The road to godhood starting from Ligue 1

Chapter 243 Marseille is no longer a contender for the championship
Wow!
A gasp erupted at the Stade Vélodrome, and a sense of unease settled over the Marseille fans.

Morel was helpless and could only watch as Gaio used his second burst of power in mid-air to kick the ball.

Gaio's body is very flexible, thanks to his top-notch ball control, enhanced flexibility, and improved shooting ability.

Although he was hanging upside down with his back to the goal, his sense of the goal's position was incredibly strong.

Bang!
With a powerful left-footed strike, the ball flew towards the far corner of the goal.

Goalkeeper Mandanda had just seen the ball come to this side and moved his position accordingly, but Gaio's shot went in the opposite direction.

Swish!
Without any obstruction, the football slid smoothly into the net.

no way.

The bicycle kick combines suddenness, concealment, and unpredictability, and Gaio's shot is extremely fast and has a curve.

All these factors combined resulted in Mandanda having extremely little time to react to the shot.

In addition, his positioning is already far forward, Gaio has an incredible ball control, and his bicycle kick can be adjusted to hit the far corner.

Mandanda could only turn his head and watch the ball go into the net.

0-2!

After landing, Gaio turned around and saw the ball go into the net. He excitedly got up, rushed to the sidelines, and slid down to his knees.

Scoring a goal at the Velodrome Stadium is no easy feat.

Last time, even with a squad like PSG's, they only managed a 2-2 draw.

just now.

Bastia has already scored two goals in just thirty minutes!

Gaio scores twice!

"Geo!"

The away fans of Bastia were thrilled to see Gaio slide across the three stripes; nothing is more joyful than seeing Bastia score a goal.

If so, then let's add another one!
They shouted Gaio's name with all their might, but Gaio was too far away from them.

The away tickets that Marseille gave out were all corner seats at the top of the hill.

After sliding to his knees to his feet, Gaio faced the boos from the Marseille die-hards in the Velodrom stands and smiled as he opened his arms.

Winners never care about the losers' incompetent venting.

Click, click, click!
The cameras on the sidelines kept working, faithfully recording every moment.

De Bruyne rushed over and hugged Gaio again.

The teammates embraced each other again.

After a series of celebratory remarks, Gaião gave Mane a hug, saying, "The pass was a little off, but it's not a big deal."

Mane beamed, "Two goals in a row, each one more impressive than the last!"

Haha.

They both laughed.

Courtside.

Haji Begic's smirk was practically reaching for the sky. Marseille first? I'm going to beat them to first place today!

After the initial excitement, Hagi Bejic remained relatively calm, quickly gesturing to the Bastia defenders to remain composed and instructing them to maintain a solid defense.

In this match, the attack can be completely handed over to the frontcourt, and Hagi Begic has no worries at all.

Whether it's Gaio or De Bruyne, they all basically have the ability to attack independently.

His concern was about the defense.

And defense happens to be Hagi Begic's forte, both as a player and as a coach.

He might be unparalleled in coaching offense, but he has a lot of ideas when it comes to defense.

Bopp sighed helplessly, looking up at the sky.

Gaio!

It's Gaio again!

It's still Gaio!

He felt truly powerless against Gaio. He had a very targeted defense against Gaio in this game, but most of the time, Gaio was slow and leisurely, and when he suddenly started moving, neither Morel nor Abdullah, who was tracking back, could keep up.

Andrei Ayew focuses most of his energy on the offensive end, leaving him to rely on Morel and Abdullah on the defensive end.

As a result, neither of them could stop Gaio!
This goal, scored by Gaio in such a way, was practically a knife to his heart.

Bope sat back on the bench and said to assistant coach Alan next to him, "If we want to go all out on offense, where can we adjust our strategy?"

Alan shook his head. "It's difficult. Valbuena is being marked tightly by that little black guy. We need to help him break free, otherwise there will be no one in midfield to pass threatening balls."

Bopp was aware of this as well, and the names of the substitutes flashed through his mind: Remy, Gignac, Laspendino, but none of them were trustworthy.

drop!
Bastia, being playing away from home, didn't celebrate for long before the referee blew his whistle to resume the game.

