The gold and silver gleam of the trophy was so dazzling under the sunlight that Chen Zhong wanted to touch it as he passed by, but remembering the "curse," he restrained his impulse.
Will this be the first trophy he wins for Real Madrid?
Chen Zhong followed the team, feeling somewhat in a daze, so much so that when shaking hands with the opposing players, he appeared somewhat absent-minded, inadvertently giving off a sense of superiority.
"Huh." A player with a high hairline, which made his forehead appear particularly wide, let out a cold laugh. He looked at his teammate beside him and said, "This kid's a bit arrogant, isn't he!"
Danko Lazovic, who was offloaded by Feyenoord last season for a meager 1.5 million Euro to the Dutch Eredivisie team Vitesse, was cast aside like trash by the club.
But after joining Vitesse, Lazovic opened his goal account repeatedly, at one point even leading the scorer's chart, much to Feyenoord's regret.
This season, Eindhoven acquired this Serbian center forward for 6.6 million Euro.
Planning to make his mark, Lazovic, with his strong sense of pride, could not tolerate being so lightly dismissed by a tall and youthful-looking youngster, and his heart filled with anger.
"A defender?" Lazovic stood at the center circle and watched as Chen Zhong moved into position, gritting his teeth. He would show this youngster the consequences of underestimating him.
At the Locomotive Stadium, fans roared like a tidal wave to vent their emotions, while the coaches of both teams stood on the sidelines, appearing somewhat relaxed. The Russian Railways Cup is a warm-up tournament held locally to celebrate the completion of a railway, primarily used to assess and train players.
Winning or losing wasn't that important, but who wouldn't want to win if they could?
"Hopefully, Raul's form will be good enough in this match!" Schuster stood on the sidelines, arms crossed, looking at Francisco and said, "And also Gonzalo Higuain, hoping he can perform to my satisfaction."
Raul and Higuain were given opportunities to play against Hanover, but unfortunately, they performed poorly, exposing many flaws, leading to a storm of criticism from the media. Raul, in particular, was described as a team tyrant and cancer.
In the match against Hanover, Raul's repeated errant positions wasted his teammates' brilliant passes. Of course, the media also criticized Schuster, but Schuster had always ignored it as if it were nonsense, not taking it to heart.
And yet in the following games, hadn't Raul and Higuain gradually improved?
"They will," Francisco said with a smile. "But what I'm really interested in is Chen."
"Chen?" Schuster's somewhat surprised expression made Francisco want to call him a jerk. Who was it back then, shouting from the stands 'I like him, I like him,' and insisted on promoting Chen Zhong to the first team, only to now forget the old love for a new one?
"He's not ready yet," Schuster said casually. "He's no better than Metzelder; both are a bit slow. Frankly, I'm more looking forward to Pepe's performance, though he has many issues at this stage."
The match started, and their conversation came to an abrupt end.
Schuster was most concerned about the duo pairing of Raul and Saviola up front for the first time from the start, while Francisco was more interested in Chen Zhong's performance in the defense line.
However, the most intense competition on the field was not at the front or the back but in the midfield.
The midfield transformed into a "meat grinder," with players from both teams throwing themselves in, vying fiercely, the scene unsightly, not exciting, only leaving an impression of "intensity."
Chen Zhong cautiously observed the situation on the field, and with their numerical advantage, Eindhoven won the battle on the meat-grinder battlefield, pushing the ball out to the flanks, revealing their intent to strike.
Left-back Sergado advanced quickly while Chen Zhong, surveying his surroundings, heeded Cannavaro's command to hold his position, and right-back Cicinho quickly moved up to apply pressure.
Chen Zhong kept turning his head side-to-side, once again filling his mind with the positions around him, noticing the wide-forehead Lazovic standing arrogantly outside the penalty area, which puzzled him about what this tall and burly fellow intended to do.
Although Lazovic's height was 184 cm, his positioning resembled that of someone 160 cm, appearing rather "evasive," leaving a deep impression on Chen Zhong.
"Bang!"
The fans gasped in shock, Chen Zhong felt a chill down his spine, and it seemed like a gust of wind had passed by, and he instantly realized it was Lazovic's forward run.
However, Lazovic's forward run was destined to be in vain as his teammate Salcedo's cross slammed directly into Cicinho's chest.
"Why block it toward the goal!" Schuster slapped his forehead. Though he said beforehand that he didn't care, once the game started, he quickly got into the zone. However, he also knew it wasn't Cicinho's fault; he merely completed a passive block.
On the field, Cannavaro took the opportunity during the dead ball to walk over to Chen Zhong and reminded him, "Watch that guy."
Cannavaro pointed towards Lazovic, advising, "He seems to have set his sights on you. I'm not too familiar with him, but from what I see, he doesn't seem like the tight-marking type."
After speaking, Cannavaro returned to his position, and Chen Zhong, recalling Lazovic's earlier move, confirmed that Cannavaro's judgment was correct.
In this match, the main confrontation between the two teams occurred in the midfield, and Eindhoven's advantage in numbers caused Real Madrid to struggle significantly, though Higuain, starting as a right midfielder, performed very actively.
Soon, Real Madrid got a decent chance to see the player nicknamed "Rabbit," Saviola, breaking free from the encirclement, causing the entire stadium to erupt with excitement.
However, Eindhoven's defender Da Costa, facing the situation from the side, used a tactical foul to bring Saviola down to the ground.
The Real Madrid supporters in the stands let out angry boos, while Da Costa merely shrugged and spread his hands, showing an innocent look.
"What a bastard!" Schuster raged, even wishing he could personally get on the field to give that guy a lesson.
Francisco, nevertheless, was unfazed, having long been accustomed to Schuster's mercurial temperament.
Eindhoven's players all praised Da Costa, and even the coach on the sidelines nodded repeatedly, causing the onion-headed brute Da Costa to smile naively.
At this moment, it somehow felt as if the boos from Real Madrid's supporters had turned into commendations for him.
The exchange of attack and defense saw Eindhoven once again gaining the upper hand in the midfield battle. Lazovic seized the ball after losing Balboa and, with a burst of pace, charged towards Real Madrid's penalty area.
Face your fears, kid!
Lazovic glanced around, riding the wind with excitement as he rushed forward.
He wanted to find that "arrogant" brat right away and beat him in a one-on-one showdown, then score a beautiful goal to celebrate his new beginning!
"Bang!"
The ball struck Lazovic's leg, followed by the feeling of cleats hitting the guard board, causing him to lose balance, tumbling forward onto the ground.
The previously clean jersey was now stained with grass color. He opened his eyes to see the face he had been looking for, and for some unknown reason, at this moment, that face seemed rather terrifying.
"Good!" Schuster couldn't help but emphatically slap Francisco on the back from the sidelines, causing Francisco to grimace in pain.
The neutral Russian fans in the stands cheered, Real Madrid fans shouted with joy, while Eindhoven fans voiced their displeasure with boos.
The ball was slid away, and Marcelo seized it first, taking it forward along the wings.
Chen Zhong heard the boos from the field and mimicked Da Costa's motion precisely, spreading his hands wide.