Chapter 149 "I want you to swear to God..."

Fino was amused by the Spaniard's little trick.

“Thank you, Xavi.” He stepped forward and hugged Alonso. “It’s beautiful, I love it.”

Alonso took Fino's hand and helped him remove his old watch and put on the new one.

Fino raised his wrist and examined it carefully. This watch was the same type as the one he used to wear, both belonging to Patek Philippe's perpetual calendar chronograph series.

“You really like Patek Philippe, don’t you? I’ve noticed you often wear this watch, the 5970. It’s a very nice model, a blend of classic and modern. It’s discontinued now.” Alonso fiddled with the watch he had just taken off Fino’s wrist. The 5270 he gave Fino was the successor to the 5970.

Fino shook her head: "I don't know much about watches. As long as it's understated and elegant, that's fine. I wear it often because it's a gift from a friend."

Alonso's heart skipped a beat, but he casually asked, "Is it Pirlo?"

Fino smiled and nodded.

“Hmm, that’s his taste.” Alonso returned the watch Pirlo had given him to Fino.

"Will you wear the gift I gave you often?"

Fino smiled and nodded again: "I will!"

Alonso didn't say anything more; he just stared intently into Fino's eyes.

Fino was somewhat taken aback by his gaze: "Harvey?"

Alonso reached out and ruffled his hair again, changing the subject: "Champions League, Golden Boot, Ballon d'Or... Fini, have you achieved all your football dreams?"

Fino shook his head.

"Is it the European Championship and the World Cup? That dream is a bit difficult to achieve," Alonso joked. "You missed the strongest Italy, but you ran into the peak Spain."

Fino shook his head again: "I don't actually have any football dreams."

Perhaps it was the atmosphere that was so wonderful, or perhaps Fino was influenced by the emotions he had felt while he was lost in thought earlier, but he suddenly felt the urge to confide in someone.

"Let me tell you a secret, I actually got into football because of Maldini." Fino put his index finger to his lips.

"When I first signed the contract, I only saw playing football as a job with a decent salary, a job that would allow me to be close to Maldini. But the atmosphere in the Milan dressing room was so great. Most of my teammates were much older than me, and they were very friendly and took good care of me. Gradually, my thoughts on playing football changed. I wanted to fulfill their wishes and win championships for them."

“Kaka always quoted from the Bible, and one sentence in particular stuck with me: ‘If you want one, God will give you ten.’ I don’t have any religious beliefs, but this sentence really applies to my situation. I did it. I won the league title and the Champions League with my Milan teammates, and I also won many individual awards.”

“My time in Milan was wonderful. I loved the atmosphere of unity, friendship, and high spirits.” Fino sighed as he said this. “But good times are always short-lived. Now Maldini has retired, and I have also left Milan.”

Alonso silently placed his hand on Fino's shoulder, imagining the torment Fino had endured this summer.

Realizing the atmosphere was a bit somber, Fino changed the subject: "Although I don't have any football dreams, you know, no player is lacking in competitiveness. I want to win, I want to be the best player in the world, and my team must also become the best team in the world. Isn't that part of the meaning of playing football?"

“Of course.” Alonso kissed his forehead. “Let’s work together to restore Real Madrid’s glory!”

“One more thing!” Fino tilted his head and looked at Alonso with a mischievous smile. “My national team must also become the best national team in the world, so whether it’s the European Championship or the World Cup, I will show the peak Spain what it’s all about.”

"We'll see!" A gentle smile appeared in Alonso's eyes.

...

On December 21, at the FIFA 2009 awards ceremony, Fino took home the FIFA World Player of the Year award, which brought a few days of relief to the worried Merengue players – it was hard not to be worried, as Kaká's injury situation was not optimistic.

Following the El Clásico at the end of November, Kaká felt discomfort in his groin, a recurring problem he had suffered from during his time at AC Milan. An initial examination by the team doctor indicated a flare-up of his chronic groin injury, requiring him to be sidelined for a week.

However, a week later, Kaka's injury had not improved. After another examination, the team doctor confirmed that Kaka's groin needed a longer period of rest. The club also did not want Kaka to risk playing with an injury in the middle of the season. After comprehensive consideration, Kaka's rest period was extended to early January.

After Kaká's injury, Pellegrini resumed his rotation experiment, with Marcelo, Raúl, Van der Vaart, and Alonso being placed in the attacking midfield position to replace Kaká's role.

The test results left the Meringer team very dissatisfied!

Despite Real Madrid winning all four matches after Kaká's injury, including a high-scoring 6-0 victory, all of them were against weaker opponents. Such victories held little significance for the Merengues, who sought beautiful, elegant, and dominant wins.

On January 10th, Kaká finally recovered from his injury and returned to the field in the 17th round of the league, playing at home against Mallorca. However, his good fortune was short-lived. Two months later, Kaká was sidelined again due to a left adductor muscle injury. This time, his absence was equally long, and he did not officially return to the field until mid-April.

In mid-April, on the eve of Kaká's comeback, a media siege against him began.

First, AS reported on a revelation from an anonymous Real Madrid player who claimed that Kaká had fully recovered and was as strong as an ox in training.

Following this, El Confidencial reported that Real Madrid's team doctor and physical trainer jointly issued a certificate stating that Kaká had fully recovered from his injury and was ready to return to the game, but Kaká refused to play.

Marca also unearthed comments made by Brazilian national team coach Dunga a few months ago, in which he publicly declared that Brazilian national team players should hold back at their clubs in order to prepare for the World Cup.

The media has been trying to portray Kaká as a negative figure who takes a high salary from Real Madrid but doesn't put in the effort and is conserving his energy for the World Cup.

