When Messi was looking at the newspapers in Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper, thinking about how to defeat Yang Yang and Ajax that night, Yang Yang was anxiously staring at Winston Bogarde in a hotel in central Barcelona.
Beside him, Xabi Alonso, Antonio Pintus, Frans Hoek, and the others also wore concerned expressions.
"Answer me, Winston. I only want one answer from you. Can he play or not?" Yang Yang stared at his close friend and asked in a low voice.
The air seemed to solidify because of that one question.
Winston Bogarde felt the weight of the situation. After thinking for a moment, he swallowed and shook his head. "I can't guarantee it."
"Just now, Jović told me that he could play, that he really wanted to play. But now you're telling me there's no guarantee. What am I supposed to do? What can I use to face Barcelona tonight?" Yang Yang was getting anxious.
This was an unexpected turn of events.
It had happened two days earlier in the afternoon. After a training session, Luka Jović had felt slight muscle soreness in his right foot. He had gone to the medical room for an examination, intending to have it treated casually or get some medicine.
Professional footballers were all covered in injuries, after all.
As long as the injuries did not affect a match, nobody paid them too much attention.
But unexpectedly, the examination revealed that the muscles in Jović's right leg were slightly strained. Although the injury was relatively minor, such a problem could be big or small, especially with Barcelona waiting for them next.
"You know our style. We use a High Press. That requires running over a large area. Luka Jović often has to engage in physical duels with opponents, and all of that carries enormous