The All-Around Center Forward

"Suker! It still comes down to Suker! After a barrage of attacks, Croatia scored this goal thanks to the connection between Srna and Suker! We've seen Suker's incredible speed on the wing more than once in this match!"

"I think Germany's coach, Löw, made a mistake in his judgment for this match. He thought Lahm could single-handedly defend Suker, but he forgot that besides his shooting skills, Suker's ability to break through on the wing is also extremely formidable!"

"Croatia leads Germany 1-0! The alarm has sounded for Germany on the wings, and the battle has truly begun!"

As Krauhić roared, the whole of Croatia was already in an uproar.

When Suker held the ball on the wing, controlling and dribbling past defenders, they already knew it was a goal.

This was based on their trust in Suker!

And it was true; when continuous attacks couldn't break the deadlock, Suker could always appear like a divine soldier, using his superb shooting skills to score.

With such a formidable forward, the happiness of the Croatian fans was imaginable.

"Oh my god! That's the angle!"

"Exactly the same as the last match!"

"No one can stop Suker from shooting into the far corner!"

"The problem is, Suker can shoot into both the far and near corners, and he's equally good with both feet. This is a Goalkeeper's nightmare!"

"Hahahaha! He already is!"

The Croatian fans laughed loudly; the moment Suker scored, their tension eased slightly.

Germany is strong!

And indeed, they are very strong!

But Löw made a mistake by not placing extreme restrictions on Suker.

In previous matches, even when he wasn't on the ball, someone would constantly follow Suker.

This indeed hindered Suker's performance.

But Löw and Germany were a bit overconfident; they planned to go toe-to-toe with Croatia.

Then let's fight!

Who's afraid of whom?

Let's see whose scoring efficiency is higher!

"Löw has made a wrong judgment about himself and us. Lahm is indeed an excellent full-back, but no one in this world can single-handedly defend Suker!"

Bešić shook his head and said, "Every time Suker pulls into an open position to receive the ball, or is in a dangerous area, all that's left for Germany are repeated threatening attacks."

Van Stoyak also nodded; "Suker's shooting skills are too good!"

Bešić agreed wholeheartedly.

Suker's composure in front of the goal and his control over his shots had reached a masterful level.

Neither too fast nor too slow, but always hitting at the perfect moment, scoring goals from the trickiest angles.

You rarely saw Suker take a powerful shot or a long-range shot.

Because there was no need!

Others might think of creating miracles with powerful shots in front of the goal,

But for Suker, he possessed superb shooting skills; he only needed to aim for the angle, and he could score.

On the field, Suker and his teammates were celebrating.

Perisic also came over, high-fiving and hugging Suker.

Suker's goal also relieved Perisic.

He had failed to convert two opportunities, and if anything unexpected happened in the match, he would definitely take the blame.

Suker also rubbed Perisic's head forcefully and shouted, "The match has just begun, let's keep going!"

Listening to Suker's high-pitched voice, everyone's spirits were lifted.

Having witnessed Suker's explosive performance on the wing, their morale gradually rose, and they all became excited.

Lahm sighed, hands on his hips.

This conceded goal was largely his fault.

He was powerless to single-handedly defend Suker; he had to admit that.

And based on this, Germany had to make some changes.

Suker's left-wing assault would surely continue; this goal was just the beginning.

The camera focused on Löw; he was frowning and biting his nails, then picking his nose, and then putting the hand that picked his nose into his mouth, which was disgusting.

But this was Löw's habit; when under pressure, he most liked to pick his nose and taste his snot.

The German commentator naturally saw this scene. He spoke words like 'that guy,' but his heart was already growing irritable.

'Stop picking your damn nose, hurry up and think of a solution!'

After a while, Löw stood up and walked to the sideline, giving Schweinsteiger a few instructions.

It was nothing more than positioning closer to the left wing to assist in defending Suker.

It was proven that Lahm could not single-handedly defend Suker.

