Chapter 1 Ctv5!

"Ctv5! Ctv5! Good evening, viewers."

"We are now broadcasting the 2016-17 season of the English Premier League, Arsenal versus Southampton at home."

"Can the Saints break their away losing streak and replicate the massacre at St. Mary's Stadium?"

"Last season, Southampton bloodily washed Arsenal 4-0. Can Wenger avenge this humiliation tonight?"

"Let's wait and see."

Southampton has never won against Arsenal on the road.

But they have never lost to Arsenal at home. The scores of the last two encounters are: 2-0, 4-0.

The coach at the time was the current Everton coach, Koeman.

...

Players' tunnel.

Welbeck looked a little melancholy, ignoring his teammates' greetings.

Gibbs punched him in the chest, "Idiot, you finally got a starting opportunity, shouldn't you be happy?"

The little black egg shook his head and whispered, "Li is on the bench."

Gibbs couldn't refute for a moment, and weakly said, "And me, I will pass the ball to you."

To avoid taking the blame for Chamberlain again, Gibbs grew his hair long.

Welbeck curled his lips, "Forget it, your current cross-passing level is not as good as when you were in the youth team."

Years ago, in the Youth FA Cup, the two represented Manchester United U18 and Arsenal U18 respectively, leaving a deep impression on each other.

Not far away.

Van Dijk was also reminding his teammates in a low voice: "Do as the boss said, attack boldly, we must seize the initiative... while Li is not on the field."

After returning to Southampton with the aura of the Champions League semi-finals, the Dutch center-back's combat power has skyrocketed this season, performing many wonderful defensive arts.

'One person, is a defensive line.'

His worth has also skyrocketed.

Liverpool initially offered 30 million pounds, Arsenal followed with 50 million, Manchester United intervened with 60 million...

The outside media have speculated that the highest defender transfer record in history will be born in Europe this summer.

Van Dijk took a deep breath and clenched his fists.

Now, he is no longer the "rookie" who was criticized by the Saints fans last season.

Perfect form.

The strongest defensive form.

His resolute eyes gazed at the bright spotlights outside the tunnel.

Tonight.

Is my stage.

...

Emirates Stadium.

Li Kang sat on the bench, he hadn't enjoyed the night view of North London so leisurely as he did tonight for a long time.

Brilliant fireworks.

Red and white crowd.

Hazy moon.

Morata crossed his arms in front of his chest and said, "If I don't play tonight, my assist efficiency will surpass Kroos and Sigurdsson!"

Bould paced back and forth.

Wenger stood in the command area, looking at his watch.

...

A moment later.

The players from both sides stood in their positions on the field.

With the referee's whistle.

The game officially begins.

"The following is an introduction to the starting lineups of both sides."

"Wearing black jerseys and attacking from left to right is Southampton!"

"The formation is 4-3-3!"

"Goalkeeper: Forster."

"Defenders: Bertrand, Van Dijk, Fonte, Cedric."

"Midfielders: Davis, Romeu, Clasie."

"Forwards: Redmond, Rodriguez, Tadic."

"Arsenal, also playing a 4-3-3 formation."

"Goalkeeper:..."

"Perhaps to prepare for the Champions League knockout stage in a few days, Wenger has made large-scale rotations!"

...

Livestream room.

-[Li Mingdeng is not playing, Arsenal is going to be upset. It's okay, Chelsea also lost, this game can allow the main players to rotate and prepare for the Champions League knockout stage!]

-[Think too much, what if Wenger substitutes someone after 45 minutes?]

-[Don't say the whole of Europe has thoroughly studied Wenger's habits... even I know he will only make substitutions after 70 minutes.]

-[Van Dijk and Fonte's combination is very strong, top few in the Premier League! Southampton is stable this time!]

-[Wenger underestimates Southampton too much, their strength is very tough.]

-[Damn, Arsenal scored!]

...

The fans hadn't reacted yet.

Welbeck had already rushed to the corner flag to celebrate wildly.

