Swoosh!
Jourdren couldn't make the save in time. By the time he turned his head, he had already seen the football strike the far corner of the net. He could almost hear the sound of the ball rubbing against the netting in his ears.
Goal!
Crash!
The crowd was stunned by Julien's decisive shot, and even more shocked by how quickly Bastia had created this opportunity.
Clap clap clap!
The American fans in the stadium gave Julien enthusiastic applause, knowing this young man wouldn't turn eighteen until the end of the year.
This was pure talent!
Jourdren got to his feet and spread his hands toward his teammates.
He couldn't even figure out how the ball had reached Julien's feet so easily.
Where was the man marking Julien?
Montpellier's left-back, Cameroonian player Bedimo, could only shake his head helplessly at this moment.
He gestured apologetically to his teammates. He genuinely couldn't keep up with De Rocca just now, Rocca was too fast!
The Montpellier players, forced to quickly adapt to the match rhythm after conceding before they'd even settled into the game, looked somewhat bewildered.
The Montpellier fans felt the same way. But the Bastia supporters had already begun chanting Julien's name the moment he scored.
At Red Bull Arena on the East Coast of New York, far from the island of Corsica, his name echoed throughout the stadium—
"Julien!"
Modoso waved his flag vigorously and continued shouting to the stands, "Make some noise! Show them the power of Bastia fans!"
The goal came so quickly that the blue smoke from the celebratory flares hadn't even dispersed yet.
This only added to Bastia's signature blue passion.
"De Rocca!! 58 seconds to break the deadlock! Bastia and De Rocca's first goal of the new season came far too quickly!"
The broadcast commentator had just been introducing the new season when Julien scored. He continued: "It seems the prospects for this new season's 'Chelsea Rejects Alliance' are worth watching!
This goal was pure collaboration between the three of them—De Bruyne's pass, Lukaku's advance, and finally De Rocca's finish."
The Chelsea connection!
In Paris, France, Elion, who was still scouting quality youth players for Chelsea, was watching this match.
When he turned on the broadcast, he'd only gone to get some water, but by the time he returned, Julien was already celebrating.
It wasn't until he saw the replay that he understood the goal's development, which thrilled him beyond measure.
He couldn't help but laugh. If De Bruyne and Lukaku really proved themselves at Bastia, Chelsea would have struck gold.
Thinking about it this way, Elion felt he needed to watch more of Bastia's upcoming matches.
Bastia was essentially "mini-Chelsea." Both were Blues.
On the pitch, after scoring, Julien ran toward the corner flag, where all the Bastia fans were gathered.
Julien beat his chest badge toward the supporters.
The first goal of the new season had arrived!
The fans excitedly waved their arms at Julien, with one fan shouting, "Julien! Do you know how much I suffered during the days without matches? Finally, you're back! I love you, Julien!"
There were many such voices, many of them.
Lukaku rushed over to celebrate with Julien and the others, telling De Bruyne and the rest, "See? I told you if you give me the ball, I'll deliver. With their defense, one charge from me scatters them all."
"Haha~"
Everyone laughed. This goal really was Lukaku's masterpiece—his teammates fully recognized his impact.
Julien glanced at De Bruyne. While everyone else was laughing happily, De Bruyne was only offering a perfunctory smile from the periphery.
Julien actively pointed at him, "Hey, don't forget Kevin! He's the one who made that pass!"
Lukaku immediately gave the first praise of the day. "Beautiful pass, Kevin! Keep passing like that, and just watch how I charge through them!"
When Julien said this, De Bruyne's smile became slightly more genuine. He high-fived his teammates in celebration.
After the celebration ended, Julien put his hand on De Bruyne's shoulder. "Kevin, try making more runs into the edge of the box later. I can draw at least three players' attention on the right wing. You understand what I mean?"
De Bruyne nodded: "Yeah."
Julien wasn't bothered by De Bruyne's attitude. Several of the team's new signings were similar.
They were all much the same—Mané, Kanté, De Bruyne, all of them were very introverted. However, their inner qualities were each different.
Mané was honest and grateful. Even after becoming famous, he lived simply, without showing off or pursuing luxury. He had built a hospital and public school for his hometown, provided cash assistance to every family, and offered scholarships to students.
Kanté had that typically reserved personality, but once you got to know him, he'd show a bit of humor.
De Bruyne was outwardly introverted but internally a perfectionist with an extremely competitive spirit. It was normal for him to shout at teammates or even coaches on the pitch.
On the other hand, Lukaku seemed more outgoing, enthusiastic, and carefree, but was actually very sensitive inside, the type who needed indulging. The slightest setback would set him off.
To put it unkindly, Lukaku was a "man-child."
So, Julien's approach with Lukaku was simple: just praise him!
Get him confused with praise, and he'd work his heart out on the pitch.
Meanwhile, on the sideline, Hadzibegic saw his team's first goal of the season come so quickly. His spirits soared!
Scoring right from the start gave him a good beginning to the new season. And after seeing the goal's development, he knew the team had grown stronger.
Whether it was Lukaku or De Bruyne, they might not be quite good enough for Chelsea, but for Bastia, they were more than sufficient!
Beside Hadzibegic, Girard wasn't feeling so great. Anyone would struggle to accept conceding less than a minute into the match.
In his eyes, the game hadn't even started yet, and they'd already conceded.
Who could handle that?
The stadium DJ's booming voice continued, keeping the crowd's enthusiasm high:
"Julien! History has been made! Just 58 seconds after kickoff, Bastia's lightning has pierced the Pacific! Corsican volcanoes have erupted in New Jersey! Napoleon's bloodline is burning!"
"This is the fastest goal in French Super Cup history!"
"Julien is also the youngest goalscorer!"
The DJ chanted Julien's name over and over.
Soon, as the players returned to the center circle, the referee blew the whistle to resume play.
Montpellier kicked off.
The DJ announced once more: "The score is 1-0! But remember—Montpellier overturned Paris Saint-Germain last season, and today's clock shows only 1 minute 49 seconds."
Montpellier weren't giving up so easily. They were the defending Ligue 1 champions, after all!
After Montpellier's kickoff, they advanced their attack carefully.
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