"Penalty!
Undoubtedly a penalty!
Just one minute into the match, Bastia delivers a heavy blow to Marseille!
Most terrifying is Julien's starting speed!
From stationary to full sprint took him just a few steps. Marseille's Morel was like being nailed to the turf, completely unable to keep up with his rhythm.
This is Julien—he doesn't need complex dribbling. He just needs a gap, one acceleration, and he can instantly tear through an entire defensive line.
Morel had no choice but to foul, because he knew that once Julien reached full speed breaking into the box, the consequences would be unthinkable!
The cheers at Stade Armand Cesari say it all. The fans are long accustomed to this—this is their king, their Julien!
Using the simplest, most brutal method, the most extreme speed, to win advantage for the team—"
On the field, Julien picked up the ball and walked toward the penalty spot, his eyes were calm.
The Stade Armand Cesari stands were already boiling. Fans wearing home jerseys jumping created waves in the stands, endless and continuous.
"Julien!"
They shouted; their eyes were full of longing.
Win this match, and Bastia had a chance to end Ligue 1 suspense before the Europa League final.
Before the Europa League final on the 15th, Bastia had two league matches.
This match against Marseille was the relatively difficult one. The other match against Montpellier, they believed the team wouldn't lose.
Win both these matches, even if Paris won all theirs, they'd still have a six-point advantage with two rounds remaining.
Even if Bastia lost their remaining two matches and Paris won all theirs, it would only be a tie.
And in a tie situation, Bastia had the head-to-head advantage and could still win the championship.
On the sideline, Hadzibegic watched Julien, but his mind was filled with thoughts of breaking Ligue 1's single-season goal record.
This season, after 34 rounds, Julien had already scored 43 goals. This was despite Hadzibegic not playing him for long periods in many matches, and later not playing him at all to focus on the Europa League push.
Even so, Julien could now tie Ligue 1's single-season goal record with this penalty.
The holder of Ligue 1's single-season goal record wasn't Just Fontaine, Jean-Pierre Papin, George Weah, Sonny Anderson, or Zinedine Zidane—those more familiar great names.
The record holder's name was relatively obscure.
He was one of the greatest forwards in Croatian football history: Josip Skoblar.
In the 1970/1971 season, Skoblar scored a terrifying 44 goals in 36 league matches. This record had stood for 42 years unbroken.
Though obscure, Skoblar could be considered a star of his era. He started as a winger, only converting to striker at Marseille, so besides exquisite shooting and top positioning awareness, his speed and dribbling were also exceptional.
This made him a top finisher.
He won three Ligue 1 Golden Boots and one European Golden Shoe, finishing sixth in the 1971 Ballon d'Or voting.
And now, Skoblar's Ligue 1 goal record was about to be tied, even highly likely to be broken in this very match.
And coincidentally, Skoblar had set the record playing for Marseille. Now, Julien was about to break this record while playing against Marseille.
Whistle!
The referee's whistle sounded, signaling Julien could take the penalty.
Goalkeeper Mandanda stared intently at Julien.
He was very nervous about Julien's shot.
In the first leg, Julien had left too deep an impression on him, like a nightmare.
Julien looked down slightly at the ball, exhaling.
Then his run-up—
He swung his leg and struck powerfully!
BOOM!
The ball instantly shot up from the ground, rushing toward the top corner with no obstruction.
Swish!
Ball in the net!
Mandanda judged the direction and flew out, but unfortunately Julien chose the top corner.
He had no chance.
The ball was in.
One minute into the match with a penalty, Bastia took the lead!
ROAR!
Stade Armand Cesari erupted!
Thunderous roars echoed as everyone was extremely excited. At this moment, the venue DJ also announced to all fans that Julien had tied Ligue 1's 42-year-old goal record.
Whoosh!
Another wave of exclamation!
"Julien!"
Fans watched the youth with arms spread celebrating, shouting his name while chanting in unison—
"One more!"
"One more!!"