After two seconds of silence, the Emirates Stadium erupted with thunderous cheers!

"Blitzkrieg!"

"Only less than two minutes into the game!"

"Gibbs is like entering an unmanned zone on the left, sending a deadly cross after reaching the baseline!"

"Welbeck header... ah! From the replay, this is an own goal, Van Dijk's head touched the ball first, resulting in it smashing into his own goal!"

"It shouldn't be!"

"The most outstanding center-back in the Premier League this season actually made a low-level mistake!"

"Well... this goal has half the credit of Welbeck, he blocked Van Dijk's clearance angle."

"Clearance angle..."

Duan Xuan weakly repeated a sentence, feeling embarrassed for his newly invented vocabulary.

...

Happiness suddenly knocks on the door.

Van Dijk rubbed his hair in frustration, and then apologized to the goalkeeper, Forster.

The two have been good defensive partners since their Celtic days. Southampton, with their discerning eyes, brought them to the Premier League overnight as a package deal.

Coach Puel was very calm, pressing his hands down in the air, signaling the players not to panic.

"Quickly forget this goal."

"Play as you were instructed during the pre-match arrangements."

...

The game restarts in the center circle.

Southampton, having regrouped, launched a fierce offensive.

"Puel's team usually gives the impression of being slow and methodical."

"But it's different tonight."

"Southampton is pressing very deep!"

"Even Fonte is participating in the attack."

"The defense line only leaves Van Dijk!"

"Arsenal can't indulge in the joy of leading..."

Southampton is not short of good players in advancing the ball.

Clasie is one of them.

A rising star from the Feyenoord youth academy in the Eredivisie.

There's an interesting anecdote: Leicester City was the first to target Clasie, but Southampton preempted them, forcing Ranieri to consider alternative plans... the French little black egg, Kanté.

...

Clasie's footwork is pretty good.

After receiving the ball, he stomped on the grass, suddenly accelerated, and rushed towards Arsenal's thirty-meter area.

Suddenly.

A burly figure blocked his path.

Maguire.

With a thud.

The Dutch midfielder's frail body was easily pushed away.

After Maguire intercepted the ball, he pushed it forward, immediately took small steps to turn around and return to the defense line.

"A very crucial steal!"

"The passing line is also very thoughtful!"

"Found Welbeck!"

"Arsenal's counterattack... eh?"

The passion of the Emirates Stadium failed to be ignited again.

Before Welbeck could steady the ball, it was intercepted by Romeu!

...

Sideline.

Wenger shook his head helplessly.

It wasn't to blame Welbeck, but that Southampton's little bald head... almost joined Arsenal back then.

Romeu, from La Masia youth academy.

One of the experimental products of the No. 4 position.

During that period, La Masia had a pair of twin stars: "Surpassing Messi" Bojan and "Not losing to Busquets" Romeu.

Made his Barcelona debut at the age of 18.

Joined Chelsea at the age of 20.

No matter how you look at it, Romeu's career shouldn't be that bad.

Unfortunately.

This little bald head changed his evolutionary direction:

From a technical Spanish midfielder to a melee fighter;

From a fair-faced young man who was afraid of confrontation to a master of picking up cards.

...

"Worthy of being Busquets' successor."

"The awareness of prediction and positioning has not been lost."

"Wow, beautiful vertical strike!"

Romeu sent a sharp through ball, easily penetrating Arsenal's midfield defense.

The isolated and helpless Maguire is struggling.

Like a peeled banana.

He is facing "Little Henry" Redmond.

The opponent flicked and tapped, stepped on the gas, and accelerated past him!

Maguire subconsciously swung his left foot backward... didn't swing anything.

Aircraft carrier turning around.

The fans in the nearby stands burst into laughter.

...

"Redmond broke into the penalty area!"

"Beautiful pass!"

"Tadic!"

"Wonderful! Cech's superb save!"

"Ah! Didn't clear it far enough!"

