Chapter 1 A Thrilling 3:2

Chen Yingxiong's goal helped the team win at the last moment, a thrilling 3:2 victory.

Advocaat was not very satisfied with the team's performance. He felt that the game shouldn't have been so difficult, even as an away game, the opponent's strength was far inferior to theirs.

He worried that winning the league title had made everyone relax, so after returning to St. Petersburg, he intensified the training.

Everyone complained endlessly about the training, only Chen Yingxiong was calm—this amount of training was nothing compared to what he experienced in the dungeons!

With only the last round of the league left, those who were supposed to win had already won, those who were supposed to be relegated had also been relegated, and there was basically no suspense about the European spots.

At this time, everyone naturally cared most about the single-season goal record.

Chen Yingxiong had already tied Oleg Veretennikov's record of twenty-five goals. With the last round of the league remaining, could he surpass this number and create a new record?

As for the Golden Boot... everyone felt there was no suspense.

But Pavlyuchenko did not intend to admit defeat.

Now the whole team really wanted to support him in scoring goals in the game. To surpass Chen Yingxiong and become the league's top scorer, he had to pray that Chen Yingxiong wouldn't score while also scoring four goals in the game himself, completing a hat trick.

The odds were too small.

Pavlyuchenko knew this too, but now that he was in this position, could he retreat at the last moment?

He must fight to the very end!

※※※

Zenit St. Petersburg won the championship, and Chen Yingxiong received a congratulatory text message from Sharapova. Now Sharapova has reached the final of the WTA year-end finals, and Chen Yingxiong also sent a congratulatory text message.

This year-end final held in Madrid was not originally Sharapova's, but Venus Williams decided to withdraw temporarily, allowing her to catch the last train.

The former world number one female tennis player could only participate as a substitute this time. She disappeared from people's sight for more than two-thirds of 2007. The pressure she bore was imaginable.

How to relieve the pressure? Sharapova now had a way—throughout the year-end finals, she would often chat with Chen Yingxiong, whether by phone, text message, or video.

Every time she chatted with Chen Yingxiong, the pressure would disappear without a trace. Even if they argued and quarreled, she felt no pressure at all.

November 11th was a very important day for both Sharapova and Chen Yingxiong.

On this evening, Sharapova, who was in Madrid, would usher in her first final after her injury. For her, this was a major challenge. Before the year-end finals, countless people were questioning her, believing that she could no longer return to her peak. This young Russian female tennis player would be ruined by ruthless injuries.

But now she had reached the final!

In Russia, on this afternoon, Chen Yingxiong would fight to create a new record. He would become the first player in the Russian Premier League to score more than twenty-five goals in a single season, and the first non-former Soviet player to win the league's top scorer award.

On the day of the game, the two were still talking on the phone.

Because Chen Yingxiong's game would take place first, Sharapova was now blessing Chen Yingxiong.

There was no encouragement, because Chen Yingxiong didn't need her encouragement.

After Chen Yingxiong thanked Sharapova for her blessings, he changed the subject. "I also wish you a championship in the year-end finals!"

Sharapova was stunned for a moment. She didn't expect Chen Yingxiong to say such a thing, actively blessing her...

"Henin is very powerful!" She said modestly, but the bright smile on her face betrayed her.

"What's there to be afraid of? Winning a championship by defeating a powerful opponent is more meaningful, right?"

"Okay, I'll try..."

"Do you want me to tell you a joke?"

"Yes, yes!" Chen Yingxiong had told her a lot of jokes during this period, making her very happy. She forgot about the pressure and worries in the laughter. These jokes from Chen Yingxiong played a big role in her ability to reach the final of the year-end finals.

"Well, you know that mice are afraid of cats... Mice from three countries were bragging together, all saying that their country's liquor was the strongest, and no one could convince anyone else. In the end, they had to drink and gamble to see which country's liquor was the strongest. The British mouse drank two bottles of whiskey and got drunk and passed out."

Sharapova stuck out her tongue: "Whiskey is indeed a well-known strong liquor!"

"But the Russian mouse scoffed at this..."

"Vodka!" Sharapova exclaimed excitedly, interrupting Chen Yingxiong's story. "Vodka is the strongest!"

"Let me finish! The Russian mouse drank a bottle of vodka and fell directly to the ground."

"See, which country is last?"

"China."

"Eh? What strong liquor does China have?"

"Erguotou! After drinking half a bottle of Erguotou, the Chinese mouse returned to its hole as if nothing had happened..."

"Haha, Russia will win!"

Chen Yingxiong rolled his eyes, thinking, why is this woman so noisy today?

"But, soon this mouse came out of the hole, and he was holding a brick in his hand, his face flushed, his eyes wide, and he shouted with the smell of alcohol: 'Where's the cat! Where's the cat! Come out! Believe it or not, I'll smash him to death with a brick!'"

Sharapova was stunned for a moment, reacted, and then burst into laughter.

