Maldini’s face was dark as he never expected that his bet with Simone would land him in such an awkward position.
As the referee blew the whistle, the first half of the game came to an end with all the players from A.C. Milan wearing a gloomy expression on their faces. Because they were filled with concern for the second half of the game. Their assault wasn’t regulated, causing their backyard bearing a huge pressure. The player who was dismissed was a capable player as a defender. Without him, that F.C. Cortone midfielder from before will have a full pass in his assault.
Giving an apologetic expression to Yan Jing and Su Tao, Maldini spoke out, “I never expected that the game would turn out this way, and it was a joke on me.”
Shaking her head immediately, Yan Jing replied, “This is the fun about football. No one can expect what will happen in the second half of the game. Even with one lesser player, there might be a chance for them to sweep through the game in the second half.”
“Thank you!” Maldini had no confidence as F.C. Cortone was a stronger team than he had imagined. Although they’re ranked at the end of the scoreboard, their strategies were more concrete without any tricks. However, it was very effective and caught people by surprise.
Like a ghost, Simone appeared as he waved his hand at Maldini with a smug on his face, “I never expected that A.C. Milan would have such a poor performance. It was just as professionals have analysed, a club without Sanche is only a relegation team.”
With flames gushing through his eyes, Maldini roared, “Only the first half has come to an end, and we still have the second half. Don’t get too smugly.”
Shrugging his shoulders, Simone flung his lips aside, “If Sanche is able to participate, he might be able to break through F.C. Cortone’s ‘park the bus’ strategy with his long distance shoot. But according to my knowledge, Sanche was injured in his leg, and it’s impossible for him to play anytime soon. Hence, the game will end with 1:0 if it goes according to my expectation.”
“A.C. Milan still has other capable players, and their strategies are also brilliant. There’s no way they will lose easily with their formidable foundation!” Maldini replied.
Looking at Maldini in disdain, Simone shrugged, “Go ahead, deny reality.”
When he finished, he turned to look at Emily and smiled, “Picking a club is the same as picking a partner. You have to keep your eyes wide open!”
Thereafter, he waved his hand at Maldini, “I’ll wait for your 500,000 EUROs after this game!”
Along with Simone’s arrogant words, Maldini was practically on the verge of exploding.
“Pardon me!” Maldini greeted Yan Jing and Su Tao with a voice as calm as possible before leaving the spectator’s platform.
I never expected that Maldini would treat this game so seriously. Su Tao sighed in his heart. Judging from Maldini’s actions, Su Tao could tell that the latter is a genuine lover of football.
Maldini found the changing room of the club. With his status and wealth, he’s naturally one of the highest members in the club, so he naturally has the qualification to enter the member’s changing room. But due to the fact that the match is still ongoing, no one can easily be allowed in.
In the end, Maldini gave the owner of the club a call, getting the owner to bring him in.
Watching this scene, the coach’s face was unsightly because the changing room is the private territory of the coach and the players. Even if you’re the owner of the club, there are some restrictions that you can’t carelessly violate.
“Sir, we’re currently discussing our strategy for the second half.” The coach spoke with a grave expression.
Letting out a sigh, the owner asked, “Why wasn’t Sanche in the field?”
“Sir, Sanche’s injury on his leg still hasn’t fully recovered. So if he goes on the field right now, he will be bearing a huge risk. I’ve seen many outstanding players leaving with a lifetime regret just because of an impulsive game. We can’t gamble with Sanche’s future.” The coach’s expression was grave as he continued, “The competition with F.C. Cortone is just one game in the long season, so we can risk it with the entire season.”
“Are you guys going to give up then?” The owner frowned as he continued, “This is Mr. Maldini, and I believe you guys should know him. He had just promised that he will fork money out of his pocket and raise the prize money for this round to 1,000,000 EUROs.”
The prize money for foreign footballs are much better than the ones in China. They’re generally around 300,000 EUROs, and Maldini’s generosity of 1,000,000 EUROs was enough to excite anyone.
As the coach’s tone loosen up, he smiled bitterly, “Sir, I can only say that we will do our best. We’re only left with ten players, and Sanche is still injured, so it’s impossible for him to be on the field. However, we will definitely be more motivated in the second round with your encouragement, and we will definitely not give up on this game.”
Seeing the helplessness on the coach’s expression, Maldini knows that the club is in a dangerous spot right now. All of a sudden, an idea flashed in his mind as he asked, “May I ask how serious is Sanche’s injury?”
“According to the doctor in the club, he will miss at least three games. As for whether he can go on the field after that, it will have to depend on his recovery.” The coach replied after a brief stun.
