Chen Yingxiong's response was not only seen by the Liverpool fans but also by the Manchester United players.

He had heard the fans calling Chen Yingxiong's name over the loud cheers.

He never expected Chen Yingxiong to do something like that—to respond to the fans' calls during the game.

And it wasn't just a response to the fans' calls, it was a blatant provocation of Manchester United!

You made such a move right in front of our faces; do you think you're just responding to your supporters? Huh?!

Vidic knew Chen Yingxiong was arrogant and a bastard, but for the first time, he felt that Chen Yingxiong was being excessively arrogant and a bastard!

This was a slap in the face, and he couldn't tolerate it!

Manchester United and my dignity will not be trampled on by you!

※※※

Chen Yingxiong didn't care what Vidic thought. Just like Ferguson didn't have to be responsible for the thoughts of neutral fans, Chen Yingxiong didn't consider the feelings of his opponents.

He only knew that his supporters needed his help, so he should act!

Manchester United had tightened their defense, and Chen Yingxiong was surrounded by people in the penalty area. It was a contest of pure muscle.

Chen Yingxiong wasn't afraid of this kind of confrontation, but he thought it was too inefficient.

He wanted to kill with one blow; he didn't want to waste time in the penalty area with people like Vidic.

He decided to drop back a bit.

He ran to Suarez: "Luis, how about you hold up the front line for me?"

Suarez was surprised: "Me, hold it up for you?"

Chen Yingxiong nodded: "Yes, I plan to drop back a bit."

"But I'm not good at that..."

"What's not to be good at? You just stay at the very front; you don't have to do anything. You just have to stand in that position."

Suarez thought for a moment: "But what's the point of doing that?"

"As long as you're there, it's meaningful!" Chen Yingxiong patted Suarez.

"Okay, okay..." Suarez reluctantly agreed. "But I have a request. If you score a goal, you have to go back to the front and hold it up for me."

Chen Yingxiong nodded: "No problem!"

※※※

Soon everyone saw some subtle changes in Liverpool's formation.

Chen Yingxiong was no longer a center forward. The person at the very front became Suarez, while Chen Yingxiong was more like a second striker.

"Martin O'Neill's adjustment is really incomprehensible. Chen Yingxiong is a center forward, and his physique and strength allow him to entangle Manchester United's defenders in their penalty area, and then provide opportunities for his teammates... Now he's letting Suarez get to the very front. What's the point of that? Suarez's small frame can't handle it at all!"

The commentator was wrong about Martin O'Neill because this wasn't his arrangement at all. Even Martin O'Neill felt strange—Chen Yingxiong had dropped back before, but not like this. Because no matter how far back Chen Yingxiong dropped, he was always the most forward player on the team. If he dropped back, it meant the whole team was retreating.

Like now, with Suarez at the very front and him dropping back to become a forward, that had never happened before...

He stood up from the bench.

Assistant coach Sammy Lee immediately followed: "Should we have them switch back?"

Martin O'Neill shook his head: "Let's see what happens."

He felt that Chen Yingxiong must have his reasons for doing this. He needed to be patient, give Chen Yingxiong time, and see if Chen Yingxiong's approach was really effective...

※※※

Chen Yingxiong naturally had his considerations for doing this. It didn't matter that Suarez couldn't withstand Manchester United's strong defenders. As he said, as long as he stood there, he was a threat. Because Manchester United's center backs would never dare to leave Suarez unattended and rush out to block him. Suarez wasn't a threat when Manchester United's center backs were in position, but once they left their defensive positions, whether it was Chen Yingxiong or anyone else, any through ball to Suarez would be a one-on-one opportunity against the goalkeeper!

Even if it was offside, so what? Could you guarantee that every offside trap would be successful and without any mistakes?

No one dared to bet on that.

So now Vidic glared, clenched his fists, and looked at Chen Yingxiong in the distance, his chest filled with anger—Coward! You have the nerve to run away!

Vidic's anger was justified. He still wanted to get back the dignity that had been trampled on by Chen Yingxiong.

But at this moment, the other party ran away!

This gave him the feeling of swinging a punch with all his strength only to hit cotton...

Chen Yingxiong naturally didn't know or care about Vidic's anger, and he didn't even think about it that way. Confronting Vidic head-on? I've already moved beyond the realm of proving myself through that!

Chen Yingxiong and Suarez switched positions, but Liverpool's attacking style remained the same—no matter what the situation, the final pass to Chen Yingxiong was always right.

Before, when Chen Yingxiong was in the penalty area, everyone would pass the ball into Manchester United's penalty area. Now that Chen Yingxiong had pulled to the outside of the penalty area, then they would pass it to the outside of the penalty area. Anyway, Chen Yingxiong was a beacon; wherever he was, the ball would be passed to him.

Chen Yingxiong's withdrawal position was also very precise—he didn't retreat to Manchester United's defensive midfielder position in one go, but rather, he was stuck in the area between Manchester United's midfielders and defenders. This area wasn't large, and sometimes it might even overlap, but that was only sometimes. Because a defensive midfielder couldn't always run back to play center back. The most important thing in defense was depth.

Why were there formations? Why did coaches always demand that the three lines maintain distance and take shape? It wasn't just for looks; it had a practical purpose. The distance between the lines was the so-called "depth." If you broke through the first line of defense, you would encounter the second line of defense. When the second line of defense blocked you, there was still a third line of defense behind them, and at the same time, the first line of defense would quickly return to defend... directly surrounding you. At the same time, the advantage of having depth was that it prevented you from easily choosing penetrating tactics. If you passed directly behind the second line of defense, there was still a third line of defense, and the ball was very likely to fall into the hands of the opposing defender. That was why everyone said, "A direct pass is a risky tactic."

