Chapter 57

The fans of Moscow Spartak were in the stands watching their team play, but they were also multitasking, with radios in their arms, paying attention to the news from another stadium at any time.

The fans of St. Petersburg Zenit didn't have so much trouble. They didn't have to worry about how other opponents were doing. As long as they won this game, the league title would definitely be in their hands.

But perhaps it was precisely because of this thought that Zenit's players seemed a little too excited in the game, or rather… too nervous.

Could stopping a ball five meters away not be considered nervous?

Everyone's mind was occupied with: If we win this game, we'll be the league champions!

As a result, that was the only thought, and nothing else mattered.

They didn't even know how to get the ball into the opponent's goal.

Advocaat stood up from the coach's bench, frowning. This was what he feared most—this team lacked championship experience. It was the first time they were so close to the league title, and these people didn't seem to know how to handle such a situation…

He had boosted their morale before the game, but seemed to have forgotten to pour cold water on them.

Now, a group of people's brains were overheating, but there was no way to cool them down.

He could only anxiously shout from the sidelines: "Calm down! Calm down!"

They couldn't calm down…

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Chen Hero rushed to the front. Although his teammates' crosses weren't very good opportunities for him, he still jumped up without hesitation to compete for the header with the opponent's defender.

"Bang!"

The two collided, but neither of them headed the ball.

Of course, this was because his teammates' crosses weren't of high quality.

The huge noise in the stands made it impossible for everyone to calm down, just like Chen Hero. Knowing that this opportunity wasn't good, the blood rushed to his head, and he still jumped up to compete for the header. Anyway, he was in good physical condition and wasn't afraid of confrontation, so maybe there would be a chance?

With Chen Hero in front, and with everyone being anxious, the team's offense was very simple: long passes and crosses, with wingers flying up and down.

Pass the ball over, let Chen Hero compete for the header. If he could head it, it would be an opportunity. If he couldn't… then try again next time.

Domingues was supposed to be Zenit's midfield conductor, but in this game, he not only had a personal brain freeze, but was also tightly marked by the opponent, unable to play any decent role.

Without any threat on the offensive end, the pressure on the defense naturally increased. Moscow FC organized several threatening attacks, immediately making Zenit's goalmouth a scene of panic.

Zenit was eager to score, eager to take the lead, eager to win the game. They pressed forward in a big way, resulting in a void in the back, and were countered several times by the opponent…

Škrtel fell backwards, the ball just hitting his chest and flying out of bounds.

"Škrtel blocked Moscow's shot with his body! Like blocking a gun, he looks very embarrassed… Zenit's defense has had many problems during this period, they seem very impatient… This won't work, are they too eager to win the championship?"

Škrtel's embarrassment was the epitome of Zenit's recent performance.

"This won't work…" Tymoshchuk was the first to calm down. As captain, he had to be calm.

"We're playing too chaotically! Don't all think about scoring. Although we have Hero in front, such simple and crude long passes and crosses still can't open up the situation. Where's our midfield!" he asked.

Domingues's expression was a little embarrassing.

"We have to play with coordination." Arshavin also said. "Our midfield had no coordination before, relying only on personal skills to break through and seek opportunities. This won't work."

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"Zenit's situation is not good, they are being suppressed by Moscow FC at their home stadium…" Even while watching his own team's game, assistant coach Sergey Rodionov was wearing headphones, listening to the Zenit vs. Moscow FC game.

He said to head coach Cherchesov beside him.

Hearing Rodionov say this, the serious expression on Cherchesov's face finally eased slightly.

In this game, although Moscow Spartak had not scored either, they currently had the upper hand, with multiple attacks threatening Rostov's goal. It seemed that scoring was only a matter of time.

If Moscow Spartak could win, and Zenit lost the game, then the two sides would be tied. Although Spartak was still behind Zenit due to the disadvantage in goal difference, this defeat would definitely shake the morale and confidence of Zenit's players. If Moscow Spartak then took advantage of the situation to win the final game, and Zenit only drew, the league title would fall to Moscow Spartak.

Just as Cherchesov was dreaming, he suddenly noticed Rodionov's face change.

"What's wrong?" He blurted out the question, and immediately regretted it—because he heard a huge boo from the stands.

At this time, Spartak's players were in possession of the ball, and there was only one reason why the home fans would make such a loud boo, and that was… St. Petersburg Zenit had scored!

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A team that can win a championship must have outstanding qualities. St. Petersburg Zenit quickly adjusted themselves.

Their midfield gradually recovered its vitality. With Tymoshchuk protecting him from behind, Domingues was more at ease when attacking, and his performance naturally improved.

In the thirty-fourth minute, Zenit's goal finally arrived.

