From the man behind the football king to the football king.

Chapter 97 Becoming captain for the first time (please order first)

The match day of the second leg of the Europa League quarter-finals was on the evening of February 27th. Udinese arrived in Alkmaar, a small town on the northwest coast of the Netherlands, on the 16th.

Dutch cheese has a long history. Curds were found in clay pots dating back to 800 BC. This is the oldest evidence that the Dutch made cheese.

The Netherlands' long cheese history and large market demand have formed a unique cheese culture and created many small towns that are world-renowned for their cheese industry.

If the Netherlands is the home of cheese, then Alkmaar is a cheese paradise.

The small town of Alkmaar has a population of only about 8 people, but it has the largest cheese market in the world. Among the several existing cheese markets in the Netherlands, the cheese market in Alkmaar is the more famous. It is the oldest preserved cheese market in the Netherlands. It still maintains the original trading style and is a good place to experience the long-standing cheese culture of the Netherlands.

Today, the Alkmaar Cheese Market has become the most famous local tourist attraction, receiving more than 10 tourists every year, and is one of the most crowded places in the town.

The town of Alkmaar also has many museums. In addition to the cheese museum, there are also the Beatles Museum, the National Beer Museum, the Dutch Oven Museum, the Alkmaar City Museum, etc., which have become a good place for tourists to experience the history and characteristic culture of the Netherlands and the town. Important places.

In addition to cheese, canals and windmills are also indispensable scenery in the town of Alkmaar.

There are 33 windmills in the town, of which there is only one in the urban area, most of which are located by the river outside the city.

Alkmaar is also a canal town, full of bridges, and the best way to explore the town is by boat. The canal tour boat provides a tour guide. Under the guidance of the tour guide, tourists can watch and listen to the tour guide explain the beautiful historical legends of the town, which is very interesting. Along the canal and out of the city, you will find many ancient windmills standing on the bank of the river, which complement the reeds on the riverside and are very beautiful.

………………

However, coming all the way to Udinese in Alkmaar, there is no time for sightseeing. After they arrived, they didn't even rest. Instead, they went to the hotel to put their things away and then went directly to the AFAS stadium for adaptive training.

After completing this training, the Udinese team returned to the hotel to have dinner and rest.When I went to the AFAS Stadium the next day, I was going to participate in the game.

While the team was training, head coach Guidolin was interviewed by the media on the sidelines. They only had fifteen minutes of interview time. The stadium will be closed after the time limit, and Guidolin will use this opportunity to practice some set-piece tactics.

Of course, it's impossible to truly keep things secret when you're on someone else's home court. Alkmaar's scouts or coaches will definitely appear in a dark corner of the stands after the stadium is closed, filming Udinese's training and taking notes.

Guidolin simply did not cover up and practiced openly.

During the interview, Guidolin also clearly revealed that Udinese's goal is to get a draw on the road.

This goal is very realistic and within everyone’s expectations.

After all, Udinese had already won the first round at home, and now a draw can ensure that they advance to the Europa League last sixteen.

This goal may seem a bit unambitious, but that's how professional football is. Being aggressive may lead to good football, but more often than not being conservative wins.

………………

For Bruno, everything was normal before this game. Whether it was training, rest, or diet, there was nothing to be picky about. The straightforward Dutchman did not make any mistakes at this time.

The problem came in the warm-up before the game the next day.

At that time, everyone was warming up for shooting. Di Natale was in a good mood and in good condition. During the training, he yelled and then kicked the ball. As a result, he did not hit the ball but kicked it in front of the ball. on the turf...

This was really a very low-level and amateurish mistake, so everyone was laughing at him at first. Bruno even squatted on the ground laughing.

But everyone soon realized that something was wrong. Di Natale covered his knees and lay on the ground with a painful expression.

The assistant coach quickly ran up to check on Di Natale's injury, and soon the team doctor also ran up. He took a brief look and said to the assistant coach: "He can't play in this game."

After saying that, the team doctor began to apply ice to Di Natale's swollen knee to reduce the swelling.

"What the hell is this?" the assistant coach exclaimed after hearing that Di Natale was injured and couldn't play. "What on earth are you playing, Antonio?"

Faced with the assistant coach's questioning, Di Natale also felt aggrieved and said nonchalantly: "I think it's a matter of turf quality. It's none of my business! Really..."

