"Sure enough! In the Italian Super Cup, the reason Juventus was able to defeat San Remo was mainly because Lu Yang didn’t play!"
"Once Lu Yang is on the field, whether San Remo is in an advantageous position or not, he can always score!"
"Now Juventus is in trouble; how will they solve the problem of Lu Yang?"
"Lu Yang took on Chiavich, Turan, and Audi by himself! He blew up Juventus’s defense!"
The commentators were enthusiastically praising Lu Yang’s strength.
Because they know the fans love to hear this.
Juventus has dominated Serie A for too long, and the Serie A fans are already expressing dissatisfaction about it.
Serie A is different from the Bundesliga and Ligue 1.
Even in recent years and now, Serie A is still a league filled with giants.
In such a league, a team winning multiple league championships shows that the team is strong.
But if a team can continuously win multiple league championships, it indicates... there’s a problem!
Either there’s a problem with the league itself, or there’s an issue with fair competition.
In Serie A, it used to be the latter, now it’s the former.
After this goal, the movements of San Remo’s players on the offensive end significantly decreased.
They began to focus on defense, handing over control of the game to Juventus.
Even if they didn’t want to, they had to, as it was now Juventus’s turn to go on a full offensive.
Not shrinking the formation would be like gifting them a goal.
During this phase, San Remo’s defense was relatively stable and held up to the test.
But this was also related to Juventus’s forward line still getting familiar with San Remo’s defense.
In the nineteenth minute, Ancelotti gave his teammate a look, using his ghostly movements to deceive Naji and received a through ball from the midfield.
Kaint, though timely in his defense, saw Ancelotti choose to pass instead of shoot, handing the ball to a nearby Kolber.
Kolber finished with a tap-in goal, very steady!
One to one!
Juventus equalized the score.
The Juventus fans immediately began celebrating loudly.
That momentum indeed felt like Serie A number one.
In the thirty-first minute, it was Ancelotti again.
After retreating to support his teammate, he roamed to the flank.
After receiving the ball, he dribbled past Lam, then dribbled laterally, and when Lam recovered and Bernulin came to assist, he made a cross to the onrushing Turan.
Turan, on the right side outside the penalty area, unleashed a powerful right-footed strike!
It turned out to be a stunning outside-foot long shot!
Areola almost threw his gloves in frustration.
Miracle Ball!
What a save!
Two to one!
Juventus overtakes San Remo to lead.
In the thirty-sixth minute, Vidal intercepted Delarre and passed to Kolber.
Kolber passed to Ancelotti.
Ancelotti, on the left side outside the penalty area, made an extremely long-distance right-footed curled shot, the football drawing a huge curve, flying over Areola’s fingertips, hitting the far post’s outside, and bouncing out for a goal kick.
Almost a goal!
If that ball went in, there was no doubt it might have even surpassed Lu Yang’s previous goal to become the best goal of this round of the league.
Because such a long-distance curled shot is extremely difficult, hardly seen a few times in a year.
Before the halftime break, Juventus got one last attack opportunity.
Ancelotti escaped down the flank, cutting into the penalty area from the byline.
Faced with a double team, he somehow managed to pass the ball out.
But Kolber and Ancelotti’s chemistry was ultimately lacking; he didn’t anticipate Ancelotti could pass that ball, so he reacted a beat slower, and the ball flew over his forehead, then was cleared to the midfield with a big kick by the oncoming Camihong.
The main referee immediately blew the whistle.
Halftime!
Throughout the first half, the man of the match was almost undisputed—Ancelotti!
His movement and tactical awareness were back.
The way he pulled, stirred, and threatened was very effective, giving San Remo’s defenders quite a headache.
Moreover, his personal form was visibly excellent.
In the second half, no one would doubt that Ancelotti will score.
And... it might not just be one!
Just ask if you’re impressed or not!
Facing such a situation, Lu Yang pondered for a long time during halftime.
San Remo is facing a series of grueling fixtures ahead.
Although the first three opponents are relegation-threatened teams.
But the fourth game is against Juventus.
The fifth game is against Inter.
The sixth game is a battle with Lazio.
The seventh game is against Naples.
The eighth game is against Florence.
The tenth game’s opponent is Rome.
The eleventh game is against AC Milan!
This series of strong team confrontations also includes two national team matches and three Champions League group matches.
This is also the reason why San Remo set their goal for the top four in the league this year.
They simply can’t handle the Champions League colliding with the grueling schedule, reaching the group stage would be an unattainable dream.
On the other hand, if they work hard during this challenging schedule, they might manage to not look too bad.
If they can endure it, although San Remo might not have many points by then, having battled through the tough opponents, it would make facing other relegation-threatened teams much easier, as these would become score-gaining rounds.
This match strategy coincides perfectly with San Remo’s early stages of pretending to be weak, giving others the illusion that San Remo is just a mid-table team.
By the second half of the season, when they start to exert themselves, everyone will realize that San Remo’s real goal is indeed the top four Champions League spots!
But all of this is built upon not looking too bad during this grueling schedule.
If San Remo collapses during this stretch, it would essentially mean that their only qualification this season would be to avoid relegation.