"GoooooooooooooL! Arshavin! Andrei Arshavin!!"

Silayevsky stood up excitedly.

But his voice still couldn't suppress the huge noise at the scene.

"Shava! Shava! Shava—!!" Zenit's fans let out huge cheers, suppressing the commentator's voice, and suppressing all other sounds. Above the entire Petrovsky Stadium, there was only their cheers, and there could only be their cheers.

The excited Arshavin ran all the way, then plunged into the substitute席中, embracing his teammates tightly.

This goal stabilized everyone's hearts. With a goal in hand, they had the world!

"Haha! I know that the people of Moscow Spartak must be paying attention to this game at this time. Sorry to disappoint you! We scored first, we're in the lead! The championship belongs to blue, white, and blue, the championship belongs to St. Petersburg!"

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The huge boo spread to every corner of the Luzhniki Stadium, and the Spartak players on the field also knew the news that Zenit had scored.

They knew very well what it meant for Zenit to be in the lead.

For a moment, they felt a sense of exhaustion…

Cherchesov obviously knew that this was the most dangerous time. Even if they were leading over there, he still had to do his best here, otherwise, what if they were tied or fell behind again?

So he rushed to the sidelines in three steps and shouted inside: "Cheer up! Don't worry about them! This is our own game!!"

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Five minutes later, in the thirty-ninth minute, Moscow Spartak scored, and they also took a 1-0 lead against their opponents at home.

But Zenit didn't care about this at all.

The celebration on Moscow Spartak's side was also very simple. Everyone's mind wasn't on this. They were looking forward to the news that Zenit was tied or fell behind…

Unfortunately, they didn't wait until the end of the first half.

Of course, for Pavlyuchenko, it wasn't all bad news. At least the person who scored in the first half wasn't Chen Hero, but Arshavin—this was what he heard during the halftime break.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Pavlyuchenko didn't score Moscow Spartak's goal in the first half, so his goal count was still twenty-one, three goals behind Chen Hero's twenty-four. He had to work hard to find scoring opportunities in the second half. Although his teammates would help him, they wouldn't pass him every opportunity and let him shoot at will. In fact, he had more shooting opportunities in the first half than before, but he was always a little short on luck, and the ball just wouldn't fly into the goal.

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In Zenit's locker room, Advocaat was telling the players to continue attacking in the second half and not to relax.

"A one-goal lead is definitely not safe, lads. If you want to completely free yourselves from your anxious mood in the second half, you have to score another goal!"

Oh, Chen Hero felt as sweet as honey in his heart when he heard this. He loved hearing the coach say "we want to score goals" the most.

Because that meant he had a chance to be the protagonist.

Although scoring twenty-four goals was already a lot, Chen Hero wasn't satisfied. He wanted to create a new record, and scoring twenty-five wasn't enough.

He was full of fighting spirit and energy.

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"Pavlyuchenko! Beautiful! Goal! Pavlyuchenko scored his twenty-second goal of the season. He received a cross from his teammate and only needed to sweep it in gently… Now he is only two goals behind Chen Hero! Complete a hat trick!"

The second half had just started, but the first to score wasn't Chen Hero, but Pavlyuchenko, who had waited a full forty-five minutes.

His teammate broke through on the wing, attracting the attention of Rostov's defenders, and then sent the ball to the center. This ball was really not difficult for a forward of Pavlyuchenko's level, a main striker for the Russian national team. Following up, he twisted his waist and swept the ball in, and the ball flew into the goal!

He looked very excited after scoring, raising his arms and shouting.

Two more goals!

Just as he and his teammates were celebrating the goal, a boo suddenly rang out from the stands again. Hearing this sound, Pavlyuchenko's face, which was originally full of smiles, suddenly changed.

This boo meant that St. Petersburg Zenit had scored again, but who scored it?

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"Hero! Hero!! Yes, that Tu-95 bomber has taken off, and he never misses! In an instant, he destroyed Moscow FC's defense! 2:0! Zenit has locked in the victory, the league title is theirs!!"

In the "woo woo woo" air raid siren, Chen Hero was spreading his arms and "flying."

This was his twenty-fifth goal!

"He did it! He has tied Oleg Veretennikov's record! Twenty-five goals in a single season! It's unbelievable! To think that this is only Chen Hero's second professional season, his first complete professional season! A genius! A true genius! He is on the road to becoming a superstar!"

Silayevsky didn't know what he was shouting anymore. Anyway, he was shouting hoarsely, putting all the praise he could think of on Chen Hero's head.

He wasn't worried at all that he would be killing Chen Hero with praise. He just wanted to express his admiration for this amazing big guy.

Killing with praise?

If this guy could be killed by a few words of flattery, he would have died countless times already!

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ps, another update is here, another update is here!

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