Chapter 116: Chapter 115: Peter, Ascend (Fifth Update, Requesting Full Subscription)
"Lisbon is the Champion!"
"One of the strongest teams on the planet this year... Lisbon Athletic U15!"
"Lisbon Athletic U15 defeats Atletico Madrid to win the inaugural Youth Champions League Championship Trophy!"
"It has been many years since Lisbon Athletic won a double! It’s all thanks to them!"
"A collective siu! Lisbon Athletic delivers the best celebration of the season!"
"Gabi gets sent off with a straight red, dashing Atletico Madrid’s last hopes in the Youth Champions League!"
"Torres: The opponent was strong, we did not perform well, the loss is hard to swallow, but that’s football."
"Deng Kai honored as the Best Player of the Youth Champions League! In three years, he has transformed from a football Caesar to the best in the Champions League!"
"Deng Kai and Ronaldo switch positions, Deng Kai crowned Youth Champions League Golden Boot, Ronaldo honored as Assist King!"
"Portugal’s strongest CDs! Deng Kai and Ronaldo claim the best forward and best midfielder honors in every competition they participated in!"
"Twelve goals, six assists! Ten goals, seven assists! Deng Kai and Ronaldo shine in the Youth Champions League!"
"Next stop, the EURO U-19? Portuguese fans call for Deng Kai and Ronaldo to be on Violante’s 23-man squad!"
"Scholes: We all like Deng Kai a lot!"
"Bombshell! Deng Kai and Ronaldo invited by Ferguson to be at the Champions League final, cheering for Manchester United!"
"Ferguson turns to superstition! Inviting Deng Kai shows Manchester United is not in good shape!"
The Youth Champions League is already a major match.
Lined up with the Champions League final, it’s even more of a hot topic.
After interviewing Lisbon Athletic, reporters crossed seas and moved mountains to find Manchester United for a pre-match interview.
Manchester United had the best security at the hotel they stayed at, but Ferguson still got surrounded by reporters during an outing for official business.
To get away, he had to say something.
Reporter: "Ferguson, are you confident about the final against Bayern? Do you hope that Deng Kai’s prediction will come true by inviting him to watch the match?"
With a microphone in hand, and although a bit resigned, Ferguson decided to give the interview his best: "Of course, I’m confident. Bayern has performed very well this season, but Manchester United is the better one."
"Just as Deng Kai said, this year in Europe there are two unbeatable teams. One is the Lisbon Athletic U15 he and Ronaldo lead, and the other is the Red Devils Manchester United I lead!"
This statement shocked the reporters, and Ferguson left composedly.
Soon after, major media published Ferguson’s statement.
Manchester United’s momentum quickly rose before the match!
The tens of thousands of Manchester United fans gathered in Barcelona gained the upper hand when arguing with Bayern fans.
In response, Bayern’s press officer immediately gave an interview: "Yes, to us Manchester United and Lisbon Athletic U15 are the same. Because on the pitch, we will turn Manchester United into Lisbon Athletic U15!"
Bayern’s response was full of gunpowder.
But since the match was very close, Manchester United had no time to respond.
It was Deng Kai who stepped forward to answer Bayern.
Deng Kai: "Since U15 has been mentioned, then I have a lot to say. The level of Bayern’s U15 is really poor. You’ve cultivated so many well-rounded players but extinguished the flash of genius."
"In the upcoming match, you will lose because of that missing flash of genius!"
Deng Kai’s fierce diss really awoke Bayern’s coaching staff.
Yes, the flash of genius.
Who is Manchester United’s genius?
Checking this year’s player data, it’s not hard to see how brilliant Beckham has been.
This Englishman, deemed a sinner, has put in a world-class performance this year.
He is only twenty-four years old, and hasn’t even reached the true golden peak period of a player.
Bayern had already taken Beckham seriously, but they increased their attention towards him at the last minute.
They assigned their midfielder Jeremies to specifically mark Beckham.
Of course, Manchester United’s other threat, Giggs, was also placed at the top of the list.
...
May 26th.
The annual Champions League final is about to begin.
Camp Nou opened up a total of 92,000 tickets.
