Ground football: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him

From this perspective, Viana, who also achieved four goals and five assists, is at a disadvantage.

If the award had been given after the match against Inter Milan, he would definitely have been the best newcomer, but unfortunately that was only the round of 16.

After the group photo, Gerrard voluntarily gave the trophy to Ronaldo.

Overall, this match brought him more painful memories, and he didn't want to be reminded of those painful memories by items related to the match.

While saying "No, no," Cristiano Ronaldo hugged the trophy tightly to his chest.

The smile at the corner of his mouth betrayed his true thoughts.

Following the Best Newcomer Award is the Golden Boot Award.

Cristiano Ronaldo once again went on stage to receive the award.

Fourteen goals would be enough to win the Golden Boot in any cup competition.

However, Ronaldo wasn't the only one to score fourteen goals; there was also... Deng Kai!

DK and his partner went up to the podium together, each holding half of the trophy for a group photo.

The fact that one team has produced two Golden Boot winners is enough to prove just how formidable Sporting Lisbon's attacking prowess is in European competitions this season.

They eliminated Inter Milan and Barcelona 7-6, Kaiserslautern in 11 matches, and Liverpool 5-4 in a last-minute victory. These statistics are astonishing.

Ultimately, thanks to Deng Kai's magnanimous relinquishment, the trophy was also retained by Cristiano Ronaldo.

Cristiano Ronaldo is radiant, holding the Best Young Player award in his left hand and the Golden Boot trophy in his right.

After the Golden Boot, the Best Goalkeeper will be announced.

Schmeichel stood on the podium once again.

A 38-year-old veteran, Schmeichel won the best goalkeeper honors in both the Portuguese league and the UEFA Cup within a year, returning to his peak form and achieving results second only to the year Manchester United won the treble two years ago.

The saying "Having an elder in the family is like having a treasure" is truly well-deserved.

The best defender award went to Liverpool's right-back, Babel, who was the best defender in this UEFA Cup, displaying an exceptionally strong will to win.

Of course, some fans believe that his winning the award was related to his pounding the ground after losing the game.

"Babel slamming the lawn" has almost become a meme.

The competition for the best midfielder was fierce, and in the end, Barcelona's Rivaldo emerged victorious.

Basically, once this award was announced, everyone understood what it meant.

Next up is the best striker.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Quaresma are strong contenders for the award, while Drogba, Heskey, and Klose are also on the list.

But the award ultimately went to England's Golden Boy, Owen.

This was also seen as Liverpool's biggest consolation after their loss.

If Liverpool win, the award will most likely be given to Sporting Lisbon's Quaresma.

However, it's not a pity, as Quaresma went on stage to accept the award shortly afterward.

He contributed three goals and twelve assists to the team in this tournament, winning the title of tournament's assist king.

But as I said before, those in charge of organizing this awards ceremony will definitely be punished afterwards.

Because they weren't prepared enough for the assist king trophy.

There are also two assist leaders this year.

Besides Quaresma, the other one is... Duncan, who contributed fourteen goals and twelve assists for Sporting Lisbon!

Deng Kai not only won the Golden Boot but also the assist title, becoming the first player in UEFA Cup history to achieve a grand slam of individual statistical honors.

With Duncan's courtesy, Quaresma also gained ownership of the trophy.

Quaresma was extremely excited and hugged Deng Kai again and again.

After all, this is the highest honor he has ever received.

The media were completely convinced by Deng Kai's actions.

It's one thing to give up position and stats on the court, but it's truly remarkable that Deng Kai would also give up when it comes to reaping the rewards.

The upbringing and mindset revealed in this are chilling upon closer examination.

Of course, for Deng Kai, trophies and the like will never be lacking in the future; in fact, they won't even be enough to fill his heart.

As long as this honor is recorded in his personal file, that's enough.

After all, which future fans will bother going to Deng Kai's trophy display room at home? Everyone will be looking at Deng Kai's honors listed on various apps.

Whether or not there's a trophy, it doesn't matter.

Besides... the most prestigious trophy hasn't been awarded yet.

Finally, amidst cheers from the entire stadium, UEFA President Lennart Johansson personally presented the last individual award – the Best Player Award!

Deng Kai stood on the podium for the third time, setting a new record for the most individual honors in a single competition.

Champions, Golden Boot, assist leader, best player... In the entire history of European competitions, including the Champions League, Deng Kai is the first to achieve this.

He is therefore known by fans as the "best player in UEFA Cup history," as no other player of the year can match his statistics.

It didn't exist before, and it won't exist in the future.

After the individual awards were presented, the entire Sporting Lisbon team lined up and went up on stage to receive their championship medals.

However, a small incident occurred during the group photo: Deng Kai handed the UEFA Cup trophy to Matthäus, asking him to hold it up.

This is the best consolation for Matthäus receiving a red card in this match, and also the best compensation for Matthäus missing out on the Champions League trophy two years ago.

The usually unruly and honor-laden Matthäus couldn't hold back his tears.

Matthäus has thus become the player with the most UEFA Cup titles in history, winning them three times in 1991, 1996, and this year!

Juventus and Inter Milan are in the same boat as him.

Although he still failed to win the Champions League trophy, Matthäus has taken another step up from his existing honors.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!

Finally, UEFA announced the best XI for this year's UEFA Cup.

This is also the most unique All-Star lineup in history.

Because this lineup only has two defenders.

The original award lineup was 343, but due to the negative impact of Barcelona defender De Boer's performance in the match, UEFA revoked De Boer's honor and moved it to the next player in the overall ranking.

And this player happens to be a midfielder... Viana.

This resulted in the 253 UEFA Cup Best XI:

Cristiano Ronaldo, Owen, Klose

Viana, Rivaldo, Dunquet, Gerrard, Quaresma

Barzagli, Babel

Schmeichel

Sporting Lisbon had six players selected, making them the big winners once again.

With this, Sporting Lisbon's season has come to a complete end.

The entire European football season will conclude tomorrow with the Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Valencia.

European football is about to usher in a hot summer transfer window.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, there will be two transfer centers this summer.

One is Valencia, who have reached the Champions League final for two consecutive years. Regardless of whether they can defeat Bayern this time, they will definitely be poached and dismantled by various talent search agencies in the summer.

The other is Sporting Lisbon, the newly crowned treble winners. The unprofitable club that produces such results should be dismantled, and now is the best time to sell young players at high prices.

They are destined to bring a series of transfer storms to this summer.

Unless they have more unrealistic and ambitious goals.

I like playing football on the ground: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him.