The perfect center forward: Becoming a soccer king from the corner of Chuanu Chapter 136

The flags on the field were flying, and the two teams emerged from the player tunnel. Lucia’s Champions League knockout debut officially began.

If there was one football arena on Earth with the highest tactical and technical level, the Champions League knockout stage would dare to claim second place, and no one would dare to claim first.

This absolute dominance wouldn’t change just because fans of the “dual GOATs” left Europe.

Therefore, no fan would defy logic and claim that the Copa América had more prestige and viewership than the European Championship.

“Sky Sports, welcome everyone to the Champions League Round of 16 match between Sevilla and Manchester United at home.”

“Today, we’ve once again invited our familiar old friend, Red Devils legend Neville, as our commentator.”

During the pre-match warm-up, Neville began to criticize the ‘Special One’ again.

This was because Mourinho’s comments after being eliminated from the League Cup had caused a huge controversy.

“Manchester United’s transfer and management approach fully demonstrates what unprofessionalism is. So, for this club, being knocked out of cup competitions is nothing new.”

The specific reason was the club’s bizarre operations during the winter transfer window. After letting go of four players, led by Mkhitaryan, they completely failed to sign the wing attackers the ‘Special One’ had envisioned.

Management and club legends unanimously believed that the team’s “DNA trio” could carry the load. After being driven mad by the ‘Special One’s’ demands, they made some inexplicable signings.

They directly threw a Sanchez at Mourinho and asked if he wanted him. The most frustrating part was that his salary was second only to Lucia, the team’s strongest player.

Coupled with the Chilean’s lackluster performance since his arrival, the team was now even more turbulent.

At Lucia’s suggestion, Raiola began to cause trouble for Manchester United.

What kind of stats, what kind of performance does Sanchez have to earn that much money?

How much should a meritorious player who has built up the club and scored over 40 goals earn?

Lucia had several reasons for wanting a raise. One was the club’s financial investment; the more money spent on him, the more stable his position would be.

Comparing this to the “Lock” who only spent 300 million in three years, everyone would know how skilled the bald Dutchman was at navigating the workplace.

Secondly, it was about his status within the team; to be the team’s leader, his salary and benefits had to keep pace.

Finally, there was the “Salary King” easter egg trait, a divine skill that boosted overall ability by 5%. For his own stats and honors, he had to make it happen.

Lucia had originally planned to negotiate with the club after achieving some success this season, but now that the opportunity presented itself, he would go for it directly.

Of course, as a model professional player, Lucia wouldn’t achieve this by slacking off. He had to use his excellent performance and impressive stats to force the management to compromise.

The Italian also brought his “little brothers” – Pogba, Lukaku, and McTominay – to work hard together.

The simple values of playing well and earning big money were far more appealing than being promised glory.

On the pitch, Lucia, standing tall on the grass, was completely unaffected by off-field factors. All he wanted right now was to win match by match.

His goals were to defeat Real Madrid and win three consecutive Champions League titles, reaching the pinnacle of European football, and to surpass the Portuguese player’s goal-scoring record.

“With a whistle from the referee, both teams began their first European showdown.”

The ‘Special One’ deployed a 4- 3- 3 formation for this match.

Goalkeeper: De Gea

Defenders: Ashley Young, Smalling, Lindelof, Valencia

Midfielders: Pogba, Matic, Herrera

Forwards: Sanchez, Lucia, Lukaku

Lucia and Lukaku both started. The Italian and Belgian had become an incredibly cohesive and effective partnership in the Premier League.

They had assisted each other nearly ten times, making them the biggest contributors to Manchester United’s strong progress on all three fronts this season.

The home team, Sevilla, also lined up in a 4- 3- 3 formation. Ben Yedder, who had scored 6 goals in the Champions League, unfortunately sat on the bench, as “Little Plane” opted for a stronger, “shit-stirring” striker to start.

Specific information was as follows:

“Last weekend, Manchester United successfully defeated Huddersfield 2- 0 away in the FA Cup, advancing to the next round.

They are also in excellent form in the league and are strong contenders for this season’s Premier League title.

Facing Sevilla away, Manchester United hopes to score and even secure a victory to lay the foundation for advancing to the quarterfinals.

However, the Spanish team is not to be underestimated. After changing managers, Sevilla has achieved an unbeaten record of 4 wins and 1 draw in their last 5 home matches.”

– [Go, Red Devils!!]

– [Cup competitions are where Mourinho is most at home!]

– [At Lucia’s efficiency, if they reach the final, he might really break through.]

The live comments on the domestic broadcasting platform were sparse, incomparable to the fervent atmosphere of previous Premier League matches.

