Chapter 1 Liverpool's Opponent in the Final

Liverpool's 3-1 victory over Bayern Munich at their home ground practically secured their spot in the finals.

Despite Bayern Munich's coach Klopp not giving up, everyone believed he was just putting on a brave face.

The media had already started discussing who Liverpool's opponent would be at Camp Nou.

If Barcelona could make it to the finals, that would be ideal, a match everyone wanted to see. In the decade-plus of Liverpool's resurgence, it had largely been a history of clashes between Liverpool and Barcelona. They had faced off many times, and of course, at their most glorious, Barcelona had been completely defeated by Liverpool.

But now, this was a good opportunity for Barcelona to seek revenge.

At their home stadium, with Liverpool at the end of their rope, and with Chen Hero's last season, there was no better time for revenge—if Chen Hero retired, Barcelona would feel a sense of loss, unable to find their nemesis.

They would also receive the passionate support of 80,000 home fans.

This was the best chance to defeat Liverpool and get revenge.

Therefore, Barcelona was extremely eager to reach the finals.

However, there was also a result that Barcelona dreaded the most: Real Madrid eliminating them, entering the finals, and meeting Liverpool at Camp Nou.

For Barcelona fans, that would be an absolute disaster!

Would those Barcelona fans who had already bought tickets come to watch the game? And if they did, who would they cheer for? Real Madrid and Liverpool were both their mortal enemies. One had been against them for over a hundred years, and the other had only been against them for a little over a decade, but the level of hatred was the same.

If these two teams really met in the finals, it would be a great humiliation for Barcelona.

Absolutely unacceptable.

Barcelona would do anything to prevent that scene from happening.

Now that Liverpool had one foot in Camp Nou, to avoid the worst-case scenario, Barcelona would fight tooth and nail to eliminate Real Madrid.

Real Madrid seemed to realize this as well, and they were equally determined to slap Barcelona in the face at Camp Nou.

So, the next day, the first leg of the Champions League semi-final between Real Madrid and Barcelona at Real Madrid's home ground was incredibly intense.

There were red cards, controversial calls, and spectacular goals.

In the end, Real Madrid narrowly defeated Barcelona 3-2 at home.

However, this victory may not have been a good result for Real Madrid. Midfielder MacAllister Scott was sent off during the match. As a key player for Real Madrid, his expulsion was a significant loss to their fighting power, and Real Madrid's chances in the second leg looked bleak.

Moreover, Barcelona had secured two away goals, making their defeat feel like a victory.

For Liverpool, the fierce battle between these two teams was a good thing, as they could sit back and reap the benefits.

Regardless of who made it to the finals, they would be battered and bruised.

Perhaps Chen Hero liked to challenge the limits, but as Liverpool's coach, Gerrard definitely preferred the safest way to win.

No matter what the process, as long as he could win the championship, he wouldn't feel ashamed to beat Barcelona or Real Madrid's second team.

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Since Liverpool returned home, the number of fans outside the Melwood training base had not decreased, but had gradually increased.

The small-angle volley that Chen Hero scored at the Allianz Arena subsequently became a popular topic of conversation. The same was true outside the Melwood training base.

Fans from all over the world, even if they didn't speak the same language, were enthusiastically talking about Chen Hero's wonderful goal.

And the better Chen Hero performed, the more reluctant Liverpool fans became.

If Chen Hero had spent the last year of his career struggling with injuries, sitting on the bench for long periods, and watching the pitch in solitude, perhaps everyone's mood would be much better now.

They might even wish he would retire early, because they wouldn't want to see someone who was once so proud in such a desolate state.

But Chen Hero was a guy who naturally liked to go against the grain. Everyone thought that the twilight years of a player's career should be very bleak. He was full of vigor, just like in his youth. And the more he was like that, the more reluctant everyone became.

Because he was so outstanding, he didn't seem like a man approaching forty-one at all.

People might even have thoughts like this—why do you always hold your head so high? Why can't you bow your head?

Now you even want to defeat time!

Chen Hero's goal in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final caused even more fans to feel reluctant to see him go. They came to the Melwood training base one after another.

But these fans were very orderly.

They didn't block Chen Hero's car after training to ask him for autographs.

Everyone knew that Chen Hero was focused on the game now and didn't want to disturb him too much.

