Chapter Twenty-Six: Ball After Ball

Tomorrow is May 15th, the anniversary of Starting Point, the day with the most benefits. Besides the gift bag, the “Red Envelope Frenzy” is definitely worth checking out—there’s no reason not to snatch a red envelope, so set your alarms!

Momo has never thought himself particularly remarkable. He’s only playing for a team in the German Second Division, and only in the Second Division league. But Momo is confident; he believes in himself no matter what. So when faced with provocation, he remains unruffled. He prefers to prove himself with goals, which is, after all, the most effective method.

“What was that guy saying to you?” asked Karl. Although Momo is about to transfer, likely to a First Division club, Karl harbors no resentment. After all, Momo has long been listed for transfer, meaning he’s not a player the team needs. In that case, why keep him?

Karl senses the difference between himself and Momo. Karl is steady and content; he doesn’t mind being a substitute. Momo, however, is obsessive about football—he longs to be on the pitch every moment and never enjoys sitting quietly on the bench, at least not after experiencing the joy of playing.

The match that followed was tense, with both sides having good opportunities. In the thirty-sixth minute, the Czech winger Jan Simak broke through with the ball as Fürth’s players scrambled to defend.

“Beautiful! No offside! It’s Momo! Momo scores again! Absolutely stunning. Seven Fürth players couldn’t stop three from Hannover 96! Incredible.”

Chen Nu’s voice was full of excitement, yet Momo’s expression remained calm. Do you know where Momo comes from? From 2016. He’s seen countless beautiful goals; it could be said this is the source of his imagination, rated at a remarkable eighteen.

Just now, seven Fürth defenders were guarding, while Hannover 96 had only Karl and Momo inside. When Jan Simak passed, Momo was in an offside position, but Karl was not.

When Karl received the ball, Momo, being offside, was ignored by the defenders, who instead marked Karl—even the goalkeeper focused on Karl, who was now one-on-one with the keeper. At this moment, Momo and the defenders crossed paths. If Karl passed now, Momo wouldn’t be considered offside.

Normally, another forward in this situation might shoot even without a good angle, but this is Karl—his teammate is Momo, about to transfer, and Karl always passes to Momo. This time was no exception.

What happened next was reminiscent of the 2015 Champions League match between Bayern Munich and Barcelona, when Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz, facing a one-on-one, passed to the better-positioned Neymar da Silva Junior.

The difference, if any, was that Fürth’s goalkeeper didn’t react as quickly as Manuel Neuer, merely watching as Momo calmly received the ball, evading the chasing defenders and easily scoring.

1:2. Hannover 96 leads at the Playmobil Stadium. Momo turned his head, seeing Hasen glaring at him, but Momo only smiled. The Second Division’s defensive lapses amuse him, and his off-the-ball movement, rated fourteen, is as elusive to Second Division defenders as Messi is to elite defenders.

Still, he didn’t celebrate, as if the goal was insignificant. The stadium erupted in boos, but did Momo care? Not at all. To be honest, he’s growing bored with Second Division matches.

“The score is now 2:1. Hannover 96 is in excellent form! Momo is in excellent form! It’s only the thirty-ninth minute; there’s plenty of time for Momo to score a few more goals.”

Chen Nu’s voice carried a hint of mischief. Momo’s performance was indeed impressive; he scored every goal he should, never missing a real opportunity.

“Hm? That’s Link’s interception, halting Fürth’s attack. He passes to Jan Simak, who dribbles forward and, as expected, passes to Karl. Karl heads the ball to Momo! Hm? Fürth’s defender is marking Momo.”

Momo noticed a center-back sticking close to him—the same defender who ignored him last time because Momo was offside. Momo smiled; this defender’s footwork was clumsy.

To explain: the defender’s positioning was decent, but his speed was slow, as if weighed down by armor or an old, rusty carriage. In short, his reactions lagged by half a beat. With Momo’s agility rated twelve and explosiveness fifteen, why should he be intimidated?

As Karl’s pass sailed through the air, Momo felt perfectly composed. Others might see him as flustered, but inside he was calm—his low receiving stat simply prevented him from trapping the ball perfectly.

The ball bounced high off Momo’s left leg. The Fürth defender didn’t react further; he should have pressed, Momo thought, then hooked the ball back with his right foot, feigning a breakthrough to the left.

The defender managed to keep up with this change, moving to his right to block Momo’s path northward. But Momo’s footwork was rapid.

