Chapter 1 The Day

May 25th was the Champions League final and Chen Hero’s birthday. A true coincidence this time.

Actually, even if May 25th wasn’t the Champions League final, it would be close. Generally, the Champions League final is always held around the last ten days of May each season.

So, the media had joked about this before, saying that Chen Hero was a man born for the Champions League final.

Of course, it was just a joke.

But the joke was spot on.

Chen Hero had already won two Champions League titles, reaching the final three times, and he had only participated in the Champions League for five seasons. Three finals in five seasons and two championships. It seemed he certainly had a destiny with the Champions League final.

From the moment he woke up in the morning, teammates were wishing him a happy birthday.

"Happy birthday, Hero!"

"Happy birthday!"

"Happy birthday, Chen Hero!"

The first thing everyone did when they saw Chen Hero was to greet him.

In fact, without Chen Hero knowing, his teammates were secretly planning to make him a birthday cake and surprise him later.

This showed how well-liked he was in the team.

The outside media always said that Chen Hero was unapproachable and that he must have terrible relationships. But in reality, whether it was at Zenit St. Petersburg, Napoli, or now Liverpool, he was well-liked. Even in the Chinese national team, as a latecomer, he already had the demeanor of a leader.

Chen Hero was generous, liked to treat people, and was outgoing and lively. How could such a person be difficult to approach?

Therefore, anyone who had contact with Chen Hero scoffed at the media’s claims. They saw the media's lying nature through Chen Hero.

※※※

Today was Chen Hero's twenty-eighth birthday.

In the blink of an eye, he had gone from an eighteen-year-old greenhorn to a twenty-eight-year-old mid-generation player.

Now he could hardly be considered a rising star or a young player. But he still gave the impression of a child, perhaps because of his personality.

But in places where others couldn’t see, he was actually changing, becoming more mature little by little.

At twenty-eight years old, Chen Hero was entering the best time of his career, both physically and mentally. His body was still strong, even stronger, his mind was becoming more mature, and his experience was becoming richer.

Now he was like a general who never failed on the football field.

The reality was also like this. Liverpool hadn't lost a single game in the domestic league, domestic cup, or Champions League this season!

Such outstanding performance was naturally inseparable from Chen Hero’s performance.

On this day, major media outlets were also paying attention to Chen Hero's birthday.

Online media were still the fastest to react. They created various special features early in the morning to celebrate Chen Hero's birthday—most of these were Chinese websites.

Twenty-eight years old was the most glorious time for a professional player, the golden age of a professional player. Chen Hero was twenty-eight years old, which meant he would be even more terrifying.

So, what kind of birthday gift would Chen Hero give himself at twenty-eight years old?

Many people immediately thought of the Champions League trophy.

This was the best birthday gift.

If Chen Hero could lead Liverpool to defeat Real Madrid in the Champions League final and lift the trophy, it would truly be a meaningful birthday.

"... Hero has spent ten years telling us how a football legend is written. When he debuted at Zenit, no one knew who he was, a black-haired, yellow-skinned Oriental. Many people even thought he was Korean or Japanese… I still remember the celebration he did when he scored his first career league goal… That arrogant and confident action, like his goal, was impressive. He used goals to tell the world who he was, time and time again. Now everyone knows who he is. His giant posters appear in the downtown area of Buenos Aires, Argentina. His television commercials are repeatedly broadcast on the television screens of hundreds of millions of American families during prime time every night. Liverpool jerseys printed with his name can be seen in the countryside of South Africa. He has become the most popular athlete in China, and he has been in this position for five years. Until now, no one has appeared who can threaten his position. He participates in movies, he attends various commercial activities, he is the highest-paid player, but none of this has affected his performance on the football field. It’s as if he has the ability to be in two places at once. One him off the field, another him on the field… Some players need to retire before we can make a final judgment. But Chen Hero doesn’t need to wait until retirement. We can say that he is the most legendary player on this planet..."

The above is excerpted from the preface written by Chinese reporter Zhong Dajun for Chen Hero's autobiography. Although it is full of strong subjective emotions, it is undeniable that what he said is true.

Chen Hero deserves such an evaluation and is worthy of it.

