Julien arrived at the training complex around midday. Most of his teammates were already there. After lunch, during their rest period, they browsed the day's newspapers.
Like his teammates, Julien enjoyed reading match analysis and reviews. Who doesn't appreciate being praised?
He flipped through several French papers. The story was consistent—praise for Bastia's underdog spirit, predictions that they held the advantage for the return leg at home.
But then he encountered a different voice:
"There's no denying that Julien's pace is a weapon of mass destruction against defensive lines. Hadzibegic deployed him as a counter-attacking spearhead tonight, and the strategy yielded spectacular results.
But at what cost?
Throughout the match, Julien's touches were minimal. He spent most of the game isolated at the top of the pitch, waiting for counter-attacking opportunities.
His silky dribbling, pinpoint passing, tactical vision—all those elite technical abilities he's occasionally displayed for France and Bastia were almost entirely dormant under such an extreme defensive counter-attacking system.
To imprison a technical genius with a creator's soul in the limited role of a sprint merchant—Faruk Hadzibegic is wasting Julien's talent!
Particularly when Bastia holds possession or needs to break down organized defenses, Julien's creativity is deliberately suppressed by the tactical framework. Long-term, this could stunt his development and limit Bastia's attacking sophistication."
This passage from Le Parisien took a contrarian angle. Julien immediately saw through it—the journalist's subtext was clear: Bastia wasn't good enough for him.
The article continued: "Paris Saint-Germain offers richer tactical flexibility, deeper squad quality, and a system that could maximize Julien's multifaceted brilliance."
De Bruyne teased him about it. "Looks like some people are pretty resentful that a French player doesn't want to stay in Ligue 1."
Julien shook his head, exasperated but unsurprised.
Thank God he'd invoked Zidane's example when he'd publicly addressed this topic before. Otherwise, who knows what they'd be saying about him now.
That was the benefit of having a legend in your corner.
Speaking of which, when Zidane had called to congratulate him last night, he'd mentioned something significant: Florentino Pérez was seriously considering pursuing Julien as an alternative option.
Why? Because Real Madrid's negotiations with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy over Gareth Bale had reached an impasse. Florentino was reportedly furious, cursing "that Jewish b*stard only cares about money!"
Madrid had already clashed bitterly with Levy during the Modrić transfer. If Modrić himself hadn't really gone on strike to force the move, the deal might never have happened.
When Julien heard this, he couldn't help but recall some of Levy's legendary antics.
His pettiness was the stuff of infamy. Take Modrić: when he transferred from Dinamo Zagreb to Spurs, Dinamo's chairman Zdravko Mamić had asked Levy for five Modrić jerseys as keepsakes—and Levy had deducted the cost of those five shirts from the transfer fee.
That was Daniel Levy in a nutshell.
Though to be fair, Mamić himself was no saint. A former mobster who'd gradually taken control of Dinamo Zagreb, he'd recently begun consolidating power over the entire Croatian Football Federation. The current HNS president, Davor Šuker, was essentially his puppet—Mamić wielded actual authority as First Vice President while Šuker angled for a UEFA Executive Committee position.
Croatian football wouldn't see daylight until Mamić was removed. One day, his corruption would catch up with him.
As for Bale's transfer, Julien knew how it would end. Real Madrid wouldn't get him without paying through the nose. And even then, Bale would only leave after going on strike.
For Spurs shareholders, Levy was the perfect chairman. For everyone else? He was unbearable.
That afternoon, Julien and his teammates didn't train normally. After high-intensity matches like this, the schedule always shifted to pure recovery work.
Hadzibegic had already informed the squad: for the upcoming Ligue 1 home match against Toulouse, the starters would be rested.
Despite the league title race heating up, they still held an eight-point cushion with five matches remaining—the manager had decided to go all-in on the Europa League. Against Toulouse, they'd aim to protect the point and steal three if possible.
After physiotherapist Fabruetto examined Julien's condition, he designed a detailed recovery protocol and explicitly forbade any extra training.
For once, Julien didn't push back. He'd unlocked one Balance attribute through the system; the other two could wait. Right now, he needed proper rest to prepare for the second leg against Chelsea.
After the recovery session ended, he received a call from Albert Elion.
"Julien! Those two goals at Stamford Bridge—they were absolutely breathtaking! I was in the stands with my heart in my throat, watching you silence an entire stadium. You put your name in front of all England—no, all Europe!"
The veteran scout's voice brimmed with enthusiasm.
"You're being too generous, Mr. Elion," Julien replied smoothly, though he already sensed where this conversation was heading.
The media speculation had made it obvious.
Sure enough, after the initial pleasantries, Elion raised the subject of a Chelsea return.
"I know the word 'return' stings. When I brought you from Lille to Cobham, I believed in you completely. I watched you train, saw your gifts, and was convinced you belonged there. Then the academy made their decision, and you were let go. That was a mistake, Julien. A catastrophic mistake—not a misjudgment of your ability, but a failure of patience and timing.
Last night, you proved it in the most undeniable way possible. You, Julien De Rocca, were born to shine at Stamford Bridge!
In front of 40,000 fans, in front of Abramovich, in front of everyone who ever doubted you—you conquered that stadium!
Now it's time to come back and become the true master of that stage!"
Elion's voice trembled with emotion. He genuinely seemed to believe that Julien's return to Stamford Bridge would be a perfect, beautiful thing.
But when he finished speaking, Julien remained silent for a few heartbeats.
In that brief pause, Elion seemed to understand.
Finally, Julien spoke, his tone was gentle but firm.
"Mr. Albert, Chelsea will always hold a special place in my heart. And you'll always be one of the most important mentors I've ever had. I'm genuinely grateful for this opportunity."
"But right now, my heart and my responsibility are tied to that blue and black crest in Corsica. I need to finish this story with my brothers. We need to write the ending together—at least... the ending of this season."
A pause.
"After that? We'll see what the future holds."
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