Chapter 196 The Last Battle (5)

The Eat, Drink, and Be Merry group's gathering lasted until nine o'clock in the evening.

Then it broke up.

After all, there was a game tomorrow.

They had only come to reminisce with Chen Hero and other old friends they hadn't seen in years, so the time didn't need to be too long.

They couldn't disturb Chen Hero's game the next day.

Otherwise, if they caused Liverpool to lose the league title, they would definitely feel guilty.

Although Chen Hero repeatedly emphasized that this kind of thing wouldn't affect his performance, everyone was still quite restrained.

The host didn't mind, but that didn't mean the guests could do whatever they wanted.

At nine o'clock, the party ended on time.

Everyone said goodbye in front of Chen Hero's house and then dispersed. Those who had houses in Liverpool went back to their own homes, and those who didn't went to hotels.

A few single men even agreed to go to a bar for more drinks.

Chen Hero and Gerrard were going back to the hotel.

They had been very restrained and hadn't drunk a drop of alcohol at the party.

So now they could soberly drive back to the hotel.

In the car, Gerrard drove while Chen Hero sat in the passenger seat. Although the two had been very excited at the party, they were now calm.

Being too excited would make it hard to sleep at night, and that would lead to insufficient energy for the afternoon game the next day.

This situation had no effect on the young and strong Chen Hero, but it would have a considerable impact on him now.

This fully demonstrated that Chen Hero was getting old.

※※※

When the car arrived at the hotel entrance, both of them were surprised to see that even though it was almost ten o'clock, many media reporters were still waiting outside the hotel!

Seeing this scene, Gerrard paused for a moment, seeming a little hesitant.

Unexpectedly, Chen Hero said to him, "It's okay, just drive straight over. We'll get out right at the entrance."

He looked like he didn't give a damn about the media.

Gerrard hesitated for a moment, but still followed Chen Hero's advice.

Then the reporters saw a car stop in front of the hotel entrance.

Next, Chen Hero got out of the car!

Immediately after, Gerrard also came out!

Everyone was stunned.

Then they quickly reacted and rushed forward.

A group of media swarmed toward the two, extending their microphones, recorders, and cell phones: "Excuse me, Hero, where did you go tonight? Why are you arriving at the hotel so late?"

"Stevie, Stevie! As Liverpool's coach, you're nowhere to be found the night before the game. Is this appropriate..."

"Can you explain tonight's events to your supporters?"

Everyone rushed to ask their questions.

Faced with these aggressive reporters, Chen Hero and Gerrard walked all the way to the hotel entrance before stopping. He turned around and looked at the excited reporters.

He said casually, "I haven't had to report to my parents since I was sixteen. Who the hell are you?"

Then he and Gerrard turned and left again.

Leaving behind a group of reporters who were stunned by his humiliation.

※※※

Charlton's coach, Mike Hill, got up early and ordered the hotel to send a few copies of the latest newspapers to his room.

After he dressed, the newspapers arrived, and he sat on the sofa and began to flip through them.

He just wanted to see if Chen Hero and Gerrard had actually returned last night.

It would be even better if they didn't come back at all.

Sure enough, in the sports section of the newspaper, there was no need to search specifically; he saw Chen Hero's photo at a glance.

The photo was probably taken at the hotel entrance.

His expression wasn't very good.

The title on the photo was "Hero and Gerrard Return to Hotel at Ten O'Clock, Refuse to Disclose Their Whereabouts."

They didn't stay out all night...

Hill was a little disappointed.

But he quickly adjusted his mood.

For him, these two going out to play until ten o'clock was already pretty good, otherwise he really wouldn't have had any chance at all.

But now, at least he had a chance to defeat Liverpool.

Looking at Chen Hero's face in the photo, his face was flushed, and it was clear that he had been out partying.

Do they really look down on us so much?

Hmph, you'll be crying later!

※※※

When each Liverpool player got up and went to the restaurant for breakfast, they saw Chen Hero. He was eating with coach Gerrard and the assistant coaches. When he saw everyone coming, he greeted them.

Carlton Cole, the second oldest player in the team, came up and asked Chen Hero where he had gone last night.

Chen Hero smiled and said, "I went to see a bunch of old friends."

Cole immediately guessed what that was.

"The Eat, Drink, and Be Merry group?"

Chen Hero nodded.

"Damn it, Boss! You didn't call me for such a big thing!" Cole immediately complained.

"Wasn't I afraid of affecting you guys?" Chen Hero spread his hands.

"Uh..." Cole was immediately speechless. He used to go out and do this kind of thing with the boss and the others before games. He was young then, and it was the age when he liked to have fun the most.

Then he played like shit in the game the next day. And he was scolded bloody by Martin O'Neill, who was the coach at the time.

At that time, Cole, who was fearless as a newborn calf, retorted that Hero could go out and play, so why couldn't he?

