Dunga's Passion Play (Seeking Favorites, Seeking Monthly Votes)

Pellegrini was injured again, and Mancini was the captain on the field.

After exchanging pennants, Mancini saw the coach pointing at Dejan Lu. He then shoved the pennant into Dejan Lu's hand and said, "The boss is calling you over there."

"Coach, you need me?"

Dejan Lu walked to the sideline and asked.

"Take this, it'll be good for you."

Boskov said as he handed over a pair of wristbands.

Dejan Lu immediately saw the Orthodox cross on them. Orthodox crosses have an extra horizontal bar, and Serbs in Yugoslavia are all Orthodox.

This also explained Boskov's background.

Dejan Lu looked at Boskov with some surprise. Football players were always superstitious, but Boskov didn't usually show any such tendencies.

Boskov chuckled and explained, "I heard UFOs have appeared in this stadium, so it's better to wear them for peace of mind."

Dejan Lu nodded and put on the wristbands.

At this time, there was a craze for qigong, and in China, there were also "cosmic signal receiving dishes."

The successors were all dabbling in the supernatural, let alone the continental belief in God.

The whole world had a bit of reverence for things from outer space, so Dejan Lu could understand his meaning.

Regardless, Boskov meant well.

When Dejan Lu returned, Mancini noticed the change on his wrists and couldn't help but glance at the captain's armband on his arm. He was no longer the coach's favorite player.

BEEP—

The referee Rosario blew the whistle for the start of the match.

Both sides were quite cautious from the kickoff. Neither Fiorentina, who kicked off, nor Sampdoria, showed any overly aggressive play.

This was due to the reputation of their star attacking players.

It didn't matter how famous Inter Milan's defenders were; Klinsmann was still a foreigner.

But Baggio was different.

His looks, his story, and his playing style were deeply loved by the Apennines.

Nappi received the ball and chose to pass it back.

Battistini immediately passed it to Dunga.

Dunga received the ball and observed for a moment. Seeing Dejan Lu charging towards him, he quickly chose to pass it back.

Before the match, the coach had repeatedly emphasized not to give that young Number Seven too many opportunities.

Dunga was highly disciplined on the field, with a tough style that clashed with the Brazilian style.

It was precisely because of this that he understood Dejan Lu's danger even more.

In Brazil, you could freely perform useless dribbles to please the fans, but watching game footage, Dejan Lu's dribbling moves after getting the ball, though flashy, always had a core objective—to bring the ball closer to the goal.

This was very dangerous.

After passing the ball, he chose to reposition himself and follow Dejan Lu.

He believed he could strike a balance between team defense and man-marking.

Pari successfully intercepted the ball and immediately looked at Dejan Lu. Dejan Lu, with his hands behind his back, subtly signaled to him.

He planned to observe Fiorentina's defensive characteristics first.

Later, on their first possession, they would make a big move.

Pari could only pass it to Lombardo. Lombardo received the ball with his back to the goal, pulled it back with his right foot, and turned. Buso immediately lunged forward. Lombardo, with the ball, leaned back, applied force with his calves, and flicked the ball with his toe to the retreating Mancini.

Mancini, with the ball, charged towards Fiorentina's penalty area like a mad dog, pushing the ball forward with his right foot.

He knew very well that the Italian national team coach, Vichini, was undoubtedly in the stands today. This was his best chance to prove he was stronger than Baggio.

Battistini was a step behind and could only chase after him. Pioli, seeing this, directly rushed out with a very aggressive move.

Mancini skillfully controlled the ball, evading Pioli, but before entering the penalty area, he became a bit anxious and overran the ball. Facchetti poked the ball away, and Celeste kicked it out towards the sideline.

Paolo Paolo, in an excited state, said, "Pioli, this young defender looked promising when he was at Juventus, but after transferring to Fiorentina, he doesn't seem to have improved much, and has even regressed. Mancini's mentality is a bit too eager. He should learn more from Dejan Lu; patience is also a virtue sometimes."

Vialli said, "No one can remain calm when facing Baggio. Perhaps Mancini doesn't realize there are five top attackers on the field. He's one, Baggio is two, and Dejan Lu is also two."

Many people in Italy loved Baggio to the core. When he was later sold, riots and bloodshed even occurred in Fiorentina.

Of course, some people disliked him intensely.

