Kapitel 20: The Blaze of Battle (1)
Today was a special day for Zhang Xu.
At 6 o'clock in the morning, as he prepared to get out of bed, put on his clothes and shoes, and start his routine morning run, he was greeted by a surprising sight when he entered the living room.
In the not-so-large living room, colorful lights and paper decorations adorned the space. Among these decorations hung a flag— the five-starred red flag of China!
Beneath the flag, red Chinese characters spelled out: "Happy 62nd Anniversary, The People's Republic of China!"
"This… this is from the James family..." Zhang Xu was deeply moved. He had not expected that an ordinary Belgian family would spend their precious time, even into the late hours of the night, to decorate their living room to celebrate the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, all for him, a Chinese player from the far East.
After his morning run, Zhang Xu joined the James family for breakfast.
"Thank you," Zhang Xu bowed sincerely to the James family. "Thank you so much!"
"Haha," Mr. James laughed heartily. "No need to be polite, kid! We're family now. Your celebrations are our celebrations!"
"Yes, my dear," Mrs. James said kindly, "You've been with us for almost three months, bringing joy to our lives and victories to our team. This is just a small way for us to express our gratitude."
With that, she took a package from the table in the living room and handed it to Zhang Xu. "This is the flag for your home country, China. Since you have a game today, I hope you'll have the opportunity to display it today for all the White Star fans!"
"I'll definitely have the chance!" Zhang Xu's eyes welled up with emotion as he received the package. His tone was firm and resolute.
...
As there was a league match scheduled for 7:30 PM, the team's morning training session was relatively light, focusing on recovery exercises.
After a simple rest following lunch, the entire team boarded the bus and headed to Antwerp, where they would play their match.
Speaking of Antwerp, Zhang Xu's feelings were a bit mixed. Antwerp was not a renowned club in the European football scene, but it was familiar to most Chinese people for a specific reason.
The reason was simple: a Chinese player, Dong Fangzhuo, had once joined Antwerp on loan. Unfortunately, Dong Fangzhuo had not succeeded during his time there and had returned to China.
Zhang Xu had also tried out with Antwerp before. He thought that maybe, following in the footsteps of Dong Fangzhuo, he might have a chance at the club.
Unfortunately, the harsh reality was that he had failed miserably. He was shown the door on the very first day!
However, today he would represent White Star against Antwerp, and this could be his chance to prove Chinese players could succeed here!
With determination in his heart, Zhang Xu clenched his fists and vowed to continue his success in this match.
Yet, Antwerp was not an easy opponent. It was the satellite feeder club of the football giant, Manchester United, and had two players on loan from Manchester United. Additionally, Antwerp had borrowed four players from the French powerhouse Lyon.
These six players practically dominated all positions on the field for Antwerp, from midfield to defense and even the goalkeeper. They significantly bolstered Antwerp's midfield and defense.
Among these six players, one individual added to Zhang Xu's pressure — Paul Pogba.
Paul Pogba (French: Paul Pogba), born on March 15, 1993, of Guinean-French descent, was a professional footballer from the outskirts of Paris. He had received his youth training at Le Havre in the French Ligue 2 and served as the captain of the French U16 youth team. Paul Pogba had been hailed as one of the most promising young talents in the world.
In 2009, Pogba joined Manchester United, and some had predicted that he would become one of the world's best players in the future. However, despite Manchester United's illustrious history, he had not been given many opportunities to play, spending most of his time at Antwerp.
Pogba was an all-around midfielder, the heart of Antwerp's team. He excelled in both offense and defense, with outstanding abilities in movement, passing, ball control, and long-range shooting. His style of play was often compared to that of Patrick Vieira.
Facing such a formidable opponent, it was impossible for Zhang Xu not to feel the pressure. However, he wasn't afraid. In Zhang Xu's dictionary, there was never a place for fear. Instead, he felt excited and eager to test himself against such high-caliber players.
....
At 6:30 PM, the White Star team arrived at the venue — the Bosuil Stadium in Antwerp. Although the Bosuil Stadium was much larger than White Star's Stade Stadium, it was old and worn.
