Chapter 29: Long Arrows Against the Setting Sun

The teams that have advanced to this year's Asian Champions League quarterfinals in the East Asian zone, apart from Guangzhou Evergrande, include Jeonbuk Hyundai from South Korea, Kashiwa Reysol and Gamba Osaka from Japan. In the West Asian zone, the contenders are Tehran Oil, Al Ahli, Lekhwiya, and Al Hilal.

However, Dai Zhiwei paid no attention to the other half of the bracket; after all, they would only face a West Asian opponent if they reached the final.

The quarterfinal draw took place on June 18 at the AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. Guangzhou Evergrande, the sole survivor from the Chinese Super League, drew a favorable lot: their quarterfinal opponent would be Japan’s Kashiwa Reysol, a team they had demolished in the 2013 semifinals with an aggregate score of 8:1. Moreover, the advantage of playing the first leg away and the second at home further paved the way for their advancement.

Evergrande would play the first leg of the quarterfinal away on August 25, and host Kashiwa Reysol in the second leg on September 15.

According to tournament rules, East and West Asian teams cannot meet until the final. The draw not only determined the quarterfinal pairings, but also the semifinal matchups and the order of home and away legs based directly on the quarterfinal draw.

Drawn in the QF3 slot, if Guangzhou Evergrande reached the semifinals, they would have home advantage in the first leg.

Furthermore, this year’s two-legged final would see the West Asian team hosting the first leg. In other words, if Evergrande progressed all the way, they would enjoy the advantage of playing the final’s decisive leg at home.

This season, Kashiwa Reysol topped Group E with 3 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss. In the round of sixteen, they advanced by knocking out South Korea’s Suwon Samsung on away goals.

In their four previous encounters, Guangzhou Evergrande had three wins and one draw, remaining undefeated. In the 2013 Asian Champions League semifinals, Evergrande won both legs, and the massive 8:1 aggregate meant they held a significant psychological advantage in this rematch.

It’s worth noting that Kashiwa Reysol displayed formidable attacking prowess this season, scoring 14 goals in the group stage—the most in East Asia. For Evergrande, whose defense has been less than solid, this demands close attention.

Yet, with injured players gradually recovering, Evergrande’s fighting strength would undoubtedly improve when the Champions League resumed. The overall superiority in strength and the advantageous schedule made their hopes of advancing much brighter.

…

“Xiaowei, how are you feeling?” With only a few minutes before the match began, Evergrande’s starters were in the locker room making their final preparations. Zheng Zhi glanced at Dai Zhiwei, who was fastening his shin guards, and asked, “You seem rather excited about playing Kashiwa Reysol!”

“Of course! I hope to score a few goals against them,” Dai Zhiwei replied, pulling up his socks.

Currently, Dai Zhiwei led the Chinese Super League scoring chart by a wide margin, with a ten-goal gap between him and the runner-up. With only six rounds left in the league, this season’s Golden Boot was all but his.

He was also atop the Champions League scoring list, but only one goal ahead of second place, and the chasers were close. The Champions League Golden Boot was far from secure.

So, facing a team like Kashiwa Reysol, which seemed easy prey, Dai Zhiwei planned to score more goals to cement his lead atop the scoring charts.

…

“Oh, the players are entering the pitch!” The spotlight quarterfinal of the Asian Champions League was being held at Hitachi Kashiwa Stadium. The match was being broadcast live by Huaxia TV Sports Channel, and Channel 5 had sent their star commentator He Wei and guest Xu Yang.

Xu Yang introduced the starting lineups in his familiar style: “Let’s take a look at both teams’ starting eleven—”

Evergrande’s lineup:
Goalkeeper: Zeng Cheng

Defenders: Zou Zheng, Kim Young-Gwon, Feng Xiaoting, Zhang Linpeng

Midfielders: Paulinho, Zheng Zhi, Huang Bowen

Forwards: Gao Lin, Goulart, Dai Zhiwei

Kashiwa Reysol’s lineup:
Goalkeeper: Takayuki Sugeno

Defenders: Kim Chang-soo, Yuta Nakayama, Yuuki Otsu, Daisuke Suzuki

Midfielders: Eduardo, Yuto Fujita, Kosuke Taketomi, Yoshiki Tsukita

Forwards: Masato Kudo, Cristiano

“Evergrande and Kashiwa Reysol have met four times in the Champions League, with Evergrande holding a dominant record of three wins and one draw. In the 2013 semifinals, Evergrande crushed Reysol with an 8-1 aggregate. This time, Evergrande’s attack is led by Goulart, Gao Lin, and Zheng Long, with Zheng Zhi and Paulinho anchoring midfield. Elkeson is absent due to injury,” said He Wei.

