Chapter 427: "Gemini" training
"Chinese Youngster Shines in Belgian Pro League, Will the Miracle of Wang Feng be Replicated?"
Although just a routine goal in a Belgian Pro League match, most of the Belgian media outlets have come forward to report it, with "The Latest News" making it their front-page headline.
Wang Feng's name carries significant weight; he is arguably one of the greatest players in the history of the Belgian Pro League, and it's been less than a decade since he emerged. All fans remember vividly his dominating performances in the league when he was only sixteen or seventeen.
Therefore, whenever a young player shows promise on the pitch, the media and fans often compare them to the Chinese superstar, and Huang Hu is no exception this time.
What's even more intriguing is that he also plays for Genk, is also Chinese, and is also 17 years old! Although his performances are far from as dazzling as Wang Feng's, and he's still only a substitute so far, the sight of him stepping up in crucial moments to rescue the team is enough to spark imagination.
"Standard Report" believes Huang Hu has a good sense of seizing opportunities on the field and can see shades of the young Wang Feng in him. Moreover, within the Genk team, there is also a highly promising young midfielder, De Bruyne, and the understanding between the two seems very intuitive.
"Since the departure of the Chinese superstar, this once glorious team has experienced a long period of decline, hovering around mid-table in the Belgian Pro League. Now, can the emergence of these twin stars bring new development to the team?"
"Twin stars," murmured Bill Albert, the general manager of Genk Club, as he looked at the newspaper in his office. Beside him was Wang Feng's former teammate, former team captain Abigail, who officially retired a few years ago and is now in the club's management as an assistant general manager.
"Do you think these two can really grow into top-class stars?" Albert suddenly asked. Abigail pondered for a moment before saying, "De Bruyne is definitely a talented kid. With focused training, he's sure to succeed. As for Huang Hu..."
"Perhaps it's my preconceived notion, but I'm afraid he's simply incomparable to Wang Feng. However, there's still room for growth and value, although the risk of nurturing him is a bit high."
"In recent years, our cooperation with Wang Feng has been very pleasant. There are already sixty or seventy Chinese kids trained in the youth academy, but none of them have outstanding qualifications. Huang Hu belongs to the top tier among them, which is why he's been promoted to the first team as a substitute."
After listening to Abigail's analysis, Albert fell into contemplation again, before finally making a decision: "The club's performance has been inconsistent, and the current economic situation simply cannot support us in bringing in strong reinforcements to contend for the title. We can only rely on the profits from player sales."
"Since there are outstanding talents and topics of discussion, let's do our best to cultivate and explore them. I believe teams from the top five leagues will be interested in these two."
Abigail nodded in understanding, realizing that he needed to have a chat with the coaching staff and tilt a bit towards the "twin stars" in terms of tactics and game attendance in the future.
After rushing back to Madrid from Japan, Wang Feng's Galaxy Battleship faced Weivaa in the 12th round of the league. Sitting on the bench and watching the game was quite torturous for the Chinese superstar, especially when the home team couldn't break the deadlock. So, at halftime, he took the initiative to approach the head coach to request to play.
"Mr. Schuster, my physical condition can fully support 45 minutes. Let me try in the second half," Wang Feng said somewhat insistently. The German nodded somewhat helplessly.
Originally, he wanted Wang Feng to rest and prepare for the midweek Champions League match, but the Galaxy Battleship's forward line was in a slump, and another draw or loss would likely be detrimental to the entire title race.
So, in the second half, the head coach replaced the underperforming Raul with Wang Feng, who continued the match partnering with Iguaín. This substitution quickly paid off. In the 51st minute, Wang Feng broke through to the left flank and delivered a lofted pass. Iguain controlled the ball with his chest inside the penalty area, and volleyed it into the net, finally breaking the deadlock.
Ten minutes later, Mezut ?zil cleared the ball from the back, Garcia in midfield won the ball, and immediately sent a direct pass to Wang Feng in the frontcourt. The Chinese superstar, with his back to the goal, laterally chipped the ball to Iguaín in the penalty area.
The Argentine forward controlled the ball, feigned a long shot, but instead, skillfully evaded the defender with a feint, then slotted the ball into the penalty area. By this time, Wang Feng had already advanced into the box and smoothly hit the far corner of the goal.
2-0! With these two goals, Real Madrid secured all three points at home. Meanwhile, on the other side, Barcelona finally ended their winning streak with a 1-1 draw against Hetafe, and what's even more worrying for the Catalans is that Messi had to leave the match due to injury.
Several consecutive intense matches and the pressure from Real Madrid left the Argentine exhausted. Although he's not injury-prone, he's not as durable as Wang Feng.
Fortunately, Barcelona later announced that Messi's injury was not serious, and he would only need to rest for one or two weeks. He would definitely not miss the century battle with Real Madrid in the 15th round, a match considered crucial for the La Liga title race.
Barcelona's "Godfather" Cruyff wrote in an article after the team's draw that it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. He generously admitted in the article that the criticism of Guardiola last year was indeed somewhat biased. Spanish coaches need time to integrate players with different characteristics into the team, and the stunning start to this season is a testament to that.
"Winning streaks are both glory and burden for all teams. Stopping at this point allows Barcelona more time for adjustments and reflections. We still hold the advantage in the championship race."
However, he still had significant grievances with the club's president, Laporta. The phenomenon of favoritism towards certain individuals hadn't improved at all, and there had been no progress on renewing contracts for core players like Eto'o.
In the fifth round of the Champions League group stage, Real Madrid traveled to Belarus to challenge BATE Borisov. There was a significant gap in strength between the two teams, and in the first round of the group stage, the Galaxy Battleship had already won 5-0 at home.
From the beginning of the match, the away team took the initiative to launch attacks, hoping to end the battle quickly. In the 11th minute, Sneijder's pass from the front found its way into the penalty area, deflecting off the opposing defender and changing direction slightly. Wang Feng seized the opportunity and fired a powerful shot from 14 meters out, breaking the deadlock for Real Madrid.
Just six minutes later, inside the penalty area, Iguaín received a lob pass from Marcelo and headed it back to the far post. Wang Feng shook off the defender and coolly slotted the ball into the net from the edge of the small penalty area, leaving the BATE goalkeeper with no chance to react.
And when the match reached the 33rd minute, the Galaxy Battleship quickly counterattacked after winning the ball in their own half. Sneijder passed directly into the heart of the penalty area, where Wang Feng's timing was excellent. He beat the offside trap to find himself in a one-on-one situation, and with a feint to deceive the goalkeeper, he slotted the ball into the empty net.
3-0! The Chinese superstar completed a first-half hat-trick! In the second half, the away team sounded the final whistle, substituting off Wang Feng and other key players. Dralere helped Real Madrid extend their lead once again before the end of the match, and just before the final whistle, BATE finally pulled one back through forward Nulewa, with the final score fixed at 4-1.
With Juventus drawing 1-1 against Zenit St. Petersburg in the other group match, Real Madrid topped the table with 12 points from 4 wins and 1 loss, while the Bianconeri had 8 points from 2 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss, securing second place.
With one round of matches remaining, the Galaxy Battleship had already secured the top spot in the group, which was undoubtedly good news for them given their busy schedule.
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