0045 Days Watching from the Stands with Mancini

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah..."
Vujadin Boškov threw a rapid series of right jabs in the technical area.
Pezzotti had a feeling that the speed of the punches from the man he was assisting was only getting faster.
At this rate, the moment he left Sampdoria, Boškov could march straight into the boxing ring.

Not far away, in the Juventus technical area, Dino Zoff turned around almost instantly and signaled for the substitutes to get up and warm up.
With a little over eighty minutes played, whether to push for the win or play it safe was a dilemma where Italian managers would almost always make the same choice.
Two points were certainly wonderful, but one point was also acceptable.
This was precisely the primary reason why football would later transition to a three-point system.
The gap between a draw and a win was simply too narrow, leading to matches becoming increasingly conservative.
The entire world was heading in this direction, let alone Italy, a nation built upon a foundation of defense.

Up in the stands, Roberto Mancini's facial expression was quite a sight to behold.
He was happy that his team had equalized, yet secretly troubled.
If the team could pick up points with or without him, didn't that mean his status as the second captain was entirely useless, and that his presence made no difference at all?
Still, after watching today's match, he felt a genuine wave of admiration for Lu Deyang.
Damn it, an attacking player moving into central midfield and then popping up frequently in both penalty boxes?
If it were him, he simply couldn't pull it off.
Utterly ruthless!

Another tackle won!
Mancini couldn't help but wonder if Lu Deyang was actually more formidable playing as a defensive midfielder than he was in the attacking third.
Salsano latched onto Gianluca Vialli's pass and immediately unleashed a shot, which Juventus goalkeeper Stefano Tacconi tipped out over the end line.
Another corner kick.
Mancini found himself growing increasingly nervous.
Surely not?
Right now, a strong premonition arose in his heart: this set piece just might allow Sampdoria to turn the match completely around.

"Defense! Defense!!!"
Zoff bellowed at the top of his lungs.
Every single Juventus player dropped back into the penalty area, and even striker Salvatore Schillaci was no exception.

"Let's try playing it on the ground," Lu Deyang murmured softly.
Attilio Lombardo, walking over to the corner flag, nodded immediately.
With so many Juventus bodies packed inside the box, trying to win an aerial duel was far from easy.

*Peep!*
At the sound of the referee's whistle, Lombardo nudged the ball short from the corner flag, and Ivano Bonetti rushed forward instantly to receive it.
The Juventus players panicked for a fraction of a second.
Ground combination play!
It wasn't the direct cross into the box they had anticipated.
Amid the confusion, Massimo Mauro abandoned his marker, Lu Deyang, and sprinted out to chase the ball.
Bonetti laid the ball back to Lombardo, who instantly delivered a reverse pass towards the edge of the penalty area.
Fausto Pari, fully prepared, swept the ball directly into the box.
Bonetti, regaining possession, turned toward the byline and quickly lofted a chipped cross that sailed straight toward the far post.
Pietro Vierchowod leaped into the air, preparing to head it home. Pasquale Bruno jumped a split second late, yet still managed to deflect the flight of the ball.
The ball struck Pasquale Bruno's head and rebounded out toward the edge of the D-arc.

"Damn it..."
As his eyes tracked the moving trajectory of the ball, the corner of Zoff's eye twitched involuntarily.
Lu Deyang!
Lu Deyang was standing right there.
And he was completely unmarked!

The cross hung nicely in the air, its velocity not overly fierce. Lu Deyang took a subtle step, clearly adjusting his footing. As the ball descended, Lu Deyang generated explosive power from his right leg to spring upward, swinging his left leg straight through the ball.
*Boom—*
A stunning volley!

The opposing players barely had time to turn their heads, let alone react, before the ball tore through the air toward the goal like a cannonball.
Stefano Tacconi had no time whatsoever to leap; he could only instinctively arch his back and stretch his right arm to the absolute limit, desperately trying to block the ball from crossing the line. But all his efforts were entirely in vain.
His desperate motion served merely as the perfect backdrop for the goal.
*Crash—*

"Deyang!!!!"
"Deyang!!!!"
"Deyang!!!!"
The away fans' stand erupted once more into absolute frenzy.
Mancini jumped to his feet alongside the supporters, celebrating wildly, hugging Marco Lanna and bouncing up and down.
"Did you see that? Did you see that? That bastard Deyang, holy shit, I knew right fucking then that he was going to score!!!" Mancini yelled with fervent excitement.
Marco Lanna nodded vigorously.
For the very first time, he felt that sitting in the stands was even more blood-boiling than playing on the pitch.
The sensation of holding onto a high expectation, only for it to be instantly realized without disappointing you in the least, was simply extraordinary.
Deyang genuinely never failed to deliver.

*Sigh.*
Zoff shook his head, turned around, and walked back to sit down on the bench.
Damn it. Goddamn it.
The legendary goalkeeper had nothing left to say.

Inside the broadcasting booth, the commentator was shouting Lu Deyang's name at the top of his lungs.
"Deyang!!!!"
"Goal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"GoalGoalGoal!!!!!!!"
"Having just returned from injury in the nick of time, Deyang has once again dominated the match. Coming on as a substitute today, Deyang has been exceptionally active in both defensive and offensive phases. He successfully contributed 3 interceptions, 5 tackles, and won all 3 of his aerial duel attempts. Most crucially of all, he initiated two attacking sequences, and both times his teammates forced a corner, he seized the exact opportunity to help Sampdoria turn the score around."
"I can completely understand Zoff's bitter disappointment. He prepared for every single aspect of this match, and Mancini's suspension even played into Juventus's hands. Yet the one thing he failed to anticipate was that Deyang, playing in central midfield, would display such absolute dominance and single-handedly dismantle Juventus's tactical efforts to neutralize Sampdoria's midfield."
"Juventus will have no further opportunities."

