the head coach make a gesture of grabbing the ball with both hands and pointing at Li Qing.

The meaning he wanted to convey was very clear: Li Qing would take this shot.

“Oh~”

Glenn McAuley sighed. As Li Qing performed well in the U 18, his position in the team continued to decline.

However, considering Li Qing’s contribution of 11 goals in four league matches and two goals in half a Youth FA Cup match, no matter which coach it was, they would place their hopes on a player who was in good form.

He stood outside the penalty area, gazing at Li Qing, and an immature thought came to his mind: “Is this… really only fifteen years old?”

…

Li Qing placed the ball on the penalty spot, then retreated to the edge of the penalty area, ignoring the Manchester City fans making boos behind the goal.

His tender face was filled with determination, waiting for the referee’s whistle.

“Beep~”

The reason he wanted to take the penalty was not entirely for a hat-trick. A greater reason was his 80+ shooting and penalty skills, plus the extra 20% goal rate brought by Precise Shot LV 2, which almost meant that a penalty here was equivalent to a goal.

Opportunities to challenge Manchester City U 18 away would not be too many. Rather than leaving it to Glenn McAuley, who had been out of form recently, it was better to take on this responsibility himself.

“Beep~”

The referee’s whistle sounded, Li Qing concentrated, held his breath, and began his run-up.

At the same time, goalkeeper A. Muric swayed his body up, down, left, and right, hoping to influence Li Qing’s upcoming penalty kick with such exaggerated body movements.

He clearly remembered the coach talking about Li Qing’s resume: a player born in February 2001, still more than half a month away from turning sixteen. Could such a young player have good psychological quality?

He didn’t believe it!

Li Qing took his last step, his right foot positioned about twenty centimeters to the right of the ball, his body leaning to the right at an angle of about 60 degrees to the ground, and then he exaggeratedly swung his left foot.

A. Muric raised an eyebrow; he really couldn’t tell which angle Li Qing intended to kick the ball.

It wasn’t until Li Qing’s left foot touched the ball that his eyes suddenly lit up, and a long-lost victorious smile appeared at the corner of his mouth: “Even if you’re calm, you won’t score past my goal, I’m a penalty expert!”

Bottom right corner!

What about the reality?

Li Qing’s exaggerated left foot swing neither took a powerful shot nor kicked towards the bottom right corner of the goal as A. Muric had judged. Instead, at the moment of contact, he withdrew 80% of his power, merely using the inside of his instep to chip the bottom of the ball…

“Oh no!”

A. Muric had already dived to his left side, which was the bottom right corner of the goal, according to his own judgment.

The ball kicked by Li Qing flew softly towards the middle of the goal. Logically, even an amateur goalkeeper could easily catch such a ball, but the problem was that A. Muric had made his move in advance to save the penalty, meaning he could only watch helplessly as the ball slowly fell towards the middle of the goal where he had originally stood…

Li Qing, who scored his third goal of the match, was not as excited as he was for his previous two goals. On the contrary, he was relatively calm, with his arms outstretched, waiting for his teammates to come forward and celebrate.

The coaches and substitute players in front of the away team’s bench huddled together, cheering wildly for Li Qing’s brilliant Panenka penalty.

Gerrard’s admiration grew stronger and stronger. A player who was not yet sixteen years old actually used such a spectacular Panenka penalty in a tied game. This… his heart was not just big.

Liverpool head coach Klopp, watching Li Qing on the broadcast screen, murmured, “Just for this Panenka penalty, I have to promote you to the first team!”

Of course, Klopp was not an impulsive person. Li Qing had already proven himself to be significantly stronger than most U 18 players through his performance during this period, and there was not much room for improvement by moving up to U 23. Only… the first team!