Chapter 1 The Quarterfinals

Li Yongle's R University quarterfinal match was held first. They effortlessly crushed C University, the second-place team from Group D, with a score of 5-0. In this match, Li Yongle changed his usual style of assisting more than shooting, scoring his own hat trick with headers and kicks.

Afterward, the entire U University team sat in the stands, observing their semifinal opponent. When Li Yongle scored his third goal with a header, which wasn't his specialty, he made a point of running to the front of the stands and roaring at them.

"See that? He's showing off to us!" Yang Pan said to Zhang Jun beside him.

"Just strike back," Zhang Jun shrugged.

The next quarterfinal match was U University against S University. Likewise, the R University team didn't leave after their match; they all went to the stands to observe their opponents.

U University didn't disappoint R University in the stands. They eliminated S University, who was also from the Eastern District, with a score of 4-1. Zhang Jun scored two goals, Yang Pan scored one goal and had one assist, and Captain Xie Yun scored the fourth goal.

When U University took a 3-1 lead in the second half, R University had already gotten up to leave. Everyone left the stadium directly, except for Li Yongle, who looked back at the field before leaving.

Zhang Jun happened to be celebrating his second goal, and he waved his fist at Li Yongle. "Did you see that, Li Yongle? We'll see you in the semifinals!"

Li Yongle smiled and waved his fist back at Zhang Jun: "I won't disappoint you!"

Afterward, Zhang Jun was subbed out by Zhao Yu. There was a semifinal match the day after tomorrow, and the starters needed to rest. Yang Pan was an exception; he played the entire ninety-minute match. As long as he was on the field, U University could firmly control the situation. Although he was a winger, he had become the irreplaceable core in Zhao Yu's mind.

For the next two days, everyone was talking about the upcoming heavyweight match, the early encounter between the top favorite to win and the biggest dark horse. The home team, D University's match, was surprisingly unpopular.

The clash between the two teams the following afternoon filled the stands early.

When Zhang Jun shook hands with Li Yongle, he felt Li Yongle squeeze his hand, and he squeezed back. The competition between the two began silently.

With the referee's whistle, the game began!

U University wore their traditional blue jerseys and attacked from left to right. R University wore white jerseys and attacked from right to left. Zhao Yu still used U University's consistent 4-5-1 formation, and Bai Hongfei of R University also didn't make any adjustments; Li Yongle was still the core.

The match went on for fifteen minutes, and the two sides were evenly matched. This surprised some of the coaches watching in the stands. Although U University was a dark horse, it wasn't easy to draw with R University. What surprised them even more was that Zhao Yu didn't assign anyone to specifically mark Li Yongle, which in their eyes was tantamount to suicide! But from these fifteen minutes, U University not only didn't die but was thriving--they threatened R University's goal several times.

In fact, after carefully studying Li Yongle's characteristics and R University's tactics, Zhao Yu finally understood. Since it was impossible to defend against Li Yongle, and defense wasn't U University's strength, it was better to capitalize on their strengths and avoid their weaknesses. He wouldn't use a specific person to mark Li Yongle; instead, he would defend him wherever he went. He would try to suppress R University with offense, so that Li Yongle could only defend in the backcourt and not have time to participate in the attack.

In the first half, Zhao Yu's tactics worked. Li Yongle did spend a lot of time participating in defense in his own half, but Li Yongle's defense also didn't give Zhang Jun any chances. After fifteen minutes, Bai Hongfei noticed U University's intentions, so he had Li Yongle specifically mark U University's main attacker, Zhang Jun--which was exactly what Li Yongle wanted. So the scene from the high school final was repeated. Zhang Jun was marked tightly by Li Yongle and didn't have many opportunities. Yang Pan was also suppressed on the wing by R University's full-back and winger, and he didn't make much of an impact. Zhao Yu sacrificed his own attack after curbing R University's offense. In the 45 minutes of the first half, the two sides were deadlocked, and the score was fixed at 0-0.

During the halftime break, Zhang Yu also realized that he had to make some changes, otherwise, dragging on with R University would be detrimental to them. He asked Zhang Jun, "How's your left foot?"

"As flexible as my right foot," Zhang Jun replied after taking a sip of water.

