Chapter 643 Returning Home in Glory
As soon as we left the Lisbon airport and headed west, we could see the Alvalade Stadium in the distance.
Su Dong sat by the window, looking at the magnificent stadium in the distance.
The stadium was renovated for the 2004 European Cup and now looks even more impressive.
But it also made Su Dong feel a little unfamiliar.
"This should be your first time coming back as a visiting team, right?" Pepe asked with a smile, sitting next to Su Dong.
Su Dong nodded. He didn’t play for Sporting Lisbon for a long time, even shorter than Pepe, but this was his first stop in the professional league. For him, there are always some special memories.
Especially his friendship with Ronnie, Pepe and others.
"I still remember clearly that when I came to Portugal from China alone, I took this road. From afar, I saw the Alvalade Stadium, which looked like a dormant beast. The man who deceived me was sitting in a taxi, pointing at the stadium and telling me that this was the best team in Portugal. I was thinking at the time, how great would it be if I could play football here one day?"
Su Dong spoke softly, and only Pepe could hear it clearly. The Portuguese center back also listened very carefully.
He could feel that Su Dong was in a complicated mood at this moment.
Over the years, he never returned to Sporting Lisbon, and even if he returned to Lisbon, he was unwilling to visit the team.
This team and this city bring him good memories, but also painful ones.
"The first time I walked into this stadium, Ronnie gave me the ticket. I watched Jardel score a goal in the game, and tens of thousands of people cheered for him. That feeling will be unforgettable for me. I swore in my heart that one day I would be like him and become a player like Jardel."
Pepe could understand Su Dong's feelings because he had experienced them before.
In Maritimo, he tried his best in every training session and every game. Everyone said he was a mad dog, but he didn't care, because he knew that only in this way could he gain a foothold, make money and change the environment at home.
From the day he set foot on the land of Madeira Islands, he had no choice and no way out!
He can only succeed! If he hadn't met Su Dong, he didn't know what he would become.
Su Dong was like a noble man in his life, bringing him luck and allowing him to join Sporting Lisbon. He was coached by Andre Cruz, his level improved sharply, and he became a main player in Sporting Lisbon. This is how Pepe is today.
"Speaking of which, Su, do you still remember the scene when we first met off the field in Madeira Islands?" Pepe suddenly asked with a smile.
Su Dong was stunned, thought about it carefully, and nodded with a smile: "Of course I remember, at the intersection of Ronnie's village."
"Yes, there were several of you at the time, and I was just one. I was completely stunned, and I thought in my mind, my God, enemies often meet on a narrow road. If a fight really breaks out, I will be beaten badly, right?" Pepe laughed.
Su Dong was also very happy, "I still remember that year Ronnie asked if he wanted to beat you up?"
"Yes, I was so scared that I ran as fast as I could. I ran several kilometers in one breath. I was so scared that I almost died." Pepe himself felt embarrassed. It was really embarrassing back then.
"Actually, he's just trying to scare you."
"How could I know at that time?" Pepe also found it funny.
Later, he was scolded by the boss in the restaurant, and then he ran into Su Dong, Ronnie and others who were having dinner together. He was also scared at the time. Fortunately, Su Dong pretended not to know him and told him not to come in, thus saving Pepe from embarrassment.
It was also from that moment that Pepe felt grateful to Su Dong.
If Portugal and Lisbon were mixed experiences for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, then for Pepe, there were far more things worth remembering than painful ones, because his life took a turn here.
…
Just as Su Dong and Pepe were chatting about the past, Marcelo, who was sitting in the back row with Ribery, suddenly stood up, poked his head between the two of them, and asked a gossip with a smile.
"Su, Pepe, I'm curious, why did Cristiano Ronaldo break up with Jardel's sister?"
Marcelo's sudden action made quite a noise and the bus suddenly fell silent. Everyone looked at Su Dong and Pepe curiously, waiting for their answers.
Obviously, these guys all want to know about Ronnie's love history.
Su Dong and Pepe looked at each other. Suddenly, Su Dong slapped Marcelo on the top of his head, making him grimace.
"You're just a kid, why are you so gossipy?" Su Dong scolded with a smile.
"I'm not a child anymore, I can even go to the red light district!" Marcelo also became excited.
Everyone laughed, and they didn't understand why Marcelo was so obsessed with the red light district. Not long ago, when he went to Berlin, he even went to Heynckes to ask for leave, saying that he wanted to visit Berlin's world-famous red light district. How could Heynckes agree to it?
Not only did he refuse to agree, he also asked Captain Ram to keep an eye on him and not let him sneak out.
If Marcelo were really allowed to go to the red-light district and be photographed by media reporters, Bayern would be really embarrassed.
