The Last Fake No. 9: Starting in Serie B

[Chinese-Italian + System + Comeback + Passion + Football] Luca Rossi is an eighteen-year-old Chinese-Italian from Prato, Italy. He stands 1.75 meters tall and weighs 68 kilograms. The System rates him: Dribbling, 45; Stamina, 38. The coach of Serie B side Perugia says he is too skinny, can’t run, and isn’t cut out for professional football.

People on the forums say he’s just another overhyped Chinese-Italian who’ll end up choosing Italy, so he has nothing to do with them. At 1.75 meters and 68 kilograms, he gets cramps after running for twenty minutes. His teammates call him “Twig,” his coach tells him to “eat more,” and the forums call him “another overhyped Chinese-Italian.” Only one person believes he can make it: his late father.

There are two national flags stuck to his shin guards. His father put them there. Their edges have come loose, and no amount of pressing will make them lie flat. His father once said, “For a Chinese person to make it in Italy, that’s what you call real talent.”