Chapter 1 He's Too Much to Handle

Zhang Jun couldn't understand why he still couldn't break through that seemingly refined central defender. It was the fifth time already; the opponent turned and blocked him behind, and Zhang Jun crashed into a wall again. He raised his hand to the referee, indicating that the opponent was blocking and committing a foul, but the referee shook his head, the meaning clear: you lost control of the ball first.

Boos erupted again from the Amsterdam Arena.

Zhang Jun looked up at the Dutch fans in the stands, irritated by the jeers. Are you so happy to see me fail? Chivu is your captain, your idol... then I'm going to defeat your captain, your idol! Zhang Jun clenched his fists.

Zhang Jun was the sole striker and the team's top scorer. Most of his teammates' passes were directed to him to finish the shot. However, Bayers noticed that Zhang Jun rarely passed the ball after receiving it, choosing instead to go one-on-one with Chivu, who was defending him! Similarly, after realizing this, Ajax's players confidently left Zhang Jun to their captain. When Zhang Jun had the ball, they mostly provided protection on the side, without attempting to steal. The previous five duels made it clear that Zhang Jun couldn't beat Chivu.

Bayers wasn't going to pass the ball to Zhang Jun for him to squander any longer. This wasn't some childish game of pride, but a professional league match. If they wanted a one-on-one, the two could arrange a place after the game and throw down the gauntlet like medieval knights for a duel. But when he saw Zhang Jun fall at Chivu's feet once again, he pounded the ground unwillingly. Amidst the constant jeers from the crowd, his back looked so helpless, and at that moment, Bayers changed his mind.

He was a young man too; he'd get fired up by this movie-like duel. The loser wasn't shameful, but a deserter was...

"Damn it!" Sterr, next to Adriaanse, cursed softly. "Can't he see that Zhang Jun isn't in form today?" He was talking about Bayers, passing the ball to Zhang Jun again and again, only for the latter to squander it repeatedly.

Adriaanse had also noticed this phenomenon. Zhang Jun wasn't out of form, but stuck in a dead end. His strength was inferior to Chivu's, but he insisted on playing one-on-one with him. What to do now? Keep Zhang Jun on the field, hoping he'd sleepwalk for eighty-nine minutes and then flash once in the last minute? Or replace him early, letting someone who could seize the opportunity take his place?

Just as Adriaanse was wavering, Yang Pan received a pass from Kozeer in the backfield, a long pass, powerful enough to get Yang Pan, the high-speed train, moving.

Van der Vaart didn't even try to chase him, but retreated to the center, knowing he couldn't catch that number 25. Seeing Yang Pan chasing the ball, Zhang Jun quickly moved to the wing, creating space for Yang Pan.

Chivu glanced at Yang Pan speeding with the ball, then turned and went to chase Zhang Jun. An opening immediately appeared in the center. Yang Pan dribbled to within twenty-five meters of the goal. Ajax's defenders had quickly surrounded him. No more delay! Yang Pan shot!

The football flew out like a cannonball. Ajax's goalkeeper, Timmer, had barely had any chance to perform since the start of the game. This time, he finally got a close-up. "Watch me show off!" he shouted, punching the football out with both fists! The football landed right at Zhang Jun's feet. Without even lifting his head, he shot immediately!

Chivu flew over, blocking the shot with his thigh. The football bounced out of the baseline, corner kick! Chivu wiped the sweat from his brow, sighing inwardly. That was a close call; he was only a step too slow and almost let Zhang Jun seize the opportunity. If he hadn't shot directly just now, but feigned a shot and hooked it back, his momentum would definitely have been bypassed.

Chivu was secretly afraid, but someone was already regretting it. "Ah!" Timmer clenched his fists and shouted loudly. Chivu turned his head and saw his body already arched like a shrimp. "What's wrong?" he asked with concern.

"Ugh... damn it! That Chinese guy's shot is too... terrifying..." Timmer said through gritted teeth. "My hand only hurts now; it's like a bursting bomb drilled into your body before exploding! I'd rather not have close-up shots... just please don't let him shoot like that again."

Looking at Timmer's embarrassment, Chivu couldn't help but laugh, then he shouted loudly to Van der Vaart: "Van der Vaart! Don't let Yang Pan go next time! Stick to him, stay close to him! Don't give him a chance to shoot casually!" Van der Vaart smiled wickedly, looking at the suffering Timmer behind Chivu. "Hey! Your close-up shot has spread throughout the Netherlands!" Then he gave Chivu a thumbs up. "No problem, I'll pay attention to that kid!"

