Chapter 112
Back in the locker room, Cristiano was surrounded by Figo and others.
"What did your club coach say to you?" Figo asked.
Carvalho also frowned: "How bad is the situation?"
As soon as he said this, Deco and Figo elbowed him. He gasped in pain, then came to his senses and quickly explained, "No, I mean... it won't be too bad."
Cristiano grinned at his teammates and said casually: "It's nothing bad. The boss told me that the club will handle it and it will not affect my playing in the club."
"That's all?" Figo frowned slightly. He didn't think things would be as easy as Cristiano said. He knew very well the madness of the club's fans. Even if Ferguson was to handle it, it would probably be difficult.
Cristiano shrugged: "That's all for now."
He looked at Figo, his eyes calmed down: "At least for now, these shouldn't be the things that occupy all my energy. We still have the World Cup to play. I won't allow these to affect my game and state."
Figo paused. He knew that Cristiano had an extremely firm belief and a burning ambition for the World Cup, but what he didn't expect was that in such a terrible situation, their young player still remained calm and persistent.
He didn't think Cristiano didn't realize what kind of situation he was about to face, but the boy showed a calmness beyond his age, as if he was accustomed to indifference.
He couldn't help but frown and couldn't help wondering what kind of terrible public opinion environment Cristiano had gotten used to in England.
"Luis, you know all I care about is the game and you, the people who play with me, nothing else matters," Cristiano said to Figo.
"I am glad to hear you say that, my child." A voice interrupted.
Cristiano looked over and saw Scolari striding into their locker room.
Scolari patted Chris on the shoulder and said, "I've said before that you have a big heart, which can help you go further. But right now, there is a decision you need to make immediately."
He paused and looked at Cristiano: "Are you going to attend the post-match interview later?"
"This is inappropriate." Figo immediately interrupted Scolari and looked at Scolari. "You and I both know what questions the media will ask later. They will not miss such a big news. If Cristiano attends, he will be on the crest of the wave."
"I know." Scolari responded, looking at Figo, "but the decision is in Cristiano's hands. He at least has the opportunity to explain himself."
He said, emphasizing: "This will not be the only difficult problem he will face in his career. He has to learn to make his own decisions."
Figo fell silent.
Scolari has always believed that Figo was too protective of Cristiano - although he admitted that he had always been more indulgent with the boy than with others, he preferred to let Cristiano grow up wild.
"You can't always treat him as a child," Scolari said.
Figo said nothing more, he understood what Scolari meant - he couldn't always protect Cristiano, he would leave the national team soon, not just him, but also Deco, Nuno, Costa... Cristiano would have to learn to be alone sooner or later.
He turned to Cristiano: "What are you going to do?"
Seeing this, Scolari knew that Figo had decided to let go, and he turned to Cristiano.
"Of course I will attend the post-match interview." Cristiano answered without hesitation. He smiled and winked at Figo and Scolari. "Except for that unexpected episode, I at least played a good role in this game, right?"
Figo rubbed the boy's curly hair with a helpless smile. He knew Cristiano said this on purpose. He could only suppress his worries and nodded in response: "Yes, Chris, go ahead. I'll be right next to you."
Cristiano grinned broadly at Figo.
Scolari choked, well, he couldn't expect Figo to let go all of a sudden.
"Let me tidy myself up first, after all, I have to be on camera," said Cristiano.
After he said that, he went into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and the water rushed down.
Cristiano leaned against the tiled wall, closed his eyes and took deep breaths. He knew he was not as calm as he appeared.
But he knew he would get through it. It's okay, he whispered to himself, Cristiano, you will survive, always, those noises can't kill you.
///
The reporter pointed the microphone at Cristiano: "Ronaldo, you scored a long-distance free kick in the regular time of this game. How many goals have you scored in the World Cup?"
"I didn't count." Cristiano shrugged and smiled. "Did you count for me?"
"The commentator described your free kick as a rocket. We all see that it seems to be gradually becoming your trademark. Have you ever thought about giving it a name?" another reporter followed up.
