Chapter 555: Chapter 554: Envying This Talent!
"What’s going on? Why did it suddenly stop working? I remember kicking it just fine last night!" Adriano kept muttering, "That feeling of receiving the ball with a touch, replacing adjustment with a control, one touch of the ball, turn and follow through with a powerful shot!"
"It was definitely possible!"
Adriano was completely frustrated.
Could it be... that inspiration only awoke at night?
But you can’t always play football in the dead of night.
After all, matches are usually in the afternoon or evening.
Fortunately, that day the team’s leader, Deng Kai, was very generous in comforting Adriano, being very forgiving of his errors in control and shooting.
Adriano felt extremely ashamed.
With the Premier League season about to start, he was more anxious than anyone.
August 17th, the Premier League season, arrived as scheduled!
Manchester City went to challenge Leeds United away.
At Elland Road Stadium, about forty thousand fans came to watch the match.
The biggest star of the team should be Robbie Keane, who had fled from Inter Milan.
But Robbie Keane’s first year with Leeds United was still good, leading them to fourth place in the Premier League.
The second year, his form declined, but the team, already with momentum, still held on to fifth in the Premier League.
This year, Robbie Keane had become a substitute.
Such a strong Premier League team clashing with a team like Manchester City, known for their following, it’s no wonder the stadium was filled.
But the result of the match was somewhat unexpected.
Huang Jianxiang: "Alas, it’s really lamentable! Many people said Leeds United was a spent force, doomed to collapse this season, but this..."
"Three to zero! Leeds United at home defeated the invading Manchester City."
"Substitute Robbie Keane returned to his peak, scoring two goals. He almost matched his total from last season... He scored three goals last season."
"Manchester City’s loss was somewhat unjust! Čech handed out a big gift, a mistake in his charge offering the opponent an open net!"
"Such an amateur performance, it’s hard to believe that he is the heir to the Czech national team’s Goalkeeper position!"
"Lahm, from Bayern’s academy, strong in attack, weak in defense, repeatedly moved forward without creating a threat, and instead handed the opponent a great counter-attacking opportunity."
"Thiago Silva’s performance was as immature as his age, being indecisive at the center-back position can lead to serious problems."
"Manchester City’s third goal came from Silva’s hesitation, eventually giving the opponent a very dangerous free kick. Indeed, Robbie Keane scored his first free kick in three years!"
Zhan Jun on the side nodded repeatedly: "Yes, actually Manchester City had several good chances in this match."
"Adriano passed Deng Kai’s through ball directly to the opposing Goalkeeper, wasting a one-on-one! It was as if his foot had a spring on it."
"Ribery, in a twist of fate, finished his cut-in and shot with the flair of an amateur player, pushing his shot wide by so much at the far corner! The miss was as outrageous as a new triangle! Eh, what is a new triangle?"
"The most reliable was Baggio’s curling shot from Deng Kai’s cross pass, but unfortunately, the ball hit the post and bounced out."
"All in all, there wasn’t a big difference in the game for both sides, but Lady Luck favored Leeds United today."
Ptui!
He Wei looked at Zhan Jun speaking confidently on camera and felt nothing but contempt.
Once you were like me, a hater of Keane.
And now, for the sake of your job, you’re acting like a Keane superfan?
Listen to yourself... the gap wasn’t big?
No wonder Robbie Keane was thrown on the bench.
His form was really too terrible!
With Manchester City’s defense full of holes, it’s a disgrace for a forward not to score a hat-trick against such a weak defense.
And this is the Irish Owen?
Oh, Owen... That’s actually not a bad nickname, haha.
Owen: ???
...
The Times: "Manchester City’s disastrous start, Deng Kai + a bunch of junk = junk!"
Echo Report: "Leeds United thrash Manchester City 3-0! Temporarily top of the Premier League!"
Sky Sports: "Manchester City’s attack and defence were in total disarray, like a bunch of amateurs playing football! After losing the first round, the team ranks second to last in the Premier League!"
Manchester Evening: "Manchester United win, Manchester City lose, Manchester’s law of conservation of victory!"
BBC: "Adriano and Cech rated lowest on the pitch! One’s touch is as bad as the national team, the other concedes three out of three shots on target!"
Il Romanista: "Even Batistuta at full throttle can’t ignite Manchester City! Better to stay in Brescia for some peace of mind!"
Bola newspaper: "Manchester City’s midfield might as well be non-existent! Deng Kai retracing Mendieta’s steps, doomed to be a letdown as the best in the Champions League?"
Marca: "Hierro struggles to smile despite being rated the best in the team, Deng Kai and Baggio, rated second, seem rather helpless!"
Manchester City lost.
Most people were not surprised.
Even many had their guns ready.
Never has there been a better time for them to unleash.
Maxa didn’t scold the players but he did cancel their days off.
The day after the match, everyone started training again.
Of course, for veterans like Baggio, Hierro, and Lehmann, training mainly involved watching; it was rest time.
On one hand, their performance was better and didn’t need punishment.
On the other hand, players of their age need to have their workload properly managed.
Adriano was still training hard against the defensive players of the team.
On August 21st, during the team’s last joint practice session before the next match.
Adriano put on an extraordinary performance.
His control of the ball was so smooth, his feints and cuts simple and quick, and his explosive shots afterward were astonishing, as if possessed by Batistuta!
Even Deng Kai admitted, this talent... impressed!
Everyone was filled with confidence for the next match.
It’s no wonder he’s the team’s most expensive player.
He improved so quickly.
If it weren’t for Inter Milan’s wealth of strikers, Manchester City wouldn’t have had the chance to land such a top player!
August 24th, the second round of Premier League matches.
Manchester City is preparing for their first home match of the season.
Manchester City fans got ready early.
Even many Manchester United fans made their way to Maine Road Stadium ahead of time.
As previously mentioned, Maine Road Stadium has a maximum capacity of eighty thousand people.
But the problem is that the stadium facilities are too old.
It’s at the level of not batting an eye if it were demolished immediately.
The truly quality seating amounts to only about thirty thousand or so.
However... according to reports from the stadium, over sixty thousand fans bought tickets!
What does that mean?
In 2000, Manchester United expanded Old Trafford Stadium, bringing its capacity to sixty-eight thousand people, making it the largest stadium in England at that time!
And Manchester United’s home attendance rate was fearsome, consistently maintaining around sixty-five thousand.
That’s one of the best home attendance rates in Europe.
But what’s the level of Manchester United compared to Manchester City?
Manchester City’s ticket sales were almost catching up to Manchester United’s.
Incredible!
This was a second-tier league team just last year!
