Chapter Seven: June

Wiping the sweat from his body, Mo Mo gazed up at the sky, unable to keep a sigh from escaping his lips. June had come. He recalled the sea of red across his homeland, the people elated, the supporters at the airport seeing off their team, faces painted a vibrant crimson.

Mo Mo couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion—history had not changed simply because he had joined this world. While his countrymen were still chanting slogans of victory against Costa Rica, a draw with Turkey, and a loss to Brazil, did they realize that Brazil would become the champions this year, that Turkey was the tournament’s greatest dark horse, achieving their best result in history as third place, and that Costa Rica also had World Cup experience? Among them was Wanchope, Sun Jihai’s teammate from Manchester City, though they played in different positions—Wanchope as a striker.

During this period, Mo Mo had gained nearly 2,000 training points, and with those from the previous Bundesliga matches, he now held close to 3,000. How to allocate them was the pressing question.

His shooting skill had already reached 8; the first upgrade would cost 278 points, the final to reach 9 would require 338, and altogether it would take 1,536 points to achieve a shooting skill of 9. His long-shot ability was at 2—bringing it to 7 would require 3,058 points, a bit more than he had. Mo Mo’s current acceleration was 15; the first upgrade would cost 1,543, the last to reach 16 would need 1,877, totaling 8,529. Acceleration combined with speed was true swiftness, but his dribbling remained a problem. In the end, Mo Mo decided to stick to his original plan—raise his shooting skill to 10 before considering anything else.

After boosting his shooting to 9, Mo Mo found the remainder insufficient to reach 10, so he opted to increase his long-shot ability to 6, perfectly using up his training points.

Name: Mo Mo
Age: 17
Height: 170 cm / 60 kg
Number: 37
Preferred foot: Right
Position: Forward (unskilled)
Club: Hannover 96 (listed for transfer)
Interested clubs: None
Each attribute maxes at 20.

Shooting: 9
Off-the-ball movement: 14
Composure: 18
Technique: 6
Leadership: 1
Ball control: 10
Determination: 15
Anticipation: 14
Aggression: 14
Creativity: 18

Passing: 3
Heading: 2
Dribbling: 8
Long shots: 6
Vision: 14
Crossing: 2
Teamwork: 1
Work rate: 15
Balance: 8
Strength: 7
Agility: 12
Acceleration: 15
Jumping: 6
Pace: 12
Stamina: 9
Physique: 10

The first round of this World Cup was scheduled for June 4th (Tuesday) at 14:30, in Gwangju, Japan. The opponent: Costa Rica.

Despite head coach Bora Milutinović’s repeated warnings to respect the opponent, the teammates in the national squad, no matter how much the media had hyped them, could not help but feel a bit nervous at this moment.

But it was only nervousness—they did not feel fear.

There was every reason to believe they would give their all on the pitch. At this moment, Mo Mo found himself puzzled. Wasn’t it said that, at that World Cup, the Chinese team played too relaxed, treating it as a training match?

He remembered hearing that China failed to score a single goal and returned home in disgrace, saddled with humiliating nicknames and subjected to every kind of insult and ridicule, a situation that only began to change before Mo Mo entered this world.

If, in 2002, everyone lost hope in betting on a Chinese victory, then afterward, everyone bet only on their defeat. Derogatory terms like “national pigs” filled the air; just hearing about the national team would provoke a scolding, and interest in anything related to them evaporated.

June 4, 2002, China vs. Costa Rica.

China’s Line-up (4-4-2):
Forwards: No. 10 Hao Haidong, No. 20 Yang Chen
Midfielders: No. 9 Ma Mingyu, No. 8 Li Tie, No. 18 Li Xiaopeng, No. 7 Sun Jihai
Defenders: No. 4 Wu Chengying, No. 14 Li Weifeng, No. 5 Fan Zhiyi, No. 21 Xu Yunlong
Goalkeeper: No. 22 Jiang Jin

Costa Rica’s Line-up (2-5-3):
Forwards: No. 9 Wanchope, No. 11 Ronald Gómez
Midfielders: No. 10 Centeno, No. 8 Solís, No. 22 Castro, No. 7 Rolando Fonseca, No. 15 Wallace
Defenders: No. 3 Marín, No. 4 Wright, No. 5 Martínez
Goalkeeper: No. 1 Lonnis

Costa Rica’s main playmaker, Wilmer López, was sidelined due to injury, and No. 7 Rolando Fonseca took his place—the biggest change in their line-up. Costa Rica could shift from a 2-5-3 to a 3-4-3 at any time to strengthen their attack.

China’s line-up also saw adjustments. Head coach Bora Milutinović moved No. 7 Sun Jihai to right midfield to use his pace to threaten the opposition—his secret weapon. Another change was assigning No. 21 Xu Yunlong as right back, with No. 18 Li Xiaopeng replacing Qi Hong to bolster central defense.

Everyone’s expressions were solemn, listening intently to Bora Milutinović’s tactical instructions. Mo Mo, too, felt nervous—he knew what he was doing now; he even knew what would happen next.

When the two teams filed in, and as the national anthem played, Mo Mo was filled with awe. This was the World Cup! China’s World Cup.

He had worried that Hao Haidong and the others might be too relaxed, but realized his concerns were unfounded.

Each player stood tall and firm, singing the anthem with confidence and focus. Even those usually slack and nonchalant were now serious and alert. Physically, they were in no way inferior to their foreign counterparts—every man solid and strong. Why, then, did later generations of media treat this only World Cup team as a joke?

The golden generation of 2002—0:9, three defeats from three matches. What really happened in that time? Was it truly—as people said online—that they treated the games like training matches? Or that they were all just old men?

At this moment, looking at their dignified faces, their upright yet slightly rigid postures, Mo Mo reserved judgment. Soon, all would be revealed.

In the stands, countless Chinese fans who had traveled thousands of miles shouted encouragement, waving banners emblazoned with “Go China!” In such an atmosphere, Mo Mo could not believe that anyone would fail to pour their heart and blood into the game.

If you don’t give your all on the World Cup stage, then when will you ever fight with all your might?

Was it truly the shame of a 0:9 defeat, or were they pioneers worthy of respect, or heroes later vilified by the media?

The answer would be revealed with the next whistle.

Mo Mo could feel the tension in No. 12 Su Maozhen beside him. He knew that between No. 10 Hao Haidong and No. 20 Yang Chen, one would inevitably be substituted, at the latest in the second half. In fact, in a world without Mo Mo, Su Maozhen had truly been unable to reverse the outcome.

Thinking this, Mo Mo suddenly wanted to speak for them.

“Perhaps we cannot guarantee victory, but in every match, we shall give everything we have.”

Too many people focus only on the outcome; too few remember the nature of the adversaries we faced. Our blood spilled on the pitch, yet all that remains is the memory of three defeats and a scoreless return.