Chapter 621: Ronaldo's Hat-Trick, Spain Defeats Portugal
Since the two teams were evenly matched in the first half, the fans expected an equally intense battle in the second half. They anticipated another half full of excitement.
But things didn't go quite as expected. At the start of the second half, Spain quickly upped the tempo, launching fierce attacks on Portugal's goal.
Lin Quan, who had played more of a team role in the first half, started to focus on more individual breakthroughs in the second.
Portugal seemed unprepared for Spain's sudden change in strategy, especially when the attacks started to focus down the middle.
In the 51st minute of the second half, Lin Quan and Iniesta played a quick one-two combination through the middle, bringing the ball to the edge of the box. Lin Quan then dribbled past João Moutinho and was about to shoot when Moutinho, slipping on the turf, accidentally tripped Lin Quan's supporting leg, sending him to the ground. Spain was awarded a free kick in a dangerous position.
Lin Quan got up, positioned himself over the ball, and prepared to take the free kick himself.
The free kick was very close to the edge of the penalty box. With a wall in front of him, a direct shot at goal would be difficult as it was likely to be blocked.
Portugal's players knew this, so they focused most of their attention on marking the Spanish players inside the penalty area.
It seemed like Lin Quan was planning the same. Before taking the free kick, he had a brief discussion with Busquets, who nodded and quickly ran into Portugal's penalty box, positioning himself on the right side, ready to pounce.
Busquets' move alarmed the Portuguese defense, and they assigned a player to mark him closely. However, Spain had other aerial threats like Ramos, Piqué, and Diego Costa, all capable of winning headers, which forced Portugal to divide their attention among several players.
With so many players to mark, Portugal's defense became disorganized.
As Lin Quan backed up and signaled for a set-play movement, several Spanish players started darting around inside Portugal's box, drawing the defenders' focus. With their attention diverted, Lin Quan quickly took the free kick.
Many thought Spain would go for a passing play or a clever team movement, given the setup and signals. But when the ball left Lin Quan's foot, everyone was stunned—it was headed straight for goal!
Portugal's defensive wall jumped to block the shot, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who was on the farthest edge of the wall, even felt the ball graze past his head.
As Ronaldo was still in mid-air, he whipped his head around to watch the ball fly past him.
In Ronaldo's eyes, the ball took a bizarre trajectory, dropping suddenly, as if it were on an elevator, and then landed in the back of the net!
The ball had barely hit the net before the Portuguese goalkeeper's outstretched hand arrived—just a fraction of a second too late. If he had been just a bit quicker, he might have saved it.
Boom!
The stands behind the goal erupted. Fans clenched their fists and shouted in celebration, overwhelmed with excitement.
It was Spain's third goal! They had taken the lead again!
And it was Lin Quan who had scored!
After his goal, Lin Quan cupped his hand around his ear, mimicking a listening gesture.
He was asking the crowd for more cheers!
The Spanish fans, already buzzing with excitement, cheered even louder after seeing his gesture.
Although the match had been thrilling up to this point, something had felt missing. But now that Lin Quan had finally scored, the fans were completely satisfied.
This game wasn't just a battle between Portugal and Spain; it was also a showdown between two football superstars, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lin Quan.
Ronaldo had already scored two goals in the first half. As one of the match's main stars, there was no way Lin Quan could miss out.
Seeing Lin Quan's goal, the other star of the match, Ronaldo, could only shake his head with a helpless smile as he watched Lin run back.
But Ronaldo didn't dwell on it for long. Glancing at the clock, he knew there was still plenty of time left in the match.
However, Spain's second-half attacks were proving to be even more dangerous than in the first.
Just two minutes after Lin Quan's goal, in the 55th minute, Lin Quan made a run down the left wing.
Sensing the danger, several Portuguese defenders rushed over to block him as he moved into the box, trying to steal the ball from him.
Even though Lin Quan's dribbling was slightly hindered in the tight space, with multiple legs trying to poke the ball away, he somehow managed to keep control.
But with so many defenders crowding him, he had no angle to shoot.
So Lin Quan chipped the ball to Isco, who was positioned near the center of the penalty area.
Isco wasn't expecting the pass and was caught off guard by Lin Quan's skillful delivery. He missed the chance for a direct shot, and by the time he was ready, the defenders were back in position.
Instead of shooting, Isco chose to pass the ball back toward the edge of the penalty box, almost as if he were clearing it.
No one was in that area—until a white blur appeared. One of Spain's players raced forward and, without stopping the ball, fired a low, powerful shot.
The ball zipped past the Portuguese goalkeeper and slammed into the back of the net.
Spain's right-back Nacho had just scored Spain's fourth goal in the 55th minute, making it 4-2.
In a matter of minutes, Portugal had conceded two goals, leaving their players stunned and disoriented.
Even Spain's fans in the stands were in disbelief. Just moments ago, the score had been 2-2, and now, suddenly, it was 4-2!
The overwhelming joy felt too good to be true, making some fans pinch their legs to make sure they weren't dreaming. Only when they felt the pain did they let out a huge sigh of relief.
"Looks like we shouldn't have doubted Spain's strength after a few meaningless friendlies. They're playing great in this match—nothing like what people were saying about them before the game!"
"Exactly! This Spanish team may not have the same star power as four years ago, but they're playing more as a cohesive unit now!"
"Totally agree. Four years ago, Spain had several star players leading the charge. This time, there's only one clear star. Everyone knows who the team is built around!"
"I have to give credit to Lin Quan. This is his first time leading the national team, and his performance has been flawless—even more team-oriented than expected!"
