Chapter 40: Chapter 40: War Criminal Level Performance? Then You Must Not Understand Happiness
"There is no question about this call! It was definitely a foul inside the box!"
"Deng Kai has earned his team a penalty kick!"
"His series of moves just now were as smooth as flowing water, fully displaying the characteristics of an attacking midfielder!"
"Don’t be fooled by his small stature, but he’s absolutely tough when he needs to be!"
"According to Sporting Lisbon’s arrangements, the penalty taker is the team’s number one star player, Cristiano Ronaldo... Huh, is Chris waving his hand?"
In the opponent’s box, Ronaldo said to the standing Deng Kai, "Kai, how about you take this penalty?"
Deng Kai laughed inwardly as he looked at Ronaldo.
Probably no one knew why Ronaldo offered him the spot.
Last time the team had a penalty kick, it was Ronaldo who took it.
He missed.
And today, thinking there might be something wrong with his touch, given the wayward shots he’d been having, how could he dare to take another penalty?
If he missed again, it would wreak havoc on his mental state.
At this stage, Ronaldo had not yet cultivated an invincible mindset.
He could only fill the psychological void left by previous misses when he was in good form.
Today was not the day.
Faced with Ronaldo’s request, Deng Kai readily agreed, "Then leave it to me."
So, Deng Kai stood at the penalty spot, ready to take the penalty he had created.
After ten seconds, Deng Kai raised his arms and yelled in triumph.
Although the quality of Deng Kai’s penalty was not high, due to the deceptive look in his eyes before the kick, the goalkeeper guessed the wrong way.
Three to one!
Sporting Lisbon widened their lead.
The surrounding fans couldn’t help but marvel at how Deng Kai was truly a player with a big heart.
However, spurred on by the home fans, the players of Sachaviennes did not give up.
In the eighty-fifth minute, they once again breached Sporting Lisbon’s defenses, creating a crisis in the backfield and eventually scoring a goal to maintain suspense in the match.
Two to three!
In the final five minutes, Sachaviennes went into a frenzy, with every player participating in the pressing.
The situation on the field was incredibly chaotic.
That lasted until the eighty-ninth minute, when players from both sides fell to the ground in the Sachaviennes half following a challenge.
Deng Kai, nearest to the incident, rushed over first.
A large open space lay before him.
If he advanced with the ball, he would create the last scoring opportunity of the match.
Both sets of fans were incredibly tense.
Knowing that he couldn’t disrupt the ball before Deng Kai, Sachaviennes’ center-back began to retreat for safety, waiting for his teammates to return and defend.
He would not confront Deng Kai head on unless Deng Kai reached the edge of the box, for Deng Kai’s long shots from there were a threat.
Bang!
There was no dribbling!
In a situation where the field lay open before him, Deng Kai actually chose to shoot directly?
From this distance, even if you were the alien Ronaldo, wouldn’t it be a bit too much?
"No! It’s not a shot! It’s a pass!"
"The football flies towards the left side of the box... Chris!"
"What speed from Chris! He saw the opportunity!"
"Deng Kai made the pass from a position where he shouldn’t have, but strangely, it’s as if Chris knew what Deng Kai was thinking, making the run when he shouldn’t have!"
"Everything fit just right!"
"The only suspense left is whether Chris can receive this pass, whether he can live up to Deng Kai’s trust!"
Bang!
Ronaldo didn’t stop the ball before taking a volley shot.
The opposing goalkeeper tentatively poised to make a save, but couldn’t even move before the football had already flown into the net from the near post.
Ronaldo kept the shot down!
He scored!
"The ball is in! It’s a success! Deng Kai and Chris have done it!"
"Throughout the whole game, Deng Kai created at least five brilliant scoring opportunities, but his teammates failed to capitalize on them!"
"However, in the very last moment, Chris didn’t let Deng Kai down!"
"Four to two! Lisbon Athletics has killed the game!"
"It’s a goal that doesn’t affect the outcome of the match, but it’s a goal of special significance for the future of Lisbon Athletics."
"Any team that wants to adapt to a new strategy needs time."
"Some need months, some need just a few days, but Chris has shown why he can be considered the strongest forward of his age in Portugal!"
"He only took one game to adapt to a whole new tactic! His talent is far more than what we’ve seen!"
"Of course, if it’s impressive that Chris adapted to a new tactic in just one game, then Deng Kai, who became the absolute core of the new tactic in his first game back from injury, is someone whose talent is underestimated by far too much."
"He is the brains of this team, I see the shadow of Rui Costa in him!"
In the end, the score was set at four to two.
This season, the Lisbon Athletic U15 team celebrated their second consecutive victory.
For those who don’t follow their matches, Lisbon Athletic merely won the game.
Even by looking at the score and pace, Lisbon Athletic didn’t play with any dominance.
This four to two victory, and the last game in which they won three to two because Ronaldo exploded in form, didn’t differ much.
It was a close victory, that’s all.
But for those who know Lisbon Athletic well, the victory in this game was incredibly unexpected.
Because Lisbon Athletic changed their core tactics!
They increased the team’s potential ceiling.
Yet the combativeness they displayed was not much less than before.
If every system upgrade could be integrated so seamlessly, why would so many people cling to aging teams without renewing them?
The Barça and Juventus of recent years, and this year’s Liverpool, all chose to grit their teeth and stick it out because the pain of transition was too much to bear, only to find it more painful the longer they endured.
If the previous Lisbon Athletic U15 team was roughly the level of third or fourth in the league,
then this current Lisbon Athletic team, after full integration, has the potential to advance in the north and south regions of the league.
In other words, they have the ability to challenge for the championship division!
...
After the game, Deng Kai, who performed excellently, was interviewed as the best player on the field.
Reporter: "Congratulations, Deng Kai. Your performance today was a surprise, and I believe there are more and more people looking forward to your twentieth birthday."
Deng Kai: "Why wait until twenty? I believe that both Chris and I will meet everyone’s expectations even sooner."
Reporter: "At what age do you think that will be?"
Deng Kai: "Eighteen? Or maybe, sixteen?"
Reporter: "Haha, you really have a sense of humor. Let’s talk about today’s match. Your teammates wasted too many opportunities today, including Chris, who aside from the last goal, could be called a culprit for the team’s performance throughout the game. Does this make you angry?"
Deng Kai laughed.
The reporter was puzzled.
Deng Kai could feel the remorse and anxiety in his teammates’ eyes as they looked at him from not far away, because their performance had indeed been culpable.
They had let down Deng Kai’s brilliant passes.
Yet Deng Kai answered, "I never thought of their performance as culpable. If someone thinks that way, then I can only say they don’t understand what happiness is."
"I am aware of my teammates’ capabilities; they are definitely among the elite of their peers. It’s my passing that needs to improve. My current passes are too sharp, and even professional players would find them hard to handle."
"I believe a good passer not only needs to make good passes and exquisite passes but also make passes that their teammates can receive."
"Of course, this is just our first official game with this strategy, and I’m confident that after we’ve fully gelled, we will present a perfect front."
"By then, we’ll fully deserve any honor."
Reporter: "It’s a happiness to be your teammate, your magnanimity eased a lot of pressure for them in regard to public opinion. Are you including any honor in your words, such as the league championship?"
Deng Kai nodded: "Including the league championship!"
