Just one minute into stoppage time, Oviedo found another excellent opportunity—but this time it was a chance gifted by the opposition.
The central defender of Alcorcón passed the ball back to the goalkeeper, and Saúl chased after him to pressure the keeper.
The goalkeeper, named Giménez, hastily prepared to pass the ball again to his own defender. However, due to the rush, the pass was far too weak. André saw this, suddenly accelerated forward, and at that moment, André's speed was on full display. He'd started behind his opponent and was further away, yet he reached the ball first. With the tip of his right foot, he gently poked it past the defender, then used his body to shield the ball. Without any adjustment, he struck it cleanly with his left foot.
Giménez, who'd rushed back to the goal line after his mistake, couldn't react at all. He could only make a desperate stretch with his hands. In the end, the football went straight into the net.
2-3.
In the final moments, Oviedo capitalized on the opponent's error, with André seizing the opportunity to score the go-ahead goal.
This time, André didn't wait on the spot to be buried under a pile of teammates. Instead, he sprinted wildly toward the touchline and immediately hugged Hierro tightly. If André hadn't held him steady, Hierro's fate might have been quite grim. Perhaps the next day's headline would've been: "Oviedo Wins Narrowly, Goal-Scorer Accidentally Injures Head Coach During Celebration—Retaliation Suspected."
"Boss, I did it! I really did it!"
"André, I know. Can you let go of me first?"
"Oh, oh! Right, sorry."
André quickly released Hierro, having almost forgotten the impact force from his sprint. Hmm, next time he celebrates like this, he should try running toward some of his teammates on the pitch instead.
"You brat."
"Old man, did you see? I scored! And I got three!"
"Mmm, I saw. Not bad. But you still need to practice headers, and long shots too." Sánchez patted his star pupil's head from behind. Although he was still pointing out André's shortcomings verbally, the massive grin on his face betrayed his current mood completely.
"Oh, God, please don't tell me I'm dreaming." The Oviedo fans in the stands couldn't believe it.
"This is our Guardian Spirit of Oviedo! This is our King Kong of Oviedo!"
If André had known at this moment that one of the nicknames that would follow him for life was being born, he would've definitely let this bloke know why flowers are red. Bloody hell. You're King Kong, your whole family are King Kongs.
There was virtually no time left in the match. After the players from both sides returned to their positions and Alcorcón kicked off, the referee blew the final whistle to end the match.
Final Score: Alcorcón 2-3 Real Oviedo
"Is he really only sixteen years old?"
Julio asked his question while shaking hands with Hierro.
"Of course. He won't be seventeen for another hundred-plus days."
"Alright, I genuinely want to know why Castilla let a player like this go to you."
"You're mistaken. They didn't sell him to us. They were unwilling to renew his contract, and I picked him up."
Hierro's statement completely floored Julio. He felt Hierro was taking the piss out of him, and his face instantly darkened. What Hierro didn't know was that Julio was internally cursing nonstop: Son of a bitch, "picked him up"? Are you treating me like an idiot? If you're so bloody capable, go pick up another one for me to see.
"What's wrong with that guy? Why did he suddenly look angry? Is he ill?"
"What's wrong?"
Hierro, turning back toward the bench, asked in confusion. Sánchez had no idea what he was talking about.
"When I shook hands with him just now, we had a very pleasant conversation. But I don't know why the bloke suddenly looked furious."
"Hey, Fernando, he just lost the match. You should learn to be understanding instead of rubbing salt in his wounds."
If Julio had heard this conversation between the two, he surely wouldn't have resisted throwing a punch to let Sánchez know what a real wound felt like.
"Cristiano, I scored! I scored three goals! I helped the team win the match!"
After the match ended and he'd returned to Oviedo, André couldn't help but take out his phone to share this joy with CR7. It seemed to be an unconscious action, but the excited André—whether from Marcus's past life memories or the original host's memories—was desperate to find someone to share this excitement with.
"André, is that true? Was it a friendly match?"
"No, Cristiano, how could it be a friendly? It's the league—the Segunda División!" Hearing the response, André's face fell. Well, it was already dark anyway, but still.
"Alright, congratulations, André. This is the first step to success, and you need to keep at it."
"Okay, I will."
At this time, CR7 was discussing endorsement contracts with his agent, Mendes.
"Jorge, André said he scored in the league—and it was a hat-trick. That's incredible."
"Really? That's not right, Cristiano. How old is he this year?"
"Sixteen. Still over a hundred days away from seventeen. What's wrong?"
"André broke a record. He's become the second youngest player to appear in the history of the Spanish league. And he's also the second youngest to score a goal. If he scored a hat-trick, he'd become the youngest player in Spanish professional football to score a hat-trick."
Hearing Cristiano state André's age, Mendes quickly checked the records for the Spanish leagues.
"Really?"
"Of course. God, is what Fernando said true? Is André really a genius?"
"Are there any match videos?"
"No, but I believe they'll be on the official Segunda División website soon."
"Alright, then let's wait until we have the video to see André's performance. For now, let's continue discussing our business."
Although CR7 said he wanted to watch, having just arrived in Italy, he had far too many things to deal with. Besides team matters, many off-field issues were consuming his energy, so he quickly forgot what he'd just said.
However, Mendes did not forget.
He clearly remembered the situation when he went to help André with his contract. He'd always felt that Hierro was hiding something, but due to CR7's matters, he hadn't had time to investigate. Now, hearing that André had scored a hat-trick and successfully become the youngest player to score a hat-trick in Spanish professional football, it immediately piqued his interest.
Of course, Mendes wasn't the only one interested in André after this match. Many people were paying attention. Although this Segunda División fixture didn't cause much of a stir in mainstream Spanish football, one must remember that the competition among the 22 teams in the Segunda División is very fierce. It wasn't just the ordinary fans who cared—the coaches and scouts of these twenty-two teams paid close attention to their opponents' situations.
And a sixteen-year-old scoring a hat-trick on his debut?
That was impossible to ignore.
Match Statistics:Alcorcón 2-3 Real Oviedo
Goals:
Alcorcón: Pereira (45'), Muñoz (52') Real Oviedo: André Cristiano (69', 71', 90+1')
André Cristiano's Debut:
Minutes played: 27 minutes (63' - 90') Goals: 3 (hat-trick) Age: 16 years old Record: Youngest hat-trick scorer in Spanish professional football history
The legend of Number 19 had begun.
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