Chapter 144 Dracula's Gift

Dracula mentioned a task that was also related to his current troubles, so Chen Hero became interested.

He couldn't be bothered to continue grinding in the dungeon and immediately opened his laptop to check his task list.

Sure enough, a new task had been added—"Prove Yourself."

"...It seems a fatal weakness of yours has been discovered, and the whole world is discussing it, gleefully wanting to kill you. Now you have a chance to prove that you are not as bad as they imagine. What could be more suitable than the Merseyside Derby? Defeat your city rivals in such an important match, while also scoring a goal in the match, to tell the world—it won't work if they want to use your left foot weakness to restrain you!"

The task objective was to score a goal in the match.

It was also a task without an upper limit.

Because the task reward was related to the number of goals scored.

Chen Hero almost stopped breathing when he saw the task reward.

Dracula didn't lie to him; this task really had a lot to do with his recent troubles!

It was like sending charcoal in snowy weather!

The task reward was a talent called "Weak Foot Accuracy." Chen Hero had heard of the term Weak Foot Accuracy in Pro Evolution Soccer, which refers to the precision of controlling the ball with one's less dominant foot.

For example, if a player's dominant foot is the right foot, and the less dominant foot is the left foot, then the weak foot refers to his left foot. The higher the weak foot accuracy, the better his left foot ball control skills.

In Pro Evolution Soccer, the highest weak foot accuracy is "8."

In this talent, the highest is "10."

And how was this reward linked to the number of goals?

If Chen Hero scored a goal in the match against Everton, he would automatically gain this talent and directly level it up to Level 1, meaning he would have one point of weak foot accuracy.

If he scored twice, that would be Level 2. A hat-trick would be Level 3. Four goals would be Level 4... and so on. If Chen Hero could score ten goals in this match, he could directly max out the talent.

Of course, that was impossible.

But if Chen Hero scored a few more goals, his weak foot accuracy could reach a more suitable level, at least not as terrible as it was now.

If expressed using the data from Pro Evolution Soccer, Chen Hero's current weak foot accuracy was zero...

Level 1 wasn't much different from zero. So Chen Hero needed to score at least two goals, striving for a hat-trick or something.

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This task is not bad!

After reading the entire task introduction and reward description, Chen Hero rubbed his chin and smacked his lips.

It really was like sending charcoal in snowy weather.

Without this talent, he didn't know how long he would have to train so hard... His current life was pure torment... Doing things with his left hand that he used to do with his right hand, he simply couldn't adapt, making frequent mistakes and being inefficient.

If he didn't have such a stubborn streak, he would have given up long ago.

Now it was good, with the talent, he wouldn't have to torture himself anymore.

But after maxing out this weak foot accuracy, would it mean that his left foot would be as flexible as his right foot?

Chen Hero called Dracula to ask about this.

Dracula said, "It's not like that, Hero. Even if you max out this talent, it will only make your left foot much better than it is now, but it won't reach the same level of flexibility as your right foot. But you don't have to worry about your left foot anymore; at least if the opponent forces you to control the ball with your left foot, they will soon realize they've made a huge mistake."

Although he didn't get the answer he wanted, Dracula's reply still satisfied Chen Hero. Dracula was right, as long as it wasn't like it was now, that would be good enough. Right now, his left foot was truly useless. Even if it could be half as strong as his right foot, he wouldn't be afraid anymore; the next step would be his own practice.

Seeing hope, Chen Hero hung up the phone and returned to the dungeon to continue training.

To be able to score more goals in the Merseyside Derby, he had to work even harder now.

Van Basten was surprised to see him return full of fighting spirit: "Any good news, Hero?"

"Marco. In the current situation, what can I do to score more goals in the next Merseyside Derby?"

Basten pointed to his head: "Try to play football with your brain."

"Uh..." Chen Hero rolled his eyes. "I really shouldn't have asked you; I knew you would say that!"

"Play football with your brain" had become Van Basten's catchphrase. No matter what Chen Hero asked him, he would say that.

Just like an unfathomable high monk, he was always unwilling to explain things clearly, insisting on saying something that seemed very Zen-like but was actually just nonsense, and then letting Chen Hero comprehend it himself.

Chen Hero thought to himself, if I knew how to play football with my brain, why would I be training so hard here? Sweating on the girls in the nightclub is more fun than sweating in the dungeon, isn’t it?

But Basten didn't plan to tell Chen Hero how to play football with his brain, so he could only ponder and think hard himself...