When Momo struck the ball again with the inside of his right foot, the defender had already leaned his body to the right. But just then, the ball ricocheted off Momo’s left leg, changing direction.

Momo then used the outside of his right foot to strike the back of the ball, sending it left of the defender, whose weight was already committed to the right. It sounded cool, but looked less impressive.

Put simply, it resembled someone fumbling with a bowl, making several attempts to rescue it before it shatters. Without his composure rated eighteen, explosiveness fifteen, and agility twelve, Momo couldn’t have pulled it off.

Still, despite the awkward execution, he successfully deceived the defender. Now, before him lay an open penalty area. Whether an average or elite striker, most would shoot from this distance, but Momo did not.

His composure, rated eighteen, kept him from shooting rashly. At this position, the goalkeeper’s stance was solid; Momo couldn’t create a great angle—not because of his position, but because he couldn’t keep the ball low or control its precision.

In truth, goalkeepers can be sorted by nerve attributes. High-attribute keepers, if their fundamentals are good, often make miraculous saves; if their basic stats are average, they’re like Wang Dalei—brilliant when in form, prone to errors when off.

Low-attribute keepers, regardless of their basics, share a trait: they save what should be saved, and let in what should be let in. Steady, if unremarkable.

Momo didn’t gamble. He knew his own limits—if he shot now, any goalkeeper with basic training could save it. So he chose the old method, pushing the ball toward the penalty spot.

“Duel! Momo is challenging the goalkeeper! Will Fürth’s keeper accept Momo’s challenge? He does! He accepts!”

Chen Nu’s voice was charged with excitement. Momo’s debut was defined by this move—he beat the keeper and sent the ball skyward, drawing gasps from the crowd. Later, he scored a goal this way (though it was disallowed).

Thus, in China, some fans have dubbed this move a “challenge”—pushing the ball out to a distance favorable to both sides, then racing for it together, reminiscent of a Western showdown or a duel between ancient armies.

No matter what, this is now known as the Chinese Momo-style challenge. One-on-one, head-to-head—nothing stirs a man’s blood more. Seeing Momo challenge the keeper again, no wonder Chen Nu was so excited; with a 2:1 lead, ordinary goals no longer held much meaning.

For Fürth’s keeper, it was an irresistible temptation, tied to composure. A keeper’s job involves more than saving and handling; positioning, concentration, leadership, speed, and jumping all matter.

Otherwise, even if all your keeping stats are maxed at twenty, if any one of those other attributes is a one, it’s useless. I won’t list all the faults here—there will be plenty of chances to discuss keepers later. Suffice it to say, this keeper’s composure is not high.

It’s not fair to say rushing out always signals low composure, but if you do, you should at least check your speed! Fürth’s keeper, unfortunately, was especially slow—the slowest Momo had ever seen.

Momo didn’t immediately unleash his full speed, but waited until the keeper was about to reach the ball before activating his explosiveness rated fifteen.

“Brilliant! Brilliant! Momo has never lost a challenge yet! This time, once again, he’s victorious! Another goal! Hat trick! Second hat trick!”

Fürth’s keeper believed he was about to make a perfect save. He could see the ball clearly, and as he dived, he felt certain the next moment it would rest securely in his hands. He could even see the patterns on the ball.

But at the very instant he hit the ground, he regretted not using his feet to clear it.

Just as he nearly touched the ball, he saw a boot—a foot—strike hard at the ball’s back. He grabbed desperately, hands flailing, but caught nothing. All he saw was a figure, number 37—MOMO—on the jersey, then watched as that figure retrieved the ball from the net.

A hat trick, without question! In the past two matches, Momo has been on fire! He’s completed another hat trick. Hasen’s eyes burned; he had just finished a bet with Momo, only to witness Momo break through his team’s defenses again and again.

This time, Momo celebrated. Previously, Fürth’s players felt his lack of celebration was disrespectful; now, they wished he wouldn’t celebrate at all. Momo raised his arms, nodding amid a stadium of boos, utterly enraptured.

Perhaps, if Momo were truly just a seventeen-year-old, these jeers would trouble him greatly. But he’s been reborn, and before that, he heard something: if, in another’s stadium, the boos grow louder, it means they fear you more.

PS. On May 15th, “Starting Point” will rain red envelopes! Starting at noon, every hour there’ll be a round—luck decides how many you’ll get. Go grab them, and use the coins to keep subscribing to my chapters!