Chapter 147: A Brilliant Goal in a Ridiculous Match

Grava dribbled the ball down the flank. The technical traits of this Croatian wing-back were already well-known among other opponents in Serie C1: his crossing ability was top-tier, while his capability to break through and dribble past opponents could only be described as average. The opposing full-back quickly closed in on him, intending to entangle him and prevent him from smoothly delivering the ball into the penalty area.

Seeing the opponent's defender rushing toward him, Grava lifted his foot to fake a cross from a standstill, baiting the defender into charging forward. Then, he sharply dragged the ball to the side, shaking off the rushing defender, adjusted his pace, and calmly crossed the ball into the penalty area!

Long Bisheng made a diagonal sprint, reaching the near post in two strides, and leaped high to meet Grava's cross!

"This kid is going to flick it on..." the defender marking him and the goalkeeper thought simultaneously. Although the defender closed in, he did not apply tight pressure, and the goalkeeper even took a step forward, preparing to intercept his headed flick-on.

At that exact moment, Long Bisheng gathered his core strength, and with his body positioned sideways to the goal, he whipped his head forward with sudden violence, fiercely driving the ball toward the upper near corner!

The goalkeeper could not even react in time, watching helplessly as Long Bisheng jumped and flicked his head, sending the ball flying immediately to crash hard against the goalpost and out over the baseline!

A massive sigh of relief burst out from Napoli's bench. Long Bisheng's near-post header was swift and fierce, but unfortunately, it veered just a fraction wide...

"Long seemed a bit too hasty with that shot. He could have headed it down to Calaiò in the box. That might have made the conversion a bit more certain," the assistant coach said to Reja.

Reja nodded, then suddenly chuckled. "Could it be that this kid wants to score a goal himself? That shot just now was very decisive. Sometimes, a striker needs to be a bit selfish inside the box... Besides, in these past few matches, he's already delivered four assists without scoring a single goal. If he doesn't score soon, he might as well play as a midfielder."

Five minutes later, Long Bisheng received another through ball from Amodio near the edge of the penalty area. After passing, Amodio sprinted forward, intending to execute a one-two combination with Long Bisheng. However, Long Bisheng did not pass the ball back; instead, he forcibly turned near the edge of the box and unleashed a shot, which struck a defender and deflected out over the baseline.

Amodio spread his hands in frustration, and Long Bisheng flashed a apologetic smile at him. He had noticed that the defensive line inside the box was still densely packed; even if Amodio received the ball, it would be extremely difficult to break through inside the area, so he simply decided to shoot himself. Perhaps a deflection off an opponent's defender might have even found the net. Unfortunately, the deflection happened, but it missed wide of the baseline.

Corner kick. Following Fontana's substitution, Grava took over corner-taking duties. The Croatian curled in a flat, fast-paced cross. Long Bisheng jumped high in the center of the box, powerfully connecting with the ball despite the close-marking interference of two opposing defenders, sending it just slightly over the crossbar.

Long Bisheng stamped his foot in disappointment. It seemed Chu Ran was right after all; having had relatively few shooting opportunities in recent matches, he really felt a bit out of touch when it came to shooting. Otherwise, his very first headed shot earlier should have gone in.

However, Long Bisheng monopolizing Napoli's three shots within ten minutes also made his teammates realize his deep desire to score. Since victory was basically secured, and considering that Long Bisheng had indeed selflessly contributed a great deal over the past few matches, his teammates did not blame him for being too selfish; instead, they passed the ball to him more frequently, letting him finish off the plays.

Judging by sheer strength, Napoli was indeed a tier above their opponents, especially in midfield, where they completely suppressed the opposition. They continuously supplied ammunition to Long Bisheng, who felt like a fish in water with such powerful midfield support. Whether through aerial bombardment or ground challenges, he completely turned Varese's defensive line upside down and into disarray.

However, Varese's defenders also sensed Long Bisheng's urgent desire to score. Enraged by Long Bisheng's relentless impacts, the defenders decided to throw caution to the wind, with two to three players constantly surrounding him. The intention was crystal clear—no matter what, they would not let this tall guy score! At least they could accomplish that much!

Consequently, during one attacking sequence, Calaiò received the ball near the edge of the box and wanted to pass to Long Bisheng, only to notice that three opposing players were surrounding Long Bisheng while no one was stepping up to defend him. After a momentary pause, Calaiò dribbled into the box and, facing the goalkeeper, chipped a pass to the other side where Amodio was equally unmarked. The young Uruguayan midfielder easily tapped the ball into an empty net.

Watching this scene from the touchline, Reja broke into an involuntary chuckle. Was Long Bisheng really that annoying to opponents? They would rather let other Napoli players score than let him get on the scoresheet—the not-yet-seventeen-year-old Long Bisheng had actually rattled the psychological balance of defenders several years older than him with his sheer force. In a way, this seemed to prove his impactful presence and deterrence on the pitch.

