Chapter 259: Chapter 9: Nationwide Jubilation (Part 2)

“Of course, what fans are most concerned about might be Chen Zhong sitting on the substitute bench.”

“After a half-season of decline, fans who have been following Chen Zhong finally saw him re-enter the team’s roster today.”

“I believe viewers in front of their TVs, just like me, are eagerly awaiting to see Chen Zhong appear in this match.”

“Alright, with the referee’s whistle, let’s watch this exciting game together.”

Chen Zhong sat on the bench, and Ancelotti hoped that he would watch Milan’s match carefully to see what Ambrosini and Beckham were doing.

At the start of the game, Milan launched an offensive move.

Kaka carried the ball, showcasing his unique dribbling, charging forward and drawing Bologna players’ attention, then passing the ball to Zambrotta who advanced from the side.

Zambrotta wanted to pass the ball to Pato for an offside move, but unfortunately, Bologna had studied Milan’s tactics carefully, intercepted the ball, and made a quick counterattack.

“Bologna’s quick counterattack.”

“Their speed is very fast.”

“A diagonal shot from the right side of the penalty area.”

“Abbiati’s brilliant block.”

“Di Vaio’s rebound shot!”

“Amazing! Abbiati.”

Milan has experienced such situations many times this season; their acclaimed midfield seems ’lazy,’ and the defense line has aged.

Against opponents, they are easily penetrated from the middle, breaking through the defense, always allowing opponents to easily shoot in front of the goal.

The only sharp aspect is probably their offense.

Abbiati quickly kicked the ball out, which soon reached the front, where Kaka and Pato coordinated in a small area and then passed it horizontally to Seedorf advancing on the right side.

This is also a tactic Milan frequently uses.

Seedorf cut into the penalty box, Bologna’s defense was very tight, and he could only hastily shoot the ball.

The ball shot towards the goal, with no reaction from the goalkeeper.

“A very unfortunate shot.”

“Seedorf!”

“If he pressed down a bit, it would have been a beautiful goal!”

This shot made Bologna players sweat in fear; Mikhailovic paced back and forth on the sidelines, as since retiring, he hadn’t won any honors with his team.

Although as Inter Milan’s assistant coach, he once won two Serie A championships and one Super Cup, but he was just an assistant coach then.

Now he has a platform to showcase his talents, hoping to lead this undefeated Bologna team to create his ’myth.’

Fans in the stands shouted his name passionately, and Mikhailovic made up his mind, loudly on the sidelines: “Play more boldly.”

“Don’t be afraid, we can strive for some set pieces.”

Bologna players followed his command earnestly, and in the 11th minute, Bologna found a gap on the left midfield, near the side, between Pirlo and Ambrosini.

This gap could have been avoided, but Pirlo and Ambrosini’s movement wasn’t active enough, giving Amoruso a chance.

He was very decisive with a speed that even had a shadow of Kaka for a moment.

After poking through Milan’s weak midfield, he quickly headed toward the penalty area and Maldini and Senderos closed in from the left and right.

“Pass, pass!!”

Mikhailovic mumbled, but Amoruso clearly had no intention of passing, purposely bumping into Senderos on the side and then suddenly collapsing between both defenders.

“Beep beep beep~”

Home fans of Bologna booed, and the referee promptly decided on a penalty.

“Penalty!”

“The referee blew a penalty!”

“What’s there to say about this decision?”

“There’s a bit of actively seeking a penalty.”

“But the biggest problem isn’t Senderos.”

“It’s the midfielder’s defense.”

“Now, Milan’s biggest issue is the players are older, not as energetic as before.”

“The run isn’t active enough, if this was Milan in 2007, Amoruso wouldn’t have been able to run through that chance.”

The commentators’ remarks also drew agreement from the fans.

Di Vaio stood at the penalty spot, gently kicking the ball into the net with his right foot.

1:0

Bologna took the lead at home; Di Vaio scored his 15th goal of the season, leading the Serie A top scorer list, likely winning the Golden Boot this season.

Di Vaio ran to the corner flag, raising his hands to the fans, a smile on his face; at 34 years old, his performance on the field was still impressive.

Ancelotti chewed gum while watching the field’s situation, couldn’t help but look at Chen Zhong on the bench.

If Chen was on the field just now, he could have anticipated the opponent in advance, right?

To make matters worse, as Ancelotti pondered, Ambrosini seemed angry about the recent ’mistake,’ actively tackling in the 11th minute and accidentally collided with Bologna players on the field.

Both fell to the ground.

Bologna’s player quickly stood up, but Ambrosini took a while to get up, which caused Ancelotti some concern.

Known as “Captain Amb,” Ambrosini contributes to both attack and defense, considered a rare B2B player, able to cover the field from his own to the opponent’s penalty area.

The referee blew the whistle, Bologna players kicked the ball out, and the medic signaled unable to continue, Ancelotti turned to Chen Zhong and said: “Chen!”

“Chen!!”

In football matches, substitute players warm up periodically, and Chen Zhong had just finished warming up not long ago.

His face showed no extra expression, just quietly putting aside his clothes and changing into proper gear.

“Ambrosini seems unable to continue.”

“Milan last season struggled with injuries.”

“And this season, after Gattuso’s season-ending injury, Ambrosini is hurt.”

“Ancelotti had to use a substitution.”

“He chose Chen Zhong to replace Ambrosini.”

“This is Chen Zhong’s first appearance in an official match this season!”

Some Bologna fans near Milan’s bench saw Ambrosini unable to continue and Chen Zhong preparing to play, and were not overly concerned.

Serie A’s defense is famously robust among the big five leagues, and Chen Zhong hadn’t played an official match for over half a year; seeing him prepare to enter, even some extreme Italian fans voiced unfriendly comments.

“Welcome to hell.”

“(Monkey sounds) Come, Uncle has a big banana for you.”

“Go back to your Spain, back to your East, you stupid idiot…”

…

Unfriendly voices, unfriendly gestures.

Italian fans know how to mess with younger players’ mentality, especially those of color, like Mario Balotelli.

Milan fans originally had little reaction to Chen Zhong’s upcoming play, but seeing Bologna fans so ’despicable,’ some began a defensive stance.

As for domestic fans, their thoughts were simple.

Domestic fans were in jubilation because Chen Zhong, after half a year, finally returned to the field.

This was their constant anticipation.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep