Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

”Nine wins in a row! Milan sweeps away the shadow of the Champions League!”

”With their key man on the pitch, Milan claims yet another victory!”

”An eleven-point gap: Napoli continues to chase, Inter starts to fall behind.”

”Serie A preview: six-point showdown as AC Milan face Napoli!”

After dismantling Chievo with a 4-0 thrashing, the mood in Italy’s footballing media shifted dramatically. Suddenly, the spotlight turned from Milan’s European misstep to their dominance in Serie A—and all the other contenders felt the heat.

Contrary to expectations, Milan had shown little hangover from their Champions League defeat. If anything, they appeared even more focused and determined in the domestic title race.

That wasn’t good news for Napoli or Inter Milan.

Napoli had put together a solid three-match win streak, reclaiming second place in the league with 52 points, nudging just ahead of Inter. But Milan’s relentless nine-match win streak had already pushed them past the 60-point mark—sitting comfortably on top with 63.

Which made the upcoming fixture between Milan and Napoli something far more than a typical league match. This was a ”six-pointer.” A clash between first and second in the standings. A match that could determine the shape of the title race.

If Napoli won, they’d close the gap to eight points and revive hopes of catching up.

If they lost? The deficit would balloon to fourteen points.

With just eleven matchdays remaining, that kind of lead would be insurmountable—close to a five-match buffer.

Even if Inter kept pace with a win, Milan would still sit thirteen points clear.

At that point, the title would all but be engraved.

Given Milan’s reliable, defensive-heavy tactics under Allegri, surrendering such a lead would be harder than simply holding it.

That’s exactly why Napoli had no choice but to go all-in. This upcoming round wasn’t just important—it was everything.

A win would keep the title chase alive. A loss, and Napoli might as well give up hope.

If Milan beat them and then went on to defeat Juventus and Inter in their upcoming fixtures, they would stroll through the so-called ”gauntlet” of fixtures that the rest of the league hoped would trip them up.

This was Napoli’s one shot to rewrite the narrative.

And so, when the final whistle blew on February 20 and the 26th round of Serie A was complete, every Italian football fan immediately circled their calendars for February 28.

Everyone’s attention turned to San Siro.

The players and coaching staff from both Milan and Napoli began their intense preparations, knowing full well that the spotlight would shine hot on this clash of titans.

Fan interviews poured in, and as always, both sides voiced full-throated support for their beloved clubs.

But for the neutral supporters and pundits? They were rooting for Napoli.

Because if Napoli could win, the rest of the league campaign would be ten times more exciting.

Under this wave of mounting pressure, some of Milan’s younger players began to show signs of nerves during training at Milanello.

All except one—Li Ang.

While some were feeling the weight of expectations, he was buried in post-session drills, still working on his long passing technique.

He was more worried about how slowly his progress was going than about what any fan or pundit had to say.

”Take your time,” Pirlo told him, giving a reassuring pat on the back after training. ”Progress over half a season is already excellent. The key is consistency. Your short passing has improved a lot since the first time I saw you. Long passes are harder. It takes more effort and focus.”

Li Ang nodded. He wasn’t about to tell Pirlo that the only reason his short passing had improved so quickly was because of a skill fragment card from Valerón he’d ”drawn.”

At the moment, his long passing potential capped out at 74. His current rating? 72.

It was serviceable, sure, but nowhere near where he wanted it to be.

So for now, he shelved the long-passing grind and went back to honing the basics.

Control. Short passing. Stability.

Weight training was now his second session of the day. His strength rating was up to 83—good enough, for now. His next benchmark was 85, and he had his sights set on the summer break to push himself through a focused special training plan.

Thinking about that gave him another burst of motivation. The grind never stopped.

But all that work was about to pay off.

By the time the match against Napoli was just two days away, Li Ang had hit his next milestone: short passing up to 85.

Back at home that evening, he stared at his player stat panel. Another one of his core attributes had crossed the threshold to elite.

His tackling, stamina, and now short passing—three pillars of his game—had reached top-tier status.

It was exhausting. Mind-numbingly repetitive.

But now, as he stared at those numbers, he felt the sweet sting of satisfaction. It had been worth every hour.

He crossed out February 26 on his calendar with a big red ”X.”

Only two days to go.

He was ready.

On February 27, Li Ang was on fire in training.

He didn’t just look good—he looked inevitable.

So good, in fact, that any lingering doubts about who would start against Napoli evaporated.

He’d locked it in. A guaranteed start.

And with that, the Milan dressing room finally relaxed a little.

A confident Li Ang meant both lines—defense and attack—could play with more ease.

Allegri smiled from the touchline. He could already see the shape of the upcoming match in his mind.

Let Napoli come.

Let them try to rewrite the story.

Because soon, they would see with their own eyes—

This year’s Serie A belonged to Milan.

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