Châtaigner nodded, agreeing to this arrangement.
His gaze remained fixed on De Rocca on the field. Without absolute strength or speed, the defense still seemed like paper before him, easily torn apart.
There was no point in continuing.
Châtaigner had Tavenot stop the scrimmage. He was well aware that De Rocca had suffered an adductor injury during his time at Chelsea last year, and when he left Chelsea to join Nantes' youth academy a few months ago, the old adductor injury flared up again, leading to Nantes releasing him.
Now they had to protect De Rocca carefully.
"Played beautifully. That French genius is back."
When De Rocca left the field, besides praise from teammates, there was also Châtaigner's commendation.
De Rocca nodded slightly without saying much.
He had to try to match his previous habits.
Châtaigner showed no dissatisfaction. For him, having De Rocca take football seriously was already a blessing—as long as he didn't get arrested again.
"No problems with fitness?" Châtaigner continued with concern.
De Rocca shook his head.
"Good!" Châtaigner smiled, then said to Tavenot, "For the next match against Ajaccio U19, De Rocca must play. Whether he starts or comes on as a substitute, you decide based on tactics."
Just thirty minutes of scrimmage had completely made De Rocca the future core of Bastia in Châtaigner's eyes.
De Rocca himself understood that whether he could make it to the first team depended crucially on the next match.
Before leaving, Châtaigner gave Tavenot another instruction, "No matter what, make sure to control De Rocca's playing time. He has two injury records with his adductor. Be careful."
Without Châtaigner having to say more, Tavenot now had to treat De Rocca like a treasure.
Professional football was this realistic.
If the team could see a future in you, they would naturally invest. If not, sorry—you don't belong here, please seek opportunities elsewhere.
There were three days until the match against Ajaccio U19.
During these three days, through training and small-scale scrimmages, Tavenot got a clear picture of De Rocca's ability.
Definitely strong!
At least at the youth level, his dribbling, breakthrough ability, and finishing were all exceptional.
After all, this was a talented player who had once made it into Chelsea's first team.
Otherwise, Ilion, Chelsea's ace scout responsible for France, wouldn't have pushed to sign the fourteen-year-old De Rocca.
Time flew by.
January 14th.
Armand Cesari Stadium—Bastia's home ground. Due to the club's financial constraints, they couldn't build or rent a separate stadium for the youth team, so it had to serve both purposes.
Cesari Stadium had a small capacity, accommodating only sixteen thousand fans.
Today's youth match had even fewer attendees—just over a thousand.
This was only because the club gave away most tickets for free that they managed to get nearly two thousand people in attendance.
The fans who did come still provided some atmosphere.
After the match began, they occasionally made noise, and some fans had even smuggled in cold flares, though they hadn't used them yet.
De Rocca sat on the bench.
Tavenot didn't start De Rocca—he wanted to wait a bit longer. Coming on as a super substitute in the second half seemed like a good idea.
Behind the bench, Châtaigner sat among the crowd, waiting for De Rocca to enter the game.
This season, if Bastia wanted to get promoted, squad depth was essential. If De Rocca could join the first team, it would be a tremendous addition.
With only three months left in the season, Châtaigner was somewhat nervous.
Bastia was currently fighting on two fronts, which was definitely unsustainable. According to Châtaigner's plan, they could abandon the Coupe de France and focus on Ligue 2.
Now, with De Rocca back in form, the abandoned Coupe de France was perfect for De Rocca to step up.
Bastia had just beaten Sochaux 4-1 last week, advancing to the Coupe de France Round of 16.
They would face Valenciennes away.
The Coupe de France was a single-elimination tournament, so upsets were traditional, with Ligue 2 teams often reaching the final.
But Bastia's ambitions lay elsewhere.
Promotion was the real business.
So, this Coupe de France match was an opportunity for De Rocca to quickly integrate into the team.
In the league, Châtaigner wouldn't dare use De Rocca for practice.
Unless it was garbage time with a big lead.
Lost in thought, Châtaigner didn't even notice the first half had ended. The half had been utterly boring—what could you expect from U19 football?
He was only here for De Rocca.
So, it wasn't until the seventieth minute of the second half, when De Rocca came on, that Châtaigner perked up and focused on the pitch.
The score remained 0-0.
Clearly, neither Ajaccio U19's coach nor players felt anything special about De Rocca's entrance.
De Rocca's former reputation was only known to those who followed French youth players.
These people were not among them.
Moreover, in youth teams, player turnover was very high. Most coaches wouldn't specifically set up tactics for opponents.
They weren't playing to win—they were there to develop players.
But regardless of whether they knew about De Rocca before, in the third minute after De Rocca entered the field, everyone from Ajaccio U19 got a lesson.
De Rocca was still on the right wing.
After receiving the ball, the opponent took a conventional defensive stance—preventing the cut inside, allowing the outside.
De Rocca suddenly accelerated forward with the ball, and when the opponent followed, he suddenly stopped, then cut the ball and dribbled inside.
All in one fluid motion!
Whoosh!
The fans in the stands, who had been lured in by free tickets and were already drowsy, suddenly woke up when they saw De Rocca's ball handling.
'There was such a genius here?'
The fans instinctively focused their attention on De Rocca.
They watched as De Rocca, facing players whose fitness had declined considerably and who weren't seriously defending, moved as if through an empty field.
Two defensive lines were cleanly bypassed by De Rocca's feints in a short time.
All nutmegs.
This made the Ajaccio U19 players somewhat angry. This feeling of continuous humiliation was unbearable.
Their challenges inevitably became more aggressive.
But De Rocca was like a slippery eel—they couldn't even make proper contact, as he glided past them effortlessly.
Instead, this reckless pressing left the penalty area wide open.
Thump!
De Rocca would never miss such an opportunity. Facing a goalkeeper still hesitating whether to come out, he didn't hesitate for a second and took the shot.
Though he hadn't created a wide angle, his decisive shooting succeeded.
Before the goalkeeper could react, the ball rolled into the net.
Goal!
1-0.
Bastia's youth team, led by De Rocca, broke the deadlock first.
Clap clap clap!
The stadium erupted in applause. The fans were moved to tears—finally a goal, finally an exciting moment!
'This ticket was worth it!'