The influence of the Eredivisie and the Eerste Divisie cannot be compared on the same day.
Eindhoven is several magnitudes higher than Emmen.
In his first Eredivisie match, Sean scored a goal and an assist against Eindhoven, instantly becoming a superstar in the Netherlands.
Sports media from other European countries, such as Germany's Kicker and France's L'Équipe, also published information about Sean.
Sean, however, was not too affected; the next day, he still appeared early at the training base for extra practice.
You should know that the first team was currently on a regular holiday!
After completing a series of training drills, Sean had a sudden idea: he lined up five footballs outside the penalty area and then ran up and shot them in one smooth motion.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
The first three shots successfully hit the crossbar.
The latter two, however, were just barely off target.
"Oh dear!"
Sean sighed, looking up at the sky.
Ronaldinho could continuously hit the crossbar with volleys back in the day, but even with careful aiming, he couldn't do it. Indeed, he needed more practice!
"Clap clap clap~~"
Clapping sounds came from nearby. Sean turned his head and immediately exclaimed, "Mr. Bergkamp!"
"Just call me Dennis." The curve of Bergkamp's lips was fleeting. "Most media today are praising you. Even the Eindhoven media are criticizing you for being arrogant and disrespectful to Eindhoven.
Frank de Boer was still worried you'd get carried away, but I didn't expect you to still insist on extra practice."
"Arrogant?" Sean found the key point. "When was I disrespectful to Eindhoven?"
Seeing Sean's confused look, Bergkamp smiled again:
'It seems Sean's claim before the match that he was sure he could break through Eindhoven's goal wasn't just for show; he truly believed it. He's confident enough!'
Bergkamp looked at Sean with full admiration and easily changed the subject:
"Extra practice is good, but you also need to be careful not to overdo it."
"Understood. My morning training is complete. Now it's time to rest."
"Were you intentionally hitting the crossbar just now?"
"I thought of Ronaldinho's video and suddenly wanted to try the feeling of hitting the crossbar."
"Haha~ Is Ronaldinho your idol?"
"Of course, I think it's hard for anyone who loves football not to like Ronaldinho."
"Oh~ that's true, but liking him is one thing, don't deliberately imitate his playing style. A wizard cannot be imitated.
However, there is someone you could imitate."
"Who? Ronaldo?" Sean guessed playfully, then said, "Actually, I think I'm quite similar to you in many ways."
Usually, 'Ronaldo' alone refers to the original Ronaldo.
"Hahaha~" Bergkamp laughed heartily. "There's not much to learn from me, just a few aspects like first touch.
But it's not Ronaldo.
I don't think you lack the ability to learn from him; your physical conditions are quite similar.
Speed, strength, explosiveness, and most importantly, agility, you are all very close to Ronaldo.
Normally, some abilities are contradictory. For example, if you're strong or tall, it usually affects agility.
Yet, you can maintain a very high standard in all aspects—this is talent!
Even if you can't surpass Ronaldo, your talent is already exceptionally high.
If you imitate him, I estimate you could at least achieve seventy or eighty percent of his level.
But Ronaldo's playing style is too physically demanding, so it's best not to try it easily.
I'm talking about Van Basten!"
"Basten?" The two were walking and talking when Sean stopped in surprise. "Why him?"
"Because Basten is the template for an all-around striker. Compared to Ronaldo, who has stronger individual ability is certainly debatable.
But if we're only talking about versatility, Van Basten is undoubtedly more comprehensive.
At least his back-to-goal ability is much stronger than Ronaldo's.
In my opinion, you have the potential to become an all-around striker like Basten!"
"Ah?" Sean didn't know how to respond for a moment.
With a system backing him, it was hard for Sean not to be full of confidence in himself.
However, he had been busy integrating his traits and hadn't really considered his future development direction.
Hearing Bergkamp say this, Sean thought carefully and was indeed a little tempted.
Sean understood one thing very clearly: to achieve another leap in strength, he still had to rely on the system.
That meant he had to acquire as much rapport as possible.
To acquire rapport, besides helping his team win various championships, he also had to defeat opponents.
Championships could only be won once a season.
Normally, defeating opponents yielded too little, a drop in the bucket.
He needed to help opponents create goal-conceding history to gain more.
If Emmen in the Eerste Divisie could give 100 rapport for one record, how much could an Eredivisie team, an Eredivisie giant, or even a European giant give?
Just thinking about it was exciting!
However, as exciting as it was, there were still plenty of difficulties.
Beating opponents by a large margin was a rare occurrence, requiring the right time, place, and people.
However, if his own team's forwards were excellent enough, especially a sufficiently strong target man, the possibility of slaughtering opponents seemed greater when the right opportunity arose.
Bergkamp continued, "I've noticed that you work very hard on the field and don't shy away from the dirty work, doing a lot of running to support, playing with your back to goal, and so on.
Of course, your skill level isn't quite there yet.
But as long as you have the willingness and conscious effort to train these abilities, with your talent, your level will always improve.
I've seen your medical report; you've grown another centimeter, and your weight has increased by nearly two kilograms, yet your body fat percentage hasn't changed. All the increase is muscle. You truly are God's favored one!
As long as you don't suffer a major injury, given your current level, becoming an all-around target man is only a matter of time!"
Sean nodded, "I think so too!"
"Uh" Bergkamp's lips curved slightly. "Haha You are truly confident, completely different from the Chinese I remember. No wonder some media find you an eyesore and call you arrogant."
Sean merely shrugged, not bothering to argue, and immediately changed the subject, "Dennis, where do you think I should start strengthening?"
"..."
The two chatted happily. Bergkamp gave Sean many suggestions and, still not satisfied, invited Sean to his home for dinner.
Sean readily accepted.
He had lunch at the training base, and after his rest, Bergkamp diligently assisted Sean in training for three hours before they returned home together.
A detached villa in a wealthy community, surrounded by woods and lawns, fitting Bergkamp's status.
Mrs. Bergkamp, Henrietta, greeted them at the door.
Sean was not unfamiliar with social interactions. Although he felt a little awkward without a gift, it didn't affect his performance.
The Bergkamps led Sean to sit in the living room, and the three chatted and laughed, the atmosphere very harmonious.
Until a crisp voice came, "Are you Sean Martins?"
...
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