Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

By December, the announcement of the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards was drawing ever closer.

Before the winners of this year's Ballon d'Or and FIFA Men's Player of the Year awards were announced, FIFA released a shortlist of the top five nominees for the Ballon d'Or.

They are Lin Feng, Cristiano Ronaldo, Torres, Messi, and Xavi.

Of these five, Lin Feng is considered the biggest favorite to win the title, while Messi and Torres are the second and third favorites, respectively.

As for Ronaldo and Xavi, both have achieved some honors at the club and national team levels, but compared to the top three, their advantages are not significant. They are basically just there to make up the numbers and it is difficult for them to win awards.

Actually, Torres' approval rating was higher than Messi's last month.

However, due to Messi's phenomenal performance in the first half of the season, his popularity has grown, gradually surpassing Torres and becoming the biggest favorite after Lin Feng.

However, compared to Lin Feng, Messi was at a significant disadvantage in terms of individual statistics, team honors, and personal accolades during the 07-08 season.

What's even more disadvantageous for him is that the two play in the same league and have even faced each other directly in the national team.

Many of the honors Lin Feng has achieved were obtained by stepping over Messi.

With such a direct comparison, although Messi is a strong contender, most fans feel that Lin Feng has a better chance of defending his Ballon d'Or title.

This is indeed the case.

On December 3, at the FIFA awards ceremony held in Zurich, Switzerland, Lin Feng, with a high score of 1245, surpassed Messi, Ronaldo, and others to win the 2008 Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards.

Messi finished second with 578 points, Torres third with 403 points, Ronaldo fourth with 183 points, and Xavi fifth with 155 points.

Including the World Footballer of the Year award from World Soccer magazine and the FIFA Player of the Year award that Lin Feng received earlier, as well as the La Liga Golden Boot, European Golden Boot, La Liga Best Player, European Best Player, Olympic Men's Football Golden Boot, and Best Player awards he had previously won.

Lin Feng won a total of 32 awards in 2008, including 27 individual awards and 5 team awards.

Because he won so many awards, Lin Feng couldn't even find the time to attend the award ceremonies. Many of the awards were presented to him in his absence, and the trophies were then mailed to him.

"congratulations!"

Cristiano Ronaldo, sitting next to Lin Feng, immediately congratulated him, and Messi, who was next to him, also applauded and congratulated him at the first opportunity.

Neither of them had any complaints. Everyone had seen Lin Feng's performance last season, especially Ronaldo, who had been taught a lesson by Lin Feng for two consecutive years. They had no choice but to accept it.

As for Messi, he was initially somewhat unconvinced, but after experiencing the Olympic final, he was convinced.

But it doesn't matter. He and the team have been in excellent form this season, so he is very likely to be the one standing here next year!

Coincidentally, Cristiano Ronaldo next door thinks the same thing.

After losing to Real Madrid, led by Lin Feng, in the final last season, Ronaldo was disheartened and even considered leaving the team.

But Ferguson treated him well, not only having heart-to-heart talks with him and giving him guidance, but also raising his salary and supporting him to become the core of Manchester United. Even in the locker room, veterans like Neville took care of him.

Having experienced the pain of Beckham's departure, Ferguson cherished Ronaldo greatly and granted him privileges that no other player had ever received before.

So, at Ferguson's urging, Ronaldo changed his mind and chose to renew his contract with Manchester United. He vowed to lead Manchester United to the top of Europe and fulfill Sir Alex's wish.

It's not too late for Sir Alex Ferguson to consider leaving the team after he retires in glory.

Real Madrid's poor performance this season has given Ronaldo hope.

Although Barcelona has emerged as a dark horse and seems to be in a formidable position.

But Ronaldo is still most wary of Real Madrid, after all, the title of ten-time champion is just too intimidating.

Barcelona currently only appears formidable; until they face a true powerhouse, the outside world remains skeptical of their actual strength.

"Congratulations! As soon as I saw your name, I knew I was just here to make up the numbers!"

The most enthusiastic person was Lin Feng's former teammate Torres. When Lin Feng got up and walked towards the podium, as he passed by Torres, Torres immediately stood up and gave him a warm hug, which startled Lin Feng.

