"I came out of the Inter youth training, I played for Inter when I was 15, and I made my debut in the first team at 18, Kandrewa, what were you doing at 18?"
These words hit Kandrewa’s sore spot!
Bonaventura was playing Serie A and UEFA Europa League with Inter Milan at 18.
And what about Kandrewa at 18?
He was playing for Ternana in the Italian Third Division, an unknown nobody.
From this perspective, whether in terms of strength or talent, 18-year-old Kandrewa was far inferior to Bonazzoli of the same age!
When Bonazzoli said this, everyone was shocked, secretly thinking it was bad, and looked nervously at Kandrewa.
Everyone knew the young player had misspoken.
In the player workplace ecosystem, it’s taboo to speak like Bonazzoli, comparing an older player’s youth to a rising star now.
The older generation might not have high talent or a strong start, but they made it through diligent training and matches; only those who have been through it can truly understand the sweet, bitter, sweaty and teary experiences.
Sure enough, seeing the national team’s little brother mock him , Kandrewa turned as red as a lit barrel of gunpowder, raised his hand, and slapped Bonazzoli across the face!
"What did you say? Say it again, I dare you!"
Kandrewa, furious, grabbed Bonazzoli’s collar with both hands, wanting to lift him up and beat him, saying young Italian players nowadays don’t understand the rules, don’t know what respect is for seniors, and he’s going to teach this kid a lesson today.
If stout Medel hadn’t timely bumped Kandrewa away with a bull move, these two would have fought today.
After Ranocchia, Tang Long, Icardi, and other core players left, Medel, with the longest tenure, naturally became the spokesman of the locker room.
He had long been irritated by Kandrewa’s arrogance, especially bullying young Bonazzoli, looking like he needed a proper beating.
However, Bonazzoli indeed had a foul mouth, committing the big taboo of the player workplace, so Medel simply reprimanded both, scolded Kandrewa for a few words, then pushed Bonazzoli out of the locker room door, telling him to calm down before coming back.
Bonazzoli covered his stinging face, stood in the corridor with a blank look in his eyes, and then hid in the bathroom.
He remembered his former teammates, feeling increasingly upset, and with a feeling of grievance, burst into tears.
Back then, the team atmosphere was good. Even if he missed opportunities in the few chances he had to play, everyone was always encouraging him, never saying things like he was not fit to play for Inter, which hurt his self-esteem.
"If only Ranocchia were here, the captain would stand up for me; if Tang Long were here, he wouldn’t let Kandrewa humiliate me ."
Thinking back and forth, Bonazzoli dialed Tang Long’s number.
On the phone, Bonazzoli vented all his grievances to Tang Long, narrating his excitement over scoring his first goal of the season for Inter, his regret over missing a decisive goal, and how Kandrewa slapped him in front of everyone, everything falling out like beans.
"Tang, I’m begging you, talk to Ronaldo, let him sell me to Manchester City, I want to play with you and Ranocchia, I don’t want to be at Inter Milan anymore. Ronaldo likes you the most, he’ll definitely listen to you!"
Listening to Bonazzoli sobbing on the phone, Tang Long, far away in Manchester, could only comfort him with a few kind words, saying don’t overthink it, playing well at Inter Milan is what you need to focus on this season.
Then Tang Long mentioned Bonazzoli’s missed opportunity during the 88th minute.
"I’m telling you, Bonazzoli, I watched the entire game live in Manchester, and I want to ask you a few questions."
"Uh, you watched my game?" Bonazzoli was startled, stopping his sobbing.
"I asked you, I told you many times, before you shoot, look at the goalkeeper’s position, did you look at it for that ball?"
"Didn’t look, I forgot." Bonazzoli answered truthfully.
Tang Long sighed and asked again, "Kandrewa’s ball had a very high curve, a fallen leaf curve that first rises and then falls, not only did you not check the goalkeeper’s position, you were also unprepared for the trajectory changes, which made you jump late and miss. I told you to study the ball delivery habits of the team’s main passer, did you forget?"
"I didn’t forget, but I couldn’t do it." Bonazzoli blushed, "Kandrewa’s techniques change too much, I can’t understand them."
Tang Long felt a surge of frustration and reprimanded him, "Kandrewa is a prominent player in Serie A, a national team regular, you can easily find his passing videos online, it’s not that you can’t understand, you are too lazy to watch!" He then hung up the phone.
Bonazzoli originally wanted to get comfort from his good brother Tang Long, hoping he would scold a few words in the phone instead, speaking for him.
Although Bonazzoli knew Tang Long had left Inter and couldn’t help with this, getting comforting words from Tang Long would make him happy, but unexpectedly, Tang Long ended up reproaching him instead, seemingly speaking from Kandrewa’s perspective in his words.