The road to godhood starting from Ligue 1

Chapter 224 indeed features three goals.

Hagi Begic ignored Simone.

Instead, he kept waving at the Bastia players, signaling them to defend.

He said before the game that the most important thing was defense.

Gaio saw Simone's movement.

Simeone's arrogance is very much in line with his usual image in front of the media.

Many fans have already started calling him "the bandit leader".

This style might not be liked by players, fans, or coaches from other teams.

but,

Gaio knows Atletico Madrid.

He knew that Simeone's style was a perfect fit for Atlético Madrid fans.

In competitive sports, striving for strength is the mainstream choice.

These are what are known as champion fans.

But for die-hard fans, Atlético Madrid has an unparalleled appeal.

Atletico Madrid languished for a decade before Simeone took charge and then Aguirre became head coach.

They had not won against their city rivals Real Madrid for thirteen years.

They were also relegated to the Segunda División.

They have been away from European competitions for twelve years.

But Atlético Madrid fans remain steadfast in their support, even in the Segunda División, where they continue to spend money on season tickets to show their loyalty.

One view holds that Real Madrid represents the rich, while Atlético Madrid represents the working class.

This is just a stereotype.

In fact, today, Real Madrid represents football fans worldwide, while Atletico Madrid still represents Madrid.

The most core and unique element of Atlético Madrid's soul: sentimiento de rebeldía, "the feeling of rebellion".

This is the most attractive part.

Atletico Madrid's rebellious nature stems from its historical trajectory.

Atlético Madrid, which originally started as a branch of Athletic Bilbao, gained a special status during the Spanish Civil War due to the Franco regime's merger of it with the Air Force.

Military and political support enabled its rapid rise, making it a symbol of the nation's military power.

However, after the political landscape shifted in the 50s, Franco, in order to break Spain's isolation in Europe, turned his political leverage to Real Madrid, which had won five consecutive European Cups, and publicly declared it "the nation's most valuable asset."

To win over Real Madrid.

This shift relegated Atlético Madrid to the status of a "discarded pawn" within the power structure, injecting new political connotations into the Madrid derby.

The long-term experience of being marginalized has shaped Atlético Madrid's tough and rebellious team character, gradually forming a grassroots identity that is completely opposite to the institutionalized Real Madrid, and establishing an anti-authoritarian spirit in continuous confrontation.

Atletico Madrid players didn't celebrate much, as they were still trailing.

But at least this goal brought back a lot of their confidence.

The fans at the Calderón Stadium, especially the die-hards in the stands, are the most loyal supporters of Atlético Madrid, known as "Atlético Madrid Front".

After the goal, they sang Atlético Madrid's most famous cheering song, "Even Years Later"—

Even after many years,
Atletico Madrid's supporters remain loyal to you.
The whole city is proud of your color.
No matter what happened in the past,
We will never be apart in the future.

I love you, Atlético Madrid!
I will be with you until the very end.

drop!
The whistle blew, and the game continued.

Lukaku took the ball out, De Bruyne received it and organized the attack, and Gaio quickly moved forward a few steps on the wing, intending to receive the ball.

However, De Bruyne was quickly contained by Raul Garcia, who had no space to pass the ball out and immediately passed it back.

Atletico Madrid are on the offensive overall.

Even Koke was constantly running and pressing. When Gaio saw Koke and thought about his goal just now, he couldn't help but wonder if Simeone was a first-rate coach or a second-rate coach.

Kirk was a talented player when he first started his career.

His footwork is unmatched.

He was full of feints and incredibly clever, but under Simeone, he became a midfield workhorse.

Furthermore, in the original timeline, Simeone didn't quite understand how Atlético Madrid used Felix after acquiring him.

There are many more examples.

Any technically skilled player who joins Atletico Madrid will become a "bloodthirsty warrior".

So Simeone is a top-notch coach, right? He doesn't train players; he just molds them into his image.

But if you call him a second-rate coach, he's the undisputed godfather of Atlético Madrid, leading them to every major title except the Champions League.

Gaio quickly put all these questions out of his mind.

Because the ball is coming!
As Atletico Madrid pressed forward relentlessly, Rothen drifted to the wing and seized the opportunity to deliver a long pass towards Gaio.

Gaio quickly turned his back to block Felipe.

The instant the ball falls.

As Gaio stopped the ball with his foot, he flicked it backward, then took a half step forward, shaking off Filipe's defense, before turning and crossing Filipe from the sideline.

Wow!

This scene sent shivers down the spines of Atletico Madrid fans; they felt a sense of unease every time they saw Gaio with the ball.

