Chapter 52: The Individual and the Collective

Under the rule of "Brutal Simon", this Barcelona team seems to have become an invincible demon god, soaring in La Liga, Champions League and other competitions, and Shaq is also like a clockwork, scoring goals one after another like a volcanic eruption, towards the 1,000-goal mark...... Rush!

On October 19, Barcelona defeated Malaga 5-1 away, and Shaq staged a "big four".

On October 22, Barcelona defeated Juventus 3-1 at the Camp Nou with Shaq's "hat-trick".

On October 27, Barcelona swept Girona 7-0 away, and Shaq scored twice in the game.

On October 30, in the first leg of the fourth round of the Copa del Rey, Barcelona defeated the second division team Almeria 3-0 away, and Shaq scored another brace.

In the six games of Barcelona in October, although Shaq did not score in the game against Lyon on October 1, he scored a total of 16 goals in the next five games, and the goal efficiency is still as high as 2.67.

After all, Shaq has scored 36 goals in 15 games for Barcelona this season, and he reached the milestone of 100 appearances for the 'Three Lions' in a 4-1 win over Northern Ireland for England on 16 October, and a brace took his international tally to 176 and his career tally to 937.

Driven by Shaq's goal, Barcelona is currently leading the La Liga standings with 24 points from 8 wins in 8 games in the league this season, and they are even 2 points more than Atletico Madrid, who have played one more game, and really have an advantage from the starting line.

Fast into November, Barcelona is still unstoppable......

4-1 win at home to Hercules and 5-2 win away to Juventus. Beat Levante 4:2 away, beat Almeria 6:0 at home, beat Atletico Madrid 3:0 at home, beat Copenhagen 4:0 at home, and beat Espanyol 3:0 away to win the city derby.

Throughout November, Barcelona went on a frenzied run of seven wins. 22 consecutive wins so far this season!

In this process, Shaq's contribution as the captain of the team is huge, he has scored 53 goals in 22 games this season, Barcelona fans have lost count of how many times Shaq has been the key man, they only know that when their team needs Shaq to score, the "king of the ball" will contribute the goal, and victory will follow.

Simon? Grayson has rotated thoroughly this season, with all 23 players in the squad having playing experience except for Shaq and goalkeeper Mark. Even Rafael, who has always been in poor form, has been given two appearances, Simon? Grayson just wanted to see if the Brazilian star could still be used, and the result was ...... Very disappointed.

But Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong gave Simon? Grayson was a big surprise, the two youngsters got 5 starts, 1 substitute and 4 starts respectively, and they performed very well.

Du Xiaoguang has a rating of 7.38 in the six games he has played, a pass completion rate of 86 percent, and an average of 1.71 steals per game, given his age. This performance can only be described as "genius".

Although Chen Jinlong only played 4 games, his performance was better than his good brother Du Xiaoguang. He has a whopping rating of 7.78 points, an average of 3.88 steals per game, and a staggering 91% pass completion rate.

The outstanding performance of the two young players attracted the attention of the coach of the Spanish U19 national youth team, Melandez, and even the veteran coach came to Gamber Sports City at the end of November to visit the class, and personally had a conversation with Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong, and then ...... Shaq is in trouble.

After Merandez left. Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong found Shaq, who was practicing hard for free kicks.

"Boss, I'm looking for you for something." Du Xiaoguang, who had a calm personality, had a serious face and handed over a towel.

"Brother Shaq, you can rest and rest!" Chen Jinlong, who has a jumping personality, seems more casual.

Shaq smiled and looked at the two boys. took the towel and wiped it on his forehead: "What's the matter?" Go ahead! ”

"Boss, old man Merandes...... Looking for us to join the Spanish Under-19 national team. ”

"Well, Merandez is...... Who? ”

Shaq is busy training the training ground every day this season, and rarely pays attention to other things, not to mention that he doesn't know who Merandez is, and even if he does, he doesn't have time to take care of him, in order not to let his attributes decline too quickly, Shaq is playing with his life every day, and now even the locker room affairs are presided over by Fabregas, if it weren't for Shaq who can really play the role of a captain on the pitch and lead the team forward with his goals, maybe Barcelona's dressing room will not be so calm.

"Oh mama! Big brother, you don't even know who Merandez is? He is the current head coach of the Spanish Under-19 national team! Don't you know, our brothers have been very popular recently, and the old man came to talk to us about joining the team in person. ”

"Oh!"

