Defeats on Both Fronts

"Mentality?" Ramalho looked somewhat puzzled.

"Heh..." Lucio smiled. "What always holds Brazilian players back isn't so-called talent, but whether they can resist all the temptations that appear around them after they become famous."

Hearing Lucio say that, Ramalho nodded in agreement, but when he thought of the old-timers at the club's assessment of Chen Anno, he shook his head again.

"I think Anno will definitely withstand any temptation." Ramalho paused, then turned his gaze back to Lucio. "I suggest you be careful lately, especially when you're walking alone..."

"Uh..." Lucio looked thoroughly confused. "What do you mean?"

"You really messed with Anno today. I'm worried he'll put a sack over your head when you're walking alone." Ramalho's face was full of teasing.

"Porra!! Didn't you tell me to do it?"

"♫ Do you still remember that you promised me

You wouldn't let me lose you

But you followed those migratory birds flying south, so far away

Love is like a kite with its string cut..."

Chen Anno had just returned to his room when his phone rang.

"Second Uncle..."

"Xiao Nuo, a large sum of money suddenly showed up in Second Uncle's bank account today. Did you transfer it?"

The moment he answered, Chen Shouqing's voice came through. It was clear that he was still somewhat nervous about the sudden extra money in his account.

"Heh..." Hearing his second uncle's voice, Chen Anno felt an indescribable sense of peace. A sunny smile bloomed across his face. "Don't worry, Second Uncle. I transferred it."

"Oh, come on... You're living abroad all by yourself, and you need money everywhere you go. Second Uncle isn't short on cash, so why did you send me any..."

"Second Uncle!" Chen Anno interrupted him. "I've signed a contract with Sao Paulo FC now. My monthly salary is 150,000 reals, and I'm staying in the dormitory at the training base, so I barely spend anything. Just take it without worrying."

"It's not about whether I need the money... You're the younger generation. How could Second Uncle..."

"Second Uncle! You know I don't have parents anymore. You're my only family left in this world. If you keep talking like that, then you don't consider me family." Chen Anno's voice choked up slightly.

"Alright! Alright! Our Xiao Nuo has grown up. Second Uncle will accept it." Afraid that Chen Anno would overthink things, Chen Shouqing immediately agreed.

"That's more like it. Didn't Second Aunt say before that she wanted to buy a school-district home so Xiao Long could attend high school more conveniently later? Go ahead and buy it without worry. I'll send part of my salary home every month from now on."

"Alright, Second Uncle understands. But you're out there alone, so don't ever mistreat yourself." Chen Shouqing agreed aloud, but he had already decided to save all of Chen Anno's money for him, so it would be useful when he got married and started a family later.

Thinking of that, Chen Shouqing sighed. "Looks like football in Brazil really is better. No wonder their national team is so strong. Damn it, when you were here with us, you even had to pay those people money..."

"What's wrong with you? Why are you using that kind of language while talking to Xiao Nuo?"

"Ow... ow... Stop hitting me. I'm on the phone with Xiao Nuo."

Second Aunt Zhang Mei's voice came from the other end of the phone. The image of her twisting Second Uncle's ear immediately appeared in Chen Anno's mind, making him feel even more at ease.

Before long, Chen Shouqing's voice came again. "By the way, Xiao Nuo, Second Uncle may not understand football as well as your father did, but I know professional football is a very dangerous sport. You often see it in the news—players getting hurt in matches, their hands and such. Now that you're over there alone, you must take good care of yourself."

"I know, Second Uncle..." As he said this, Chen Anno suddenly froze, because he thought of Lucio's strange behavior toward him at the training ground today.

"Oh, right, Xiao Nuo." Chen Shouqing suddenly lowered his voice. "Because the recording you released last time, the shoe industry carried out another major crackdown. That guy named Du Ziteng was among those arrested. He's probably inside working a sewing machine now."

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Hearing that, Chen Anno felt utterly delighted. Someone like Du Ziteng deserved to work a sewing machine in there for the rest of his life.

After chatting with Chen Shouqing for a while longer, the two hung up.

Chen Anno sat on his bed and thought for a while before finally realizing that Lucio had not been deliberately making things difficult for him today. He had been helping him understand in advance some of the situations he would encounter in professional matches.

Having figured it out, Chen Anno understood that if it had been an official match and an opponent had been marking him, they would definitely have been far rougher than Lucio.

So when Lucio saw Chen Anno in training the next day, Chen Anno not only showed him no displeasure, but even wore a bright smile.

Remembering what head coach Ramalho had said yesterday, the Brazilian veteran immediately became wary.

"Kid, we're both men. What happens on the pitch stays on the pitch. Don't bring it off the pitch."

"Uh..." Chen Anno found Lucio's words rather baffling, but he still smiled and held out his hand. "Thank you, Lucio. I know you were teaching me yesterday how to deal with some of the situations I'll face in official matches."

Seeing Chen Anno extend his hand, the burly Brazilian instinctively took a step back. But after hearing his words, he sighed in relief and shook Chen Anno's hand with some embarrassment.

"You really are a smart kid. At least I didn't risk half my life playing with you yesterday for nothing."

"Thank you, Lucio. In today's training, I hope you won't hold back at all. Tear me apart!"

Time passed quickly, and April was already over. During that time, Sao Paulo played two matches in the state championship.

The first was a 0–1 away defeat to Mogi Mirim, the final group-stage match of the state championship. Sao Paulo lost because they had already secured qualification in advance.

The second was the quarterfinal. Sao Paulo defeated Penapolense 1–0 at home and advanced to the semifinals.

On May 3, Sao Paulo faced the Round of 16 knockout stage of the Copa Libertadores.

By sheer coincidence, their opponent was Atletico Mineiro, who had been in the same group as them.

If Atletico Mineiro had known in advance that their first knockout-stage opponent would be Sao Paulo, would they have regretted taking it easy in the final group-stage match?

However, as runners-up in last season's Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A, Atletico Mineiro were indeed stronger than Sao Paulo.

In this Copa Libertadores knockout tie, Sao Paulo played the first leg at home and the second away.

Despite having home advantage, they still lost 1–2. Chen Anno's idol, Ronaldinho, recorded one assist and one goal.

Though he was already 33 and long past his peak, Ronaldinho was still Ronaldinho—the footballing elf was still the footballing elf.

There were three Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A clubs in Sao Paulo: Corinthians in Bom Retiro, Palmeiras in Agua Branca, and Sao Paulo in Morumbi District.

Of the three, Corinthians was founded first, in 1910, by a group of Italian and Spanish laborers.

Palmeiras was founded in 1914, only four years after Corinthians, by four Italian immigrants from Sao Paulo's Italian district.

Sao Paulo, meanwhile, was founded in 1930—or, arguably, 1935—and was a football club genuinely founded by locals.

In the Campeonato Paulista semifinals, Sao Paulo's opponent was Corinthians.

On May 6, the semifinal kicked off at Sao Paulo's home ground, Morumbi Stadium.

The two teams drew 0–0 over 90 minutes, after which Sao Paulo lost 3–4 to Corinthians on penalties and missed out on the final.

Three days later, at Mineirao Stadium, Sao Paulo lost 1–4 to Atletico Mineiro and were eliminated from the Copa Libertadores 2–6 on aggregate.

However, under Copa Libertadores rules, being eliminated in the Round of 16 automatically dropped Sao Paulo into the Copa Sudamericana knockout stage.

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