CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 7: ANTICIPATION

Santiago Bernabeu Stadium

Under the gaze of countless fans, Chen Zhong made a bold choice in the penalty area.

After Aguero fell, Fernando’s pressing on the goalkeeper was no longer useful, and at this moment, he directly turned his path towards Chen Zhong. The best and most prudent choice for Chen Zhong was to pass the ball to Drenthe.

Drenthe was on the side with his hand raised high for the ball, eagerly anticipating his chance to perform, but he overlooked Garcia, who was rushing like a hungry tiger from behind.

Chen Zhong assumed a shielding position, and Fernando engaged him physically, with both of their hands in motion.

With a strong shove to the side, Chen Zhong gently nudged the ball forward and, amidst the exclamations of countless fans, unleashed a powerful long pass, sending the ball flying.

Chen Zhong, whose vision was as high as 81, spotted Van Nistelrooy near the center circle. His long pass of 73 enabled him to pass accurately over long distances in most situations.

The ball traced not-so-elegant an arc, descending towards Van Nistelrooy’s side.

Van Nistelrooy, seeing Chen Zhong facing towards him, thought, "Is this kid really going to pass the ball to me?" At this moment, Chen Zhong’s actions confirmed his thoughts.

Step by step, with a resolute stride.

Van Nistelrooy rushed quickly to the landing point of the ball, as Atletico Madrid’s Pereira also headed there first.

This Colombian center-back, 180CM tall, found himself at a disadvantage competing with Van Nistelrooy, watching helplessly as Van Nistelrooy effortlessly controlled the ball.

Behind Pereira, there was only empty space except for a lonely goalkeeper guarding the goal. If Van Nistelrooy managed to control the ball, turn around, and run through alone, the consequences would be unimaginable.

No way! No way! Could anyone really think Van Nistelrooy can’t dribble?

"Beep~"

The sharp and resounding whistle blew.

Pereira and Van Nistelrooy both fell to the ground during their battle for the ball, as the referee pulled out the first yellow card of the match.

The Merengue in the stands expressed their dissatisfaction with boos, and Schuster was furious but understood Pereira’s action.

If Van Nistelrooy completed the turn and then Pereira fouled him, it would undoubtedly mean a straight red, an unwise choice. But by choosing to foul now, it was a beautiful tactical foul, quelling a Real Madrid offensive.

Moreover, if the referee were lenient, he might not even show a card at this point, opting instead for a verbal warning.

"A very unfortunate offensive opportunity."

"Van Nistelrooy had already gained the upper hand in the battle for possession."

"Whether choosing to take the ball himself or passing to Raul would have been a decent option."

"But Pereira decisively chose to execute a tactical foul to disrupt Real Madrid’s momentum."

"The Real Madrid fans on-site are extremely dissatisfied; we can clearly hear the loud boos."

"Of course, Chen Zhong’s performance is also surprising."

"Not only did he steal the ball in the penalty area, but he also initiated an attack with a long pass."

"It’s hard to imagine that a 16-year-old player could achieve this."

"Whether it’s due to high skill or youthful bravery, he certainly doesn’t fear older opponents!"

The camera focused on Chen Zhong, clearly capturing Casillas patting his shoulder, saying something, while Cannavaro covered his mouth as he communicated with Chen Zhong.

"This kid!" Schuster watched Francisco on the sidelines and said, "The report was spot on."

When Chen Zhong first entered Real Madrid’s youth training, the initial evaluation of Chen Zhong remarked, "A player who improves himself every day and trains hard." The second evaluation changed to, "A confident player who excels in his role. He doesn’t fear matches and is courageous in confrontations. His actual performance is better than in training."

At the time, Schuster didn’t pay much attention to these evaluations, but now he finds them exceedingly accurate.

Confident, too confident, dealing calmly with two players pressing him in the penalty area and still managing a long pass to help the team launch an attack from the backfield.

This spurred Schuster to think of numerous tactical ideas, such as drawing multiple players to press at the backfield, then having a center-back execute a long pass to quickly send the ball forward, allowing front-line players to finish a rapid counterattack utilizing open spaces.