The various language versions of this autobiography, *How a Hero is Made*, which was narrated by Chen Hero and recorded by Zhong Dajun, have been sold, all using a revenue-sharing model. Chen Hero and his management team are very confident in the sales of this autobiography. In fact, this is indeed the case. The number of pre-orders on websites such as Amazon and Jingdong has reached a staggering 1.5 million copies, and this number is constantly increasing. The global first printing of this book is five million copies, and now it seems that it will definitely need to be reprinted.

The autobiography will be launched simultaneously around the world after the Champions League final. Of course, due to the time difference, East Asian regions such as China, Japan, and South Korea will be the first to start selling it. When Chen Hero finishes playing in the Champions League final, he will have to fly back to China non-stop to participate in a grand book signing event.

If he has already won the championship trophy by then, it will also be a huge boost to this signing event. Zhong Dajun has no doubt about this. He has instructed the publisher to do publicity in advance and to put the Champions League trophy on various promotional posters.

He is full of confidence in Chen Hero and believes that Chen Hero will never let such a high honor fall into the hands of another on his birthday.

※※※

When eating lunch at noon, the hotel where the team was staying specially presented Chen Hero with a birthday cake.

This was not the cake made by Chen Hero's teammates. They had other uses for that cake. This was a little gesture from the hotel. With Chen Hero's current popularity, it was perfectly normal for him to have fans in foreign countries.

When eating a birthday cake, one naturally had to blow out candles and make a wish.

"Make a wish! Make a wish!"

Amidst the cheers of his teammates, Chen Hero pretended to make a wish and then blew out twenty-eight candles in one breath.

He didn't tell everyone what he wished for, and no one asked. Because wishes don't come true if you say them out loud.

But Chen Hero didn't tell everyone because of this reason. He didn't tell everyone because he didn't make a wish at all…

Everyone thought that he would pray for the team to win the championship when making a wish. But for Chen Hero, this could be done without praying, and there was no value in making a wish. Besides, winning the championship depended on his own efforts. If he prayed to God, it would be better to pray to himself.

As for other things, he couldn't think of anything to wish for right now. His career was on the rise, and although he and Cabrilla were separated a lot, their relationship was still strong. He was the highest-paid player in the world, and his father also had his own business… His life was as sweet as honey. If a reporter from China Central Television came to interview him at this time and asked him "Are you happy?", Chen Hero would definitely say "Happy!"

With such a wonderful life, he couldn't think of anything else to wish for.

So, he just pretended to make a wish and didn't actually think about anything.

But his teammates didn't know. They took this as a good sign. Holding the Champions League final on Chen Hero's birthday and having Chen Hero make a wish meant that they would definitely win the championship!

※※※

After an afternoon nap and simple physical training, it was dinner time.

Everyone ate very little for dinner. After ensuring a basic energy supply, they couldn’t eat anymore. Eating too much would make them unable to run.

Some people would ask, what if they eat less, but the physical exertion of the game is high? What if they get hungry during the game?

Therefore, all teams would give their players extra meals during the halftime break. The specific content varied from team to team. Some teams had very simple extra meals, just fruit. Bananas were the best fruit for replenishing calories. They replenished quickly, and it was easy to feel full, so they wouldn’t eat too much. Some teams would decorate their locker rooms like food streets, with all kinds of exquisite snacks, noodles, barbecued meat, and sausages, as well as a wide variety of drinks. Some clubs even allowed their players to eat high-calorie junk food like McDonald's and KFC, and carbonated drinks like cola were not strictly prohibited.

The British have never had much talent in eating. Their own proud national dish, fish and chips, is really not very creative and doesn't taste very good. However, in terms of extra meals, Liverpool is the most luxurious in England. Because they have a Chinese boss and a Chinese general manager.

Therefore, before each game, Liverpool players would consciously not eat too much. They knew that there were many delicious but not high-calorie foods waiting for them during the mid-length breaks and after the game. Eating too much before the game and ending up unable to eat anything in the end was really unwise!

After a simple dinner, the Liverpool players rested in their respective rooms. This was the last rest.

Then the coaches would call their rooms to tell them to come downstairs to gather.

Usually, they would set off for the stadium when there were still more than two hours left before the game started.

There, they would make the final preparations for the game.

Warm-up.

Then, in the locker room, let the head coach motivate their emotions.

Finally, play the game and tear everything that dares to stop Liverpool into pieces.