At the same time, Suker had the ability to continuously pressure them and score goals. If Croatia scored again, Germany would essentially be declared to have lost the match.

Due to his unreasonable arrangements leading to the current situation, Löw understood that his tactical setup was flawed.

But at this point, he could only mend the fold after the sheep had gone, completely abandoning the so-called offensive mindset and focusing on defense first.

Waiting until halftime for specific changes.

After all, this was not a matter of one or two minor changes, but a complete rejection of the pre-match tactical plan, requiring other arrangements.

Soon, Germany kicked off again from the center circle.

And after this kickoff, Suker immediately felt that Germany's playing style had changed somewhat.

The previously aggressive forward pushes were gone!

The sprints on both wings were also gone!

It was more about defensive compactness and a positional play style, combined with low-block pressing to disrupt Croatia's attacks in dangerous areas.

Löw's reaction was still very quick; he knew when to back down.

Snap!

Suker passed the ball back to Modrić with one touch.

This made Schweinsteiger, who had rushed over, and Reus, who had dropped back, grit their teeth.

This wasn't the first time!

Ever since they made changes, Suker also immediately changed his playing style.

No longer holding the ball, no longer breaking through as before, but using one-touch passes to once again become a decoy.

"Isn't this exactly how we played against Portugal?"

The German commentator said with a headache.

Suker was no longer breaking through, nor was he threatening their left wing.

But based on Suker's previous performance, Germany had heavily reinforced their left wing, and now Suker had started passing again.

Suker actively drew defenders and then passed.

But Germany's defense couldn't abandon the left wing, which was exactly like the situation with Portugal.

The only somewhat good news was that Perisic on the right wing wasn't in great form; he hadn't attempted to break through on several opportunities, instead focusing on safe passes to avoid losing the ball.

And Rakitić, positioned diagonally behind Perisic, was frequently launching attacks.

However, Germany couldn't afford to neglect the right wing, but they could still cover the left wing and the center.

"Ivan is playing too cautiously!"

Van Stoyak frowned.

He knew they couldn't have their cake and eat it too; Croatia had an almost unstoppable left wing, but their attack on the right wing was a bit sluggish.

However, Perisic was already the best they had; Croatia didn't have players like Messi or Bale on the right wing.

Bešić, however, was not in a hurry.

"Let's take our time! Dragging out the situation won't do us any harm!"

Time passed bit by bit.

Croatia was still on the offensive.

Germany also launched a few dangerous counter-attacks, but they were disrupted by Croatia during the final shot.

Vida and Lovren's cooperation was very good; although it was their first European Cup, they performed their duties very well.

They weren't greedy; if it was a dangerous ball, they would immediately clear or disrupt it.

Only when it was sufficiently safe would they choose to transfer the ball.

Emphasizing 'decisiveness'.

However, with the defense stable, Srna was also getting a bit restless.

Previously, to command the backline, he mostly stayed in the backfield.

At Real Madrid, Srna was a full-back who could go up and down, but in the two European Cup matches, he was more focused on defense.

Now that the situation was gradually stabilizing, Srna felt he could exert himself.

This way, he could also fill the firepower gap on the right wing.

"Dario, go up, I'll cover for you!"

Vukojević shouted loudly.

He could see that Srna wanted to go forward but was wary of Germany's counter-attack, so he had been hesitant to push up.

Now, with his encouragement, Srna immediately started to run forward.

At the same time, Rakitić also passed the ball to Perisic.

Perisic held the ball and stood firm.

"He's not breaking through!"

Boateng shouted.

Perisic's eye twitched, his heart filled with frustration.

But it was true; he wouldn't choose to break through.

Therefore, Croatia now needed to seek stability.

Just as Perisic was about to pass back to Rakitić, footsteps suddenly sounded from behind him.

"Pass it here!"

Srna shouted.

Perisic immediately nudged the ball forward gently.

