I AM the Football Star

Chapter 69: Chapter 29: Team Injuries and New Star-level Skills_2

It’s important to know that San Remo is now the hot team in the Italian D Division, and its attention is even higher than most Italian Third Division teams.

There are rumors in the media that scouts from big teams often watch San Remo’s matches during this period.

Playing against San Remo is almost the highest exposure a lower league player can get.

Viterbo’s players also want to shine, hoping to catch the eye of other teams. Even if they can’t jump straight to Serie A or Serie B, staying in the Italian D Division would be great.

So everyone is playing with extra spirit today.

They are particularly effective at blocking Lu Yang.

Who made Lu Yang the most famous player in San Remo right now?

Match commentator: ”Oh, we can see that Lu Yang seems to be having trouble today. Although the team’s attack is relatively smooth, whenever he gets the ball, he inevitably faces a double-team situation.”

”Lu Yang and Morici are different types of players. Morici can handle such a double team with ease, but Lu Yang seems a bit flustered. Thankfully, his ball control and vision are good, and he always manages to pass the ball to Morici or the defense before losing it.”

”But this also invisibly disrupts the team’s offense, which explains why San Remo’s midfield is doing well today but finds it difficult to get very direct attacking opportunities.”

”So far, the score is still one to zero. Vedian is having a rough time with his shots, having two good opportunities but failing to score. The collaboration between the right midfielder and right forward is not particularly smooth; they both seem to be in poor form, possibly as a result of their intense efforts in the previous match.”

”In the last game, without Lu Yang, San Remo faced increased defensive pressure, and many of their players are older, with the central forward, right forward, right midfielder, and the previous starting right center back all over thirty-two years old.”

”The previously reported injury absence of San Remo’s starting right center back, with young player Naji taking the starting role, relates to this. Most of San Remo’s players have recently reached their limits in terms of stamina and endurance. If not handled properly, injuries may occur in upcoming matches.”

Until now, San Remo has achieved a terrifying nine-game winning streak.

Even before this nine-game streak, they had two consecutive draws followed by five consecutive wins!

They have maintained an unbeaten record in the second half of the season.

But this also means the players are extremely fatigued.

Especially as they started to push towards the promotion zone, they faced stronger challenges, and the players played with increasing excitement, performing better in each match.

But their bodies may not be able to cope.

And for a team like San Remo, it’s impossible to have a perfect rotation lineup.

They have many positions where there aren’t even reliable substitute players.

Often, one substitute player takes on multiple roles, serving as a substitute rotation for several positions.

Now, stamina has become a crucial factor limiting San Remo from progressing further.

On the field, although they have achieved a one-zero lead, San Remo does not dominate the scene.

”We need to score more goals to reduce the team’s mental pressure and defensive pressure.” Morici found Lu Yang.

He is astutely aware that the right forward and right midfielder’s states are very poor today.

Unlike Vedian’s mishaps, those two seem to be holding back.

This means they aren’t exerting themselves too much.

The reason someone might not exert themselves is often discomfort in a certain area when they do. The pain isn’t intense but makes them subconsciously restrain themselves.

This is often a sign of initial injury in certain parts.

Things can’t continue like this.

Sotu’s defensive tactics are stable but require a lot of running.

And the team now clearly does not have the ability for a lot of running, so Morici decided to privately alter the team’s playing style.

But reducing running means increasing defensive holes, which may cause the team to concede goals.

Therefore, the attacking players must first establish an advantage.

Every part is connected, and no step can be messy. Otherwise, good intentions might backfire.

”I’ll give it a try,” said Lu Yang. ”Today they are giving me a lot of defensive pressure, so feel free to look for opportunities at the front.”

Morici nodded.

Soon, the opportunity appeared.

In the thirty-fifth minute of the match, Lu Yang got the ball.

An opposing midfielder was closely marking Lu Yang, with another player coming over to double-team him.

The player marking Lu Yang clearly studied him, knowing Lu Yang lacks the ability to dribble through.

As long as he doesn’t go for the tackle, he won’t get fooled by Lu Yang’s favorite move, the V-shaped pull.

That’s the best way to defend against Lu Yang, and it has succeeded several times today.

But this time, Lu Yang didn’t sit back and wait for demise.

He pulled the ball back with his right foot, rolling it towards his left toe, then lifted it with his left toe, and the ball flew up.

The opposing defender’s eyes lit up. This kind of half-air ball is hard to control, and he could definitely challenge the ball, almost guaranteed!

Did Lu Yang make a mistake?

But just as the opposing player was about to move forward, the ball, which should have flown high, hit Lu Yang’s advancing left knee, rapidly dropped, and bounced forward.

Though it sounds long in explanation, this move was performed in just a moment.

After Lu Yang’s right foot pulled the ball back, as it was about to land, it flew up and was knocked out by his left knee.

This happened almost within one second.

So why did Lu Yang’s left knee move forward and hit the ball?

Naturally, because Lu Yang was about to stride forward with his left foot for a sprint.

In an instant, Lu Yang pushed off with his right foot, stepped forward with his left foot, and both he and the ball rushed past the defender like a yellow flash.

The commentator was stunned: ”That’s... knee bounce! It’s a cool street ball move, but it can also be used to break through with great surprise. However, in official games, few use such flashy moves.”

”This move may seem easy to defend, but it’s actually a huge challenge for defenders. It can cause the ball to shift directions three times in an instant. First pulling back from the front, second flying from the ground into the air, and third suddenly bouncing forward from mid-air to the ground.”

”Three rapid shifts in balance over a short period, few defenders can keep up. Even if the brain reacts, the body’s balance often can’t. Or, even when the brain knows it’s a trick, muscle memory involuntarily responds. We can see the Viterbo defender frozen in place, unable to move, watching helplessly as the ball and Lu Yang passed by.”

”That’s the power of the knee bounce!”

After breaking through the defense, Lu Yang sprinted forward, effectively bypassing two players, as one originally intended to double-team him.

Coming to Lu Yang urgently, other Viterbo players rushed over.

Morici found a large open space, moving into the area near the top of the penalty arc.

As soon as he arrived, Lu Yang’s through pass reached him.

Another exquisite pass, bypassing one defender’s block.

Morici receives and strikes powerfully, scoring from a distance.

San Remo extends the lead to two-zero!

During the goal celebration, Morici took the opportunity to speak to the team’s right-side players, asking them to save energy and protect their bodies.

The faces of the right forward and midfielder changed slightly, then nodded.

After that, San Remo’s play style changed, with more offensive plays starting from the left side, allowing Vedian more opportunities to adjust his touch.

”Why does the team’s play style seem to have changed?” Tom noticed the change, worried that Sotu might be angry, as no Head Coach likes having their tactics arbitrarily altered by players.

However, Sotu laughed: ”This is the role of the brain. As players on the field, they are often better at perceiving certain details, just as we are better at identifying space on the field.”

”Morici is adjusting the team’s play style based on the conditions of the players, which is what a true playmaker should do. Our right-side players might have some problems. In the second half...”

Looking at the substitutes’ bench, Sotu pursed his lips.

In the second half, he didn’t have many options for adjustments.

The team’s biggest achievement in the winter transfer window was signing him, and because Sotu and the club president both thought this season was not promising, with the main task being to avoid relegation, Sotu didn’t demand transfer funds for players.

The team’s player stock is thus seriously inadequate.

If they knew earlier this season could be hopeful for promotion, the club president would have found some way to buy Sotu a few substitutes during the winter window.

Now they’re in trouble, without the necessary resources!