After signing with AC Milan, I will be the king of football!

Overhead clearance!

Bang—

The ball flew towards the approaching Figo; Figo controlled it with his chest and passed it quickly with a through ball. Huang Kaiwen, who had just gotten up, went to ground again, spreading his legs apart and successfully blocking the ball, then using his thigh to bump it towards De Jong, who, under pressure, kicked the ball out of bounds.

”Wow, Huang Kaiwen’s performance in defense today has been truly outstanding.”

”Yes, Huang Kaiwen has participated in defense in previous matches too, and his performance was noteworthy. Today, he hasn’t shown much in midfield attack, but his defensive performance is top-notch, handling the ball three times in a row, successfully thwarting Inter Milan’s offensive momentum in front of the penalty area. Real Madrid fans applauded Huang Kaiwen, and his teammates quickly went over to pat him on the shoulder to encourage him; that counterattack was too dangerous.”

Burdizzo threw an out-of-bounds ball from the left wing, Figo received and turned to shoot directly from over 30 meters out, but the ball soared above the crossbar and up into the stands.

[Intense discussions erupted] over Huang Kaiwen’s performance.

”Damn, Huang Kaiwen’s tackles and bicycle clearances today, does he just not want to attack and prefer to cover for his teammates ass?”

”Who knows, but Huang Kaiwen is indeed impressive, able to deliver top performances on both defense and offense. When he tackled earlier, I thought I saw Nesta from his Lazio days.”

”Not to mention anything else, Huang Kaiwen absolutely commits when he plays.”

”I knew Huang Kaiwen could defend, but his defensive performance has never been as good as today. Don’t they say defensive players need plenty of matches to practice and gain experience?”

”Do you think it’s possible that Xavi’s elbow strike enlightened Huang Kaiwen, or maybe transferred Xavi’s defensive experience to Huang Kaiwen through his elbow?”

”Fuck, you’re a Barca fan, right? Still trying to make excuses for Xavi, but Xavi’s defense isn’t as badass as Huang Kaiwen’s today. Xavi only has those few moves, if he can’t defend, he pulls the opponent.”

”Hahaha, I’m dying, to think defensive experience could be transferred by an elbow strike, you must think you’re a card reader or something. Come here, I’ll transfer some experience to you.”

...

”Kevin, Kevin!”

Capello stood on the sideline waving and calling out.

”What’s up, Coach?”

Huang Kaiwen jogged over and asked.

”You don’t need to get involved in defense so actively, let them handle it; you focus more on moving the ball upfield to attack.”

Capello said, handing over a water bottle.

Huang Kaiwen rinsed his mouth and spat on the sideline, nodding as he spoke, ”Alright, Coach, I’ll see to it.”

Huang Kaiwen ran over to where Guti was waiting for the backfield to kick off.

Guti leaned in and asked, ”Did the coach tell you to cut down on defense?”

”How did you guess?”

Huang Kaiwen asked curiously, ”How did you figure that out?”

”Is it that hard to guess?”

Guti said, ”Your defensive plays looked more dangerous than your attacks; he’s probably worried about you getting injured, so of course, he wants you in the attack.”

”I see.”

Huang Kaiwen nodded.

Guti certainly had a point.

During offensive plays, he still could weave through the opposition without much physical contact, but defense was about initiating contact which might explain Capello’s concern.

Huang Kaiwen thought he really should be more mindful.

If they could make it to the semifinals, that would be in April.

The defensive intensity of Inter Milan was manageable, definitely not as fierce as Atletico Madrid and Barca, and since the teams had a good relationship, they weren’t likely to make harsh tackles.

So, Huang Kaiwen didn’t use the ”Immunity Card” today.

After Guti explained, Huang Kaiwen felt he really should minimize defense and focus more on offense.

Better not to provoke an unintentional foul and end up injuring himself while defending; that would indeed be a big joke.

Casillas kicked off from the backfield.

Ramos got the ball and immediately passed it down to Huang Kaiwen’s feet.

Crespo quickly advanced towards Huang Kaiwen and stretched out his foot, Huang Kaiwen tapped the ball to Guti and then ran to the right flank, Guti passed it back to Huang Kaiwen.

Huang Kaiwen took control on the right wing, Ramos quickly moved forward.

The Inter Milan players, fearing to miss Ramos, hesitated to challenge.

Spotting the vacancy in Inter Milan’s backfield, Huang Kaiwen swung his arm and wound up his right foot to strike the underside of the ball.

Bang—

The ball swiftly flew over the heads of several players in the midfield, crossing the halfway line and speeding towards the right side of Inter Milan’s penalty area.

Cassano caught the ball upfront, made a quick stop, and ran back along the sideline with the ball.

Cambiasso rushed from the midfield to help on the right side, alongside Burdizzo, forcing Cassano near the sideline.

With a sudden flick of his right heel, Cassano tapped the ball through Burdizzo’s legs to find Guti.

Guti caught the ball but was promptly knocked down by Materazzi from behind; while falling, Guti tipped the ball back, Huang Kaiwen received it and quickly slanted a pass back to the retreating Raul, who then passed it to Robinho.

Robinho caught the ball and dodged the chasing Maicon’s foot with a pull back.

Maicon turned and charged towards Robinho again.

Robinho, near the left sideline, shook his shoulders wildly miming a bicycle kick; Maicon, cautious not to misstep, did not lunge.

Raul ran nearby, and Robinho immediately back-passed to Raul.

Raul turned and used the sole of his boot to pass the ball back.

Cambiasso, rushing towards the ball, slid in with a flying tackle, but Huang Kaiwen was quicker, charging at the ball and fiercely striking the back of it with his right foot.

Bang—

The turmoil of the rush, fierce as a roaring windstorm.

As Materazzi moved to block Huang Kaiwen’s shot, he quickly sidestepped and leapt, feeling a gust of wind whip past his ear.

When Materazzi turned back, the ball had already flown into the penalty area, zipping through the crowd straight towards the goal; Cesar, lunging from the goal line, failed to touch the ball.

Boom—

”Saint Kevin!!!”

”Saint Kevin!!!”

”Saint Kevin!!!”

Twenty minutes into the game, Bernabéu Stadium finally erupted with the greatest enthusiasm of the day.