Chapter 6: The Dragon Countryman Who Moved Along the Offside Line

Chapter 6: The Dragon Countryman Dancing on the Offside Line

Panting heavily, Li Mo was pushed to the ground by Petagna. Moments later, several teammates piled on top of him. Even Pato had labored to run over from the far post to join the heap. Regardless of how it looked, the deadlock had been broken.

Li Mo’s goal was not exactly a thing of beauty, nor was his posture particularly graceful. He hadn't even had the chance to perform the elaborate celebration he had envisioned in his mind. For the last ten minutes, Li Mo had been in a constant state of motion. He had sprinted from the left flank to the right, hunting for chances to break through the defensive line, never sparing his energy if there was even a sliver of possibility. Under such intensity, his physical exhaustion was immense, but his efforts had finally paid off.

There was a hidden advantage to being an overlooked player: nobody paid attention to him. Even Arsenal’s defenders had ignored Li Mo for long stretches, mostly because his few previous touches on the ball had been quite eye-searingly poor. Consequently, when Li Mo scored, the Arsenal players stood there, momentarily dazed. The most unlikely person on the pitch had actually scored? Considering it was a tap-in at the far post, the Arsenal players couldn't help but think of one word: luck.

"This kid... he’s so lucky. Just running around aimlessly and he still manages to score."

"He isn't running aimlessly!" Wenger’s face showed a flicker of keen interest. The youthful innocence on Li Mo’s face only intrigued him further. *This little boy, he’s got something.*

Unlike the Arsenal players, Wenger, watching from the touchline, saw clearly that Li Mo was not running at random. His movements were highly purposeful. Although he hadn't received many passes, the timing of every one of his runs had been impeccably rational. If AC Milan had a player like Cazorla in their ranks, this kid might have already been through on goal several times!

Even with the limited service, Li Mo had still found the back of the net. When the AC Milan player delivered the cross, everyone had rushed toward the near post, as the trajectory of the ball suggested that was where it would land. Only Li Mo had decisively sprinted toward the back post. He knew that the area had been vacated. While the probability of the ball reaching him was low, the reward for anticipating that space was an open goal. Li Mo had gambled, and he had won.

To others, it looked like a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse—a lucky break. But looking at the constant, intelligent movement Li Mo had displayed prior to the goal, it was clear this was his style of play.

"I feel like I'm looking at Inzaghi," Wenger remarked to his assistant, Bould, while stroking his chin.

"His stamina isn't great, though," Bould noted, watching Li Mo climb to his feet, gasping for air after the celebration. He added, "And his technical fundamentals have some flaws."

Wenger nodded, the interest in his eyes undimmed. Young players were supposed to have flaws. Having weaknesses wasn't the issue; the key was the raw talent being displayed.

"You aren't thinking of making an offer to AC Milan, are you?" Bould asked.

Wenger was non-committal, saying only, "Let's observe him a bit more."

Allegri was equally surprised. He had been genuinely stunned by Li Mo’s performance. *This guy really is the new Inzaghi!* Allegri thought. *If only his technical skills could recover.* He felt a tinge of regret; if Li Mo could maintain the speed and dribbling ability he had shown in the youth academy, paired with this current positional sense, his future would be limitless—perhaps even brighter than Inzaghi's. But with only his current level of talent, in an era where modern strikers were expected to be all-rounders, Li Mo might only ever be a "super-sub."

Still, that was enough. If Li Mo could maintain this level of performance consistently, he was well-qualified to be a backup striker for AC Milan’s first team. Thinking this, Allegri pulled the midfielder Valoti over. "Tell the team to increase the number of forward through-balls!" He didn't explicitly say to look for Li Mo, trusting that if the boy had the necessary footballing instinct, he would find his own opportunities.

"Damn! Incredible!"
"Thank you, Li Mo, for saving us!"
"Nice luck, picking up the scraps!"
"Hahahaha! The cherry has been popped! Incredible!"

The comments section of the Sina Sports live stream was in a frenzy. Fans were exhilarated, and gamblers were ecstatic. Zhang Jun, the commentator, was momentarily stunned when the ball hit the net, but quickly recovered: "It's a goal! Beautiful! Li Mo buries the ball into the empty net at the back post! One-nil, AC Milan leads!"

"Scoring on his first appearance for the first team—Li Mo's debut is absolutely perfect! It is worth mentioning that Li Mo's father is from the Dragon Country!" Zhang Jun said with great excitement. If Li Mo could secure a spot at AC Milan, he could certainly be counted as a "Dragon Country player abroad." At least half of one, anyway.

As the match continued, the tempo shifted. AC Milan took the initiative to speed up the play, pushing more forward passes. This style of play gave Li Mo more screen time. Almost every time the camera cut to him, he was seen surging toward the Arsenal defensive line. He hovered constantly on the offside line, determined to break through the moment an opportunity arose.

Mertesacker frowned. Although Arsenal’s back line had successfully caught Li Mo in the offside trap once more, his playing style was making the defense uncomfortable. He was dancing on the blade of the offside line; one moment of carelessness, and they could be caught in a one-on-one situation. Furthermore, Li Mo’s movement was incredibly fluid; he always found the blind spots in the defenders' vision. Several times, the linesman had raised his flag, but who knew if he would do so the next time?

Mertesacker’s intuition was correct. In the eightieth minute, a through-ball from the back sliced through the Arsenal defenders toward the edge of the penalty area. Li Mo, lurking behind Djourou, made a diagonal run the instant the ball was played. He darted past Djourou, and by the time the other Arsenal defenders reacted, Li Mo had already reached the ball.

"Li Mo... one-on-one!"

Amidst the commentator's shout, facing the rushing Arsenal goalkeeper Mannone, Li Mo didn't choose any fancy dribbling maneuvers. Instead, while in stride, he flicked his lower leg and poked the ball with his toe. The ball skimmed the grass, suddenly changing direction as it zipped past Mannone’s left side, crossed the goal line, and found the back of the net!

"Two-nil!!!!!!"

In the ensuing roar, the cameras, the fans' gaze, the substitutes on the sidelines, and even both managers were locked onto Li Mo.