This was just a small interlude in the game. The corner kick was taken, and Chivu overpowered Zhang Jun, heading the ball out. Van der Meyde once again snatched the football from Kozeer's feet, then accelerated to catch up with the ball. The 22-year-old young right winger issued a command like a commander: Ajax attack!

All of Volendam's players were desperately retreating, and Batrel naturally took on the task of holding up Van der Meyde, buying time for his teammates to return to defense, but...

Van der Meyde flicked his foot and passed to Litmanen, who was supporting him. Litmanen then passed the ball straight through, and Van der Meyde happened to insert himself to receive the ball, a one-two!

Ajax's front line had already reached the edge of the penalty area. Van der Meyde crossed from the right, the football rolling into the penalty area along the grass. Ibrahimović rushed in and slid to shoot!

Westerloper came out to intercept, and Louis Link also risked a foul in the penalty area, tackling the Finn from behind!

"GooooooooooooooAL!"

The live commentator at the Amsterdam Arena roared, followed by a tsunami-like cheer from fifty thousand fans.

Ajax led 2-0! Ibrahimović's sliding shot was successful!

Zhang Jun watched from the front court as the Ajax players hugged each other in his team's penalty area, celebrating the goal, and felt very uncomfortable. His team's loss of a goal was caused by his own incompetence, marked by Chivu as a useless person!

He clenched his fists, unwilling in his heart!

Koeman only seemed particularly excited at the moment of the goal, but he quickly calmed down. He grabbed Van der Vaart, who was running past him: "Pay attention to Yang Pan, don't let him have a chance to shoot easily again. You saw what Timmer looked like; if it happens a few more times... I estimate I'll have to let the substitute goalkeeper warm up!" In the noisy Amsterdam stadium, he had to shout loudly to ensure Van der Vaart could hear him clearly. "Tell them to surround Yang Pan on the field, but leave space in front to lure him to shoot! You can poke the ball away while he's shooting! Be quick! If necessary, you can foul; I don't think Volendam's set pieces are successful!"

"Okay." Van der Vaart took the opportunity to drink some water, then nodded and ran onto the field.

The stadium was only slightly quieter until Volendam put the ball back on the kickoff spot, but the fans were still singing and cheering for the team. The Netherlands wasn't just about a passionate team; the fans were the same.

Yang Pan was indeed receiving special attention. As soon as he got the ball, two or three Ajax players would quickly surround him.

"You think you can defend against me with numbers?" Yang Pan spotted a gap in front, just enough for him to see part of the goal. Now! Yang Pan swung his right leg!

"Now!" Van der Vaart, who had been guarding him, quickly swung his calf, his toe touching the football, and the football went off course!

Yang Pan swung his right leg out, but kicked air. He lost his balance and fell to the ground. Galasek immediately got the football and transferred it to Van der Meyde on the right.

Yang Pan still couldn't believe he hadn't kicked the ball.

"This is simply a bizarre mistake! Yang Pan actually kicked air!" a Chinese reporter in the stands shouted.

"What's so great about that? Lots of people kick air!" another reporter replied disdainfully, presumably a competitor.

Van der Vaart winked at Koeman as he ran past the coach's seat, and Koeman smiled and gave him a thumbs up.

This Ajax attack was successfully disrupted out of bounds by Kozeer. He had been working hard in this game, but the gap in strength made him seem somewhat unqualified. Both goals conceded were indirectly related to him. In front of Van der Meyde, his movements were always half a beat slower, but he was still running and defending tirelessly.

After Ajax's throw-in, the ball was snatched by Kozeer again. He shook off Mido and passed the ball to Hevel, who was quickly inserting himself on the left.

Hevel flicked the passed ball, then separated man and ball! Shaking off the home team's right-back Trabelsi, whose turn was slightly slow!

This was simply an insult to Trabelsi! He desperately chased back, and just as he was about to catch up with the opponent, Hevel passed the ball!

An arc ball flew into the penalty area. Zhang Jun had already shaken off Chivu, jumping high, a powerful header!

Goal!