"Okay, in the second half, you and Zhang Fan will switch. You'll play left winger, and Zhang Fan will play center forward!" Zhao Yu thought it was a good idea. Zhang Jun's speed was comparable to Yang Pan's, and his acceleration in the 5 to 15-meter range made him even more threatening than Yang Pan in tight spaces. With R University implementing a tight defense and the space being small, letting Zhang Jun play on the wing would first, allow him to shake off Li Yongle's entanglement, and second, allow him to use his speed to attack R University's defense.

At the beginning of the second half, R University felt that something was wrong. Which number 11 had gone to the wing, and the number 9, who had been the starting left winger in the previous games, had become the center forward! Li Yongle didn't know whether he should continue to follow to the wing or stay in the middle to stop U University's attack and launch R University's attack. Because U University's captain and attacking midfielder weren't easy to deal with either. At this time, Bai Hongfei was also surprised by U University's changes in the second half, letting the team's top scorer, the starting center forward, play winger! It did make him feel a little at a loss.

Five minutes into the half, Zhang Jun received a pass from Zhu Hui. Facing R University's full-back, he used the simplest and most direct trick: a strong breakthrough. He only made a slight feint, then pushed the ball forward, and then started running to chase the ball. Whether it was underestimating Zhang Jun's starting speed or the fact that he couldn't outrun Zhang Jun, the defender was left behind in just one step. However, Zhang Jun didn't completely shake off the opponent, and the space left for him wasn't large. He immediately and decisively crossed the ball!

Zhang Fan's height wasn't considered tall in the penalty area, which was full of tall people, but his jumping ability was too outstanding. Coupled with his superb heading skills, he still managed to get to the front spot and made a powerful header! The ball hit the crossbar and bounced out of bounds. This made R University's goalkeeper break out in a cold sweat, because he didn't even have time to react just now.

The next time U University attacked, Li Yongle didn't hesitate to pounce on Zhang Jun, but Zhu Hui's action of passing to Zhang Jun was a fake. Seeing Li Yongle shift his center of gravity, he made a through ball, and Zhang Fan appeared on the path of the ball again!

But Li Yongle turned and rushed toward Zhang Fan with superhuman reactions!

Zhang Fan seemed to feel someone rushing up behind him. He made a fake shot, deceiving the defender in front of him, but passed the ball to the right.

Over there, Yang Pan, who had been unknowingly neglected, used his speed to shake off the defender who was guarding him and rushed up, poking the ball into the goal before another defensive midfielder could clear it. Although the goalkeeper tried his best to save it, he was always just a little short.

The ball went in! In the 60th minute, U University took the lead!

After losing the goal, R University launched a full-scale counterattack, with the players rushing fiercely toward U University's goal. The offensive was wave after wave, and U University defended in a very sorry state. However, Bai Hongfei wasn't complacent because his team had control of the situation on the field. On the contrary, he always felt a sense of danger was imminent. Why was U University even having their center forward, number 9, come back to defend, while that winger, number 11, was still staying in front? Always keeping a distance from his own defense line that was neither too close nor too far.

Bai Hongfei's premonition soon became a reality. In the 72nd minute, a long shot from R University hit a defender and bounced out. Lele kicked the ball forward with a big foot, and then he heard cheers from U University's bench. However, they weren't celebrating that they had escaped danger again but because Lele's big kick went over, R University, because they were attacking too fiercely, only had two defenders in the back, and Zhang Jun was also there.

Zhang Jun ran toward the landing point of the ball. The defender closest to Zhang Jun among the two defenders naturally followed. After the ball landed, Zhang Jun used the outside of his right foot to lightly bring the ball under control. The football obediently landed in front of him, and then he leaned forward. The defender thought that Zhang Jun would use the same trick again, and hurriedly moved ahead of Zhang Jun. However, Zhang Jun took a step forward, and the outside of his right foot, which was behind him, flicked the football into the penalty area, and then he very quickly twisted his body and broke into the penalty area from behind the defender!

At this time, the other defender was already in place, and he rushed toward Zhang Jun, because he saw that the ball was still some distance away from Zhang Jun and thought that he could clear the football out first. However, he also underestimated Zhang Jun's acceleration. Zhang Jun took two quick steps, arriving a little earlier than the defender. He swung his left leg up, pretending to shoot, and the defender was fooled. He made a flying tackle, wanting to use his body to stop Zhang Jun from shooting. But Zhang Jun swung his left leg down, but hooked the ball to the right, past the last defender, and then immediately raised his right foot to shoot!

Slightly curved, it bypassed the goalkeeper's hands, and the football flew into the far corner of the goal!