Cristiano looked over and nodded casually: "Then let's call it 'Rocket', ROCKET?"
The first few reporters were all from Portugal, and their questions were friendly, but then a voice in authentic British English interrupted:
"Ronaldo, now the English fans online are boycotting you to return to Manchester United after the World Cup. What do you think about this? You got your club-teammate sent off with a red card in the World Cup." The British reporter asked sharply, and then said, "You have to win the game for your national team, of course, but have you considered the club's problems?"
Figo frowned and looked at the reporter, but he said nothing.
"First of all, I have to say that it was not me who got my club-teammate sent off. Both Vazza and I tried to explain the accidental waving to the referee." Cristiano looked at the other party.
He opened his mouth and wanted to explain the situation on the field, but he suddenly felt too lazy to say anything - whether he said it or not, the media and reporters were committed to portraying him as a devil, an arrogant and unmodest guy, a sinner who betrayed the club, so why should he waste his words?
Those who are willing to believe in him will always be willing to stand on his side, and these are the only friends he needs.
Cristiano pursed his lips. Perhaps this was just a list of people who had been screened out in advance to determine which were friends and which were just colleagues. That was it.
He exhaled and looked at the reporter in front of him: "That's what I want to say."
"I will always respect the game and respect fairness. I will continue to show my competitive level. As for returning to England and returning to the club, that will come later. As long as Sir Alex Ferguson still needs me, I will be there."
The English reporter was surprised and angry. He almost poked the microphone in front of Cristiano's eyes: "Is this what you want to say? You have no intention of apologizing at all?"
Figo blocked the other party's microphone and said coldly: "Hey, calm down. What do you think Cristiano needs to apologize for? For winning the game for his country and scoring a goal? This is a bit inappropriate."
"I'm sorry that England was eliminated. As for Rooney's red card, that was the referee's decision. If you insist that an apology is needed here, then maybe you have found the wrong person." He said with a smile, then put his arm around Cristiano, "Anything else you want to ask? It seems there is none. Let's leave first. After all, we still need to rest well and prepare for the semi-final."
Figo didn't give the Englishman in front of him any chance to respond. He pulled Cristiano over and left the back area directly.
They returned to the bus. Deco, Carvalho and others also finished their interviews and got on the bus one after another. Seeing Cristiano and Figo were already on the bus, they couldn't help but blink: "The interview went well? It ended so soon?"
"That's about it. Luis finished the interview for me." Cristiano nudged his chin, motioning to the Portugal captain who was already sitting in the driver's seat.
Deco sneered when he heard this: "This is really not surprising."
He knew that Figo would not allow those reporters to swallow Cristiano.
Carvalho then asked: "So the journalist asked you about the red card? What did you say?"
"Is everyone here?" Figo interrupted Carvalho.
Carvalho knew the captain was in a bad mood when he heard his tone. He shrank his neck and responded casually, "We're all here. We should be the last group to finish the interview, right?"
"Yes," Deco replied.
"Then sit down," Figo ordered.
Deco paused when he saw this: "You come to drive the bus?!"
"I have a first-class driver's license. Are you asking this?" Figo glanced at Deco, then started the engine, shifted gears, stepped on the accelerator, and the bus rushed out.
Deco: “…”
Grass.
Cristiano roared and opened the car window. The evening breeze in Schalke was howling, as if mixed with the noise of screams. He stuck his head out of the window and faced the wind in his face, which made it almost impossible for him to open his eyes.
Figo drove the bus like a sports car.
The team members on the bus all held on to their seat belts tightly.
Deco, who was sitting behind Cristiano, screamed, "For God's sake! Cristiano! Don't stick your head out of the window!"
Carvalho next door grabbed Cristiano back and said, "Damn it Chris, protect your pretty face!"
Cristiano vented his emotions happily, but soon after being caught by Carvalho, he began to feel sleepy due to Figo's continuous rapid lane changes.
