Chapter 361: Chapter 360: I score less than Jia De’er mainly because Kai is not as good as Deco
Porto had expended a great deal of energy in order to gain possession of the ball.
In the 62nd minute, Deco had the ball, he accelerated past Deng Kai with a deft touch and then took a long-range shot.
Schmeichel, still sharp as ever, gathered the football cleanly.
But Deco’s splendid performance still won the full-throated applause from the Dragão Stadium.
One team’s core player devouring the other’s was a huge morale boost.
However, Deng Kai was not the slightest bit embarrassed; instead, a glint of light flashed in his eyes.
Deco was in a hurry!
After Porto gained possession, instead of strategically managing the play, they relied entirely on Deco’s personal skill for the attack.
This was the reason Deng Kai was so easily bested by Deco; he had anticipated a pass, but Deco caught him off guard.
But this was not a bad thing.
Such attacks, relying solely on the individual ability of the players, are not sustainable in the long run.
Seizing the chance during a dead ball on the flank, Deng Kai quickly communicated with Matthaus, Pepe, and others.
The 68th minute.
Deco had the ball once again, but was immediately set upon by Matthaus and Pepe in a pincer move.
Pepe was the first to get physical, Matthaus joined in, and Deco stumbled.
The ball was eventually stolen by Pepe.
Pepe passed the ball to Deng Kai.
Before receiving the pass, Deng Kai had already scoped out the situation on the left and right flanks and signalled to Cristiano for an offensive move.
Cristiano started moving but was tightly marked by the Porto right-back.
Bang!
The ball rolled towards Deng Kai who, facing Porto’s defensive midfielder, controlled and nudged it in one fluid motion, leaving both player and ball past.
The ball rolled between the legs of the midfielder, who, in a daze, reached out to drag Deng Kai back but was fended off.
Feinting between authenticity and deception, Deng Kai dribbled the ball forward through midfield, nearly entering his range for a world-class shot with less than ten meters to go.
Porto’s left and right full-backs both converged on Deng Kai.
Bang!
In the midst of his dribble, Deng Kai executed a through pass that sliced through the entire left flank.
Cristiano, cutting inside off the ball and without immediate opposition, found a perfect pocket of space.
The Porto goalkeeper charged out, hoping to thwart Cristiano’s breakaway.
But Cristiano was one step ahead; after receiving the pass, he gracefully pushed the ball past the charging keeper.
"GOAL!"
"Cristiano gets past the goalkeeper and slots into an open net!"
"Two-nil! Lisbon Athletic widen the gap!"
"That’s Cristiano’s thirtieth goal in the Primeira Liga this season!"
"Sixteen years old, thirty goals! If someone had told me before the season began that this would be possible, I wouldn’t have believed it! But now, the reality is right before our eyes!"
"This is also the first time in thirty years that a homegrown Lisbon Athletic player has scored more than thirty goals in a single season!"
"And the first Portuguese player to score over thirty goals in Primeira Liga in ten years!"
"Bear in mind, this is just Cristiano’s first season in the Primeira Liga! What a golden season this has been! Lisbon Athletic have created so many records and miracles!"
"For this game, for Lisbon Athletic, or for Cristiano himself, this goal holds great significance!"
"We are witnessing the rise of a prodigious goal scorer!"
"Just like Deng Kai said two years ago at the Golden Ball award ceremony: he has a friend named Cristiano Ronaldo who will become the best player at scoring goals on this planet, unrivaled!"
"I feel like Ronaldo is progressing exactly as Deng Kai described!"
"Of course, Deng Kai’s brilliant pass that tore through Porto’s entire back line was also remarkable. He made a fool of Porto’s defensive midfielder, and his timing for the pass was sheer perfection!"
The commentator was extremely excited.
But, in stark contrast to the commentator’s excitement was Cristiano Ronaldo, who had just scored his thirtieth goal in the Portuguese league.
After scoring the goal, Ronaldo was not overly happy; he didn’t even celebrate the goal on his own initiative.
Deng Kai was all smiles beside him, "Hey Ronaldo, didn’t you say you weren’t interested in the league’s Golden Boot? You said as long as the team wins, you’re happy and that the team’s victory is everything. Why can’t you smile now?"
Ronaldo gave Deng Kai a white look.
Do you believe that crap?
The direct reason for Ronaldo’s unhappiness was that no matter how many goals he scored, this season’s Portuguese league Golden Boot was going to be Jia De’er’s.
That was freaking infuriating.
Garbage Jia De’er, crushing weaker teams and racking up goals, just a stats padder, a planter!
"Kai, I have to say, your assisting ability is indeed a notch below Deco’s," Ronaldo even snapped back at Deng Kai, "He’s the one holding up the entire midfield for Porto, and Jia De’er’s outbreak has a very direct connection with Deco."
"And our midfield, with the likes of Viana, Matthaus, Deschamps, Quaresma helping you, yet you couldn’t provide me with enough ammunition... I’ve seen Jia De’er’s shooting stats."
"If I had as many shots as Jia De’er, I could score at least five or six more goals! My efficiency is unrivaled in the Portuguese league!"
Deng Kai nodded repeatedly, "Yes, so should the Portuguese league give you an award for the highest scoring efficiency? Sorry, there’s no such award... Also, I know I’m not yet at Deco’s level, but... oh, how come I’m still the assist king of the league?"
Ronaldo stormed towards the midfield, infuriated, single-handedly shunning the shameless Deng Kai.
An assist king who can’t produce a Golden Boot winner is just another padder!
...
In the seventieth minute, Sporting Lisbon made a substitution.
But this substitution was different from the past.
Drogba was not replaced by Ibrahimovic.
The one Deschamps came off for was not Pepe, but Matthaus.
Trigella had his own rationale for this.
Not substituting Drogba was Trigella’s reward for Drogba’s diligent performance this season and in this match.
Letting Drogba play the full match of the season’s most important game was a mark of respect.
And unless something unexpected happened, Ibrahimovic would not get the chance to play today.
In the Portuguese Cup final four days later, Ibrahimovic was set to start and, more likely than not, play the entire match.
This was also a reward and a sign of respect for Ibrahimovic.
Pepe not being substituted had the same reason as why he was in the starting lineup; Sporting Lisbon was even considering developing him as the team’s future captain and spirit, making him the soul of Sporting Lisbon.
That red card Pepe got for a tackle had given him a bad label, with many clubs in the future unlikely to consider such a disorderly player when buying, but it also opened up another professional path for him.
Moreover, Pepe was also one of Deng Kai’s staunch supporters.
Swapping Pepe in for Feng Te, who was clearly more talented and capable, certainly wasn’t disrespectful to our dear Deng Kai, was it?
Such a design was perfect!
A world with only Feng Te injured had been achieved just like that!
Seventy-third minute.
Deschamps, who had just come onto the pitch, made a mistake, or rather, Deco exploited his decline in running ability and passed him with a targeted lob.
After receiving the ball, Jia De’er pushed past Feng Te following him, turned around, and blasted the shot forcefully, all in one smooth motion.
The football aggressively hit the net, showcasing the strength of the forward who had already secured the Portuguese league’s Golden Boot.
A masterstroke, conquering all.
Jia De’er’s "turn and shoot ability" is definitely top-tier in today’s football world.
