My Date with a Brace

Chaves's two center backs were both short, which put them at a huge disadvantage whenever Su Dong received the ball with his back to goal.

There was nothing they could do about it. With their short stature and stubby legs, once Su Dong stopped the ball with his long legs, they were simply unable to reach him.

But they had their own advantages: they were small, fast, and agile.

Whenever they got the chance, they would try to push the defensive line forward. On the one hand, this eased the pressure on the penalty area, especially the goal. On the other, it allowed them to provide timely support to the midfield and even the attack.

Whether it was Chaves's head coach on the sidelines or the players on the pitch, they all knew that defending blindly would only put them in an even more passive position. In the end, their goal would be breached.

Under these circumstances, they would launch a counterattack the moment they got the chance, pushing the defensive line forward.

Su Dong did not mind. He was always moving in accordance with the opponent's defensive line and the changing situation, running nonstop.

Left or right, dropping back to support the midfield, he never stopped for even a moment.

This gave Chaves's two center backs the strange impression that this kid might be a solar-powered robot.

Otherwise, how could anyone explain that his burly one-meter-ninety frame could run so tirelessly?

But when they thought it over, that did not make sense either. It was evening now, and the sun was almost down. Solar power would not last much longer.

Watching Su Dong run like that, Chaves's two center backs had no way to keep up.

As far as they were concerned, Su Dong was safe as long as he did not get past the defensive line.

As for speed, how could two men just over one meter eighty possibly lose to a tall guy who was one meter ninety?

During one defensive retreat, Sporting Lisbon won the ball back.

Jose Fonte had only just stolen the ball when he immediately sent a diagonal pass to the right flank.

Rony controlled the ball and cut toward the middle. After shaking off the defender beside him, he carried the ball diagonally toward the center circle.

Chaves's defensive line kept retreating, with the two center backs sandwiching Su Dong between them.

Su Dong patiently waited for his opportunity.

When Rony reached the center circle, a midfielder blocked his path. He quickly pulled the ball back, turned right, and used his right foot to send a lofted long pass forward.

The ball quickly flew over the opponent's defensive line and dropped toward the right side.

The instant Rony passed the ball, Su Dong, who had already understood his intentions, forcefully drove off with both legs and sprinted forward at full speed.

The opponent's two center backs started at the same time, racing forward.

All three were competing in speed, especially the left center back, who was closest to Su Dong. Both of them were charging toward the ball.

Right before everyone's eyes, and under the stunned gazes of the two center backs, Su Dong, who had originally been a step behind and had been deemed safe by the defenders, gradually began closing the distance once he started sprinting.

When they reached the thirty-meter area outside Chaves's box, the left center back could only watch helplessly as Su Dong drew level with him and gradually pulled ahead.

This... how was this possible?

It made no sense at all!

The Chaves left center back did not even have time to shout, much less panic. The moment he realized Su Dong was about to overtake him, he immediately reached both hands forward, grabbed the jersey behind Su Dong, and yanked hard.

The pull slowed Su Dong slightly. Using the force of the tug, the Chaves left center back caught up, swung his right foot forward, and prepared to clear the ball.

As long as he kicked it to a teammate, they would be safe.

But although Su Dong's jersey was being pulled, he continued surging forward.

Over the past week, he had been doing running drills under Pontes's guidance.

They were mainly aimed at the problems revealed by his previous running, such as his tendency to stumble during high-speed sprints.

It looked like a minor problem, but it actually had a major impact. Once he stumbled, he could not perform any other actions while sprinting at full speed, and his technique easily fell apart.

Although one week of special training was a very short time, it had still produced some results.

After stabilizing his body, Su Dong stretched out his foot first while sprinting at high speed and gently nudged the ball forward.

The opponent's clearance struck the sole of his boot perfectly.

Getting kicked on the sole of the foot was not unusual in a football match. After being struck, Su Dong merely stumbled once before quickly regaining his balance. The opponent, however, staggered after kicking him, lost his balance, and crashed to the ground just outside the penalty area.

Su Dong took another step forward and caught up with the ball on the penalty-area line.

By then, the opponent's other center back had also caught up to Su Dong's left.

He could not stop. If he stopped to control the ball, the opponent would block his shooting angle. Combined with the goalkeeper's coverage, this excellent shooting opportunity would be gone.

That judgment flashed through Su Dong's mind. Almost without thinking, before the opponent could react, he caught up to the ball, drew back his bow, and unleashed a furious right-footed shot.

Batty Goal!!!!!

This powerful shot from the right side of the penalty spot took both the opponent's center backs and goalkeeper completely by surprise.

Although the goalkeeper threw himself to the right, he still could not stop the ball from smashing into the right side of the net.

One-nil!

"Woooow!!!!!"

Su Dong leaped into the air on the spot and shouted with his fist clenched.

The Sporting Lisbon fans watching from the sidelines cheered along.

"Who was the player who scored that goal? How come I never saw him before?"

"Was he promoted from the Youth Team?"