Teammates embraced Julien with smiles. After celebrating, De Bruyne said to him on the way to the center circle, "Even if you leave, you'll become an unavoidable name in Ligue 1."
Julien smiled but said nothing more.
Indeed. But this was also what he wanted!
He didn't want to become one of countless regrettable names in fans' mouths.
He wanted to become the one admired!
To become the one other players made their target, their dream!
Whistle!
Match continues!
Whether the stands, substitutes' bench, or anywhere else, everyone was still immersed in the excitement of Julien tying Ligue 1's record.
Even Marseille's players and coaches found it incredible.
Scoring over forty goals in Ligue 1 was truly difficult.
The TF1 commentator couldn't help but sigh: "Look at the stadium's reaction at this moment. Bastia's blue ocean has completely boiled over, and on Marseille players' and coaching staff's faces is written undisguised admiration—they understand better than anyone how astonishing an achievement scoring 44 goals in a single season is in this era, on this Ligue 1 soil accustomed to top scorers leaving in a flash!
Yes, this reveals Ligue 1's cruel reality: it's very difficult to keep true superstars.
The soil here seems only enough for talents to bloom temporarily before being harvested by Premier League and La Liga giants.
Which prolific scorer can stay rooted long-term?
Even someone as strong as Julien is destined to move to a higher temple this summer. This is Ligue 1's glorious shining moment, yet also its eternal regret.
This moment makes all witnesses become witnesses of history!
Applause comes not only from Bastia fans but also from those Marseille away supporters—this is tribute to football's pure power!
But behind the applause, everyone knows full well it's a countdown to farewell.
Cherish it while you can, fans of Corsica—this is the final legendary chapter your king is leaving in Ligue 1..."
Bastia fans truly did cherish each match as one less to see.
So, they appeared somewhat "exaggerated."
Before, they cheered when Julien broke through, shot, or scored. Now, it had evolved to cheering whenever Julien had the ball.
This was their way of memorializing Julien.
Also the most affectionate confession to the King of Stade Armand Cesari.
Marseille head coach Elie Baup chose to defend at Bastia's home ground, even though they conceded early.
His gaze mostly stayed on Julien.
In his playing days, Ligue 1's goal record already existed.
And now, this record was being tied before his eyes, even very likely to be broken.
On the field, facing Marseille's defensive shell, Bastia was slightly uncomfortable. They didn't particularly like positional attacks—they preferred quick counterattacks with more space.
After shooting wide of goal once, Julien shook his head slightly.
He'd attempted two long shots with poor results.
This was also a problem he clearly recognized Bastia had—tactical monotony.
What could you expect from Hadzibegic, a manager who coached in second and third-tier leagues fighting relegation, in terms of complex tactics?
Bastia's current ceiling was purely player ability.
He didn't deny Hadzibegic's tactical coaching on the defensive end, but on the attacking end, there was really just one tactic—give the ball to Julien.
Purely relying on front players' individual ability.
So, when Julien didn't play, Bastia's attack was shambolic—that was the reason.
This was also why Hadzibegic was criticized by French media.
Time gradually passed.
Whether fans at the venue or those watching broadcasts at home, all anticipated Julien scoring again.
Including Mbappé, who was watching this match in Monaco at this moment.
Because he had team training—after all, this was a professional team, he could no longer request leave or leave the team as casually as before.
So he could only watch the broadcast.
But even so, it made his heart surge.
Every time he watched Julien's matches; it refreshed his understanding of the ceiling a winger could create on the field.
"I really envy Julien. He's just over a year older than me, but already on the top stage."
As Mbappé's heart churned, roommate Cardona sighed.
Mbappé smiled slightly. "Don't worry, maybe you'll play Ligue 1 next season too."
After Julien came to Monaco to help him, Mbappé was no longer playing under Irles. Barilaro greatly appreciated him, promising to make him a main winger in youth league next season!
Everything was moving in a good direction.
