Alvalade Stadium.
Although the fans were disillusioned, everything that was supposed to come still came.
After all, it was the team's first match of the new season, and it was at home.
Even if they weren't coming to watch football, even if they only came to curse Triguera, they still had to show up.
When the stadium commentator read out the players' names as they entered the pitch, the fans responded coldly.
Mainly because they didn't know them.
Didier Drogba, John Terry, Andrea Barzagli, José Fonte...
Fonte: I've been playing football at Sporting Lisbon since I was a kid. You seriously don't know me?
It wasn't until Viana, Quaresma, and Schmeichel came out that the atmosphere inside the stadium improved.
Then came Deschamps, and the fans finally started applauding, just like when Schmeichel had first arrived last season. Everyone was welcoming and polite.
When Matthäus stepped onto the pitch, the atmosphere exploded into a climax.
People continuously shouted Matthäus' name. This was the eternal privilege of a World Footballer and Ballon d'Or winner.
After all, at one point, they had been the strongest player in the world!
"Cristiano Ronaldo!"
The cheers that had just reached their peak suddenly fell silent when Ronaldo appeared.
For the first time, Cristiano Ronaldo did not receive the fans' support at his own home stadium.
Even now, many fans still believed that Ronaldo's failed relationship with Jordana was the main reason Jardel left, and they blamed Ronaldo for it.
"Kai!"
As soon as the next name was announced—
Boos erupted all around the stadium.
Several players subconsciously turned to look at Kai at the end of the line, worried about his condition.
But Kai simply raised both hands high, turned around while walking forward, and scanned the crowd. He was greeting the fans who were cheering for him.
That move directly caused even louder boos across the stadium.
Because most of the fans booing Kai were provoked by that exact action.
Even though they all knew this had always been Kai's usual pre-match routine at home.
"Why do you have to provoke them?" Matthäus asked quietly while standing beside Kai on the pitch for the team photo.
Kai stood on tiptoe, still smiling as he replied, "I'm not provoking anyone. I'm greeting the people who support me. They took time out of their day to come watch me play, not to see me sulking at them."
"If I let the people criticizing me affect my actions or words, then it would be unfair to those who support me."
"I'm one person facing many people. I might think I'm only attacking those who insult me. But to the fans, it's one-to-one. They'll only feel like I'm suddenly being rude to them for no reason, even though they've always supported me."
"So my response will always be directed toward the people who support me!"
Matthäus fell silent for a moment. Very few stars could do what Kai did.
No... in European football, very few stars even thought this way.
Matthäus said, "But right now, it seems like there aren't many people supporting you. We can barely hear their cheers beneath all the boos."
Kai shrugged and walked toward the center circle. "Even if only one person supports me, I lose nothing by responding to him. Besides... I know there's definitely more than one person supporting me."
"I should've met you earlier. Maybe then my relationships with teammates, coaches, and fans wouldn't have ended up like this." Matthäus sighed emotionally.
"No, no, no. Your real problem was never any of that." Kai covered his mouth slightly. "Your main problem is that you can't control your lower body."
Matthäus froze.
Fuck!
How does this guy know everything?
"But I suggest you don't mess around while you're at Sporting Lisbon." Kai motioned for Matthäus to fall back slightly. "When Maxa teaches tactics, he pays a lot of attention to a player's character."
"He's very optimistic about you. He seems willing to teach you everything he knows. Don't disappoint him."
"Besides, you probably want to coach the national team in the future too, right? There's nothing cooler than making the people who dislike you become jealous of you."
Matthäus' eyes lit up instantly. He had to admit Kai had completely guessed what he was thinking.
He liked the feeling of other people hating him while being unable to do anything about it.
Beep!
With the referee's whistle, the match officially began.
Sporting Lisbon really did line up in a 3-2-2-3 formation, shocking many commentators.
Everyone had thought Maxa was just throwing out smoke bombs, but nobody expected a top tactician like him to not even bother lying about tactical information.
Nine truths and one lie... no, nine shallow and one deep... fuck, whatever. The false becomes true, the true becomes false. War is deception!
Sporting Lisbon's opponent today was S.C. Beira-Mar, a relegation-level Portuguese Super League side.
In terms of player quality, Sporting Lisbon still held a visible advantage, even with so many young faces on the field.
After three minutes of probing, Sporting Lisbon took control of possession.
But after another five minutes, Beira-Mar, who had been pinned near their own penalty area, gradually pushed forward again and started matching Sporting Lisbon blow for blow.
"Sporting Lisbon are making far too many mistakes right now. Their offense mainly depends on Quaresma, but Beira-Mar clearly spent time studying the future Figo!"
Whether in football or basketball, there are always players who shine in their first season before suddenly collapsing afterward.
The NBA calls it the Rookie Wall.
It means young players who perform well lose their effectiveness once opponents study and target them defensively, making it difficult to maintain high-level performances.
Quaresma had already spent a full season in the Portuguese Super League. Everyone understood his strengths now.
And the key point was that Jardel was gone, allowing Beira-Mar to target him aggressively.
Originally, Quaresma's ability to handle pressure had improved.
But unfortunately, Sporting Lisbon had changed to a completely new formation this season.
Slow play was manageable, but once the pace increased, his unfamiliarity with teammates, positioning, movements, and coordination caused frequent passing and receiving mistakes.
Every time the opponent stole the ball from him, they could immediately launch a counterattack.
Fortunately, Kai was stationed on that side. Together with Deschamps behind him, their interception ability was excellent, solving most of the crises.
The most dangerous moment came when the ball penetrated Deschamps, only for Barzagli to destroy the attack during a one-on-one challenge against the Beira-Mar striker.
Throughout the first thirty minutes, neither side managed to create effective attacking opportunities.
Beira-Mar's problem was a lack of player quality.
Sporting Lisbon's problem was simply chaos.
But in the 35th minute, Kai, who had already grasped the flow of the match, finally made the first adjustment.
He launched a long diagonal pass, breaking the team's repetitive circulation play and directly targeting the huge space behind the opponent's right-back on the left flank.
Cristiano Ronaldo exploded forward at high speed, battling the defender shoulder-to-shoulder before reaching the ball first and getting brought down by the opponent.
Beep!
The referee awarded a set piece.
The position wasn't far from the corner flag area at all. It was an extremely dangerous free-kick position.
Kai immediately jogged over and signaled for his teammates to push forward and compete for the header.
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