Kashiwa Reysol won the coin toss and chose to attack first in the opening half.

Right from the start, Evergrande suffered a setback. Zhang Linpeng, contesting an aerial ball on the flank, was struck in the face by Yuta Nakayama’s head. Blood poured from his face, forcing him to receive treatment off the pitch.

Even with ten men, Evergrande nearly scored. In the seventh minute, Huang Bowen passed, and Dai Zhiwei found space in the center at the 24-yard mark. Receiving Huang Bowen’s pass, he controlled the ball with his chest, pushed it forward, then tightened his left foot and unleashed a powerful volley before the ball touched the ground!

But Dai Zhiwei’s shot was blocked by the urgently advancing Yuta Nakayama—striking his elbow and bouncing out for a corner.

“Handball!”

Dai Zhiwei saw Nakayama’s handball go unpunished and immediately protested to the referee, but the official ruled that Nakayama’s arm was not extended and the handball was unintentional, so only awarded Evergrande a corner.

Dai Zhiwei knew that at the start of the match, the referee would not award a penalty for such an unintentional handball against the home team. His protest was mainly to put pressure on the referee and avoid unfavorable decisions later.

On the ensuing corner, Huang Bowen sent in a cross, and Nakayama stuck close to Dai Zhiwei.

Who was Yuta Nakayama? Few knew his name. Born February 16, 1997, standing 1.80 meters tall, he played as a defender or defensive midfielder, and had only appeared three times for Kashiwa Reysol.

In the past five years, the young Nakayama had made a meteoric rise. In 2011, he was just a student on the Atago Junior High School team in Ryugasaki City, when he joined Reysol’s U15 academy. A year later, he entered high school in Chiba Prefecture and naturally joined the U18 squad, quickly becoming its captain. He then moved up to the reserve team, and last year made the first team, earning a spot on the bench for the league match against Albirex Niigata on May 10, 2014.

Though Dai Zhiwei felt more hatred than admiration for Japan, he had to admit that in developing young players, Huaxia could not compare at all.

But even the strongest Japanese youngsters were no match for Dai Zhiwei, who possessed the Football Prodigy System!

This time, despite Nakayama’s 180cm height, Dai Zhiwei kept him behind, unable to move.

Holding Nakayama back, Dai Zhiwei jumped—not for a direct header, as Huang Bowen’s cross was a bit low and aimed for Goulart. Dai Zhiwei trapped the ball with his thigh, bouncing it forward, then immediately stepped ahead. Despite Nakayama’s pulling from behind, he swiftly turned his body and swung his leg at the ball.

Such a difficult move was not something Dai Zhiwei practiced in training. Yet in that instant, he recalled the advice of his mentor Tetsupei Raisho: always use the most suitable action to shoot, and be imaginative.

So, instinctively, he executed it. He didn’t pay attention to the keeper or the goalmouth, but simply launched the shot based on feel!

Acting purely on intuition—this is how many miraculous goals are scored!

Or, to put it another way—a lucky guess!

Dai Zhiwei struck the ball cleanly; as his foot connected, the ball compressed slightly, then sprang back to its round shape and shot toward the goal!

Luck favored Dai Zhiwei. The ball slipped through the crowded penalty area, and Takayuki Sugeno, standing on the goal line, never saw it coming. Before he could react, the ball had already flown into the left side of the net!

Hitachi Kashiwa Stadium was silent for two seconds, before the dominant noise and sparse cheers burst from the stands.

“Fantastic!”

Dai Zhiwei, after scoring, leaped high and punched the air with clenched fist!

Asked how he felt at that moment—only one word: exhilarating!

In that moment, both national enmity and personal grudges were poured into that shot!

Soon, his teammates in the box swarmed him, enveloping him in a jubilant embrace.

Cannavaro, seeing Dai Zhiwei seize the initiative for his team, celebrated wildly on the sidelines.

Leaving aside the match itself, Dai Zhiwei could be considered a product of Cannavaro’s guidance and nurturing—though the Tsubasa Ozora in the system might not agree.