Chapter 4 Isco's Replacement (Ninety-Six/One Hundred and Thirty-Four)

When Isco suddenly fell to the ground during training, there was some commotion at the scene, because he did not have any physical contact during training, and then he fell to the ground like this, which was really weird. m

Everyone was stunned at first and just turned to look at him without reacting.

Messi is also one of them. Before he transferred out, he was still a member of Lazio, and naturally he had to train with the whole Lazio team.

The place where Isco fell to the ground was about ten meters away from him. He fell to the ground and then covered his knees.

Everyone was frightened and it took a few seconds for anyone to react.

Assistant coach Rudy Gonzalez was the first to rush forward.

Then more people gathered around.

Messi moved a little slowly and was pushed outside. If he tried to get closer, he could only see everyone's backs.

Soon the team doctor rushed over, and then Isco was carried out directly on a stretcher.

Isco was carried out, and the training ground was still discussing his injury. The players were whispering, speculating on where Isco was injured and the extent of the injury.

You must know that he has just joined the team and has not yet had time to contribute his strength to the team...

Messi turned to look at head coach Chang Sheng on the sidelines. He found his boss frowning and communicating with his assistant coach.

They must also be discussing Isco's injury.

Messi is also worried about Isco's injury.

A player who spent so much money on the club was injured before he even played a game. That's really not a good sign.

This is not a good thing for Isco's integration into the team.

※ ※ ※

That evening, news media reported that Isco had been injured in training.

"The star Isco, who joined Lazio for 60 million euros, was suddenly injured during training. He fell to the ground without any physical contact and was then rushed to the hospital... Now the test results have come out. Isco Coe suffered a torn cruciate ligament in his right knee...and had to undergo surgery.

If he undergoes surgery, he may miss most of the season... Isco joined Lazio from Real Madrid for 60 million euros this summer and has yet to play a game for Lazio..."

Chang Sheng turned off the TV irritably.

The media had not been optimistic about Lazio's results in the new season. Their reason is that Lazio has had a bad start to the new season. The pre-season training has just begun, and they have fallen out with the club. The contract renewal negotiations have completely broken down. Later, Jose Passarella also announced his retirement after the end of the season...

Everything goes wrong.

As a result, Isco, who spent a lot of money to bring in, was seriously injured before he even played a game.

It seems to further confirm what the media said, that is, Lazio had a bad start and will have a very difficult time this season.

The result of the hospital examination was that Isco's knee ligaments have been under high load, and he didn't get much rest this summer. So in the end... it broke.

simply put. It was Real Madrid who used Isco with high intensity and overload. In the end, Isco's injury was buried.

It seems that Real Madrid has long known that they cannot keep Isco, because Isco himself has been clamoring to come to Lazio.

So in the end they simply used Isco desperately and drained all his energy. last season. Isco played in all 38 league games, all Champions League games and the Copa del Rey. Started almost every game.

Of course, Isco also performed very well last season, with no injuries or sluggish form. He was the top scorer in La Liga last season, ranked second in the Champions League scorer list, and was the best in the Copa del Rey. shooter. He scored many goals, had many assists, and performed well. When such a player was sent out continuously, no one thought there was anything wrong with it. People even hoped that Isco would always start. If he did not start, it would cause problems. Controversy in the media...

At that time, no one thought that Isco's consecutive starts would be Real Madrid's revenge against Lazio...

So now Lazio spent 60 million to buy a time bomb to go back, and the bomb was finally detonated today.

Chang Sheng was very unhappy. He felt that he had been tricked.

The double displeasure made him irritable.

But he also knew that he couldn't continue to be irritated, as irritability would not solve the problem.

He had to find a way to solve this problem.

Isco was bought to strengthen the team's offensive strength.

As a result, Isco was injured, so what about the team's offense?

The current team's main striker combination is Icardi, Gotze, and Isco.

The substitutes are Cavani, Messi and Andrea Borg.

Now that Isco is injured, who should take over?

Cavani is the center substitute, and Isco plays the winger and frontcourt free agent.

Cavani is not qualified for this role.

Andrea Borg is a right-sided player, overlapping with Gotze, but he is not suitable for playing on the left.

Isco is active on the left wing.

It was Messi who was originally here...

Chang Sheng thought for a while, and when he raised his head again, he finally made a decision.

He took out his cell phone and dialed the number of the club's general manager, Talay.

"Stop negotiating the transfer of Messi. We need him to stay."

Tare was a little surprised, but he didn't ask why.

