The road to godhood starting from Ligue 1

Chapter 304 Learn something, see how a right winger should play

The Stadio de la Cerro ...

All the anticipation, passion, fervor, excitement, and other emotions are gathered here, if these emotions can be ignited.

Bastia may be "nuclearized".

at this time.

When Gaio led the team onto the field, the stadium erupted in cheers once again.

"Geo!"

The fans chanted the name of the Bastia legend.

And as Gaio responded with a wave of his hand, the boiling intensified, like boiling water bubbling and steaming.

The Bastia team doesn't have as much chorus before the match; they just chant "Gaio" in unison.

Even during a live broadcast, it was clearly audible.

Modoso stood in front of the stands at Ultras Bastia, shirtless, with a brand new tattoo on his chest—a blue jersey number 10 with arms outstretched in celebration, the jersey clearly displaying "Gueho".

"Geo!"

Modoso, along with his die-hard fans, shouted and cheered wildly.

They wanted to shout one more time, to shout one more time.

When separation finally comes inevitably, everyone hopes that the present moment will be more intense and unforgettable.

On the field.

Gaio, as captain, and Basel captain Frye participated in the coin toss ceremony.

at the same time,

The sounds of singing filled the air as the match was about to kick off. Bastia fans would choose to sing Gaio's favorite song, an adaptation of Elaine's "Ce train qui s'en va"—Gaio's anthem.

"Under the stars of Filiani
Thessaly Stadium is calling your name

Gaio, Son of the Mountains

The trophy is ready to have your name on it."

At this moment, the fans didn't shout at the top of their lungs, but instead spoke with deep emotion, explaining that Hélène's classic melody is not only popular in France.

It is also considered a classic in Bastia, simply because it was one of Gaio's favorite songs.

He likes it, and so does Bastia.

As Gaio listened to the fans singing this song with deep emotion, even though it wasn't time to part ways yet, he thought of summer.

Elaine's gentle voice involuntarily echoed in my mind—

“Je n'aurai pas d venir I shouldn’t have come.”
J'aurai d laisser l'espoir originally wanted to leave hope
Ce train qui s'en va looking at this train
C'est un peu de moi, from here

Qui part gone far away"

When the song ends.

drop!
The referee blew his whistle, and the match officially began.

Basel kicks off.

Gai focused all his energy on the game, and he could only repay the fans' deep support with goals, victories, and championships.

After the start of the game, both sides made tentative contact, and neither team dared to be careless.

The commentator also introduced the starting lineups for both sides: "For Bastia, the starting lineup is Lukaku, Mane, Gaião, De Bruyne, Kante, Van Dijk, and Darmian."

"On Basel's side, Yakin set up a 4-2-3-1 formation, which is quite aggressive. Streller is at the very front, followed by Valentin Stock, captain Fry, and young Salah."

The two defensive midfielders are Cere Dier and Elneny.

The backline consists of Wozer, Dragovic, Fabian Schär, and Steinhfer.

Goalkeeper Sommer

After introducing the lineups, the commentators also discussed the two teams' records in the Europa League.

"They are all dark horses. Bastia defeated Atletico Madrid twice and then eliminated Tottenham and Inter Milan in succession. They can be called the real giant killers!"
Basel should not be underestimated either; they defeated Russian powerhouse Zenit.

The commentators kept talking about information related to the match.

For the first five minutes, both sides were very cautious and there was no offensive threat.

However, five minutes later, Bastia gradually took control of the game, and the combination play between De Bruyne and Rothen in midfield made it difficult for Basel to control the ball in midfield.

Basel couldn't hold onto the ball.

Gaio was facing two defenders on the wing, with Wozer and Valentin Stock double-teaming him.

Yakin did detailed research before the match and knew very well why Bastia was so strong this season.

Gaio is one of the biggest reasons.

of course,

Bastia's midfield is also among the best in Ligue 1.

Two relatively unknown young players, plus a former Ligue 1 assist leader who has long since faded from the mainstream spotlight.

As a result, this midfield duo has been playing exceptionally well in Ligue 1 this season.

Gaião's ability to create many attacking opportunities is largely due to this midfield duo.

and so.

Yakin was also very decisive. After cautious contact in the first few minutes, he realized that he was not able to beat Bastia, so he decisively ordered his players to retreat.

