The Strongest Battle of Yiding, Geniuses Connect

The decline of Italian football's influence is an indisputable fact.

This is linked to the retirement of Italy's golden generation, including Maniero and Soto. Since then, Italy has lacked strong performances in international competitions, naturally failing to command the attention of others.

On the other hand, match-fixing scandals have dealt a massive blow to Serie A.

Finally, the shift in capital has meant top stars no longer aspire to Serie A, heading instead to the Premier League and La Liga, especially the Premier League.

At 7:50 PM, the match is about to begin.

"Hello everyone, I am the stadium commentator for San Remo Municipal Stadium. Today, our stadium has welcomed many special guests." As the commentator speaks, the camera begins to pan, locking onto one celebrity after another. "Maniero! The brain of Italy, the brightest star among the 'one star, four arrows' of Juventus!"

"At the club level, he was Soto's lifelong rival. But in the national team, they were the best of partners. Since retiring, their friendship has been the envy of all. Today is an important moment where Soto could potentially win the first championship trophy of his coaching career, and Maniero would certainly not be absent."

"We can see that Maniero has even brought his wife and daughter along."

"This is Carlisle! He was just here watching a match during the thirty-fourth round of Serie D. It seems he has been deeply captivated by Lu Yang's style of play. This King of the Violets has personally expressed his approval of Lu Yang, which is the basis for Lu Yang being called the Viola Crown Prince!"

"Oh, my god, fans, cheer! Sandri Latuidi is actually here too! This AC Milan star is rumored to be pursued by San Remo. His appearance here today is a very positive signal. Next season, we are very likely to see this superstar in Serie C!"

The stadium erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

In fact, Latuidi cannot be considered a superstar.

Looking at the football world of his era, Latuidi was merely a first-rate midfielder at his peak, still a distance away from the top tier.

But with the withering of Serie A superstars over the past two years, someone of Latuidi's status is already a hot commodity in Serie A, let alone in a Serie D stadium.

"Oh, this is our great Mayor of San Remo, and beside him is the club chairman, Russell. They aren't watching the game from the luxury boxes but have come to the stands. This is surprising and exciting. They are with us!" the commentator continued. "Here, we also want to share some good news with everyone: a four-star stadium project belonging to San Remo has been finalized!"

"After this season ends, construction of the new San Remo stadium will officially begin, with completion expected in two years! By then, it will become a new landmark for San Remo and the brand-new home ground for the San Remo football team!"

This news was explosive enough to make the San Remo fans ecstatic!

A four-star stadium!

A stadium capacity exceeding thirty thousand!

It even qualifies to be selected as one of the venues for European matches!

From the size of the pitch to the perfection of the facilities, and the implicit requirements for locker rooms, stands, and other rooms, four-star stadiums have extremely high specifications.

In Italy, where stadium facilities are relatively old, this is nothing short of explosive news.

After all, San Remo is only a Serie C team for next season.

And a modern four-star stadium—let alone in Serie C—is not something every team even in Serie A possesses.

For a moment, many people watching this match had a specific idiom pop into their minds: a waste of precious resources!

"Oh, look who this is, Louis, a senior scout from the scouting department of the Serie A powerhouse Fiorentina. He's here again."

"And Smith, he is one of the youth training directors for the Serie A giant AC Milan!"

"And over here, the head coach of the Serie B strong team Benevento has also graced us with his presence."

"This is the sporting director of Empoli from Serie B!"

"The gentleman next to him is the chairman of Perugia from Serie B!"

"And this is the chairman of the Serie C team Renate!"

"Wait... why did the camera move away... this is... oh, my god! I'm going to cry! Am I seeing things... is it her, is it really her?"

It must be said that this stadium commentator has decent skills, especially in acting. He roared in a trembling voice: "Sophia Catina! One of the most beautiful women in Italy! One of the top ten goddesses of Europe! Known as the Kiss of Europa!"

"Perhaps not everyone loves football, but everyone must have loved Sophia Catina at some point!"

"She's here, she actually came!"

BOOM!

The spectators at the scene completely boiled over, one after another looking toward the area where Sophia was sitting.

Fans in front of their televisions were also stunned.

Sophia had actually appeared here!

How many years had it been? Sophia had finally appeared on camera again!

Countless fans of Sophia from back in the day heard the news and flocked to lock onto this match.

"It really is Sophia!"

"She's more mature, more charming, and more confident!"

"Yes, she's even more attractive than before!"

"Beautiful Sophia, why is no one asking her to film movies anymore? This is absolutely the biggest waste in the world!"

