Soccer: If they're using these kinds of cheats, what's the point of training?

In two days, Zhang Kuang thoroughly investigated all the information about Auxerre.

The information Jonathan sent was very detailed—the team usually uses a 4-4-2 formation, with a solid defense but weak offense. They have only scored 18 goals in 17 league matches, of which Yellen scored 9, and only one was a header.

The second-highest scorer is center-back Humbert, with four of his five goals coming from set pieces. The third-highest scorer is Denis Olić, with two goals…

"So, besides Yellen, no one else can score. The key is that this guy scores every game, doesn't he? Sometimes he's good, sometimes he's not?" Zhang Kuang closed the data, feeling reassured. He no longer needed to add the health points he had saved up over the past few days.

December 19th, 6:00 AM, before dawn.

Zhang Kuang left the apartment, met up with Jonathan, and then boarded the train to Auxerre. The journey from Paris to Auxerre takes about two hours, and Aisha booked first-class seats for them, saying that they needed to be in good shape before the tryouts.

Zhang Kuang didn't refuse; consider it payment from these three women for playing with him for the past few days.

Sigh, if the trials go well, where will we find three such good training partners? We can't just move them to Auxerre, can we? That's almost impossible.

Forget it, forget it, we'll talk about it later. Why think about it so much now?

On the train, he closed his eyes to rest, repeatedly rehearsing various attack scenarios in his mind.

---

Auxerre is a small town in the Burgundy region with a population of less than 40,000, which is about the same as the population of a township in China. It's like going from the capital to a rural town all of a sudden.

The train station was in the city center. As soon as Zhang Kuang got off the train, he spotted the team staff member who had come to pick him up—a young man wearing an Auxerre jersey holding a sign that read "Zhang Kuang".

Jonathan went up and greeted the young man, then introduced Zhang Kuang.

"Are you Chinese?" The young man was somewhat surprised to see Zhang Kuang.

"right."

"My name is Anthony, I'm the team's youth team coach, and I'm here to greet you today." Anthony extended his hand. "I didn't realize you were so tall; I didn't notice in the video."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Anthony drove them to the training facility.

Auxerre's training base is called the "Berouh Stadium Training Center," which is located next to the team's home stadium, the Abe Deschamps Stadium.

"Who's in charge of leading the tryouts today?" Jonathan asked.

"Head coach Fernandez is leading the team himself," Anthony said. "He rarely coaches trial players himself, and he specifically adjusted the training plan today. You guys are lucky."

Zhang Kuang understood the unspoken meaning—the opportunity is yours; whether you seize it is up to you.

At 8:10, Zhang Kuang and his team arrived at the training base.

Anthony led him into the away team's locker room and pointed to a locker in the corner: "Your gear is over there. After you change, go straight to the training ground. The coaching staff is waiting for you over there."

Zhang Kuang opened the locker, revealing a brand-new training kit—Auxerre's white home training kit with blue shorts. The size was perfect; it seemed the team had done their homework beforehand.

After changing his clothes, Zhang Kuang looked at himself in the mirror.

Longhu Dan's modified body fit the training suit perfectly, with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and muscle lines faintly visible beneath the fabric. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door to go out.

---

8:30 AM, training ground.

The first-team players were warming up under the guidance of assistant coach Stefan Eric. As Zhang Kuang walked onto the field, more than a dozen pairs of eyes turned to look at him.

Head coach Jean Fernandez stood on the sidelines, holding a whiteboard. He had short, gray-white hair, deep nasolabial folds, and sharp eyes. He glanced at Zhang Kuang up and down without much change in expression.

"So you're Zhang Kuang?"

"Yes."

"I've seen your file," Fernandez said bluntly. "A striker rating of 79, 18 years old, a Chinese U20 national team player. Very good stats, but I need to see them with my own eyes."

"clear."

Fernandez nodded and gestured towards the field: "Go warm up, then join the team for a scrimmage in fifteen minutes. Wear the green vest and play with the substitutes."

Zhang Kuang didn't say much, walked into the field and started jogging.

He noticed several players on the main team looking him up and down. Ireniush Yellen, the team's top scorer, was standing with his hands on his hips, staring at him with a scrutinizing look in his eyes.

Dennis Olić, another key striker, slightly pursed his lips and turned to say something to his teammate.

Zhang Kuang didn't care.

He's here to grab a spot, not to make friends.

At 8:45, Fernandez blew the whistle.

"Today's scrimmage will be 30 minutes per quarter, two quarters in total." His voice wasn't loud, but he enunciated each word clearly. "The starters will wear orange vests, and the substitutes will wear green."

The starting lineup is the team's strongest configuration: goalkeeper Sorin, the defense led by captain Humbert, the midfield organized by Pedretti, and the front three consisting of Yellen, Olichi, and Samaritano.

The substitutes were much weaker, consisting mostly of rotation players and players promoted from the youth academy. Zhang Kuang was positioned as a striker, partnering with the young Leroy.

