Chapter 128 Hua Jin's Injury

The matter with Anke was considered resolved, but Zhang Jun began to have headaches about Zhang Jun's side.

Because Hua Jin was injured.

When Hua Jin had just transferred over and was undergoing a physical examination, Feng Qing had told Sabato to be psychologically prepared for Hua Jin's injury and absence. So when Hua Jin was fouled and injured by his opponent in the match against Siena, Sabato seemed very calm. He had expected this day to come.

With Hua Jin absent, Jorgensen could step up.

Zhang Jun was considering issues on a different level than the head coach. He wasn't considering how to arrange tactics in Hua Jin's absence. He was considering how much this injury would actually affect Hua Jin. As a player who had gone all-in, traveling from Spain to Italy, he needed to adapt to such a drastic change in the football environment. These first few months were crucial for him. But... he got injured at this critical juncture. He hadn't seen Hua Jin in several days and didn't know how the Spaniard was doing.

One day, he had just come out of the training ground and was walking towards the locker room when he ran into Hua Jin.

"Hi, Zhang, how are you?" Hua Jin took the initiative to greet him.

Zhang Jun was stunned because Hua Jin's expression didn't seem as depressed as he had expected after the injury. "Ah... you, hello."

"What's wrong? You don't look well," Hua Jin asked with concern.

"No, I'm fine..." Was he kidding? He was supposed to be the one who was concerned, but now it had turned into Hua Jin being concerned about him. "Your injury?"

"Oh, it's nothing. The team doctor told me I'll recover in two months," Hua Jin said as if it wasn't a big deal.

"Two, two months!" Zhang Jun was shocked. A season was only a few months long, and Hua Jin would be completely out of action for two months. "Hey, Hua Jin, are you okay? You'll be out for two months, but you're so calm."

Hua Jin laughed, "So that's what you're worried about. It's nothing, I'm used to it. Injuries are inevitable for professional athletes. Anyway, it's not like I'll be out for two years, just two months. I just need to be patient and I'll recover."

Zhang Jun stared blankly at Hua Jin's smiling face. *This must be the mental fortitude of a professional player...* Unlike Hua Jin, he couldn't afford to be injured in even one match right now, so he went to Feng Qing for massages and treatments almost every day.

"By the way, Zhang, Feng's massage is really effective. Maybe I'll be back on the field in less than two months," Hua Jin said with a smile. "I'm going for a massage now, see you later."

Zhang Jun waved goodbye. *Everyone else is much stronger than I thought.*

He suddenly felt that he, as the captain, was being a bit too paranoid. *Isn't this situation pretty good? Even if someone is injured, they won't be too depressed and affect the team's morale. Those of us who aren't injured just need to work hard and play well.*

※※※

As a result, Zhang Jun hadn't even had a few days to relax when something else happened.

In the league match on November 1st, Fiorentina played against newly promoted Bari away from home. This match was more difficult than they had imagined because Bari, having just returned to Serie A, was very tenacious at home. Moreover, to Sabato's surprise, Bari didn't focus on marking Zhang Jun like other Serie A teams, but instead clung to Kru with all their might. And many of their actions were very dangerous.

In the first half alone, Kru was fouled five times.

"Kru, in the second half, you need to reduce your dribbling, pass the ball quickly, and don't get entangled with them," Sabato reminded Kru, but Kru didn't respond. His face was gloomy, and no one knew what he was thinking.

The situation remained the same in the second half. Sabato began to consider substituting Kru, who was already locked in a battle with the opponent, early. He was calling Montolivo to warm up when a piercing whistle sounded on the field.

Sabato saw Kru fall to the ground clutching his knee.

Xiang Tao, impulsive as he was, wanted to rush up and punch the kid who had committed the foul, but Zhang Jun grabbed him around the waist.

"What are you doing? Zhang Jun! Can't you see that kid did it on purpose? I'm going to teach him a lesson, don't stop me!"

"Shut up! This isn't your place! I'm the captain, I'll go!" Zhang Jun pushed Xiang Tao to the ground and ran towards the referee.

"Mr. Referee! This is obviously a malicious foul! I don't think raising your foot to knee height is necessary to contest a ground ball!"

"N-No! I really didn't mean to, really!" the fouling player desperately defended himself, but Zhang Jun wouldn't believe him. After playing for sixty minutes, he knew very well what the opponent's tactics were: a simple strategy of causing injuries. They were willing to risk their players getting yellow cards or even red cards in order to injure the other team's players and force them off the field.

