Maojiawan Training Base is far away from the city, so remote that there is no mobile phone signal.

When Zeng Zheng saw Ladd again, he noticed at a glance that the white-haired old man was a little lame in his right leg.

"Mr. Ladd!"

Zeng Zheng took two quick steps and stretched out his hands.

"Hello, Zeng!"

Ladd also took the initiative to step forward and hug Zeng Zheng.

Zeng Zheng and some people in the national team looked down upon each other, but this did not include the 60-year-old man.

No matter what, he has given up his prestigious international career and came here to help the poor for so many years, which is worthy of respect.

When asked why the other person was lame, Ladd waved his hand.

"I had some lumbar disc herniation a few days ago, but now I'm fine."

Ladd said this, but Zeng Zheng could see at a glance that the opponent's protruding lumbar vertebrae had obviously compressed the nerves in his thighs.

If this continues, I'm afraid the entire leg will become useless.

Although he has medicine that can help speed up his recovery, the only treatment for lumbar disc herniation other than surgery is to rely on maintenance.

Seeing that this old man from southern China has been coming to see me non-stop since the Spring Festival, I'm afraid it would be a luxury for him to lie in bed and rest for a whole day!

"It would be great if he wasn't the national team coach!"

This was the first time Zeng Zheng had such an idea.

And it has nothing to do with the intrigues about the strength of Chinese football and bamboo shoes.

Unable to resist Ladd's request, Zeng Zheng had no choice but to slow down and follow Ladd towards the training ground.

Along the way, Zeng Zheng and Ladd started chatting.

"I also came to Chengdu seven years ago."

"Oh? Maojiawan too?" Zeng Zheng asked curiously.

"No, it was Peng County, 70 kilometers away from here." Ladd recalled, "I was leading the Olympic team at the time."

"Pengxian County doesn't see sunlight all day long, it's cold and humid, and the washed clothes don't dry even after hanging out for several days. There's no heating in the house, and it's just as cold as outside."

Listening to Ladd's reminiscence of this story about his support to the countryside, which was often heard from the older generation, Zeng Zheng suddenly felt that the other party was not a southerner, but a real Chinese.

Ladd recalled one by one the team members he had led back then, such as Yang Chen, Qu Shengqing, Xie Hui and others.

To this day, he still pays attention to the football careers of these players.

"At that time, the Chinese coaching staff opposed recruiting Qu Shengqing. They thought he had no brains and only had a good body."

"But I think Xiaoqu will be a good player that meets European standards."

Zeng Zheng nodded.

Qu Shengqing has proven himself last season, otherwise he would not be in the current national team lineup.

Zeng Zheng even felt that Qu Shengqing was no worse than Zhang Yuheng.

Following the conversation about the last National Olympics, Ladd recalled the scene that made him saddest the most.

In 1996, in Malaysia, China had a decisive battle with the South Korean Olympic team.

"Before the game, I felt that the mentality of the players was a bit unbalanced. I wanted to say something to the players, but no one listened."

Zeng Zheng also has a deep understanding of this.

The BUFF "Korean phobia" is really not something that ordinary people can fight against.

"As a result, we lost the game in the first half. During the intermission, coach Qi suddenly asked me to say something to the players and asked Xie Hui to be the translator."

"Looking at Xie Hui, who was covered in sweat and tired, and thinking about the English that neither of us was very familiar with, I really didn't know what to say."

"After thinking about it, I just said, 'What do you have to be afraid of? What do they have to be afraid of?'"

"Then, I can only watch helplessly as the team I have devoted three years of my efforts to is defeated by South Korea."

"My heart was just torn into pieces piece by piece."

Having said this, Ladd stopped and looked at Zeng Zheng seriously.

"Once, you were able to defeat South Korea head-on on the field."

"It really granted me one of my wishes!"

Zeng Zheng was shocked for the first time.

He did not expect that this old man from South Korea would be as obsessed with defeating South Korea as the Chinese people.

Hearing this, Zeng Zheng asked about Ladd's past.

This old man, who was over sixty years old, gradually fell into memories.

In 1943, the winter in Yugoslavia was extremely cold.

At that time, it snowed heavily, and the mountains, woods, and villages were covered in snow.

But the rumbling sound of gunfire prevented the villagers from admiring the beautiful scenery outside the window.

The French XS are attacking the Yugoslav guerrillas in the mountains, and this village is the only way to pass.

Facing the enemy's attack, the whole village was in a hurry to escape.

Among the crowd, a mother and a seven or eight-year-old boy were left behind.

Guns and bullets whizzed past the heads of the two men.

"Mom, I really can't run anymore!"

The boy begged, "I want to rest here for a while."

The mother held the child's hand tightly, with a determined look on her face, "Son, we must run forward. If we don't run, we will die here!"

This little boy is Ladd!

From then on, that scene was deeply imprinted in Ladd's mind and affected his life.

After World War II, Yugoslavia was in dire straits and people were still worried about food and clothing.

Young Ladd found a perfect solution - attend football training!

Although it is hard and tiring, at least I can have enough food and clothing.

At the age of 18, Ladd was selected for the Yugoslav national team for the first time and was admitted to the Department of Economics at the University of Belgrade.

With such an achievement, the burden on his shoulders is even heavier.

The training and studies almost overwhelmed him.

He once planned to give up football, but when he thought that his elderly mother and sister who were in college still needed him to support them, the football started rolling under his feet again.

"Zeng, you are also a football person. You should know that the time for football to make people happy is too short! It is only a few seconds after scoring a goal or a few minutes after winning. The rest of the time, I live under tremendous mental and physical pressure.

under."

"I may not say I love football, but as a profession, I respect it very much!"

"When I was a football player, I never smoked or drank."

"I come to every training session more than ten minutes earlier than others and leave more than twenty minutes later."

"Just this extra half hour made me become the best center in Yugoslavia, scoring goals in almost every game!"

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! A reporter asked Ladd what is the secret to becoming a good center?

Recalling his mother's advice, Ladd replied: "Keep moving forward! Just shoot the ball into the opponent's goal when you catch it!"

Playing from the age of 18 to 36, Ladd's 18-year football career has left Ladd's body full of injuries and fatigue.

When he could no longer look directly at the black and white round thing, he resolutely chose to leave the football field.

Armed with a certificate in economics, Ladd arrived at the office of a large Swiss company.

But when he really said goodbye to football, he found that "it was really difficult to change the sea".

As the days passed, Ladd became more and more disgusted with the constraints of suits and leather shoes, the monotony of going from the desk to the wine table, and the intrigues of chasing profits.

After several nights of self-examination, Ladd finally decided to major in football coaching.

After obtaining two coaching certificates in Yugoslavia and Germany, he returned to the green field and began his second sprint in life.

From the beginning, Ladd was different from most football coaches.

"I am an intellectual coach, different from those barbaric coaches!" He said of himself.

Most football coaches stand in the middle and direct their players, either yelling at their players to "run!" or "knock them down!"

When Ladd is training, the stadium is always quiet.

No matter what the situation, he always insisted on running and jumping with the team members.

Ladd explained: "I just want to breathe and sweat with the players."
To be continued...