It would have been better if he hadn't said anything, but saying it made O'Neill even angrier.

"Hero goes out to play, and it doesn't affect his performance! To prove this point, he can complete a hat trick in the game! Can you? If you can, I'll allow you to go out and play! I'm telling you, not everyone is Chen Hero!"

Later, Cole realized that he and Hero were different. Going out before games really had a big impact on him.

So he gradually stopped thinking about it.

Later, he found a girlfriend, and his girlfriend kept a close eye on him, so he slowly settled down.

Not to mention going out to play before games, he didn't even go out to play after games.

A true good man.

Apart from Cole coming up to gossip, no one asked Chen Hero where he had gone last night.

It wasn't that they didn't know about the media reports last night.

But they felt that the media was making a fuss over nothing.

First of all, they didn't believe the ridiculous claim that their captain and coach would go to nightclubs.

Secondly, it was normal for the captain and boss to go wherever they wanted and do whatever they wanted before the last league game.

So while the outside world was frantically hyping this matter, Liverpool seemed very calm.

If anyone thought that Liverpool was arrogant and underestimating their opponent and would give them an opportunity, then they would definitely be disappointed...

※※※

Starting at noon, more and more people gathered at Stanley Park Stadium, and the police officers on duty there began to feel the pressure.

Traffic control had also begun.

Traffic control was implemented on the main roads leading to Stanley Park Stadium, and the Stanley Park Stadium parking lot was also closed, because it was expected that a large crowd would pour in, and the parking lot could be used to accommodate fans. Whether people came by car or drove, they had to get out at several designated points by the police, park their cars in designated parking lots, and then walk to Stanley Park Stadium.

This would avoid traffic chaos.

And this arrangement gave Liverpool fans a good opportunity to carry out a major operation.

Stanley Park Stadium had sixteen gates.

The construction at the time fully considered convenient transportation. With the stadium as the center, there were a total of eight radiating roads, and each road ended with two gates.

This ensured that fans coming from any direction could enter their gate area in an orderly and quick manner, without causing congestion.

And today, these eight avenues would play a vital role in diverting traffic.

Fans walked towards the stadium one after another along these eight avenues.

Various television stations also set up cameras at the intersections to film the scenes of fans rushing to the stadium.

More than three hours before the game at 4:30 in the afternoon, live broadcasts had already begun.

Sky TV, which owned the exclusive broadcast rights for the game, dispatched three helicopters to report from the air.

Although, strictly speaking, the ownership of this season's league title had not yet been truly decided, everyone actually believed that Liverpool had already won the league title.

So so many media definitely weren't coming for the so-called suspense of the league title, but for Chen Hero.

This was Chen Hero's last game at home, and everyone wanted to see this historic moment.

Those who could come to the scene were undoubtedly lucky, and those who couldn't come to the scene also wanted to see the live broadcast of the game on television.

These media were their eyes and ears.

※※※

Someone noticed that a van truck had come to the main intersection leading to Stanley Park Stadium.

In this already crowded place, the presence of this truck made the traffic situation even worse.

The traffic police officer on duty shouted angrily, "What the hell are you doing here? Did you drive a truck to watch the game? Drive away! Don't mess around here!"

The driver stuck his head out and waved at the police officer: "Soon! Soon! We'll leave right away! After we unload the goods..."

"Unload the goods?" The traffic police officer was stunned. This was an intersection, not a freight yard. Who unloads goods at an intersection?

Just as he was wondering, the cargo door of the van opened, and more than a dozen people jumped out, and then dragged out a large roll of... cloth!

The police and the people around them quickly realized—this must be a prop to take into the stadium to cheer!

They had seen a lot of this kind of thing, but today's seemed particularly large...

After the goods were unloaded, the truck drove away.

The group of people carrying the roll of cloth put the thing on the side of the road and waited there for someone.

Soon everyone saw people pouring towards them from all directions, more and more, from dozens to hundreds, from hundreds to hundreds.

They gathered more and more like this, standing on the side of the road, already forming a crowded human wall. The police watched this scene in astonishment.

No one knew where those people came from. They were like rats that had burrowed out of the ground, appearing so suddenly in front of everyone.

Then these people seemed to be arranged in some kind of formation.

The dozen or so people who unloaded the goods began to unpack.

After unpacking, the people in the front row picked it up and passed it to the back.

With this passing motion, the full picture of the rolled up cloth was gradually revealed to everyone.

This turned out to be a huge painting!

The image in the picture was Chen Hero raising his right fist, standing on the field!

The surrounding fans couldn't help but let out a burst of cheers and applause after seeing this scene.

Then, in the cheers and applause of the crowd, the painting moved towards Stanley Park Stadium with the crowd below holding it up!

At the same time, the same scene occurred at the intersections of the other seven avenues.

Eight giant portraits of Hero ran toward Stanley Park Stadium along with the crowds!