"He looks so tall. I don't remember him, and he doesn't look like someone from the Youth Team either."

"Was he brought in during the Winter Break?"

"I've heard of him. I think he was brought in from Sporting Portugal. He performed pretty well in the Portuguese Second Division, but I don't know his exact name. His jersey says number 36."

"Goodness, he was incredibly fast just now."

"Wasn't he? Those two center backs couldn't outrun him. That was terrifying."

"I remember now. Isn't he Little God of War?"

"Little God of War?"

"Yeah. His shot looks a lot like Batistuta's Batty Goal, so everyone calls him Little God of War."

"Little God of War!"

"Little God of War!!!"

As Su Dong celebrated the goal with his teammates on the pitch, he heard the fans on the sidelines shouting Little God of War. He was stunned at first, then gave a wry smile. He had never expected the nickname he had gotten at Sporting Portugal to follow him to Sporting Lisbon.

"Oh, man, you completely stole my spotlight." Rony looked aggrieved as he came over and hugged him.

Scoring with his first shot, and making the entire sequence look so good at that, left Rony, the Sports Tower—no, that was wrong, Correia's number-one man—with no idea how to carry himself.

"I don't mind the spotlight, but you can't cut down the three weeks of sweeping. It'll save me a bit on housekeeping."

Rony was speechless.

At that moment, he wished he could slap himself and then stomp on himself a few times.

Why had he had to show off?

Now look what had happened. He had taken three shots without scoring, while Su Dong had scored with his first. He was forced to sweep the floor for three weeks. Life was truly miserable.

"Can I get a discount? Two of my shots were on target." Rony tried to bargain.

"You'll have to discuss that with Jose."

Jose?

Rony despaired.

Jose had resolved to pour all his energy into humanity's greatest pursuit—picking up women—and he hated cleaning more than anything. Once he found out that Rony had to sweep for three weeks, there would be no way to reduce it by even a single day.

Su Dong's goal made James beam from the sidelines.

The goal had not only broken the deadlock, but also given Sporting Lisbon B an excellent start.

The worst thing in football was being unable to break through after sustained attacks, only to be hit by a counterattack, because the chance of conceding was extremely high.

But now things were different. Su Dong's goal had also come from a counterattack. It was as if he had put a tightening spell on Chaves, telling them that if they dared to counterattack, he could counter their counterattack at any time.

"This kid really is fast. And just as Pontes said, he can actually get faster and faster." Cardozo praised him.

Su Dong stood one meter ninety tall. When he had charged forward just now, the opponent had pulled at his jersey with both hands, stretching it tight like a drawn bowstring. If the fabric had not been of decent quality, it would probably have torn already.

Even so, it still could not stop Su Dong's charge.

"He can receive and hold up the ball high up the pitch, while lower down he has the speed to counterattack. He moves well, can play on the wing or through the middle, and can also beat defenders..." Jean James stared fixedly at Su Dong as he spoke, his voice full of admiration. "This kid really makes no sense, but he is also incredibly exciting to watch."

Cardozo and Silva nodded repeatedly.

As coaches, their greatest wish was to develop outstanding players.

Quaresma and Rony belonged in that category, while Su Dong had just been added to it.

After Su Dong broke the deadlock, the situation on the pitch suddenly opened up.

Chaves remained on the back foot, but they were also working hard to find chances to counterattack and attack. As a result, their players were no longer focused solely on defense and began dividing their attention with the attack.

When the players on the pitch could not agree on their approach, it was easy for disagreements to arise.

This became even more obvious in the second half.

In the fifty-third minute of the second half, Su Dong once again received the ball with his back to goal. With Rony tightly marked, he turned and passed to Marcelino, who had run into space on the left. Marcelino drove forward with the ball, shook off the defender on the left side of the penalty area, forced his way all the way to the byline, and crossed.

Inside the box, Su Dong leaned against the defender with his back, facing left. He used his chest to bring the ball down, then naturally lifted it with his right foot.

With this delicate volley, he sent the ball effortlessly into Chaves's goal once again.

Two-nil!

A brace!

Su Dong excitedly sprinted around the pitch.

He had never imagined that his first match for Sporting Portugal would bring him a brace, and now, at Sporting Lisbon, his first match had also brought him a brace.

Could it be that his career was destined to be tied to scoring a brace on his debut?

As for what would happen in the future, Su Dong could not say. But the feeling of scoring was simply incredible!

His only regret was that there were too few spectators at a Second Team match—just a hundred or two. Their cheers lacked impact.

If this had been at Alvalade Stadium, with fifty thousand people shouting in unison, it would have been absolutely amazing!

But a goal was wonderful all the same. Su Dong excitedly sprinted around the pitch, high-fived Jose Semedo on the bench, and then wrapped his arms around the waist of the approaching Rony and lifted him straight off the ground.

"Looks like you're really determined to take my number-one spot." Rony complained sourly as he hugged him.

All you handsome guys and beautiful ladies, where are the tips, favorites, and recommendation votes you promised? Don't stand me up...