Manchester United and Bayern each received 30,000 tickets.
But the number of fans from both teams that flooded into Barcelona exceeded 160,000 people.
Most of them could only buy tickets from scalpers.
If not for UEFA’s safety rules, Camp Nou could have had 115,000 tickets available.
Due to injuries and suspensions, Manchester United’s midfield was in a tough spot.
Ferguson decided to try a surprise tactic, allowing Blomquist, known as the "Swedish Giggs," to play on the left flank while moving Giggs to the right.
Beckham, originally on the right, moved inside to play in the midfield.
Beckham had played in the number six position in the youth team, and Ferguson believed this could help the team with possession.
Before the match officially started, singer Cabaye performed the opening act, singing the famous song "Barcelona."
But just six minutes after the game began, Manchester United conceded an extremely dangerous free-kick to their opponents.
Bayern’s star Basler took the free-kick and scored, leading the team to take the lead.
The Bayern fans at the site went wild with cheers.
They first chanted Basler’s name, but when the camera shifted to the Manchester United family stand, they started chanting "Kaiser, Kaiser"!
"Kaiser" is the nickname of Beckenbauer, the president of Bayern, who was watching the game from the presidential box that day.
Matthaus, who was touted as Beckenbauer’s successor when he began his career, was also in Bayern’s squad.
Such cheers could be taken as encouragement for Bayern.
But at the same time, they were also mocking Deng Kai.
Because he predicted Manchester United would become the treble winners, Deng Kai was now public enemy number one on Bayern’s side.
Those who had previously thought the team should sign Deng Kai now unilaterally called him a "traitor to Bayern."
Deng Kai was speechless at this.
"It’s not as if I want to join you at Bayern, so how am I a ’traitor to Bayern’?"
Afterward, both sides launched attacks.
The posts, the crossbar, fouls, controversy raged on.
In the 67th and 81st minutes, Ferguson substituted Blomquist and Cole with Sheringham and Solskjaer.
After both substitutions, Ferguson looked towards Deng Kai.
The cameras captured this moment.
Deng Kai had previously expressed his fondness for Beckham, Sheringham, and Solskjaer, and as a result, all three had performed very well this season, with the two substitutes often playing the role of saviors.
Ferguson’s choice to bring them on was tinged with superstition.
He hoped that Deng Kai, who had guided Manchester United towards the treble this season, could at this moment bless them and bring good fortune.
However, until the 89th minute, Bayern was still the leading side.
In the meantime, after learning that Matthaus was tired, Hitzfeld substituted him off following a foul by Beckham on him in the 80th minute.
Afterward, the Bayern fans even began to relish in their victory.
The Manchester United fans’ section was like a still pond.
Even Ferguson’s gaze seemed somewhat vacant.
He had been excited before, but now, he had to confront a result ahead of everyone else. That was... Manchester United had lost their most important game of the season.
Ferguson was mentally preparing his post-match speech; he could not let his players take all the blame.
This mirrored someone else’s actions but with completely opposite intentions.
Ferguson would personally acknowledge his own mistakes and even failure, admitting that perhaps it was not Manchester United’s year.
He would concede that this year in Europe, there was only one unbeatable team, not Manchester United, but Sporting Lisbon U15.
"Peter, go up! Peter, go up there!"
Ferguson’s mental script was interrupted by a voice.
In the final minute of regular time, Manchester United won a corner kick.
Deng Kai stood up and shouted frantically.
His voice woke Ferguson.
Ferguson snapped back to reality.
The game was almost over, and having Peter Schmeichel stand at his own goal was pointless; he might as well rush to Bayern’s penalty area to join the battle for headers.
But... what if after going up, they missed the opportunity from the corner kick and instead conceded another goal?
Ferguson was indecisive.
He had too much to consider.
"Peter, go up! Peter, go up there!"
Deng Kai’s voice was persistent.
The surrounding Manchester United fans were moved by Deng Kai and began to chant, "Peter, go up!"
"Peter, go up there!"
Upon receiving the instruction, Schmeichel immediately charged forward.
Deng Kai had made the decision for him and Ferguson.
