In another match that ended at the same time, Japan beat Iraq 1-0 at home.
Therefore, after four rounds of the top ten matches, the Chinese team ranked first with 9 points, Japan ranked second with 7 points, Australia ranked third with 2 points, Oman ranked fourth with 2 points, and Iraq ranked last with 1 point.
China and Japan gradually widened the points gap with the rest.
Australia, in particular, joined the AFC thinking it would be easier to qualify from Asia, but now it seems likely that they will not be able to qualify.
Of course, there are ten rounds in the top ten matches, and only four rounds have passed. There is still early time and Australia still has a chance to turn the tables. It cannot be said that China and Japan will definitely occupy the top two places and qualify directly.
After finishing the top ten matches and returning to Spain, Real Madrid faced the fourth round of La Liga.
On September 15, in the fourth round of La Liga, Real Madrid played against Sevilla away.
Because the first round of the Champions League group match against Manchester City would be held in three days, Mourinho was reserved in this match and only fielded a few main players such as Lu Wenbin.
Real Madrid had a difficult game.
Maybe it was because many players, including substitutes, had participated in national team games, and when they came back to play away games, they were exhausted.
Perhaps the reason is that the team already won the treble last season, and the players lack fighting spirit this season.
Coupled with a bit of bad luck, the team was finally tied 2-2 by Sevilla away from home.
If it weren't for Lu Wenbin's goal and assist, Real Madrid would even lose the game.
Fortunately, Real Madrid finally escaped from the away game unscathed thanks to Lu Wenbin's pass and goal, maintaining their unbeaten record. Their unbeaten streak in La Liga extended to 46 games.
Next up is the Champions League group stage that has attracted worldwide attention: Real Madrid vs. Manchester City.
Needless to say, Real Madrid has many superstars in its team, including Lu Wenbin, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema, Di Maria, Alonso, Ramos, Casillas and so on. These names alone are enough to attract countless fans to watch the game.
As for Manchester City, it is mainly their financial resources and the status of the new Premier League champions.
Last season, thanks to Aguero's goal, Manchester City defeated Queens Park Rangers in the last minute of stoppage time and won the Premier League championship with the advantage of goal difference over their arch-rivals Manchester United.
This is Manchester City's first Premier League title and the fifth champion in the 20-year history of the Premier League. It is also the first time Manchester City has won the English top league title again in 44 years since 1968.
The biggest reason for Manchester City's turnaround is that it was acquired by the Abu Dhabi Consortium, a Middle Eastern consortium.
Since the Abu Dhabi consortium took over, Manchester City has invested huge amounts of money in the transfer market every season, bringing in talented stars and transforming the lineup, and finally won their first Premier League championship last season.
Now, Manchester City has a number of powerful superstars such as Joe Hart, Maicon, Yaya Toure, Tevez, Dzeko, Kompany, Xavi Garcia, Aguero, etc., and its strength is not inferior to European giants such as Manchester United, Bayern and Barcelona.
The only downside is the lack of a Champions League title.
Therefore, Manchester City is still seen as an oil upstart rather than a wealthy club in the eyes of fans.
Despised by the outside world as a nouveau riche, Manchester City is naturally eager for the Champions League from top to bottom. Being assigned to the death group is even more desperate.
Therefore, even when facing the Galacticos Real Madrid away from home, Manchester City must be united and fight hard with Real Madrid.
At 20:45 on the evening of September 18th, at the Bernabeu Stadium, under the expectant gaze of countless fans at the scene and in front of TVs around the world, with the referee's whistle, the first round of the 2012/2013 Champions League Group D match between Real Madrid and Manchester City officially began.
Real Madrid uses 4231, while Manchester City uses 4321. The defense of the defensive midfielder and four defenders is more thorough than that of Real Madrid.
In the 7th minute, Khedira intercepted the ball from midfielder Dzeko and Real Madrid launched a counterattack. However, Lu Wenbin's dribbling breakthrough was intercepted by Barry and Yaya Toure just after he crossed the center line.
In the 14th minute, Lu Wenbin no longer used individual breakthroughs, but instead played a quick passing and cutting game with his teammates, and finally got a chance to take a long shot on the penalty area line.
As a result, the heavy artillery shot that went straight to the blind corner was saved by Joe Hart and went out of the baseline.
A nervous Joe Hart produced a brilliant, world-class save.
Joe Hart, the England national team goalkeeper, is indeed a bit neurotic.
When he performs well, he is as good as the world's top goalkeepers. When he makes mistakes, people will want to kick him a few times.
As a result, Lu Wenbin now faces the heroic Joe Hart. It can be said that he is a bit unlucky.
While Yaya Toure, Joe Hart and others were guarding the goal, Dzeko, Aguero and others in front were not idle either.
Despite having fewer people, Dzeko, Aguero and others still got some good opportunities thanks to their strong personal abilities.
In the 18th minute, attacking midfielder Dzeko made a good pass that penetrated Real Madrid's defense line, and Aguero completed a close-range shot in front of the goal before Ramos.
Casillas didn't have time to fall to the ground to save the ball. He subconsciously stretched his legs and luckily blocked the close-range shot out of the goal. Then Pepe who came back to defend kicked the ball out of the penalty area.
Casillas also made a crucial save.
Being in the death group, both sides fought fiercely, not only in terms of technology, but also in terms of physical confrontation.
In the 22nd minute, Khedira and Manchester City midfielder Nasri had a fierce aerial collision. Both of them lay on the ground for a long time without getting up. They resumed the game after treatment by the team doctors of both sides.
But Nasri was more seriously injured and could no longer continue in the 36th minute. He was replaced by Kolarov by Mancini before the end of the first half.
As a result, Kolarov made a mistake just a few minutes after coming on the pitch.
In the 41st minute, Manchester City attacked and Aguero had already run into the open space. However, Kolarov, who had the ball, refused to pass the ball and tried to break through Pepe's defense and enter the penalty area to shoot.
As a result, Pepe seized the opportunity and made a tackle, knocking him to the ground with the ball. The ball was also shoveled by Pepe to Alonso who was returning to defense.
Real Madrid launched a quick counterattack. Alonso found Benzema with a precise long pass. Benzema dribbled the ball to the side and passed it horizontally. Lu Wenbin inserted from the back row and made a shocking and violent long shot from the top of the penalty area, finally penetrating Joe Hart's defense.
According to statistics after the game, the speed of the ball reached more than 128 kilometers per hour. No wonder Joe Hart, who played so bravely, couldn't react.
Real Madrid finally scored the first goal with Lu Wenbin's long-range shot and led Manchester City 1-0 at home.
The root cause of the goal was Kolarov. If he hadn't stuck to the ball and passed it to Aguero earlier, not only would the ball not have been intercepted and counterattacked, but Aguero might have scored a goal.
Therefore, football requires teamwork. Even Lu Wenbin sometimes needs support from his teammates.
It is not possible in every game for a person to dribble past several players and score a goal.