Seeing everyone's eyes eager for gossip, Su Dong sighed inwardly.
Even old man Heynckes was looking at it eagerly, which shows that gossip is really...
"In fact, it's not as outrageous as the rumors say. It's very simple. The two have different ideas. Ronnie wanted her to go to the Premier League with him, but she wanted to stay in Portugal. The two had a quarrel over this and broke up."
Everyone sounded a little disappointed.
That’s it?
Normally speaking, shouldn't there be some pitiful plot like cheating or family members trying to stop it?
It turns out that the love life of this superstar is similar to that of ordinary people, and is not as mysterious as the media has reported.
At best, we can only say that the girls they come into contact with are of a similar class to them, far from ordinary people, and many of them are even made up by the media reporters themselves.
After finding out there was no gossip, Heynckes also coughed heavily twice.
"Okay, okay, everyone get ready."
After saying that, Heynckes looked at Su Dong again, "Su, you should also adjust yourself. It's up to you tonight."
Su Dong curled his lips. This old man just likes to pretend to be ignorant.
…………
…………
"Su!"
"Do you remember me?"
"Su, look here!"
Before the game, when Bayern players got off the bus one after another, it was Su Dong's turn, and the fans waiting around started shouting Su Dong crazily.
Among the stars that have come out of Sporting Lisbon over the years, Sudon and Ronaldo are the most successful.
Quaresma, a talented player who was originally expected to have great potential, entered Barcelona twice and suffered heavy losses both times.
But unfortunately, Sudong and Ronaldo are not very willing to return to Sporting Lisbon, which makes the fans of Sporting Lisbon very puzzled, but they still regard Sudong and Ronaldo as their own youth training children.
Su Dong was surprised by the enthusiasm of Sporting Lisbon fans. He didn't expect that after so many years, he still had such popularity here. He immediately smiled and waved to the fans around him.
Pepe is another Bayern player who is highly praised by Lisbon fans because he transferred to Bayern from Sporting Lisbon.
The two got off the bus one after the other and were warmly welcomed by the surrounding fans, especially Su Dong.
…
I followed the team into the locker room, changed clothes, and then walked into the Alvalade Stadium to warm up.
At this time, the stands were already packed with Sporting Lisbon fans. When they saw Su Dong come on the field, they all shouted his name frantically, as if Su Dong was still playing for Sporting Lisbon.
Su Dong was a little surprised, but he also waved to the fans in the stands to express his gratitude.
The organizers obviously played the emotional card for this game. During the warm-up period of the two teams, they arranged for several old acquaintances of Su Dong to walk into the stadium and meet Su Dong.
They were some of Su Dong's teammates in the youth team, such as Edgar Marcelino, Fabio Costa, Miguel Paichon, and Ugo Pina, who once set the highest transfer fee record for the Sporting Lisbon youth team.
This sudden arrangement surprised Su Dong.
Su Dong felt very happy yet very strange to see his old friend again.
Teammates who fought side by side back then, like Edgar Marcelino, he was a genius named after Ronaldo and Quaresma in Sporting Lisbon back then, and Fabio Costa, he was also a recognized genius in the youth training camp, not to mention Ugo Pina, these were all the best in the youth training camp back then.
When Su Dong saw them, he excitedly shook hands and hugged them one by one.
Almost no one plays football anymore. Ugo Pina runs a small shop in Belém. Fabio Costa played in Portugal's third-tier league but injured his knee after a serious assault and has left the field ever since. He is now a taxi driver.
Among the Sporting Lisbon youth training group back then, Sudon, Ronaldo and Quaresma achieved the highest achievements. Hugo Viana is still playing football now, Jose Semedo is still playing football reluctantly, and Jose Fonte is playing for Crystal Palace in the Championship.
Edgar Marcelino also wants to play football and is looking for a team.
Among the youth training team of 20 to 30 people, there are only a few who can really play well. Moreover, these are the elite players carefully selected by Sporting Lisbon from all over the country. After training, the success rate is still very low.
Being able to produce Sudong, Ronaldo and Quaresma is already a great success. It is conceivable that the success rate of other age groups will be even lower, and it may not be possible to encounter a wave of talent bursts in decades.
When Su Dong saw his former teammates, he felt very sad.
He left them all his phone number and told them to call him if they had any problems and he would help them to the best of his ability.
As for Edgar Marcelino's desire to continue playing football, Su Dong also agreed to help and asked Mendes and Ma Dawei to help contact him.
No matter what, these are all teammates who fought side by side with me back then, so help them if you can.
However, after seeing off his old teammates, Su Dong welcomed the head coach of Sporting Lisbon and asked him bluntly, "You made such careful arrangements because you want me to go easy on you in the game later?"
(End of this chapter)
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