"Why did Sophia come to watch the game? Does she like football?"

"I don't think I've ever heard of that?"

"I heard Sophia is currently filming a movie she wrote, directed, and starred in herself?"

"Having this opportunity is truly not easy; Sophia will definitely succeed this time."

"What could be the reason that made Sophia interrupt her filming to come watch a match? Who is it?"

"Sophia is waving a San Remo jersey!"

"Wait! This jersey... number 24? Who is it?"

"Lu? Who is that?"

"It's Lu Yang! My god, Sophia is holding Lu Yang's jersey and cheering for the players' entrance! Is she a fan of Lu Yang? Or is it just a coincidence?"

"Which Lu?"

"The Lu who scored that thirty-three-meter stunning bicycle kick!"

"Him? Damn! This... no way... my goddess shouldn't have anything to do with him..."

Under the gaze of the masses.

The players from both sides took the field.

The Turris players were somewhat surprised, because the San Remo home stadium was... a bit too terrifying!

The passionate cheers of thousands were crazier than any home crowd they had encountered this year.

Of course, the Turris players didn't know exactly what was happening.

They just felt that the San Remo fans were a bit too happy and too high-profile; they should make these fans quiet down for a while!

The match kicked off.

Turris quickly let everyone know why they were able to rank first in the standings.

Through fifteen passes, they sent the football into the San Remo goal in less than ten minutes of play.

"GOAL!"

The Turris substitute players were even more excited than the players on the field.

Because they knew how many big shots were watching this match.

And being able to prove one's excellence in front of Sophia, who wouldn't be excited?

"My fault!" Nagy took the initiative to step up and take responsibility while the opponents were celebrating.

"It's not your problem, it's mine." Moric shook his head.

Turris's control over the football was too strong.

They played possession football, which was quite rare in lower-level leagues.

Because the primary requirement for possession football is solid fundamental skills from the players.

And how good could the fundamental skills of players in lower-level leagues be?

This conceded goal wasn't because a specific San Remo player was blown past or had a loophole exploited.

It was purely that the opponent used possession to dismantle the entire San Remo side, thereby scoring the goal.

As the "on-field coach" of San Remo, this goal was indeed Moric's responsibility.

But...

Moric couldn't find a way to solve the problem for the time being, because the gap in strength between the two sides was truly quite large.

This was a crushing game!

Even if the team's main lineup were intact, Moric felt that they would likely lose this battle anyway.

Not to mention that there was such a huge hole on the team's right flank?

The match continued.

Although San Remo's formation looked like a 4-3-3 today, their right forward tracked back and their right back wouldn't push up, so it was actually a 4-4-2 formation in practice.

This was Soto's requirement: focus on defense.

Even after conceding a goal, San Remo remained defensive.

"If we can't hold on in the first half, why would we think we can hold on in the second half? Hold on in the first half, charge hard in the second half; this is the only way for a weak team to defeat a strong one!"

Soto's tactics were very clear.

The philosophy was also relatively correct.

After all, judging from the recently concluded 38th round of La Liga, this was indeed the case.

The strong teams Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid both conceded goals within the first twenty minutes, but in the end, they were both able to chase back two goals and defeat their opponents.

This was enough to show that when facing truly strong teams in critical battles, you can never hold on.

Therefore, the second half was the time to decide the outcome.

Otherwise, the others wouldn't be strong teams.

If a team isn't strong in critical battles, why should they be called a strong team?

But the strength of Turris, even in the first half, made it difficult for San Remo to defend.

In the 39th minute of the match, Turris once again executed a perfect possession play.

After a dazzling display of passing and control, their midfielder played a reverse triangle pass, and the right-back charged in to blast a shot that once again pierced the San Remo goal.

The Turris right-back celebrated wildly, thumping his chest aggressively toward the San Remo players.

He might have had his own reasons to be excited, but his actions deeply infuriated the San Remo players, especially Nagy, who felt he had been out of position again.

As a conflict seemed ready to erupt, Lu Yang rushed over in time to hold back his teammates.

"Don't pick up a card; you are all more important than anyone in the second half!" Lu Yang said this directly to Nagy.

Nagy lowered his head.

After calming his teammates down, Lu Yang pointed at the opposing right-back but said nothing more.

The opposing right-back sneered.

What does that mean?

Want to take me on?

Bring it on!

Soon, the first half ended, with San Remo trailing zero to two.

In the locker room, after Soto finished speaking, Lu Yang added a few words, activating the "Spiritual Leader" effect.

