“Yes, we will advance from this group as the top seed!”

Mazzarri's pronouncement replayed repeatedly on television news programs.

His claim that Napoli would fight for the top spot in the group shocked many, leading to extensive discussion of the matter in the Italian media after the match.

Even foreign media outlets began to pay attention.

Based on Napoli's current group ranking, they were in first place. If the final round had them facing Liverpool at home, or Zenit, no one would have been surprised or disbelieving, because, based on their previous performance, they had the ability. But Napoli's final match was against Lyon, and on the road!

They could only secure the top spot with a draw or a win, but Lyon would definitely not give them that opportunity, as they also wanted to avoid the fearsome top seeds from other groups.

"Puel's team will absolutely not allow Napoli to succeed on their turf!"

"The situation in Group E is indeed complex. Lyon must defeat Napoli at home; even a draw would be dangerous, because if Zenit defeats Liverpool away, they will surpass Lyon with ten points and seize the qualifying spot. For Lyon, this is probably the most unwelcome scenario. Although Liverpool is playing at home, their form this season has been terrible… Who knows what will happen? Remember, the ball is round."

"...So, Lyon can only truly control their destiny by winning."

※※※

Before the showdown with Lyon, Napoli had one more league match, where they defeated Bari 4-2 at home, ending their embarrassing four-match winless streak.

This victory increased Napoli's points to twenty-five, and they quickly climbed to fourth place in the league standings.

Chen Hero scored twice in the match, ending his own four-match goal drought in the league. After fifteen rounds, he had only scored nine goals, a much lower scoring rate than last season. It was evident that the increased scrutiny from other Serie A teams was having an impact on him.

But don't assume Chen Hero was losing his edge because of this. Even with this performance, his nine goals still ranked second in the Serie A scoring charts, just one goal behind Di Natale of Udinese, and tied with Diego Milito of Inter Milan and the Prince of Rome, Totti.

His performance was only underwhelming compared to his previous standards; in the entire Serie A league, he remained one of the most feared strikers.

In every match, he faced the tightest marking from opposing defenders, who would stop at nothing to prevent him from scoring.

Fouls were commonplace, and he was subjected to more physical play in Serie A than he had been in the Russian Premier League.

If he weren't so physically strong, he would have been on the injury list countless times.

The terror of Serie A's defense lies not only in their advanced defensive tactics but also in their reputation for inflicting damage. Van Basten and Ronaldo are two of the most famous examples.

There are also many strikers who perform poorly in Serie A but become world-class goalscorers after switching leagues; Thierry Henry of France is a prime example…

Therefore, some fans who love Serie A are very dismissive of players like Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, claiming that if they were put in Serie A, "Our defenders would take them out!" While this may be an exaggeration, it reflects the characteristics of Serie A.

A player like Messi, who is agile, fast, and likes to keep the ball at his feet, would indeed face significant challenges in Serie A. At the very least, after two serious injuries in a season, he would become much more humble and low-key…

Back then, when "The Phenomenon" Ronaldo first arrived in Serie A, he was unstoppable. But what happened? He was repeatedly fouled by Serie A defenders, which eventually led to numerous injuries. He could have achieved even greater things, but his frequent injuries, especially serious ones, kept him from being universally recognized as the King of Football…

It was a great pity.

For the Serie A defenders, however, Ronaldo was just another trophy on their wall of honor.

Now that Chen Hero had arrived in Serie A, after a season where everyone was unfamiliar with him, he won the Golden Boot. Along with fame, he earned the "favor" of Serie A defenders. So far this season, he was being fouled an average of four times per game. While the number itself may not seem like much, it is very high for a striker who doesn't often dribble past players. As a reference point... In the 2002 World Cup, the top scorer Ronaldo was fouled an average of only twice per game before the final. The most fouled player was Turkish midfielder Basturk, who was fouled twenty-eight times in six games, an average of 4.7 times per game.

Chen Hero is just a striker responsible for the final shot, but his average number of fouls per game is approaching that of a central midfielder, which shows how much attention he is getting from defenders...

In this situation, he still managed to score nine goals, which made many people very worried.

Perhaps it is too early to say "conquer," but the fact is that Chen Hero is tenaciously and stubbornly taking one step at a time on the road to conquest.

※※※

After finishing the match against Bari, Napoli began preparing for the game against Lyon.