Shaq grinned, "That's a good thing! First U19, then U20, U21, then you go back to the Spanish national team, isn't that good? ”

"Boss!"

Du Xiaoguang shouted, not quite accustomed to Shaq's relaxed tone: "Boss, you are not a Chinese, so you don't understand the current situation of Chinese football, because China does not recognize dual nationality, so ...... If we get into Spain Under-19, we won't be able to play for China in the future. ”

Belch!

Shaq glared, and immediately understood what these two boys were struggling with, how could he forget this stubble!?

Once upon a time, Shaq also secretly thought about what would happen if he became a Chinese citizen and helped the Chinese men's football team to play games, and the result was ...... He is not very optimistic when he thinks about it, football is a team sport after all, and it is impossible for him to achieve anything alone, not to mention that he is still an out-and-out Englishman at the moment.

"This ...... Well, it's a bit of a hassle! But haven't you two thought about it? Do you want individual or collective honor? Well, or rather...... Have you ever thought that even if you play for the Chinese team, you can really achieve anything? ”

Over the years, Shaq has returned to China to live for a few days almost every holiday, and he has a better understanding of the current situation of Chinese football. The World Cup qualifiers can't appear, and now they are even stumbling in the Asian Cup qualifiers, let alone trying to achieve any results, and even the East Asian Cup derived from the East Asian semifinals has not been touched for many years.

It can be said that to this day, there is still no hope in Chinese football!

Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong are silent, of course they know how bad the current situation of Chinese football is, and now Chinese players have been equated with "defective products", and there are still many players who have gone abroad to play overseas through personal efforts. But now...... There are no more Chinese players to want.

"Boss, what do you mean......"

"What do I mean? Hehe......" Shaq smiled helplessly: "Xiaoguang, Xiaolong, don't blame me for saying frustrating words, Chinese football is completely on the wrong path, it is broken from the root, and it wants to get better...... That's the Arabian Nights! It cannot be denied that the two of you have had a good start at Barça and maybe in a few years you will be the main players at Barça. But even with the two of you, can Chinese football really rise? I do. You two still have to grasp this opportunity to achieve honor and achievements in the future! ”

The Spanish team is no longer the era of domination, and the current European football and world football are under the rule of the England team where Shaq is located, and the "Three Lions" have won the European Cup, the Confederations Cup, and the World Cup in a row, and they are already the world's No. 1 at this stage. In Shaq, Jonny? Hausen, Ben? Parker, Jack? Until Rodwell and others get old, it will be difficult for other teams to compete with them.

But the Spanish team is still a strong team, currently ranked ninth in the world, and it is definitely a team with the strength to win the European Championship and the World Cup.

Shaq thinks that Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong can become Spanish citizens if the two little guys can become Spanish citizens. With the potential they have shown so far, and the influence of their team, Barcelona, they will become the backbone of the Spanish team in the future, and it is indeed a good choice to have the opportunity to play for the Spanish team.

Shaq's suggestion did not make Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong make a decision immediately, this kind of change of nationality is a major event related to life after all, they are only sixteen years old, and many things still need the help of their parents to make decisions.

The next morning, when Shaq saw the two boys again, he found that they both had dark circles under their eyes, and it seemed that they hadn't rested well all night, but the two of them looked like they were in high spirits, and they had obviously made a decision.

"Boss, Xiaolong and I have already decided, we are ready to change our nationality and become Spanish."

"Yes, Brother Shaq, my father told me, now is not the era of sacrificing personal interests for the sake of the collective, we have to cultivate our personal abilities first, so we can bring more honor to the collective, so ...... Hehe, I also decided to become a Spanish citizen first, and then change my nationality if I have the opportunity in the future. ”

Shaq smiled and nodded, he naturally wouldn't tell the two boys any FIFA regulations that have many restrictions on players who change their nationality, which is simply discouraged by the enthusiasm of the two little guys.

And no matter how you look at it, Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong are still good for them to join the Spanish nationality, they are still very young, and when they grow up in a few years, the Spaniards will have long been able to accept their identity, after all, Spain itself is a multi-ethnic country, what Catalonia, Basque Country, etc.

Moreover, after these two boys were selected for Spain's U19, they will definitely be focused on training when they return to Barcelona, and after their strength is improved to a certain level, the Spanish national team will definitely pay attention to and promote, which is the beginning of a virtuous circle. (To be continued......)