Zhang Jun ran excitedly towards Hevel, thanking him for the pass! But he found that Hevel's face showed no joy. He turned his head curiously, following Hevel's gaze towards the back.

The linesman raised the flag in his hand, offside!

Zhang Jun was a little angry. He had clearly shaken off Chivu to head the ball into the goal, so why was it disallowed? Was this home-field advantage? He rushed towards the linesman, preparing to question his judgment, but was pulled back by Yang Pan, while the Ajax players also ran up to protect the linesman, and the situation on the field suddenly became tense.

"Don't be impulsive, Zhang Jun! You were indeed offside, only half a body, but you were offside! Zhang Jun..." Yang Pan's words were interrupted by the referee's whistle. The referee ran over quickly and showed Zhang Jun a yellow card without hesitation!

This yellow card caused dissatisfaction among the other Volendam players, who surrounded the referee to explain, while the Ajax players stepped in, trying to separate the two sides, and the field became chaotic again.

However, Zhang Jun didn't participate in this chaos. He was being pulled by Yang Pan, who was explaining: "...That Chivu moved forward half a step before Hevel passed the ball. He was the last defender, and I believe you know very well that he rushed forward quickly an instant before Hevel passed the ball. Then, at the moment Hevel passed the ball, you were offside. I saw it very clearly from here; the linesman has the same angle as me, so he wouldn't be wrong either. Calm down!"

The referee waved his hand to disperse the Volendam players and warned them loudly not to be impulsive, otherwise he wouldn't be polite.

Chivu watched Zhang Jun's back with his head down. This impulsive guy, it's just a goal. Why bother actively looking for a yellow card? He shook his head, not quite understanding him.

Adriaanse knew that the players were getting a little impatient. He stood on the sidelines and loudly asked the players to calm down and not antagonize the referee. There were still twenty minutes left in the game, calm down, they weren't without a chance... chance, he turned his eyes to the somewhat dejected Zhang Jun. This person who was best at seizing opportunities seemed to have been cursed by Chivu today. Should he replace him or not? If he replaced him, would Ochu play as a striker? Zhang Jun couldn't break through Chivu, let alone Ochu. Should he move Yang Pan to the center to play as a striker? But he saw a hint of unease from Yang Pan's air ball just now.

Yang Pan quickly realized that he barely had any chance to kick the ball. When he swung his right leg, the ball would be quickly poked away by Van der Vaart beside him. He had already fallen to the ground twice because of kicking air.

Adriaanse finally understood. He looked at Koeman on the other side, the blond man looking calmly at the field. What a smart coach, he quickly saw Yang Pan's weakness. With Ajax's current situation, it was impossible to compress the space in the entire mid-backfield, so they artificially created small, narrow spaces in the local area. With Yang Pan as the axis, there were two to three defenders within a radius of five meters, which indeed made Yang Pan's long shots impossible to play. Moreover, if Yang Pan didn't shoot but chose to break through or pass, he would be fouled immediately... Sure enough, he was powerful, no wonder he would become a popular candidate for the Dutch national team coach.

In this way, even Yang Pan was frozen. There were fifteen minutes left in the game, was Volendam already defeated?

Time passed quickly, and Zhang Jun was still stubbornly fighting Chivu. As long as he had the opportunity, facing Chivu would always only have one option - a one-on-one.

With ten minutes left in the game, Ajax relaxed a bit, giving Volendam three opportunities to attack in a short five minutes.

Bayers passed the ball to Zhang Jun again. Zhang Jun faced away from Chivu, faking a turn to the left, but turning to the right instead. He turned, but the ball stayed behind. Needless to say, the boos definitely rang out. In fact, because of Zhang Jun's lack of composure that led to the conflict on the field, the Ajax fans unreservedly booed him whenever Zhang Jun had the ball.

Here it comes again, Zhang Jun faced away from Chivu, stepping on the ball. In the current situation, he couldn't even use a Cruyff turn. What to do? Pass or continue the one-on-one?

Pass or continue the one-on-one? This was also the question Chivu was asking himself in his heart. What was this Chinese man going to do? Wasn't he tired of playing yet?

Zhang Jun remembered the goal he conceded. He gritted his teeth, and dribbled the ball horizontally, getting rid of the opponent first! He needed to gain space for his turn, so he had to get away from Chivu, otherwise he would always be helpless.

Sensing that Chivu hadn't followed, Zhang Jun was overjoyed and turned around without hesitation! But as soon as he turned his body, he saw that Chivu had already stretched out his foot, poking his toe, and the ball was intercepted again!

Zhang Jun's legs went weak and he knelt on the field. So the opponent had been waiting for him to turn around; he was simply like a fool!

"Why bother? If Zhang Jun had passed the ball just now, Volendam could have pulled back a goal. Ajax's defense was simply full of loopholes just now..."

Li Yan laughed as he listened from the side. Who was hyping up the duel between Zhang Jun and Chivu before the game? Who was now complaining about Zhang Jun being too selfish? Judging from his contact with Zhang Jun, Zhang Jun was a person with a gentle appearance, but a stubborn heart. Having been repeatedly defeated by Chivu, he certainly wouldn't give up easily. However, he hoped that his complete failure in this game wouldn't affect his confidence.

This person wearing the Ajax captain's armband was only a year older than himself, but he was like a wall standing in front of him. There were three minutes left in the game, Ajax had all retreated, letting Volendam attack, and Volendam seemed to have reached some kind of tacit understanding, passing the ball to Zhang Jun's feet whenever they had the ball, letting him go one-on-one with Chivu.

Adriaanse had already given up on this game ten minutes ago, and he didn't consider whether to replace Zhang Jun, the troublesome problem, at all. Maybe this was the growth they had to go through. Adriaanse resigned himself to it.

Receiving the ball, facing Chivu, constantly shaking, wanting to shake Chivu down. But when he thought Chivu had fallen and was about to break through, the football was hooked down by Chivu's foot, and he failed again!

…

Zhang Jun switched to the left, and Hevel moved to the center. Zhang Jun dribbled the ball, but Chivu cut in horizontally, forcibly separating him and the football, blocking the position! Zhang Jun failed again...

The game ended, Ajax defeated Volendam 2-0, the king defended the king's honor, and the challenger saw for the first time what the king's aura was.

Zhang Jun looked at the celebrating Ajax players on the field, listening to the fans' shouts, and felt like crying. He encountered his first professional match defeat, and he didn't expect to lose so miserably, a complete defeat. Watching others cheer, while he swallowed the bitter fruit of failure alone, he hadn't tasted this feeling in a long time.

After hugging his teammates, Chivu crossed the field and stopped Zhang Jun, who was about to leave. Zhang Jun looked at the other party with some curiosity.

"Do you speak Dutch? Or English?" Chivu said to him, gesturing.

"Of course." Zhang Jun nodded.

"That's good!" Chivu smiled, he took off his Ajax jersey and handed it to Zhang Jun, "I look forward to going to your home stadium in the second half of the season."

Zhang Jun smiled, "I will definitely defeat you!" He also took off his jersey and exchanged it with Chivu.

The first professional match defeat, the first yellow card, the first exchange of jerseys. This game was really of great significance to Zhang Jun.

In the locker room, Zhang Jun, who had calmed down, apologized for his actions in the game, focusing only on himself and not considering the whole team. "I'm sorry, because I was blocked by the opponent again and again in the game, my head got hot and I completely forgot about the interests of my teammates and the team, leading to the failure of this game..."

Captain Horvigin patted Zhang Jun's shoulder: "Don't blame yourself, losing the ball is not the responsibility of one person, there is no need to take all the blame on yourself."

"Yes, if I were you, I would do the same. Didn't you see that I almost passed the ball to you alone? Haha!" Bayers laughed.

Although Adriaanse was also a little annoyed by Zhang Jun's willful actions, he saw Chivu and Zhang Jun exchange jerseys after the game, and Zhang Jun had already taken the initiative to admit his mistake. He didn't say anything more, and clapped his hands: "Yes, just pay attention next time."

Yang Pan put his arm around Zhang Jun to comfort him: "Don't be discouraged, Chivu is a master, losing to him is not a shameful thing."

Zhang Jun blinked: "But I still want to win against him! It's more fun to score a goal by breaking through a master like him!"

Yang Pan smiled: "I think you're really going to fight him, haha! You've even exchanged jerseys, are you going to throw down the gauntlet next time you meet?"

Zhang Jun didn't answer him. He had found his first goal in the Netherlands, the first goal to surpass. The Romanian Chivu, a wall in front of him.