Although he wanted to score a goal and show off in front of the first-team coach, Chen Yingxiong did not start the game but instead sat on the bench.
Popovich did not intend to give him too much time, as he and his teammates did not cooperate well enough, and he was afraid that he would be exposed as a fraud if he played too much time. He simply arranged for him to play in the final stage of the game.
Chen Yingxiong was a little disappointed, but he was still on the bench, cheering for the eleven starting teammates on the field with his teammates.
Head coach Advocaat and assistant coach Porter stood next to Popovich and watched the game on the court.
If they hadn't said so, no one would know that they had come here specifically to see Chen Yingxiong.
The media focused their attention on these two big names and didn't notice that there was a newcomer with black hair, yellow skin and an oriental face on Zenit's bench...
…
After the game started, the stands were quite lively. Although the number of spectators was definitely not large compared to the real Super League, there were still people singing and cheering. After the Zenit Youth Team made a beautiful attack, there would be a round of warm applause.
Chen Yingxiong didn't know that many of these people were family and friends of the Zenit youth team players present, which was why they were so excited.
Tomsk, the visiting team, was quite strong and very active as well.
Both teams were full of young players, so they had fewer tactical strategies, but they were full of fighting spirit and wanted to show themselves in this game.
Especially the Zenit players.
Popovich has already told them that the two people on the sidelines were the head coach and assistant coach of the first team. This undoubtedly stimulated them to try their best to perform.
Especially the striker Pavel Komolov, was very active. He had played eleven times in the youth league, four of which were substitute appearances, and scored a total of eight goals for the team. He was the team's top scorer.
He felt that the youth team was no longer his goal and that he should go to the first team.
Today the head coach and assistant coach were on the sidelines, so that was my chance...
Unfortunately, there is such a strange phenomenon in football games - the more you want to exert force, the less you can exert force. The more Komolov wanted to score, the more he missed the goal.
In the 21st minute, he got a great chance to score a goal. However, the ball he shot bypassed the goalkeeper and the goal, and flew directly out of the bottom line!
Many Zenit fans in the stands held their heads in regret.
It was a pity for Komolov himself too.
Although Komolov wasted such a good opportunity, it was still the Saint Petersburg Zenit Youth Team that scored first. In the 33rd minute, another striker, Georgy Mozgovoy, scored a goal and took the lead!
When Mozgovoi scored, everyone on Zenit's bench stood up and applauded and cheered for their teammates, including Chen Yingxiong.
Tomsk Youth Team equalized the score before the end of the first half, with their number seven player scoring from a direct free kick.
When the youth team played away games, there wouldn't be many fans who would follow the team to watch the game. So after they scored, there were only sighs of pity for Zenit in the stands, and all the cheers came from the bench and players on the field of the Tomsk youth team.
…
Advocaat was quite interested in this kind of game. In addition to watching Chen Yingxiong, he also wanted to see what players were available in the Saint Petersburg Zenit youth team. As the head coach of the first team, he also needed to understand the youth team's affairs. Only in this way could he be considered qualified.
He knew that the Zenit Youth Team was currently ranked first in the first group of the Russian Under-18 Youth League, but that didn't mean anything. A head coach wouldn't easily believe that, and he had to see it with his own eyes to know their strength.
Judging from the game that was being played, the level of Zenit Youth Team was pretty good, at least much better than he had imagined. However... there were no outstanding players. It could be seen that those guys were working hard and wanted to show themselves in front of him. But, their success came mostly from being an organic whole, not flashes of brilliance.
Assistant coach Porter seemed a little impatient. He kept checking his watch. "When will the big Chinese guy come on the field?"
Advocaat shook his head. "I'm afraid Popovich has the final say. He is the director of youth training."
"He looks really strong and has a good height... but you know, there are a lot of guys like that, Dick," Porter commented, looking at Chen Yingxiong's back.
Advocat sighed. "I know, we need to test it in actual combat."
Chen Yingxiong would definitely not have much playing time. Looking at Popovich's behaviour, he planned to give him playing time only at the end... What can he show in such a short time?
He was a little confused.