"Stop pretending to be innocent!" Zhang Jun pointed at the opponent's nose and cursed, "Do you think I can't see through your act?" As he cursed, he moved closer to the other player, and the Bari players quickly surrounded them. The Fiorentina players immediately surrounded Zhang Jun.

Xiang Tao sat on the ground, watching Zhang Jun's murderous expression. "Damn! When did he become more impulsive than me?"

"If you can't win the ball, you go after the man! You guys are scum!" It was no wonder Zhang Jun was so agitated because he had suffered from defenders' fouls before and knew how it felt. Kru's arrival had diverted some of that attention away from him, but while Kru had been fine in his first season, he had suddenly become a target for many defenders this season.

He and Kru were friends, and as a friend, he couldn't stand by and watch his friend being targeted like this. In addition, he was also the captain of Fiorentina, and he knew very well what Kru's injury meant, especially since he was the absolute starter in the attacking midfielder position. Although Montolivo and Van Persie could also play as attacking midfielders, later matches proved that neither of them could completely replace Kru. Kru was very talented in dribbling, passing, and running into space. He could always make unexpected passes and moves. Zhang Jun had developed a very deep understanding with him in both Fiorentina and the national team. Thirty percent of his goals came from Kru's passes.

Taking out Kru was like cutting off one of his legs. How could he not be angry?

The referee couldn't stand the atmosphere any longer. He blew his whistle to signal everyone to calm down, as he was about to make a ruling.

First, of course, he signaled the stretcher-bearers to carry the injured Kru off the field. Then, he had to issue a card to punish the fouling player.

"The referee is reaching for a card... a red card! Oh! He has sent off Bari's defender Tritto with a red card! Now it's Bari's players' turn to protest."

Feng Qing ignored the chaotic situation on the field and went straight to Kru at the edge of the field to examine him.

Kru covered his face with his arm and lay silently on the stretcher. "Don't worry, you'll be fine, you'll recover soon..." Feng Qing said, comforting Kru as he examined him. But soon he stopped saying those words.

He saw Sabato was also nearby, then he got up and pulled the head coach aside.

"I think... he needs to go to the hospital."

"Hospital?" Sabato was startled. "Is it that bad?"

"Yes." Feng Qing nodded. "Very bad, I estimate he'll be out for a few months."

"Damn it to hell!" Sabato cursed. Hua Jin had only been injured two weeks ago, and now Kru was going to be out for a few months. *Damn, Fiorentina is too glorious. Is even God jealous of us?*

"I felt it, it should be a fracture, a knee fracture."

Sabato looked at Feng Qing, then at Kru lying on the ground, and then at the still chaotic situation on the field. He cursed again in a low voice, then said to Feng Qing, "You take care of this, send him to the hospital..." Then he walked straight back to the coach's bench.

Feng Qing turned to the staff and shouted, "Get the car! Carry him to the ambulance! We're going to the hospital!"

"The Bari players' protests can't make the referee change his decision, they have to retreat... Ah! Over here! What do we see? An ambulance! My God! Is Kru's injury so serious that he needs to be sent directly to the hospital for examination? Now let's take another look at what happened just now."

The big screen replayed the scene: Kru stepped on the ball and was about to change direction to break through when Tritto suddenly lunged from the front, his right foot's studs ruthlessly stomping on Kru's supporting leg—his left knee. From the slow motion, you could even clearly see Kru's knee visibly deform at that moment.

"This is truly a... blatant act of violence. The referee's ruling is absolutely correct."

Zhang Jun watched the ambulance slowly drive out of the stadium and disappear through the gates. He looked back at the Bari team players on the field. *He's going to give these bastards a taste of their own medicine.*

Montolivo, who had just come on, received a pass from Mascherano in the center circle on his first touch. Just as he adjusted the ball's direction, he heard Zhang Jun shout from the side, "Pass the ball to me! Riccardo!"

Montolivo was startled and passed the ball without thinking.

"Zhang Jun receives the ball in the center circle and starts dribbling forward... He's very fast! Bari's midfielders can't keep up with his speed at all!"

