"Lu Yang accelerates!"
"Lu Yang... jumped?"
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lu Yang charged to the penalty spot, swung his leg... and jumped.
According to the timing, he should have made contact, but he was airborne.
The result was a delay in the ball contact.
This is... a jump-shot penalty!
How could Marduk have guessed that Lu Yang would employ such a shameless way of taking the shot!
Isn’t this a foul?
Actually, it isn’t a foul!
Marduk, following the normal rhythm of a save, chose to dive to his right, as Lu Yang tends to favor this corner; it’s his shooting habit.
So when Marduk dove, Lu Yang reacted quickly and kicked the ball to the other side while still in mid-air.
This is the jump-shot penalty, a method with an exceptionally high success rate but also a high difficulty level.
Not everyone can take jump-shot penalties.
This penalty method has several requirements.
Firstly, when you jump, you need to gauge your distance to the ball well, along with the height of your leap.
If there’s a slip-up, you might jump directly onto the ball or end up with too short a kicking distance, sending the ball flying.
Secondly, your brain speed needs to be quick, capable of responding to the goalkeeper’s dive direction, to deflect the ball to the opposite side.
Not everyone has such fast reaction speeds, and many may even get influenced by the goalkeeper’s dive, inadvertently kicking the ball towards where he’s diving.
Finally, the player must have absolutely precise judgment of the ball at their feet and the goal, with superb shooting skills.
Because when observing the opposing goalkeeper mid-air, your vision lacks the ball and goal frame, and your mind is occupied with shooting direction, leaving no time for other thoughts.
The intention might be to shoot left, but missing the goal frame entirely is a frequent occurrence.
In general, this way of taking penalties is suited for experts.
Ordinary players should randomly choose a side and deliver a confident kick instead.
The ball successfully reached the net.
Three to three!
In the last minute of regular match time, Italy tied the score.
An equalizer!
"Foul! He fouled!"
"This isn’t legal!"
"There’s no such penalty!"
England players immediately rushed towards the Main Referee, especially Marduk, strongly protesting this kind of penalty.
However, after a quick discussion with the linesman and consulting the penalty section of the football rulebook provided by the fourth official multiple times, the Main Referee announced the goal was valid!
This was indeed a legal penalty!
The stadium instantly erupted.
"He did it! Equalizer! Lu Yang helped Italy equalize against England!"
"The match is heading into extra time!"
"Italy’s ability to stage comebacks is incredibly strong! At key moments, there’s always an Italian player who can stand out!"
"But regardless, Lu Yang is always there fighting alongside them!"
"England is already preparing substitutions, but their Head Coach is also conversing with the fourth official."
"Oh, the Main Referee handed a yellow card to England’s Head Coach, who was getting too emotional. He should immediately focus back on the match, forgetting that remarkable penalty shot."
"Lu Yang is truly a player with a big heart. The first penalty he faced as the top penalty taker was incredibly tricky, but he perfectly executed it!"
"This marks his eighth goal in this European Cup! He once again widened the gap with Robben, stepping further towards the European Cup Golden Boot."
...
Extra time arrived as expected.
On the Italy Team’s side, Maniero deliberated repeatedly between Canyes and Ancelotti, ultimately deciding to substitute Ancelotti.
The reason being Canyes, despite lacking in defense, is young and fit, and capable for extra-time battles.
Ancelotti found it hard to return to the backfield and help with defense in extra time.
Though Ancelotti was somewhat helpless, he didn’t show attitude. Instead, he hugged Kolber, who was substituting him.
Kolber indeed could offer more assistance to the Italy Team in the upcoming period than Ancelotti could.
And facts proved this substitution was correct.
In the first eight minutes of extra time, England played more aggressively.
But their fatigue was also palpable.
Previously, when they stormed fiercely, they often maintained it for over twenty minutes.
But this time after eight minutes, there was some disconnection between their midfield and defense.
Italy gained possession and launched a fast counterattack.
However, it was mainly supported by Perrotta, Kolber, Lu Yang, and Canyes advancing to the frontline, while others stayed in the middle and backfield to prevent England’s counterattack.
Bang!
Morici swiftly passed and shot, directly delivering the ball to the front.
Moreover, he applied some spin so that the ball, when descending in the latter half, was fast and forceful, even spinning back!
This backspin exhibited extreme finesse.
Perrotta was always stationed up front, although exerting himself first, was still struggling to catch up with the ball.
On the verge of the ball dropping in front of him.
For speed-driven attackers, receiving the ball facing the goal might be favorable.
But for Perrotta, a pillar-like central forward who was evidently losing pace, sometimes facing away from the goal is better suited to their strengths.
Facing the goal to receive the ball, they might be overtaken by followers if they continue dribbling.
If they stop entirely, it wastes a half one-on-one opportunity.
Handling this situation is quite awkward.