Chapter 11 The Banana

Thanks to Chen Hero's two goals, Zenit St. Petersburg won the game away from home, with the final score being 2:1, with the visiting Zenit ahead and the home team, CSKA Moscow, behind.

This defeat didn't really affect CSKA Moscow much; it only delayed their pace in winning the championship. But there was not much suspense about who the champion would be anyway; they would definitely win the league title this season.

But for Zenit, it was very important. This victory moved them up one place in the standings, returning them to fourth place in the league.

Previously, due to Chen Hero's sudden goal drought, the team's performance had become erratic. Their league ranking had also dropped from fourth to fifth.

Although both fourth and fifth place qualify for the UEFA Cup, fourth place is always a little more secure than fifth.

But this was not the focus of discussion after this game.

Chen Hero broke his goal drought and scored two very beautiful goals in the game. But this was not the focus of discussion either.

The focus of discussion was Chen Hero's celebration after scoring, and the reaction of CSKA Moscow fans...

As soon as the game ended, Chen Hero was surrounded in the mixed zone, and the reporters wouldn't let him leave, insisting on answering questions.

"Excuse me, Hero, what made you think of using... uh, using bananas to..." The reporter himself didn't know how to put this topic properly, and he tried his best not to use the term "racial discrimination."

"I heard a large group of monkeys making noises, so I figured they must want to eat bananas."

Chen Hero's answer surprised many reporters—they thought Chen Hero would criticize the issue of racial discrimination and then loudly protest his innocence. Who would have thought that Chen Hero would be so tough, confronting CSKA Moscow fans even after the game?

Radimov next to him added, "This is because CSKA fans have always been racially discriminating against Hero..."

"Even if the opposing fans did this, do you think Hero's response was... excessive?" The reporter asked Radimov.

The question was directed at Radimov, but Chen Hero interrupted.

"Excessive? If you're walking down the street and someone robs you, and you defend yourself. The police come and don't arrest the robber, but think you're using excessive force in self-defense. What do you think of that?" He asked rhetorically.

"Uh..." The reporters realized that this question was very stupid—perhaps it was the racial prejudice hidden deep in his heart that was at play...

Chen Hero ignored the reporter who was left speechless by his question and raised his arms high. "Actually, this matter is very simple. The CSKA Moscow fans attacked me throughout the entire game, so I scored two goals in the game and helped the team defeat the team they support. I think those fans must have a very interesting expression right now; I'm feeling particularly great! You can write it like this—this is what happens when you provoke Hero!"

After saying that, he turned and left the mixed zone, leaving a group of dumbfounded people behind.

Even the most experienced reporters probably had never seen such an arrogant person...

"Who does he think he is?!"

"Oh my god, he actually said those words..."

"Actually, I think that title is great! I've decided to use that sentence as the title!"

"Ha! I think I'm starting to like this kid..."

The reporters reacted differently. Some denounced Chen Hero for being arrogant and conceited, while others praised Chen Hero for his straightforwardness.

With the protagonist gone, the media could only pull other players to hear their opinions on the matter.

Arshavin expressed their protest to the media: "Everyone saw and heard what happened on the field. This behavior of CSKA Moscow fans is very bad! Racial discrimination should disappear from the football field completely!"

Anyukov also came up to express his agreement. "I hope the referee can write this in the match report. This kind of behavior is very shameless!"

At the post-match press conference, Advocaat also angrily criticized the behavior of CSKA Moscow fans: "This is a disgrace to Russian football! How can such a situation be allowed to appear openly on the football field?"

As for Chen Hero's reaction, Advocaat naturally supported his disciple.

"I think Chen Hero's response was normal. Anyone who is besieged for an entire game is bound to get angry. He is still an eighteen-year-old kid, and his actions may not be what we hoped for, but the fault is definitely not his. It lies with those provocative fans!"

"The Football Association should severely punish those fans, and my player has no problem at all!"

Racial discrimination is a big problem, and one of the stadium crimes that FIFA has been cracking down on includes this.

So, as soon as racial discrimination is mentioned, it is basically one-sided.

No one would dare to jump out and speak for those fans. Even CSKA Moscow's coach, Gazzaev, criticized the fans' behavior: "I don't think they can represent the fans who truly love CSKA. These people are unwelcome in any team..."