There was no helping it; despite being the highest-level tactical and technical competition, the Champions League didn’t attract high viewership in China.

Due to it being a midweek match, and considering that fans needed to work, the kick-off time wouldn’t cater to the Asian market like the Premier League did.

A 3:30 AM match, unless it was a strong clash between top giants or for die-hard fans, it would be extremely difficult to find the courage to wake up in the middle of the night.

Furthermore, most fans might have families and careers. One reason was the risk of waking up sleeping family members, and the other was the need to work hard the next day, which contributed to the Champions League’s lack of popularity.

This was partly why, in the future, when Champions League broadcasting rights were sold for only two or three million dollars per platform, no one wanted to buy them.

In Europe, however, it was a frenzy. The astonishing purchasing power of English fans injected a strong shot into Sevilla’s economy.

For Chinese fans, they could only blame their own league for its weakness. During the golden era of the Chinese Super League, domestic league attendance was quite good.

Moreover, it was the prime time for watching football. Alas, Chinese fans truly suffered!

“Sevilla’s possession. The home team at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium entered the game rhythm faster!”

The Spanish team’s small techniques were excellent, their rotation speed was very fast, and the ball passed quickly.

Banega, who seemed to be getting younger, dribbled through. After his long hair turned short, the Argentine’s drag coefficient was also reduced.

He used his body very well, combining small techniques with the advantage of speed.

A feint, then a sudden acceleration, followed by a change of direction.

The “Flavor Boy” delivered a crucial pass, the ball threading through the crowd and flying towards Manchester United’s penalty area.

Fortunately, Lindelof slid in just in time to intercept the ball.

“Muriel was already in position, but thankfully Manchester United’s defense was focused and successfully averted the danger.

Although the Red Devils are a Premier League giant, here’s a little-known fact:

Manchester United has played 50 matches against Spanish teams in European competitions, with a record of 13 wins, 20 draws, and 17 losses. Their record in Spain is 3 wins, 10 draws, and 10 losses, an extremely poor winning rate.

So, the Red Devils’ number one player’s pre-match boasting about the ‘world’s best league’ can be taken as a joke!”

The local Sevilla TV commentator took advantage of the dead ball to mock the Italian’s pre-match comments.

The thrilling moments on the field made the Red Devils fans who traveled for the away game break out in a cold sweat, especially with Sevilla’s bizarre weather.

It was over 20 degrees Celsius during the day, but only 5 degrees Celsius at night, and the cold wind made it even more uncomfortable.

If they had heard the live commentator share that “cold fact,” they would have felt an even greater chill.

The next shot still showed Sevilla attacking. Having the home advantage certainly gave them a significant edge in the match.

In the future, the Chinese national team would suffer due to indescribable reasons, leading to no home games in World Cup qualifiers, and several matches that could have been won ended in bitter defeat.

It was another attack orchestrated by the Argentine, Banega. The “Redondo successor” had excellent talent.

Superb organization and dribbling, coupled with good evasion skills, his small and agile physique just happened to cause trouble for Manchester United’s predominantly tall midfielders.

A wall pass with Sarabia, then a direct diagonal pass to Joaquin Correa on the left.

The latter swept a quick low ball across the face of the goal, and De Gea successfully cleared the danger.

“Kid, is this the power of the world’s best league??” Lucia, who hadn’t touched the ball much in three minutes, was directly provoked by Banega.

A man of few words but fierce action, he glared at his opponent and uttered a classic national curse.

Lucia, who had given the Argentine a “potato” (a hard tackle), also tracked back to defend, showing him what physical dominance meant.

Banega was no pushover either. The two tangled for a bit and were both verbally warned by the referee to rein it in if they didn’t want to get a card.

In the next shot, the Red Devils launched an attack. Sanchez, who had only scored one penalty in 10 appearances since joining the team, was a bit too eager.

His shot after cutting inside posed no threat whatsoever. In the counter-attack, Banega chose to go it alone this time, also sending a shot sky-high, in tribute to his South American compatriot.

Shooting “air balls” was this Argentine’s signature move. After all, he had a famous incident of recording himself in an online video with a female netizen and “jerking off.”

This “King of Stupidity,” who could be compared to Balotelli, had done more than just that.

Drunk driving and running red lights,

Regularly frequenting burger and pizza joints,

Refrigerator filled with beer,

Wearing rival team jerseys,

Blocking a car with his foot, causing a fractured ankle and shin bone,

A Ferrari bought that morning catching fire after being driven in first gear—countless idiotic incidents.

