Emperor of Football: Julien De Rocca

Spain and Germany would meet in the final.

Italy, originally destined for second place, had been forcibly eliminated by Julien's France.

Germany would face Spain, who still had one last fight left before sunset.

Julien didn't know if on the night of July 1st, his small butterfly wings would affect the final result. But that was none of his concern.

However, a phone call from Chataigner made Julien start worrying about the new season.

"We've got our big center forward! That Belgian big black player Romelu is willing to join Bastia on loan! My God, he's so strong. For him, I even promised he'd get a starting position in the Europa League!"

Julien's eyes lit up! Here he comes—the buzz-cut, beer-bellied, professional winger Lukaku.

Lukaku, who had a top striker template but the heart of a winger.

But if Lukaku was coming, what about De Bruyne?

For next season's Bastia starting lineup, Julien's ideal list included Mané on the left wing, Lukaku as center forward, De Bruyne and Rothen partnering in midfield, and Kanté as defensive midfielder.

This lineup would also perfectly suit Hadzibegic's favored 4-3-3 formation.

Chataigner could then sign or loan some veterans and young talents from Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, plus currently available players.

The squad would basically be complete.

But as he was thinking about Lukaku and De Bruyne, assembling the peak Belgian combination, he suddenly thought of Courtois.

"It can't be that coincidental, can it?"

Julien vaguely remembered that "incident" between De Bruyne and Courtois, which seemed to happen when both were at Chelsea.

He couldn't remember the exact timing and would need to pay attention to newspapers.

In his memory, this incident caused quite a stir.

It even affected Courtois' national team career. It was only when De Bruyne eventually chose to forgive and pleaded with the coach that Courtois wasn't expelled from the national team.

What impressed him most was that the girlfriend who had been with De Bruyne for over three years later said, "That night, Courtois provided me with services I never enjoyed in three years with Kevin," which truly shocked Julien.

Julien never had a good impression of Courtois. This guy seemed to have learned from spending too much time with Terry at Chelsea, unlocking his potential.

He just liked other people's...

Around 2016, while at Chelsea before his transfer to Real Madrid, he was living with his then-girlfriend who was several months pregnant, yet he managed to seduce his banker neighbor's wife and even had a child with her.

What made Julien even more speechless was that Courtois was 24 at the time, while the neighbor's wife was already 42 with four children!

Mourinho's words kept gaining value: "Study hard, become doctors, engineers, teachers—they are what the world needs. Don't worship players; some of them are just trash."

Time flew by.

On July 1st, the European Championship final that captivated countless fans took place at Kiev's Olympic Stadium.

This was a battle for European Championship records.

Spain had won the European Championship twice, Germany three times.

Tonight, who would this championship trophy belong to?

Fans waited with bated breath.

Julien watched the broadcast with his family at Clairefontaine.

Looking at both teams' starting lineups, Julien had a vague feeling that Germany was going to suffer.

Del Bosque continued with his "4-6-0 false nine formation."

The midfield was built around Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, and Alonso, with Fàbregas as the false nine, supported by Silva and Alba's wing play.

Goalkeeper Casillas anchored a defense with Ramos, Piqué, and Alba.

On Germany's side, Löw adopted a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Neuer in goal, with a back line of Lahm, Hummels, and Boateng. The midfield featured Schweinsteiger and Kroos as the double pivot, with Özil as the attacking midfielder, and Klose leading the line.

Their strategy focused on quick counterattacks and wing attacks.

They relied on Schweinsteiger's midfield interceptions and Özil's through balls, then used Podolski and Müller's wing pace to create crossing opportunities for Klose to finish.

Soon, amid great anticipation, the match began!

Julien immersed himself completely in the broadcast, observing both teams' various movements.

Actually, being on the pitch versus watching a broadcast were two completely different experiences.

Julien was trying to understand and think about football from different perspectives.

As the match progressed, it turned out just as Julien expected—Germany was struggling.

Xavi, Busquets, and Alonso controlled the ball's rhythm, while Germany's double pivot of Schweinsteiger and Kroos kept intercepting through high-intensity running.

