Chapter 693: Chapter 692: Here’s a joke, the Lisbon miracle belongs to little Ronaldo
April 12th, the 33rd round of the Premier League.
Manchester City snatched a last-minute 1-0 victory over Birmingham.
It was a close call to being leveled by Birmingham.
And after most fans checked the Premier League schedule for this season, especially the second half, they found that, indeed, there were issues with the schedule.
It was too packed.
Other Premier League teams began to complain about this damned schedule as well.
Even Arsenal, Manchester City’s biggest rival, had Professor Wenger step forward to confirm Deng Kai’s claim, "Indeed, this year’s situation is very special."
"We hope that in the next season, including many future matches, the Premier League will consider things more thoroughly."
"Just like in the Portuguese league or La Liga, it’s possible to place some matches after the Champions League."
"After all, the Champions League is the most important honor for clubs, and it deserves our careful attention!"
Gradually, the dissatisfaction with Deng Kai dissipated.
Meanwhile, Barcelona also released a series of statements.
The meaning was that they did not intentionally direct the media to slander Manchester City; these were spontaneous acts and so on.
Still quite cowardly.
They truly did not wish to engage in a real legal battle with Manchester City.
Because when Mansour’s team took over Manchester City, they had already collaborated with the toughest legal teams in Europe.
And to go to court in Europe is simply burning money.
In recent years, due to Barcelona’s big signings, the club’s finances were nearly unsustainable.
They needed to find ways to increase income and reduce expenses.
They didn’t even really want veterans like Cruyff within the team.
So, how could they be willing to go to court?
In front of all the European media, Barcelona’s actions were tantamount to avoiding battle and seeking peace.
This made them lose face.
So the people from Manchester City went to Barcelona with pride.
And as Manchester City’s plane landed,
the insulted people of Barcelona pulled out banner after banner to insult Deng Kai, to insult Manchester City.
But in a pre-match interview, Deng Kai said, "We are satisfied with the welcome ceremony from Barcelona fans; it’s their only way to fight against us."
After hearing the interview, Barcelona fans were furious to death.
On Barcelona’s side, however, they brought up some past matters in a pre-match interview.
Barcelona’s Director of Sports stated that Ronaldinho was the most outstanding player in the world at this stage.
The most important contributor in the Lisbon miracle was Ronaldinho.
And Deng Kai, was merely stealing Ronaldinho’s thunder.
In the words of this director, "That team is only at the level of the UEFA Cup champions, they are far from the Champions League, and it is Ronaldinho who made up for all of this"!
The reporters instantly understood why Ronaldinho did not attend this press conference.
Probably even Ronaldinho himself couldn’t bear to watch it.
Of course, Barcelona had reasons for doing so.
The position of their club chairman was shaky.
For two consecutive seasons not meeting expectations, the various chaos within the team had long dissatisfied the fans.
The clash with Manchester City was the spark that ignited Barcelona’s internal discontent.
If this club chairman did not do something soon, he might have to step down early.
Therefore, even though they knew they were spouting nonsense, they still had to speak.
Because they knew, as long as they were willing to speak, there would be people in their fan base willing to believe.
Yes, this is the diversity of species.
And when Deng Kai and his colleagues heard these words with the reminder of the reporters,
Deng Kai laughed and said, "Ronaldinho’s talent is beyond doubt. As for that Champions League, I have said many times, it belongs to all of us."
"So he certainly belongs to Ronaldinho too!"
"But personally, I’m quite thankful for Barcelona’s recognition of us."
"We are indeed only at the level of the UEFA Cup champions. Not just that Lisbon side, but this Manchester City too!"
"Then let’s take Barcelona’s blessing and strive to knock them out at Camp Nou, this feng shui treasure ground!"
Good heavens!
We’ve come full circle!
...
Soon, the match officially kicked off.
A hundred thousand fans in the stadium cheered for Barcelona with flags waving.
The patch of blue from Manchester City fans was very spotty.
The survival environment for this expeditionary force of the Blues was very tough.
But they were not frightened at all.
Because they are the Dreaded Blues!
The ones who should be afraid are those hundred thousand people wearing red and blue in the stadium!
"All right, the match has started, let’s quickly introduce the line-ups of both teams."
"Barcelona is fielding a 4-3-3 formation."
"The three forwards are Ronaldinho, Saviola, and Quaresma."
"Among them, Saviola is not a traditional center-forward, but due to the strong competition from Ronaldinho and Quaresma, Saviola can only play in this position."
"So far his performance in this position hasn’t been very stable."
"The midfield trio are Dai Weisi, Marquez, and Xavi."
"Wild Boar Dai Weisi, on loan from Juventus this season, has made a huge contribution to Barcelona’s defense. At the same time, he also has a strong desire to perform on the offensive end."
"But he and Barcelona’s tactics are not quite so well-matched."
"You can’t deny Dai Weisi’s excellence, but equally you can’t say that he’s been very successful at Barcelona this season."
"Marquez, on the other hand, has integrated into Barcelona better."
"And Xavi, as a homegrown Barcelona midfielder, has really performed quite well. He’s already quite a well-known star within Barcelona’s squad and is becoming quite a name worldwide."
"Of course, considering that Xavi once clashed with Deng Kai and Ronaldo in the UEFA Youth League and the European U-21 Championship, his current achievements seem... not so significant anymore."
"Because he is far behind Deng Kai and Ronaldo now!"
"Barcelona’s back line consists of Van Bronckhorst, Puyol, Oleg, and Rezeg."
"Goalkeeper Valdes. Fans of Manchester City, and in particular fans of Deng Kai, will definitely know Valdes."
"He’s the twin star goalkeeper from Barcelona’s youth system along with Pepe Reina, who shined in competition with Pepe Reina."
"According to what Deng Kai said before, Reina is better than Valdes."
"Therefore, Valdes has always held a grudge against Deng Kai."
"He said before the match that this time he would keep a clean sheet against Deng Kai!"
"On the Manchester City side, we have a familiar formation as well, also a 4-3-3."
"Villa, Adriano, Ribery."
"Deng Kai, Mascherano, Toure."
"Lahm, Chiellini, Thiago Silva, Maicon."
"Cech!"
"Eh... this center-back pairing?"
The commentator was taken aback.
During the first half of the season, Manchester City’s main center-back pairing was Chiellini and Desailly.
In the second half, it became Chiellini and Kompany.
Thiago Silva’s performance as a center-back was actually quite good, not inferior to the newcomer Kompany.
But Kompany’s advantage was his height.
His aerial defense was also very important for Manchester City.