Of course, Basten knew what Chen Hero was thinking. But he had his reasons for not telling Chen Hero directly. Some things only have meaning and value when you realize them yourself. If others tell him, he will always feel that he got it too easily and won't know how to cherish it. And he can tell him once or twice, but does he have to tell him what to do every time? That's called "knowing what but not why." Only what you realize yourself is truly knowing "why," and after mastering it, you will naturally understand everything else.

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Chen Hero was considering how to score goals even with his left foot weakness being known to others.

Martin O'Neill was also considering almost the same problem. Chen Hero was Liverpool's top scorer, the core of all of Liverpool's attacking tactics. If he was restricted and unable to display his true strength, then Liverpool's attack would be in trouble.

And he didn't have time to adjust. This was the style of play that Liverpool had insisted on for the past one or two seasons, and the players were used to it. Now, to suddenly abandon Chen Hero and switch to other tactics, the players simply couldn't adapt.

At this time, it was also the end of the Premier League season, with important matches coming one after another. Liverpool simply couldn't afford to lose...

The next Merseyside Derby against Everton was such a crucial match that they couldn't afford to lose. Even without considering the fight for the league title, such a city derby, especially at their home ground, could Liverpool afford to lose?

But what if Chen Hero was restricted by the opponent?

O'Neill thought about it and decided to let Chen Hero be a simple attacking bridgehead. He could still pass the ball to his teammates, and he already had seven assists this season, a new career high.

The only question was whether Chen Hero would accept his arrangement...

He didn't go to tell Chen Hero; he decided to make the decision himself.

As a head coach, if he couldn't even make such a decision, he would be a complete failure.

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At the tactical meeting the day before the match, Chen Hero frowned as soon as he heard that he was the one setting up opportunities for his teammates.

Martin O'Neill naturally saw Chen Hero's expression, which was what he had expected.

But for the sake of the team's victory, Chen Hero had to accept it, even if he didn't want to.

He didn't plan to explain much.

Chen Hero wasn't the kind of very selfish person. Although the ball ultimately ended up at his feet, he would usually shoot unless there was no chance, but that was a necessary quality for a qualified center forward.

But if he was asked to set up opportunities for his teammates in a match, he wasn't unable to accept it. If it were another match, he would even be happy to do so. But he had to score goals in this match...

Because this "Prove Yourself" task had a time limit; once this match was over, it would be gone! If he couldn't score a goal in this match, the task would fail, he wouldn't get the reward, and he would have to continue his miserable ambidextrous training.

So he had to score a goal in this match, even if it was just one. As long as he scored one goal, he would have this talent, and then he could use the talent points he earned from leveling up to improve the talent...

Although he was very unwilling, he didn't argue with Martin O'Neill on the spot, and he didn't even go to the head coach privately to beg him for more opportunities.

Because he couldn't tell anyone his reasons... He could only think this way—there couldn't possibly be no opportunities for him in the entire match, right? No matter how much he set up opportunities for his teammates, he would still have chances to shoot.

In that case, it would be a test of his ability to seize opportunities.

A test?

I'm not afraid!

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When his teammates heard that Chen Hero wasn't the main attacker in this match, they all turned to look at him. Everyone actually knew why; wasn't it all because of that "left foot" thing recently?

Some people felt sympathy for him, thinking that Chen Hero was really unlucky to encounter such a thing.

Others worried that the head coach's arrangement would dampen Chen Hero's enthusiasm. What if he just gave up?

Could Hero really be restricted by just a left foot?

Many people sighed in their hearts.

Chen Hero knew that his teammates were all looking at him, and he knew what those gazes meant.

But he remained unmoved. He had already made up his mind, so he didn't care what others thought of him.

※※※

Martin O'Neill actually planned to wait for Chen Hero to come to him afterward. He had clearly seen Chen Hero's expression at the tactical meeting, and he knew what Chen Hero was thinking. He certainly wouldn't be willing to just assist his teammates.

He wouldn't actively look for Chen Hero, but that didn't mean he wouldn't hope that Chen Hero would come to him.

He thought that Chen Hero would definitely come back to talk to him about this issue, and he would tell him what he had already thought of, which would also serve as an opportunity to tell him the hackneyed theme that "the team is more important than the individual."

But he didn't wait.

Although Chen Hero frowned, he accepted the decision without any complaints! This surprised him greatly—when did Chen Hero become so easy to talk to?

Despite his doubts, Chen Hero accepted the arrangement, and he had nothing more to say.

He didn't care why Chen Hero had accepted the arrangement, whether he had truly accepted it or was just planning to feign compliance. All that mattered to him was winning against Everton in this match; nothing else was important.