We made you the King of Prisoners, and now you've become the King of Football?

Chapter 15 "No Sweating After the Match"

"What an amazing match this was!"

Sun Chen slumped back in the commentator's chair in the Lay's Sports live broadcast studio, still reeling from the goal, his voice trembling with excitement:

"With the team trailing by two goals, Jiang Ming was called upon to make his professional debut. Within just fifteen minutes, he completed a goal and an assist, single-handedly keeping Monaco's last hope of advancing alive!"

"This performance was so brilliant that it felt like watching the opening act of a legendary tale!"

Meanwhile, chat rooms in China were already in an uproar:

"Where's that guy who was just mocking Jiang Mingshen? Come out and say something!"

"Coming off the bench and contributing a goal and an assist, he's probably the MVP of the match, right? How can anyone criticize Jiang Shen for this?"

"So what? It's just that the opposing midfielder committed a foul and got sent off, giving Monaco a numerical advantage and allowing one of their players to slip in. It's a mess."

"Just watch how Tottenham beat Monaco in the last round, and that's it. Is Jiang Ming comparable to Son Heung-min?"

"Holy crap, there's a traitor upstairs? They really can't stand seeing their own players play well!"

Before Jiang Ming could even savor the feeling of scoring, his teammates surrounded him.

"Well done." B. Sid was still as shy as ever, and he came up and bumped fists with Jiang Ming.

"Kid, you should have seen that guy's expression just now!" Fabinho jogged over and punched Jiang Ming with a laugh.

"After he was sent off, he hid in the players' tunnel to peek at what was happening on the field, and when he turned around he saw you score the equalizer. His face turned ashen, like he'd swallowed a fly!"

"I reckon when he gets back to the locker room, he'll probably get a real dressing down from his teammates!"

Moutinho put his arm around Jiang Ming, placed his hand on his shoulder, and said with a smile, "Kid, happy perfect debut."

The celebration lasted for almost a minute before the Monaco crowd reluctantly stopped.

The main reason they noticed was that referee Graffi had already put his hand in his pocket, clearly a warning that they were wasting time.

On the sidelines, Jardim also calmed down, his mind returning to reason, and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"Guys! Don't let your guard down! Give it your all in these last three minutes!"

Back in the center circle, the game resumed.

In the final moments, Monaco still had a chance to change the score, and they even tried to make a comeback.

Jiang Ming moved to the wing and lobbed the ball towards the penalty area at a 45° angle. Carrillo flicked it on with his head, and the ball fell right to Moutinho's feet.

Moutinho followed up with a shot, but Tielemans, who had completely tracked back, blocked it with his head.

The kick was powerful and heavy; Tielemans was hit in the head by the ball and fell to the ground on the spot. He was unconscious for half a minute before he recovered.

Anderlecht fought until the very last moment, with even the young attacking player Tielemans going down on the defensive; they really wanted to hold onto this point.

Before Monaco could mount another attack, referee Graffie finally blew his whistle.

"Beep, beep, beep—"

Three clear, long whistles signaled the end of the match.

Ultimately, the fifth round of the Europa League group stage match between Monaco and Anderlecht ended in a 2-2 draw.

"The match is over!" Sun Chen's voice rang out again.

"Monaco pulled off a last-minute comeback, scoring two goals to keep their hopes of advancing alive until the final round at White Hart Lane!"

Jardim, standing on the sidelines, finally breathed a sigh of relief after the whistle had completely fallen, his shoulders, which had been tense all game, finally relaxed.

Although in the final round, they still have to travel to Tottenham Hotspur for a final qualification battle.

But at this moment, he was no longer as depressed as before.

Yardin looked up at the field and his gaze fell on the figure sitting on the grass.

He suddenly felt that perhaps they could actually find a solution even when everyone else was pessimistic.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ming, who was on the field, had already sat down on the grass, panting slightly.

Fortunately, he came on as a substitute in the 80th minute, so he only played for a total of 16 minutes.

The most physically demanding thing was being hit hard by Defort just now.

The rest of the time he mainly controlled the pace of the game by controlling the rhythm, and he didn't run around aimlessly. Fabinho also helped him block those dirty moves, so he didn't expend too much energy.

After catching his breath, he naturally opened the system panel and waited for the entire match's results. Finally, they arrived.

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the mission objective: Help the team keep their hopes of advancing alive.]

[You made your official debut in a crucial Europa League match! A goal and an assist contributed to both goals, keeping the team's qualification hopes alive until the very last moment!]

[Reward: Berbatov's "Agile Positioning" module]

[Berbatov's "Agile Movement": When making off-the-ball runs on the field, he presents an optimal running route from a first-person perspective.]

[Note: I don't break a sweat after a match; I'm Berbatov. Have you ever heard the legend of someone running 2km across the entire field?]

As soon as the system's mechanical voice finished, Jiang Ming suddenly felt his vision go black, and it took a full five seconds for his vision to return.

He was sitting on the grass when a faint golden line suddenly appeared in his field of vision.

Jiang Ming subconsciously stood up and looked in the direction of the golden lines.

Fabinho was standing at the far end waving to the fans, with the match ball still tucked under his arm.

Between the two was a dejected Anderlecht player.

Jiang Ming tried to move two steps, and the golden line in his field of vision adjusted its direction in real time according to his movements.

"Hiss—" Jiang Ming gasped, instantly realizing what was happening.

When there is no ball, does the system directly provide the optimal running route?

Wouldn't that mean you could just stroll around and find yourself in the perfect spot? Why would you need to desperately try to get to the ball or chase after it?

This skill is so Dior-esque!

Berbatov is known as "the dashing guy" precisely because of his unpredictable runs and his nonchalant, free-flowing style of play.

His average running distance per game has never been considered high by fans. There's even a legend that he played the entire game without breaking a sweat and didn't need to take a shower.

Now I'll add this positioning module myself...

"Wouldn't it be much less tiring to just stroll around the field from now on?"

Jiang Ming couldn't help but think to himself, "The auto-pathfinding in Earth Online is just too good!"

Keeping this pleasant surprise to himself, Jiang Ming stood up, walked around the field, and thanked the fans who had come to watch the game.

"Jiang! You played amazingly well in that match! Can I get your autograph?"

A young Monaco fan, who looked only six or seven years old, clung to the railing, holding a jersey with his name on it and number 25, looking at him expectantly.

Jiang Ming smiled and nodded, then took the pen without saying a word and signed his name on the jersey:

"Little guy, you're the first person to get my autographed jersey, so cherish it and support the team more in the future."

The young fan immediately nodded frantically, like a chicken pecking at rice, his eyes shining brightly.

"Looks like this is my first die-hard fan?" Jiang Ming chuckled upon seeing this.

"No! All of this should have been mine!"

Suddenly, Mbappe's miserable voice came from the side. He leaned closer, looking resentful: "Why did you make your debut before me! This doesn't make sense!"

Jiang Ming turned his head, deliberately put on a serious face, and said in a solemn tone: "Little Mu, your brother Jiang plays midfield. What the team needs right now is midfield rotation, not strikers."

"You know what I mean, right?"

Mbappe twitched the corner of his mouth. So this guy used to sigh and complain all the time when he was on the bench.

They've just played one official match, and they're already calling him "Little M"?

Is this guy getting cocky?

He didn't say anything, but gritted his teeth and elbowed Jiang Ming.