The San Remo players excitedly rushed towards Lu Yang.
"GOAL!"
"Two to one! San Remo is leading again!"
"Lu Yang has clinched the match, a decisive goal, this is definitely a match-winning goal!"
"After losing their starting right winger, San Remo tenaciously secured a victory."
"Lu Yang continues to carry the team forward!"
"He can do anything!"
"Oh, we see the main referee show a yellow card to Grosser’s number six midfielder for his pulling action, which was definitely a foul."
"Lu Yang didn’t immediately go down to try and get a perfectly placed set piece, he chose to persist in his breakthrough."
"Facts have proven Lu Yang’s choice was correct!"
"A tough guy never goes down easily, even if he truly suffers an infringement."
"Way to go, Lu Yang!"
"San Remo, keep charging forward!"
...
In the team’s chairman’s office.
The match between San Remo and Grosser was being replayed.
But this was not a celebration banquet.
It was a rather serious high-level meeting.
Participants in the meeting included the team’s head coach Sotu, the team’s first meritorious assistant coach Old Tom, the team’s chairman Mr. Russell, and the team’s newly appointed sports director, Mr. Scott.
The latter had recently just been officially announced for the position, previously serving as Russell’s behind-the-scenes strategist.
"We can see how coincidental this goal was, although Lu scored, how long can such a scrappy goal last?" Scott commented on Lu Yang’s manual spin.
It seems his evaluation was not very high.
"Really? Don’t you know that most of Lu Yang’s goals are incredible? He has the ability to keep creating miracles." Old Tom spoke up in rebuttal.
Scott smiled slightly: "Of course I know, but that was in the past. No miracle can last, otherwise, why are they called miracles? In world football, no player has ever been able to maintain such a miracle ball style for a long time, even at the expense of the team’s overall offensive capabilities!"
Sotu stared at Scott, his pupils contracting infinitely, he was beginning to dislike this guy.
Because this person was actually suggesting in a roundabout way that Lu Yang’s goals were achieved at the detriment of the team.
To anyone who has watched all of Lu Yang’s matches with San Remo, this was utterly absurd.
Without Lu Yang, San Remo’s objective in the Italian Third Division might have been relegation!
No, maybe San Remo would have been in the Italian D Division this season!
But you can’t deny that, just by looking at Lu Yang’s stats and the play in one or two games, some seemingly professional people could indeed conclude that Lu Yang’s playstyle is detrimental to the team.
This is not contradictory, because the effective information obtained by the two sides is different.
Those who deem Lu Yang a detriment are merely intentionally or unintentionally ignoring some key influencing factors.
Sotu had to admit he had changed his perception of Scott.
He previously thought this Scott didn’t understand football at all.
But now he realized Scott understood it very well.
Only someone who truly understands football can intentionally overlook some important factors to deliberately belittle or excessively praise a player.
This is called professionalism.
"Lu Yang will not harm San Remo, but the premise is that San Remo will not harm Lu Yang. He is a player with a very strong sense of territory, willing to give his all for his home. But the premise is, this is his home." Sotu spoke.
Scott retorted: "But San Remo is not his home, he is just a player for San Remo, that’s all."
Sotu squinted: "Is that really what you think? Are you sure you can be responsible for that statement?"
Sotu said while looking towards Russell.
Russell timely stood up as a mediator: "How could it be, San Remo will always be Lu Yang’s home, as long as he is willing. We are not here to criticize Lu Yang. Scott, Lu Yang has done everything he can for San Remo, he shouldn’t be subjected to any disparagement, especially not from within us!"
"I was a bit aggressive, I am willing to apologize for what I just said." Scott, like a cotton ball, reluctantly backed down after testing Sotu’s bottom line.
"Of course, Sotu, the condition of our forward players is very poor, and Lu Yang has taken on more responsibility and running than them. We can’t lose Lu! So, we must bring him a player who can share the pressure!" Russell mentioned the core of today’s conversation, "If there is someone in the front line who can hold the ball and draw attention, Lu will play more easily."
"He’s only seventeen, his body needs to relax."
Sotu hesitated to speak.
People’s physical constitutions cannot be generalized, he understood this, because he himself was just as exceptional.
But those who aren’t as exceptional will never understand, explaining would be pointless.
"Alright, we do indeed need an excellent winger." Sotu showed his professionalism, "I’ve scouted several young players in the Eredivisie and Portuguese Super League, they all have good talent, and they could form a positive competition with Fernandez, which would greatly help us in our future promotion to Serie A and after that..."
"Why must it be young players or old players?" Scott asked, "Isn’t a star player in their prime, at the peak of their career, good? We need a stronger front-line player, a peak Belletti, not another Fernandez and Bai Zhami."
"Talent is just a word spoken; even if they are developed, can they play in Serie A?"