In the center circle, Zhang Jun forcibly broke through two Bari players with his unparalleled burst of speed. He pushed the ball forward and squeezed between the two of them. The two players didn't have time to close the gap and let Zhang Jun through. The force of Zhang Jun's push was just right—not too weak, so that the ball didn't get far enough and he couldn't run, and not too strong, so that he couldn't catch up with the ball. As he passed between the two players, the third Bari player wanted to come up and steal the ball, but Zhang Jun swept the ball away from him like a gust of wind.

"Ahhh! This is speed! This is speed!" the commentator shouted excitedly. Zhang Jun broke through all three Bari players in an instant, who were no more than five meters apart. It was absolutely impossible to do this without an astonishing burst of speed.

After breaking through the two defenders, Zhang Jun continued to advance. He was far ahead of everyone else, even leaving his teammates far behind.

"My God! His dribbling speed is almost the same as his speed without the ball! The defenders can't catch up with him!"

"Two of you go up and double-team him! The last one stay behind and protect!" Bari's goalkeeper nervously commanded the defense.

Two center-backs immediately pounced on him, wanting to intercept Zhang Jun head-on.

The two defenders were positioned perfectly, and Zhang Jun had to find a way to widen the gap so he could break through.

He first lowered his left shoulder, making the defenders think he was going to break through on the left, so they quickly moved to the left side as a group. But Zhang Jun flicked the ball to the right with his right foot! He was going to break through on the right!

The defender on the right reacted first. He forcibly stopped his momentum and lunged to the right.

But Zhang Jun caught up with the ball and suddenly cut it back to the left! The ball veered to the left again. The defender on the right was already dizzy, and he wanted to turn back, but his body's inertia wouldn't allow it. He slipped and fell to the ground.

The defender on the left saw Zhang Jun cut the ball back and thought it was a great opportunity to steal the ball. He quickly stretched out his foot to poke it away.

But a foot was faster than his.

Zhang Jun cut back with his right foot, and while he didn't have time to adjust his body's center of gravity, he immediately used his left foot to block the ball. The ball rolled straight forward, just brushing past the second defender!

Then Zhang Jun started up again, relying on his amazing explosiveness to rush past!

The last defender originally wanted to take the opportunity to go up and steal the ball, but Zhang Jun rushed in front of him in an instant, scaring him into retreating!

He retreated from outside the penalty area to inside the penalty area.

"What are you doing! Go up and defend him!" the goalkeeper shouted anxiously.

The defender hesitantly reached out his foot to steal the ball, but Zhang Jun easily dodged him. Next was the duel between the goalkeeper and the striker.

"Tch!" The goalkeeper spat and charged out of the goal. He couldn't retreat, or he would be finished.

But Zhang Jun suddenly stepped on the ball, stopping it. This caught the goalkeeper off guard. He suddenly didn't know what to do. Charge out? The ball was at the opponent's feet, firmly stepped on. How could he get the ball if he charged out? Don't charge out? He had already run halfway, was he supposed to go back? He would be left hanging there, too embarrassed.

Taking advantage of the goalkeeper's momentary daze, Zhang Jun suddenly started up, flicked the ball to the side, and immediately shot with his foot. The ball flew past the goalkeeper, who didn't react at all, and into the goal.

"Beautiful! It's goooooooooooooooooooooooooal!!!" the commentator shouted excitedly. "One person solved seven people! How long has it been since we last saw this scene? Zhang Jun has rarely had this kind of moment of beating several people in a row this season, but today he proved to all of us: whenever he wants to, he can do it!"

Everyone on Fiorentina's bench jumped up. Sabato even held his head in his hands, as if he couldn't believe it.

Throughout the entire process, the other Fiorentina players, including Zhang Jun's attacking partner Van Persie, were complete spectators, watching Zhang Jun's one-man show from behind.

Was this the consequence of angering Zhang Jun? Van Persie felt that this Zhang Jun was a hundred times more powerful than the Zhang Jun he had met in the Netherlands.

"Ah haha! Bari kids! Did you see that! This is the consequence! This is the price!" Xiang Tao shouted and ran towards Zhang Jun. While running, he recklessly taunted the Bari players in Italian.

The Bari players all lowered their heads.

After scoring the goal, Zhang Jun ran behind the Bari goal and kicked the advertising board hard. The sound was transmitted through the microphone next to it, and the entire stadium could hear it.

Sabato was watching Zhang Jun's excited performance on the sidelines, and he suddenly realized something.

