Chapter 647: Lin's Violent Aesthetic, Spain 2-0 France!
As the first half entered injury time, Spain had yet to score their second goal. This brought some relief to the French fans in the stands, many of whom kept glancing at the clock, wishing they could fast-forward time.
With just 30 seconds left in injury time, the French players were eager to retreat and defend within their own penalty area.
However, Spain hadn't given up yet and launched one last attack in the dying moments of the half.
Since the French players had pulled back, Spain advanced smoothly through midfield, but as they approached the penalty area, they encountered stiff resistance.
Lin Quan tried to push through with the ball but was fouled by Matuidi, who collided with him from the side. The referee blew the whistle and awarded Spain a free kick.
Upon seeing Spain get another free-kick opportunity near the box, the French fans in the stands became restless.
Many thought Matuidi's foul was unnecessary. After all, with so many defenders in the box, even if Lin Quan got past Matuidi, could he really get through everyone and score?
Uh...
Actually, it was possible!
If it were anyone else, they wouldn't believe it. But with Lin Quan, French fans weren't so sure.
After all, he had pulled off such miracles before!
Lin Quan stood over the ball, preparing to take the free kick himself.
Compared to the previous free-kick, this one was slightly further to the left and about 30 meters from the goal. While a bit farther, it was still within Lin Quan's shooting range.
Undoubtedly, this was Spain's last chance to score in the first half.
Whether they could seize it depended entirely on the quality of this shot.
French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris watched as Lin Quan lined up for another free kick. The confidence he had built through his previous saves started to waver.
What would Lin Quan do this time?
Would he use the same trick as before?
Remembering Lin Quan's earlier free-kick, Lloris felt a wave of anxiety. That shot wasn't just fast and powerful—it was also incredibly deceptive, making it nearly impossible to predict based on Lin Quan's movements.
This significantly increased the difficulty of making a save, so if Lin Quan used that same trick again, Lloris wasn't confident he could stop it.
As he organized the defensive wall, Lloris had the wall shift slightly to the right, hoping to block Lin Quan's shot from that side. He himself stayed closer to the left, ready to cover that angle.
What if Lin Quan didn't aim for the left?
Well, then he would have to rely on his teammates!
"Don't be afraid when he takes the free-kick. Just jump as high as you can. At worst, we'll get injured and have to come off, but trading an injury for the World Cup is worth it!" Giroud, standing in the middle of the wall with his towering 6'2" frame, tried to reassure his teammates.
"Look, I'm the tallest, so I'll be the one to take the hit. If I'm not scared, why should you be?"
Hearing his words, the others felt a bit more at ease, though they still hoped Lin Quan wouldn't aim for the wall. After all, they vividly remembered the terrifying power of his previous free-kick.
The wall was quickly set, and injury time had already surpassed the extra minute.
The referee checked his watch, saw that the wall was in place, and blew his whistle to signal Lin Quan to take the free kick.
Lin Quan began his run-up, following almost the exact same rhythm as his previous free-kick.
Seeing this, Lloris immediately thought, He's going for the same shot as last time!
It made sense—after successfully scoring with that technique earlier, why not try it again?
Lloris kept his eyes glued to Lin Quan's approach, trying to predict the shot based on which leg he used.
Typically, a left-footed player shoots to the right, and a right-footed player shoots to the left.
Since this free-kick was slightly left of center, Lin Quan would most likely use his right foot, meaning he would aim for the left side.
That's why Lloris had stationed himself on the left.
Here it comes!
As Lin Quan planted his left foot to support himself and swung his right leg to strike the ball, Lloris felt a surge of confidence—he had predicted it correctly. Lin Quan was aiming for the left.
But just as Lloris prepared to dive, he noticed something different about Lin Quan's kick.
Unlike before, when Lin Quan had struck the ball subtly with his lower leg, this time his entire leg motion was much more exaggerated. His thigh was fully extended, with all his strength transferring from his thigh to his lower leg, like a whip cracking against the ball.
Bam!
With a thunderous sound, the ball soared into the air.
Giroud and the others jumped high, but none of them even came close to the ball.
Was it too high?
Many fans in the stands saw the ball's height and instinctively thought it would sail over the crossbar.
Some French fans sighed in relief, believing they had dodged the danger.
On the other hand, the Spanish fans looked disappointed, wondering if even Lin Quan would crack under pressure.
But in the next instant, the ball, which everyone thought was going over, suddenly dropped from its highest point, as if hitting an invisible wall, and plummeted straight down at incredible speed.
"Knuckleball!"
Some knowledgeable fans in the stands shouted in realization. This wasn't a miss—it was a perfectly calculated knuckleball.
France's goal was in grave danger!
Lloris, still waiting on the left, never saw the ball come his way. Instead, he saw it flying directly toward the center of the goal.
Panicked, he tried to dive for it, but it was too late. Before he could even react, the ball had slipped under the crossbar and into the net.
2-0!
Spain had scored again during injury time, achieving the goal they had set before the match.
Boom!
The stadium erupted into chaos as fans went wild. Lin Quan's free-kick had left them in shock and awe.
"Wow, that was a knuckleball, right? It was so fast!"
"The ball flew like lightning!"
"It was so fast, I couldn't even see it before it was in the goal!"
"Does anyone here have a speedometer? That ball must've gone over 150 kilometers per hour!"
Not only was it a knuckleball, but it was also one fired at incredible speed.
A shot like that leaves the goalkeeper with no time to react.
The technical staff seemed just as curious about the speed of Lin Quan's free-kick. After measuring it, they displayed the number on the big screen.
