Thiago Silva didn't think much of the big guy on the other side. He didn't understand why someone like that would be named the Serie A top scorer last season. As far as he was concerned, Serie A had always been a sanctuary for defenders, because only central defenders who performed well in Serie A were qualified to be called the best central defenders in the world.

With Serie A's level of defense, anyone who wanted to be the top scorer here must be a very powerful player. But from these thirty minutes of the game, he didn't think there was anything special about that flashy Napoli center forward.

Before the game, Nesta had been reminding him to be extra careful of his opponent. At the time, he thought Nesta was an experienced defender, so what he said must be right.

But now he was a little skeptical...

Was this center forward, who was so easily contained by them, really worth such caution?

It was said that Nesta was also facing him for the first time, so he wondered if Nesta had been misled by a false sense of confidence, thinking the other guy was very powerful, when in reality... he was just all hype?

Taking advantage of the break in the game, he asked his central defender partner, "Alex, Alex."

Nesta turned to look at him. "What is it, Thiago?"

"That... I wanted to ask, do you think that kid is very good?" Thiago pointed to Chen Hero on the other side.

Nesta thought for a moment. "He's alright, not a nobody."

"But why do I think he's just average?" Thiago Silva had a look of disdain on his face. "Apart from being physically strong, there's nothing special about him."

Nesta shook his head, his expression still cautious and serious. "Actually, I haven't played against him before either, but do you know who told me to be careful of him before this game?"

Thiago Silva shook his head.

"Paolo called and told me to be extra careful of Napoli's number nine in the game."

The name Paolo is very common in the Western world, but in AC Milan it only represents one person – Paolo Maldini.

Thiago Silva's idol.

Silva opened his mouth wide, looking at Nesta as if he had heard something incredible.

He knew how good Maldini was. He never thought Maldini would take him so seriously.

"Last season, Paolo's Milan lost to Napoli, and he was completely defeated by Chen Hero in the game," Nesta said, his tone very calm, as if he was talking about something very ordinary, with neither exaggerated expressions nor horrified tones.

"Well maybe... uh, I mean maybe it's because Paolo is getting old..." Silva was embarrassed to say directly "what's so great about bullying a forty-year-old defender."

Nesta didn't directly refute Silva's view, but nodded. "Maybe that's possible, but he was able to win the top scorer award last season, and he basically relied on goals in the second half of the season. I think the other guy still has some strength, so it's best not to be careless."

Thiago Silva, as a new and younger player in AC Milan and the world of football, certainly wouldn't be arrogant in front of Nesta, a senior player. Since the other party said so, he nodded obediently to show he understood.

But in his heart, he really didn't think there was anything about Chen Hero that he needed to care about. Perhaps last season was just because he was a newcomer, fresh off the boat, and everyone didn't know him well enough, so he was able to score a lot of goals with his unreasonable physique and headers. After everyone started paying attention to him this season, he didn't score as many goals as before... Wasn't that the truth? He had only scored six goals in nine league games this season.

※※※

Chen Hero decided to find his feeling first. He tried to be an Inzaghi-style forward for a full thirty minutes, and then found it very awkward, so awkward that he almost forgot what he was originally like.

So he had to find his feeling, warm up, and test the waters. That way, when the real opportunity came, he wouldn't miss the opportunity because he forgot his original feeling. If that happened... he wouldn't forgive himself.

Napoli soon got a free kick opportunity in the frontcourt. Cassano's dribbling on the left wing was stopped by Gattuso with a fierce tackle. Cassano fell to the ground like a felled tree. The referee's whistle sounded, awarding Napoli a free kick on the left side of the frontcourt.

Gattuso was a little dissatisfied with the referee's decision. He waved his arms and muttered, thinking he hadn't fouled. Although there was indeed physical contact, Cassano's fall was exaggerated.

But the referee only believed his own judgment. Every player who commits a foul will think so – it's not that I used too much force, but that the other person is too weak. But in fact, whether a foul is committed is not up to them, it's up to the referee to decide.

Napoli got a free kick in the frontcourt, and Ranocchia ran up, while Cannavaro stayed in the backcourt.

In fact, Ranocchia came up probably to act as a decoy. The real killer was Chen Hero.

Sure enough, the TV camera was fixed on Chen Hero.