After a string of excited remarks when Gaio scored, the TF1 commentator continued, "Now it's a huge test for Marseille. Judging from the situation in the last 30 minutes, Marseille's defense simply can't withstand Bastia's attack. The main problem is that Bastia's counter-attack speed is very fast. If Marseille can't suppress Bastia in this aspect, they may concede another goal."

"Tonight, the birthday boy, Gaio, was the focus of the entire match. He proved with two goals that his 60 million euro price tag was not inflated at all. His right flank was also Marseille's most dangerous area. Many teams had previously offered solutions on how to defend against Gaio, but so far, Marseille has not implemented them effectively."

The narration began in the Sunset Cafe.

Bertrand listened, merely smiling, but a thought lingered in his mind: 'Is there really anyone who can stop Gaio?'

Judging from Gaio's current situation, his previously obvious weakness, his weak foot, has been greatly improved.

Gaio's current performance is terrifying, and his 60 million euro market value is also terrifying.

But what's even more frightening is that Gaio is still improving!

It's far from reaching its limit.

"Perhaps he will become the first French player with a market value of over 100 million euros in the future."

In Madrid, Zidane spoke to his wife, Vicarone Zidane.

Vicaroni really likes Gaio, who doesn't like someone with so much talent?
The main reason was that after watching Gaião play a few times with Zidane, Vicarone was attracted by Gaião's playing style, which was very elegant.

She told Zidane, "When you have the chance later, invite Young to our house. Maybe he can play some football with Enzo and the others."

Zidane nodded, but what he agreed with was inviting Gaio to his home, not having them bring his children to play football.

Zidane was well aware that his children's talents were only average.

If they weren't Zidane, they might not even have embarked on a football career.

Not to mention they can also benefit from Real Madrid's youth academy.

Beep!! On the TV, the referee's whistle blew, and the two sides continued to go back and forth until the end of the first half, with the score still 0-2.

On his eighteenth birthday, Gaio scored twice.

'Perhaps a hat trick?'

The thought popped into Zidane's head, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "This is truly a memorable night."

Marseille dressing room.

The cold evening wind blew all the way from the players' tunnel to the locker room.

The players were dejected.

The atmosphere was solemn.

Bope stood with his back to the door, coldly scanning each player who entered with their head down. Heavy breathing was the only sound; this silence was more terrifying than any shout.

Once everyone has arrived.

Suppressing his anger, Bopp said coldly, "Two goals! 2-0! At home! In front of our own fans!"

His voice trembled slightly, and he was struggling to control his emotions.

"What the hell is this?! What the hell is this football?! Were you guys sleeping for the entire 45 minutes of the first half? Were you on vacation? What were you thinking? Didn't you realize that if we lose this game, we won't be number one anymore?! Don't you know our recent record?!"

"Gaio! Gaio! Gaio! I've called that name five times already! That Bastia number 10! We let him tear through our defense twice like he was strolling in the park?! Is he some kind of world-class star? No! We were terrible! Utterly terrible!"

"Look at those two goals we conceded! Gai's breakthrough gave him a penalty, Gai's bicycle kick was just a backdrop for him, our penalty area was like a no-man's-land! The center-backs were sleepwalking! The flanks were completely undefended! Where was the tracking back? Where was the support? Where was your fighting spirit? Where was your pride? What does wearing this Marseille jersey represent? Have you all forgotten!"

His tone grew increasingly intense, and Bopp took a deep breath to compose himself.

He then continued, "And there's more!"

"Attack! What are you attacking? Passing around so slowly, all 11 of them are just sitting in the penalty area watching! No running, no incisive passing, no adventurous spirit! Charge at them like men! Bastia! They're a newly promoted team! What are we afraid of? We're Marseille, aiming for the title!"

"Disgrace! This is a disgrace! 0-2 at halftime, before the locker room door closed, I heard boos from outside! Those were our own fans! One of the greatest fans in Europe! They paid a lot of money to come watch us play in the cold, and this is how you repay them with this piece of crap?!"

Every word he uttered completely ignited Bopp's emotions. The veteran coach is known for his fiery temper and strict demands, so it's easy to imagine his anger at conceding such a goal in this crucial match that determined the top spot.