Srna swept past Perisic, quickly going to the byline.

Boateng abandoned Perisic and followed Srna.

But Srna stopped abruptly near the byline, then passed back to Perisic again.

Perisic had already appeared in the flank area, with no defenders around him.

Perisic trapped the ball with his left foot and looked up towards the penalty area.

Suker, Mandžukić, and Rakitić immediately understood and surged forward.

Perisic crossed the ball.

The ball arced through the air.

"Perisic crosses!"

Mandžukić leaped high, but suddenly felt someone pressing down on his head.

With a bang, Neuer proactively charged out, punching the ball away with both fists.

The ball landed near the edge of the penalty area, and Schweinsteiger, not daring to be careless, cleared it with a big kick.

The ball fell towards the Croatia half.

"Get him! Croatia's midfield is disconnected!" Muller immediately shouted.

But at that moment, he saw Vida jump and head the ball to a position behind him.

A mistake?

Muller was surprised. Modrić was on the left, Rakitić had entered the penalty area, Vukojević was covering the right-back position, and there was no one behind him!

Just as he turned, he saw a figure wearing Croatia's number 4 jersey lightly jump, chest-trap the ball, and steadily bring it under his control.

It was the retreating Srna!

"Oh~~~ Srna!! His defensive return was so timely!"

Krauhić couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

In fact, after Srna passed the ball back to Perisic, he immediately retreated.

He happened to catch this pass, so he and Vukojević effectively swapped positions, covering for each other.

Srna passed the ball to Modrić, who immediately gave him a thumbs-up.

"Captain! Awesome!"

Srna smiled, and after high-fiving Vukojević, he returned to his position.

"Srna's movement is very active. Not only does he drive the right-wing attack, contributing some offensive power when firepower is insufficient, but he also actively retreats, perfectly running into the open space on Croatia's right flank, preventing Croatia from losing the ball!"

Krauhić sighed emotionally, "He really is a good captain!"

Srna is not necessarily Croatia's top star; in terms of fame alone, he is not as well-known as Suker or Modrić.

But he is definitely the most dedicated and hardworking one.

The right flank is almost entirely covered by Srna; his average running distance is sometimes even more than that of a midfielder.

He is definitely a fierce player who is good at both offense and defense.

"Srna is starting to exert himself too!" Bešić's lips curved into a smile.

Croatia's form was slowly improving.

First Rakitić, then Suker, and now Srna.

The efficiency of this recovery in form cannot be called fast, but it is stable enough.

An instant burst might be accompanied by a sudden slump.

Therefore, compared to those unpredictable teams, a gradual rise in form like Croatia's is the most reasonable.

"Damn it! How did Srna get up here again!"

Boateng became completely tense.

If it was just Perisic, it would have been fine.

But with Srna joining in, the whole feeling changed.

The most crucial thing was that both of Croatia's wings could now take flight.

"It's getting worse and worse!" Löw's expression was grave.

Hold on!

Hold on until halftime.

With the right wing activated, Croatia once again surged forward fiercely.

Amidst the intense attack on the field, the Croatian fans in the stands also erupted in waves of cheers.

Senna, many had predicted this would be a tightly contested battle!

Both Croatia and Germany would play cautiously.

But the current situation was Croatia suppressing Germany, unleashing a furious barrage of attacks.

The reason for all of this was a problem with Germany's tactical setup; they failed to properly address Suker's threat, which led to their first-half tactical plan being completely overturned.

However, at this moment, Germany could only grit their teeth and continue playing.

Just as Löw said, they had to hold on until halftime to make tactical changes.

But the problem now was that it was really difficult for them to hold on until halftime!

In the 34th minute, Croatia had a corner kick.

Modrić looked up towards the penalty area, quickly starting his run to take the kick.

At this moment, the German players' bodies also tensed up instantly.

Just then, Modrić actually passed the ball back diagonally.