Of course, there are downsides. If the front-line players lose the ball, the opponent’s shift from defense to attack can result in a direct threat to the defenders unless there’s a powerful defensive midfielder to protect them.

"Of course, it’s accurate." Francisco, noticing Schuster refrained from violent reactions, leaned over and said, "We have a comprehensive youth training process, and Chen is the most outstanding in recent years."

"His long pass technique still needs improvement." Schuster neither confirmed nor denied, "What do you think, how can I get these young guys into state earlier?"

The game continued with Real Madrid’s recent counterattack feeling like an illusion, as they remained cornered by Atletico Madrid’s relentless assault. Solving the team’s slow start issue was urgent.

Surely, we can’t endure a thrashing at the start of every match before bursting into action, right? That’s not my style, nor is it Real Madrid’s style. I, Schuster, have my own style.

Atletico Madrid’s offensive at the Bernabeu was like a tidal wave, causing countless Atletico Madrid fans to roar in exhilaration.

The "humiliation" of being forced to attend the award ceremony seemed to dissipate somewhat at this moment. They fervently hoped their team could keep attacking and scoring, achieving a great victory to win this Derby.

"This is a dagger ball."

"Drenthe, how could you pass like that?"

"Fernando stole the ball from under Cannavaro’s feet but didn’t escape him."

"This is Atletico’s counterattack from the front line."

Cannavaro as the left center-back and Drenthe as the left back were adjacent in position. Drenthe finally got the ball, looking to perform his primary duty, but facing Atletico’s aggressive presses, he could only timidly pass the ball to Cannavaro.

Faced with such a weak pass, Fernando was not going to be courteous.

He intercepted the ball from Cannavaro’s feet and then, amid Cannavaro’s entanglement, passed it to Aguero, who was moving forward.

Aguero excelled at using his agile body and skillful footwork to dribble past opponents at high speed, weaving through defenses like a butterfly, pleasing to watch and full of speed.

In the stands, Atletico fans cheered, envisioning Aguero toying with the defenders.

The Merengue couldn’t help but get anxious, wondering whether their players could withstand the pressure from the frontline star, Aguero.

Compared to the joy of Atletico fans and the concern of Real Madrid fans, Chen Zhong’s thoughts were much simpler.

Seeing Aguero’s footwork, how could he not know the opponent’s intention? Aguero planned to use his technical skills to dribble past him one-on-one.

Aguero, seeing Chen Zhong appear dumbfounded, slightly curled his lips. He feigned a move, anticipating tricking Chen Zhong, then quickly moved his shoulder towards his dominant foot.

Throughout this process, he watched Chen Zhong with his peripheral vision, and when he saw Chen Zhong move, he smiled even wider, somewhat reminiscent of a confident trickster.

He believed he had control over the situation, oblivious that Chen Zhong had already seen through his plan.

Unaware of the heights he dared challenge, Aguero never considered Chen Zhong a threat, daring to show off such a simple trick?

Just as Aguero planned to fluidly transfer the ball from his dominant foot to his non-dominant foot for a successful dribble, only a "bang" was heard.

The entire stadium immediately filled with the roaring voices of the fans.

Spinning, tumbling, bewilderment.

Faced with Aguero, Chen Zhong surprisingly opted for a sliding tackle, taking both the ball and Aguero down to the ground.

In the slow-motion replay, everyone could clearly see, Chen Zhong, as if by foresight, anticipated Aguero’s move early and decisively slid in.

The whole sequence resembled Aguero running headlong into a collision!

Watching from the television with no match duties and not involved in the team lineup, Bojan was watching this game. Seeing Chen Zhong on the field left him feeling low.

However, witnessing Chen Zhong’s sliding tackle taking down Aguero, he couldn’t help but shout out.

The nearby other young Barcelona players couldn’t help but look at Bojan.

Bojan explained, "I feel sorry for Aguero, how couldn’t he dribble past him?"

Yes, definitely that, not feeling secretly satisfied because of similar fates, definitely not.