Never Seen 17-Year-Old Ronaldo, But Saw 17-Year-Old Chen Anno

Chen Anno saw Santos coming in from the right as he sprinted with the ball. He guided it with his right foot and cut straight inside.

Gil, in the middle, saw it and immediately stepped up to help defend, trying to block Chen Anno outside the penalty area.

"Two of them are closing him down!" Li Batian suddenly shouted in the livestream. "Pass it already!"

Pass?

Fabiano up ahead was being stuck to tightly by the other center back, Andre. Where was there any space to pass?

Just then, Chen Anno suddenly swung his left leg, shaping as if he were going to shoot directly.

Santos, the closest player on his right, quickly threw himself out, trying to use a sliding tackle to widen his defensive coverage and block Chen Anno's shot.

Everyone thought Chen Anno's shot would either sail straight into the sky or be blocked by Santos.

But in the next instant, Chen Anno's move left everyone dumbfounded.

His left foot, which had already swung through, suddenly changed its force and lightly flicked the ball up...

As the ball was lifted, Chen Anno planted his right foot, and his whole body flew up along with the football.

Santos, who was sliding on the ground, widened his eyes and could only watch helplessly as Chen Anno flew over his head.

"Holy shit! A flying man? Hss..." Li Batian shot up from his chair, and because he moved too violently, his knee even slammed into the table.

Chen Anno had controlled the force of the flick perfectly. When his body landed, the ball happened to drop just ahead of him to the right.

Without a single second of delay, he lifted his right foot and unleashed a powerful shot!

The ball was like a cannonball out of the barrel, whistling toward the near corner of the goal.

Its speed, power, and angle left Corinthians goalkeeper Cassio in front of goal with no time to react at all.

The sound of the ball striking the net rang out, and the entire Morumbi Stadium sank into two seconds of silence.

Then came cheers like mountains roaring and seas crashing!

"What the hell is going on?" Li Batian held his head in both hands, simply unable to believe his eyes. "That's a goal? What level of player is this? One second he was being closed down by two men, and the next second he scored?"

It was not just Li Batian. Everyone watching the match in the livestream was stunned.

[Holy shit! Those moves were way too smooth, weren't they?]

[Goddamn it, Li Batian, are you sure you're livestreaming Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A and not playing a clip cut from some video?]

[I'm convinced. I'm really convinced! Brothers, with just that one move, I've been completely won over. From today on, I'm Chen Anno's loyal fan!]

[Chen Anno is fucking awesome!!]

[I never saw 17-year-old Ronaldo, but today I saw 17-year-old Chen Anno!]

Those who did not understand football watched Chen Anno's goal and thought it was insanely impressive. Only those who did understand football could truly grasp that, for this goal, whether it was Chen Anno's body balance or reaction speed, both were absolutely top-tier.

"Brothers, listen to me!" Li Batian finally came back to his senses. "A player of this level actually couldn't get a game with us? Brothers, tell me! Has our football, has our league already become this amazing?"

Morumbi Stadium went wild, and Chen Anno, who had scored the goal, went wild too.

Actually, even he had not expected that goal just now to go so smoothly. To be honest, at the time it had only been an instinctive move. He had not thought that much at all.

Only when the ball flew into the net did he react. Just like that, a goal had been born.

At this point, less than 10 minutes of the match had passed, and this attack was also the first time Sao Paulo had reached the opponent's penalty area.

"Beautifully done, Anno!" Fabiano was the first to rush over, directly pulling Chen Anno into his arms.

If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author. Maybe the title was just changed!

After that, his teammates came up one by one. Some hugged him, some encouraged him, and some rubbed his hair.

Chen Anno only smiled foolishly. His youthful face, paired with that silly, simple smile, made him seem like a completely different person from the young general who had charged alone into the enemy camp just now.

Today, Morumbi Stadium, which could hold more than seventy thousand people, was almost completely packed.

In some corners of the stadium, there were a number of faces that looked somewhat different from the ordinary fans around them. The moment Chen Anno scored, there was clearly a trace of excitement on their faces. Some held tablets, others held notebooks, as if each of them was recording something.

"Haha... brothers, who still dares to doubt my opinion now? I said the correct score would be 3-1 or 4-1, but looking at it now, I'm afraid I may have said too little."

In the livestream camera, Li Batian was grinning so hard his mouth almost would not close.

The match on the pitch continued.

As last season's Copa Libertadores champions and an absolute giant of Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A, Corinthians did not want to be suppressed by their opponent like this, even away from home.

In the time that followed, Corinthians launched a fierce counterattack against Sao Paulo's defensive line.

Especially on the two flanks, Sheik and Romarinho kept creating threats.

In the 21st minute of the match.

Corinthians won a corner. The 192-centimeter-tall center back Gil overpowered Lucio and headed the ball at goal, smashing it against the crossbar and almost equalizing the score.

In the 35th minute of the match.

It was another breakthrough down the flank from Romarinho, who squared the ball from the left side of the penalty area. Ralf, arriving from deep, struck a fierce shot, and the ball skimmed past the post and flew over the end line.

Corinthians' attack was becoming more and more threatening, pinning down Sao Paulo's midfield so much that they did not dare step forward recklessly.

"This can't go on, brothers," Li Batian gave his opinion in the livestream. "Sao Paulo's midfield and front line are disconnected. Apart from the first goal, Chen Anno has barely even touched the ball a few times."

Whether Ramalho on the coaching bench had heard Li Batian's complaint or not, he called Chen Anno over to the touchline and gave him a few instructions.

After that, every fan could see that Chen Anno's position had clearly begun to drop back, moving behind Fabiano to act as the link between midfield and the front line.

There was a hint of a false nine about it.

With that one small adjustment, Sao Paulo's midfield was instantly brought to life.

The 41st minute of the match.

Chen Anno received Denilson's pass in midfield and dribbled forward all the way, beating three opposing defenders in succession.

Then, at the top of the penalty arc, he was brought down by center back Gil, and Sao Paulo won a free kick in an excellent position.

"See that? Did you see that, guys? I told you Sao Paulo's midfield needed adjusting, right? Look, Chen Anno dropped deeper, and they immediately created danger, didn't they?"

It had to be said, as a football streamer, Li Batian really did know a thing or two.

"Give it to Anno! Let Anno take this one!" old captain Ceni shouted from the back.

Then Denilson personally placed the ball in Chen Anno's hands, smiled, and patted him on the shoulder. "The captain says it's yours. Come on, Anno. After all that practice, it's time to test it today."

"Huh...!" Watching Denilson's move on the screen, Li Batian immediately perked up. "Looks like they're giving this free kick to Chen Anno. Not bad. Seems the kid's pretty well liked at Sao Paulo!"

Chen Anno was a little nervous. He had indeed been practicing free kicks for a long time, but to be given the chance so suddenly—he really hadn't prepared himself mentally.

He turned to look back at Ceni in the rear, and the old captain gave him a thumbs-up: You can do it!

Chen Anno understood what he meant. He took a deep breath, carefully placed the ball on the spot, and adjusted the position of the valve.

About four to five steps from the ball, at a 15-to-20-degree angle...

Ceni's earlier words kept flashing through his mind. Chen Anno took a few steps back and lifted his head to glance at the wall that had already lined up.

This spot was slightly to the right of the top of the penalty arc, roughly 23 meters from goal, suitable for a right-footed curling shot.

He breathed out a turbid breath, looked toward the referee beside him, and waited for the whistle.