Chapter 17 He Won't Let You Down

The fanatical Liverpool fan was right. Chen Hero would not disappoint.

The game had only just begun seventeen minutes ago, when Medjani filmed a spectacular scene of the entire Anfield shaking—all the fans had risen from their seats, stomping their feet, waving their hands, and cheering loudly.

Because Chen Hero had scored!

"Hero—Hero—!!" the commentator roared.

Chen Hero spread his arms and ran to the sidelines, then waved for his teammates to come up and celebrate with him. They hugged each other as the fans' shouts grew louder and louder.

"His thirty-first goal of the season! He opens the scoring for the team!"

"In the first half of the season, Norwich was one of the only two teams Liverpool didn't beat, but many of the main players, including Hero, didn't play in that game. Now, this strongest Liverpool is obviously not something Norwich can beat!"

"Liverpool's number nine once again plays the role of key player! He scores the first goal for the team in the game, breaking the deadlock, and the game will be much easier from now on!"

※※※

The fans around Medjani were all cheering, jumping, and waving their fists, shouting Chen Hero's name and using all kinds of swear words to express their excitement.

Every fan believed this was a battle for revenge, because Norwich had defeated them in the first half of the season.

Medjani pointed the portable camera at these excited fans. The fans, because of their excitement, didn't notice his actions. Thus, one vivid image after another was recorded on the camera's memory card.

"Too crazy..." Jones, a screenwriter who didn't usually pay much attention to football, was also impressed by the energy that Anfield Stadium burst out in this moment.

He couldn't even hear what he was saying. His ears were filled with all kinds of cheers from Liverpool fans, and he could feel his heart beating faster than usual. For a moment, he thought he was going to have a heart attack.

At this time, he felt that a star like Chen Hero was really amazing.

Such an atmosphere could be inspiring, but also deadly if they went to away games...

And Chen Hero was Liverpool's number one star, enduring the most boos.

One could imagine how much pressure he was under.

The problem was that he had never seen Chen Hero show any concern about this pressure. He had only met Chen Hero twice, and on both occasions, Chen Hero gave him the impression of being a sincere, humorous, cheerful, and lively person. The enormous pressure of his career had not affected him.

※※※

After Chen Hero opened the scoring for Liverpool, the game was much easier for a team of Liverpool's caliber.

Then, before the end of the first half, Liverpool extended the score to 2:0. They were two goals ahead, and the victory was set.

However, in the second half, perhaps because they felt they had already won, Liverpool relaxed somewhat.

They actually allowed Norwich to score two goals in a row!

Norwich also proved that their 3:1 victory over Liverpool in the first half of the season was no fluke.

At this time, Liverpool's hero stood up again.

In the seventy-eighth minute, Chen Hero blasted open Norwich's goal with a long shot from outside the penalty area.

3:2!

The score was finally set.

Liverpool completed a slightly thrilling revenge at home.

Chen Hero was named Player of the Match after the game, but for him, this was already commonplace. The media had joked that he would have to dig a wine cellar in his yard to store all the champagne he had won as Player of the Match. Later, the media said that after Chen Hero retired, he could open a shop specializing in selling champagne...

Medjani and Jones also left the stadium with satisfaction.

They had fully felt the charm of football here, and it had provided a lot of inspiration for their creation.

A day later, they left Liverpool. Before leaving, they had a meal with Chen Hero. Medjani patted his chest to guarantee that he would definitely let Chen Hero see the female lead first.

Chen Hero touched his chin with satisfaction and laughed. But then he came back to his senses. Medjani's expression at the time looked like a pimp…

Damn it! My love with Christine is as strong as gold, how can I allow you to destroy our relationship?

But if the female lead is beautiful enough, working together is also a pleasure, hehehe... I don't mind having more beauties!

※※※

After playing the game against Norwich, Liverpool welcomed Atletico Madrid to their home stadium.

This was the second leg of the Europa League Round of 32.

Chen Hero would welcome Falcao to his home stadium. The duel between the two center forwards continued.

But Chen Hero didn't think so.

His opponent wasn't just a mere Falcao.

A striker who could only score more than twenty goals in a season wasn't worthy of being his opponent.

Of course, Falcao was doing his best to eliminate Liverpool, to defeat his opponent Chen Hero.

But Chen Hero would not give him any chance.

※※※

The game started five minutes ago, and the commentator had just finished introducing the starting lineups of both sides, and then, as usual, began talking about the grudges between Chen Hero and Falcao.