She laughed so happily that she simply fell on the hotel bed, unable to stop laughing.

Chen Yingxiong waited for her laughter to subside a little and said to her, "If you really don't have confidence, drink a bottle of Erguotou before the game!"

Sharapova chuckled and retorted: "I'm not a mouse!"

"Henin isn't a cat either."

"Thank you, Hero."

"If you really want to thank me, treat me to dinner!" Chen Yingxiong joked.

"Okay! When I win the championship, I'll treat you to dinner!"

"I'm not talking anymore, I'm at the stadium." Chen Yingxiong ended the call.

When he looked up, he saw his teammates' ambiguous eyes.

Chen Yingxiong was fearless. He had already trained himself, no matter how lewd your eyes and smiles were, they couldn't make him feel the slightest bit uncomfortable!

What's wrong with having a phone call in front of you in the bus? Make your own calls and let others envy and hate you!

"Okay! Today's goal is—to score!" Chen Yingxiong stood up, stretched, and shouted.

The teammates behind him pointed and said: "Hero is high-spirited today..."

"Nonsense, he just chatted with a beauty all the way, he must have received some blessing aura, how can he not be motivated?"

"Damn it! Why don't I encounter such good things? Sharapova!"

Chen Yingxiong heard the discussions of his teammates. He didn't say anything, just smiled and got out of the car.

※※※

Chen Yingxiong's game was earlier than Sharapova's game.

But unfortunately, there was no live broadcast of the Russian league in Spain. It's no wonder that players like Chen Yingxiong and Arshavin are still basically unknown...

So Sharapova couldn't see the game.

She was a little regretful.

"Maria." Her coach knocked on the door. "It's time to go."

Sharapova nodded, got up and picked up her tennis racket bag.

Heroes have their own battles, and I have mine.

※※※

The atmosphere in the Saturn Stadium was not enthusiastic.

It was even a little sad.

Because the home team had already been relegated in advance. They ranked fifteenth in the league, second from the bottom, and would be relegated to the Russian First Division in the new season.

For this suburban Moscow team, this was a very heavy blow.

Facing a team that had already been relegated, was there no pressure for Chen Yingxiong to create a new record?

Obviously not.

In their last appearance in the Russian Premier League, the Saturn team had completely let go of their burdens and were wholeheartedly focused on their own team's glory, so as not to make the already sad fans even sadder. In this game, the Saturn team... went all out!

Chen Yingxiong was pulled to the ground by two opposing defenders, only one step away from the penalty area... The commentator even had to praise them for pulling well, because if they were a little slower, it would have been a penalty kick...

This was not the first time Chen Yingxiong had been "bear hugged" in this game.

His height had not changed, but his weight had increased by three kilograms since the beginning of the season, reaching ninety-eight kilograms!

For football players, this weight was enough to affect their agility and speed. But Chen Yingxiong had maximized his physical advantages.

But Chen Yingxiong was still not satisfied with his body...

In his dream, his physical advantage should be able to carry two defenders and still break through with the ball...

Of course, for now, it was a bit far from him.

"Chen Yingxiong has encountered very tenacious resistance on the road! Not only him, the entire Zenit has encountered tenacious resistance... Before the game, everyone said that Saturn had already been relegated in advance, and there was no problem for Chen Yingxiong to create a new record in this game... Who would have thought that the tenacity shown by Saturn would exceed expectations! They seem to be using practical actions to show the whole of Russia—even if we are relegated, we can't be wantonly insulted by you!"

Chen Yingxiong didn't want to humiliate the Saturn team, but scoring goals was a goal he had to achieve. He was unwilling to share the honor that originally belonged only to him with anyone, even retired old men...

This time, he not only jumped up in front of the goal to compete with his opponents for headers, but also frequently retreated and tried long shots.

※※※

In the twenty-fourth minute, the game between Zenit and Saturn was still 0:0, but a cheer came from the Luzhniki Stadium.

"Roman Pavlyuchenko! His twenty-third goal! Only two goals away from Chen Yingxiong! Pavlyuchenko looks full of energy today! The whole team is creating opportunities for him! He has not disappointed everyone's expectations, scoring the first goal in the twenty-fourth minute!"

※※※

At the Saturn Stadium, on the Zenit St. Petersburg coaching bench, Advocaat already knew that Pavlyuchenko had scored. In fact, he felt that Chen Yingxiong was going to win the league's top scorer without any suspense, so he didn't care about this matter. However, the other coaches around him cared a lot—everyone wanted to see how crazy Chen Yingxiong could be this season, how many more goals could he score?

This person always makes people full of expectations for him involuntarily.

Perhaps this is why this guy, who is arrogant and rebellious in character, and shouldn't be liked, is so popular...

※※※

ps, the crazy double monthly ticket has ended, but I still want to ask for a monthly ticket~

In the days to come, I still have to ask everyone for help!