Soccer: I became Bruno Fernandes.

Chapter 197: The Pharaoh's Redemption

Roma's goalkeeper, De Sanctis, initially planned to clear the ball calmly. However, as he saw the rapidly approaching black-and-white figure of Salah, he panicked. He charged forward and swung his right leg to clear the ball.

But he didn't dare to kick it hard, fearing it might ricochet off Salah and back towards the goal. So, De Sanctis used the inside of his foot to sweep the ball to the right sideline, aiming to kick it out of bounds and temporarily end the threat.

At that moment, Salah slid in for a tackle!

"Salah! Slide tackle!"

"Just missed it! Wait!"

Salah's raised right foot slightly touched the ball as De Sanctis cleared it, slowing it down and changing its direction toward the corner flag.

"Cancelo!" shouted Diletta Leotta.

Cancelo, who had sprinted up after his initial pass, finally reached the ball. He hooked it back before it crossed the end line, took a quick adjustment, and then curled it towards the goal with his left foot.

The ball flew through the air, and the struggling De Sanctis stretched his arm desperately, but it was a half-height ball, just beyond his reach.

In the center!

Udinese captain Di Natale charged forward with Roma's Manolas by his side. The two tangled with each other, but neither managed to touch the ball.

"What a shame—"

"At the far post! Bruno!"

Bruno and Roma's right-back Maicon sprinted towards the ball, neck and neck like sprinters nearing the finish line. Bruno gained the lead at the last moment.

In full stride, he flung himself forward. The ball first hit his knee, then bounced off his chest, and finally rolled into the net along with Bruno, who tumbled from the momentum.

"GOOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLL!!!!!!"

"Bruno! Bruno!! Bruno!!! Scores again! Udinese 2-1! They retake the lead with a lightning-fast counterattack!"

Bruno got up from the net, running and jumping towards the corner flag, shouting. Behind him were Di Natale, Cancelo, Kanté, and Salah.

Although Salah had narrowly missed scoring, causing him some disappointment, he was mostly thrilled to have contributed to a goal for his team.

"Bruno! That's his 15th league goal of the season! In 17 matches, he's scored 15 goals! An average of nearly 0.9 goals per game, only a few in Europe have a higher scoring rate. And Bruno also has 9 assists!"

"Cancelo's assist was brilliant. This young man's pass was so clever, the goalkeeper had no chance. Cancelo assists, Bruno scores—another successful connection between the two young Portuguese players of Udinese!"

While commentators mostly praised Bruno and Cancelo, Udinese's coach, Guidolin, was shouting praise for Salah.

"Mohamed, well done!" Guidolin shouted from the sidelines, clapping.

With Bruno in excellent form, Guidolin didn't need to worry about him too much. It was Salah who needed special attention and encouragement now.

Moreover, this goal was a result of Salah's effort. His relentless sprint put immense pressure on Roma's defenders and goalkeeper. His sliding tackle slowed the ball, allowing Cancelo to catch up and deliver the crucial assist.

Roma's coach, Rudi Garcia, saw his team concede and immediately made a substitution, replacing the 38-year-old captain Totti with Florenzi.

Totti, given his age, struggled with the high-intensity match against Udinese and was exhausted after 60-plus minutes.

The nearly 24-year-old Florenzi, a product of Roma's youth academy, was a fast winger, adept on the right flank, and could play in any position on the right side.

With Florenzi on the right wing, Ljajic moved to the striker position. Roma aimed to bolster their attack on the right and suppress Udinese's left.

Guidolin promptly called out to Cancelo, reminding the young Portuguese, playing as a makeshift left-back, to be cautious of Roma's counter-attacks on that side.

Guidolin had confidence in Cancelo. Florenzi was quick, but so was Cancelo, and he wasn't intimidated.

Then, Guidolin briefed Bruno. Knowing Roma would press hard on Udinese's left, they could exploit the space left by Roma on that side for a counter-attack.

Guidolin's tactical intuition proved spot-on, as Udinese's next goal came swiftly.

In the 69th minute, Florenzi attempted to use his speed to overtake Cancelo on the right, but Cancelo had already anticipated this move. He matched Florenzi's pace and muscled him off the ball, passing it to center-back Maguire, who then passed to the onrushing Bruno.

Bruno feinted a run, drawing Roma's defensive midfielder De Rossi, before passing sideways to Widmer and shouting, "Forward!"

Widmer turned, looked up, and then sent a long pass forward.

"The pass is aimed at Salah! He's sprinting! Astori is chasing him!"

As the ball descended, Salah headed it forward and accelerated like a cheetah.

"He's through! The Egyptian is sprinting!"

Salah's header pushed the ball forward, utilizing his speed to overpower Astori. However, his header was a bit too strong, sending the ball too far ahead. At this moment, Roma's goalkeeper, De Sanctis, had already charged out.

"De Sanctis is out! He's closer to the ball!" exclaimed the Roma commentator.

Suddenly, his eyes widened, and his voice rose, "Oh my god!"

On the pitch, Salah's legs seemed to be propelled by rockets, his explosive power reaching its peak. He was initially further from the ball but caught up in a flash, poking it past the onrushing De Sanctis. The ball rolled, bouncing towards the goal, crossing the line, and nestling into the net.

Sky Italia's commentator, Diletta Leotta, exclaimed, "Salah! He's scored! What a beautiful goal! That's speed! That's Salah! He's scored his first goal for Udinese! 3-1! He's sealed the victory for Udinese!!!"

From the moment Widmer launched the counter-attack with his long pass, the stands at Friuli Stadium erupted in cheers.

As Salah sprinted towards the goal, the cheering reached its peak!

When De Sanctis seemed poised to control the ball, the stands filled with a collective sigh, regretting the missed scoring opportunity.

But as the ball rolled into the net, the Friuli Stadium momentarily fell silent. Even the home fans were stunned by Salah's speed.

Clearly, the fans were astonished by Salah's pace. It seemed like the chance had slipped away, with Roma's keeper closer to the ball, yet in a blink, Salah had seized the moment, scoring.

The stadium then erupted in a thunderous cheer, as if trying to lift the roof off.

Salah, after scoring, stood still for a moment, then turned to look at the ball in the net. The curly-haired Egyptian erupted with joy.

He first ran to the left, nearly colliding with the Roma keeper, then twisted to avoid him. After a few steps, he abruptly stopped, turned back, almost bumped into the keeper again, and deftly dodged him.

He continued running towards the corner flag, arms outstretched, shouting with joy, and finally reached the corner flag area.

Behind Roma's goal were the away fans, and Salah didn't want to provoke them. He wanted to hear the cheers and applause from the home fans.

Placing his right hand behind his ear, he listened to the cheers, applause, and shouts of his name.

The young Egyptian closed his eyes. The scene he had dreamed of countless times had finally become a reality.

He fought back tears...

His year at Chelsea under Mourinho had been a nightmare. Faced with endless criticism and reports labeling him a flop, he had even begun to doubt himself.

He had repeatedly hoped to redeem himself with good performances, but it never happened. Eventually, Mourinho stopped giving him opportunities.

In his despair, Udinese extended an olive branch.

(End of Chapter)