A few minutes later, Baggio successfully received the ball and went down the wing. After a series of feints that toyed with Mannini, he chipped the ball into Pagliuca's hands.

Although this play didn't pose any real threat, it left Mannini in a very disheveled state.

Verchowod glanced at Baggio's retreating figure and said, "This won't do. We need to put some pressure on them."

"Isn't Roberto always attacking?"

Mancini said, with his hands on his hips.

"Ha, he's clearly not as good as Roberto on the other side. Marco, you go support Dejan, I'll handle this side," Verchowod said domineeringly.

Besides, Baggio was on Mannini and Carboni's side, so even if Marco Lanna couldn't get back, he wouldn't be under too much pressure.

Lanna quickly nodded.

Verchowod's big hand hadn't come down yet, and he didn't want to get hit.

After kicking the ball out from the back, Marco Lanna charged straight forward.

Pari, who had the ball, hesitated for a moment when he saw Lanna asking for it, but still chose to pass it wide.

After receiving the ball, Lanna had no other thoughts. He took it and advanced at high speed along the wing. The only thing he needed to do was bring the ball to the frontcourt and pass it to Dejan Lu.

Dunga: ...

He was a bit stunned to suddenly see a fierce-looking young man.

Could this be another genius?

Lanna's ball-carrying speed was good, with large strides and a quick tempo, somewhat resembling Kaka later on.

In that moment of hesitation for Dunga, Lanna sent the ball behind him.

Not good!

Dunga turned and ran back without even thinking.

Dejan Lu, who had the ball, couldn't help but sigh, saying this guy truly lived up to being a future Brazil captain.

Some players would instinctively turn to look back, which would cause them to be a step slower in their recovery, but Dunga was decisive.

This guy had good football IQ hidden beneath a playing style that clashed with Brazil.

Facchetti chose to mark Vialli, and Alberto Di Chiara simply gave up his position and stayed on the flank to provide support.

Dejan Lu couldn't find an opportunity to enter the penalty box. He ran horizontally with the ball to the right wing's byline, and Dunga followed him all the way.

This time, Celeste became the one providing defensive support next to him.

Mannini ran up to try and receive the pass, but Dejan Lu, receiving the ball with his body angled, had no intention of passing. He just stood there confronting Dunga on the right flank.

Crack, Dejan Lu suddenly moved. He shifted his left foot and pulled the ball behind him with his right foot!

His right foot, still his right foot!

He stopped the ball with the outside of his right foot.

A twisted, behind-the-back Cruyff turn.

"DEJAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Let alone Dunga, even the many defenders in the penalty box were stunned.

No one had predicted that Dejan Lu would handle the ball like that.

After Dejan Lu stopped the ball with the outside of his right foot, the ball bounced up. Dunga reacted quickly, instinctively raising his foot, but only managed to touch it. Dejan Lu cushioned the ball with his thigh and passed it with his right foot. The goalkeeper Landucci didn't even react before the ball zipped past him. Fortunately, Battistini, who had returned to the penalty box, immediately headed the ball out for a corner with a diving header.

At this moment, Rossi finally erupted with an earth-shattering shout in the commentary booth: "Dejan!"

"A behind-the-back Cruyff turn completely toyed with Brazil's iron wall. Sometimes God is unfair; even if you're a Brazilian player, you might not have fancy footwork, but sometimes your opponent's talent overflows, allowing them to showcase it freely on the field. Just a simple little move can ignite the world!"

Dunga's expression was not good. Such a move was cool.

But being the background for it was not a good thing.

He could even imagine how crazy the fans back in Brazil would go when highlights of this match were sent back, but his hometown people wouldn't cheer for him.

Mancini walked directly towards the corner flag.

Dejan Lu glanced and chose to stand near the edge of the penalty area.

Unexpectedly, Dunga still stuck to him like glue.

Beep, Mancini took a run-up and kicked the ball. Facchetti immediately jumped up and headed the ball out.

Dejan Lu turned instantly to chase the ball, and Dunga also started quickly.

The two were one behind the other, separated by only one body length.

Verchowod came up. His position was closer to the ball, and he was waving his hands at Dejan Lu.

Dejan Lu turned instantly, and Dunga immediately rushed after him.

However, Verchowod saw Dejan Lu's hand behind his back pointing to the right. The "Tsar" couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat for Dejan Lu's opponent.

How can an Earthling defend an alien?