So, in the final moments of Chen Hero's career, he, the most popular player in Liverpool, gained a rare moment of leisure.

This was indeed what he needed, so he could prepare for the game in peace.

Not for the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, but for the thirty-sixth round of the league.

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The thirty-sixth round of the Premier League was not a clash of titans, but it was still a key game—in the thirty-sixth round of the Premier League, Liverpool would challenge Portsmouth away from home.

Because this game was likely to be the one that ended the suspense of this season's Premier League title.

As long as Liverpool could defeat Portsmouth away from home, and Arsenal failed to win at home, Liverpool could surpass them and become the league leaders.

Liverpool's opponent in this game, Portsmouth, was not strong. Under normal circumstances, such a game would never be broadcast live nationwide.

But today, this game was chosen as the one to be broadcast nationwide.

Everyone wanted to see if Liverpool could regain the top spot in the league. Since losing the league title last season, they had never returned to the top spot, a position they used to be very familiar with.

Before the game, Arsenal coach Hall said that they would not give up, because as long as they could continue to win, the league title would still belong to them.

What he said was right. After all, Arsenal still led Liverpool by one point in the standings.

It was very simple for them to win the league title, just keep winning, and they wouldn't have to worry about anyone else.

And they didn't have to hold on for long, just three games, the last three games of the season.

As long as they achieved a three-game winning streak, the championship would still belong to them.

But many people thought that this was just a theoretical statement, and the reality was another matter.

Arsenal had just suffered a defeat, and they had lost so badly at home, which was a serious blow to their morale. Even if their next opponent was not strong, just Fulham, how much focus would they have on the game at that time?

Losing 1-6 to Liverpool at home was indeed a big blow.

However, since that game, Arsenal had not had a game, so no one knew what the situation was like within their team.

So, the thirty-sixth round of the league might be the moment to reveal the answer.

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Because the schedule was arranged long before the season.

So, it was as if it was arranged by fate.

Liverpool's away game against Portsmouth, and Arsenal's home game against Fulham, were scheduled to take place at the same time.

This further intensified the feeling of a life-or-death situation.

Many neutral fans even planned to set up two TVs to watch both games at the same time.

At 4:30 p.m. local time on Sunday afternoon, the game officially began.

Arsenal scored early, getting off to a perfect start. Their morale seemed unaffected. They scored with their first shot, and luck was on their side.

The commentator went crazy.

"Arsenal! Arsenal! Arsenal! They've taken the lead!"

He was screaming as if Arsenal had won not just a lead, but the championship.

The Emirates Stadium was boiling.

At the same time, at Portsmouth's home ground, Fratton Park, Liverpool had not been able to score. The entire Portsmouth team was holed up in the penalty area, aiming to prevent Liverpool from scoring.

It's hard to know what good it would do Portsmouth to do this… They were safe from relegation anyway, and had no hope of qualifying for European competitions.

Perhaps they just didn't want to be the stepping stone for Liverpool's coronation.

But Arsenal fans were very grateful to them.

Arsenal's unexpected lead caused some commotion among Liverpool fans, who chanted Chen Hero's name in the stands.

At this time, Liverpool also needed a goal to stabilize morale, and… to undermine Arsenal's confidence.

If Liverpool failed to score for a long time, Arsenal players' fear of Liverpool would gradually diminish, and then when they calmed down, they could really win three games in a row, and infuriate Liverpool with a one-point advantage, defending the league title.

Only if Liverpool scored as soon as possible could they put pressure on the Arsenal players, letting them know that Liverpool was still invincible, and that anyone who wanted to oppose Liverpool would end up dying miserably!

They weren't worried that the news here would not reach the Arsenal players.

Just as Liverpool's players were clearly aware of the latest news from Arsenal's game, they were also paying close attention to the situation here.

Both teams were "absent-minded" in today's game.

That's why these fans were chanting Chen Hero's name.

This was not their home stadium, Stanley Park.

However, there were many Liverpool fans who had traveled to the away game to witness the historic moment, more than 1,500 people.

They managed to squeeze into Fratton Park by buying tickets through various means.

Liverpool fans have always been known for their loud voices in England.

More than 1,500 people shouting together completely overwhelmed the remaining 10,000 or so Portsmouth fans.

So, the roar of "Hero! Hero! Hero!" echoed over Fratton Park.

In the roar, Chen Hero raised his right fist.