"...Hero said he wanted to break the record. Now he has scored fifteen goals, two goals away from Falcao's seventeen goals. Can Hero tie this record in this game? Of course, Falcao will definitely not sit idly by and watch him break his own record, but he is not a defensive player. All he can do is help Atletico Madrid eliminate Liverpool, so that Chen Hero loses the opportunity to continue the game, so that he can't increase his goal count..."

As he was talking, he saw Liverpool organize an attack.

But the commentator continued to talk about this topic, because he hadn't finished yet.

His eyes were fixed on the field, and his mouth was talking about another thing—this was a necessary ability for many commentators, to be able to do two things at once, or even multiple things at once, otherwise they would not be able to accurately commentate on the ever-changing field.

He saw Adam Johnson send a diagonal pass from the wing. Chen Hero received the ball in the ribs of the penalty area and took a step forward without stopping, followed by a shot!

Seeing this, the commentator suddenly interrupted what he had said before and shouted: "Watch this ball!! Hero—"

The football went straight to the far corner. Goalkeeper Courtois fell to the ground to save the ball, but was half a beat late. The football flew past his hand and then hit the side netting almost grazing the post!

"gooooooooooooooooooooooAL!! goAL! goAL!! Hero! Sixteenth goal!"

"It's terrifying! Only six minutes, and Hero opens the scoring for Liverpool!"

"Before the game, Atletico Madrid had declared that they would eliminate Liverpool on the road. Now it seems that their bold words are simply a joke!"

"Whether Falcao wants it or not, Hero is getting closer and closer to the record he once created! For Falcao, this is really cruel... Watching the record he created being caught up!"

After scoring the goal, Chen Hero shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands, still making that disdainful celebration gesture.

So Falcao clenched his fists again...

※※※

Chen Hero's goal made the aggregate score 2:2. Liverpool had the advantage of an away goal. If this score was maintained until the end of the game, Liverpool would eliminate Atletico Madrid with the advantage of more away goals.

Of course, Atletico Madrid would not allow such a thing to happen. After losing the ball, they attacked fiercely together, and Liverpool had to retreat to defend.

Before the end of the first half, they finally tied the score.

They could return to the locker room with a relaxed mood.

But this mood would not last long.

Because Liverpool would not allow them to really eliminate themselves.

During the halftime break, Martin O'Neill criticized the team for all kinds of slackness after taking the lead.

But he could only criticize, and he had no other way.

Liverpool had had a really hard time in the previous seasons. They were originally a giants, but they were not as good as Tottenham and Manchester City, and the biggest opponent Manchester United was doing well. This huge gap made Liverpool players even a little inferior.

This season, they finally became awesome, and they are currently the first in the league. Liverpool players will naturally have some complacent psychology.

Martin O'Neill knew this psychology, but he couldn't eliminate it. After all, anyone who has been miserable for so long will be a little proud and complacent when they suddenly get rich one day...

He could only criticize, but if he criticized too much, he would still worry about the players' rebound, so he couldn't always criticize.

Fortunately, this time, his criticism did not cause resentment among the players, and everyone bowed their heads and accepted it.

In fact, it was mainly because Liverpool players did not want to be eliminated at home. Everyone talked enthusiastically at the Christmas dinner, saying that they would help Chen Hero create a record and win a European championship for Liverpool.

How could they be eliminated in the Round of 32?

In the final analysis, what plays a decisive role in football games is the players, not any famous coach. If the players themselves do not pay attention to it, no matter how much the coach says, it is just farting. If the players pay attention to it, the coach only needs to give a little guidance, and the result may be different.

After all, the coach's thoughts and tactics still need to be realized through the players.

In this game, Liverpool's players still paid attention to it.

※※※

Next door, Atletico Madrid were very happy. Because they not only regained the lead in the aggregate score, but they also had an away goal. In this way, Liverpool's away goal advantage was offset, and what followed was all about the aggregate score. Of course, Atletico Madrid could continue to get away goals, putting huge pressure on Liverpool.

"Guys! We are only one step away from the top sixteen! Get rid of Liverpool!" Coach Diego Simeone shouted in the locker room, clapping his hands, just like he encouraged his teammates on the field.

"Get rid of Liverpool!!"

The Atletico Madrid players, encouraged by the equalizer at the end of the first half, let out a huge cheer.

Among them, Falcao roared the loudest.