Chapter 155: End of the Season

Napoli is back. Following the painful and bitter memories of bankruptcy and relegation a year ago, this southern club secured the Serie C1/B league title with four matches to spare and a 100% home record, thereby earning promotion to Serie B for the next season. Once again, the blue banner of Napoli will fly over the Serie B stadiums, and the club's iconic number ten jersey will remain retired for the time being. Looking at Napoli's squad—which appeared extravagantly luxurious by Serie C standards—we have every reason to believe that, with the strong backing of film tycoon Aurelio De Laurentiis, the future of Napoli is exceptionally bright. The club lacks neither passionate fan support nor the allure to attract top-tier talent. What they previously lacked were merely robust financial backing and an astute management team. De Laurentiis's arrival has mended the former regret, while Pierpaolo Marino, who once shared Napoli's glorious era alongside Diego Maradona, has supplied the final missing piece of the puzzle. Next season's Serie B is undoubtedly worthy of our highest anticipation.

Following the conclusion of the thirtieth round of Serie C1, Sky Italia broadcasted this report during prime time. The last Serie C team to receive such acclaim was Fiorentina, and now it was Napoli's turn—two clubs with rich histories, glorious achievements, and devoted fanbases that suffered relegation due to administrative incompetence, only to fight their way back from the third tier. Such news naturally resonated deeply with supporters, as journalists well knew what captured the public's imagination.

On the very night that the thirtieth round concluded, Napoli hosted a grand celebration—something unseen even during their previous years in Serie B. This jubilation was not merely because Napoli had captured a Serie C1/B championship trophy that the fans considered trivial; rather, it was because they beheld a renewed sense of hope!

It was the first ray of hope since the Maradona era! They witnessed a mature and promising squad, alongside a competent and visionary management team—qualities far more important than temporary results. In particular, club president De Laurentiis's two five-year plans—reaching Serie A within the first five years, and transforming into a world-class powerhouse within the second five—filled them with boundless aspirations for Napoli's future.

Presently, it appeared that De Laurentiis was not merely making empty promises. In the span of a single year, he had constructed a squad with more than enough competitiveness for Serie B, suggesting that the initial five-year plan might well be completed ahead of schedule.

Meanwhile, Marino's performance gave Napoli's supporters profound peace of mind. The current squad was a blend of returning veterans and newly acquired talent. Among the newcomers, Fontana had blossomed into the midfield maestro, while Sosa established himself as the premier marksman. Caracciolo, transferred from Pescara, had transformed into a banner of pride for local Neapolitan youth. Chu Ran, on loan from Internazionale, had displaced veteran goalkeeper Gennaro Iezzo as the undisputed starter. Although the South American duo of Uruguayan imports, Boghossian and Amodio, had limited playing time, they had already demonstrated ample potential. Acquiring two promising youngsters at a bargain price was an astute piece of business, and even Long Bisheng, a young Chinese forward loaned during the winter transfer window, delivered an impressive tally of four goals from six substitute appearances.

For a football club, mere wealth is insufficient; one must also possess the acumen to acquire the right players. Otherwise, given Massimo Moratti's massive financial investments in Internazionale, the Nerazzurri would surely have claimed the league title long ago instead of enduring a seventeen-year championship drought. Similarly, Chelsea—whose financial outlays had ranked first in Europe for several years—would not have spent two consecutive seasons suppressed by Arsenal and Newcastle, who spent far less, leaving the Blues to settle for third place and runners-up honors.

Money alone is not enough; one must also possess vision. De Laurentiis possessed the wealth, while Marino—who had served as general manager for several Serie A clubs with commendable success—possessed the vision. This was the definition of a golden partnership.

Right now, this golden partnership was inside the most luxurious hotel in Naples, holding their glasses with glowing faces to toast the entire Napoli squad and coaching staff. In the span of a single season, De Laurentiis and Marino had earned the most loyal allegiance of the Neapolitan fans. Aside from their competent work within their respective domains, the outstanding performances of the players and coaches were the paramount reason.

After delivering a series of encouraging and appreciative remarks, De Laurentiis finally uttered the words the players most eagerly anticipated: in addition to the promotion bonuses stipulated in their respective contracts, he would personally award an extra bonus of twenty thousand euros to each individual for achieving promotion!

As soon as these words were spoken, an eruption of jubilation swept through the players. Many of those who had transferred to the club that season had accepted pay cuts simply because they were captivated by the allure of Napoli's legendary name. Without exaggeration, players like Sosa had sacrificed at least tens of thousands of euros financially by choosing Napoli that season, making De Laurentiis's bonus a welcome relief. Furthermore, De Laurentiis promised that when contracts were renegotiated ahead of the upcoming season, every player's salary would see varying degrees of an increase. Serie B and Serie C were entirely different worlds; the club's revenues would grow noticeably, and the players certainly deserved fair treatment. This promise instantly ignited another wave of enthusiastic cheers from the squad.

