Special Correspondent Ji Yu Posted from Doha
Doha , which is dry and high temperature all year round, is rarely swept by dark clouds, and the temperature suddenly dropped a lot. This kind of weather seems to be more conducive to the English players who grew up in the " foggy city ". However, they returned home on a day that most resembled the British climate.
In the early morning of December 11th, Beijing time, at the Doha Bay Stadium, "Three Lion" failed to continue to be sung in the fan area. England lost 1:2 to the last champion France, leaving Kane 12 yards of sadness and Mbappe sly smile. The semi-finals have all been released. After looking around their opponents, the French team may find that they have never been so close to defending the World Cup.
The contest between the tip of the needle and the maimang
Since the end of the group stage, it is very difficult to see the fans of both sides competing evenly. But in this round of competition, the 68,895 fans at the scene seemed to be divided into two square teams with similar numbers. The England fans in the north stand and the French fans in the south stand fought each other, and no one gave way to the other. The number of
fans also just reflects the strength of the two teams. In the quarter-finals, Croatia and Morocco eliminated Brazil and Portugal successively, which surprised many fans. However, whether it is England being eliminated or France being eliminated, I am afraid it will be difficult for fans to accept it. No matter from which level you look at it, this is a contest of the tip of a needle.
Judging from the world rankings, the last champion France ranked 4th, followed by England at 5th. Judging from the composition of the lineup, England has Rashford , Foden , Glarish, Kane and other players. Although the French team lost Benzema and Lucas , there are still Mbappe, Dembele, Griezmann and many other good players. The performance of the two teams of
also confirmed the speculation of the outside world before the game. At the beginning of the game, the French team played very proactively. Just 16 minutes into the game, the 22-year-old young man Chuameni suddenly cast a cold arrow outside the penalty area and opened the scoring for the French team. Why can he transfer to Real Madrid for 80 million euros? This goal has already told you.
Subsequently, the lagging England team launched an onslaught. Kane's many threatening shots were resolved one by one by Lori . As a teammate of Tottenham , Lori knows Kane's shooting methods too well. After the game, some fans picked up a video of football king Maradona visiting Tottenham 5 years ago and instructing Kane on shooting. At that time, Lori was by their side...
Seeing that the situation could not be opened, Saka used his personal ability to create a penalty kick in the penalty area in the 51st minute. Kane made it overnight and helped England equalize the score. Then in the 77th minute, Giroud of the French team scored a header in the penalty area and once again helped the team take the lead. At this time, there are still more than ten minutes before the end of the regular time of the game, and the game has also entered a fever.
Kane missed a key penalty kick
When Kane stood on the penalty spot again, the England fans in the stands went completely crazy. They chanted uniform slogans to cheer for the England captain. Of course, the cheers were mixed with whistles, which came from French fans who did not want to see the French team score equalized.
This penalty kick came from the opportunity created by Mount in the 82nd minute. He was brought down by Hernandez in the box. Even if the penalty of the whole game is not so favorable to England, for them, it is enough to have a chance to change their fate.
walked up to Kane at 12 yards and took a deep breath before the penalty to relieve his tension. Such an important penalty that is related to whether Three Lions can go further must not be dropped in the captain's hands. Run-up, kick, Kane accidentally hit the ball high, England failed to equalize the score!
saw that he kicked the ball, Kane buried his face with his collar, and walked slowly towards the goal in frustration. When his collar fell off his face, Kane was surrounded by the French team: they all rushed to goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, celebrating that they still took the lead. Although the ball was not saved by Lowry, who dares to deny that his deterrence before Kane's kick did not achieve results?
Actually, apart from this missed penalty kick, Kane's performance throughout the game was indisputableblame. He steadily scored the first penalty kick to help England equalize. At the same time, with this goal, his total number of goals for the national team reached 53 goals, tying Rooney and and tied for the top scorer list in England's history. In addition, Kane bears the burden of series and organization in the game. If it weren't for Kane, maybe England would have lost hope of winning.
From the moment the final whistle sounded, the completely different moods of the two teams were fully revealed. Amidst the cheers of the French fans, the French team embraced in a circle and celebrated collectively. And more than ten meters away, it was the England team that hadn't recovered from the defeat. Kane squatted on the ground after the game, covering his face with his hands and crying. Bellingham stared blankly at the sky, tears streaming down his cheeks.
How long will England have to wait?
As the birthplace of modern football, England has stood at the top of world football for quite a long time. Subsequently, with the continuous development of football in the world, English football was gradually overtaken. In 1966, England won the World Cup for the first and only time on home soil. Since then, they have never been able to set foot in the World Cup finals.
"When England won the 1966 championship, my father was only 2 years old." Kane's previous words suddenly gave England's only champion a sense of age. Kane has said it would be a failure if he failed to help England win a major title before retiring.
Perhaps, "The Uncrowned King" is the hat Kane most wants to take off. He has played in Premier League for many years, and won three Premier League Golden Boots. He is the top scorer in 's five major leagues in 2017, the top scorer in Tottenham's history, and the 2018 World Cup Golden Boot. But he has numerous reputations at the personal level, but he has never won a championship at the club and national team level. Today, England is full of young talents and talents, and Kane himself is in his prime. England were so close to being crowned champions that they went home with a high penalty.
With the output of more top coaches and skilled players, English football has developed by leaps and bounds in recent years. In the 2018 World Cup in Russia , Kane scored 6 goals and helped England reach the semi-finals in one fell swoop, but was eventually reversed by Croatia. In the 2021 European Cup, England once advanced to the final, but eventually lost to Italy in a penalty shootout. Judging from the results, England is indeed getting closer and closer to "letting football go home", but it seems that there is always a lack of luck.
Does England still have a chance in the next World Cup? There is no doubt that England, which is blowing up a "youth storm", does not need to worry about supplementing the overall lineup. At that time, players such as Saka, Foden, and Bellingham will be even more Mature. The only thing to worry about may be the reinforcement at the center position. At that time, Kane will be 33 years old, and the England team has not emerged an excellent center who can replace him. How long will it take to realize the slogan "Let football go home"?
