Check out advanced chapters on P@treon: [email protected]/CosmicKaminari
----------
You can skip this chapter, it is just a intro and then nationalism.
[WARNING: Heavy Nationalism and Racism]
"Lance… you bastard!"
"What, weren't you always wanting to compete against me? Come on."
"Don't get cocky, our South Korea Team is very strong, don't underestimate us!"
"Don't worry, I definitely won't underestimate you."
The World Cup schedule was incredibly tight. Just a few days after playing Algeria, another major battle was upon them! Belgium versus South Korea!
In the player tunnel, looking at Son Heung-min and then scanning the surrounding South Korea players with his peripheral vision, Lance's lips only revealed two words—cruelty! Underestimate South Korea? That was impossible!
He wished the match had unlimited time, so he could score as many goals as possible until he couldn't kick anymore. As a true descendant of Yan and Huang, the hatred for the neighboring Japanese and South Koreans was natural.
No motivation was needed, just do it!
"Hiss—"
Son Heung-min's bad premonition came true again! As Lance's teammate, he was already very familiar with Lance's expressions. Seeing him narrow his eyes slightly and a mischievous smile curve on his lips, he knew, Lance was definitely going to get serious!
In the Bundesliga, whenever they were trailing, or Bayer Leverkusen was suppressed by an opponent, Lance would have this expression, and the opponents usually suffered greatly. Son Heung-min never expected that one day, he would become this guy's opponent!
"Shit!"
Son Heung-min still held a last glimmer of hope, hoping that the Belgium Team was strong on the outside but weak on the inside, a mere show. Their performance against Algeria clearly showed that the entire team's level was off, if South Korea played well, there might be a chance!
Led by the referee, both teams streamed out of the player tunnel. The moment he stepped onto the green field, he heard familiar cheers! Hearing such a sound in a foreign country, Lance's heart subtly stirred!
Boom boom—boom boom boom—
"Go Lance!!"
Boom boom—boom boom boom—
"Go Lance!!!"
Perfectly enunciated Mandarin! Looking up at the stands of Arena Corinthians, his eyes were filled with Five-Starred Red Flags fluttering in the air! There were also many excited fans holding banners with Chinese characters to cheer for Lance.
"Lance! This is a blessing from the motherland!"
"Crossing mountains and rivers to see you! Go Lance!"
"Must win against South Korea! Lance is awesome!"
It was then that Lance remembered that before the match, when he arrived at Arena Corinthians, as one of the "image spokespersons" for the Belgium National Team, he had once again accepted an interview from his partner LeTV.
The intern reporter for the interview was still the elegant young lady he met last time, Chao Yiwen, wearing glasses, looked very excited:
"According to statistics, nearly ten thousand fans in Arena Corinthians today are Chinese communities who have rushed here from all over the world, as well as fans who flew in from China. Everyone is here to cheer for you. Do you have anything you want to say to the fans in the motherland?"
Lance was in a hurry to warm up with the team at the time, so he just gave a simple reply.
"I will not disappoint the fans of the motherland. My teammates and I will do our best to violently beat the…"
Fortunately, Lance had a flash of inspiration and changed his words,
"Repay the wonderful fans of the motherland."
After all, saying things like "violently beat the South Koreans" was not convenient on public media, especially since these interviews by LeTV would be promoted on foreign websites, it would not be good if they caused disputes and were used against him.
But the netizens in China would definitely understand Lance's meaning! Lance himself didn't expect that he had originally drawn inspiration from the interview of pole vaulter Xue Changrui, and as a result, just three months later at the Incheon Asian Games, Xue Changrui also blurted out in an interview:
"My next opponent is the little Japa… the Japanese athlete who lives a good life."
After the incident, Xue Changrui said that he had a flash of inspiration at the time, thinking of Lance's interview, and fortunately, he changed his words in time.
Time returned to Arena Corinthians, where the major battle between Belgium and South Korea was about to erupt! Domestic media had already launched overwhelming publicity for this match, the number of viewers was nearly twice as many as the previous Belgium vs. Algeria match!
Everyone wanted to see how Lance would "violently beat the South Koreans"! Today, it was Liu Jianhong's turn to be the commentator, envious that He Wei and Duan Xuan could often commentate on Bundesliga matches and Lance's games, he finally got to commentate on Lance playing in person!
Liu Jianhong had been at CCTV for so many years, yet his hands were trembling slightly as he commentated on a World Cup group stage match.
"…South Korea and the Belgium Team have met twice in history. In the 1990 World Cup group stage, the Belgium Team defeated South Korea 2-0; In the 1998 World Cup group stage, the two sides drew 1-1; In this World Cup, the Belgium Team's first match was relatively difficult. Facing the relatively weaker Algeria, the Belgium Team once faced a deficit."
"The starting lineup struggled to open up the game until Lance came on as a substitute in the 80th minute of the match, this miraculous young player revitalized the Belgium Team's offense, eventually contributing 1 assist and 1 goal with his excellent performance, and scored a stoppage-time winner against Algeria, successfully securing their first World Cup victory."
"South Korea displayed a relatively tenacious performance in their match against Russia, ultimately drawing 1-1 with Russia. Currently, Belgium is first in the group with 3 points, South Korea and Russia are tied for second in the group with 1 point each, Algeria is at the bottom of the group…"
"Today's battle between the two sides is crucial and will directly determine the qualification situation of World Cup Group H. If the Belgium Team can defeat their opponent, they will qualify early and have a chance to secure first place in the group."
"If the two sides draw, the Belgium Team's chances of qualifying from the group are also relatively high, if South Korea wins, the situation in Group H will become chaotic. Therefore, Belgium Team coach Marc Wilmots attaches great importance to today's match, and directly arranged for Lance to start in the lineup! He also became the youngest starting player in World Cup history!"
A 17-year-old starting in the World Cup! And he's a Chinese player! The sense of accomplishment that fans couldn't get from the Chinese National Football Team, they could only find a glimmer of solace in Lance. He was so inspiring!
In fact, when the Belgium Football Association officially announced Lance's inclusion in the National Team, there were still many dissenting voices in China. According to relevant regulations, Lance could choose his nationality after turning 18, or become a naturalized player for the Chinese National Football Team.
As long as he wanted to join the Chinese National Football Team, there was indeed a lot of room for maneuver. Since Lance became famous, the Football Association had also contacted Jorge Mendes many times, hoping to discuss the matter of naturalizing Lance.
But Lance knew the later development of the Chinese National Football Team well, and how deep the water was there. Especially after the Football Association spent a lot of money to naturalize many star players, Elkeson, Aloísio, Serginho, Ricardo Goulart…
Was it useful? Even after being naturalized, they couldn't get on the field to play! Even watching the team lose matches, playing extremely poorly, they were unwilling to let these naturalized players play.
The ins and outs of it, Tiezi basically explained clearly after he went in, it was nothing more than conflicts of interest. It was impossible for Lance to have any conflict of interest with them. He knew without thinking that even if he were naturalized as a Chinese National Football Team player, even if his ability was several levels above Chinese National Football Team players, he would still be kept on the bench.
Rather than that, Lance might as well play in the World Cup for Belgium. He performed well in the last match, so he had a chance to start this one!
More and more fans also realized this, and they all hoped that Lance could ignite a spark in Belgium, in Europe. At least to preserve a trace of the Yan and Huang bloodline on the World Cup stage! At least there was a Chinese person who could violently beat South Korea on the World Cup stage!
"Here we go! In this battle, only victory is allowed, not defeat!"
Standing in the center circle, ready for kickoff, Lance's eyes were incredibly sharp!