"Absolutely. If Lin Quan hadn't been so unselfish in the first half and played a bit more selfishly, Spain might've taken the lead much earlier!"
"I swear, Lin Quan is amazing. I'm in awe!"
"Alright, enough talk. After watching this game, who do you think is better: Spain or France?"
"With Lin Quan playing so well, I'd have to say… France!"
"LOL…"
"Dude, you almost made me hurt my back with that one!"
"Let's not jump to conclusions just yet. France hasn't played yet, so let's wait until they do before making any comparisons."
…
On the field, Nacho's goal gave Spain a huge advantage.
For the remaining minutes, Spain returned to their familiar possession-based style, playing patiently and keeping control of the game.
Portugal attempted several counterattacks, but they were all neutralized, as if their punches were landing on a pillow.
By the 70th minute, with victory in sight, Spain's coach Vicente del Bosque began making substitutions.
He first brought on Thiago Alcântara to replace the veteran Iniesta.
At 34 years old, Iniesta's stamina wasn't what it used to be, and with many more matches still to come, giving him an early rest was essential for both the player and the team.
After observing for a few minutes and seeing no issues, Del Bosque made another substitution seven minutes later, bringing on Marco Asensio to replace Diego Costa.
Costa had been nursing an injury and wasn't getting any younger. With his importance in the matches ahead, taking him off made sense.
Del Bosque held onto his final substitution for a long time, reluctant to use it.
That substitution was reserved for Lin Quan, but Del Bosque feared that taking Lin Quan off might destabilize the team.
Without their clear leader on the pitch, he worried the players wouldn't know how to play, so he hesitated to make the change.
It wasn't until the 86th minute, with only a few minutes left and Spain holding a two-goal lead, that Del Bosque finally used his last substitution, bringing on Lucas Vázquez for Lin Quan.
Although Lin Quan had only scored one goal, he had been involved in all four of Spain's goals.
Del Bosque intentionally substituted him out just before the game's conclusion to allow him to receive a standing ovation from the fans, a well-deserved reward for his outstanding performance.
Lin Quan clearly understood his coach's intentions. When he saw the substitution board, he smiled, high-fived a few of his teammates, and jogged over to the sideline, where he exchanged a high-five with Vázquez before stepping off the pitch.
From the moment he left the field to the time he stood on the sidelines, the entire stadium was filled with loud applause.
The fans' eyes don't lie. They knew when a player performed well, and this thunderous applause was a clear acknowledgment of Lin Quan's brilliance.
"Wow, kid, that applause is louder than anything we got combined!"
"Yeah, you totally stole the spotlight!"
On the bench, Iniesta and Diego Costa playfully teased Lin Quan as he returned.
Iniesta didn't feel the slightest bit jealous. He knew the simplest way to win the fans' applause: use your skill and performance to win them over.
Diego Costa, on the other hand, was genuinely a little envious.
He couldn't shake the feeling that, because he wasn't born in Spain, the fans treated him differently. Otherwise, why did Lin Quan get so much more applause and cheers, even though he had scored two goals?
In reality, Costa was overthinking it. The Spanish fans did support him, but the crowd at the stadium also included a large number of neutral fans from Ukraine and other countries.
Most of those fans were there to see Lin Quan and Cristiano Ronaldo. While Costa was a great player, he wasn't at the level of a global superstar, which was why he didn't receive the same level of attention from the neutral fans.
Despite Del Bosque's cautious approach, not long after Lin Quan's substitution, Ronaldo struck again in the 88th minute, completing his hat-trick and bringing the score to 4-3.
Spain's lead had been cut to just one goal!
"Wow, Ronaldo is on fire today!"
"This is insane—a World Cup hat-trick!"
"There's still time, still a chance! Portugal might not lose this after all!"
"Haha, Spain's coach must be regretting that substitution right about now. If he'd known Ronaldo would score again, there's no way he'd have taken Lin Quan off!"
"Don't jinx it, man. As a Spain fan, I'm sweating bullets over here!"
And it wasn't just one person sweating. Around the world, countless Spain fans were feeling the pressure as they watched the TV broadcast and saw Portugal's number 7 prowling the field.
Is this really how a 33-year-old is supposed to perform?
At his age, he just scored a hat-trick in the World Cup!
Someone even looked up the stats and realized that Ronaldo's latest goal had set a World Cup record. At 33 years and 130 days old, he had become the oldest player to score a hat-trick in World Cup history!
Despite his age, Ronaldo clearly still had plenty of gas left in the tank.
Rumors had been swirling that Ronaldo had fallen out with Real Madrid and was likely to leave the Bernabéu this summer.
After this match, even fans who had been skeptical about his potential transfer due to his age had to reconsider.
At least based on Ronaldo's World Cup performances, his ability hadn't diminished. He was still at the top of his game.
That meant any club buying him wouldn't just be getting his commercial value—they'd be getting a player who could immediately make an impact.
After realizing this, clubs that had expressed interest in signing Ronaldo began taking action.
Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo's agent, suddenly found his phone ringing off the hook.
Despite Ronaldo's heroics, Portugal's overall strength simply wasn't enough.
In stoppage time, after Ricardo Quaresma missed a golden opportunity, the referee blew the final whistle.
After a hard-fought battle, Spain managed to hold on for a 4-3 victory over Portugal.
Although Portugal lost the match, Ronaldo faced no criticism—in fact, he was widely praised by the media and fans alike.
Even Spain's coach, Del Bosque, publicly praised Ronaldo in the post-match press conference.
"Cristiano is an exceptional player. He proved his strength to the world in this match!"
(End of Chapter)