※※※

In the end, Fiorentina defeated Bari 1-0 in this match. Zhang Jun's goal in the sixty-second minute of the second half completely crushed the morale of the newly promoted team, and they were unable to organize any more effective attacks afterward.

After the match, the results of Kru's examination came out. Feng Qing brought Sabato and the entire Fiorentina team the worst possible news.

According to the initial examination results, Kru needed to undergo knee surgery. Optimistically, he would return after the winter break.

"Damn it!" Sabato threw the examination report against the wall, "After the winter break! Our goal this season is the league championship! Our main attacking midfielder will be out for nearly half a season..."

Dili Weiao quickly picked up the reports scattered on the ground, reorganized them, and put them back on the table in front of Sabato.

"Van Persie is more suitable for playing as a striker, playing as an attacking midfielder... still needs to be tested. That guy Montolivo... his body is a bit too weak, his lack of physical strength is his biggest weakness, and he's also prone to injury. Maybe I should consider rotating players in the attacking midfielder position?"

Dili Weiao replied, "I don't think it's necessary. Van Persie played as an attacking midfielder when he was in the Netherlands. We can let him be the main player. For the striker position, I think Zhang Jun and Pazzini are a good combination, and there's also Toni as a substitute. Moreover, Van Persie can play multiple positions, so we won't have too much difficulty."

"Hmm..." Sabato pinched his chin and considered, "You have a point. Then let's do as you said and try to hold out until the winter break. I'll ask the owner to bring in one or two players during the winter break."

※※※

Kru had been transferred to Fiorentina's hospital. Zhang Jun went to the hospital to visit him.

When he saw Kru, Kru was lying in bed staring blankly at the ceiling.

"What are you doing?" Zhang Jun put the flowers in a vase by the bedside.

"Counting the tiles on the ceiling," Kru said, staring unblinkingly at the ceiling.

"How do you feel? Physically?" Zhang Jun moved a stool and sat down next to Kru's bed.

"Not bad, I guess, just like that." Kru said expressionlessly, his tone devoid of any emotion. "How's the team?"

"Not bad, everyone's morale is pretty good. Although you and Hua Jin are both injured, the morale hasn't been affected."

"Is that so? That's good."

After sitting for a while, Zhang Jun seemed to realize that Kru's mood wasn't very high, which made the situation a bit awkward. He decided to get up and leave.

"Oh, I have something to do, so I won't disturb you. You rest well and try to return to the team as soon as possible. We're all looking forward to it."

Kru nodded, and then, just as Zhang Jun was walking to the door, he suddenly said to Zhang Jun, "Hey, Zhang Jun, actually, I still haven't found a purpose for playing football."

When Zhang Jun turned back to look at him, he was looking up again, counting the tiles on the ceiling.

※※※

Van Persie had replaced Kru as the starting attacking midfielder. Judging from training, he was still able to complete the coach's tactical arrangements. But of course, he and Kru were different, they weren't the same type of attacking midfielder, so Sabato had to adjust the tactics in response to this change in personnel. He asked Van Persie to reduce dribbling and pass the ball quickly, and he also asked the entire team to run actively, pass and receive quickly, and speed up the attack, relying on the whole team's running and passing to make up for the work of dribbling and breaking through the opponent's defense that Kru could originally do alone.

Zhang Jun, however, was thinking about another question: what exactly did Kru mean when he said that to him in the hospital that day?

*Haven't found a purpose for playing football?*

Then why was he able to perform so consistently and excellently last season? If it hadn't been for this injury, perhaps he would have continued to perform excellently and consistently. If he didn't have a purpose, then what made him persevere?

Kru was now practically an orphan. Zhang Jun had never had that kind of experience, so he couldn't understand Kru's current feelings. In fact, people in this situation were prone to feeling empty. They couldn't find a purpose for moving forward, and some, in extreme cases, would feel that there was no point in living because they were all alone and it didn't matter what they did.

When his father was still around, even though he was seriously ill, that was Kru's motivation to play football and earn money desperately. As long as he could cure his father's illness, he would be willing to do anything. But when his father passed away, the motivation that had supported him suddenly disappeared, and Kru couldn't accept it for a while, which was why his performance at Chelsea was so poor during that time.

Without someone to entrust your life to, everyone would feel empty and bored. Kru was in that state now.