He grabbed the headphones on the seat and put them on his ears, closed his eyes, and muttered, "Let someone pick a movie. We have a long way to go back."
"Oh my god, you dare to watch a movie while Figo is driving? Don't you get carsick?" Carvalho rolled his eyes while trying to choose a movie, but he had a problem with this new type of car DVD player and didn't understand it at all. He turned to look for Deco and said, "Hey, Chris wants to watch a movie, can you help him get it?"
"Watch a movie?" Deco scratched his head and turned his head subconsciously, "Ricardo, help Chris get the DV in the car... Shit."
Behind him, the position where their heroic goalkeeper should have sat tonight was now empty.
As the brave goalkeeper who saved many threatening shots on target in the regular season tonight, saved two penalties in the penalty shootout, and laid a solid foundation for Portugal's advancement, Ricardo was dragged by reporters for more than half an hour during the post-interview.
When he walked out of the back mining area and came to where the national team bus was parked, he looked around in confusion - where had their bus gone?
"Luis! Luis Figo! Stop the car!! We left Ricardo on the pitch!"
“…”
///
The atmosphere in the England locker room was awkward and depressing. Everyone sat on the bench with their heads down, looking depressingly listless.
Head coach Eriksson walked in, frowned, looked around, and called out, "Rooney, come here, I want to ask you a few questions."
Rooney wiped his face in frustration, responded and walked over.
"What do you want to ask me?" he asked.
Eriksson stared into Rooney's eyes, his eyes were as sharp and cold as a hawk: "What did Ronaldo say to you on the court?"
"He told me to calm down," Rooney said dejectedly, trying to explain himself, "Then I came to my senses, I just waved my hand subconsciously, and I didn't expect to bump into the referee by such a damn coincidence..."
"So he did say something to you," Eriksson interrupted Rooney.
Rooney was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "What do you mean?"
Eriksson didn't say anything else, just looked at Rooney deeply, then turned and walked into the locker room, saying to the others inside: "Let's go, kids, cheer up, we lost, but this 10 vs. 11 game is not fair!"
Alan raised his head when he heard this, he looked at their head coach, narrowed his eyes slightly, and then turned to Rooney.
Ferdinand and Neville looked over in confusion.
Rooney also seemed a little dazed. He seemed like he had not yet come to his senses and his mind was in a mess.
Everyone stood up and followed Eriksson to the back area. Alan walked up to Rooney and bumped into him: "What does he mean?"
"I don't know?" Rooney pursed his lips, but he felt a little uneasy. "Alan, those reporters will definitely hate me for getting a red card. They will tear me apart."
"No one will tear you apart." Alan said, he squeezed Rooney's shoulder, "I was next to you, I saw clearly that it was a coincidence, but... all the coincidences came together, I will explain it for you."
Rooney responded slowly: "Oh, yes, you are right next to us... Thank you, Alan."
Alan glanced at him and said nothing more, just patted Rooney on the shoulder.
England's post-interview team pulled up a long table and conducted the press conference in a serious and formal manner.
When Beckham and his team stepped into the interview area, the spotlights and discussions suddenly exploded.
Rooney paused slightly and was immediately pushed onto the field by Alan.
After answering basic and common procedural questions, the reporters' questions began to become more targeted and sharp.
Rooney almost buried his head under the table. He was England's sinner.
Eriksson cleared his throat, pulled the microphone from the table and said: "In the first half, we played tit-for-tat with Portugal and showed them a strong threat that was enough to make them cautious. But in the second half, we had to become a team of ten at the beginning and played an unfair game."
"We did lose, but we did everything we could and I believe if Rooney was still on the pitch, the result would have been different."
"Ronaldo needs to win games for his country, there is nothing wrong with that. But I ask all the England fans, please don't blame Rooney, he is England's golden boy and England needs him."
After Erickson finished speaking, he gently pushed the microphone away, indicating that he had finished speaking.