And today, the “King of Stupidity” continued to act foolishly. As he walked past Lucia to return to his own half, he had to open his mouth again.

“Even the midfielders are getting shooting opportunities, where’s the Champions League top scorer???”

The former prodigy was very displeased to see Lucia, with his over 100 million transfer fee and astonishing annual income, believing he was born in the wrong era.

He seized every opportunity to criticize the hottest new superstar in football today.

But his joy didn’t last long, as in the very next shot, Lucia directly knocked him to the ground!

“De Gea’s long pass finds Lucia, and the Italian dribbles forward on his own.”

“Very fast, Banega comes up to interfere.”

This was exactly what Lucia was waiting for. He made a sudden stop, and after the Argentine got close, he suddenly burst forward with wild acceleration. The powerful impact directly brushed aside the Sevilla midfielder.

Banega felt as if he had come to an NFL field. If his center of gravity hadn’t been low enough, he would have been directly thrown off like an American football player!

“Sevilla’s number 10 should have experienced this before. When he tried to block a car with his leg, it was probably like this. The consequence of a praying mantis trying to stop a chariot is being mercilessly crushed!”

Having dealt with the small midfielder who liked to cling and interfere, N’Zonzi and Lenglet were already in position ahead.

Lucia didn’t choose to force a 1v 2. Facing the Argentine still chasing frantically from behind, he directly passed the ball to a teammate.

“The ball goes to Pogba, and the Frenchman plays a diagonal pass with the outside of his foot, with excellent placement!”

“Lukaku!!”

“A touch, then a powerful burst forward. Escudero, can you stop him?”

“Beautiful, a cut-back pass.”

“Lenglet couldn’t intercept, and the ball is back at the Italian’s feet!”

The two center-backs, one pressing and the other covering, were tightly marking, not allowing the Champions League top scorer to shoot.

The opportunity wasn’t great, and there was no guaranteed return, so he passed it wide again to the attacking-minded Lukaku.

If Zhang Weiping were commentating, he would definitely loudly praise Lucia for playing so intelligently.

“Lucia passes again, the back-and-forth pulling has created space!”

“Cut inside, shot!!”

“The goalkeeper saves it!”

Lukaku was about to give his classic thumbs-up, but then he saw Lucia use an incredibly flexible stretch of his long leg to lightly hook the ball.

Mercado, with his less-than-ideal body proportions, was not only shorter than Lucia but also had significantly shorter legs than the Italian.

The ball was controlled by Manchester United’s number 9, and Sevilla’s goal was once again under threat.

Montella had pulled his defensive line very compact, seemingly determined to tightly mark the Italian.

But with his improved on-ball ability, Lucia wasn’t as eager to shoot as before.

First a flick, then using his right foot, a fake shot and a real drag-back to create a shooting angle.

“A beautiful feint, Lucia’s small techniques have become increasingly skillful in recent matches.

His talent is truly strong; every now and then, you can clearly feel the Italian’s progress in his skills!

Shot, not yet!

Lucia, a product of Arsenal’s academy, uses that move Henry was best at again!”

Lucia made two consecutive feints, then gently pushed the ball, setting up a shot for his teammate.

Pogba, whose hair had turned from green to red, was like the A-share market after a policy change, completely in the red!

A powerful shot with surging momentum, the ball pierced through the Sevilla defense, which had been drawn in by Lucia, directly testing Rico, the Spanish national team’s third-choice goalkeeper.

Compared to the national team’s first-choice “Duck” (De Gea), he was indeed a step below.

Facing the Frenchman’s powerful shot from the edge of the box, Rico’s vision was obstructed, and he couldn’t save it, only watching the black and white ball enter the net!!

“Goal!!!”

“Just ten minutes into the match, Manchester United, having adapted to Sevilla’s rhythm, has demonstrated powerful attacking prowess.”

“The Italian’s selfless pass after drawing defenders, and Pogba unleashed a beautiful world-class shot from the edge of the box!”

“The Red Devils take the lead away from home, Sevilla is in danger!”

“This is the strength of a big center-forward; besides scoring himself, he can also help teammates by drawing defenders!”

“Here’s a little-known fact: this Manchester United team has a win rate of over 95% when they take the lead.”

“The innate counter-attacking physique is very likely to unleash a slaughter in the Champions League!”

Pogba, having scored, excitedly pulled Lucia into a joint celebration.

His thoughtful big brother not only helped him fight for a promotion and raise but also selflessly passed him the ball on the field.

Most importantly, he was even willing to share the Chinese magical arts that countered witchcraft.

He was infinitely better than his own biological brother; from now on, he would definitely