The reason he was able to continue playing now was entirely because he had more professional ethics than Zhang Jun. Although he wasn't very interested in football, he knew that he had signed a contract and was a professional player, so at least during the validity period of the contract, he had to work hard and play well, and be worthy of the money people gave him.

But once the contract expired, would he be able to renew it? Kru himself hadn't considered this question.

Zhang Jun didn't have much energy to think about Kru's problems because Fiorentina was now facing a very difficult situation.

Due to Kru's sudden injury, the team's lineup was incomplete. In addition, many teams had thoroughly studied Fiorentina's tactics and paid special attention to defending the two flanks. And Van Persie's ability to break through in the middle was not as good as Kru's after all, so Fiorentina's proud offense had failed in front of many teams.

In several consecutive matches, Fiorentina either drew or lost. Fiorentina's ranking had fallen from third to seventh, and it seemed that it would continue to decline. This had to be said to be a major crisis.

The team's morale had also been greatly affected.

Van Persie was working very hard in the attacking midfielder position, but after all, he had just come to Serie A and wasn't very used to Serie A's defense, so he couldn't give his teammates more support.

Many media outlets used to think that Kru's greatest weapon was relying on his flashy skills to win the audience's favor, but now they had to re-evaluate Kru. Like Zhang Jun, Kru had become an indispensable figure for Fiorentina.

And at this time, Kru was still lying in the hospital counting the tiles on his ceiling.

※※※

On November 25th, in the fifth round of the European Champions League group stage, Fiorentina lost to Paris Saint-Germain away from home, which cast a shadow over their prospects for qualifying.

Now, Porto, Paris Saint-Germain, and Fiorentina had the same points. With only one round left, Fiorentina had to travel to Moscow to challenge CSKA Moscow. Playing in the cold Moscow weather was a very big test for Zhang Jun and his teammates.

So when the referee blew the whistle to end the match at the Parc des Princes, Zhang Jun looked very angry. There was only one reason for his anger: losing the match.

It wasn't like they hadn't lost matches before. But losing now had a completely different meaning. Fiorentina was facing difficulties and needed a victory. He, as the captain, couldn't lead the team to victory. He was angry about this, he was angry at his own incompetence.

As a result, when the Paris Saint-Germain players asked him to exchange jerseys after the match, he didn't look very good, but out of courtesy, he still took off his dirty jersey, handed it to the other player, and took the other player's jersey, draped it over his shoulder, and walked back to the locker room alone with his head down.

This scene was seen by Sabato on the sidelines.

In the locker room, Dili Weiao looked at all the players who were silent and didn't know how to cheer them up. The team had been losing continuously, which had dealt a heavy blow to their morale.

And just like that, without a word, the team boarded the bus, returned to the hotel, and then took a plane back to Rome late that night.

The team no longer had the boisterous scenes they had after their winning streak. No one was joking, and no one was talking loudly. Even Xiang Tao was subdued.

Fiorentina's winter came a bit early this year.

Zhang Jun was obviously in a bad mood. On the plane, he sat alone in a row of seats, with no one else next to him. Maybe he didn't want to be disturbed.

Sabato looked at the players around him. Some were already asleep, and some who weren't asleep had their heads down, not knowing what they were doing.

He stood up and swayed to the seat next to Zhang Jun, then plopped down.

Zhang Jun was a little surprised and looked at Sabato.

"Zhang, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about, but I haven't had a good opportunity."

"What is it, Coach?"

"About the captain issue."

Zhang Jun felt a pang of nervousness in his heart, wondering why the coach was bringing this up now.

"I saw you exchanging jerseys with someone after the match."

"Ah, he took the initiative to ask me at the time, I didn't go to him."

"I want to know what you were thinking at the time? Tell me honestly." Sabato stared at Zhang Jun and asked.

"Uh... I didn't really want to exchange jerseys with him because I lost the match at the time and was in a bad mood. He wanted to come up and exchange jerseys with me, and he was the winner and I was the loser, so it felt really bad... But he took the initiative to come, and if I didn't give it to him, I was afraid it would seem like I didn't have the bearing..."

Sabato patted Zhang Jun's shoulder, "It's great that you think that way. I just wanted to talk to you about this. Since that's what you really think, then you should follow your true thoughts and not care about what other people think. I can understand how you feel after losing a match, it's very frustrating, right?"

