Football: I Led Ronaldo to the Throne

Lin Feng, 45, lay in his hospital bed as the TV replayed highlights from Cristiano Ronaldo’s career. A prodigy swallowed up by the dark side of Chinese football twenty years ago, he had spent the rest of his life playing pickup soccer with children on an elementary school field. With terminal stomach cancer, he knew he didn’t have much time left.

“If only I could start over... If only I could stand by your side...” Those were his final thoughts.

When he opened his eyes again, he was in Lisbon in 2001. Lin Hao, a 12-year-old Chinese-Portuguese boy, had just lost his parents in a car accident. His talent for football had earned him a place in Sporting CP’s youth academy. His frail body was knocked down time and again in training, but his eyes shone with a light he had never known, not even when his family was destroyed in his previous life.

Three months later, one evening, Lin Hao was practicing free kicks after training when he spotted a curly-haired boy at the other end of the field, practicing stepovers. It was 14-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, the last one still training as well.

“Your free-kick stance would be better if you tucked your knee in a little more,” Lin Hao said in Portuguese.

Ronaldo turned and saw a frail Asian boy. That night, the two practiced until the stars filled the sky. As they parted, a mechanical voice rang out in Lin Hao’s mind:

[Future world-class player detected. Bond established]

[Football King Support System activated]

[Unique bound teammate: Cristiano Ronaldo]

[Goal: Help him reach the summit and stand by his side]

His new life began in earnest beneath Lisbon’s setting sun.