Soccer: I became Bruno Fernandes.

Chapter 265: Final Three Candidates for the Ballon d'Or

As the game reached the 93rd minute, Lingard crossed from the right, and Rooney headed the ball into the goal, scoring for Manchester United. Joel Glazer, sitting in the VIP box, watched with a stony expression. United fans chanted Rooney's name, but their cheers were far less enthusiastic than the applause they had given Bruno earlier, reflecting the fans' sentiment that night.

The final score was 1-3.

After Rooney's goal, when Udinese restarted the game, the referee blew the final whistle. Thanks to Bruno's hat-trick, Udinese defeated Manchester United 3-1 at Old Trafford. Countless United fans stood up, voicing their dissatisfaction with chants of "Glazer Out!" Joel Glazer stood up and left the stands, accompanied by the fans' harsh chants and boos. No one knew exactly what Joel Glazer was thinking at that moment, but he surely felt very uncomfortable.

...

After five rounds of group stage matches, Udinese topped Group B with 12 points from four wins and one loss. Despite the loss, Manchester United remained second with seven points from two wins, one draw, and two losses. Wolfsburg, who defeated CSKA Moscow in this round, climbed to third with six points from two wins and three losses. CSKA Moscow, with one win, one draw, and three losses, remained at the bottom of the group with four points.

Apart from Udinese, who had secured a place in the knockout stage and the top spot in the group, both Manchester United and Wolfsburg still had chances to compete for the remaining qualification spot. Manchester United held the advantage, needing only a draw in their final away match against Wolfsburg to secure second place and advance to the last 16. Wolfsburg, however, had the home advantage, making their qualification chances quite favorable. Meanwhile, CSKA Moscow, if they could defeat already qualified Udinese in the final round, still had a shot at qualifying for the Europa League knockout stage.

...

In the post-match press conference, Guidolin expressed his satisfaction with the match.

"I'm very pleased with every aspect of tonight's game, especially Bruno." "He is an incredible player. It's hard to believe he only turned 21 two months ago, but he has led our team to leave Old Trafford with a hat-trick." "Of course, this isn't just his achievement. Every member of our team worked very hard. This victory is a result of the collective effort, and we should all be proud."

In high spirits, Guidolin also addressed questions about Bruno's potential transfer.

"He is our team leader, and for any team, the role of a leader is crucial. Losing a leader means a step back in competitiveness, which is something nobody wants. So, we will do our utmost to convince him to stay, but professional football is always full of changes."

This was interpreted by the media as an acknowledgment that it would be difficult for the team to keep Bruno. Especially after tonight's performance at Old Trafford, Bruno was sure to attract even more attention from top European clubs.

...

Last season, Bruno scored twice in both matches against Real Madrid and later performed brilliantly in the knockout stages against Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and Juventus, leading underdog Udinese to a surprising Champions League victory. This season, he scored hat-tricks in both group stage matches against another top club, Manchester United, which was almost miraculous.

In the group stage, Bruno scored nine goals in five matches, matching his tally from last season and leading the Champions League scorers' chart. Additionally, he provided four assists, the highest in the group stage.

With Bruno's outstanding performance, Udinese topped the 'group of death,' ahead of Manchester United, Wolfsburg, and CSKA Moscow, securing a spot in the knockout stage one matchday early. This inevitably fueled more speculation about Bruno's departure.

Guidolin had grown accustomed to transfer rumors about Bruno, as discussing his potential transfer had become a routine topic at press conferences over the past year. Not mentioning it would be unusual.

...

In contrast to Guidolin's joy, Manchester United's manager, Van Gaal, faced widespread criticism from the media. Van Gaal insisted that the 1-3 loss to Udinese was not the end of the world.

"We are still second in the group and three points ahead of CSKA Moscow. This means we only need a draw in our final group match against Wolfsburg to secure second place and advance to the knockout stage." Van Gaal also acknowledged that Udinese was not a weak team, but a very competitive one. "Especially Bruno. He no longer needs to prove his abilities to anyone. Today, at Old Trafford, he put on a phenomenal performance." "He is not only an excellent playmaker but also a highly effective scorer, which is his greatest strength. He is the kind of player who can change the game in two seconds." "Unfortunately, our defenders tried their best but couldn't stop Bruno tonight."

...

Back in Italy, Udinese faced Chievo in the 14th round of Serie A on the afternoon of November 29. Chievo, having won their first match in eight rounds by defeating newly-promoted Carpi, hoped to continue their success against Udinese, who had just battled Manchester United in the Champions League.