Zhang Jun thought about how he felt at the time, and it was indeed like that, especially after losing consecutive matches. Sometimes after a match, he even wanted to cry. But he couldn't, he always had to maintain a polite appearance in front of others.

He nodded.

Sabato grinned, "That's right. Since you didn't want to exchange jerseys with him, why did you have to force yourself?"

"Well... Coach, I'm a public figure, I have to consider what others will think of me if I do that."

"Do you care what those idiots think of you?" Sabato suddenly raised his voice, startling Zhang Jun. "It's your freedom how you act, they have no right to interfere. If they really gossip, just ignore them. Zhang, I think you're living a very tiring life, you know? Why do you always have to hide your true thoughts? Why don't you do what you really think? Are you supposed to smile at the asshole who fouled you? Are you supposed to accept the hypocritical pity of those damn winners after you lose a match? Do you remember? In the match where Kru was injured, you became very angry because of Kru's injury, and then I saw a beautiful goal. Isn't that great? Don't hide, be angry when you should be angry, give those who look down on you a taste of their own medicine!" Sabato waved his fist.

"Coach... but that, that... what will they say?"

"Idiot, didn't I tell you? Don't care what others say to you, they don't have the right, your words and actions are not for them to judge. Smiling at others is a good thing, to be honest, because you're always smiling, everyone likes you very much. But you don't have to be nice to those who violate you, look down on you, or insult you. Teach them a lesson, go after them, kick their balls!"

Zhang Jun rolled his eyes, "Then wouldn't I be the same as Xiang Tao?"

"You should be like that!" Sabato lowered his voice and said, "Football is war, don't treat it as a game. This is war, there's no need to be polite to our enemies. You need to be fierce, angry. Like this..." He suddenly grabbed Zhang Jun's collar and glared at him fiercely.

Zhang Jun was startled by Sabato's expression. Sabato was very satisfied with Zhang Jun's reaction. He released his hand and helped Zhang Jun straighten his collar again, "How was that? Scared you, right? Haha!"

*His face really changes like flipping a book...* Zhang Jun muttered to himself.

"I'm not telling you to be a bad person, I'm just telling you to release your true personality, don't always live wrapped in a layer of sugar coating. You're the captain now, and you've seen that our team has been losing continuously and morale is low. Do you know what? In this situation, they don't need a gentle gentleman as captain, they need a fierce fighter. If you don't show this kind of fierce fighting spirit, you won't be able to lead the team out of the predicament. I'm the coach, but you're the one who needs to manage those players on the field. Do you know, a captain isn't qualified just by managing the relationship between the players, sometimes the captain needs to be at the forefront, set an example for them, and tell them what to do. You can't do these things if you're not fierce. You need to shout loudly, swear loudly. To put it bluntly, you lack a kind of hooliganism right now. All the players are watching you, if you're fierce to the opponents, then they'll think that you're doing it to make them feel relieved, and it will boost their morale."

Zhang Jun looked at Sabato.

"Did you understand everything I said in one breath? Ah... but even if you don't understand now, it doesn't matter, you'll always understand. In short, Zhang, if you want to lead this team out of the predicament and towards victory, you must stand up and show the side of a fighter. Be fierce, anyone who dares to block Fiorentina's path must be eliminated!" Sabato chopped his palm on the back of the seat in front of him.

Zhang Jun couldn't help but shudder. *He wondered if Sabato's nerves had been stimulated by the continuous defeats?*

※※※

By the time Zhang Jun got home, it was almost midnight. Sophie was still sitting in the living room waiting for him.

"I've prepared your clothes for washing, you can go take a shower now." Sophie took Zhang Jun's backpack and put it in a special cabinet. She said to Zhang Jun behind her.

But Zhang Jun collapsed directly on the sofa.

"Hey! Zhang Jun, no! You can't sleep here!" Sophie went up and shook Zhang Jun awake. "You'll catch a cold."

Zhang Jun turned over, "I'm so tired, I just want to sleep..."

"Did you lose the match again?"

"Yeah... 0:2, we lost without any resistance." Zhang Jun said, lying on the sofa and looking at the ceiling.

Sophie sat down next to Zhang Jun. She gently held Zhang Jun's hand, which was still a little cold from being outside. She wanted to warm his hand.

"Sabato said some very strange things to me on the plane." Zhang Jun continued. Now that he had a listener, he would tell Sophie many things.

"What did he say?"

