Chapter 77: Creating a Penalty Kick

Has Napoli given up on this match? In a sense, yes.

In fact, Sarri’s hand was forced. Having just played Juventus in Serie A’s 26th round last weekend, and with another clash against AC Milan coming up this Saturday in the 27th round, he had to make a choice between the Europa League and the domestic league in order to keep pace with league leaders Juventus. He chose to rest Higuaín in the second half to ensure the team was in peak condition for the Milan match.

This is one of the awkward realities of the Europa League: among the top teams in the five major leagues, those still vying for the title don’t value the Europa League trophy much. Only clubs like Villarreal, who have no realistic shot at their domestic crown, or fallen giants like Liverpool, who have been trophyless for years, truly cherish the Europa League.

Since Napoli’s desire to win wasn’t strong, Villarreal certainly didn’t hold back.

For a time, Reina, standing in front of Napoli’s goal, became the busiest man on the pitch.

First, the Yellow Submarine combined on the right, moving the ball to Dos Santos, who whipped in a cross. With Soldado and Dai Zhiwei lurking behind, Chiriches made a crucial clearance in the box, heading the ball away to avert the danger.

But just a minute later, the Yellow Submarine surged forward again. Once more Dos Santos, after receiving the ball on the right, played it to the edge of the area. Under pressure from López, Bruno couldn’t quite set himself for the shot, and his powerful long-range effort was blocked by Strinić. Judging by the way Strinić hit the turf, Bruno’s shot had clearly shaken him.

Still, Strinić’s desperate block bounced the ball back out to Villarreal, who regained possession outside the box. Suárez sent a threatening ball in from the left, and Koulibaly’s sliding clearance in front of goal was vital.

Villarreal then forced a corner, but Reina claimed it just ahead of Dai Zhiwei.

Though Dai Zhiwei missed that chance, Villarreal, spurred on by their home crowd at the Estadio de la Cerámica, launched their wildest attacking spell of the game: in the 63rd minute, Dai Zhiwei drove forward down the right, but Hysaj covered well to break up the play.

Two minutes later, Bruno cut in from the right and fed Soldado just outside the box, but his shot sailed high.

Barely 30 seconds later, Dai Zhiwei intercepted the ball upfield and passed to the surging Trigueros, but the pass lacked quality and Reina gathered easily.

Napoli soon adjusted and went toe-to-toe with the Yellow Submarine. Gabbiadini sent in a cross from the left; both Napoli strikers lunged in the box, but failed to connect, and Insigne and Mertens could only watch as the ball slipped agonizingly across the face of goal. On the sidelines, Sarri lashed out at the air in frustration.

Napoli attacked again down the right, Hamsik passing to Valdifiori, but his ball was immediately cleared by Costa to Suárez in midfield.

Villarreal countered quickly. Dos Santos found space on the right, but Dai Zhiwei failed to spot him and didn’t make the pass in time.

This wasn’t selfishness from Dai Zhiwei; rather, he simply didn’t have the vision to see his teammate’s run.

Intent on charging forward with the ball, Dai Zhiwei was brought down by a sliding tackle from left-back Strinić, who sent both man and ball tumbling. The referee wasted no time awarding Villarreal a free kick about thirty meters from goal.

The distance was perhaps a bit far. Trigueros whipped in a quick cross, but Soldado and Dai Zhiwei were not quite on the same wavelength. Suárez deliberately let the ball run through in the box, hoping Dai Zhiwei would latch onto it near the penalty spot.

But Dai Zhiwei hadn’t anticipated the move. Only when the ball arrived did he react, hastily side-footing a shot that struck Hysaj’s outstretched leg and went behind for a corner.

Missing the best chance of the half, Dai Zhiwei clutched his head and roared in frustration, then apologized to Suárez for not reading his intention.

Villarreal continued to threaten. Dai Zhiwei chased to the byline on the right and crossed, but Soldado’s left-footed shot from the edge of the box drifted wide.

In the second half, both sides upped the tempo in transition, but Villarreal fashioned more chances. Dai Zhiwei, accustomed to this rhythm, grew more and more impressive.

Napoli, short on attacking commitment and with players conserving energy, became increasingly passive on defense. Eventually, in the 77th minute, Villarreal seized their opportunity.

Dai Zhiwei picked up the ball on the right edge of the box, once again facing Chiriches. The defender, wary of Dai Zhiwei’s signature sharp feint, spread his legs wide to block him.

Chiriches was already on the edge of the area; a repeat of any previous cynical foul would almost certainly gift Villarreal a penalty.

