Emperor of Football: Julien De Rocca

That evening, the Bastia fans were completely drunk.

After leaving the stadium, the UB members flooded into the Sunset Café Bar, leaving Bertrand with a massive headache.

These guys had cleaned out his alcohol stock again!

The next day.

French media outlets almost universally covered this French Cup quarter-final match with an upset where a Ligue 2 team defeated a Ligue 1 team.

Rennes, ranked sixth in Ligue 1, had actually lost to a Ligue 2 team!

Moreover, De Rocca's performance had conquered far too many people.

L'Équipe: "De Rocca, the Corsican God who sank Rennes!"

Le Figaro: "Bastia 1-0 Rennes: Corsican waters extinguish Breton hopes!"

Le Parisien: "French Cup magic! Bastia wins with a decisive strike from De Rocca!"

These media reports, mixed with fan comments, carried Julien De Rocca's name on the winds across French soil.

Several Ligue 1 teams had already taken notice of De Rocca.

Particularly Lille, who had previously faced Julien and was also one of his former clubs, now desperately wanted to sign him.

Lille's core player Hazard was clearly not staying.

They needed a replacement.

De Rocca, who had defeated them, was obviously an excellent signing target.

However, this potential transfer was discussed briefly within Lille before being abandoned.

It wasn't about price.

Rather, Lille no longer held any attraction for De Rocca—now Paris Saint-Germain was his hottest potential destination in Ligue 1.

Not to mention foreign media had also set their sights on Julien.

They were all preparing to shop from France.

Italy's Tuttosport wrote: "Corsican players should wear Italian club jerseys—it's closer than France here."

They reported that Juventus was interested in De Rocca.

Tuttosport also said: "Calciopoli didn't destroy the Serie A giants—they're back. Current Juventus has a top-class defense, top-class midfield, but they lack a top-class striker. Will De Rocca be the future of the Black and White Army?"

In Juventus fan circles, discussions about De Rocca were already heated.

Some said he was young and unstable, having only played well for a few months.

Others said he was young with great potential, the future cornerstone of the team's attack.

Each side had their reasoning.

It wasn't just Juventus.

Spanish journalists leaked that Zidane had appeared at the Césari Stadium on the day of Bastia's French Cup match.

This behavior was interpreted by journalists as Zidane planning to bring De Rocca to Real Madrid.

After all, there was already Varane's example—many people thought Florentino would surely bring in another young French striker for Zidane.

However, neither Zidane nor Real Madrid made any response.

A London newspaper claimed to have reliable information that a London team desperately wanted to acquire De Rocca.

Fans were all speculating which one it might be.

Chelsea, Arsenal, or perhaps Tottenham?

Or someone else?

Among them, Chelsea was considered by fans to have the highest possibility—partly because Chelsea had money and was willing to spend it, and partly because Chelsea was actually De Rocca's former club.

Facing such rumors, Chelsea captain Terry gave an interview saying: "Julien is a fantastic kid. We might have had some unpleasantness between us, but I still miss his talent. If he returns to Chelsea, I would be very happy."

Drogba also said: "France has had many talented players, but they fade into obscurity for various reasons. I originally thought De Rocca would be the same, but he shattered his past self and became that football genius again. I'm very happy."

This made it seem like Chelsea had a real chance to sign De Rocca again.

However, there were also claims that Wenger was the one who wanted Julien.

No French player could refuse Wenger.

For a moment, news, fan opinions, pundit hot takes, and various other messages spread chaotically across the internet.

Undeniably, De Rocca had become a sensation.

A Ligue 2 player being targeted by countless elite clubs represented his ability in itself.

Seeing his social media followers skyrocket, Julien didn't pay too much attention. He knew why fans were following him.

At the end of the day, competitive sports was all about ability. So, he continued training as usual. Then resting.

He didn't dare to do extra training anymore.

The team doctor had already warned him saying. "Your muscle load is already substantial enough. You desperately need recovery time."

Hadzibegic and Châtaigner both knew that De Rocca's extra training was intense.

They all advised him to listen to the team doctor.

Now Julien's adductor muscles were under strict monitoring—areas with multiple previous injuries were prone to recurrence. So, he accepted their advice.

After all, he needed sufficient matches to improve himself.

Julien didn't want to miss opportunities for self-improvement by lying in a hospital bed.

Physical health was the foundation.

For Bastia, this was a wonderful day, with fans still savoring last night's joy.

France, Rouen.

With an evening French Cup away match ahead, Deschamps paid attention to the results of other potential opponents in the French Cup.

The first thing he noticed was French media praise for Bastia and De Rocca.

Deschamps nodded slightly.

The winner between Bastia and Rennes would be the opponent for the winner between Marseille and Quevilly-Rouen.

Now Bastia had won.

This was the opponent.

So Deschamps prioritized studying this opponent—being able to defeat Rennes meant they had some skills.

As for the immediate opponent, Quevilly-Rouen?

That was just a national league—they were still a whole Ligue 2 level below!

Quevilly-Rouen's quarter-final run was due to excellent draw luck—they hadn't faced a single Ligue 1 team.

In the Round of 16, they had only defeated Orléans, also from the National league.

Studying Bastia's situation, Deschamps formed a deep impression of De Rocca.

At least from the highlight videos, this player's footwork was so nimble he hardly seemed French.

He should be Brazilian!

"Looks like we'll need to specifically target this guy called De Rocca."

However, that evening's French Cup quarter-final at Quevilly-Rouen's home ground, the Robert Diochon Stadium in Rouen, France.

Deschamps was experiencing one of the darkest moments of his coaching career.

He watched silently as a massive upset unfolded.

Not only did Marseille fail to resolve their opponent in regular time, but they actually trailed by one goal at halftime.

In the second half, Marseille struggled to equalize through a Rémy goal.

Dragged into extra time.

Marseille didn't display their Ligue 1 team strength, instead allowed Quevilly-Rouen to gain more confidence.

In the first half of extra time, the opponents scored first again.

Marseille equalized again in the second half of extra time, with Rémy scoring his second goal to help the team level once more.

Unfortunately, a miracle descended upon Quevilly-Rouen.

118th minute.

Ayina, who had scored in extra time, used a header again to eliminate Marseille with a decisive goal!

On the sidelines, Deschamps was completely stunned.

He had already studied semi-final opponent Bastia, only to be told that Marseille had been eliminated in the quarter-finals!

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