「Far away in Japan.」
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Chen Yu called out.
The door opened, and a sweaty Donovan appeared at the entrance. "Dr. Chen, has Mr. Zidane left already?" he asked.
Chen Yu nodded. "Yes, he left about half an hour ago."
Today was the 6th.
The original plan was for Zidane to return to South Korea yesterday afternoon to rejoin his team.
But then Lemerre said to let Zidane stay one more night and fly directly from Miyazaki to Busan this morning.
They were flying from Seoul to Busan anyway, so this would save Zidane an extra trip.
Miyazaki wasn’t far from Busan, just across the strait, a straight-line distance of four hundred kilometers.
But Chen Yu deeply suspected that Lemerre wanted Zidane to stay for another day of his treatment.
Donovan let out a disappointed "Oh," and turned to leave.
"Come watch the game later," Chen Yu called after him.
Today was the first game of the Finals. The Phoenix Suns were hosting the Magic.
Donovan called back in agreement and quickly ran off.
Chen Yu knew the kid was thick-skinned. While Zidane was staying at the hotel, he had been constantly running over to ask for advice, so he had wanted to see Zidane off.
But they had training scheduled for the morning, and by the time he got back, Zidane was already gone.
Before long, Contiguglia and the others arrived one after another, all of them talking and laughing.
With three points in hand from their win against Croatia, the United States Team was now in control of their own destiny to advance from the group stage. Everyone was in a good mood.
The spacious living room quickly filled with people.
While waiting for the game to start, the conversation mostly centered on the matches in the other groups.
"That Klose is really something else. I can’t believe he’s a rookie playing in his first World Cup. He’s not intimidated at all," someone said, bringing up Klose.
The Germany Team’s supernova had put on a stunning performance in the first match, scoring four goals. Yesterday against Ireland, he scored a brace to rescue his team again, making the Germany Team the first to advance from the group stage in the World Cup.
Everyone nodded in agreement, and Alina chimed in, "His ability to attack with the ball is a bit lacking, but he has a great nose for the goal. He always manages to be in the right place."
After two matches, everyone’s impression of Klose was that his heading was outstanding.
He had scored six goals in two games, three of them headers. He was practically the king of headers.
Chen Yu picked up a beer bottle and offered a rare analysis. "That’s also because their midfield is incredible."
Having watched so many matches and trained with Alina and his crew, he had picked up a thing or two through osmosis.
For Klose to score so many headers, it just proved how good the midfield’s passing was.
With Ballack in the center and Desler and Scholl attacking from both sides, they had a terrifyingly strong mix of youth and experience, stability and creativity.
Contiguglia laughed and joked, "Chen, why do I get the feeling you’re just praising yourself?"
Desler and Scholl were both healed by Chen Yu, which was the only reason they made it to the World Cup.
And just before it started, Chen Yu also healed Ballack, allowing him to play the upcoming matches in good health.
The Germany Team owed its entire midfield to Chen Yu.
Chen Yu laughed heartily. "You could see it that way."
Seeing the players he had personally healed perform so well on the grand stage of the World Cup, Chen Yu felt a sense of pride.
It was also the best addition to his resume.
The conversation then turned to Italy.
"Italy is still so strong," Alina said with a sigh.
On the 3rd, the same day the United States played Croatia, Italy faced Ecuador later in the evening.
They were on a completely different level of skill.
Italy easily won 2-0, securing three points.
Alina had watched the broadcast after returning to the hotel. After watching it, he had only one thought: Italy had won far too easily.
"It gives me a headache just thinking about how we’re supposed to break through Italy’s concrete-like defensive line," Alina said, wincing in frustration.
A back line composed of Nesta, Maldini, Cannavaro, and Panucci was simply impenetrable.
Even if you managed to get past them, you still had Buffon waiting behind them.
As he spoke, he glanced up at Chen Yu.
Chen Yu rolled his eyes at him. "Looking at me won’t do any good. Maldini and Nesta’s injuries weren’t serious. Even if I hadn’t treated them, they would have made it to the World Cup."
’I just healed them better, that’s all.’
Speaking of which, Chen Yu’s only regret was Baggio.
He had worked so hard to make it to this World Cup, but he didn’t play in the first match.
Trapattoni mainly used a 4-4-2 formation, and the forwards he fielded for this match were Vieri and Totti.
And on the bench sat the younger Big Inzaghi and Piero. By that logic, there was no way it would be Baggio’s turn to play.
Alina sighed. "Anyway, I don’t dare to dream of beating Italy. So our most likely path is to advance as the group runner-up and then face the top team from Group D, which will probably be Portugal or South Korea."
He paused for a moment, then added, "But it’s hard to say. Mexico has a chance too."
On the 4th, the host nation South Korea surprisingly crushed Poland 2-0, seizing the initiative.
Then, the next day, in the second match on the 5th, Portugal, with its golden generation, unexpectedly tied with Mexico.
This made the situation for advancing from Group D suddenly ambiguous.
So Alina couldn’t be sure who the United States Team’s potential opponent would be.
Contiguglia waved his hand magnanimously. "It’s fine. It doesn’t matter who we face. What’s important is that we advance from the group."
