Chapter 27: Chapter 27: The Lisbon Miracle, Setting Sail!
Four to zero!
After two months and eight games, Lisbon Athletico U15 was finally about to embrace a victory!
But Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t celebrate after scoring, instead he ran towards Deng Kai, who hadn’t yet stood up.
The head referee also went over.
After signaling the goal was valid, he showed Andoya a yellow card.
Andoya complained on the field, arguing that since the other team scored, the foul he committed should no longer be pursued.
Andoya’s older brother’s friends were also complaining in the stands.
They had lost a lot, and all had been instigated by Andoya’s older brother.
In the end, a fight broke out in the stands.
Andoya’s brother was beaten up by his own companions.
The gang members always mouth off about "you’re my brother," but in reality, they’re ready to fight and stab each other in the back at the slightest disagreement, true to their fickle nature, and not worth close association.
Stadium security drove these people out of the stadium, but they went on to wreak havoc around the stadium, venting their frustration at losing money.
The police who arrived later took them back to the station.
The match inside the stadium was unaffected by this incident.
Fortunately, Deng Kai wasn’t injured.
In the 72nd minute, Maxa gestured decisively and substituted Deng Kai, who had been repeatedly brought down by Academia Sports.
Deng Kai had become a thorn in these people’s eyes.
Nobody was happy about losing.
They didn’t dare seek revenge on the tall and mighty Cristiano Ronaldo, so they picked on Deng Kai, the easier target, with very aggressive defending.
Deng Kai had already contributed two assists and two shots in this game, and even Maxa, who wasn’t much knowledgeable about football, knew the victory had a lot to do with this kid.
He was their savior.
They couldn’t let him get injured!
Quick, make the substitution.
After Deng Kai left the field, Maxa personally handed him a towel and mineral water.
When Deng Kai sat on the bench, Maxa even brought out his ancestral massage techniques to help ease Deng Kai’s muscle fatigue while checking for any injuries.
There were a few scratches on Deng Kai’s leg, which were minor.
In fact, the intensity of youth team matches is very high, not as relaxed as most people think.
Moreover, because the younger players have less control over their bodies, their movements sometimes are so big they can’t even control them themselves, equating to even higher intensity than in adult leagues.
In the 87th minute, Cristiano Ronaldo dodged two tackles in succession and broke past three defenders to score a superstar goal, completing his first hat-trick in an official match of the Lisbon youth team!
Five to zero!
Lisbon Athletico played a beautiful comeback game!
As a prestigious youth academy, the performance of Lisbon Athletico in this match reignited people’s trust in them.
After the match, major media outlets reported on this exciting game.
"Lightning goal! Super long shot! Football Caesar sets a new speed record for Portugal U15 league fastest goal!"
"Goals and assists doubly brilliant! Football Caesar makes a strong comeback!"
"Two such spectacular world-class goals, who dares say he can’t play football?"
"The king returns! Deng Kai’s special training shows initial results, scoring 9.5 together with Cristiano, and earns the title of best player of the match!"
"Veni, vidi, vici! He truly became Caesar the Great!"
"I came, I saw, I conquered! Deng Kai’s daring proclamation after scoring, aspiring to conquer the entire Portugal U15 league!"
"Hat-trick rockets him into the top three scorers! Cristiano welcomes the assistance of his best friend, and Lisbon Athletico finally bounces back from rock bottom!"
"Disappointing performance from Andoya, Deng Kai is not as bad as he said, and he himself is not as good as he claimed!"
"Deng Kai Outshines Andoya! This Could Be Why Andoya Was Dropped by the Sporting Lisbon Youth Academy!"
The situation for coach Maxa, whose position had been hanging by a thread before the match, only solidified after securing a victory, earning him an exclusive interview with Portugal’s authoritative football publication, the Record Report.
Reporter: "There were many different aspects of the team’s play in this game compared to previous matches, could you talk about that?"
Maxa: "We had some issues before and hadn’t been achieving the results we wanted. Additionally, our key player is very young, and he needed some special training to adapt to the U15 matches."
Reporter: "The key player you are referring to, is that Deng Kai?"
Maxa: "Of course, without a doubt, he is our key player. I had many plans for this match, but the most important thing was to have the other players treat him as the nucleus of the team. You can ask our team members, I am very confident in Deng Kai’s talent!"
Reporter: "But his touches and passes in this game weren’t particularly remarkable."
Maxa: "That’s where his intelligence comes in; he’s been integrating and leading the team in his own way."
Reporter: "By saying this, won’t other players in the team feel uncomfortable?"
Maxa: "No, because that’s the reality."
Reporter: "What about Chris? From an outsider’s perspective, he seems to be the team’s number one star."
Maxa: "Nobody denies that, but Chris is also happy about Deng Kai becoming the core of the team. Their friendship is stronger than you might think."
"Chris lives at Deng Kai’s house, they help each other out, and I am confident in developing them into the twin stars of Sporting Lisbon!"
This interview stirred up controversy as soon as it aired.
Although Deng Kai had impressive stats with two goals and two assists in the game, his performance on the field did not meet the level expected of a key player, given his average touch and pass data among midfielders.
You cannot judge a player’s entire performance based on a few highlights; that’s not fair.
Maxa, just a minor youth coach with little experience in giving interviews, was speaking from the heart about Deng Kai.
After all, he didn’t make any tactical changes in the game; he simply let the kids pass more to Deng Kai, and the team won like that.
How could he not favor Deng Kai?
In his view, he was already being quite reserved about Deng Kai’s importance when he gave the interview.
At the same time, only by emphasizing Deng Kai’s role could he demonstrate his ability to nurture young players and his capability in commanding a game.
However, those unaware of these details simply assumed Maxa was showing favoritism towards Deng Kai.
Just because the team happened to win as Deng Kai returned to the field?
Bola newspaper questioned Maxa’s actions and offered harsh criticism.
They believed that youth coaches should evaluate players based on fundamental skills and on-field performances rather than becoming fixated on the outcomes of matches and relying on players believed to bring victories to the team.
The functions of a youth academy and a first team are different, and Maxa’s utilitarian view may be why Sporting Lisbon’s youth academy has been on the decline these past few years.
It must be said that Bola newspaper’s point of view was actually correct.
The quality of Sporting Lisbon’s youth academy was seriously deteriorating.
Having Cristiano Ronaldo’s U15 team rank at the bottom among their peers was the best proof of this.
Most publications shared Bola newspaper’s opinion.
However, Jiang Yunzhu, a Chinese reporter for Sports Weekly stationed in Portugal, expressed a different view in the prestigious Ball Report.
Her article was titled "The Lisbon Miracle, Setting Sail!"
It stated, "Cristiano Ronaldo is a phenomenal talent, and no one in the entire Lisbon U15 can keep up with Ronaldo’s pace."
"Except for Deng Kai."
"Against Cada Sports, Ronaldo made the most passes in the attacking third he has ever made since joining Lisbon, with all his passes directed at Deng Kai."
"The one Ronaldo acknowledges on the field must also be a football genius. Deng Kai’s two assists and two goals showcased his different thought process compared to ordinary players."
"As long as his physical development keeps up, Deng Kai has the potential to become a top-league midfielder!"
"With Ronaldo and Deng Kai, Sporting Lisbon’s U15 team could possibly create miracles in the coming years!"
Regrettably, due to the reporter’s relative obscurity, the news sunk without creating any ripples, much like casting a stone into the sea.
It only circulated widely within the Chinese community in Lisbon, Portugal.