The reporters in the audience were really in an uproar. The guidance and hints in Eriksson's words were obvious. Rooney looked at his coach suddenly, his face and neck flushed red.
Is this what Eriksson had confirmed with him outside the locker room?
Eriksson met Rooney's gaze, leaned forward slightly, covered his mouth and whispered: "Rooney, do you see those angry people down there? When we return to England, their numbers will only increase ten thousand times."
"They need an outlet for their anger. I don't want the national team's gate to become a dumping ground for them to throw stones and garbage. Do you understand?"
Rooney's eyes widened and he wanted to say something, but Eriksson just sat up straight and didn't give Rooney a chance to answer.
All the cameras and microphones below were aimed at Rooney.
Damn it. Rooney took a deep breath. His hands on the table were shaking. He couldn't help but hold them down with his other hand to avoid looking so timid and panicked.
So Cristiano was facing these same group of ferocious reporters just now? He dared to guarantee that the guy would perform much better than him.
Rooney thought to himself aimlessly, Calm down, Wazza, calm down. He thought of Cristiano's voice again, clear as water, which made him clear-headed.
"Your club-teammates got you sent off, what do you want to say?"
"Did Ronaldo apologize to you after the game? Will you forgive him?"
"Do you think Manchester United would welcome Ronaldo back?"
"There are already tens of thousands of English fans online who have signed a petition to boycott Ronaldo's return to England. What do you think Sir Alex Ferguson will do?"
A string of reason suddenly snapped back into place in Rooney's mind - what would Sir Alex Ferguson do? Sir Alex Ferguson doesn't care if the England team is beaten back by the Portuguese!
He might as well pray that after returning to England, Ferguson, angered by crazy fans, will give them an inhumane, completely closed training session, isolating them from the world.
"At the club, Cristiano is undoubtedly our key player." Rooney spoke and took a deep breath. He could clearly hear the gasps and curses from the audience after he said this.
Someone called him a coward, but he pretended not to hear it. He was booed quite a few times anyway. He then said: "Manchester United needs him, coach Ferguson needs him, and I need him too."
Eriksson looked at Rooney suddenly, narrowed his gloomy eyes, and pursed his lips expressionlessly.
"The red card on the field was an accident. No one needs to apologize to anyone."
"When it happened, Cristiano and I tried our best to explain it to the referee. I'm sorry this happened, but I've learned my lesson from it and I beg you to give me another chance to give England all my abilities." Rooney said in a dry and hoarse voice, lowering his head with great sincerity.
The reporters could not accept such an answer, they would rather believe what they saw - Ronaldo said something, Rooney waved his hand, this must be a set-up! Otherwise, how could Portugal beat England? That team has rarely even made it past the group stage!
Ferdinand and Neville frowned and played with their mobile phones quietly under the table. They went on the social platform to read the news online. It was just as the reporters said. Even the entry #CR7Get out of Manchester United# was ranked first on the world trend list.
Neville looked at Ferdinand and they exchanged a look - the situation was terrible.
Their chat group was vibrating wildly. When they clicked on it, they saw that it was the [Kaka Observation Group] that they had created behind Ronnie's back that was flooding the screen with messages like:
【Kean: What’s going on? How did Ronnie get involved in this red card thing? ? 】
Giggs: You English people really are
[Neville: ...Don't force me to change the name of the group [Love and Dear Great Britain]]
[Ferdinand: Don't ask me, the referee had already shown the red card when I went over]
[Neville: +1, I have pushed Ronnie out of the encirclement as quickly as possible. If you don’t believe me, ask Leo]
[Ferdinand: 111]
[Neville: Alan should be close? 】
[Keane changed the group chat name to "Protect our Ronnie"]
[Keane invites "Alan" to join the group chat]
[Alan: ...?] What group is this? 】
[Alan: ...I was wondering what the two of you are doing with your heads down @Ferdinand, @Neville]
[Neville: Were you at the red card scene? What happened to Ronnie and Wazza? 】
[Alan: He kicked Carvalho, the referee gave him a yellow card, Deco asked the referee for a red card, he pushed Deco again, but was stopped by Ronnie]
[Alan: Ronnie asked him to calm down, and I think he listened to him. As a result, he turned around with a big swing of his arm, and just happened to wave away the yellow card given by the referee, and he got a red card. That’s it]
【Kean: ……】
【Ferdinand: ……】
[Neville: …]
【Fanni: ……】
【Alan: Why are you in this group? @Fanny】
[Fanni: Hey, be respectful to your seniors]
Alan: ...