The excitement is always after the game, when the media are hyping up the scene that happened in the stands and under the stands during this game. Zenit St. Petersburg also issued an official statement, expressing strong anger and condemnation for the scene that occurred in the stands of the Dynamo Stadium: "...When we face some ugly phenomena, we are always used to being silent. But some things are not appropriate to be silent about. What happened in the match between Zenit and CSKA, we believe that the stadium is not a place for racial discrimination activities. These things will make you forget the wonderful scenes in the game. We also know that there are many fans in Moscow who truly love football, and we believe that most fans respect the players. So, for such things, we hope that the Russian Football Association and CSKA Moscow can make a very serious decision..."

Racial discrimination is very serious in Russian football stadiums, and this country has a tradition of xenophobia.

But this does not mean it can be tolerated.

The media are also fiercely criticizing the actions of CSKA Moscow fans, and of course, some Moscow media believe that Chen Hero's response was not calm enough and that he intensified the conflict.

After the game, the Russian Football Association quickly made relevant punishments. The Russian Football Association was also shocked by such blatant racial discrimination.

CSKA Moscow was fined 500,000 rubles for the racist behavior of their home fans. In addition, they were banned from their home stadium for two games, during which no fans were allowed to enter the stadium to watch the games. That is to say, when other teams go to Moscow to challenge CSKA, there will only be away fans and no home fans. At that time, the stadium stands will be empty.

Such a punishment is undoubtedly severe and can be regarded as a statement of the Russian Football Association's attitude—that is, it will never tolerate racial discrimination!

The matter was settled in this way, but many people recognized what kind of person Chen Hero was through this incident—he was definitely not the kind of person who would silently endure being slapped in the face. Even if he didn't respond at first, it was because he was waiting for an opportunity, harboring a bellyful of bad intentions to find trouble with the other party.

CSKA Moscow fans humiliated themselves because they lacked a correct understanding of Chen Hero...

After the game, photos of Chen Hero rushing in front of them and feeding them bananas made the headlines of major media outlets.

Now the entire Russian football world knows there is such a guy!

He is unruly, he is young and energetic, he dares to confront the extreme fans who boo him, and he uses bananas to provoke those fans who racially discriminate against him. Of course, he is also very good at scoring goals. A long shot and a header are quite beautiful.

Such an awesome character suddenly emerged when everyone was completely unaware!

Five goals in three games, no goals in four rounds, and then scored twice against a strong opponent like CSKA Moscow, single-handedly solving the defending champion.

This kind of person is just like his personality, flamboyant and eccentric, making it impossible to reason with him.

One newspaper wrote: "...The Russian Premier League may change because of such a guy..."

While the outside world was in an uproar, this guy who might change the Russian Premier League was being tortured to death by Yesenin in the dungeon.

"Okay, rest!" When these words came out of Yesenin's mouth, Chen Hero immediately collapsed on the ground.

The surrounding scenery also changed rapidly, and soon he returned to his dormitory and lay on the floor.

His whole body was soaked in sweat, and the floor was covered in water.

His breathing was as heavy as a bellows. After experiencing such training, he had begun to feel that his team's normal training was as easy as playing house!

"Hero," Yesenin called.

Chen Hero turned his head to look at him.

"Where did you get the idea for the banana?"

"Don't monkeys like to eat bananas?" Chen Hero said, panting.

Yesenin laughed, "But I don't think you should do that next time."

"Why?"

"Nothing is more powerful than using goals as a counterattack," Yesenin said.

Chen Hero nodded, "So, on the basis of scoring goals, adding something else as a response would be even more powerful!"

Yesenin curled his lips when he heard Chen Hero say this.

Chen Hero sat up from the ground, "Some things are hard to change, Mr. Aurora. If I could change them, I wouldn't be Chen Hero. Should we continue?"

Yesenin was a little surprised, "You've only rested for a few minutes, right?"

"Too little time, too much experience needed to level up. You know, Mr. Aurora? After the game against CSKA, I felt great. They all looked down on me, despised me, ridiculed me, and then they were all slapped by me in the end. I like this feeling of slapping people. In order to slap those people better, faster, and more often, I must level up and gain stronger abilities."

Chen Hero stood up and said to Yesenin.

"There are always many people in this world who are self-righteous and point fingers at others. And my purpose in life is to tell them: Don't act tough, or you'll get struck by lightning!"