Upon entering the locker room, Zhang Xu was greeted by rusty lockers and a battered, uneven floor. Even the tables and chairs seemed antiquated.
After changing into their kits, Zhang Xu and his teammates left the locker room and stepped onto the field to begin their pre-match warm-up.
"Hey, Zhang, look over there!" Suddenly, striker Henry pointed in a direction and called out to Zhang Xu.
Zhang Xu turned to see a captivating sight. In the stands, there was an ocean of red — red clothing, red caps, red scarves, red banners, and most prominently, a five-starred red flag!
Beneath the sea of red, there was a drum that Zhang Xu was very familiar with. Two shirtless strong men were vigorously beating the large drum with oversized mallets.
These were the Chinese football fans in Belgium. Upon learning that a Chinese player, Zhang Xu, was playing in the match, they had gathered under the organization of the Chinatown Chinese community to come to the Bosuil Stadium and cheer for Zhang Xu.
"Zhang Xu! Go for it! Zhang Xu! Go for it! Zhang Xu! Go for it!"
Although the red block was not large, the synchronized cheers and the use of Mandarin Chinese made the words crystal clear and pleasant to Zhang Xu's ears.
Overjoyed, Zhang Xu momentarily forgot about the warm-up exercises. He rushed towards the red section, waving and acknowledging the fans' support.
As he got closer, Zhang Xu noticed the banners that read, "Happy, 62nd Anniversary the People's Republic of China!" and "Go for It, Zhang Xu!" Smaller banners contained messages like "Zhang Xu, Rise Up!" and "Chinese Football, Rise Up!" — all offering encouragement and support for Zhang Xu and Chinese football.
Zhang Xu's arrival had ignited tremendous excitement among the Chinese fans, and they waved their flags and scarves vigorously. They jumped and shouted with great enthusiasm. Even the drumbeats became more urgent and powerful.
At this moment, the other White Star players also joined Zhang Xu and interacted with the fans, immersing themselves in the vibrant atmosphere.
Today, Paul Pogba was in a particularly bad mood.
Although he had joined Manchester United, he had not made a single appearance for the club. To secure his future, he had entrusted his agent to negotiate with Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United's manager, regarding his contract to ensure playing time and opportunities.
Pogba had told his agent that if they couldn't guarantee him playing time, he would rather leave Manchester United behind.
However, last night, his agent informed him that the negotiations had made no substantial progress. Sir Alex Ferguson, as before, refused to guarantee his playing time and opportunities. Instead, he maintained that appearances depended on the player's form.
Evaluated by form!
Pogba was furious. Did they still need to evaluate his form? All they had to do was check the stats to see how well he had been performing in the previous matches!
Determined to leave, Pogba had little interest in a Belgian Second Division match. So when he saw Zhang Xu and his teammates interacting with the fans on the field, he couldn't help but curl his lips in disdain.
What's going on here? Zhang Xu found Pogba's contemptuous expression a bit puzzling. Did this guy have a problem? Well, better stay away from him and avoid being infected by his negativity.
At 7:15 PM, all the players returned to the locker room to listen to the coach's final tactical instructions.
"Today, we'll continue with the 3-5-2 formation, with two defensive midfielders. The starting lineup will be: goalkeeper Kevin, defenders Alexandre, Vincent... Driss, Henry, Zhang..." Coach Mazu announced the starting lineup before going into the tactical details.
"Our opponents are strong, as evident from their current league position. They're ranked third, while we're fourteenth. Their strongest area is the midfield, especially the defensive midfield, where we find Paul Pogba, on loan from Manchester United."
"This player is very talented, a key player for Antwerp, excelling both in attack and defense. So, whether we can defeat our opponents or not largely depends on our ability to contain Pogba!"
"To contain Pogba, I plan for Driss and Zhang to work together. Any objections?"
"No!" Driss and Zhang Xu replied in unison.
"Good, let's continue..."
At 7:30 PM, the match began, and both teams entered the field.
Zhang Xu happened to walk onto the field side by side with Pogba. After exchanging glances, they quickly separated. Pogba's expression conveyed disdain, while Zhang Xu's eyes blazed with the flames of determination.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein