Chapter 1 After Equalizing the Score

After Chen Yingxiong helped the team equalize, Liverpool was satisfied; they had an away goal. Furthermore, there were still forty-five minutes left in the game, and they still had chances. Now, with not much time left in the first half, Liverpool, for the sake of prudence, didn't want to concede another goal in these final few minutes...

So by the end of the first half, the score on the field was 1:1.

However, Leali's performance during this period was a bit off. He hadn't recovered from the shadow of conceding a goal. His greatest strength had been ruthlessly shattered by someone else, and the young Leali couldn't accept this fact for a while.

Fortunately, Liverpool didn't continue their attack in the first half; otherwise, Liverpool might have reversed the score and taken the lead in the first half.

As soon as the first half ended, Buffon got up from his seat and walked straight onto the field.

He really liked Leali; he found him to be humble and hardworking. He also hoped that Leali could take over his position in Juventus and the Italian national team.

So, seeing Leali encounter a test in his career, he had to use his experience as a veteran to help him through this difficult time.

As a goalkeeper, this was actually an inevitable path.

He strode forward and put his arm around Leali's shoulder.

Leali was still in self-blame and shock when he was suddenly embraced, which startled him.

He looked up and found it was his idol and mentor, Buffon.

"Don't take it to heart, Nicola. Your performance was perfect; that goal had little to do with you."

"But, but… Gian, I jumped a bit early, and I judged the direction correctly. I thought I could definitely stop it… Something like this shouldn't have happened to me…" Leali seemed very frustrated.

Buffon ruffled his hair.

"You idiot, there's no such thing as a guaranteed save! You have to remember, Nicola, today's game might be the most valuable lesson in your growth. You blocked shots from the best striker on this planet, and you also let him score… That's football. There's no such thing as a ball you can definitely stop. When you think like that, you're not far from conceding a goal. You know, goalkeepers can't afford to make mistakes, because once you do, you'll pay a heavy price. So, no matter what the situation, you have to be fully focused and treat every shot as the most difficult ball to save."

Buffon put his arm around Leali as he walked him off the field, saying this. He spoke slowly, trying to keep his tone calm. He didn't want to stimulate Leali and make him think he was blaming him.

He wanted to guide Leali patiently, like a friend.

Under his guidance, Leali's mood gradually calmed down.

Buffon patted him on the shoulder: "Okay, so you conceded a goal? Cheer up!"

Then he looked around and said to Leali in a lowered voice, "Let me say something harsh, Nicola. To become a world-class goalkeeper, you have to be mentally prepared to be abused. You can't become a world-class goalkeeper if you haven't picked several balls out of the net with your butt in the air."

Hearing Buffon say this suddenly, Leali was surprised: "Why do you say that, Gian?"

"When you've experienced such a terrible game, if you haven't been defeated by misfortune, then psychologically, you have the qualities to become a world-class goalkeeper. What follows is nothing more than technical refinement and accumulation of experience."

Leali nodded thoughtfully.

Seeing that he had taken his words to heart, Buffon ruffled his hair again.

"Your performance in the first half was really good. I'm not just saying that to encourage and comfort you, it's true." Buffon gave him a thumbs up. "Just play like that in the second half, Nicola."

"I will, Gian. I won't let you down!" The boy promised his idol and mentor.

Buffon smiled and touched his hair.

※※※

The 1:1 score didn't do much for Juventus's morale, especially since they had allowed the other team to score an away goal.

But no one blamed Leali for the goal he conceded.

The goal wasn't really his fault. If they had to find someone to blame, it would have to be Captain Chiellini.

But how could they find fault with the captain? Naturally, no one would say anything about the goal they conceded—they could only consider it bad luck and accept it.

What they should be considering now isn't whose fault it was that they conceded the goal.

But what they should do in the second half.

Conte was quite satisfied with the team's performance, which showed that his guidance was correct. As for Chen Yingxiong's goal, there was really nothing he could do… It wasn't really Chiellini's fault either, because if Chiellini hadn't fallen back to defend, the space behind him would have been exploited by Liverpool.

He chose to cover the space behind him, but he didn't expect Chen Yingxiong to seize the opportunity and score such a goal…

And with a shot like that, not even Buffon could have saved it, let alone Leali.

He was speechless.

※※※

The atmosphere in Liverpool's locker room was slightly relaxed, because Liverpool had already scored an away goal. They had already completed half their mission.

It would be even better if they could take away a victory, but if they couldn't, there was nothing to regret. A 1:1 draw would ensure that Liverpool had more room to maneuver when they returned to their home ground. Even if they lost the game 1:2, Liverpool would only need to win 1:0 at home to eliminate Juventus.

The tactics for the second half were also very simple: continue to defend and counterattack, and if there was a chance to attack, give it to the four players in the frontcourt and let them handle it.

Chen Yingxiong's goal was a good illustration of how the attacking quartet's coordination had been cultivated.

※※※

The halftime break passed quickly, and there were no problems on either side.

Juventus would definitely continue to attack. This was their home ground, and a 1:1 draw with Liverpool would be considered a failure.

So they definitely had to score goals, as many as possible, and get a few more clean goals on top of winning the game, to pave the way for advancement in the next round.

As for Liverpool, the 1:1 score had already put them in an invincible position. All they had to do next was defend steadily and counterattack. If there was a chance, they would launch a counterattack, and if there wasn't a good opportunity, they would continue to defend.

And so, the second half of the game began.

The situation on the field hadn't changed much compared to the first half.

Juventus was still besieging Liverpool, while Liverpool would occasionally launch a counterattack.

※※※

At the end of the first half, Leali's performance had caused many commentators to worry, because Leali had clearly suffered a blow after conceding the goal.

So they all thought that if Leali couldn't get out of this mental state, Juventus would probably concede another goal in the second half.

Who would have thought that after the start of the second half, everyone would quickly discover that Leali had swept away the slump he had shown at the end of the first half.

His performance had returned to normal!

The evidence was that he had blocked a powerful shot from Suarez in front of the goal. Suarez's shot was very powerful, but he was able to hold the ball firmly without fumbling.

This was enough to show that he was focused when Suarez shot.

This made many Juventus fans breathe a sigh of relief.

With Leali back to normal, Juventus had one less major hidden danger.

※※※

Seeing Leali's save, Buffon couldn't help but applaud his apprentice from the sidelines.

Chen Yingxiong looked at Leali.

This kid hadn't been affected by the goal he scored in the first half. He had recovered after just one halftime break.

Interesting, very interesting!

His evaluation of Leali had gone from "a bit interesting" to "somewhat interesting" to now "very interesting." This process of change also showed that he had gone from not understanding Leali at all to now valuing him.

This was indeed an excellent goalkeeper, all he lacked was experience…

But wasn't it more fulfilling to defeat such an excellent goalkeeper?

Since Buffon was about to retire, then he would defeat the new Buffon!

※※※

Chen Yingxiong quickly tested Leali's quality with a long shot.

This time he firmly pressed the ball under his body, not even giving Liverpool a corner kick.

Then Juventus surrounded Liverpool's half and launched a frantic bombardment.

Chen Yingxiong even retreated to the center circle.

But his task wasn't to defend, but… to wait for a counterattack.

He knew that Liverpool wouldn't have many chances to counterattack. With Juventus attacking so frantically, Liverpool's defensive pressure was also very high.

So he didn't really have much time to play with this Leali. He had to score as soon as possible and completely break the deadlock.

Hadn't some people criticized him for being the king of wasted shots because he had the most shots in the entire Premier League?

Then he would now show those people whether he was really the king of wasted shots!

Efficiency, what this game was going to test was his scoring efficiency.

※※※

After Juventus had bombarded for a long time, Liverpool finally got a chance to counterattack. For a short time, Liverpool's counterattack couldn't be launched at all, because they couldn't even get past their own half.

So, when it came to Liverpool's counterattack, whether it was passing or dribbling, they were definitely able to get the ball past the center circle.

Like this time.

Chen Yingxiong got the ball in the center circle. He had his back to the direction of the attack, and behind him was Chiellini, pressing him tightly.

He couldn't turn around. But he didn't plan to turn around anyway.

Relying on his physical advantage, he ignored Chiellini's interference and calmly distributed the ball to the wing, giving it to Sanchez on the right.

Another counterattack!

The noise in the New Alpi Stadium suddenly increased, and the commentators' voices also rose.

"Liverpool is here! Liverpool is here again! This time it's Sanchez!"

This situation made them all think of Chen Yingxiong's goal in the first half. Was it going to be repeated this time?