Chapter 54

In the VIP box at Pacaembu Stadium, besides Scolari and Xietela, there was also a pair of celebrities sitting there.

However, they did not catch the attention of the Brazilian TV broadcasters.

The bald general manager of AC Milan, Galliani, and the famous Brazilian footballer Leonardo were sitting in the box, watching the match.

They were certainly not there to care about who would win the Rio-São Paulo Championship.

In fact, they were there to watch just one person.

"Kaka's performance is not as good as you said, Leonardo," Galliani said in a low voice. "If he is at this level, he definitely won't impress me. He doesn't have the ability to stand in Milan."

Leonardo was also dissatisfied with Kaka's form.

But he knew the reason, and he was more aware that Kaka was not usually like this.

"Mr. Galliani, Kaka is extremely talented. His future is promising. Of course, he is still young, so it's understandable that he might perform poorly under such immense pressure..."

He defended his compatriot.

Leonardo got to know Kaka when he returned to play for São Paulo for a season last year.

He greatly appreciated the young man's talent and often talked to him about playing in Europe.

He very much hoped to bring this talented young man to AC Milan.

That's why he and Galliani specifically came to Brazil to watch this match.

But he never expected that a 23-man World Cup squad would put such great pressure on Kaka, causing him to perform poorly...

This was an unexpected situation.

Originally, he was very confident in Kaka's abilities.

He was confident that after watching this match, Galliani would decide to sign Kaka.

Kaka's selection for the Brazilian team also indirectly proved his strength.

After listening to Leonardo's explanation, Galliani did not respond, remaining silent.

Seeing his expression, Leonardo knew it was going to be bad!

Persuading this old fox was not something that could be done with just a few words!

He turned his gaze to Kaka on the field.

What's wrong with you, Kaka? Get back to normal quickly! Only your talent can impress the Italian giants AC Milan!

***

As Rongguang hurriedly warmed up, the game continued.

Corinthians did not use this throw-in opportunity to threaten São Paulo's goal. They were leading in the total score and knew that São Paulo excelled in quick attacks, thanks to players like Kaka and Luis Fabiano. To prevent the game from falling into São Paulo's rhythm, Corinthians deliberately slowed down the pace.

Slowing down to counter speed was the strategy set by the world-renowned coach Pereira for this match.

Not long after losing to São Paulo in the regular season, Jeneinyo was fired by the club board.

Corinthians brought in the famous coach Pereira, who had led the Brazilian national team to the 1994 World Cup title in the United States, hoping he could help Corinthians win the last Rio-São Paulo Championship.

Pereira demonstrated his coaching ability, leading Corinthians to first place in the regular season, defeating São Caetano in the semi-finals, and winning 3-2 against São Paulo in the first leg of the final.

He had taken the lead in the championship race.

After their attack failed to threaten São Paulo's goal, Corinthians quickly retreated, retreating to their own penalty area in the blink of an eye, not giving São Paulo the chance to use their speed advantage.

São Paulo had to attack slowly, with Ricardinho, who was also on the 23-man Brazilian national team list, organizing the attack.

In the end, they still failed to threaten Corinthians' goal.

***

Oswaldo only gave Rongguang three minutes to warm up, which was a bit short, but the situation was special. Oswaldo wanted to win, and São Paulo needed to score two goals in the remaining time, with only 30 minutes left, the time was tight.

After three minutes, Rongguang appeared in front of Oswaldo.

"Rong, are you still doing the special training?" Oswaldo did not discuss tactics but asked Rongguang a question first.

Rongguang nodded: "I am still doing it!"

"How is it going?"

"I feel I have become stronger!" Rongguang said confidently.

"Do you want to win the championship?" Oswaldo asked again.

Rongguang nodded: "I do."

"Me too," Oswaldo said. "Go to the field. Corinthians are not fools. They won't give you much space to use your speed. You will face layer upon layer of defense. If it were a month ago, I definitely wouldn't let you play, no matter how much you want to win the championship. But now you say you have been doing special training, so let me see the results. But I have to warn you, Rong. This is my first substitution for this match. If you perform poorly and can't threaten Corinthians' goal, I will use my second or third substitution to take you off. I don't mind wasting a substitution slot, do you understand?"

"I won't give you the chance to take me off, sir!" Rongguang answered resolutely.

"I also don't want to waste a substitution slot because of you." Oswaldo patted Rongguang's shoulder and then pushed him out with his hand on his back.

***

When Kaka saw Rongguang standing by the sideline, his first reaction was that the coach was going to substitute him again!

Because most of the times Rongguang came on as a substitute, he replaced Kaka.

Mostly because Kaka was exhausted, and sometimes to prevent him from getting injured.

But this match was only 62 minutes in... He still had energy, so why should he be substituted early?

He admitted that his performance in the previous 60 minutes was terrible.

But he had fully recognized this, changed his mindset, and felt like he had been reborn. He was determined to make up for the 60 minutes he had wasted... How could he be taken off now?

