On the way back to the dressing room, Lukaku laughed, "Three goals in the first half—we can pop the champagne to celebrate victory already."
Rothen chuckled.
"Popping champagne at halftime isn't exactly good luck."
The other Bastia players burst into laughter.
The atmosphere at Bastia was becoming increasingly harmonious. After spending time together, the new players were gradually integrating.
Hadzibegic was the last to enter the dressing room.
Looking at the players, a smile spread across his face. "Well done. We've played a perfect Ligue 1 home debut."
Clap, clap, clap!
The players applauded with smiles.
The gloom from their first Ligue 1 defeat had been swept away.
Hadzibegic then discussed some second-half arrangements, focusing on player rotation and defensive positioning.
After finishing his instructions, Hadzibegic approached Julien privately. "Rest in the second half and recover well. The team will need you in many more matches ahead."
Julien nodded. "Understood."
He was well aware of Hadzibegic's concerns—two injuries during national team duty had left the coach shaken.
Especially after Julien returned to learn that during his second injury, Bastia had received conflicting reports due to a communication mix-up.
They had been told he was out for the season. It nearly gave Hadzibegic a heart attack.
Second Half started:
The roar at Stade Cesari showed no signs of diminishing.
Though Julien was substituted at halftime, the broadcast director knew what the fans wanted—they gave a full ten seconds of close-ups showing Julien on the bench.
On the big screen, Julien waved to the crowd.
The stadium erupted with chants of "Julien! Julien!"
"If Napoleon is the symbol of all Corsica, then Julien is the symbol of Bastia. A child born in Fontaine-les-Grès near Paris has found redemption on this island.
The people of Bastia have painted Julien's graffiti in every corner of the city. I believe Julien will also take Bastia to stadiums across France and even Europe."
Watching the Bastia fans' attitude toward Julien, the TF1 commentator couldn't help but marvel, then mentioned the Europa League.
"As a fourth-seeded team, whichever group Bastia is drawn into becomes a group of death. Let's hope they get lucky with the draw."
In the second half, despite Julien being off the pitch, Bastia's attacking momentum barely weakened.
De Bruyne in midfield brought some pleasant surprises for the Bastia fans.
Over the years, the past-his-prime Rothen had been Bastia's best midfielder. This showed just how starved Bastia fans had been for quality in the center of the pitch.
63rd minute.
De Bruyne pulled wide to the left, with Palmieri making a run toward the byline. The Reims players expected De Bruyne to pass to Palmieri for a cross from the baseline.
Instead, De Bruyne gave a slight push with his right foot, then smoothly delivered a curling cross with his left!
The ball flew straight toward the center.
In the penalty area, only Lukaku was positioned at the far post.
But De Bruyne's delivery was somewhat floating, causing the first defender to miss his header.
Lukaku's favorite—a second ball.
The pass was a bit behind him, but taking advantage of another defender being out of position, he turned sideways and unleashed a sweeping volley!
Agassa had already begun his diving save, but Lukaku's shot was of such high quality that the ball flew straight toward the far corner of the net.
The ball hit the net. The impact made the side netting sway continuously.
Lukaku's second Ligue 1 goal!
Bastia 4-0 Reims.
He ran to the stands, mimicking Julien's celebration with arms spread wide, earning cheers from the fans.
After a string of "Gooooooooaaaaaaallllllll!" the TF1 commentator said, "Both called the Blues, Bastia is simply 'little Chelsea.' In this match, Chelsea players scored all four goals.
De Rocca with a brace, De Bruyne and Lukaku with one each.
If I were a Bastia fan, I'd definitely become at least half a Chelsea supporter going forward. Bastia's front line is essentially Chelsea's front line!"
Watching Lukaku score, Elion and Voss burst into laughter.
A De Bruyne-to-Lukaku connection!
Not just a Belgian connection, but a Chelsea connection.
Voss said with some envy, "I think their loan moves this time are simply perfect. As the one who recommended both loan deals, you're definitely going to get recognition from London again."
Elion nodded slightly, sensing Voss's jealousy.
But Elion didn't care.
Being a scout, especially a top-level scout, couldn't rely purely on a player's talent on paper. More often, you needed to watch them play in person.
To feel their games.
Elion trusted his instincts completely.
That's why he had strongly advocated for Chelsea to sign Julien back then, and now he wanted to sign Bastia's defensive midfielder Kanté.
But Voss lacked this intuition.
While Bastia fans marveled at their team's resounding victory, on the bench, Julien bumped fists with Mané.
"Relax. Reims was only a Ligue 2 team last season. Just pretend this is still Ligue 2."
Mané smiled but didn't say much. He was still very nervous.
This was his first top-flight match! He kept telling himself to stay calm, but it was all in vain.
Soon, Mané stood at the sideline.
Hadzibegic told him, "Use your speed advantage, and remember to track back when they counter-attack."
Mané nodded.
Palmieri came off the pitch to applause from the Bastia fans. For Bastia, Palmieri represented a homecoming story.
In the pre-match interview, Palmieri had said, "I'm willing to give everything for Bastia. I don't need to be a starter—I just want to play for Bastia. I will retire here."
Listening to the applause in the stadium, Mané felt no connection.
He was nervous. Various thoughts flooded his mind. He remembered Bambaali village in Sédhiou, Casamance region of Senegal.
That was where he was born.
He had kicked torn footballs barefoot on dirt pitches, searched through garbage dumps for old newspapers, hoping to find any scrap of information about football.
From the poorest village in Sédhiou, from a corner forgotten by the world, to now being in the spotlight of thousands.
Mané entered the game.
Before stepping onto the pitch, he couldn't help but look back at the bench.
Julien was smiling as always.
For Bastia fans, Mané's introduction carried some anticipation—he was, after all, their summer's record signing.
But they were somewhat disappointed.
Apart from his pace, Mané hadn't yet shown anything exceptional.
75th minute.
De Bruyne came off to chants of "Kevin!" from the fans.
Bastia's attacking threat dropped off a cliff. Vincent was still too raw to fill De Bruyne's role.
When the final whistle blew, 4-0.
Stade Cesari erupted in ultimate celebration. Tonight's Bastia was destined to keep many people awake.
Post-Match:
In his post-match interview, Hadzibegic couldn't help but vent some of his frustration toward the national team—
"Deschamps, take note—this is how to use Julien properly. He's only 17!"
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