Chapter 719: Chapter 718: Six Titles in Two Years
"Another Hat-Trick in the Final! Deng Kai Goes Big-Time, the Winger’s Bloodline Can’t Be Hidden!"
"Surpassing New Heights! Deng Kai Leads Manchester City to Their Third Trophy of the Season!"
"Six Trophies in Two Years! Since Deng Kai Joined Manchester City, He’s Led the Team to Six Championship Trophies, Creating a Glorious History!"
"Ronaldo’s Goal Can’t Hide the Disappointment! After the Match, Everyone Was Frantically Chasing Deng Kai for an All-out Battle!"
"Manchester City Ascends the Throne, Becoming the New Ruler of England! Sweeping All Domestic Trophies, Unstoppable!"
"Sixty-Four Matches Unbeaten This Season! Manchester City Is Just One More Game Away from an Undefeated Season!"
"Brothers for Life, Journeying Together! The Silent Jersey Swap Between Deng Kai and Ronaldo Leaves an Emotional Scene!"
Major European media hurriedly relayed the news of Manchester City’s Football Association Cup victory.
But that last headline looked as though it was highlighting the strong relationship between two brothers.
However, the photo that followed showed Deng Kai and Ronaldo throwing their jerseys far off for the other to fetch, a mischievous moment.
Some tabloids even played up the story, with sensational headlines like "Shocking! Ronaldo Furiously Tosses Manchester United Jersey, Longtime Discontent with Ferguson" and "Bombshell! Manchester City Emperor Deng Kai Disappointed with His Salary, Calls Out to Mansour After Tossing His Jersey Following Victory"!
Subsequently, a stream of related news popped up.
"Feng Te: Before this season, the Premier League belonged to Manchester United. From this season, it belongs to Manchester City. Perhaps the only constant is that the King of the Premier League will always be Manchester!"
"Guardiola: Substituting Ade, Tu Lei, and Maicon was a consideration for their form, as we still have the toughest game of this season to face!"
"Torres: It feels amazing to score a goal in the FA Cup Final, and I hope I can do the same for Spain in this year’s European Championship!"
"Desailly: We’re on the right path, and my form is very good. I hope I can play for the French team again!"
"Deschamps: This season we strictly limited Desailly’s playing time, which can help him be in top form for the European Championship! He certainly has the ability to play for France right now!"
Deng Kai, the best player of the match, was asked many sensitive questions.
Reporter: "Deng Kai, do you think Manchester United needs to make signings now?"
Deng Kai: "Only Manchester United knows themselves best, and only they can give a definitive answer to that question. In fact, I think there’s nothing wrong with Manchester United. The problem is with Manchester City."
Reporter: "???"
Reporter: "So what’s the problem with Manchester City?"
Deng Kai: "The problem with Manchester City is that it’s too strong!"
Reporter: MMP!
Reporter: "Manchester City rotated several key players for this match. Weren’t you afraid of losing?"
Deng Kai: "That’s football, sometimes you have to take some risks."
Reporter: "So you’re certain to win the UEFA Europa League Final? What if you lose?"
Deng Kai: "Both sides in the final believe they will be the winners. We don’t think about what we should do if we lose because it’s been a long time since we’ve lost."
Reporter: "You played very well in the winger position. Would you consider playing there more often? It would make it easier for you to compete with Ronaldo and Zidane."
Deng Kai: "My position depends on what the team needs. If the team needs a center-back or a goalkeeper and I can be of help, I’m willing to do it."
The reporter was speechless.
Who can’t talk a good game?
Ronaldo also said he could play as a winger for Manchester United, but look what happened?
Now you see him settled in the forward position, not budging.
But Deng Kai is not like Ronaldo; he’s a man of his word.
He really has played as a goalkeeper, and a good one at that!
He even made the best save of the year, and it was in the UEFA Europa League Final!
Ronaldo: Are you mocking me?
...
The current FA Cup announced its awards shortly thereafter.
Deng Kai, with five goals and two assists, was named the tournament’s top scorer alongside Manchester United’s Van Nistelrooy.
This has also been the event where Deng Kai scored the fewest goals in recent years.
The decline was obvious.
If it hadn’t been for the hat-trick in the final, he would’ve only had two goals to his name, which would’ve been quite embarrassing.
And the assist king was Manchester United’s player, Ronaldo, who scored three goals and made five assists.
This was considered the best consolation for Ronaldo’s position as the right winger this season.
Without a doubt, Deng Kai surpassed both Ronaldo and Van Nistelrooy to be named the best player of the tournament.
He led the 2003-2004 season’s England Football Association Cup Best XI:
Deng Kai, Ronaldo, Van Nistelrooy, Henry, Giggs, Ljungberg, Fabregas, Thiago Silva, and other players were selected one after another.
For Manchester United, their season was over.
What followed was the work related to new signings.
But most were just rumors.
Because the specifics would depend on the European Cup.
Great tournaments have always produced football prodigies.
A club of Manchester United’s caliber isn’t interested in average players.
They want prodigious talents.
The likes of Ronaldo’s level of superstar or Van Nistelrooy’s level of established footballer.
This season, Everton’s youngster Wayne Rooney entered their final stage of inspection.
In fact, if Everton hadn’t priced him so high, Manchester United might have secured Rooney the previous season.
At the time, Everton valued this player at a whopping twenty-five million Euros!
The market value of Deng Kai and Ronaldo, after just one year serving the first team, was also around this level.
But that year, Deng Kai and Ronaldo led Sporting Lisbon to become the European Union Cup five-time champions!
And Rooney?
The market conditions now are far from what they were back then.
...
After capturing the Football Association Cup Championship Trophy, Manchester City fans spontaneously celebrated.
However, there was no official celebration organized by the players.
Of course, everyone knew what Manchester City was aiming for.
They had their sights on the European Union Cup!
They wanted to replicate Sporting Lisbon’s miracle of winning the European Union Cup quintuple!
If successful, Deng Kai and Feng Te would become the only players in history to have won the European quintuple twice!
Feng Te: At eighteen, during the European Union Cup, I stood there like a henchman! Now at twenty-two, it’s the European Union Cup again, do I still look anything like before?
Yes, if nothing unexpected happens, Feng Te won’t get the opportunity to play.
He wouldn’t even qualify as a henchman.
Nearly the entire world was very focused on Manchester City’s final battle.
Thus, everything about Manchester City was fully exposed for all to see.
Even the whereabouts of the Manchester City players’ families were captured by the media.
The Sun Newspaper: "Manchester City’s determination to win the championship is crystal clear as they invite players’ families to Sweden to watch the game extensively!"
English tabloids like to indulge in these trivial matters the most.
Sadly, in the past two seasons Manchester City had heavy match duties and not many chances to create gossip-worthy news.
This resulted in a significant decline in The Sun Newspaper’s profits.
They even found themselves on the verge of being sold.
But in the end, a mysterious shareholder made a powerful move and injected capital into The Sun Newspaper, becoming its largest shareholder.