“Do you really think that’s the only trick I know?” Dai Zhiwei’s eyes flashed. “Don’t blame me, my friend.”

He controlled the ball with his right foot and, as he accelerated, suddenly changed direction—a prelude to his trademark move.

Chiriches, though unable to fully contain him, had learned a thing or two. He swung his left leg out to cut off Dai Zhiwei’s route.

But unexpectedly, Dai Zhiwei planted his right foot and, with a deft toe poke from his left, sent the ball straight through Chiriches’s widely spread legs.

In an instant, Chiriches felt a chill between his thighs—he’d been nutmegged!

While Chiriches burned with humiliation, Dai Zhiwei’s expression shifted.

“It’s gone too far!”

He’d intended to race past Chiriches and collect the ball after the nutmeg, but as he accelerated, he realized the ball was rolling faster than he’d anticipated. Hysaj, Napoli’s other defender, now had a better shot at retrieving it.

What to do?

Dai Zhiwei, nearly past Chiriches, subtly altered his course and, using the top of his foot, hooked Chiriches’s trailing right leg.

A moment later, Dai Zhiwei crashed to the turf inside Napoli’s penalty area.

The whistle blew. As Dai Zhiwei scrambled up, he saw the referee pointing to the spot.

“Brilliant!” Dai Zhiwei clenched his fist and shouted.

Napoli’s players hurried to surround the referee, protesting that Dai Zhiwei had dived, but nothing could change the penalty call and the accompanying red card.

Slow-motion replay showed that Dai Zhiwei had indeed been tripped by Chiriches’s trailing leg—the penalty was indisputable.

The only debatable point was that Dai Zhiwei could have avoided the foul, but chose instead to go down.

Although Dai Zhiwei utterly despised the likes of Busquets, who collapsed as if shot even when barely touched, he was perfectly happy to invite a foul and win a penalty in this way.

After all, if not for Chiriches’s trailing leg, he’d have been able to control the ball without having to circle around.

“I’ll take it!” Dai Zhiwei said, claiming the penalty for himself. Not only was this spot kick won by his own efforts, but Villarreal didn’t have a designated first-choice penalty taker.

Up to this point in the season, Villarreal had only been awarded two penalties—scoring just one—so there was no one who could lay an unassailable claim to the responsibility.

Captain Bruno Soriano could have taken it, but as a defender and holding midfielder, he was less reliable from the spot than Dai Zhiwei—who might as well take it blindfolded.

Ball in hand, Dai Zhiwei strode to the spot, opting for power over finesse. He lashed the ball straight down the middle. Though it wasn’t perfectly placed, the sheer pace left Reina with no chance to react.

With Dai Zhiwei confidently dispatching the penalty, the score moved to 2–0—a win now all but certain.

From then on, Dai Zhiwei’s work was done. With Napoli saving energy for their league clash with Milan, and Villarreal facing tough opposition in their own weekend fixture—an away game against Simeone’s Atlético Madrid—there was no objection when Marcelino substituted Dai Zhiwei. The coach clearly wanted him fresh for the Calderón.

Once Bakambu replaced Dai Zhiwei, the match slowed, and neither side created much in the way of clear chances.

Napoli attempted a counter: Hamsik received the ball on the right and crossed, but the delivery was a fraction too slow, allowing Areola to snatch it before Mertens could arrive.

Villarreal responded with a fine move of their own. Suárez, outside the box, dribbled past a double team and then clipped a precise long ball to the right side of Napoli’s area. The lively Bakambu, just on, volleyed the ball back across goal, but Trigueros’s powerful drive zipped just wide of the post.

In the 86th minute, Marcelino made another change, bringing on Leo for the injured Dos Santos.

The unfortunate Leo, formerly Villarreal’s main striker, found himself relegated to the bench after Dai Zhiwei’s arrival during his injury layoff; now the No. 10 could only wait for his opportunity as a substitute.

With ten minutes to play, Napoli made further substitutions, but Sarri showed no intent to push for a goal. He simply swapped Hamsik and Mertens for fresh legs, still keeping one eye on the weekend’s Serie A match.

As the match ticked into the three minutes of added time, Villarreal launched one final attack down the right. Suárez lofted a ball over the top, but it carried too much weight and Reina collected easily.

Before Reina could restart play, the referee blew for full time.

Villarreal ran out 2–0 winners over Napoli. But anyone watching could see that Napoli had gone through the motions in the second half, so the tie remains alive—there is still everything to play for in the next leg.