Sports Medicine Master System-Chapter 125 - 88: Redondo 3

She had tasted a little of it herself. Of course, she’d thrown every last bit of it up.

The words were barely out of her mouth when, on the other side of the table, Charalidis let out a SPUTTER and sprayed a mouthful all over Gugliotta.

Gugliotta, who had just raised his cup to take a sip, silently put it back down.

Marion’s expression changed. He instantly understood why Melissa had warned him not to spit it out.

’This stuff must taste awful.’

Melissa wasn’t about to let Charalidis off the hook. With a wave of her hand, she brought him another cup. She had brewed a huge batch; there was more than enough to go around.

Marion silently sat back down, picked up his cup, and took a tentative sip. A bitter taste shot straight through the roof of his mouth.

He was a tough one, though. He pinched his nose, fought back the urge to gag, and downed the whole thing in one gulp.

"I think Chen is trying to murder us," Gugliotta whispered beside him.

Marion nodded in solemn agreement and silently began to eat. He really was hungry.

He also noticed that the portions today seemed larger than usual.

’Does he know how brutal our training is going to be?’

The food from the Suns’ kitchen always tasted great, but thanks to that cup of tea, no one could taste a thing.

"Chen, this stuff is disgusting," Nelson said, his brow deeply furrowed as he forced it down.

He hadn’t wanted to drink it, but he decided to give it a try after Chen Yu said it was good for you. Now he finally understood why the table was covered in spray marks.

Chen Yu poured a cup for himself as well. He’d been swamped lately and felt his own energy flagging.

Chen Yu turned to look at them. "It’s not so bad. You’ll get used to it after a while."

After the meal, it was time for the obligatory five-minute therapy chat.

Even though they’d done this many times, very few people were willing to open up and talk deeply with Chen Yu.

It was mostly just small talk.

Today, for instance, the conversation centered on complaining about how disgusting Chen Yu’s tea was.

Chen Yu didn’t mind.

’I’m gaining experience either way. Just take it slow.’

Chen Yu spoke a little longer with J Kidd. The domestic violence incident hadn’t completely blown over.

But lately, he had been playing his heart out, and he’d also earned a lot of goodwill during the free clinic. Now, aside from the local women’s rights groups, not many fans were still focused on the issue.

Most importantly, his wife had come back with their son.

"This shows that all your efforts have been worthwhile."

Chen Yu offered his affirmation, then added, "But the problem isn’t completely solved. With Anfernee out this year, the team needs you to take on a greater role. I think you should step up and shoulder that responsibility. It would be good for the team and for you."

’Are you really satisfied with just being the assists leader?’

’Don’t you want a championship?’

After seeing everyone out, the day’s work was finally over.

The team had away games for the next week, so Chen Yu didn’t have to travel with them. This meant he could rest for a few days and focus his attention on Hardaway and Ronaldo.

To Chen Yu’s surprise, AC Milan moved remarkably fast.

Moratti had only just told him it would be a few days, yet Redondo was already in the United States.

Accompanying him were his agent, Cavagale, and the head of AC Milan’s medical department, Rudolph Tavana. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

He had thinning white hair and had been with AC Milan for thirteen years. He was here to give Chen Yu a better understanding of the course of Redondo’s injury and his rehabilitation status.

While arranging for Redondo to get an MRI, Chen Yu chatted with Tavana.

He was a senior medical doctor and surgeon from Italy.

"Chen, I hear you’re very skilled in rehabilitation and massage?" Tavana asked.

Chen Yu nodded. As they talked, he realized Tavana was also an expert in this field.

At AC Milan, besides performing surgeries, he was also in charge of massage and post-injury rehabilitation.

Tavana also asked about the surgeries for Hardaway and Ronaldo, then sighed emotionally. "To be honest, I’ve always had one regret: that I couldn’t heal Marco. He was so incredibly talented, but I was unable to extend his career, and he had to retire at thirty."

"Thirty years old... that’s a soccer player’s prime."

Chen Yu paused for a moment before realizing who he was talking about. It had to be Marco van Basten.

"Why don’t you tell me about Fernando’s situation?" Sensing the old doctor’s despair, Chen Yu proactively changed the subject.

Tavana sighed again. Here was another genius.

"It was my fault, too," Tavana said, his face filled with self-blame. "It had rained before practice that day, so the pitch was a bit slick. I happened to be busy with something else, so I wasn’t there watching. The lad had just joined the team and didn’t know anyone well, so after he twisted his knee, he didn’t come to me right away. Instead, he gritted his teeth and finished the rest of the practice, only coming to tell me what happened after it was all over."

"Looking back on it now, I believe that was the critical moment that led to his ligament rupture."

Chen Yu understood and made a mental note of it.

Take Redondo’s case, for example. It started as a simple knee twist. The problem might not have been serious; a few weeks of rest could have been enough for a full recovery.

But he didn’t say anything, the team doctor didn’t notice, and he pushed through the rest of the practice on an injured leg.

And just like that, a minor injury became a major one. A ligament that might have only been partially torn ruptured completely. Game over.

This is precisely where a team doctor’s experience is put to the test.

They weren’t like him. They didn’t have an Eye of All-Seeing that could diagnose a problem with a single glance. They needed vast experience to prevent these kinds of minor issues from escalating into major disasters.

Tavana continued, "After the injury, Professor Calubino performed the surgery. He’s a specialist in knee injuries and has operated on many of our players, but you know how difficult recovery from a ruptured ACL can be."

"The biggest problem was, Calubino didn’t have enough rehabilitation experience. But then again, who does? No one really knows how long to wait before starting physical therapy after an injury that severe."

"Three months after the surgery, we tried to start his rehabilitation, but his knee was in constant pain and remained swollen. It was inflamed, and it wasn’t just the knee joint. It was also the patellar ligament—he developed patellar tendinitis."

Chen Yu fell silent. He had just seen it himself—the exact same patellar tendinitis that Ronaldo had.

Sensing Tavana’s guilt, Chen Yu patted him on the shoulder. "Don’t worry, Rudolph. I can handle Fernando’s case."

’A ruptured ACL is a serious problem, but is it any more serious than Ronaldo’s ruptured patellar tendon?’

’If I can fix Ronaldo, I can definitely fix Redondo.’