In the sharp angle on the right side of the penalty area, Srna once again rushed up and calmly controlled the ball.

"Oh no!"

Özil and Muller rushed towards Srna.

But Srna didn't lift the ball; instead, he passed it horizontally to Vukojević.

Vukojević gently poked the ball forward with his right foot, and it landed at the feet of Rakitić in the crowd.

Immediately, the entire penalty area became a chaotic mess.

A group of people crowded together.

Rakitić and Mandžukić wanted to shoot.

The German defenders, on the other hand, wanted to clear the ball.

Suker, on the left, stood sideways, stretching his neck to look over.

"It's too complicated; just keep it simple! Just take the shot directly; what's with this crappy tactical corner kick, it makes no sense at all…"

No sooner had Suker finished complaining than he saw the ball in the crowd miraculously roll towards him.

Suker's entire body tensed!

"It makes sense!!—"

He pushed off hard with his feet, swung his arms, shrugged off Lahm's pull, and poked the ball with the tip of his right foot as it came towards him.

Whoosh!

The ball shot into the goal like lightning.

Germany's Goalkeeper Neuer didn't even have time to react before the ball had already nestled into the net.

"Oh~~~!!!! Goal!! Suker!! A brace!!"

"Croatia's tactical corner kick failed, but in the scramble, the ball miraculously appeared in front of Suker. Lady Luck favored Suker, but Lady Luck abandoned Germany!"

Krauhić was smiling broadly.

Why did it have to roll there of all places, right in front of Suker? Was this meant to be Germany's demise?

"Suker scores!! Croatia leads Germany 2-0!"

The entire stadium erupted again.

All the Croatian fans were cheering and shouting for the goal.

Mandžukić rushed towards the corner flag, raising his arms: "My assist! My assist! The ball hit my foot and bounced out!"

Rakitić: "Nonsense! I clearly kicked it!"

"It still hit my foot, damn it! I was the last to touch it, my assist!"

"Damn it! Have some shame! A center forward not fighting for goals, but fighting with me for an assist!"

"Do you think I want to?"

Slap! Slap!

Suker put a hand on each of their heads, his expression invigorated: "Well done!"

Hearing this, Mandžukić and Rakitić stopped arguing, both breaking into happy smiles.

No matter who assisted, they were two goals ahead.

"Let's look at the slow-motion replay!"

Krauhić squinted, watching.

It was a chaotic scramble involving five players.

Mandžukić, Rakitić, Schweinsteiger, Badstuber, and Hummels.

But at the crucial moment, Rakitić did indeed poke the ball.

The ball flew forward, first hitting Badstuber's shin and bouncing off, then hitting the side of Mandžukić's shin, and finally emerging from the side of Mandžukić and Hummels, rolling perfectly to Suker's left.

In the footage, Lahm stood in front of Suker. He reacted quickly, extending his leg to try and clear the ball.

But alas, height was a critical weakness; his leg wasn't long enough to reach it.

Suker seized the opportunity and quickly poked the ball into the net.

Seeing this, Krauhić clasped his hands together, his face full of reverence;

"Lady Luck blesses us!"

That goalpost hit by Perisic, it finally paid them back.

Now, with Croatia leading by two goals, the situation was completely different.

"Stay steady!"

Bešić also let out a deep breath.

His hand, tucked into his pocket, was tightly clenched, clearly extremely excited, yet his expression remained calm.

This was his first time as a National Team coach, participating in a major tournament like the European Cup, so he was definitely nervous.

But he couldn't show it.

However, his players' excellent performance comforted and excited him.

Now, with a two-goal lead, Croatia could be said to be in control of the overall situation.

It wouldn't be easy for Germany to turn the game around.

Of course, for the next ten minutes or so, Bešić didn't continue to provoke Germany; instead, he actively retreated into defense, first stabilizing the situation.

After all, there was still the second half, and Germany would certainly make some tactical changes.

He also needed to be prepared!