The TF1 commentator said at the end of the match: "This is the strongest fourth-tier team in this Europa League group stage. After two complete rounds, among all the fourth-tier teams, only Bastia ranks highest!"
"Other closely watched powerhouse teams: Inter won their match, Tottenham drew again, Napoli were slaughtered 3-0 by PSV Eindhoven, Mönchengladbach lost again and their qualification hopes are precarious, and Liverpool lost 2-3 to Udinese. Group A truly lives up to being the group of death, with the situation becoming increasingly chaotic."
Tonight, Bastia never sleeps.
After the excitement at Cesari Stadium ended, fans poured into taverns, determined not to return until drunk.
The pub televisions showed replays.
Everyone relived tonight's match together. Even though they already knew the process, even though they already knew the result.
But when the goals came.
The fans' blood still boiled, and they roared: "Bastia! Bastia forever!!"
On the team bus, De Bruyne sat with Julien.
The two chatted.
De Bruyne said nonchalantly, "As long as we beat these two teams again, we can advance."
Hearing De Bruyne's words, Julien knew what he meant.
Shaking his head, he said, "The match against Atlético will be difficult, but we're not without chances."
De Bruyne was noncommittal. He gave Julien a thumbs up: "Your volley tonight was beautiful."
Julien was about to respond. However, De Bruyne immediately followed up with: "But your cross before that was ugly."
Julien laughed and said, "Lend me your right leg, then I'd be balanced on both sides."
De Bruyne shrugged and said, "Just Practice More."
Then he added: "I also practice with my left foot normally. We can do extra training together."
"Okay."
Both Julien and De Bruyne were clear about their weaknesses and shortcomings.
But in media reports, they were portrayed as if they had descended from heaven like divine soldiers.
Corsica Daily wrote: "Kevin and Julien combined in attack to tear through Hapoel Tel Aviv's defense. The opponent's tight defensive line was full of holes in front of them."
L'Équipe also reported: "Bastia's youth storm is blowing—Julien, De Bruyne, Lukaku, Kanté."
And many, many more.
In the next day's training, Hadzibegic reviewed the team's results over the past two months with the players.
Second in the league.
Temporarily first in the Europa League group.
"We should applaud ourselves. Everyone has done brilliantly. I believe that when this season ends, everyone in the club will be proud of our work this season!"
The players all smiled.
As a newly promoted team, they truly hadn't expected the club to perform this well. And the new signings who had joined the team were now feeling an increasingly strong sense of belonging.
In last night's post-match interview, Lukaku had mentioned this point: "Every time I score and hear the fans roar the war song in Corsican, I feel like I've become half an islander. I love it here. We have the best teammates, the best fans, we are the best team."
Training ended. But De Bruyne and Julien didn't leave.
"Let's begin."
They were going to do weak-foot training.
When ordinary players practice their weak foot, they do basic ball control exercises, passing and shooting drills, match simulations, etc., starting from the basics and gradually progressing to more complex movements, then incorporating real-game applications.
But professional players, especially those with top-tier talent like Julien and De Bruyne. They need more professional training methods, such as incorporating resistance bands, training in dynamic environments, or quick decision-making practice under high pressure.
Julien had told Hadzibegic about wanting extra weak-foot training.
So, there were assistant coaches helping the two with training.
This saved a lot of trouble.
When Julien was dribbling, most of the time his right foot only served as support. For shooting and crossing, sometimes he'd rather use his left foot's outside curve or push with the left foot's outside, rather than use his right foot.
The training felt unnatural. But with top-tier ball sense, all he needed was constant training to strengthen muscle memory.
Reversing more than ten years of playing habits was not easy.
He did one hour of extra training. Not more, not less.
But still left him wanting more. However, increasing training intensity mid-season wouldn't benefit match performance.
Football training is a long-term process. It's not a sudden moment of insight.
You can't just become someone who dominates everyone—such people only exist in novels and TV shows, not in reality.
Bastia's afternoon sunshine was incredibly gentle, golden and brilliant. It fell on the training ground and also on their shoulders.
"When Genk selected me at 12, I didn't even dare to tackle, but the coach said 'play your own football,' and later I got used to it. You're much stronger than me."
"Positioning isn't about charging forward, it's about creating space."
"If you dare put onions in beef, I can guarantee that all the beautiful qualities in me would disappear at that moment."
De Bruyne chatted with Julien sporadically.
Over these two months of matches and training, the two had become increasingly familiar.
De Bruyne often said to Julien, "Your experiences are much richer than mine."
At such times, Julien would say: "Yes, at least I've seen the interior decoration of a juvenile detention center, which you haven't."
They only did extra training for one day. Then De Bruyne and Julien's group grew by five people.
It didn't look like extra training anymore. It looked like regular training.
Julien said to Lukaku, Mané, Kanté, Clauss, and Rothen, who had joined the extra training, "We're just practicing weak foot, nothing intense. You can practice, but you can't go high intensity. Otherwise, Coach will scold me."
De Bruyne also chimed in: "Sadio has the most authority to speak on this—weren't you just recently injured because of extra training, which actually delayed your matches?"
Hearing their words, Lukaku grinned, "Haha, no no no, I don't know about them, but you've misunderstood me. I'm not here to train, I'm just here to hang out with you guys. There's nothing fun on this island."
The others also stated they wouldn't increase intensity.
Naturally, this group caught the attention of both Hadzibegic and Chataigner.
Hadzibegic shook his head helplessly, "I'm really worried they'll get injured. These are all key players."
Chataigner saw another aspect in this, "Haven't you noticed that Julien always manages to become the center of any circle?"
Hadzibegic nodded, "Yes, he can chat with anyone and make them happy."
Chataigner was thoughtful. "When someone can talk to anyone and keep them in good spirits while unconsciously gathering around him—isn't that a natural-born captain?"
However, Hadzibegic didn't continue this topic with Chataigner.
Chataigner had called him over to discuss that the team now had money and planned to increase signings in the winter window.
"I asked a friend to compile a list. If you have time, look at this list and the accompanying video compilation—it contains training and match videos of these players."
Chataigner handed Hadzibegic a list.
"Most of these are defensive players and goalkeepers, plus a small number of midfield and forward players."
Hadzibegic took it and glanced briefly—
Ragnick Vos, Emiliano Martínez, Virgil van Dijk, Arne Slot...
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