Chievo played very proactively at home, and Udinese, exhausted from their midweek match in England, struggled. Chievo frequently threatened Udinese's goal. In the 25th minute, Birsa's corner kick found Gamberini, whose header hit the right post, narrowly missing. Moments later, Chievo attacked again. In the 26th minute, Meggiorini passed to Birsa, whose shot was blocked. He headed the rebound, but it was saved, only for Paloschi to follow up and score, putting Chievo ahead 1-0.

However, Udinese equalized before halftime. In the 42nd minute, a foul by Chievo's Frey gave Udinese a promising free-kick opportunity, which Bruno converted. This was Bruno's 14th Serie A goal of the season, maintaining his lead in the top scorers' chart. Additionally, with seven assists, he topped the assists chart as well. Bruno had been directly involved in 21 of Udinese's 34 league goals, accounting for 61.8%, effectively carrying the team.

Moreover, this was Bruno's 52nd goal in 2015.

...

Shortly after the second half began, Udinese took the lead. Iturra assisted, and Théréau scored from close range, making it 2-1. Chievo showed resilience, equalizing in the 72nd minute with a long-range shot from Inglese after a pass from Rigoni, tying the game at 2-2.

In the 80th minute, Di Natale's through ball broke the defense, and Théréau scored his second goal from close range, securing a 3-2 victory for Udinese.

This win extended Udinese's lead over second-placed Inter Milan to nine points in the Serie A standings. Inter Milan, who would face an in-form Napoli the next day, needed to secure points to avoid Udinese extending their lead to double digits after just one-third of the season.

Later, Juventus secured their first four-game winning streak of the season with a 3-0 away victory over Palermo, quietly climbing to sixth place with 24 points.

...

At noon on the last day of November, FIFA announced the final three nominees for the 2015 Ballon d'Or. Barcelona's Lionel Messi, Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, and Udinese's Bruno Fernandes made the shortlist. Messi was nominated for the ninth consecutive year, Ronaldo for the eighth, while Bruno received his first nomination.

The finalists for the Women's Ballon d'Or, the Best Men's and Women's Coach awards, and the Puskás Award were also announced.

In 2015, Messi helped Barcelona win the La Liga and Copa del Rey titles and reached the Champions League semifinals. Despite being sidelined for nearly two months after a knee injury on September 25 against Las Palmas, Messi returned on November 21 in the first El Clásico of the season. Before his injury, Messi had scored 45 goals in 2015. Including his three goals after returning, he had scored 48 goals, tied with Ronaldo for second place in the annual scoring chart. Messi's spectacular goal against Udinese in the Champions League was voted the best goal of last season.

In the 2015 Copa America, Messi recorded one goal and three assists, leading Argentina to the final. Disappointed by the penalty shootout loss to Chile, Messi declined the Copa America MVP award. The organizers decided not to award the MVP to anyone else, leaving the title vacant for the first time in Copa America history.

...

Despite a trophyless 2015 for Real Madrid, Ronaldo's performance was unquestionable. He also scored 48 goals in 2015 but played two more months than Messi. During Messi's injury period, Ronaldo scored only five goals. Ronaldo's highlights included winning the La Liga Golden Boot with 48 goals and the European Golden Shoe. On May 3, Ronaldo's hat-trick against Sevilla made him the player with the most hat-tricks in Real Madrid history, surpassing Di Stéfano's record.

On October 1, Ronaldo scored twice in a Champions League match against Malmö, equaling Raúl's record of 323 goals for Real Madrid and setting several other records. Ronaldo scored 67 Champions League goals for Real Madrid, surpassing Raúl's 66, and became the player with the most goals in Champions League matches for Real Madrid. His career goals for club and country reached 501, achieved in 753 games.

...

Bruno's 2015 was nothing short of a dream. He led Udinese to surprise Serie A and Champions League titles. This season, Bruno also helped Udinese win the Italian Super Cup and the UEFA Super Cup against Juventus and Sevilla, respectively. If Udinese wins the Club World Cup in December, they will have claimed five trophies in 2015, repeating their five-trophy feat from the previous year. For a small club like Udinese, this is unbelievable.

In 2015, Bruno played 53 matches for Udinese and Portugal, scoring 52 goals and providing 35 assists. His outstanding team and individual achievements made him the top performer of 2015. Despite being a first-time finalist, Bruno's strong candidacy for the Ballon d'Or is undeniable. Many neutral fans, tired of the Messi-Ronaldo dominance over the past seven years, see Bruno as a potential new face to break their stronghold on the award. In those seven years, stars like Xavi, Iniesta, Sneijder, Ribéry, Robben, Bale, Suárez, and Neymar have emerged but none could match Messi and Ronaldo's individual prowess. However, in 2015, Bruno's personal and team achievements surpassed both Messi and Ronaldo, making it possible for someone to finally challenge their reign in football.

(End of Chapter)

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