Professional football, when stripped to its core, is a game of money. While money is not omnipotent, lacking money makes everything impossible—a worn cliché that nonetheless holds profound truth. Professional players are human beings too, with families to support. While honor is undeniably important, no footballer plays matches on an empty stomach.

Everyone was overjoyed, and Long Bisheng was happiest of all. Calculating the twenty thousand euro promotion bonus specified in his contract, the twenty-five thousand euro salary for half a season, and the newly added twenty thousand euro bonus, he would take home over sixty thousand euros by the end of the season—equivalent to nearly half a million yuan. It appeared he could finally return that bank card to big brother Li Fang. Regardless of anything else, he certainly wouldn't lack spending money now, right?

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Long Bisheng's cell phone suddenly rang. Apologizing to his coach and teammates, he stepped away to a quiet corner and answered the call.

It was Li Fang on the other line: "A-Long, I have to hurry back to Florence right now... there's training tomorrow. You guys are celebrating right now, right? Pass along my regards to Chu Ran; I won't come over to see you guys tonight. Tell him I'm waiting to meet him in the national team."

"I understand, Big Brother Li Fang," Long Bisheng replied. "By the way, where are you right now? I want to return that card to you..."

Li Fang laughed: "I'm at the airport right now, my flight is about to board... Just keep the card. By now you should realize that for people playing football in Europe, this little bit of money is nothing... Consider it my way of thanking Uncle Long for taking care of my parents in the past... By the way, the World Cup is about to start; use that money to bring your mom and dad to Germany to watch the World Cup. I'm sure Uncle Long will be thrilled... Don't stand on ceremony with me, you hear? What's between our two families anyway? Isn't your father practically the same as mine? Shouldn't a son spend money to treat his father to the World Cup? Alright, enough babbling, I have to turn off my phone now. Cell phones aren't allowed to remain on during the flight."

"But..." Long Bisheng felt a twinge of anxiety, but Li Fang immediately interrupted him: "Right, there's something else I wanted to tell you... Watching your matches today, I noticed you could completely try practicing long-range shots from outside the penalty area. Your thighs are thick and powerful, and your shooting power is immense. It would be a waste not to practice long shots. In modern football, scoring opportunities inside the box are becoming scarcer and scarcer. Possessing the ability to score from outside the box will give you more capital to establish yourself on the pitch."

"How do you practice long shots then?" Long Bisheng was hooked by Li Fang's query and asked subconsciously.

"I'm not quite sure about that myself, because my long-shooting ability isn't particularly strong... How about this, I'll ask someone next time and then tell you the answer. His long-range shooting ability is quite extraordinary, after all," Li Fang pondered for a moment before saying mysteriously.

Long Bisheng was filled with curiosity: "Who is it?"

"It's a secret for now!" Li Fang burst into laughter and hung up the phone.

Long Bisheng stood there blankly holding the phone, pondering whom Li Fang might consult—could it be the former Fiorentina legendary striker Gabriel Batistuta? Surely not?

At this thought, Long Bisheng could not help a surge of excitement, followed instantly by a sigh. Because Li Fang had derailed the conversation, he had completely forgotten about returning the card. Oh well, he would just return it to Big Brother Li Fang next time. However, Li Fang's words reminded Long Bisheng that he now had a little surplus cash of his own. Should he invite his mom and dad to Europe to watch the World Cup? At worst, he could just pretend those twenty thousand euros in bonus money didn't exist.

Well, whether his dad could get time off work remained a question. Active-duty soldiers found leave notoriously difficult to secure, so he should inform his dad right away to start preparing for vacation leave. Thinking thus, Long Bisheng walked back into the grand celebration hall.

During the remaining four matches of the season, coach Edy Reja rarely deployed the regular starters. Instead, he preferred to mix seldom-used substitutes and key backups into the starting lineup while testing various tactical formations: 4-4-2, 4-3-1-2, 4-1-2-3, 4-1-3-2... Naturally, this experimentation impacted the results, with Napoli recording three draws and one defeat in their final four fixtures. Yet at that juncture, no one cared about results anymore.

Long Bisheng featured in three of those four matches, scoring once. Because the manager adopted a relaxed approach, the players played freely on the pitch. While Long Bisheng's performances were not particularly stellar, he did manage a goal. During these four fixtures, he attempted solo runs past defenders and long-range shots outside the area, though with little tangible success, as such a style clashed somewhat with his usual habits.

When the final whistle blew on the last four league matches, the season officially drew to a close. Long Bisheng concluded his half-season campaign with a stat line of five goals in nine appearances—a remarkably commendable achievement for a seventeen-year-old youngster experiencing his first foray into Italian football.