Chapter 124: Chapter 123: Off to a Bad Start or Taking Off? (Please Follow)
June 11th.
The first round of the European Youth Championship kicked off.
Poland took the lead, defeating Switzerland and earning three points.
However, Portugal was held to a draw by the heroic performance of Czech, ending the game at nil-nil and only securing one point.
Czech had clearly evolved.
He had become much stronger than in the second half of last year.
More and more like a wall.
In this match, Czech contributed fifteen successful saves, shocking the event.
After the game, Quaresma cried foul.
He had at least two shots that should have gone in, but Czech saved them.
Postiga similarly questioned life itself, with one of his double shots being denied by Czech twice in a row.
Ronaldo, on the other hand, was very steady; he had grown accustomed to Czech catching his shots.
After the match, Ronaldo was somewhat puzzled, or rather, frustrated.
He felt that he had improved a lot and was much stronger than the last season when he faced Czech.
But unexpectedly, Czech’s growth had outpaced his own.
This wasn’t scientific.
Could it be that he wasn’t as good as Czech?
For the first time, Ronaldo faced his talent so realistically, and for some reason, he hadn’t felt this pressure when he encountered Fan Peixi and Robben earlier.
Seeing Ronaldo caught in a psychological dilemma, Deng Kai enlightened him, "Because he’s born in ’82, and you’re born in ’85."
Ronaldo: "What difference does that make? We both have gone through eight months, but my growth hasn’t been as substantial as his, that means I’ve failed, right? I can’t accept this about myself, I need to train more!"
Deng Kai: "You’re really not too bright. He’s at the final stage of his developmental phase, where the growth curve is the most exaggerated. One year can equal the improvement of the past three to five years."
"When you reach that age, you will also experience explosive progress, maybe even more exaggerated than his."
"So don’t rush to train more. If you injure your body and leave a chronic issue, it will impact both the peak and duration of your future professional career."
"Follow me and learn to stay healthy. Understand? Get a thermos cup and soak some goji berries in it, okay?"
Ronaldo nodded reluctantly: "I get it, I get it, stop nagging, let’s go to sleep. We must win the game the day after tomorrow."
Ronaldo’s concerns were justified.
The group stage of the European Youth Championships only had three rounds of matches.
Each team played a single match against the others, unlike the Champions League format.
Under these circumstances, the outcome of each game was extremely important.
Now, the Polish team had already taken the initiative.
If Portugal does not win the next game, they might miss out on advancing very early.
This was incredibly harsh.
As expected.
The following day, an assistant coach suggested reverting to the double defensive midfielder formation.
But it was vetoed by Violante.
The Portuguese football media had also started to apply pressure, questioning Violante’s choice.
The Bola newspaper, not on good terms with Deng Kai, was particularly vocal.
Bola newspaper: "We don’t know why Violante chose Deng Kai, but his attempt is clearly a failure. Failing to beat the Czechs, the Portuguese U16 are at a cliff’s edge."
"It’s time to give up on Deng Kai. He’s not suitable for this level of competition."
"He can’t support Viana well. Allowing Meireles to make way for Deng Kai was a mistake."
"We admit that Deng Kai’s tactical understanding is better, but his physique has become a liability. A versatile midfielder like Meireles is far better suited for this kind of competition. Even Igor should be ahead of Deng Kai in the pecking order!"
Jiang Yunzhu immediately refuted Bola’s opinion: "The journalists at Bola always speak without investigation and thought. Deng Kai’s height has noticeably increased in the past year; he has reached his own growth spurt."
"Currently, his height may not be enough, but he’s already taller than another midfielder in the team, Igor. From this point of view, why should Igor be placed ahead of Deng Kai?"
On this point, obviously, the Bola could not produce a reason and chose to remain silent.
...
June 14th.
The second round of the European Youth Championship kicked off.
The Czech team defeated the powerful Poland one to zero.
Cech saved a penalty from the Polish team in the final moments, securing the victory for his team.
He became the best player on the field for two consecutive matches.
Several clubs, including Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Bayern, and others, expressed interest in Cech.
Playing on home soil, the Czech team saw the opportunity to advance.
The later match was between Portugal and Switzerland.
"Hello to everyone watching on their couch or chair, I’m Huang Jianxiang. Today, I bring you the match between Portugal and Switzerland in the second round of the European Youth Championship,"
"Portugal drew with the Czech Republic in the first round of the group stage. So, they absolutely need to win this match,"
"Their line-up today includes forwards, C Ronaldo, Postiga, Quaresma,"
"Dual attacking midfielders, Viana and Deng Kai!"
"Defensive midfielder, Meireles."
"Defenders, Jorge Ribeiro, Jose Fonte, Ricardo Duarte, Jose Bosingwa."
"Goalkeeper is Bruno Vale."
Switzerland is also a strong second-tier European team, and their youth team is not to be underestimated.
But to be honest, Portugal’s team this time is pretty much a dream team.
Quaresma leading the team seems almost like they’re playing at a different dimension.
In the first five minutes, Viana took control of the midfield, establishing a pattern of Portuguese dominance in the attack.
In the seventh minute, what was merely supposed to be a relay by Deng Kai suddenly turned into a cold shot, sending a long pass from right to left to find C Ronaldo—it was a trans-oceanic call.
Ronaldo, keen on a header, was hit from behind, lost his balance, and fell.
Such an action is common in football confrontations, definitely a foul, but not highly malicious.
However, for such a play, under normal circumstances, most people would get injured.
Or even suffer a serious fall.
This also highlights the different definitions and tolerance for physical confrontation between professional players and ordinary people.
Don’t think the football world is full of "glass players"; anyone swapping over to the side of ordinary people would still stand out for their physical fitness.
An expert in sports medicine once said that the intensity of basketball lies in the players’ own test of their bodies.
Sharp stops, changes of direction, pull-up shots, lay-ups, and slam dunks—it’s a process of self-inflicted bodily harm.
Whereas the intensity of football often comes from the opposition’s test of your body.
Those fierce body contacts, physical confrontations, slide tackles, challenges in the air that disrupt your center of gravity and balance, flying knees, kicks to your ligaments and tendons—some are unintentional, but they also bear the malice of human nature.
That’s why those who watch basketball might think football lacks the extremity, speed, and height, finding it unbearable when a match ends without a goal.
Those who watch football might find basketball too soft with the whistle, nearly a hundred stoppages in a match, never reaching a high tide continuously. Or what pleasure is there to speak of when there are too many goals in a match?
Beep!
The main referee blew the whistle immediately, granting Portugal a free kick from a decent position.
The first choice for free kicks and penalties within this U16 team is Quaresma.
It’s the privilege of a star, but also a reflection of his ability.
During training, under Viana’s suggestion, the team conducted a free-kick competition. It was clear that Viana had ambitions regarding the main free-kick taking role.
In this competition, Deng Kai was not on the list.
Because the defensive wall wouldn’t jump!
Deng Kai’s Ground Cutter had no chance to serve the nation.
Ronaldo’s free kicks were quite good, but not good enough to make the top three.
Viana was second.
Quaresma was a clear first.
His footwork was astonishing.
He could even score with a variety of fancy free kicks—powerful shots, curved balls, using the outside of his boot.
And with guaranteed precision.
True enough, ten seconds later.
Cheers erupted from the stands.