In the second half, Turris's passing and control remained sharp.

There was even a hint of mockery in that sharpness.

Their players began attempting unconventional moves.

Things like the Rabona, back-heel passes, and the opposing right-back even attempted a bold rainbow flick; although it failed, it was incredibly infuriating.

Clearly, during halftime, they had learned how many celebrities were watching this match.

"Oh, we can see that the Turris players are having a blast. It's surprising, as Lu Yang has never been perceived as a technical player, yet he has scored goals and provided assists using these flashy moves."

"Perhaps it is because of Lu Yang's dominant physical attributes and Moric's overwhelming excellence that people think Lu Yang is a crude player, but in reality, he is not!"

"They and Vedian are perhaps the only ones on this San Remo side who are not inferior to the Turris players."

Just as the commentator finished speaking, Lu Yang completed a steal with a beautiful sliding tackle.

An opposing player pressed him, but Lu Yang evaded him with a V-Pull and pushed forward with the ball.

Moric began to make a forward run.

The Turris right-back lunged at Lu Yang, as he was the closest.

However, Lu Yang performed a drag-back motion while running.

Was he preparing to trap the ball?

The Turris right-back slowed down to prepare for the challenge.

But the next moment, the ball flew up and was struck by Lu Yang's knee.

Lu Yang surged past the Turris right-back along with the ball, leaving the defender standing still like a wooden puppet.

Knee-Tap Lift, breakthrough complete!

At this moment, the space in front of Lu Yang opened up significantly.

A midfielder who wanted to block Moric was forced to cover for Lu Yang.

It was then that Lu Yang launched a lofted pass!

The lofted pass of Wolf King Totti and the through ball of Golden Wolf Guti were both in effect.

This high ball bypassed the Turris defensive formation in mid-air and dropped accurately toward Moric.

The Turris defenders were on high alert, intending to collide with Moric the moment he trapped the ball to make him lose control.

Although Moric's trapping was good, it was hard to replicate Lu Yang's god-tier trapping where the ball sticks to the instep without rebounding.

Turris had long since studied Moric thoroughly.

However, Moric chose not to trap the ball; instead, he ran in front of it, hooked his right foot backward, and used a scorpion kick to loft the ball back into the air, letting it fly over his own head and the opposing defenders.

And there!

A bolt of black lightning tore through the Turris defense.

Vedian received the ball for a one-on-one.

A calm shot!

Goal!

San Remo tenaciously pulled one back!

"It's the genius connection of Lu Yang, Moric, and Vedian again! Lu Yang shook off two defenders in succession and pierced the Turris defensive line with a lofted pass."

"Moric's no-trap scorpion kick flick completely dismantled the final defender."

"Vedian is truly fast; there wasn't much sprinting space left for him on this play, but he still managed to accelerate and overtake. Anyone else would never have created this one-on-one, and the ball would have been collected by the goalkeeper."

"San Remo still has a fighting chance! They haven't given up!"

On the pitch, the San Remo fans began to cheer.

They had witnessed the tenacity of San Remo.

But soon, in the seventy-fourth minute of the match, Turris killed off the game.

They possessed not only the strongest overall squad in Serie D, but also top-tier individual playmakers by the standards of the league.

Their center-forward sat second on the Serie D scoring charts with 21 goals; he had been in scorching form lately, averaging more than one goal per game!

Don't let the fact that he was playing in Serie D fool you; he was essentially slumming it.

He was previously a substitute striker for the Serie B powerhouse Lecce, where he scored 15 goals in 29 appearances last season, showing excellent form and helping Lecce earn promotion to Serie A.

However, due to conflicts with the team's starting striker and the head coach, he missed out on Serie A football and was loaned to Turris to help them secure promotion to Serie C.

And he had done it!

This season, Lecce sat at the bottom of Serie A, destined for relegation. Their head coach had been sacked and their starting striker was clamoring for a transfer, so this powerhouse Turris center-forward was very likely to return to Serie B next season.

Compared to Arnold and Vedian, who relied on their speed to gain favor, he was the only true Serie B-level striker!

This beast of a forward shouldered into the two center-backs of the San Remo defensive line, not only sending them stumbling in opposite directions but also managing to unleash a violent strike while off-balance.

And this time, the football appeared once again inside the San Remo goal.

Three to one!

Turris was overwhelmingly, arrogantly strong!

Those who never give up will eventually become the brightest stars in the night sky—dedicated to everyone currently dwelling in darkness! Keep going!!!