"He told me to be fiercer, and to show it if I was unhappy. He also said that I'm living wrapped in a layer of sugar coating... what does that mean?"

Sophie laughed, "Your head coach is very insightful."

"You think so too?" Zhang Jun sat up from the sofa and hugged Sophie.

"Yes, I know your personality. You're actually a very stubborn person, and there are some things that you really can't stand, but considering your public image, you always put on a polite appearance in front of others. But you're actually very unhappy in your heart, right?" Sophie said to Zhang Jun, "I think Coach Sabato probably thinks that you can't give your teammates confidence and hope in adversity if you're like this, so he wants you to become fiercer, even if it's a deliberate act, it's better than being like this. I think you need to give your teammates some stimulation, because you're the captain, and they can feel hope when you do this. This is the so-called 'power of example', right?"

"Then wouldn't I be like him, a hooligan?"

"Haha! You're already a hooligan!" Sophie laughed.

"Good! Then I'll let you see the real hooligan!" Zhang Jun suddenly hugged Sophie in his arms and turned over, pinning Sophie down...

※※※

In the league match two days later, Fiorentina faced strong rivals Sampdoria at home. Because Fiorentina snatched their Champions League qualification last season, Sampdoria had come for revenge. The match was exceptionally intense, and both sides seemed to have a bit of a temper. There were frequent physical contacts, and the referee's whistle sounded repeatedly. As a result, their gazes at each other were tinged with red, with bloodlust.

At half-time, the two sides were tied 1-1, but many people were bruised. No one's clothes were clean.

"Damn it! Those bastards actually kicked my crotch! If I hadn't dodged quickly, I would have been finished for the rest of my life!" Xiang Tao was cursing in the locker room. He didn't mention that he had also aimed a low blow at the opponent's player in the first half, but unfortunately he missed a little and only hit the opponent's thigh.

Zhang Jun was holding a towel and panting aside, not from fatigue, but from anger. Having lost Kru's constraint, he was completely exposed to the opponent's defenders' firepower. He was the most fouled player on the team. Those defenders did everything they could to stop his breakthroughs and shots. Pulling your hand and pushing you were minor matters. Knees would hit your lower back, hands would poke at your eyes, elbows would intentionally or unintentionally hit your ribs while running, or they would stick their legs between your legs while you were running, just to trip you up.

Xiang Tao was still complaining in the locker room, but this time Sabato didn't say anything. He just quietly watched the players.

"Damn it!" Zhang Jun suddenly kicked the cabinet next to him. The iron cabinet dented on impact.

Everyone was startled by Zhang Jun's action and stared blankly at Zhang Jun. Even Sabato, who had been silent, turned his attention to Zhang Jun. Xiang Tao, in particular, was so frightened by the sudden curse that his endless complaints came to an abrupt end.

"Damn it! We must show those sons of bitches what we're made of in the second half!" Zhang Jun seemed to be talking to himself and giving instructions to everyone at the same time. "This is our home ground, why should we be treated like this?" He went up and grabbed Van Persie, looking at the purplish bruise on Van Persie's arm. "More or less all of you have these kinds of injuries, right? All thanks to those ignorant bastards! Damn it! They dare to get rough with us on our home ground!" There was also a bruised spot on Zhang Jun's face. He didn't know how many times he had fallen in this match today.

"Hey! What's wrong with you guys?" Zhang Jun looked at his teammates, who were all silent. He shouted, "Why aren't you saying anything? Are you afraid of them? What's there to be afraid of? Didn't we crush them last season? Hey! Don't be like a bunch of stray dogs! Cheer up! We're fighting! This is a battle! Do you understand? Damn it! Don't be intimidated by them! We have to pay them back double!" Zhang Jun was roaring in the locker room like a mad dog, and everyone around him was stunned.

Zhang Jun didn't actually know that the reason his teammates weren't speaking wasn't because they were intimidated by Sampdoria, but because they were intimidated by Zhang Jun's sudden outburst of madness.

Gasbarroni nudged Xiang Tao: "Did he take the wrong medicine? Why does it feel like he's on the same wavelength as that madman Sabato?"

Xiang Tao clicked his tongue: "How would I know? But Sabato's performance today is very abnormal, he hasn't said a word."

Zhang Jun heard someone muttering in a low voice. He suddenly turned his gaze to Xiang Tao's side: "Xiang Tao!"

"Ah? Here!" Xiang