Fernandez stood on the sidelines and pressed the stopwatch.

"start!"

The starting lineup kicked off, and after a few passes, they had control of the ball. The substitutes were pinned back in their own half.

In the first five minutes, Zhang Kuang barely touched the ball.

He roamed the attacking third, constantly changing position, trying to find space to receive the ball. However, the starting lineup was positioned very high, with the defensive line almost pushed back to the center circle, making it impossible for the substitutes' midfielders to hold onto the ball.

In the sixth minute, the opportunity arrived.

Substitute midfielder Oleć intercepted the ball in the backfield, glanced up, and saw that Zhang Kuang had already dropped back to receive the pass. Without hesitation, Oleć passed the ball directly to Zhang Kuang.

While the ball was still in mid-air, Zhang Kuang felt someone close behind him.

It's Grihidin, a starting center-back, 188cm tall and 84kg, recognized as one of the strongest defenders in the team.

Grihidin was very experienced. He didn't rush in to intercept, but instead used his body to hold off Zhang Kuang, trying to prevent him from receiving the ball comfortably.

"Come on, Chinese, let us see what you're made of," Grihidin whispered.

Zhang Kuang ignored him.

The moment he received the ball, he braced his left shoulder against Grihidin's chest, and simultaneously used the outside of his right foot to slide the ball, making it stop steadily in front of him as if it were glued to his foot.

The whole process took only a fraction of a second, but Grihidin felt a tremendous force coming from Zhang Kuang's shoulder—a force so great that his body involuntarily staggered backward.

At that very moment, Zhang Kuang had already slipped past him.

"What?!" By the time Grihidin regained his balance and turned to chase after him, Zhang Kuang had already dribbled the ball three or four meters away.

He desperately chased back, but Zhang Kuang was far too fast. He stretched out his leg to try and tackle, but Zhang Kuang passed the ball to a teammate making a run down the wing first, and then continued his sprint forward.

In a complete physical confrontation, Grihidin was utterly defeated.

On the sidelines, Fernandez paused his pen on the whiteboard for a moment, then drew a line.

Assistant coach Stefan leaned over and whispered, "Grihidin was pushed aside; he's very physically strong, which is a skill that a top center possesses."

Fernandez didn't reply, but his gaze was already fixed on Zhang Kuang.

---

In the tenth minute, the substitutes launched a counter-attack.

A long pass from the backfield went straight for Zhang Kuang; the ball flew high and high. Zhang Kuang had his back to the goal, and Grihidin closed in again.

This time, Grihidin was smarter. He didn't give Zhang Kuang any room to turn around. Instead, he used the strength of his whole body to push forward, trying to push Zhang Kuang away from the landing point.

But Zhang Kuang remained completely unmoved.

He controlled the ball with his chest in mid-air, simultaneously bracing Grihidin with his left arm, forcefully protecting the ball in front of him. The instant the ball hit the ground, Zhang Kuang didn't stop it, but instead flicked it with his heel into the open space behind him—a beautiful no-look pass!

Leroy arrived just in time, but his hasty shot hit the side netting.

Although no goal was scored, this attack put the main defense on high alert – this Chinese player wasn't just there for show, he was serious.

Standing behind Zhang Kuang, Grihidin was panting heavily, a something new flickering in his eyes. He wasn't unfamiliar with Chinese players, but his impression of them was that they were "skilled but physically average," while this one...

He looked down at his chest, which was red from the impact.

Is this what you call "normal"?

On the sidelines, technical director Christian Humbert came out of his office and leaned against the railing, watching from a distance.

To Zhang Kuang's great surprise, the first team had been playing against the reserve team for ten minutes without scoring. They really are lacking a striker who can score goals.

In the 15th minute, the substitutes were awarded a free kick in the attacking third.

Oleć stood in front of the ball and arrogantly squeezed into the crowd in the penalty area. His starting center-back, Minho, was assigned to mark him. Minho, standing at 186cm, was very strong in the air and was the team's primary choice for defending set pieces.

"This kid's heading ability is probably just average, right?" Minho encouraged himself inwardly.

The free kick was taken, and the ball flew in an arc towards the penalty area.

Zhang Kuang jumped from the edge of the six-yard box.

Minho also jumped, blocking the position, and even subtly rested his elbow on Zhang Kuang's waist—a common defensive trick used by center-backs that is not easily noticed by the referee.

But he sidelined them.

His arrogant jump height far exceeded his expectations. The explosive power of his legs propelled his waist past Minho's elbow, and he was half a head taller than Minho in the air.

With a sudden, forceful contraction of his waist and abdomen, his forehead struck the ball squarely, sending it crashing to the ground and bouncing towards the bottom right corner of the goal.

First-team goalkeeper Sorin reacted extremely quickly, turning to save the ball and pushing it out of bounds? No, the ball hit the post and bounced in.

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