Zhang Yuning was challenged in the wild logging action in Bahrain. However, as the game progressed, he got better and better, repeatedly delivering great assists to his teammates.
In the recent two matches, Zhang Yuning has shown his best form as he has been no slouch against Dutch Eredivisie names such as Souttar and Jackson-Owen. Facing Bahraini players with weaker individual abilities, the national football team not only needs to respect the opponent's strategy, but also need to respond tactically. Coach Tarajić not only strengthened the defense of Zhang Yuning, but also instructed the midfielders to aggressively clamp down, not hesitating to commit fouls to break the connection between the national football center forward and his teammates, trying to shake Zhang Yuning's confidence by all means.
Zhang Yuning has grown from a substitute player to a stalwart of the National Football League forward line, shouldering the responsibility of leading the team to the World Cup.
In the last Top 12, Zhang Yuning had lined up behind Ackerson and was just a wingman for Wu Lei even when he got a chance to start. Going into the Ivankovic era, he still had to start from the bench. However, with the successive injuries of Alan, Fernando and Wu Lei, Zhang Yuning went from behind the scenes to the front of the stage, not only to open the way for his teammates, but also to take on the heavy responsibility of the center forward and the front waist, enduring huge confrontations and injuries. He did not retreat in the face of difficulties, but instead proved his value with two wonderful goals, and the offense of the national football team became sharper and sharper as a result.
As a center forward, Zhang Yuning is not only a tactical link, but also a powerful line of defense for the national football team.
Zhang Yuning has rarely had a full game since the last Top 12 tournament. He returned to action after a month's rest against Indonesia. In three matches in the Chinese Super League, he played just 30 minutes. This time, he once again played a full game, still charging full throttle in the second half and eventually earning a valuable goal.
Facing Bahrain's conservative style of play, there was not much pressure on the defense of the national football team, and Zhang Yuning was able to focus on the attack. Before VAR technology intervened, there were once holes in the defense of the national football team, but Zhang Yuning's multiple breakthroughs effectively relieved the pressure at the back and helped the national football team to get through the difficult situation. Ivankovic built the team around good players and the offense was simple and efficient. Zhang Yuning was the key to the team's victory.
Ivankovic has made great efforts to develop young players, with the likes of Byeloram having a very different style from their predecessors. In the 18-team tournament, the young players of the national soccer team did not have the opportunity to show their talents and had to fight against the opponents by strengthening their running and confrontation. This is extremely demanding on the players' fitness and the risk of injury increases. Ivankovic was reluctant to over-exert key players as substitutions could disrupt established tactics. In the final moments of this game, he arranged four Guoan players to support Zhang Yuning, who rewarded the coach's trust with a golden goal.
With the return of Zhu Chenjie, the average age of the national soccer team dropped to 27.6 years old, lower than that of Bahrain (28.7 years old), and was hailed as a "youthful storm". This is the first time the national football team has played with a younger squad than their opponents. Wang Haijian assisted Zhang Yuning to complete the fatal strike, an exciting moment that will be remembered by the fans forever. This goal not only said goodbye to the nightmare of the black three minutes, but also marked the initial success of the new and old generations of the national football team, and proved that Ivanovic's "chimerical" team building ideas are effective.
The national team has a short training period, limited selection, lack of tacit understanding between players, and a tactical level that is difficult to compare with clubs. If we can build a team with giant players from the national league, we can often get twice the result with half the effort. Success stories like Brazil (1958), Italy (Sacchi era) and Spain (Tiki-Taka myth) are proof of this. In the last Top 12, both coaches centered their offense around Wu Lei, who became the top scorer. Now, with Zhang Yuning as the core player, a historic opportunity has arrived.