Making it to the Round of 16 would already be great.
At this, he turned with a chuckle and shouted to Donovan, Reyna, and the other players on the other side of the room, "Gentlemen, Mr. President has spoken! If we advance from the group, every single one of you will receive a bonus of US$100,000. If we make it to the quarterfinals, the bonus doubles. And if we can win the championship..."
At that point, Contiguglia awkwardly shut his mouth.
Right after the win against Croatia, congratulations and instructions came from the President in the United States. He expressed his hope that the United States Team would achieve a good result and bring joy to the nation, and he also generously promised a bonus.
However, what Contiguglia couldn’t figure out was just how little that man knew about soccer to actually imagine the United States Team could win the championship.
The few players present gave a few half-hearted cheers to be polite.
They couldn’t imagine making the quarterfinals, but the Round of 16 seemed quite hopeful. US$100,000 wasn’t a huge amount, but it was an unexpected windfall, so why not take it?
"By the way, Chen, is O’Neal really going to the Phoenix Suns?" Contiguglia asked, turning his head again.
Chen Yu shook his head. "How would I know? No one can say for sure about that."
’It would be best if he came.’
Yao Ming was very good and had a lot of potential, but he needed time to develop.
His combination with Hardaway could only be said to maintain their competitiveness for a championship.
But O’Neal, still in his prime, was an immediate impact player, someone who could help them directly defend their title and pursue a dynasty.
As his thoughts wandered, the game began.
"Actually, the Magic aren’t bad. They’re quite strong, especially Hill. I don’t think Marion can stop him," Chen Yu analyzed.
A healthy Hill was still one of the top-tier stars in the league.
In this year’s playoffs, he was averaging 27.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.5 assists, along with 1.6 steals. He was a true two-way player and their absolute core.
The Magic really could win the game on the back of his explosive performance.
Aside from their frontcourt, the Magic’s starting lineup was actually very impressive, top-tier in the league.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have managed an eighth-seed upset last year and made it all the way to the Finals.
Far away in Japan, Chen Yu didn’t know how Skiles planned to deal with the Magic, but he figured he would definitely target their frontcourt.
Sure enough, when Chen Yu saw the Phoenix Suns’ starting lineup, he knew he had guessed right.
For this game, Skiles had put Ewing back in the starting lineup, while Olajuwon was back at the power forward position.
Chen Yu immediately understood Skiles’s thinking.
A lineup with both Ewing and Olajuwon starting wasn’t bad, per se. The previous adjustments against the Kings and the Lakers were made out of necessity.
The Kings were fast, and Ewing couldn’t defend the perimeter, so they had to make an adjustment.
And the Lakers had O’Neal, which also forced the Phoenix Suns to change their formation.
But the Magic were different. After the Phoenix Suns had snatched both Olajuwon and Ewing from them, they had never had many options in the frontcourt. Most of the time, they had to rely on Andrew De Clerk and John Amichie, the poet from England.
Not only were these two limited in skill, but they also lacked height.
And this season, their reinforcements weren’t great either. They had stingily acquired Horace Grant.
Horace Grant, nicknamed "Cobra," was a key member of the Bulls during their first three-peat, the team’s third-leading scorer, and was once called one of the Bulls’ Big Three by the media.
He was also a lucky guy.
Later he went to the Magic and made it to the Finals partnered with O’Neal and Hardaway.
Last year he went to the Lakers, caught the red-hot OK Duo, and won another Championship Ring with the team. A certified winner in life.
The problem was, he was already 37. There wasn’t much gas left in the tank.
And the starting power forward was Bo Outlaw, who had always been an ordinary role player.
So Ewing could absolutely be moved into the starting lineup. He had the strength to command the paint all by himself.
Meanwhile, Olajuwon could expand his operational range, provide help defense and rotate to cover, limiting the drives from Hill and Tracy McGrady.
The Magic, much like the Phoenix Suns, were also a team that relied heavily on driving to the basket.
Most importantly, with Olajuwon at power forward, he could provide better screens and pick-and-rolls for the perimeter players.
The previous series had already proven that Hardaway performed even better with a pick-and-roll.
The game began. Ewing leaped up and won the tip. He immediately established position under the basket and called for the ball.
When Ewing was at the five, it meant he would be the primary attacker in the paint.
At the four, Olajuwon was playing more of a utility role.
The two old-timers collided, and Ewing came out on top.
In the last series against the Lakers and O’Neal, Ewing had seemed timid. But in this series against the Magic, he was back to his dominant self in the paint.
With a roar, he created space, jumped, and hit a hook shot from a tight angle.
In the first quarter, Ewing played with great excitement.
Offense, blocks—he did it all, completely overwhelming Horace Grant in every aspect.
Chen Yu quickly had an epiphany, realizing the reason.
It was because of Horace Grant, Ewing’s old rival and nemesis.
In ’89, the Nicks broke through the first round, then ran into the Bulls and were eliminated 4-2. This marked the beginning of Ewing’s bleak and regrettable career as an uncrowned king, as he would go on to be eliminated by Jordan five times in the playoffs.
Back then, Horace Grant was standing right there beside Jordan.
So this was also a grudge match.

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