Cardona was older than him. Being able to play Ligue 1 was just Mbappé's high emotional intelligence showing.
But hearing this, Cardona was still very happy.
The two continued focusing on the TV.
Seeing time approaching thirty minutes, Mbappé exhaled, wondering when the next goal would come.
Marseille parking the bus while behind made even Mbappé feel somewhat troubled.
However, just as time crossed the thirty-minute mark, the situation on the field suddenly changed.
On TV, the commentator suddenly raised his volume!
"My God! De Bruyne! How did he see Julien's running line! This pass-and-run combination is absolutely exquisite..."
Mbappé saw De Bruyne suddenly send a long pass from midfield toward near the penalty area.
There were no Bastia players in that area, but Julien had started early. Just as the ball was falling, he was actually faster than Marseille defensive midfielder Barton, who thought he had the ball under control!
Mbappé, like the fans on site, was instantly drawn to Julien.
Nothing else remained in his mind.
Julien reached the ball before Barton, lifting his foot to accurately judge the ball's trajectory. But he didn't stop it—he chose to chip it.
He slightly hooked his toes backward.
The ball went behind him. This effortlessly graceful touch both evaded Barton's challenge and created space for Julien to operate.
Before the ball could land again, Julien's movements flowed silkily.
Using powerful core strength, pivoting on his supporting foot, he quickly completed a half-turn, his entire body was now facing away from goal.
Without any hesitation, without even looking at the goal's position, relying on his enhanced spatial awareness ability, before his body fully turned, he was already midair.
Romao and Mendes, coming up to block, were both shocked, frozen.
Julien fully extended his body in the air, his back nearly parallel to the ground, his right leg swinging high. With a perfectly executed bicycle kick, full of power and perfect form, he struck the falling ball with a second burst of force in mid-air.
BOOM!
This shot was beyond everyone's expectations!
Including Mandanda's.
With many teammates in front of him, he didn't immediately notice the shot. By the time he saw the ball flying through the crowd toward goal, it was too late.
He didn't even make a save attempt. He just stood there frozen.
Only when he turned his head to the right, the ball nestled into the net.
2-0.
Julien landed.
ROAR!
Simultaneously came the sound wave from all Bastia fans.
"Julien!!"
The stands exploded like a blue volcano.
Countless arms shot toward sky at the same moment, forming a wildly swaying forest.
The massive sound wave was no longer simple cheering but thousands upon thousands of people's shouts and roars of extreme delight.
The gathered sound wave almost tore through Corsica's night sky.
After scoring, Julien leaped up from the ground. He spread his arms wide, rushing toward that blue ocean boiling for him.
His face showed extreme excitement too!
The Ligue 1 goal record sealed for 42 years was broken by him tonight!
Teammates rushed toward him from all directions. De Bruyne reached him first, laughing as he jumped on his back, then more people tightly surrounded them.
At this moment, faith received its most perfect response. All expectations became reality.
A pure, extreme football joy permeated every corner of the stadium.
The venue DJ's simple statement "the record is broken" ignited the entire venue again.
Madness!
Absolute extreme madness!
This was Julien's personal honor, but also Bastia's honor as a whole!
Hadzibegic pumped his fists wildly.
Chataigner smiled until tears nearly came.
Baup first shook his head helplessly, then smiled and applauded in Julien's direction.
He too had witnessed history being made.
The TF1 commentator at this moment shouted like a madman: "BUUUUUT! My God! Incredible, incredible! Julien De Rocca! He's scored a goal worthy of competing for Goal of the Year—no, Goal of the Season, even one of the best goals in Ligue 1 history!!
Stade Armand Cesari has completely exploded!
The fans' sound wave has almost overturned the night sky!
Julien with a brace!
His 45th goal of the season!
He has surpassed the legendary Skoblar! He has inscribed his name alone at the highest peak of Ligue 1 single-season goal-scoring history!
This is a night belonging to history, a night belonging to Julien!"
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