This made Bastia somewhat unsure of how to play, as they have always preferred a defensive counter-attacking style, and now Basel was using the same approach against them.

The players were a little unaccustomed to it.

Mistakes soon occurred.

In the 8th minute, when De Bruyne passed the ball to Mane on the left wing where there was relatively more space, Mane tried to get past Steinhfer in one step, but took a step too far.

Elneny, who came up behind, intercepted the ball and then launched a long pass into the middle.

After receiving the ball in the middle, Frye immediately advanced through the middle!

This immediately created a counter-attack opportunity for Basel.

Bastia quickly organized their defense. Fry wasn't fast, but he drew Bastia's defensive attention in the middle.

Bang!
He made a diagonal pass, sending the ball to the right wing.

Salah is charging forward.

Sidibé tried to close in on Salah, but Salah suddenly accelerated, catching Sidibé off guard and causing him to fall half a step behind.

It was that half-step that allowed Salah to rush forward.

After receiving the ball, Salah cut inside immediately.

Almost a one-on-one chance!

Wow!

At that moment, gasps erupted in the Cesarian stadium. Seeing Salah's series of attacks, they felt as if they were seeing Gaio in his prime.

Before Gaio rose to fame, he could easily dribble past the opposing full-back in a one-on-one situation.

An inside cut is a one-on-one attack!

Therefore, Bastia fans were very clear about Salah's next move after his series of actions.

The commentator exclaimed, "One-on-one! Salah, the Egyptian number 22, with his small feet, has a chance to open the scoring for Basel?!"

however,
The next moment, the commentator exclaimed again, "My God! Van Dijk! Bastia's center-back Van Dijk is incredibly fast in tracking back!"

Thesesars fans also witnessed this scene.

Van Dijk is tall and strong, with long legs yet full of power, making him look extremely impressive.

As Salah cut inside and was about to face goalkeeper Darmian one-on-one, Van Dijk stretched out a leg in front of Salah, blocking his position and providing physical support.

Salah failed to use his speed to break free, took a touch, and fell to the ground. The ball was touched by Van Dijk, and Darmian, who rushed out, immediately took control of it.

A false alarm!
Salah's breakthrough completely shattered Sidibe's defense on the left flank.

If it weren't for Van Dijk's quick recovery, Salah might have had a one-on-one opportunity.

Damian had already abandoned the gate and was preparing to block the one-on-one attack.

Fortunately, we have Van Dijk.

Salah sat on the ground, straightened his socks, and quickly stood up. He pursed his lips and glanced at Van Dijk. He hadn't expected that this Bastia defender, who was so big, could run so fast.

More importantly, the way it hit him was like a tank hitting him, giving him no chance at all.

He couldn't help but sigh to himself that teams in the top five European leagues were indeed difficult to beat.

Sidibé apologized to Van Dijk, who simply waved him off, telling him to be careful and not to lose his position again.

Call ~
The stadium seemed to breathe a sigh of relief as the ball was cleared by Van Dijk.

That was a really dangerous shot.

Fortunately, Van Dijk was quick.

On the sidelines, Hagi Bejic was also startled, almost conceding the first goal at home.

Fortunately, the quality of the signings during the winter transfer window was high enough.

In the stands,
As a former defender, Chatham could naturally see Van Dijk's talent and potential, and couldn't help but think that he should give Van Dijk more playing time.

If Gaio transfers, then Van Dijk could become Bastia's next high-priced player.

Virgil van Dijk's physique is just too good!
On the field.

Gaio, also a right winger, was not surprised at all by Salah's performance.

After all, this is Salah, the future number one right winger!
Last summer, he transferred from Egyptian club Mokaulom (also known as Arab Contractors Club) to Basel for around 250 million euros, replacing Shaqiri who left the team.

During this period, some of Salah's qualities were already evident.

He is extremely disciplined in training, and within just two months of joining Basel, he went from knowing only a few English words to completely overcoming the language barrier and quickly integrating into the locker room.

More importantly, he has the ability to withstand pressure. As an "unknown Egyptian" who succeeded Shaqiri, he maintained a stable output under the pressure of high expectations from fans, especially in key matches, and quickly became Basel's main right winger.

Moreover, although he appears quiet and reserved off the field, he has an extremely strong desire to win once he gets on the field. During his youth training period, he would even shed tears over the outcome of a match.