There's no way around it, the threat is too great.

The TF1 commentator also said, "Bastia's two goals are really not luck. With a player like Gaião in the attacking third, Atlético Madrid's defense is always under great pressure. To a certain extent, although Gaião did not participate in the defense, his attacking threat reduced Atlético Madrid's attacking intensity, which indirectly helped Bastia's defense."

Courtside.

Felipe was left behind by Gaio in just one move. He was stunned for a second, then quickly buried his head and chased after him.

Fortunately, defensive midfielder Gabi made a timely recovery and blocked Gaio for Felipe, preventing him from cutting inside.

Gaio could only take a few steps forward first.

When he saw Lukaku make a run into position, he immediately stopped and adjusted the ball to his left foot.

Bang!
A long diagonal pass.

The ball flew towards Lukaku's control area, but he was held tightly by Miranda.

As the football falls.

Miranda was still holding him and pulling at him, so Lukaku fell down.

However, when he looked at the referee, he did not express any opinion.

The ball was intercepted by Miranda and passed to full-back Juanfran, who then advanced forward.

Lukaku quit.

"Hey! That's a foul!" He sat on the ground, arms outstretched, and shouted at the referee.

But the referee shook his head, waved his hand at him to tell him to get up quickly, and then stopped looking at Lukaku and turned around to follow Atletico Madrid's attack.

Lukaku was speechless.

He muttered to himself, "Mmm, isn't this a foul?"

As he stood up, he gave Gaio, who was retreating, a thumbs-up, his first compliment of the day.

Lukaku and Gaio slowly retreated.

The other Bastia players, on the other hand, had already retreated deep into defense the moment the ball was lost.

Today they've decided to park the bus at Calderon Stadium.

This is actually a tactic that Atletico Madrid often likes to use.

Atletico Madrid fans will find this very familiar.

At this moment, they also had the same feeling as other team fans when playing against Atletico Madrid.

This is way too much like a tortoise shell!
Just five minutes later, after failing to cross the ball, Atletico Madrid immediately changed their strategy to long-range shots.

Kirk, Raul Garcia, and even Godin all took a kick.

The shooting stats are skyrocketing.

However, the score remained 1-2.

Simeone on the sidelines looked a bit agitated, his movements and expressions quite varied.

On the contrary, Hagi Begic tends to be relatively calm during matches.

Even when Bastia was under pressure and sometimes got the ball, he couldn't get it out of play.

The two sides reached a stalemate.

"Who do you think will score again?" Deschamps couldn't help but ask Zidane.

The latter shook his head, "I'm not really sure. My feeling is that either side could score the next goal."

Deschamps laughed. "Indeed, that's how I feel too."

Both Bastia and Atletico Madrid have their own advantages.

Atletico Madrid are in control. But Bastia possess the ability to deliver the decisive blow.

Zidane looked at Simeone, who was full of passion on the sidelines, and smiled slightly. In his opinion, Simeone was a very genuine person.

But it's really hard to say what will happen in this match.

At that moment, Zidane had no idea what would happen between him and Simeone in the future.

The period from 1970 to 1975 was extremely important for the football world.

During these remarkable five years, a group of midfield maestros who would influence the football world for decades to come were born, including Simeone in 1970 and Zidane in 1972.

Both born in the 70s, Zidane completely outshone Simeone during his playing days.

While Zidane conquered the world with his elegant playing style, Simeone was forever labeled simply as a tough and tenacious player.

In the shadow of Zidane's spectacular Champions League final goal, who can remember what Simeone was doing all those years ago?
Maybe it's just a matter of shoveling, shoveling, and shoveling again, forever just a background figure.

The only time Simeone truly captured the world's attention was perhaps when Beckham kicked him.

right now,

Simeone has taken a big step ahead of Zidane in his coaching career.

Zidane looked at Gaio.

In his heart, he still firmly believed that Gaio was the one who could change the game.

However, Gaio appeared to be somewhat invisible at this moment.

Because Bastia did not have possession of the ball.

Novus is extremely busy.

He went back and forth in front of the goal and made three or four good saves.

Noves' combined defense repeatedly thwarted Atletico Madrid's attacks!

bump!
At Sunset Cafe, everyone's hearts were in their throats as they watched Atlético Madrid's relentless attacks. All they could do was clink glasses and try to relax with the taste of alcohol.

Martin watched the TV screen with some anxiety. "Isn't Atletico Madrid supposed to have the best defense? How come their attack is so fierce? It looks terrifying!"