2-0! U University extended their lead!

This goal was almost fatal. Bai Hongfei sat weakly on his chair, watching the ecstatic U University players. When the other side changed, he didn't follow up with adjustments in time, and as a result, one wrong step led to a series of wrong steps!

R University's players were about to give up, because there were still 18 minutes left in the match and they were two goals behind. Judging from the 73 minutes of the match, the chances of scoring two goals in a row in the remaining match were almost zero.

Li Yongle admitted that he had been too impulsive just now, only thinking about how to tie the score and rushing forward, but he had forgotten the most dangerous person behind him. However, there were still 18 minutes left in the match. Not attacking now was certain death, and attacking still had a glimmer of hope. He could only attack, even if he died because of attacking, it would be much more magnificent.

Li Yongle's efforts finally paid off. In the 80th minute, Li Yongle dribbled into the penalty area and was brought down by Lele. The referee unhesitatingly awarded a penalty kick. Li Yongle took the penalty himself, scoring with one kick and bringing the score to 1-2. Then, R University, seeing hope, launched a frantic counterattack, while all 11 of U University's players returned to their own half. The penalty area was guarded so tightly that it was practically impenetrable.

When Li Yongle watched Zhang Jun kick his own rebound out of the baseline, he knew that he had lost again this time. The referee blew the final whistle, the match ended, and U University narrowly defeated R University 2-1, entering the final for the first time!

Li Yongle looked at the ecstatic U University players around him, just curled his lips. He had experienced such scenes for two years in high school, and he was used to it.

"I lost again," he said to Zhang Jun, "but don't be complacent. It's only 3-1 now. There are still three years of university left, and I'll get it back!"

"Always at your service!" Zhang Jun laughed.

"I'm leaving," Li Yongle turned his head to look at his teammates who were packing up their things. "Don't forget what I said, take the championship for me! Also, wait for me to catch up with you!" Li Yongle shouted back at Zhang Jun as he ran.

Zhang Jun looked at Li Yongle's back, thinking to himself that it was likely that whether it was once, twice, three times, or nine times, ten times, as long as he lost the match, he would say this: "Don't be complacent, I will definitely get it back!" He simply wouldn't easily admit defeat, or rather, he simply didn't plan to admit defeat. Having such an opponent meant that as long as he was still playing football, he would never be able to shake him off. But, "When are you planning to find a girlfriend..." Zhang Jun murmured.

Chapter 2 The Finals

In the final two days later, U University relied on two goals from Zhang Jun and Yang Pan to defeat D University, who were playing on their home field, and finally lifted the championship trophy of the 2001-02 National University Football League. Li Yongle led R University to win the bronze medal.

Zhang Jun won the Best Scorer award with 17 goals, while Yang Pan was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament for his excellent offensive and defensive performances. This award was a bit controversial, and some people thought that Zhang Jun should have won the Most Valuable Player award. However, looking at the entire tournament, Yang Pan's performance was more stable, and although his role in the team wasn't as glamorous as Zhang Jun's, who scored more goals, it was more practical. His assists and long shots, as well as his tireless running and tenacious defense, made him almost the ruler of the entire right wing of the field. So the judges finally awarded the Most Valuable Player award to Yang Pan. Of course, Zhang Jun won the Silver Ball award, which was also a recognition of him. However, the announcement of the results of the strangest award was the least controversial: the Best Goalkeeper of this tournament was vacant. Because of the sudden emergence of Zhang Jun and Yang Pan, almost no goalkeeper in this tournament could survive against them. On the other hand, Li Yongle, leading R University, also let many goalkeepers taste the feeling of picking the ball out of the net. For those goalkeepers who hoped to perform well in this tournament, this tournament was their nightmare.

Participating in the competition on behalf of the school for the first time and helping the school win the national championship, Zhang Jun and Yang Pan were in a good mood. Although they had both won national championships in high school, every championship still made them very excited. However, even better news was yet to come. The sponsor of the University League, the Dutch company Philips, announced that it would sponsor the Best Scorer and the Most Valuable Player of this tournament to go to the Netherlands, to the PSV Eindhoven club, one of the top three teams in the Eredivisie, for a ten-day "Dutch Football Immersion"!

Happiness always comes in waves, making people overwhelmed. At this time, the Chinese national men's football team was looking forward to the upcoming World Cup, and our protagonists were also about to start looking forward to another dream, a distant but seemingly tangible dream.