After recognizing Torres, Lin Feng smiled and patted his head.

"Don't be discouraged, the future belongs to you!"

Torres was immediately annoyed by the other man's condescending tone, raised his hand to slap Lin Feng's hand away, and began to hurl profanities:
"You think I'm older than you? You tricked me into going to Inter Milan, and then you just walked away. Do you know what kind of life I had at Inter Milan?"

Seeing Tuoniu's tearful accusations, Lin Feng felt a pang of pity.
"Um, our team is currently short of strikers. Why don't you have your agent contact our club's management?"

After Lin Feng left, Torres took up the mantle of Inter Milan's attack. Last season and this season, his goal tally in Serie A has increased significantly. Moreover, in the recently concluded European Championship, Torres used his speed and explosiveness to outmaneuver German defender Lahm and score a crucial goal in the final, leaving a very deep impression on everyone.

Although Torres scored fewer goals than his teammate Villa in the European Championship, he received far more votes than his national teammate in the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards.

This is enough to demonstrate the outside world's recognition of his abilities!

Such a striker is actually very suitable for Real Madrid, or rather, for Mourinho's tactical system.

It is said that when Mourinho was still managing Chelsea, he had his eye on Torres, but before he could make a move, Inter Milan snapped him up.

Torres is now more mature and stronger than he was two years ago.

If he were to join Real Madrid, Mourinho would certainly not refuse.

Moreover, Torres has Spanish citizenship, and Real Madrid has a large number of Spanish internationals. With these old teammates around, Torres will integrate very quickly and make an impact as soon as he arrives. For Real Madrid, who desperately need a powerful striker, there really is no one more suitable than him.

"Are you doing this on purpose? I'm a product of Atlético Madrid's youth academy, and you want me to join Real Madrid? I'd rather go to Barcelona than Real Madrid!"

Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid are fierce rivals. Torres is not only a product of Atletico Madrid's youth academy, but he also served as Atletico Madrid's captain.

If he were to transfer to Atlético Madrid's arch-rivals Real Madrid as their former captain, he would be torn to shreds by Atlético Madrid fans.

"Really? That's such a pity!"

Lin Feng understood Torres' decision, but still felt regretful about it.

The two had excellent teamwork when they were at Inter Milan, and they also had a very good relationship off the field.

He treated Torres like a brother, and Torres treated him like a buddy.

If such a good friend could come to Real Madrid to help him, it would definitely be much better than having a complete stranger come to him.

The presenter for this year's Ballon d'Or was once again the King of Football, Pelé. Seeing Lin Feng walk onto the stage, Pelé smiled and said:

"Last year I said I would give you the award again next year. How about that? Wasn't my prediction accurate?" Did Pele actually say that?

Lin Feng was completely bewildered; how come he didn't remember?

Never mind whether he said it or not, just assume he did.

"You are the king of football, not only in terms of technique but also in terms of vision!"

"Haha, I love hearing that. They all say I'm a jinx, but I think to myself, am I the king of football or are you guys the king of football? How could the king of football not understand football?"

"Then how come you made so many prediction errors?"

The female host next to him bluntly contradicted him.

Pele's expression became quite interesting, and he stiffened his neck and said:
"The ball is round, and there are many possibilities on the field. How can you call it a mistake?"

Then came words that were difficult to understand.

What looks like a loss, but actually isn't!
I deliberately made the opposite prediction!
I've won three World Cup titles, how could I not understand football?

Everyone burst into laughter, and the atmosphere was filled with joy.

Pele himself was amused; he didn't really care that much about the outside teasing.

Call him a jinx or a sarcastic commenter, he's just an ordinary fan. His predictions are just for fun. Do you really take them seriously?
"Keep it up, young man! Hope to see you here again next year!"

Pele patted Lin Feng on the shoulder and offered him some words of encouragement.

Upon hearing this, Lin Feng's smile instantly froze.

Oh no, we've been cursed by Pele's jinx!
I'm afraid I won't be winning the Golden Globe next year!

……

The news that Lin Feng had won the Golden Globe Award again caused a sensation in China.

When the vast majority of fans, and even ordinary people who are not fans, learned of this news, they felt very excited and proud.