But facing Spain's complex short passing, they were still forced into a passive position.

Spain's possession tactics forced Germany into frequent defensive running, constantly draining their stamina.

Julien shook his head. Germany was finished.

Indeed, in the 35th minute, Iniesta broke through on the left and crossed. Silva scored from the edge of the box.

Spain took the lead!

This opportunity arose from Spain's movement, completely pulling Germany's defense out of position, and David Silva seized the chance.

Second half.

After the break, Klose became Germany's hero.

In the 60th minute, Schweinsteiger's long pass found Müller, who crossed for Klose to equalize with a header.

German fans erupted!

At 34, Klose became the oldest German player to score in European Championship history, but the K-God could hardly improve this record further.

This would be his European Championship swan song. Klose's goal gave German fans hope. But Julien felt they were already at their limit.

Spain continued to control the subsequent play.

In the 78th minute, Spain brought on Torres. Just three minutes later, Germany's attack was broken, and in the counterattack, Torres received Xavi's through pass and scored one-on-one!

Julien watched Klose breathing heavily. He knew Spain had basically sealed the victory.

Germany kept attacking desperately, but as the final whistle blew, fans erupted!

Football was like this, at the moment the final whistle sounded, two extreme opposing emotions burst forth simultaneously.

The victor's ecstasy and the loser's unwillingness, the referee's authority and players' protests, fans' cheers and curses—all contradictions wove together into a smokeless war, pushing football's drama to its peak.

But Spain had won. They became the first team in European Championship history to successfully defend their title.

At this moment, Julien's emotions were complex. As a player, he also wanted to be the ultimate victor. But he had burned himself out, only to earn a semifinal spot.

He wasn't satisfied.

Pierre seemed to sense Julien's emotions and patted his shoulder, "You've done everything you could. We, and all of France, are proud of your performance."

Julien didn't respond.

The broadcast cameras kept focusing on both teams' players and fans' reactions. He watched the impact of two extreme emotions on the pitch.

Silent.

'Next time, I'll lead my France to be the ones lifting the cup.'

The European Championship thus ended.

Countless news stories bombarded fans' nerves.

As the final award ceremony concluded, all the tournament's various awards were finalized.

UEFA officially announced the 23-man best squad:

Goalkeepers: Buffon, Casillas, Neuer

Defenders: Piqué, Coentrão, Lahm, Pepe, Ramos, Alba

Midfielders: De Rossi, Gerrard, Xavi, Iniesta, Khedira, Busquets, Pirlo, Alonso, David Silva

Forwards: Balotelli, Fàbregas, Ronaldo, Ibrahimović, De Rocca

Julien became the youngest player in the best squad, and the only French player!

Then came the European Championship Golden Boot award.

Julien won again!

He beat Torres, Gómez, and Balotelli with four goals to become this European Championship's top scorer!!

This became French fans' most comforting memory of this tournament.

At least they saw France's future in Julien.

De Rocca was the number one trending topic in French media's statistics for this European Championship!

UEFA also announced the prize money for each team in this European Championship.

Spain: 23 million euros; Germany: 19.5 million euros; France: 16 million euros; Portugal: 15 million euros.

Plus, various other media rankings for best newcomer, most incredible goals, best goals, etc.

Julien had a place in all of them.

This was destined to be a crazy night, destined to be a complex night.

Football fans across the European continent discussed this month-long spectacle.

Some were happy, others sorrowful.

Some said that after Zidane's retirement, France struggled to win in major tournaments.

Others felt this wasn't as bad as Hungary, 60 years after Puskás retired, they still hadn't recovered.

At this point, someone drunk mentioned a name from a thousand years ago...

Time rushed by.

When the Mediterranean summer's dry, hot sea breeze blew across Bastia's training ground, the European Championship's clamor was gradually left behind by fans.

On July 18th, two Belgians stood at the entrance of Bastia's training facility.

"This is it?"

The big black guy looked disgusted.

The young blond boy said nothing and walked into Bastia. He would start his new life here. He would also prove here that he deserved Stamford Bridge!

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