This was a decisive battle, and the media was paying close attention. Even before leaving for Lyon, Napoli was surrounded by media, buzzing around them like flies that couldn't be driven away.

According to the media and fans, Napoli's internal atmosphere at this moment must be filled with the immense pressure of the "eve of the battle," with everyone feeling overwhelmed. "Nervousness" should be the only keyword within the team at this time.

But in reality, nothing had changed within the Napoli team. Everyone was doing what they usually did.

Chen Hero, Arshavin, and Cassano continued to joke around and torment their teammates.

They were even discussing how to celebrate if they scored in the match against Lyon.

Simply pumping their fists and roaring, or stripping off their shirts and running wildly? That was too unoriginal and lame!

They decided to bring their prank ideas onto the field.

Tormenting teammates was too small-scale. They wanted to torment their opponents; that would be truly exciting!

※※※

In France, the level of attention on this match was also very high.

French national television devoted a special program to discussing which team the guests favored to win the match.

The result was almost unanimous: everyone supported Lyon.

The reasoning was simple: "This is Lyon's home ground, and I can't imagine Lyon losing to Napoli at home... Of course, Napoli is very strong, but this is Lyon's home!"

The situation was the same in Italy, where the topic was hyped up even more than in France.

Antonella Canali was a sports reporter for a provincial television station in Naples.

In the Province of Naples, she was a household name because she was so beautiful.

Canali, a native of Naples with black hair, possessed all the qualities of Neapolitan women: black hair, large breasts, a slender figure, and fiery passion. She first gained fame by posing for racy calendars for magazines.

Born in 1986, Canali, at the age of twenty-three, was already the leading lady of the Naples provincial television station. Her program, *Current Football*, was the most popular sports program in the Province of Naples and the Campania region.

It was a talk show, common on Italian television, with a male and a female host. Usually, the male host did most of the hosting, conducting interviews with guests, while Canali simply sat to the side wearing various revealing outfits, occasionally changing her pose to show off her figure and beauty, and interjecting a few words that were generally inconsequential.

But the camera would frequently focus on her rather than the eloquent guests or the persuasive male host.

Simply put, because Canali was so beautiful, many male viewers tuned in to the program not for the knowledgeable male host or the interviewees, but for Canali.

She was the goddess in the hearts of many Neapolitan men.

However, she lacked sufficient recognition on a national level in Italy. After all, in a country that produced so many beautiful women, it took more than just beauty to stand out.

The Naples provincial television station produced a special program dedicated to the match between Napoli and Lyon, which they promoted as a show to cheer on the Napoli team before their departure.

This made many viewers curious: what kind of program could boost the morale of the Napoli team?

The answer was revealed that night. A carefully made-up Antonella Canali presented a striptease on television!

On a snow-white sofa, Canali, dressed in a sky-blue skirt suit, began to undress to the rhythm of the music, revealing black stockings and a black lingerie set.

Surrounding her was a group of male dancers dressed in blue and white outfits, holding guns, symbolizing the Lyon players.

Surrounded by the gun-wielding "Lyon players," Canali held her head high, dancing to the music, occasionally showing off her bust and her sexy figure, especially her long legs in black stockings, which made people want to reach out and touch them.

The "Lyon players" were captivated by Canali's beauty and her aura of nobility. They dropped their guns and raised their hands in surrender.

Finally, as the music ended, Canali stood proudly in the center of the stage, while the "Lyon players" bowed down, indicating their submission.

Clearly, the television station hoped to use such a program to boost the morale of the Napoli players and fans.

But at the end of the program, Canali suddenly blew a kiss at the camera: "Hero! Oh... my hero—go fight bravely! If you return victorious, I will be your spoils, at your disposal!" She ran her hands down from her cheeks, along her neck, breasts, waist, hips, all the way down to her long legs... The series of caresses was incredibly sexy and alluring!

Finally, she bent over, stuck out her round, sexy buttocks, revealed her cleavage, batted her eyes, and even made some uncontrollable moans and gasps in her voice...

Up to this point, everyone thought the program was normal, but then the plot took a one hundred and eighty-degree turn!

The men in front of the television were shocked!

Chen Hero, who had skipped extra training to watch the program out of curiosity, spat out the coffee he had just taken a sip of when he saw this scene...

※※※

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