The relationship between the defensive midfielder and the defenders was two lines of defense.

If the defensive midfielder was always on the same line as the defenders, there would be no depth. A direct pass from the opponent could penetrate your entire defense and then directly face the goalkeeper.

That would be dangerous.

So the defensive midfielder could only retreat occasionally and could never make it the norm.

Now, Chen Yingxiong's approach was to force Manchester United's defensive midfielders to retreat frequently, turning two lines of defense into one. This was a very painful thing for Manchester United.

Of course, he didn't make such a great decision after careful consideration. He didn't have such excellent intelligence; he was just following some kind of instinct.

But this instinct was really too deadly...

Martin O'Neill clapped his hands. He watched from the sidelines for two minutes, and during one Liverpool attack, he couldn't understand it.

He said to assistant coach Sammy Lee next to him: "Okay, let's go back."

Sammy Lee naturally saw it too. He smiled and walked back to his seat, sat down with Martin O'Neill, crossed his legs, and prepared to watch a good show.

※※※

Ferguson stared at the changes taking place on the field from the bench, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter.

How could this famous coach not see that Chen Yingxiong's switch was making Manchester United uncomfortable?

The question was, how to break it?

He couldn't think of a solution.

Yes, he couldn't think of a solution. But that wasn't shameful. Famous coaches were also people, and people always had times when they were powerless.

That was a fact.

But not everyone could accept this fact calmly...

He clenched his fists, wanting to find a way to stop Chen Yingxiong.

Chen Yingxiong retreating to this position was really threatening to Manchester United because Chen Yingxiong had the ability to shoot from long range!

※※※

In the twenty-fifth minute, thirteen minutes after Chen Yingxiong and Suarez switched positions, Liverpool launched another attack.

Previously, when Chen Yingxiong was in the penalty area, Sanchez would definitely go to the bottom line to cross.

Now, there was no need. As soon as Sanchez entered the thirty-meter area, he quickly crossed!

It was a half-high ball. If Chen Yingxiong wanted to use his head, he basically wouldn't have to jump.

But it was too far from the goal, and he couldn't just head the ball directly.

He chose to control the ball with his chest.

While running, he jumped slightly and straightened his chest, a beautiful chest trap!

The ball hit his chest and was cushioned by his muscles, falling straight down.

Carrick was next to him, but he had been squeezed behind Chen Yingxiong before that. All the players who had competed against Chen Yingxiong had one thing in common—being squeezed behind Hero meant you had failed to defend!

Carrick was unwilling to fail like this. He reached out to pull Chen Yingxiong.

But he couldn't pull him!

It was like pulling a heavy truck. He couldn't pull him even with all his strength! Instead, he was involuntarily pulled forward by Chen Yingxiong...

But Carrick only ran one step.

When the ball fell, Chen Yingxiong swung his right foot while running...

"heroooooooooooooooooo——"

Liverpool's old commentator Steve Hartson roared, dragging out the sound.

In his slightly hoarse roar, Chen Yingxiong's right foot whipped the ball solidly!

Bang!

Carrick was blocked behind Chen Yingxiong and couldn't see the ball, but he still clearly heard the sound.

His heart suddenly tightened, as if Chen Yingxiong's kick wasn't on the ball, but punched him in the heart...

The ball was hit by Chen Yingxiong and flew forward, rising at the same time.

It looked like it was heading straight for above the crossbar.

Manchester United goalkeeper De Gea didn't dare to be careless. He exerted all his strength to jump up and wave his right hand to block the ball.

He thought, if I can't stop the ball this time, then the ball can forget about going in—I jumped pretty high!

He didn't touch the ball. This time it wasn't because the height wasn't enough, but... the speed wasn't enough!

The ball flew past before his hand arrived...

"goooooooooooooooooooooooooooAL!!!!!" Old Hartson's voice suddenly became high-pitched. All the Liverpool fans in front of the TV and radio jumped up as if they had been stabbed in the ass.

"Hero!!!"

※※※

"A world-class goal! A world-class goal! Absolutely a world-class goal! A volley from more than thirty meters away! The chest trap and the shot were done in one go! Beautiful! Too beautiful! This goal was beautiful!!"

Other commentators were also stimulated to a climax by Chen Yingxiong's goal, which was full of power, speed, and beauty.

They roared out their voices, and each one was louder than the other, as if not being loud enough wouldn't show their excitement.

In the crucial "England National Derby," Chen Yingxiong scored the first goal for Liverpool. Everyone knew what this goal meant!

Liverpool had entered their favorite and most familiar track! And Manchester United was mired in the mud!

The entire Anfield stadium was ignited by Chen Yingxiong's goal. No one could sit in their seats anymore. They jumped, waved their arms, and roared at the sky. The Anfield stadium, filled with red jerseys, looked like a volcano erupting with magma when viewed from the air!

※※※

"The Liverpool fans called his name earlier, and Hero responded. Now he has fulfilled his promise with practical actions—when you need me, I will never let you down! This is Hero! Yes, this is Hero!! Those who can't do this can never become 'Hero'!"

In the commentator's passionate roar, Chen Yingxiong didn't run all the way to celebrate the goal. He stood in place, raised his right hand, clenched it into a fist, and responded to everyone's shouts once again.

The cheers of those Liverpool fans in the stands suddenly became even louder!