Of course.

His ability to become Basel's main winger is not due to these factors, but rather to his on-field performance!

Salah has an extremely strong short-range sprint ability, and can tear apart the opponent's defense in an instant, making him a huge threat, especially in counter-attacks.

The scouting report described him as "like an arrow piercing the sky," with acceleration within 5 to 10 meters reaching the level of top European wingers. He excels at cutting inside from the right wing, combining changes of direction and pace to break through, but his dribbling skills lean more towards speed than delicate changes of direction. He has good balance between his two feet, with his left foot being his dominant foot and his right foot capable of handling basic ball control.

He has excellent off-the-ball skills and is good at inserting himself into the gaps between the center-backs or moving wide to draw the defense and create space for his teammates.

However, Salah also has significant weaknesses at this stage – his finishing and passing abilities need improvement.

Shooting efficiency is low, especially in positional attacks where shot selection is rushed.

The passing consistency is insufficient. The passing strategy is clear in counter-attacks, but the final pass in positional attacks has a high error rate. Crosses are often made in a triangular pattern rather than traditional high balls.

For example, you could see that he hesitated a bit when he made that half-single-handed move.

And it lacks the ability to cope.

If it were Gaio, upon seeing Van Dijk charging towards him, he would definitely choose to spike the ball, then use a sudden stop and sprint to change the rhythm and shake off Van Dijk.

But Salah can't do those moves yet.

It seemed to have sensed their gaze.

Salah turned to look at the source of the gaze and found it was Gaio.

The two men, separated by a midfield wall, exchanged a glance.

Gaio smirked slightly. He wanted to tell Salah to learn from him and see how a right winger plays.

However, he would never say such a thing.

just,

When he saw Mane, Salah, and Van Dijk all on the field at the same time, he had a different feeling.

Damian took the kick-off, and play continued.

Having learned his lesson, Hagi Begic shouted from the sidelines that the players should pay attention to their positioning, both offensively and defensively!

Bastia is a team that relies on defense, and once they regain their composure, Basel will have few opportunities for the time being.

On the contrary, Bastia's attack began to take off.

Gaião's attacks on the right flank were both the focus of Bastia's offense and the focus of Basel's defense.

After several probing breakthroughs, Gaião gradually grasped the defensive situation of Basel on this side.

He started to get into game mode.

Gaião's offensive onslaught put immense pressure on Basel's defense; Wozniacki alone was no match for him, and in one-on-one situations, he was practically handing the ball to the enemy.

Only when Stock dropped back to help defend and the defensive midfielder Die came over to help could they barely stop Gaio.

But in this way...

This freed up Bastia's attacking space in the middle and left flanks.

This is the value of Gaio.

18 minutes.

Swish!
De Bruyne unleashed a stunning curling shot from outside the penalty area, heading straight for the top corner of the goal, leaving the relatively short Sommer with no chance.

Bastia has finally broken the ice!

1-0 at home against Basel.

"Kevin!"

The Bastia fans cheered. De Bruyne, who is not usually one to celebrate, simply raised his arms briefly before embracing his teammates.

Courtside.

Hagi Bejic pumped his fist excitedly when he saw his team score the first goal. Bastia's attacking lineup was purely a case of skill exceeding reputation.

They are all young players, but they are incredibly dynamic!

This play stemmed from Gai drawing a lot of defensive attention, Lukaku passing back, and Mane's off-the-ball movement also attracting the goalkeeper's attention.

De Bruyne delivered the final blow!
Hagi Bejic is pleased that the team has transformed from relying entirely on Gaio during their time in Ligue 2 to playing team football as it does now.

Everything is steadily improving.

Hagi Begic couldn't help but look at his players on the court, knowing in his heart that this might be the strongest team he had ever coached.

As head coach, Hagi Bejic is very clear about what will happen this summer.

Bastia is highly likely to be dismembered.

This is the fate of the dark horse small team.

There's no escaping it.

There's no escaping it.

Can only accept.

But this doesn't affect the celebration at all!

Beside him, Yakin frowned, frantically searching for a solution.

drop!
The game continues.

Basel kicked off, intending to press forward, but as soon as the ball came out, they found that Bastia's formation had dropped back.

Yakin couldn't help but mutter to himself, "Isn't this a bit too cautious?!"

(End of this chapter)