Maldini recalled Su Tao, a physician who could create miracles. Just a few days ago, he had personally witnessed how Su Tao used his Planks Fixing Technique to treat Emily’s knee cap strain. If it’s another illness, Maldini might hesitate about it. But just from the similarity between Sanche and Emily’s injuries, Maldini was thinking of getting Su Tao to take a look at Sanche.
Although Sanche might not be able to play in this game, he can still have a better recovery. At the very least, A.C. Milan won’t be in a disadvantageous position in the later games.
There’s only fifteen minutes of rest, and in a blink of an eye, there’s only five minutes remaining.
Rushing back to the spectator’s stand immediately, Maldini found Su Tao and asked emotionally, “Can I get your help? Can you take a look at Sanche’s injury?”
Su Tao was surprised by Maldini’s sudden request. Aren’t they here to watch the game? So how did it suddenly turn into medical assistance?
“Sure!” Su Tao replied.
Maldini instantly had joy written on his face as he dragged Su Tao down to the stage. After communicating with the security personnel, they were released as he brought Su Tao into the player’s resting zone.
“Sanche, this person beside me is Su Tao from China. He’s a brilliant TCM physician and he might be able to help you with your injury.” Maldini spat out his words like a machine gun.
The second half had already started. Although Maldini wasn’t holding much hope for this game, he still hoped that there could be a change of situation as the loyal fan of A.C. Milan.
“Oh! I’ve heard his name!” Sanche knew about Maldini’s status. Maldini is a fan of his, and they’ve even met a few times with dinners.
As for Su Tao’s name, it was extremely resounding in Milan. Anyone who pays attention to the media would know that Su Tao possesses magical eastern medical skills.
“Can he really treat my injury?” Sanche grew a little emotional as he continued, “I have been resting for a week, and it wasn’t getting much better. If I run for ten minutes, I will start to suffer twitching symptoms. Actually, I don’t need him to treat me completely. My team is currently in a dangerous situation, and I just hope that I can have forty minutes. Perhaps there might be side effects, but I can’t be concerned about that!”
Maldini was infected by Sanche’s mentality upon hearing those words. When a player becomes injured, they will usually think of the prospects of their career, and they will definitely not take a risk easily. However, Sanche had shown his outstanding will, and this is also the reason why he could become the spirit of A.C. Milan.
After Maldini translated those words for Su Tao, Su Tao nodded his head, “Let me perform a check up for him. As for the exact details, I can only find out about them after a check up.”
Getting Sanche to lie flat on the ground, Su Tao placed his hand by Sanche’s ligament. When he applied some pressure, he saw the painful expression on Sanche’s face. Looking at Sanche, Su Tao was filled with some admiration for him. That spot that he was applying earlier was Sanche’s injured spot, and if it’s someone else in Sanche’s shoes, they will probably be screaming by now. Hence, he can tell that Sanche is a tough person.
“How is it?” Maldini asked nervously.
“It’s nothing complicated. The injury was serious at that time, but he had rested well and there were only some bruises in his muscles. I can resolve it with acupuncture and massage.” Su Tao explained patiently.
Hearing Su Tao’s words, Maldini felt relieved inwardly. If Su Tao is able to treat Sanche, Su Tao will become the hero of all the fans of A.C. Milan.
Sanche had a good foundation with tough muscles and his injury has recovered well. When Su Tao was squeezing Sanche’s lower leg ligament earlier, he was just testing the latter’s reaction. Furthermore, he also hopes to rehabilitate the ligament through his hand.
For example, if there’s a component broken in a vehicle, the vehicle will require some wear in after changing into new parts.
Hence, Su Tao did that to ‘wear in’ the ligament of Sanche’s lower leg so that the latter can get into his state better.
As for using acupuncture on strain injuries, it’s more effective compared to oral medications. There will be swelling and blood clots in the strain of the ligament. Hence, acupuncture can effectively reduce swelling and clearing the clots in the veins.
Furthermore, Sanche’s injury is currently recovering, so acupuncture will be able to help it much better.
Without him knowing, Sanche had closed his eyes as he only felt a refreshing sensation coming from his injury. It felt as if he was lying on the beach enjoying the breeze tickling his skin. Even his tensed nerves have loosened up without him knowing.
Acupuncture on ligament injuries are mainly to circulate blood and clear the veins. As long as the blood circulation is clear, the swelling and pain will disappear, and at the same time, the body will also recover.
Thereafter, Su Tao also applied a green ointment on Sanche’s injury, allowing the medicine to penetrate through the skin to vitalise the skin regulation to reduce swelling and promote recovery.
Just when Su Tao was busy treating Sanche, ten minutes had passed on the field. The team of ten players tried to find an opportunity to equalise the score, but they accidentally allowed F.C. Cortone to score.
Right now, the scores are 0:2, and the difficulty for A.C. Milan to get three points is rising.