The broadcast director quickly switched the camera to show the number up close.
Lin Quan's free-kick had reached a speed of 168 kilometers per hour!
When fans saw the number on the screen, the stadium buzzed with excitement.
"How does someone like Lin Quan, with such a small build, generate such terrifying power? His explosiveness is insane!"
"Never judge a book by its cover!"
"This is Lin's violent aesthetic at its finest!"
From the moment Lin Quan struck the ball, there were only 30 meters to the goal. This meant that from the moment he kicked it until the ball hit the net, the goalkeeper had just 0.65 seconds to react.
Even the fastest sprinters in the world need 0.2 seconds to react, leaving the goalkeeper only 0.45 seconds to make the save!
Unless the ball happened to go right where the goalkeeper was standing, they had no chance of stopping it.
In Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo, having been knocked out of the tournament and watching from home, jumped up from his couch when he saw Lin Quan's goal.
His face was filled with disbelief as he stared at the TV.
Lin Quan's goal reminded Ronaldo of the free-kick he had scored against Portsmouth while playing for Manchester United during the 2007-2008 season.
That thunderous free-kick had been the highlight of Ronaldo's "violent aesthetic" and had even drawn praise from Sir Alex Ferguson as one of the best moments of his career.
Watching Lin Quan's goal now, Ronaldo saw shades of his own peak years from a decade ago.
Except Lin Quan's shot was even faster!
...
In a luxurious mansion in Cheshire, Northwest England, a retired Scottish gentleman sipped wine and leisurely turned on the TV to watch the World Cup final.
Since England had been knocked out in the semifinals, the old man was watching the game as a relaxed, neutral spectator.
Lin Quan's first goal had earned a nod of approval from the Scotsman, but that was all.
However, after witnessing Lin Quan's second goal in injury time, Sir Alex Ferguson could no longer sit still.
"Damn it, I should've bought a ticket to watch this match live!"
He regretted missing such a brilliant goal in person.
Just like Ronaldo, Ferguson immediately thought of the goal Ronaldo had scored ten years ago when he saw Lin Quan's strike.
The scene now was just like that moment back then.
It was so similar!
The more Ferguson thought about it, the more he began to reminisce about the past, which had been dormant in his heart for years.
When Lin Quan left Barcelona and hadn't yet decided on his next club, Manchester United still had a chance.
Unfortunately, Ferguson had retired, leaving the team without his guidance to compete for the football genius who would go on to dominate the sport.
If he had delayed his retirement and gone all out to sign Lin Quan, would things have been different?
Would Manchester United still be the dominant force in the Premier League, and would Lin Quan have been the next superstar Ferguson discovered and nurtured after Ronaldo?
But there were no "what ifs" in life.
...
"I knew he could do it!"
"I just knew it!"
Spain's coach Vicente del Bosque, excited as a 200-pound child, waved his arms and shook his body, almost as if he were about to break into a dance.
Assistant coach Tony, seeing del Bosque's excited face and the way his entire body shook with fat trembling, quickly backed away, afraid of getting a bear hug in the heat of the moment.
Del Bosque wasn't the only one going crazy. On Spain's bench, the assistant coach and the dozen substitutes all stormed out in wild celebration, shouting and cheering. Some even wanted to rush onto the field to join the players in celebrating.
Everyone had assumed that with the first half over, the team wouldn't reach their target.
No one expected Lin Quan to seize that final opportunity and score such a spectacular and unbelievable goal.
This goal completely shifted the momentum in Spain's favor. With a two-goal lead, they now had a solid advantage heading into the second half against France.
While France might have a strong second-half surge, Spain's two-goal cushion should be enough to neutralize their advantage.
Compared to the chaos on Spain's bench, France's side was eerily silent, as if someone had pressed the mute button. The entire bench was quiet.
Deschamps' brow furrowed deeply, almost forming a permanent crease. No matter how much he had prepared, he hadn't expected his team to concede a second goal right at the end of the half.
The impact of this goal was enormous—it not only doubled their deficit but also dealt a severe blow to the team's morale.
As French players witnessed Lin Quan, the opposing number 10, score one brilliant free-kick after another, what would they think?
They might start to believe that their opponent was unbeatable. This mindset would severely damage their confidence, and even if they had a physical advantage, low morale might prevent them from playing their best in the second half.
For France, that could be fatal.
Deschamps was already thinking about how to use halftime to calm his players and restore their confidence.
If they didn't fix the morale issue, their typical second-half surge might not happen.
...
With injury time already over, the referee blew the halftime whistle right after Spain finished celebrating and restarted the match.
Both teams headed to the locker rooms with Spain leading 2-0.
As Deschamps had predicted, the French players were clearly shaken.
As they walked off the field, their heads hung low, and they looked lost and dejected.
And no wonder—getting beaten by two free-kicks from the same player would make anyone question everything.
Scoring one free-kick in a game is impressive, but their opponent had scored two, each more stunning than the last.
Regardless of the final outcome, those two free-kicks would undoubtedly become iconic World Cup moments, and France would forever be part of the backdrop.
If France ended up losing this match, they wouldn't just be a backdrop—they'd be the stepping stone for Spain's third consecutive World Cup title, an unprecedented achievement in the tournament's history.
Many French players hadn't given this much thought before, as they were brimming with confidence in their abilities.
But now, after being knocked down twice by their opponent, they were suddenly reminded that they were facing the two-time defending World Cup champions.
This realization made their already fragile confidence plummet further.
Many of them couldn't help but wonder: Can we really defeat such a powerful opponent?
(End of Chapter)