[Randy: Wow, you English people really hate Ronnie? View trend list [Share pictures]】
[Raudio: To be honest, it's good that you English fans scared him away, because Real Madrid wants him]
[Fanny has been removed from the group chat by group owner Keane]
Alan: ...
[Keane invites "Fanny" to join the group chat]
[Kean: Do you have anything else to say? @Fanny】
[Fanni: [shares picture] [@3gerardpique: @cristiano, hey bro! I bet the Barcelona fans will give you a warm welcome! Spain will love you! ]
[Randy: Take care of your Manchester United people! Gerard Pique! He directly invited Ronnie to Barcelona under the tag? Don't you care? Barcelona? ? Warning to Ronnie, you can go to Atletico Madrid, or Barcelona? Never allowed]
[Kean: Don't let me kick you out again, be careful with your words, Luther @Fanni]
[Rooney: Pique will definitely be loaned out by BOSS next season]
[Kean: Did you get the phone? @Rooney】
[Rooney: I was just interviewing. I just said that none of you speak! ! ! @Ferdinand, @Neville, @Alan】
[Alan: You said it very well. I have nothing to add.]
Rooney: Really? Hey, thanks.
[Ferdinand: Eriksen's face didn't look very good]
[Neville: He may be worried that his villa will be smashed by fans]
[Alan: @Ferdinand, @Neville, look up, it's your turn to speak]
"As Ronaldo's club teammate and a key player in the England national team, Ferdinand, Neville, Alan, what do you think of Ronaldo's betrayal?"
"What did I miss?" Neville cleared his throat, grabbed the microphone, and asked seriously, "Maybe I missed some plots? Does anyone mind explaining to me the plots you filled in?"
Ferdinand and Alan almost laughed out loud, but fortunately they held it back, after all, they were interviewed after this losing game.
"As a professional player, national team games and club games are equally important to me. I won't let these two things affect each other. This is unprofessional. We will give our best competitive state in every game. Winning is what we pursue." Neville continued, "I don't want to answer questions about the club on this occasion, but if you insist on asking, then I can only say-"
"The club has a good structure now and we have won the Premier League two years in a row. So, yes, as Wazza said, at the club, we need Cristiano."
Neville is the club's vice-captain, so it's understandable that he would say that, the reporters thought, and turned to Ferdinand without giving up.
Ferdinand raised his eyebrows: "Don't you care about the game itself? The defeat in the World Cup has made us see where we are lacking, so I plan to do some targeted extra training..."
He was interrupted by an impatient reporter: "Please answer my question."
He had to say: "Well, it seems that you are more interested in the club's issues. So what I want to say is that maybe you should know that when Cristiano played a friendly match with us on behalf of Sporting Lisbon, it was me and several defenders who shouted to Sir Alex Ferguson, buy him, we can't miss him. My thoughts have not changed."
Reporter: "Alan Smith? We all saw you swap jerseys with Ronaldo at halftime, you..."
Alan took the microphone and interrupted the other party: "Yes, the jersey is in my luggage bag now, do you want to see it?"
"If you also want to ask me questions about Cristiano and the club, then I have only one answer." He looked at the other person coldly, "Go count how many goals he scored last season, take a look at who won the Premier League Golden Boot, and then look at the data of the top scorers in other major leagues, and you will know my answer."
Reporters: “…”
Eriksson's face became darker and darker. What a bunch of lunatics! When he returns to England, he will never take the same bus with them!
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