Before Lin Feng, Asians rarely won the Golden Globe Award, let alone received a Golden Globe nomination, and never even made it into the top five.

Now, not only has someone of Asian descent won the award, but they have also successfully defended their title.

This has had a tremendous effect on boosting confidence in Chinese football, giving countless practitioners confidence and encouragement, and proving that people of Asian descent are no less capable than other races.

It also inspires many young children who are just learning football to set lofty ideals in their hearts from a young age.

Just a few years ago, their predecessors wouldn't have dared to dream of such a thing.

The news of Lin Feng's successful defense of his Ballon d'Or title caused a huge sensation not only in China, but also in countries like Japan and South Korea, and even throughout Asia.

Lin Feng's breakthrough is not only a personal breakthrough for him, but also a breakthrough for Chinese football and even Asian football.

His sudden emergence changed the world's perception, especially the long-standing disregard for Asian football by football powerhouses in Europe and America.

Given Asia's massive population of over four billion, if one Lin Feng can emerge now, it's not impossible for a second or third Lin Feng to appear in the future.

The reason why football is so advanced in developed football countries in Europe and America is simply because they started early and invested a lot!
But these are all things that can be learned. Once the passion for football among people in Asia surges and their investment in football increases, catching up with the level of football powerhouses in Europe and America is not an unattainable goal.

Perhaps in another ten or twenty years, everything will be different.

As a result, Japan, South Korea, and other countries, deeply stimulated by this, have increased their investment in football in an attempt to catch up with China's football.

In their view, if Chinese football, which was worse than theirs before, can rise again, then there's no reason why they can't do the same.

Both Japan and South Korea are developed countries, and their economies and populations are considered strong even by European standards.

If both countries continue to increase investment in the football industry, it is not impossible that they could cultivate a strong team of the level of Germany or Italy in the future.

As for China, with its population of over a billion, if it were to invest in the football industry at the level of Western European countries, then other countries would truly have nothing to do with the World Cup.

……

Winning such prestigious awards as the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year is not only significant for Lin Feng personally, but also has a great impact on Real Madrid.

When Lin Feng returned to the club with two trophies, Real Madrid specially used the Bernabéu Stadium to display all the trophies Lin Feng had won in the year and a half since joining Real Madrid, giving Lin Feng a private awards exhibition.

After the 'exhibition' ended, the two major mouthpieces, Marca and AS, quickly published these photos and gave them extensive coverage and even hype.

Judging from their hype, Real Madrid seems to want to promote Lin Feng as the next generation of football king.

Since Maradona retired, the football world has not produced a new football king for more than a decade.

Originally, everyone favored Ronaldo the most, but his peak period was too short and he suffered too many injuries, which greatly affected his performance and honors.

Although Ronaldo won the World Cup, the team's overall strength was so great that it overshadowed his outstanding individual performance.

Ronaldinho had a similar problem. His performance in the 05-06 season was phenomenal. If he could maintain this level of performance for three to five years, he would very likely be crowned the third King of Football.

However, his peak period only lasted for one or two years before he fell from grace at lightning speed, which led him to withdraw from the race for the title of world number one at an early age.

Apart from these two, Zidane is the most promising player in Europe.

Before the 2006 World Cup final, many French media outlets had already written articles about Zidane's coronation.

Unfortunately, Zidane faltered, and his rash decision in the final, resulting in a red card, ruined everything and turned the French media's praise into criticism.

Since Zidane, there have been no players of his caliber among the middle generation of footballers.

Therefore, it is almost impossible for players born in the 1970s, whose careers are already nearing their end, to become football kings. The media and the public can only turn their attention to players born in the 1980s.

Coincidentally, four geniuses emerged from the post-80s generation of players: Lin Feng, Messi, Ronaldo, and Kaká!

These four players are all incredibly strong; they are all superstars who can single-handedly carry their teams forward.

However, there are differences between superstars. Lin Feng, who was the first to win the Ballon d'Or and achieved a two-peat, has undoubtedly surpassed the other three and is the most popular candidate for the King of Football in this era.

Moreover, he is the first player in nearly 20 years to defend his Ballon d'Or title. (End of Chapter)