CHAPTER 1855: CHAPTER 971: A FRENZIED OPPONENT!

The whistle blew.

The first half of the match came to an end.

The national team gave the America team a huge "surprise," finishing the first half with a score of two to zero. It truly left the America team stunned.

Even as the America team’s players left the field, Ding Yue could see that they were all in a daze because they simply couldn’t accept that the national team had defeated them two to zero in the first half. This was a huge blow to their morale.

"Cook, what on earth is happening with you guys?"

"James, what is your defense doing?"

"Weske, can we please focus?"

When the America team’s players came off the field, their head coach was already fuming, after all, being beaten two to zero by the national team was nothing short of disgraceful for him.

"Coach, we tried our best. This team is not at all what we initially imagined. Their skills and tactics are really impressive."

A player said helplessly to the head coach.

This was a severe case of underestimating the opponent, leading to the unfavorable situation in the first half, putting the America team on the back foot. The players realized that the issue wasn’t their poor performance but rather the failure to take the opposing team seriously from the start.

"I see, it really is surprising."

The America team’s head coach nodded, then said to the players, "Let’s go to the locker room and properly plan our strategy for the second half. Each of you needs to adjust your mindset!"

"Understood!"

The players of the America team responded in unison.

As professional soccer players, they naturally understand the importance of mindset during a match. If their mindset collapses even slightly, their overall performance can decline. If the team’s mindset isn’t adjusted, the entire team’s strength will significantly drop, giving the opponent many opportunities.

After the first half of the match ended, Ding Yue also stood up from the VIP audience section and headed towards his team’s locker room.

After all, the first half performance was good, and Ding Yue wanted to praise his team a bit.

In no time, Ding Yue, along with Huang Youjie and a few others, arrived at the national team’s locker room. Upon seeing Ding Yue, the head coach immediately came forward to greet him, "Principal Ding, our players’ performance in the first half was not bad, right?"

The head coach was certainly satisfied with the national team’s first-half performance.

Ding Yue also nodded and said with a smile, "The students performed very well indeed."

Even though the national team players have already successfully graduated from Mist City Arts and Science University, Ding Yue was still more accustomed to calling them "students," as he had grown used to it. As long as they remained with the Feiyue Team, they would always be students of Mist City Arts and Science University to him.

"Hello, Principal Ding."

The players greeted Principal Ding one after another upon seeing him.

"Hello, students."

Ding Yue also greeted the players warmly, as all the national team players had become familiar faces to him.

"You guys did well in the first half. Keep it up in the second half. This being our first match, we need to show the spirit of our national team."

Ding Yue suddenly spoke earnestly to the players.

"Okay!"

"Understood!"

"Got it!"

"Let’s put on a great show!"

The players shouted one after another, their passion and fighting spirit fully ignited.

Ding Yue felt reassured seeing the players so confident, only fearing that they might lack confidence in the World Cup—the largest football tournament, which could cause them to play timidly and fail to display their vigor and brilliance.

"Alright, I won’t say more. Leaving the next part to the coach to arrange the strategy for the second half."

Ding Yue didn’t say much more, leaving the remaining time to the head coach.

The head coach nodded and then went to the center of the locker room, clapped his hands, and said, "Alright, everyone gather around. Now, from the momentum we displayed in the first half, the America team should have recognized our true strength. Next, they might strategically maneuver against us more precisely, or they could go all out in the second half, disrupting our rhythm. I personally think the second scenario is more likely, but to cover all bases, we need to prepare for both scenarios. Understand?"

"Understood!"

The players nodded one after another, fully agreeing with the coach’s analysis.

As the head coach of the national team, Hou Xiangming naturally had to prepare thoroughly for possible adjustments by the America team in the second half. In the first half, the national team had already showcased their strength, and now, having exposed that strength, they must live up to it.

Even if they are more aggressively targeted by the America team in the second half, the national team must counteract and neutralize those efforts, as the saying goes—"If the enemy sends troops, we will counter with generals; if water flows, we will use earth to defend."

Ding Yue listened to the head coach Hou Xiangming arrange the strategy without speaking a word, since he wasn’t a professional in this area. What he could do was to encourage his players.