He knows that Isco is injured, so to let Messi stay, maybe Messi will replace Isco...

He agreed: "Okay."

Anyway, Messi has never been able to sell at a high price. If he doesn't sell, he won't sell it. Tare is not heartbroken.

Earning such a small amount of money would make him exhausted mentally and physically every day. He would rather not earn this money.

※ ※ ※

When Messi went to team training the next day, Chang Sheng called him to his office alone.

Chang Sheng sat on his boss's chair and looked at Messi standing in front of him.

The former number one player in world football is now showing his age.

Standing in front of him, he no longer had the aura of being the best in the world. While in Barcelona. He was nicknamed the "ball tyrant", but in Lazio, he kept a very low profile... Maybe it was because he experienced something like that that he saw a lot more clearly.

His speed was gone. His dexterity is not what it used to be.

He is also prone to injuries, which is why Chang Sheng wanted to sell him last season.

I just never expected that the player I once wanted to give up would now want him to stay...

"Do you know why I asked you to come. Leo?"

Messi shook his head: "I don't know, boss."

Chang Sheng said: "I have stopped all transfer negotiations regarding you."

Messi was a little surprised when he heard this.

"Isco is injured and will miss most of the season - that's an optimistic estimate. Let's be pessimistic and he may need to rest for the whole season. The club's 60 million has been wasted. I need you to stay, Contribute to the team. You have one year left on your contract with the club, so after this season, you are free to leave, and the club will not stop you from joining another team in January. Let’s talk about the contract. You won’t be blocked in any way.”

Messi looked at the boss in front of him.

Before his move to Lazio. I have heard a lot of rumors about Chang Sheng, and many of them are not good things.

Everyone says that Chang Sheng is a ruthless person, and those players have made great contributions to him. When they had no use value to him, he kicked them away as soon as he asked.

Moreover, Chang Sheng and Messi still have some bad blood. When Messi won the FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2011, he even went to disrupt the situation. The two people should be considered to have a grudge.

But despite this, he still resolutely accepted Lazio's invitation and came to Lazio.

Because he doesn't care how he will be treated in the end. He has been treated like that once anyway. He just hopes to go to a team that can threaten Barcelona and use his outstanding performance in a team that can win the championship. Help the team win the championship, and then use it to slap Barcelona in the face, making them understand how wrong Barcelona was by choosing Neymar but giving up their own Barcelona!

In Messi's view, Lazio is the only team that can do this, so he doesn't care about his past grievances with Chang Sheng...

He was mentally prepared to be given up from the beginning. To put it bluntly, he and Lazio are in a relationship of mutual use. Lazio needs his strength, and he also needs to use Lazio to complete his revenge against Barcelona.

He succeeded, and Lazio also won the championship. Everyone got what they needed, the best of both worlds, and no one owed anything to anyone else.

Therefore, when he rested for almost a season due to injury, the club wanted to sell him, and he had no complaints.

But he was not mentally prepared at all for the club to need him again...

He felt that even if Isco was injured, it would not be his turn, as well as Andrea Borg, who is also a young player with outstanding speed and excellent skills.

"I... have a question, boss." Messi said.

"you say."

"Why me?" Messi asked. "Isco is injured, but I don't know if my body can last for a season. If you ask me to stay, what if I get injured too? Just like last season, one injury will cause almost one injury. Season…”

Chang Sheng nodded: "Indeed, I can go to the youth training camp to search for treasures, and maybe I can find an excellent replacement. But I still chose you because I want to win the championship this season, and you are a championship-level player. Even though you are old, you are still a champion. Your experience and ability are the reasons why I choose you."

※ ※ ※

Messi left the winning office and walked to the training ground.

His mind was still echoing with the last words his boss said to him: "This is my last season at Lazio, and it is also your last season at Lazio. Since they are both the last season, there is nothing to worry about. Let Let’s put aside other distractions and work hard for a season. We haven’t won a championship for two consecutive years. This time, we must come back with a championship!”

Messi was suddenly full of power.

It’s the last season...don’t have any regrets.

He clenched his fists.

No matter what, I, Messi, was once the number one player in the world. Even if I were to leave this team, it would not be like leaving with the image of someone who was "suffering from injuries and no one wanted".

Instead, the champion and the people should be left with amazed eyes, then turn around and leave.

Only in that way can it be regarded as... no regrets!

In this way, Messi agreed to win often, stay at Lazio, play out the last season, and help the team tide over the difficulties.

Chang Sheng can finally stop worrying about Isco's injury for the time being.