The public’s anger is justified.
Because many people have already voted for major football stars early on, and even if they want to vote for Lu Yang now, there are no votes left.
Or, the earlier votes they cast had the most weight, but they already went to someone else.
The votes cast for Lu Yang are probably lower in value, at the back, and are relatively insignificant.
Votes worth one or two points and votes worth nine or ten points are not in the same class; there’s a five to ten-fold difference!
But after French Football fired a few temporary workers, they just played dead, as if the temporary workers carried the weight of high-level executives or chief editors, and that by sacrificing them, peace and forgiveness could be achieved.
Fans were unsatisfied with their scolding.
Some well-informed fans accurately predicted French Football’s mindset.
"They want to buy time," said a netizen named Xi Zi, "Lu Yang’s performance in the last match was not good, possibly because his multi-line battle led to an early fatigue period."
"When the next match begins, French football might use Lu Yang’s report card to tell everyone that the decisions made by their temporary workers weren’t entirely wrong."
"Here, I must explain. As the absolute core and leader of the team, the consumption during a grueling schedule is much more significant than for other players."
"Most players will start to feel fatigued around the mid-second half of the season. But for someone like Lu Yang, he might enter the fatigue period right after the grueling schedule ends."
"A brief drop in form is an unavoidable and normal phenomenon for any professional player, but it’s quite shameless for French football to try and seize this time point."
Below, many netizens liked and commented.
"The next match is San Remo against Brescia, a team struggling to avoid relegation; there shouldn’t be any major problems."
"That’s not certain, San Remo’s performance wasn’t very good when they played against relegation teams before."
"The key is still Brother Lu’s form. Hey, French Football even said the team’s star player is Talista. Have they even watched the game?"
"Talista is indeed fierce, but Brother Lu is San Remo’s guarantee for victory."
"Honestly speaking, Talista and those senior players from the Italy National Team gave it their all this time, directly withdrawing from the Golden Ball Award selection to pressure French Football."
"This list of 101 names is the first of its kind, isn’t it?"
"That’s why French Football is so resentful. Otherwise, with Lu’s phenomenal performance this year, how could he not make it to the 30-man shortlist?"
Regarding such comments, French Football indeed played dead.
But a high executive from the Nike Company announced some "insider information" complacently at a private gathering.
"This year he definitely won’t make it to the 30-man shortlist. Not just this year, next year, the year after, or even longer, he won’t make it to the 30-man shortlist!"
"He is now blacklisted by all major awards organizations. We and Ah Ke have clearly expressed our stance to all major award organizations to put a stop to this unhealthy trend!"
"Just play football properly, stop selling shoes. Who does he think he is? A fashion mogul? Only an idiot would buy that so-called 750, it sounds trashy right from the name!"
"Results? Don’t talk to me about results. Does a Serie B result count? Did he play the European Cup all by himself? Haha, without strong performances in the Five Major Leagues, he wouldn’t make it to the 30-man shortlist even if he won the European Cup or the World Cup this year!"
"What league results are enough?"
"In the Ligue 1 and Bundesliga, at least 30 goals are needed to qualify! Otherwise, we can easily maneuver him out."
"For Serie A, La Liga, and the Premier League, the first requirement, but also 20 goals."
"He might be able to do that this season. But unfortunately, the Golden Ball Award voting is about to end. Currently, the scores of more than 20 players have already secured their place in the 30-man shortlist. Among the last few positions, over 20 players are competing, and it’s not his turn!"
This recording can be described as extremely arrogant.
It directly demonstrated the significant influence sponsors like these two sports giants have on awards.
And it vividly reflects the unwritten rules within the Golden Ball Award.
Once you’ve offended the benefactors, you must surpass others in excellence before you can have the opportunity to enter the realm you should easily step into.
This is very unfair, but the world itself is inherently unfair.
During a Premier League match, two well-known commentators also mentioned Lu Yang’s issue during the match’s downtime.
Initially, the director wanted them to stop the discussion, as it was unrelated to the match at hand.
However, the soaring ratings made the producer discover the secret to gaining viewership, indicating the two commentators to talk more if they could.
"Time is running out for Lu Yang. If French Football really wants to define it by 20 goals in Serie A, Lu Yang must score seven goals in the recent two or three matches."
"He currently has thirteen goals in Serie A, and four in the Champions League. No matter how you calculate, he’s still several goals short."
"French Football’s actions this time are indeed a bit sinister, but we must admit, if you’re not scoring over 20 goals in the Premier League, Serie A, or La Liga, you truly can’t be considered among the top 20 or even top 10 strikers worldwide."
"The forwards on the Golden Ball Award’s 30-man shortlist are just a dozen or so. Lu Yang’s honors are sufficient, but in terms of stats, he still needs to work hard, because he’s facing the most stringent Golden Ball Award rules in history."
"These are even rules listed specifically to prevent Lu Yang from breaking into the top 30, they didn’t exist before."