Star Skills

For several days, Yang Yang continued his intensive training day and night. It was not until Friday afternoon's training session ended that the coaching staff kept him behind for a private talk and told him that he had made the squad for Saturday afternoon's match.

The person who notified him was Head Coach John Rep's assistant, who was also Baken Academy's first-team head coach, Dick Van Pool.

"We're all extremely surprised by the progress you've shown in training recently. Considering the team's current situation, Mr. Reip and I have jointly decided to put you on the squad for tomorrow afternoon's match."

Yang Yang was completely stunned when he heard the news.

He had been in Almere for nearly a year, but he had never represented Baken Academy in a match before. This was his first time.

Dick Van Pool found Yang Yang's reaction perfectly normal. Although he agreed with John Rep's assessment that Yang Yang would have a hard time staying in Almere, he still admired this stubborn yet admirable young man greatly.

With that attitude, even if he failed to make a name for himself on the field, he would sooner or later make something of himself in another line of work.

"All right, don't put too much pressure on yourself. When the time comes, I'll decide whether to send you on based on how the match is going." Van Pool smiled and patted Yang Yang on the shoulder encouragingly. "You know, Omnibus isn't weak either."

Although Almere had risen quickly, it had been founded less than seven years ago. Its foundations were still weak, and it relied largely on John Rep's influence and connections to keep going. That was also why the club chairman was willing to hand him complete authority over the team. Youth development was another major weakness of Almere.

It had only been one or two years since the club had become an Ajax satellite club and received support for youth development. Results would be difficult to see in the short term. To this day, no Youth Training Player from Almere had ever entered the Ajax Youth Training Camp.

This year, Henk Dimer was regarded as the player with the best chance of being selected. He was the team's most technically gifted midfield anchor.

"Prepare well." With that, Van Pool smiled and drifted away.

Yang Yang stood rooted to the spot in disbelief. Was he really going to play in a match?

"It won't be that easy. Don't get ahead of yourself." Old Bing's emotionless voice rang out in his mind.

"What?"

"Putting you on the squad is mainly because your team has had more injured players lately, leaving the back line stretched thin."

"The back line?" Yang Yang froze. He played as a striker. At worst, he was a Right Midfielder.

"I'm guessing they saw that you've been pretty good at winning the ball lately."

Yang Yang could not help smiling bitterly. He had always played as a striker back home, and after coming to the Netherlands, he had continued to regard himself as a striker. Yet now he was being asked to switch to the back line. Would he even be able to do it?

But he had no choice. If he wanted to play, he had to obey the coaching staff's arrangements. Not to mention playing defense—even if they asked him to be a goalkeeper, he could only do as instructed.

Of course, for Yang Yang, getting onto the field was already progress.

"Given your current situation, you do need match experience. This is an opportunity. We'll change the training plan, and tonight you'll begin learning Star Skills." Old Bing suddenly spoke.

"Star Skills?" Yang Yang was overjoyed.

This was exactly what he had dreamed of.

The A6 Highway was the main route connecting Almere and Amsterdam. Exit Five happened to be in the heart of the city, and north of the exit lay Almere Auto City.

Shen's Chinese Restaurant stood between the Auto City and the densely populated residential area to the north. A large open space outside served as a parking lot.

Whenever night fell, the stream of cars returning from Amsterdam and the Auto City after work soon filled the parking lot. This was also the busiest time of day for Shen's Chinese Restaurant.

After school, Yang Yang dribbled all the way to the restaurant and entered the kitchen through the back door. By then, his uncle Shen Ming's family had already gotten busy. His cousin Shen Yuzhu was fluent in Dutch and handled ordering and payments. His aunt Zhang Lan and another Chinese woman served dishes, delivered meals, and wiped down the tables and chairs. His uncle Shen Ming and two kitchen assistants were sweating profusely as they bustled about in the steaming kitchen.

As soon as he entered the restaurant, Yang Yang conscientiously set down his schoolbag and soccer ball, then began serving customers and helping with the comings and goings.

At mealtimes, the restaurant was like a battlefield, with everyone racing against the clock. This was the general state of the food-service industry: it could make money and the profits were decent, but it was hard work. Mealtimes went without saying; during the other hours, they were busy preparing things. Every day began before dawn and ended late, without a moment's rest.

Only after the rush had passed did they have time to eat. They always used that day's leftovers to throw together three dishes and a soup, then the owner and employees gathered around one table and ate while chatting and laughing.

During the meal, Yang Yang told them that he had been included in the squad for the next day's match. His uncle Shen Ming cheered loudly. "I don't understand soccer, but it seems all your hard work this past year hasn't been wasted."

Shen Ming still felt somewhat guilty about being the one who had suggested that his nephew come to the Netherlands to play soccer. He knew all too well what Yang Yang had gone through there. Now that he heard Yang Yang had made the squad, he was equally delighted.

