Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

Chapter 45: Let Me Show You What "Surprise" Really Means

Once again halting Udinese's attack down the right, Li Ang slapped palms with Antonini in a brief, energizing gesture.

"Nice job. That Chilean kid is a pain.

He's easily one of the top three right wingers in Serie A right now. Can you keep this up?"

"Whether I can or not, I have to. If I let him through, coach won't let me off the hook during halftime.

Thank god their midfield is full of workhorses."

"If they had a proper attacker in the middle, they wouldn't be sitting eighth in the league."

The two shared a chuckle, momentarily lightening the pressure.

Truth was, Li Ang had been under serious stress this entire first half. Alexis Sánchez wasn't some nameless, faceless winger. He wasn't at his peak yet, but in Serie A, he was already one of the most feared flanksmen.

Li Ang had thrown everything into locking Sánchez down. Fortunately, Udinese had no secondary threat in central midfield. Otherwise, Milan's midfield wouldn't look nearly as rock-solid as it did on the surface.

Allegri had sensed this too.

By the 16th minute, he gestured for Milan's attacking trio to push higher.

Li Ang and Antonini's side still had to hold position.

But with Pirlo directing play and both Zlatan and Robinho in good form, it was more than enough to keep Udinese on their heels.

Allegri might love defense and structure, but he wasn't afraid to gamble a bit on offense before taking the lead.

Zlatan, having waited patiently for nearly 20 minutes, finally began taking control of Milan's attacking rhythm.

Feeling Udinese's attacking momentum taper off, Li Ang allowed himself a breath of relief—he could now enjoy Zlatan's performance a bit more.

In the 18th minute, Ibra slipped past Gökhan Inler and unleashed a thunderbolt from almost 30 meters out.

Udinese's keeper, Samir Handanović, made a fantastic diving save to deny the opener.

Just two minutes later, Ibra came again.

After a one-two with Boateng, he burst past Abdi, but instead of shooting, he kept dribbling toward the back line.

When center-back Zapata finally committed, Ibra slid the ball through to Robinho, who'd made another smart run.

This time, Robinho adjusted his approach—he hit a low curler toward the far corner.

Handanović flinched—but the football struck the outside of the post and spun out.

"What shitty luck!"

Robinho couldn't help but curse. Ibra just shook his head, sighing.

But the Swede was only getting more fired up. He wasn't done.

Udinese had survived so far.

But if they thought Zlatan would let them off easily—they were sorely mistaken.

Like a child playing with a new toy, Zlatan spent the next ten minutes testing Udinese's five-man backline.

Milan's momentum surged.

Sadly, Robinho's finishing boots were still missing.

Ibra fed him two more beautiful passes: one shot bent wide, and the other—blasted from the top of the box—went straight into Handanović's gloves.

From his position, Li Ang could only shake his head.

"If it were Pato starting today, we'd probably be up two already."

He glanced over at Robinho, who was now kicking the turf in frustration, and refocused.

By the 32nd minute, the score was still 0–0.

Udinese had been poor in attack, but defensively, they held firm.

With five defenders across the back, their ability to recover and press was solid.

Milan fans were growing restless.

Just a bit of luck—one of Robinho's two shots should've gone in.

But the Lady Luck clearly sided with Udinese today.

Then, in the 35th minute, Milan earned their first corner.

A murmur swept through the San Siro.

"Oh, Li Ang is going up…

No one's forgotten that flicked header assist from last game.

His vertical leap is insane, and his heading technique looks pretty solid too.

Could he be the one to finally break the deadlock again?"

Sky Italia's commentator leaned forward with interest as Li Ang entered the Udinese box.

"Danny, push in more,"

Li Ang whispered to Bonera, clearly signaling for a screen.

Bonera, recalling how Li Ang had scored last match thanks to Ibra's screen, didn't hesitate—he threw his body into blocking a defender.

Udinese's backline immediately raised their alert level.

"Stick to him. Don't let him jump freely!"

Zapata barked the orders, assigning Domizzi to mark Li Ang.

But Li Ang wasn't fazed. Using Bonera's screen, he shuffled around in tight circles, trying to lose his marker.

Pirlo's corner came in.

Right side. Outswinger.

Li Ang jumped—barely. He knew this ball wasn't for him.

It soared over his head and curved toward the far post.

"Shit—he was a decoy!"

Zapata cursed and darted back toward the danger zone.

There, Thiago Silva had already risen above Benatia, who was taller.

Bang.

A powerful header, point-blank.

"HANDANOVIĆ!!"

Commentators in multiple languages screamed.

Unbelievable.

The Slovenian keeper had guessed right, flinging himself across the goal and palming away Silva's bullet header!

San Siro exploded with noise.

No way.

Is this it?

Is Udinese really going to escape into halftime with a 0–0?

Allegri covered his face in disbelief.

"Near post!!!"

Zapata's eyes widened as he shouted.

But it was too late.

Another figure appeared—charging from the near post, eyes locked on the rebound.

Li Ang.

Tap-in.

A routine, simple tap-in.

No one was close enough. The keeper was still recovering. The goal was wide open.

Boom.

The ball hit the net—and Li Ang, overwhelmed with joy, took off in a clumsy sprint to celebrate.

"LI ANG?!?!

LI ANG——!!!

LI ANG SCORES! HE TAPS IT IN AT THE NEAR POST!

HAHAHAHA——!!!

HIS FIRST PROFESSIONAL GOAL!

HE GIVES AC MILAN THE LEAD IN THE 37TH MINUTE!"

Chinese commentator Liu Jianhong's voice shook with glee as he shouted into the mic.

Back on the pitch, Li Ang was immediately tackled by his teammates.

From heartbreak to euphoria, San Siro exploded.

They thought the kid was just here to defend.

Now, in one motion, he'd redefined himself.

This… this is what a real surprise looks like.

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