With the combined efforts of the media, the topic of "Kaka faking an injury" quickly went viral online, generating a huge amount of discussion that continued until the end of the season.

A survey conducted by a Spanish Real Madrid fan forum revealed that 45.71% of fans answered "yes" to the question, "Do you think Kaká's reluctance to play is to conserve his energy for the World Cup?" and 82.86% answered "yes" to the question, "Do you think Kaká will perform better at the World Cup than at Real Madrid?"

Fans who were already dissatisfied with Real Madrid's performance this season were furious and felt they had finally found an outlet for their emotions. Some radical fans even shouted: "Liars, go back to San Siro!"

Kaká's injury has partly contributed to Real Madrid's failure to win any major trophies this season.

Florentino was also dissatisfied with the results of the second-generation Galácticos' first year. The humiliating defeat to a third-division team in the first round of the Copa del Rey could be considered a strategic concesion, and missing the league title by one point was also barely tolerable. What Florentino found most intolerable was being defeated twice by Barcelona in the league and failing to make a breakthrough in the Champions League.

He's already bought the best players in the world, so why isn't the team's performance improving? After much thought, it all seems to be the head coach's problem, so the only solution is to replace him.

The La Liga season concludes on May 16, while the South Africa World Cup will kick off on June 11, leaving national teams with only a little over twenty days to prepare.

After the La Liga season ended, Fino only had two days of rest before heading straight to the Coverciano training ground.

Before leaving Madrid, he visited Kaká.

Kaka's two long-term injuries this season, totaling nearly three months, not only caused him to miss the second leg of the Spanish El Clásico, but also prevented him from playing a full match in the few league games remaining after his return. He was either substituted early or made a substitute role. The all-powerful Kaka from three years ago seems to be dragged down from his pedestal by injuries.

Fino was very worried about Kaká, whose current weak physical condition might not be able to adapt to the high-intensity, high-density rhythm of the World Cup.

"Fini, whether I like it or not, as long as my legs can still move, I have to go to South Africa. The Brazilian national team needs me." Kaka shook his head with a wry smile.

After Dunga took over, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Adriano, who lacked self-discipline, were directly dropped by Dunga, and Kaká became the only superstar in the Brazilian team.

Dunga gave him maximum tactical freedom, nurturing him into the team's offensive playmaker and building him up for two years. Despite suffering two major injuries this season, Dunga still included him in the South Africa World Cup squad, despite pressure from the domestic media.

In this situation, he had no choice but to die on the World Cup field; the die was cast and he had to go.

There was another thing he couldn't tell Fino: the Brazilian national team doctor, Renco, wasn't optimistic about his injury, but the Brazilian national team coaching staff kept encouraging him to be "dedicated," and his father, Bosco, kept encouraging him to "be brave, God will bless you."

"Don't worry, let's try conservative treatment until after the World Cup. I'll have surgery immediately after the World Cup to completely resolve the groin problem." Kaka patted Fino's hand.

Fino grasped Kaka's hand in return, looked into Kaka's eyes, and said seriously, "Then promise me you will act within your limits and will never take injections just to play!"

A nerve block injection is a pain relief method used in conservative treatment. It cannot cure the injury or disease; it only forcibly suppresses pain and inflammation.

A nerve block injection allows players to continue playing high-intensity games without feeling pain. This is an emergency measure that sacrifices long-term health for short-term playing time, which is too costly and could even ruin a player's career.

Fino couldn't stop a player from sacrificing himself for national honor, but he also couldn't stand by and watch his friend's career be ruined.

Kaka stared intently into Fino's eyes, then closed them and nodded after a long while.

"good……"

"I want you to swear to God that you won't get a painkiller injection for the World Cup!" Fino emphasized again.

"good……"

Kaka got up, took the Bible, placed his hand on it, and solemnly repeated Fino's words.

"I will not take any pain-relieving injections for the World Cup."

Fino reached out and touched Kaka's hair.

-----------------------

The author notes: 5270 was actually launched in 2011, a year later than the timeline mentioned in the article.

In reality, Kaká's injury initially manifested in his groin area. He played with a pain-relieving injection, which masked a more serious problem: his meniscus. He didn't have surgery during his vacation after the World Cup, and it wasn't until Real Madrid's training camp in August that the team doctor discovered his meniscus problem. He then underwent surgery, and during his recovery from the meniscus surgery, he also received treatment for his groin.

There's a lot of back and forth between the Brazilian national team, Real Madrid, and Kaká. Kaká says he's been experiencing knee pain since the season started, while Real Madrid's team doctor says it's caused by his groin. The Real Madrid doctor claims Kaká never mentioned knee pain, and they only discovered the problem when the team assembled for the new season. The Brazilian national team says Kaká is in excellent physical condition and only started experiencing knee pain in the final week of the World Cup.

Brazil's comments angered Real Madrid even more, because despite discovering the knee problem, they still let Kaka play with injections. Real Madrid speculated that Brazil deliberately concealed Kaka's meniscus problem in order to get him on the field, since Kaka wouldn't feel as much pain after the injections. But this is actually extremely dangerous; if the ligaments were torn, Kaka's career would basically be over.

Real Madrid fans felt that Kaká concealed his injury from the team, going on vacation after the World Cup and only undergoing surgery during training camp, followed by paid recovery time, which they considered a serious issue with his professionalism. Mourinho shared similar views with the fans.

Fino doesn't have a system, a cheat code, or the ability to predict the future, so he can't foresee or cure Kaka's injuries. However, the Kaka in the story didn't receive pain-relieving injections like in reality, so his meniscus problem was discovered earlier, allowing for earlier surgery. Through surgery and rest, he will fully recover.

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