If Popovich wanted Chen Yingxiong to show his strength, shouldn't he have given him more playing time? Then why did he leave him at the end of the game? Could it be that this person is not strong enough, and he was only given such a short time to avoid making a fool of himself?
Why buy him in if he doesn't have enough strength? Could this person be the brother-in-law of the former assistant coach Borovikia?
Advocaat had too many questions in his mind, but he didn't show it.
He was standing on the sidelines just for one thing: to see Chen Yingxiong on the court and then observe his performance closely to see whether he was worth being used by the club.
…
Assistant Coach Porter was getting impatient, and Chen Yingxiong was also getting anxious.
In the 60th minute, he finally heard Popovich's instructions for him to warm up!
He jumped up from his seat, standing up suddenly, revealing his 1.92-meter height, which scared everyone around him.
The reporters who were originally heading for Advocaat only noticed at this time that there was such a strange face hiding on the bench of the Zenit youth team.
Apart from the goalkeeper, the local media in St. Petersburg do not remember Zenit having any players taller than 1.9 meters.
"Look! Who is that?"
"An... Oriental?"
"Oh my God! When did Zenit introduce an Oriental?"
"Korean or Japanese?"
"I didn't see such a guy in the Zenit youth team's lineup the last game..."
The reporters began to discuss in surprise.
It's no wonder they made a fuss. Chen Yingxiong's signing with the club was a trivial matter. He was not a star player, nor was he a young talent who was expected to become famous at a young age. He was an ordinary player who joined the team through self-promotion. Zenit St. Petersburg basically did not mention it. It was not even written on the official website. Therefore, even the most die-hard Zenit supporters would not know that there was such a guy in the youth team unless they went to the training ground of the youth team in person.
Some reporters immediately took action, planning to run to Chen Yingxiong, interview him and learn about his background - this mysterious Oriental man aroused their curiosity.
The club completed the signing so secretly that some reporters who thought they had a good relationship with the club felt a little unhappy.
But they were all stopped by Popovich.
"I'm sorry, gentlemen. We are still in the game! If you have any questions, please wait until the game is over..."
The commotion also attracted the attention of Zenit players. A teammate, who was also sitting on the bench, looked at Chen Yingxiong and murmured, "Why don't any reporters come to interview me?"
The teammate next to him patted his head and said. "If you were a big guy with black hair and yellow skin, I think the media would be interested in you too!"
…
Chen Yingxiong warmed up in the narrow warm-up area on the sidelines. There were also some of his teammates and the opposing team's players. Everyone was crowded together, doing the most basic warm-up exercises - running back and forth, stretching the legs, waist exercises...
Of course, his whole mind was on the court. He knew he was about to play, and he was definitely going to solve the deadlock of 1:1. At this time, a strong centre was needed to solve the problem! Ha!
He was warming up desperately while waiting for the call from the coaching bench.
In the 73rd minute of the game, Chen Yingxiong was finally called back.
Popovich looked up at Chen Yingxiong, who was a head taller than him, and said, "Remember what you did during the test before you came to this team?"
Chen Yingxiong nodded.
"My request is very simple - just do it!" He patted Chen Yingxiong's back and pushed him to the sidelines. At the same time, a referee on the sidelines had already raised a sign for substitutions.
Chen Yingxiong, wearing the big number 33, was about to replace Komolov.
The football flew out of the sideline and became a dead ball, providing an opportunity for a substitution.
Komolov walked down the field somewhat dejectedly. He was very active in this game, but he always missed the goal. For a striker, not scoring means failure. There were many other criteria for measuring players in other positions, but there was only one criterion for measuring the performance of a striker, which is unchanging - scoring.
If you can score, you are a good striker, if you can't, you are a waste. Even if you have 35 assists in a season, the media and coaches will tell you that your suitable position is not a striker, but a midfielder...
Komolov and Chen Yingxiong clapped their hands perfunctorily and passed Chen Yingxiong by.
Chen Yingxiong jumped on the sidelines, took a deep breath, and then murmured. "This is a historic moment! The hero has appeared!"
The youth team's match was not broadcast on TV, nor was there a live commentary, so Chen Yingxiong added this commentary for himself...
After saying that, he straightened his chest and ran onto the field.