The players hung their heads, their breath, white from the cold, dissipating into the air. Their confidence in the season, like that breath, gradually vanished into thin air.
The second half is about to begin.

As the Bastia players headed toward the tunnel, De Bruyne stood side-by-side with Gaio, saying, "Run more, try to score another one, and take tonight's goal home as a memento."

A hat trick is a souvenir that lets you take the ball home.

De Bruyne's idea was simple: a hat trick on his eighteenth birthday night would be even more perfect.

From his perspective, he couldn't help but imagine this scene—years later, Gaio could tell his children the story of this ball, the night his father turned eighteen, the night Bastia reached the summit.
Gaio clearly didn't have that many thoughts; he just smiled and said, "Don't worry, if you can score, who would miss?"

As the players entered the field.

Despite the cold wind, Marseille fans cheered enthusiastically once again, supporting their team.

Two goals might not be out of the question?

Neither side made any personnel changes. Hagi Bejic felt that the current lineup was complete, and the starting players were gaining more and more confidence as they played, so there was no need to make any changes.

Bope has no cards to play.

In fact, many Marseille fans were already questioning Bopp at halftime.

It's very simple; it's about questioning his ability to adjust on the spot.

Marseille's many previous losses or draws were due to being on the back foot, and in those situations, Bopp was unable to make effective adjustments.

An old general is an old general after all.

drop!
The whistle blew, and the second half of the game began.

After Marseille kicked off, Bastia quickly retreated, employing the same tactics as in the first half.

After all, there are successful examples to follow.

As the match progressed, the chants of encouragement from the Marseille fans in the stands grew louder and louder.

"Forward! L'OM!"

A storm is coming!

The first goal is coming soon.
The second one, the third one!
"Reversing the situation to show the world"

The sound is rolling.

Bang!
Jordan Ayew unleashed a powerful long-range shot, but unfortunately, the ball went wide and he completely missed the mark.

This goal also clearly showed that the Marseille players were somewhat agitated.

Trailing by two goals, they had no good way to deal with Bastia's defensive style.

Valbuena was shut down by Kanté, and the Ayew brothers were helpless against Bastia's swarm tactics, and could only try to shoot from the outside.

Bopp was getting anxious.

Marseille's performance this season is a classic example of starting strong but ending weak. Thanks to the "buff" of changing managers at the beginning of the season, they won all the way and took first place.

However, after ten rounds, Marseille entered a period of decline, partly due to injury problems and partly because Bope's three tricks had been thoroughly figured out.

After all, even a player like Gaio, who had a stellar start to the season, was targeted by other teams, let alone Marseille's simple tactics.

The more aggressively Marseille attacks, the better it is for Bastia.

Until the 60th minute, Marseille prepared to make their first substitution. Bastia launched four extremely threatening counter-attacks, making the entire Marseille fan's heart pound.

Number 11, Remy, was waiting on the sidelines.

"Bop made the first personnel change, bringing on number 11 Remy. I don't know if this is a like-for-like substitution or a gamble on offense by substituting a defensive player."
I think it's highly likely they'll make a like-for-like substitution, taking off Andre Ayew. Firstly, Marseille doesn't have much squad depth, and secondly, they're hesitant to gamble on attacking by substituting defensive players. Bastia's counter-attacks are too sharp, especially Gaio's, who has practically turned the right flank into a wide-open road.

Hey!
Before the TF1 commentator could even finish speaking, gasps erupted from the Velodrom Stadium.

It's the right wing again!

Gaio suddenly shook off Morel and Abdullah's defense and cut inside into the penalty area.

Goalkeeper Mandanda immediately closed in.

Lucas Mendes blocked Gaio's left side to prevent him from shooting with his left foot. Everyone knows Gaio has a strong left foot, so he absolutely cannot be allowed to shoot.

however,
Gaio suddenly flicked his left foot, sending the ball to his right side without hesitation.

Bang!
Gaio unleashed a powerful right-footed shot into the near corner!

Swish!
Mandanda didn't expect Gaio to shoot with his weaker foot. He reacted a fraction of a second too late, and that tiny bit of slowness meant he couldn't reach the ball and watched helplessly as it went into the net!

The ball went in!
0-3!

With this goal, Marseille is no longer Bastia's title rival!

(End of this chapter)