One person explained, "Because we didn't control the ball and gave it away. Actually, after looking at the situation, apart from our midfield and forward lines being a bit young and our defense being a bit old, we don't have a big disadvantage against Atletico Madrid. Hagi and Bejić should have let the players attack. Maybe if we went attacking, we would have had more opportunities?"

In this way, there are both rebuttals and agreement.

But no matter what.

They knew that their discussion wouldn't affect the game; they were just using it as a way to release their tension.

Even though they scored two goals.

The people of Bastia remain tense.

It's been too long since we've been away from European competitions.

This time, they are facing another powerhouse like Atletico Madrid.

Time passes little by little.

The fans had no idea how much they had drunk; they just felt their bladders were a little bloated, but there were only five or six minutes left in the first half, and they didn't want to leave.

The score at which players enter the locker room has a significant impact on their morale.

How the midfield adjusts its tactics for the second half also has a significant impact!
They wanted to watch it all.

"Geo!"

At 41 minutes, another gasp rang out in the tavern.

Then came regret.

On the TV screen, Gaio was lying on the ground, looking rather helpless.

Gaio supported himself.

Bastia's few counter-attacks, whether by Mane or Gaio, caused Atletico Madrid's defense a lot of trouble.

Apart from the two goals scored earlier.

Lukaku is completely deflated today.

If you don't have the same feel for playing against weaker opponents, you're either missing an opportunity or you're missing a chance.

Gaio was heavily marked by Atletico Madrid, but seeing that Lukaku was out of form, he had no choice but to take over.

Felipe has had enough of the military training tonight.

Gaio used various methods to get past Felipe.

However, Atletico Madrid's defensive speed was indeed fast enough, preventing him from having much shooting space.

That last forced shot failed to control the ball, and it hit a fan randomly.

Gateball.

Courtois quickly took the kick.

Suarez dribbled forward and made a gesture of pressing Lukaku.

Suarez immediately made a through pass, sending the ball to the retreating Adrian Lopez.

Adrian dropped back to provide support.

But he didn't notice that a small black figure popped out from his side and behind.

"Be careful!!"

Suarez was facing him directly; he could see it clearly and roared.

By the time Adrian realized what was happening, it was too late!
Kante rushed over and poked the ball away.

Then they caught up.

Seeing his teammate intercept the ball, Lukaku quickly ran towards the open space in the middle, pointing in front of him to indicate that he wanted to pass the ball.

Kanté did not hesitate.

Bang!
Pass it out with one foot.

Lukaku quickly got into the game, his mind focused on breaking through Atletico Madrid's defense!
He had a very difficult time playing in that half.

We must show them what Drogba of Belgium is all about.

He dribbled the ball.

He took a big tack.

He was stunned.

Gabi seized the opportunity, made a sliding tackle, and blocked the ball, which bounced back.

Lukaku made an emergency stop, turned around, and prepared to rush towards the ball.

But another blue figure was even faster!
Gaio!

Felipe kept running behind him, but was always about half a step behind Gaio.

Felipe tried to pull, but couldn't reach.

Gaio took a step with the ball.

Gabi, who had fallen to the ground, saw Gaio rushing towards him and quickly got up to block Gaio's path.

Lukaku pulled the space forward.

But Miranda was guarding him one-on-one.

Godin also came over to Gaio, ready to cover for him.

Without pausing, Gabi maintained his high-speed dribbling pace. Facing Gabi, he suddenly lowered his shoulder dramatically, his entire body seemingly tilting to his left.

Gabi instinctively thought that Gai had seen Godin coming up to cover him on the right and was going to move to the left flank.

He stretched out a foot to the left, and as soon as Gaio moved forward, he could instantly move to catch up.

But as Gaio moved forward, he poked the ball between his legs with his right foot.

The person instantly changed direction and rushed past him from his right side.

Godin had a very clear view of Gabi's right rear side and immediately went forward.

But just when he thought he could intercept the ball...

Gao's second acceleration!
what?
Both Godin and Gabi, who had already turned around, were startled.

It can even speed things up?!

Gaio beat Godin to the ball, dribbling it forward at full speed and passing him.

Bang!
Before Courtois could even react, he unleashed a powerful shot into the near corner!
Courtois made a diving save.

But he was a little too slow and missed it completely!
Swish!
The football scrambles into the net.

1-3!

Gaio scores twice!

Wow!

Ignoring the gasps from the crowd, Gaio turned and ran to the sidelines, holding up three fingers to the camera.

(End of this chapter)