Pep Guardiola laughed loudly.
"Who do you think you are? Sherlock Holmes? Judge Bao? Detective Di Renjie? Bah! You just made up a bunch of nonsense and actually believed it yourself, didn't you?"
"Let me tell you something. The reason those signatures look weird is because the footballs I sent you recently were all signed by my agent."
"I don't have time to sign them one by one. I'm not wasting that much time on you. Not even a little!"
Kai almost threw his phone away.
"Fuck! No wonder some fans recently returned the footballs and said the signatures were fake! I even argued with them! You bastard, you're screwing me over!"
Guardiola snorted.
"Who told you to sell the signed footballs I gave you? Didn't you say you were my fan and wanted to collect them?"
"Do you think I don't know the shady stuff you're doing behind the scenes?"
"What's the name of your shop again? Wang Tao's Signed Jersey Store? Or The Football Emperor's Official Signed Ball Factory Outlet? Do you really think I wouldn't find out?"
Kai rolled his eyes.
"Don't pretend to be some innocent saint after taking advantage."
"You think I don't know you just got two high-paying advertisement deals in Lisbon?"
"Have you ever played in Portugal before? Have you ever filmed commercials here?"
"You only became this popular because of my signed footballs."
"You keep interacting with me because you want a familiar face in the Portuguese market, right?"
"When doing business, you need professional ethics."
"Hurry up and send me some real signed footballs, or the words Guardiola and fake goods are going to become a permanent combo."
"And your future commercial value will drop like a rock."
"Fuck you—!" Guardiola immediately muted the call.
Then he dialed his agent.
"Send me twenty footballs… no, fifty."
"Yes, I'll sign them myself."
"Of course I'm not being threatened."
"I'm just worried Kai will collapse mentally if he loses, so I'm giving him a little encouragement."
"Oh, and… help me find a nutritionist. And a sports medicine expert."
"I don't want any more serious injuries. I want to play for FC Barcelona until I'm thirty-five!"
June 21
Another semi-final match of the European Youth Championship began.
Portugal U16 vs Germany U16.
Before the match, almost everyone believed it would be a one-sided game.
Germany's squad was extremely strong.
Their lineup:
Florian Heller, Kevin Kurányi, Bastian Schweinsteiger
Markus Feulner, Florian Klinger, Thomas Hitzlsperger
Andreas Hinkel, Michael Fink, Andreas Görlitz, Philipp Lahm
Goalkeeper: Michael Kainz
Their substitutes also included strong players like Jürgen Schmid, Leonhard Haas, and Jan Schröder.
Meanwhile, Portugal had to change their formation because of injuries.
Their lineup:
Cristiano Ronaldo
Raúl Meireles — Kai — Ricardo Quaresma
Ruben Amorim — Miguel Veloso
Ribeiro — José Fonte — Duarte — José Bosingwa
Goalkeeper: Varela
In this 4-2-3-1 formation, Ronaldo and Meireles were both playing slightly out of their best positions, so few people believed Portugal could produce anything impressive.
Before kickoff, coach Violante repeatedly emphasized the tactical instructions and once again confirmed Kai's central role on the pitch.
As soon as the match started, Germany launched a fierce high press.
Kai immediately chose to pass the ball backward, trying to stabilize possession in the back line.
But even with multiple players supporting in the backfield, Portugal still struggled under the German pressure.
In the end, Kai had no choice but to launch a long clearance into Germany's half.
The ball was quickly lost.
German fans immediately booed.
Because Kai didn't even attempt to engage in a physical duel with the German players.
Pathetic.
Sure enough, he was nowhere near as good as Hugo Viana.
The German players on the field also quickly formed a judgment.
We control the attack.
We are stronger.
Kai can only kick long balls.
In the third minute, Portugal regained possession.
Germany launched another full-field press.
Pressing tactics are very effective—but when used casually, they also have huge weaknesses.
A true pressing system requires precise coordination and long-term tactical training.
Without that chemistry, a full-field press is basically…
full of holes.
In Kai's eyes, the German formation suddenly revealed five or six passing lanes.
He could easily move the ball.
On the right wing, Quaresma had already started his run.
A long pass there would immediately create an attack.
But Kai didn't choose that option.
Boom!
He passed the ball back to Ruben Amorim.
Kurányi immediately rushed forward to press again.
Kai moved laterally, offering Amorim another passing option.
Amorim returned the ball.
Kai then switched play with a quick pass to Meireles on the left and immediately made a forward run.
Meireles played a quick one-two and returned the ball.
Kai received it and flicked the ball past the German defensive midfielder who had rushed toward him recklessly.
Suddenly—
There was open space ahead.
"Kai pushes forward!"
"He's approaching the edge of the penalty area!"
"The German press was too aggressive—there's huge space behind them!"
"Kai could attempt a long shot with one more touch!"
"Fortunately for Germany, their defenders are still maintaining shape and retreating in an orderly manner."
"Kai stops… Germany's defense has recovered. There's no obvious gap."
"He's probably waiting for his teammates to move up and then—"
Boom!
While everyone expected him to slow down completely, Kai suddenly lifted his right foot and delivered a no-look pass without warning.
Next to the German center-back, Cristiano Ronaldo, who had just returned from an offside position, suddenly sprinted forward again and burst into the penalty area.
The ball dropped perfectly.
Ronaldo planted his right foot, leaned slightly right, and swung his left foot.
A first-time volley!
The ball smashed into the net.
1–0!
Under Germany's intense pressing, Portugal scored first.
German fans were stunned.
We're clearly the stronger team.
How did we suddenly concede?
What terrible luck!
But Guardiola, who had come specifically to watch the match, sat in the stands smiling.
Bad luck?
Heh.
This had nothing to do with luck.
Kai's pass.
Cristiano Ronaldo's left-foot volley—despite it not being his preferred foot.
Those were pure technical ability.
Germany U16's mentality changed slightly after conceding.
But their attacking strategy remained the same.
They continued dominating possession with 72% ball control.
As their attack intensified, their defensive line naturally pushed higher.
Behind them lay a vast open field.
Perfect terrain for someone as wild and explosive as Ronaldo.
Ten minutes later.
Miguel Veloso stole the ball from Bastian Schweinsteiger in the backfield.
German players immediately rushed toward Veloso.
But no one anticipated Kai's position.
Before Germany could close the space, Veloso quickly passed the ball to Kai.
Boom!
Without stopping the ball, Kai half-turned and launched a long volley pass.
A pure instinctive pass—almost like a stream of consciousness.
No hesitation.
No looking.
Just instinct.
Ronaldo started his sprint.
He was three meters behind the German center-backs.
But he kept accelerating.
"Cristiano Ronaldo is sprinting!"
"There's still distance between him and Görlitz and Fink—but he's not giving up!"
"Wow! Ronaldo is incredibly fast!"
"When did Portugal start producing Ferraris?!"
"Too fast! Ronaldo blows past Fink!"
"Absolute speed domination!"
"Görlitz tries to close him down—but Ronaldo curves his run around him!"
"He's faster even while taking the longer path!"
"Görlitz reaches out… pulling someone at this speed will slow him down!"
"He missed!"
"Cristiano Ronaldo! Only Ronaldo!"
He caught up to the ball.
The first touch wasn't perfect—but it didn't matter.
It was a one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
The German keeper rushed forward.
Ronaldo calmly pushed the ball sideways.
Beautiful!
He dribbled past the goalkeeper.
An easy finish.
Cristiano Ronaldo scores again!
2–0!
Portugal doubled their lead.
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