Reja checked his watch. There were less than twenty minutes left before the end of the match, and Napoli led four to zero. The game was basically in the bag. He called over Bogliacino, gave him a few instructions, and substituted him in for Pia, who had run tirelessly and consumed a lot of energy during the match.

After coming on, Bogliacino quickly relayed Reja's instructions to the other players on the field. Upon hearing the coach's orders, the players were stunned for a moment before reacting with knowing smiles.

Reja's instruction was simple—pass all the balls to Long Bisheng and let him score!

With the match essentially won, a playful, childlike streak got the better of the usually composed Reja—you don't want Long Bisheng to score? Well, I am going to make sure he scores!

Varese's fans watched in utter bewilderment at the absurd scene unfolding on the pitch—two or three Varese defenders swarmed around a single tall player, completely ignoring the fact that their defensive line had become riddled with holes in their absence. Meanwhile, the attacking Napoli players seemed to have lost their minds; despite having vast open spaces right in front of them, they only focused on getting the ball by any means necessary to the head and feet of that heavily besieged tall player.

"Is this even a match? My God, what on earth are those guys out there thinking?" lamented a fan in the stands.

"It seems they don't want that tall guy to score? And Napoli wants that tall guy to score? Is that the goal of their match?" another fan said uncertainly. Even as he said it, he couldn't believe it himself, but unfortunately, he had guessed correctly...

From the touchline, Chu Ran watched with wide-eyed disbelief. Having traveled from China to Italy, he considered himself well-traveled and experienced, but he had never witnessed a match like this—when the outcome of the game had lost all meaning, the players of both teams had found an entirely different objective. Varese's players had completely given up on conventional defending just to prevent Napoli from achieving the match's ultimate remaining goal, which was letting Long Bisheng score. Meanwhile, Napoli's players, in their relaxed state, simply wanted to go toe-to-toe with Varese and ensure Long Bisheng got his goal. Perhaps such a scenario could only happen in a league like Serie C1; in world-class leagues like Serie A, even if one side was irrecoverably behind, they would never throw a tantrum over such a ridiculous goal, and the winning side would simply slow down the tempo to conserve energy.

Yet, this rare and bizarre match made Long Bisheng feel thoroughly exhilarated—although heavily surrounded by two or three defenders, he pushed his physical impact to the absolute limit. With plenty of shooting opportunities falling his way, his scoring touch gradually returned. The Uruguayan midfield duo executed a brilliant one-two combination, with Amodio timely delivering the ball to Bogliacino's feet. Bogliacino dribbled past the opposing wing-back, then flicked the ball horizontally, driving straight into the flank of the penalty area.

"Stop him!" a defender rushed toward Bogliacino—although they had practically abandoned marking other players, they certainly did not want to stand idly by and watch Napoli extend their lead to five goals, especially since Bogliacino looked like he intended to break directly into the box and shoot.

Seeing the defender charge at him, Bogliacino smiled craftily, flicked his wrist, and laid the ball off to Long Bisheng, who had momentarily shaken off his marker through a sudden burst of movement!

With his back diagonally turned to the goal, Long Bisheng steadily trapped the ball at his feet, pressed his body against the defender, dropped his left shoulder, and prepared to turn and break through toward the center!

The opponent immediately shifted sideways, attempting to block Long Bisheng's path and intercept the ball. But Long Bisheng suddenly stopped, tapped and dragged the ball back, and executed a reverse breakthrough!

It was a turn-and-drag move performed practically glued to the opposing defender's body! Thrown off balance, the defender lunged forward into empty space, and Long Bisheng smoothly shook him off!

Having bypassed his opponent, Long Bisheng found himself face-to-face with the goalkeeper. The angle was very tight, presenting Long Bisheng with a tough chance to shoot from such a position, and unfortunately, his low shot toward the far corner missed wide.

The goalkeeper rushed out, narrowing the angle down to a minimum. He believed that with the mediocre shooting technique of the tall forward in front of him, it was impossible to find that single narrow opening toward the far corner, and even if such an opening existed, another defender—the other player tasked with marking Long Bisheng—was already sprinting back toward the goal line.

The goalkeeper lunged at Long Bisheng's feet, but what he failed to anticipate was that as he dived, Long Bisheng extended his foot and scooped the ball from underneath—a lob!

The ball sailed over the goalkeeper's head, descending diagonally toward the goal.

The goalkeeper turned his head back in desperate despair, his only hope being that this tall center-forward with subpar shooting technique would miscue the lob wide...

He was disappointed once again. The ball dropped precisely onto the goal line, bounced upward, and carried into the back of the net...

It wasn't until the ball crossed the goal line that the frantically tracking defender finally reached out his foot—he flew right into the goal along with the ball!

Goal! Five to zero! Amidst this slaughter, Long Bisheng's brilliant goal drew a triumphant period to this series of attacks!