In the 5th minute, the Chinese team escaped.
However, this did not last long.
In the 8th minute, Nigeria pushed the ball into the penalty area, causing all the Chinese players, including Lu Wenbin, to become nervous, and they all rushed to block the Nigerian players in the penalty area.
As a result, forward Odumaiti made an inverted triangle pass from the corner of the small penalty area to the top of the arc of the large penalty area, which surprised the Chinese players gathered in the penalty area.
Amid the astonished gaze of the Chinese players, Nigerian center back Echegile rushed up and shot the ball.
The ball flew into the air and hit the leg of Zhao Xuri who was trying to block the hole in the goal, causing it to change direction, bypass Zeng Cheng's fingers, and fall into the Chinese team's goal.
Although it was a lucky goal, Nigeria finally scored a goal, and it was into the goal of the Chinese team led by the world's top superstar Lu Wenbin.
For a moment, the whole stadium was silent, with only a few thousand Nigerian fans cheering wildly in a corner.
The Chinese team, led by Lu Wenbin, fell behind 0-1 to African champion Nigeria in less than 10 minutes of the first match of the Confederations Cup.
Zhao Xuri slapped his forehead, feeling very annoyed.
Lu Wenbin walked over to comfort him and asked his teammates to continue the game.
After the restart, Lu Wenbin tried to dribble past several players and score a goal, but the Nigerians were prepared for this.
Just after passing the first person, Lu Wenbin was tackled by the second person with the ball.
Although he was awarded a free kick, the opponent did not receive a yellow card because it was far from the goal and the threat was not great. Lu Wenbin's free kick did not pose any threat.
Although the ball hit the goal frame, it was easily caught by the opponent's goalkeeper Enyeama.
In the 16th minute, Lu Wenbin finally got a good chance to counterattack. He dribbled past two players on the wing and cut inside, preparing to cooperate with Wu Lei through the wall before breaking into the penalty area and shooting.
As a result, Wu Lei passed the ball off target due to interference from the opponent's defender, and another defender fell to the ground and tackled the ball before Lu Wenbin, poking it away.
In the 25th minute, when the Nigerian defense line basically focused its attention on Lu Wenbin, winger Hao Junmin easily broke through and then passed the ball to Wu Lei. Wu Lei's shot forced the opponent's goalkeeper to make a save, winning a corner kick for the Chinese team.
As a result, although Lu Wenbin's zero-degree corner kick hit the goal frame and was not directly taken away by the goalkeeper, it was slightly lower than the goal and was cleared by a defender at the back post.
Lu Wenbin missed a zero-degree shot at the Confederations Cup.
It was not until the 34th minute that Lu Wenbin and his teammates made a classic combination, broke into the penalty area and shot successfully, and the ball went straight into the dead corner.
Unexpectedly, goalkeeper Enyeama was like a possessed goal god and made a world-class save. He fell to the ground and lifted Lu Wenbin's ball, and then the ball deflected and hit the goal post.
The ball bounced back and was held directly in N'Yema's arms, leaving Lu Wenbin no chance to make a follow-up shot.
Even Lu Wenbin's close-range shot in the penalty area missed the target. The Chinese team had some bad luck today.
While the Chinese team was unable to score a goal, Nigeria continued to attack the Chinese team's defense with their strong physique and speed.
In the 20th minute, Nigeria had a shot that almost resulted in a goal, but it hit the post and escaped.
However, in the 42nd minute, the Chinese team finally conceded its second goal.
This was a free kick given to the opponent by Zheng Zhi due to a blocking foul. Nigerian midfielder Mikel shot directly from the free kick and hit the goal frame.
The angle of this ball is not tricky, but the power is very strong.
Zeng Cheng tried to hold on to the ball, but failed. The ball hit his chest and bounced out: Zeng Cheng lost his grip.
Players from both teams who rushed into the penalty area wanted to get the first point, but in the end it was Nigerian striker Musa who got the first point.
He fell to the ground and shot the ball into the goal past Zeng Cheng's feet.
Then Musa was pinned down by two Chinese team members, but it was too late.
In the first match of the Confederations Cup, the Chinese team fell behind 0-2 to African champion Nigeria, and the highly expected Lu Wenbin failed to score a goal.
Many people were wondering in their hearts: Could it be that Lu Wenbin had just gotten married and was still immersed in his honeymoon, so his legs were weak
In fact, the Chinese team was under too much pressure from Nigeria's attack. Lu Wenbin was positioned too far back and other players could not support Lu Wenbin, not even as a fulcrum.
Coupled with a bit of bad luck, we were unable to score any goals.
The only sounds left on the field were the Nigerians' excited celebrations, while the Chinese team, from players to fans, were all silent.
After the disastrous defeat in the 2002 World Cup, every Chinese person, from players to fans, knows the gap between Chinese football and the rest of the world. In this Confederations Cup, no one openly talked about who to target, who to defeat, or how many points to get to qualify.
Everyone knows that the African champion Nigeria is definitely not easy to deal with. Although it is not as famous as the strong teams in Europe and the United States, it is definitely stronger than Asian teams.
Unexpectedly, they were so strong that the Chinese team, including Lu Wenbin, was almost unable to fight back.
The Chinese team's defense was almost like a bus, with Lu Wenbin helping out, but it was still torn to pieces by Nigeria's attack.
Except for Lu Wenbin, the Chinese players are almost completely at a disadvantage in terms of height, weight, physique, speed, endurance, jumping ability, etc. when facing the black Nigerian players.
No wonder we couldn’t stop the impact from Nigeria.
Everyone felt a little discouraged.
After the game resumed, Lu Wenbin tried to use the kick-off right to launch an attack, but after passing three people and almost entering the penalty area, the Nigerian midfielder and defender jointly poked the ball away.
A few minutes later, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half, and the Chinese team entered the locker room with a score of 0-2.
When the Chinese players left the field, their faces were grim.
When the Nigerian players left the field, they all looked rosy-cheeked, as if they had already won the victory.
During the half-time break, the Nigerian locker room was filled with laughter, while the Chinese team's locker room was silent.
Gao Hongbo was helpless about this.
In fact, the biggest reliance of the Chinese team is Lu Wenbin's goals.
Lu Wenbin scored a goal, and then the defense line maintained Lu Wenbin's goal advantage. This is the Chinese team's tactic, which is known to everyone.
But the problem now is that the strength gap between the two sides is too big. Lu Wenbin doesn’t have many shooting opportunities, and his luck is also a bit bad, so he has not been able to score a goal.
Then, the Chinese team's defense was also poor. They were constantly attacked by the opponent and lost two goals.
Now, the Chinese team is trailing 0-2. Can they equalize or even reverse the situation in the second half
Gao Hongbo had no idea.
Just as Gao Hongbo was scratching his head and trying to think of a solution, and other players were drinking water or closing their eyes to rest, Lu Wenbin made a suggestion: he would retreat to play as a defensive midfielder, and Zheng Zhi would move forward to play as an attacking midfielder.