Chen Hero and his teammates stood on the edge of the penalty area. AC Milan's defenders were all pressed on this line. This way, they could use the offside rule to nail the attacking players outside the penalty area, keeping them further away from the goal, so they wouldn't have the opportunity to directly threaten the goal. A center forward with excellent headers like Chen Hero could directly head the ball into the goal if he was too close to the goal, with a high probability of scoring. Now that he was bound by the offside rule on the edge of the penalty area, he was further away from the goal, and the threat of a direct header was much smaller.

However, Chen Hero didn't expect to score a goal with this opportunity.

He was here to find his feeling.

He stood in the crowd, surrounded by people, his own teammates, Arshavin who was screening for him, and Ranocchia. Of course, he couldn't forget the opponent's defenders, Nesta and Thiago Silva, who were both focused on him, which showed that they cared about him very much.

But this didn't make Chen Hero feel a headache like he did in the first thirty minutes. If it had been before, he would have been annoyed by Nesta and Thiago Silva, who he couldn't get rid of, but not now. Because he had made up his mind to fight in his own way. He had almost paranoid confidence in his own way. He was not afraid of anyone. Even if I can't score, I won't let you think it's easy to defend me!

Hamsik stood in front of the ball, ready to take the free kick.

Chen Hero raised his arms high, signaling to Hamsik – pass the ball to me, let me head it!

※※※

Thiago Silva noticed this action. Obviously, Napoli's free kick would be passed to Chen Hero.

He changed his position slightly, running behind Chen Hero, so that when Hamsik lobbed the ball into the penalty area, he could rush forward from the back and use the speed of his sprint to jump, which could make up for his lack of height.

Moreover, jumping from behind to compete for the header meant he was facing the ball, while Chen Hero had his back to him. He could observe the movement of the ball and Chen Hero, but Chen Hero didn't know what he would do. In defense, knowing yourself and your enemy puts you at an advantage.

Thiago Silva's adjustment in position was very particular. After doing all this, he waited for the ball to be kicked.

Hamsik raised his hand to respond to Chen Hero's gesture, meaning – don't worry, I will pass the ball to you.

"Napoli got a free kick in a relatively biased position. It's unlikely to shoot directly. It must be a cross. Chen Hero will compete for the header in the penalty area, but he is surrounded by people..."

As the commentator was speaking, the referee blew his whistle!

Hamsik took two steps and directly kicked the ball into the penalty area. The football drew an arc and flew towards the penalty spot.

At the same time as he kicked the ball, the crowd on the edge of the penalty area also surged. It was like the gates of a horse race opening, and the horses swarmed out.

Chen Hero stared at the football and rushed towards the landing point. In front of him was Nesta. He didn't see the short Thiago Silva – Silva was 1.83 meters tall, which was not short, but for Chen Hero, anyone shorter than him was short.

Nesta's attention was attracted by Ranocchia, who was further ahead. Under Ranocchia's interference, he didn't head the ball!

The football leaked past.

At the same time as the football leaked over, Chen Hero twisted his waist in the air, gathering strength to head the ball.

Thiago Silva rushed in from behind, circling around in front of Chen Hero, intending to clear the ball before him.

It looked like he was closer to the football and had a more accurate judgment of the landing point. According to common sense, he would head the ball out, completing a beautiful defense.

But at this moment, he felt like his world had been hit by a magnitude 10 earthquake. A feeling of dizziness came over him – he lost all his balance!

The football he had been aiming at also disappeared.

When he came back to his senses, he was already lying on the ground, and his left shoulder was a little sore – it was the impact from hitting the ground.

The referee's whistle sounded.

"Ah... Chen Hero fouled by bumping into someone while competing for the header in the air... Silva was knocked out sideways!"

Thiago Silva struggled to get up from the ground, and then he froze – he found himself at the feet of goalkeeper Abbiati, and then he saw a straight white line nearby, almost parallel to his body, which was the goal line!

How did I get here?

He remembered that he was still between the penalty spot and the small penalty area line when he jumped...

After landing, Chen Hero waved his arms in frustration. He didn't think he had fouled. It was just that the Brazilian was too fragile!

He held up a palm and shouted at the referee, "I only used 50% of my strength!"

The referee ignored him.

Chen Hero gave up.

He turned his head to look at Thiago Silva, who was getting up from the ground and was still a little dazed, and snorted. If this kid hadn't been so useless, his goal wouldn't have been called a foul. The football he headed out after knocking Thiago Silva away was very threatening!

He shook his head and ran back.

Okay, anyway... I've found my feeling.

Now, it's your turn to have a headache, Milan's defenders!

Are you ready to face the impact of the giant bear?