"How about this? Tomorrow's Saturday, and we won't have many customers. I suggest we go to the stadium to cheer Yang Yang on. What do you say?"

His uncle's suggestion immediately won the approval of his aunt and cousin. They both liked Yang Yang very much and had always taken good care of him.

"Uncle, I only made the squad. I might not even get to play." Yang Yang was a little uneasy, afraid that his uncle's family would get their hopes too high. After all, he would not be starting, and who knew whether he would even come on as a substitute?

"That's all right. As long as you're on the squad, you have a chance. If you can't play this match, there's always the next one. Like our ancestors said, if you work hard enough, an iron pestle can be ground into a needle. Your uncle believes you can do it."

"That's right, little brother. Your big sister believes in you too."

Yang Yang was deeply moved.

His uncle's family had no son, and they had doted on Yang Yang ever since he was a child, treating him practically like their own son. They had spent a great deal to send him to the Netherlands this time, and he knew perfectly well how much love and care they had given him.

"I understand. I'll work hard and make sure I don't disappoint you!" Yang Yang said firmly.

After dinner, Shen Ming sent Yang Yang home and refused to let him help clean up, telling him to focus on preparing for the next day's match.

Yang Yang was thinking about the Star Skills in the Super Training Ground. Without wasting time, he went straight home, took a shower, and lay down on his bed. He soon fell asleep and entered the Super Training Ground.

Old Bing was clearly ready and had been waiting for him to arrive.

The area around the training ground was still packed with star players, even more than Yang Yang had seen last time. Supposedly, it contained every super star throughout history—not only strikers, midfielders, and defenders, but even goalkeepers.

"According to my scan of your body, you have the typical physique of an East Asian. You're relatively weak, only one meter seventy-six tall. Although you're still growing, you're not suited to playing as a power-based player. Your fundamentals are also poor, so for now, I recommend that you follow the route of a speed-based player."

"Mm." Yang Yang nodded. This also fit his own assessment.

Compared with the Dutch players his age on the team, his physical abilities still fell far short.

Even a technical player like Henk Dimer had strong physical abilities in challenges.

"You can choose the Star Skills you want to learn, but I want to remind you that learning more isn't necessarily better. Especially given your current circumstances, learning too many things at once might actually do more harm than good. So my advice is to specialize in one skill first, then gradually learn others later."

Yang Yang understood. As the saying went, trying to swallow more than one could chew would only leave one choking; quality mattered more than quantity. That was the principle.

Learning Star Skills in the Super Training Ground was not difficult. All one needed was hard work and practice. But mastering their practical application—especially using them smoothly in an actual match—was an entirely different matter.

With his current fundamentals, even learning a single Star Skill would be enough to put him through the wringer. If he learned too many, he would only become distracted, and it would not help his future development.

Entering the Super Training Ground, Yang Yang's gaze swept over the rows of star players' glowing images. Every one of them had once been a red-hot super star at the top of the football world. Each Star Skill had dominated the global game and swept all before it. They were all treasures he had dreamed of possessing, but now he had to choose.

Although he might be assigned to the back line in this match, Yang Yang was certain that what he wanted most was still an attacking role in the middle or front. As a speed-based attacking player, he automatically ignored physically powerful stars like Vieri. Instead, he focused on speed-based attackers. What attracted him most were Maradona's dribbling, Zidane's passing and control, Cruyff's Turn, Ronaldo's Rush, Pele's rhythm, Van Basten's Shot, and Bergkamp's Control.

From a practical perspective, all of them were extremely useful.

At the World Cup in France, Zidane had used his outstanding individual ability to lead France Team to victory in the France World Cup. There was no questioning this super star's passing and ball control, and many people praised his elegant style of play. Little did they know that the reason his style could be so elegant was that he possessed extraordinary technique at his feet.

King of Football Maradona's dribbling was likewise astonishing. He had at least led Naples to a championship on his own, then led Argentina to win the World Cup. Although many people disliked his personality and way of doing things, no one could deny his superhuman performances on the football field.

As for stars like Pele, Cruyff, Ronaldo, Van Basten, and Bergkamp, there was no need to say much. Everyone knew how formidable they were. If Yang Yang could learn their signature skills—even if he learned only the surface of them—it would be enough to benefit him for the rest of his life and let him dominate the football pitch.

But those skills were not necessarily suitable for Yang Yang right now.

His current problem was that his fundamentals were too poor. Therefore, Star Skills like Zidane's passing and control, Maradona's dribbling, and Bergkamp's Control were clearly unsuitable for him at present. After all, they all required extremely solid fundamentals to be effective.

Once those were eliminated, there were not many Star Skills left that suited Yang Yang.

So Yang Yang soon made his decision.