"You were obviously too excited during the warm-up!" the assistant coach said helplessly. Our team lost one of its generals before the game even started. This is not a good sign for today's game.

………………

Seeing that Di Natale was going to miss today's game, his teammates gathered around him to express their blessings.

Di Natale's mentality is quite good. He has always been a very optimistic and good person.

The Italian top striker who has been able to come all the way from the lower leagues to today, in addition to perseverance and perseverance, would not be able to reach this point without a sufficiently optimistic character.

<divclass="contentadv"> He smiled at Bruno: "Hey, Bruno, it looks like you have to fight alone. I'm sorry. But as compensation, I will give up the captain's armband to you!"

Udinese has only two captains, one is good and the other is good. Di Natale is the captain and Basta is the vice-captain. However, the Serbian did not enter the squad for this game.

The core of the team's midfield last season, after Bruno's arrival, rarely appeared in his original position, and more often played as a right back or right midfielder.

However, as Mahrez and Cancelo perform better and better, Basta, who is about to turn 30, often cannot even play right back or right midfielder.

In this game, head coach Guidolin left Basta in Udinese and did not bring the Netherlands.

However, Bruno did not take Di Natale's words to heart. Although both captains are absent, there are still players with more senior qualifications in the team, such as Domic, Danilo, Pingchi and others who have played for Udinese for many years, and even Erto and Lazar. Li and others also joined the team before him.

Therefore, under normal circumstances, it is not his turn to wear the captain's armband.

Moreover, at this moment Bruno's mind is not on who will become the captain. He is worried that the team may not be able to achieve an ideal result today.

Di Natale is the only reliable scoring point in Udinese's lineup besides him.Now that he is out, it is difficult for Udinese to find a strong scorer in the lineup.

Under such circumstances, Bruno not only has to shoulder the responsibility of the team's offensive organization, but he may also have to shoulder the burden of scoring.

He has to be a father and a mother at the same time, plus the responsibility of captain, he really can't bear it.

………………

Di Natale limped to the locker room with the support of the team doctor. The assistant coach accompanied him back to the locker room, and then told the coach Guidolin, who was currently unaware of the situation, about the situation.

Soon, the assistant coach ran back and said to Muriel who was warming up: "Louis, you start this game and take Antonio's place."

In fact, when Di Natale was injured, Muriel knew that his chances of playing in this game had greatly increased, so when it was his turn, he was not excited and just nodded to show that he understood.

The assistant coach didn't explain much. Anyway, when he returned to the locker room, head coach Guidolin still had to explain.

Then, he dropped Muriel and ran to Bruno, saying: "You wear the captain's armband in this game, Bruno!"

After hearing what the assistant coach said, Bruno seemed very surprised. He didn't expect that what Di Natale just said would really become a reality.

Others were not surprised by the news announced by the assistant coach, including team veterans such as Domic, Danilo and Pinchi.

In their opinion, Bruno is the strongest player in the team and the number one contributor to the team's excellent record this season. In addition, Bruno has a good relationship with them. They are all convinced that he wears the captain's armband.

On the contrary, if someone among them becomes the captain, the others will be unconvinced in their hearts.

………………

When the Udinese players finished their warm-up and returned to the locker room, Di Natale's injured knee had been treated.

Seeing Bruno walk in, Di Natale shrugged at him and shook his head: "It's really unlucky. It looks like I'm going to miss the game for two to three weeks..."

Bruno is also very helpless. This is Di Natale's third injury this season. This is a very bad sign.

You know, Di Natale has rarely been injured. Since joining Udinese, he has been on the injury list 4 times in the previous seasons.

Nowadays, he is injured frequently. In addition to the intensive competition, the more important thing is that he is really old and his physical functions can no longer keep up with the rhythm of the game.

Fortunately, every time he gets injured, it's not a big problem. He basically just rests for two weeks.

The only serious injury in Di Natale's career was five years ago in March 5, when he was out for four months.

Bruno asked: "Did you hurt any bones or ligaments?"

Di Natale shook his head: "No, the team doctor said it was a soft tissue injury to the knee. It should have been kicked on the turf, which indirectly shocked the knee joint."

"That's good." Bruno nodded.

"Do it well, Bruno." Di Natale stretched out his hand to Bruno, and Bruno slapped his hand.