There was just over a minute left on the clock.
Yet when Juventus attempted to organize one final attacking sequence, Lu Deyang stepped up once more.
The pass from the Soviet Maradona was intercepted by Lu Deyang long before it even reached the halfway line, and he distributed it instantly to a teammate.
The referee, Carlo Longhi, promptly blew the final whistle to end the match.

Only then did Zoff gather his composure and walk to the touchline. The legendary goalkeeper straightened his suit jacket, worked his jaw from side to side, and ensured his facial expression was thoroughly under control.
Aleksandr Zavarov walked toward the sideline and, spotting his manager, immediately headed straight for him.
Yet the next second, Zoff walked right past him, leaving Zavarov frozen in place.
Turning his head, Zavarov saw that Zoff had extended his hand toward Sampdoria's number seven, asking, "Have any interest in joining Juventus? We can offer you a much higher salary..."

Lu Deyang was just about to refuse when he spotted Boškov charging forward, fists thrashing through the air.
He hurriedly took a step forward to block his manager.
Heaven forbid the players finish their suspensions only for the coach to get himself suspended instead.
"Let me go, Deyang. I'm going to teach this fellow a proper lesson..."
Boškov struggled furiously, shouting aloud.
Pezzotti rushed over to help restrain Boškov.
Despite being born in the 1930s and well into his later years, when he started thrashing about, it genuinely took more than one person to keep him under control.

Zoff offered a sheepish, wry smile and turned to walk down the player tunnel.
Those South Slavs truly were not to be trifled with.
Seeing Zoff depart, Boškov snorted with disdain. "If you lot hadn't held me back, I would have shown him the true power of my iron fists today."
"Yes, yes, of course," Pagliuca said, jogging up and speaking in the soothing tone one might use with a restless child.
Pezzotti, however, firmly believed that Boškov meant every single word.

To prevent any further complications from arising, Pezzotti attended the post-match press conference in place of Boškov.
Zoff wisely avoided mentioning the post-match scuffle—after all, he was the one who had tried to poach a player. As for Lu Deyang, Zoff was remarkably generous with his praise. Zoff stated, "Today's match was completely ruined by Deyang. We played sixty minutes of excellent football, but the final thirty minutes belonged entirely to Deyang, who took over the game. His technical superiority wasn't even his greatest advantage; his positional awareness in both defense and attack was exceptionally brilliant, causing us immense difficulties. I believe Sampdoria is now the absolute favorite to win the league title."

Having defeated Juventus, Sampdoria turned their attention back to the European Cup Winners' Cup.
Playing at home this time, Sampdoria, who had already secured three consecutive wins, made heavy rotations to their squad.
Mancini, who did not face suspension in European competition, was once again present in the stands, and Lu Deyang joined him there.

"Sometimes I honestly wonder if the boss is doing this on purpose just to keep me from playing," Mancini complained.
At his age, he had zero desire to coast or simply sit back.
"Actually, getting paid without having to work is quite nice," Lu Deyang said indifferently.
"What do you know? I'm trying to fight my way back into the national team," Mancini retorted.
Roberto Baggio's recent form had been exceptionally bright; Fiorentina might not have been high up the league table, but Baggio's goal tally was certainly impressive.
"Who knows, maybe Italy will just end up calling up a few more *trequartisti*," Lu Deyang offered by way of consolation.
"Never mind, let's drop it," Mancini said, waving a hand in annoyance. "Earlier I was asking young Marco about his finances, and he's handed every single penny over to his girlfriend. I've got this sinking feeling he's going to get thoroughly screwed over."
"Ah, well. Even lawyers wouldn't take a case for a guy like that, because he wouldn't even be able to afford the legal fees," Lu Deyang nodded and remarked.
Mauro Icardi was the prime example of this phenomenon—every last penny ended up in Wanda's hands.
If you wanted to learn from someone, look at Achraf Hakimi; that was a truly smart man.

"We can't just stand by and watch him get fleeced, can we? Who knows when this bloke might end up wandering the streets penniless," Mancini said with a hint of genuine concern.
Despite possessing a rather fiery temper, Mancini was always quite decent to the people within his inner circle.
"How about we suggest he go get a heavy-vehicle driver's license?" Lu Deyang suggested.
"What do you mean?"
"It gives you a distinct advantage when legal disputes arise," Lu Deyang replied.
Who the hell could have guessed that brute physical reality was the only true law of the universe?
The way to protect yourself wasn't by trying to reason with people; it was by making sure someone worried that you might completely abandon reason.
Fortunately, Marco Lanna was born in Italy.
If a bloke like that were over on the other side of the world, his life would practically be written off.

"Why don't we take him out for a proper night on the town later? That way, he'll realize there's more to life than hanging from a single tree," Mancini said, turning to look at Vialli.
The two of them had been regular fixtures at local discos back in the day, only dialing it back once Mancini finally tied the knot.
"We could do that, but it might not necessarily accomplish anything," Vialli remarked.
He didn't quite understand the modern concept of being an absolute simp, but Lanna was clearly losing his sense of self.
As the scion of a wealthy family, his parents had drilled into him since childhood that signing a prenuptial agreement before marriage was non-negotiable. Entrusting one's entire fortune to the goodwill of a partner was the riskiest gamble of all.