"Rong is standing by the sideline, he is probably going to replace Kaka... Kaka's performance in this match hasn't been good, so being substituted early is understandable... But if he is substituted now, the media will have more reasons to criticize Kaka."

Cafure analyzed, his tone tinged with regret.

He liked Kaka a lot, young and energetic, with a good image and personality, almost flawless.

If given more time and a more relaxed environment, he would certainly have a legitimate place in the 23-man Brazilian squad for the World Cup.

Instead of being forced into it, becoming a target for media criticism and venting dissatisfaction over Romário's exclusion and Scolari and Xietela's decisions...

But when the fourth official raised the substitution board, Cafure was stunned.

Not only Cafure, but Kaka himself was also stunned.

Because Rongguang was not replacing him!

He was replacing a midfielder, Maldonado.

Being substituted by a rookie in such an important match, Maldonado was somewhat dejected.

Rongguang, on the other hand, ran onto the field with high spirits.

He ran all the way to Kaka's side, pointed at him, and said, "Don't hold me back! I'm here to win the championship!"

The teammates nearby, hearing Rongguang's words, just wanted to cover their faces... This rookie!

Facing Rongguang's provocation, Kaka remained expressionless.

The teammates nearby breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Kaka didn't take it to heart, which was good... If he let Rongguang affect his mood and performance, it would be terrible.

***

Not long after the game resumed, São Paulo got an attacking opportunity.

Ricardinho had the ball in the center circle, and Corinthians had tightened their defense, retreating to their penalty area before São Paulo could attack.

While Ricardinho was still considering how to attack,

he saw Kaka running back, gesturing to him with his hand.

Although he didn't say anything, from his eyes, Ricardinho could hear his heart's cry: Pass me the ball, pass me the ball, pass me the ball, pass me the ball, pass me the ball...

Such a strong desire that even Ricardinho couldn't resist, quickly passing the ball over.

Following Kaka was Corinthians' defensive midfielder Vampeta. He stuck closely to Kaka, not giving him any space to control the ball.

As soon as Kaka received the ball, Vampeta would push him, using aggressive defense to force Kaka into a mistake.

This tactic had worked well in previous matches, making it difficult for Kaka to even turn.

This time, it would be no different.

Vampeta thought so as he saw Kaka about to receive the ball and accelerated.

Just as he thought he would successfully defend against Kaka again, he saw Kaka suddenly twist his body!

It was like the scene was frozen, and when it resumed, Kaka had already turned and appeared at his side!

Where was the ball?

The ball was gone too!

"Kaka! Beautiful turn! No-touch ball turn! He's free!"

With the commentator's shout, the Kaka fans in the stands let out a deafening scream, cheering for Kaka's beautiful turn and breakaway!

In their screams, Kaka dribbled the ball he had turned, shaking off Vampeta!

In front of his agility, Vampeta was like a frozen statue.

Kaka, having shaken off Vampeta, quickly faced Corinthians' defense.

As the top-ranked team in the Rio-São Paulo Championship regular season, they were experienced. Despite Vampeta being shaken off, the defense did not panic.

They did not rush to swarm Kaka.

Instead, they maintained the integrity of their defense.

They just wouldn't let Kaka into the penalty area.

Kaka didn't intend to enter the penalty area either. He slightly slowed down and took a long shot from outside the box!

The ball almost hit the crossbar before flying out of bounds!

The goalkeeper Dida, tall and long-armed, didn't touch the ball—his reaction was a bit slow. If the ball had been a bit lower and within the goal frame, it might have scored!

"Kaka—long shot! Beautiful! Just missed! Very close to a goal! This is Kaka's most threatening shot in the match!"

The screams in the stands grew even louder, almost hoarse.

They had waited over 60 minutes for such a Kaka! Finally, they got it!

Seeing this spirited Kaka, many fans were even moved to tears—they found themselves particularly emotional lately, easily experiencing intense emotional fluctuations over even the slightest change in Kaka...

***

Although he didn't score, Kaka was quite satisfied with his shot.

He turned to run back, and as he passed Rongguang, he finally responded to Rongguang's earlier provocation!

His eyes were sharp, and his expression serious: "That line should be said to you, rookie. Don't get in my way of winning the championship."

Saying that, he continued to run back.

The teammates nearby were stunned!

In the past, no matter how Rongguang provoked Kaka, even pointing at Kaka and saying he would beat him, Kaka would just smile, very gracefully and politely.

But what was going on today?

Why was Kaka taking this rookie seriously?

Who knew that Rongguang had only been playing football for four months, not understanding many things, let alone the unwritten rules.

Ignorance is bliss, and it wasn't surprising what he said. Just don't take it to heart.

If you took every word Rongguang said seriously, you'd be driven crazy...

When Rongguang provoked Kaka earlier, Kaka ignored him, and everyone thought Kaka was right, feeling relieved...

But they were too early to relax!

Today, Kaka actually responded to Rongguang, and... it wasn't a casual response, but a very serious one! He was clashing with this rookie!

Was something wrong with the world...