Soccer: I became Bruno Fernandes.

Chapter 323: Advancing to the Quarter-Finals

"GOOOOOOOOAL!!!!!!!"

"Kevin De Bruyne! WOW, what a beautiful free kick, 4:4, Belgium has equalized."

"Unable to score for a long time, De Bruyne utilized a set-piece opportunity to equalize. This is De Bruyne, Belgium's Bruno!"

"Although Bruno scored a hat-trick in today's game, De Bruyne's performance is not far behind. He has two assists and one goal and orchestrated another goal, participating in all four of Belgium's goals."

"4:4, Santos is punished for his conservative tactics. After taking the lead, his strategy was too defensive."

After cursing in frustration, Santos shouted to his players and called Bruno over to give him instructions.

Santos' tactic was straightforward: continue to defend. The goal had already been conceded, there was no use dwelling on it. The goal now was to avoid conceding again and maintain the 4:4 scoreline.

To be fair, being equalized by Belgium was frustrating for Santos, but not as devastating as the commentators might have thought. Ending the first half of extra time at 4:3 would have been ideal, but 4:4 was still acceptable.

In the remaining few minutes, Belgium tried to capitalize on their momentum to score another goal to take the lead. However, Portugal's defense was successful. Despite some tense moments, they managed to hold onto the 4:4 draw.

...

After a short break, the second half of extra time began, with the teams switching sides again.

Belgium was clearly not satisfied with a draw and kept pressing into Portugal's half, but Portugal's defense remained solid.

Wilmots internally concluded: it seemed Portugal was content with a draw, just trying to hold onto the 4:4 scoreline.

On the pitch, Belgium was attacking. Witsel was advancing with the ball in midfield, and William Carvalho moved to defend De Bruyne.

Witsel didn't pass the ball immediately. He wanted to keep possession and observe his teammates' movements to find a suitable passing lane.

William Carvalho closed in on Witsel.

For Witsel, the safest move would have been to pass the ball, but he didn't. Instead, he stopped and turned, trying to shake off William Carvalho.

This is a common move for defensive midfielders, stopping and turning to shield the ball with their back, using their strong body to separate the opponent from the ball, then moving forward or looking for a pass.

Witsel was good at this.

William Carvalho had noticed Witsel's tendency to use this move in previous matches, so he had a plan.

As soon as Witsel stopped and turned, William Carvalho pounced like a released leopard.

Their bodies collided, and the usually robust Witsel was unbalanced by the even stronger William Carvalho, losing control of the ball.

William Carvalho then took a step forward, using his body to shield the ball from Witsel.

...

Witsel, unwilling to lose the ball, tried to use his body to regain his position but underestimated William Carvalho's strength and couldn't budge him.

"Great interception!" praised the Portuguese TV commentator. "Very decisive."

"I must commend William Carvalho's physique, very solid!" added Sky Sports commentator Gary Lineker.

Gary Neville commented, "Great timing on the tackle and excellent physicality. A defensive midfielder tailor-made for the Premier League."

As the commentators praised William Carvalho, he didn't linger on the ball after the interception. He passed it to Bruno to organize the attack.

William Carvalho was well aware of his limitations: he wasn't fast, both in speed and turning, so he didn't hold onto the ball. He knew his job was to be the team's defensive shield in midfield.

Attacking was for others to handle.

Portuguese fans in the stands at Toulouse applauded William Carvalho's interception.

With a height of 187 cm and weighing 80 kg, Carvalho, like many strong and robust players, was formidable in physical confrontations. Often using his size to "crush" opponents, he provided solid defense for his team.

Santos also clapped from the sideline, cheering for his star pupil's performance.

...

"Fall back!" shouted Belgian defender Vermaelen.

Losing the ball in midfield was very dangerous.

Alderweireld rushed towards Bruno, trying to slow down Portugal's counter-attack.

Bruno pulled the ball, turned, and moved horizontally to shake off Alderweireld's pressure, then quickly passed the ball. A slightly curved ground pass rolled past Fellaini's feet towards the right wing.

"Fantastic pass by Bruno!"

Vertonghen rushed forward to cover but saw a red figure sprinting in, receiving the ball, and cutting past him.

"Beautiful move! It's Cristiano Ronaldo!" exclaimed Lineker.

No one noticed when Ronaldo got into position. The Portuguese captain flew forward, receiving the ball, changing direction, and dribbling past the defender in one smooth motion.

The stands in Toulouse filled with boos.

Amidst the boos, Ronaldo cut inside towards the penalty area.

Belgian defenders panicked.

Vermaelen hurriedly left Quaresma and rushed towards Ronaldo.

Vermaelen knew how dangerous Ronaldo was.

Vermaelen reacted quickly, but Ronaldo was quicker. As soon as he entered the box, he shot!

Vermaelen's foot came too late, missing the block.

Belgian goalkeeper Courtois reacted as fast as he could but was still a fraction too slow. The ball flew between his left hand and the post into the net!

...

"GOLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"

"Oh oh oh!" the Portuguese commentator screamed excitedly. "Ronaldo! Ronaldo!! Ronaldo!!! He scored! He scored twice! 5:4! Portugal leads again!"

"Cristiano Ronaldo! Blazing speed, thrilling high-speed dribbling, cool finish! Blazing speed, blazing goal!"

Ronaldo got up and ran to the corner flag, leaping high near the sideline, spinning in the air, and landing firmly with his hands by his sides, roaring to the sky.

As the team captain, Ronaldo had been unhappy watching his younger teammate Bruno and Belgium's De Bruyne dominate the game for over an hour.

Scoring in extra time to put Portugal ahead had released some of Ronaldo's frustration.

Now, with Portugal once again equalized and under pressure from Belgium, Ronaldo had come through to save the day, giving his team the lead. Ronaldo was ecstatic.

Portuguese players surrounded Ronaldo, celebrating his goal.

"Well done!"

"Great goal!"

Hearing his teammates' praise, Ronaldo felt even happier.

...

With the score at 5:4, Belgium fell behind for the fourth time. Wilmots was restless but had no more substitutions left. He could only order his players to push forward, launching an all-out attack on Portugal's goal.

Santos, on the other hand, still had one substitution left. He quickly made a change, bringing on Danilo Pereira for Nani.

William Carvalho and Danilo Pereira formed a strong defensive midfield duo, with Carvalho as the primary and Pereira supporting.

This midfield partnership managed to contain Belgium's frantic attacks.

Not only that, but Portugal's counter-attacks also kept Belgium on edge.

Ronaldo was especially active upfront, using his speed to constantly pressure Belgium's defense, making their defenders nervous.

By the 115th minute, the score remained 5:4, with Portugal leading.

In the following seven to eight minutes, Ronaldo continued to draw attention. First, he earned Vertonghen a yellow card. Then, he clashed with Alderweireld, who narrowly avoided a red card due to the referee's leniency.

In injury time, Ronaldo's speed took him close to the goal, but Courtois saved his shot, and Quaresma's follow-up hit Batshuayi's shoulder.

Sanches protested for handball, leading to another argument between the players.

Finally, amid boos from Belgian fans and cheers from Portuguese fans, the referee blew the final whistle.

"The match is over! The match is over!! The match is over!!! After 120 minutes of intense battle, Portugal has defeated Belgium 5:4."

"What an incredible match, with nine goals scored in total. For Belgium, Alderweireld, Batshuayi, Hazard, and De Bruyne each scored. Portugal's five goals were shared between Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo, with Bruno scoring a hat-trick and Ronaldo netting twice."

(End of Chapter)

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