"When did Van Dijk come up!"

"Wow!"

"Goal!"

"One to one!"

"Atonement!"

"Scored twice!"

"The Dutch center-back has scored twice in this game."

"Southampton equalized."

"The two sides have returned to the same starting line!"

"Whenever spring comes, Arsenal always has accidents."

...

The Gunners fans stand, silent.

The Saints fans stand, cheering.

Football is like this.

Their respective supporters exchange joy and sorrow.

Van Dijk ran excitedly to the corner flag, lifted the team emblem on his chest with his right hand, and kissed it.

The Saints teammates excitedly surrounded him.

Maguire put one hand on his hip, and the other hand waved towards the defensive blank area just now...

"Why would a center-back like me make a fool of myself on the wing?"

Xhaka, in the defensive midfielder position, looked embarrassed and raised his hand to apologize.

You can't say they are bad.

But Southampton is really not weak.

They are very good at hitting a mismatch in the change of possession!

Players with slow speeds like Xhaka and Maguire find it difficult to adapt.

If possession is lost too easily in the frontcourt, the pressure on the backcourt will be very high.

Why doesn't Wenger arrange defensive players who run fast?

The problem is that there aren't many in Europe: Bayern's Alaba, Real Madrid's Varane, Roma's Rudiger and Manolas...

The Premier League civil war is so competitive...

...

The game resumes.

Gradually dull.

The little fan in the stands took out his homework from his schoolbag.

Puel changed his formation.

Southampton returned to being "slow and methodical."

The "English hooligan" quickly changed his outfit and became a "gentle gentleman."

Li Kang sat on the bench.

God's perspective quietly shifted:

Southampton's formation has become 9-0-1!

Concise and pragmatic.

...

Time passed imperceptibly.

Arsenal launched a fierce attack.

Sharp passing and cutting, starting with Ramsey, was always destroyed by Van Dijk and Fonte.

The dense passing lines, like steel wires, seemed to strangle two water columns.

The Dutch center-back calmly commanded the defense line.

Repeatedly resolving the Gunners' offensive.

"Arsenal's attack is mostly resolved outside the opponent's thirty-meter area."

"Don't worry!"

"We see Morata warming up!"

...

Livestream room.

-[Dare to fight back? The professor is going to get serious!]

-[No need to bring on Li Mingdeng, Morata alone can solve the battle.]

-[Super striker is not blown out, Morata's assists this season are godlike!]

-[Quickly break through Southampton's turtle formation and help the professor avenge his humiliation!]

-[Avenge his humiliation!]

-[Is it strange? Southampton massacred the full-strength Arsenal 4-0 last season.]

...

55th minute of the game.

Welbeck unleashed a worldie from thirty-five meters away from the goal.

The football grazed the crossbar and flew towards the stands.

The sigh of the Emirates Stadium lasted only a few seconds, and was instantly drowned out by thunderous applause.

Just because a handsome face appeared on the sidelines.

Morata!

"Wenger made the first substitution."

"Morata replaces young Iwobi."

"Looking forward to his magical performance!"

"This is the difficulty of multi-line combat, once you save your strength for the Champions League, you will be very passive when you encounter tough bones in the league."

...

Once Morata came on the field, the situation changed greatly.

His running created more space for Welbeck.

His occasional retreat also greatly improved the midfield's advancement efficiency.

"Beautiful!"

"An immediate effect."

"This is the new generation of super striker with a value of 50 million euros!"

"You can shoot!"

"Oh, Van Dijk's timely block!"

"Arsenal fans don't need to worry."

"The next goal won't be too far away."

Duan Xuan suddenly realized that his commentary was a bit biased, and quickly added: "Tenacious Saints!"

...

The next goal?

Too far away.

Arsenal fans found that the situation was a bit wrong.

Why is Morata's finishing touch so inaccurate?

Flexible running can help teammates create space.

But in the dangerous area, he and Welbeck can't always produce a chemical reaction.

As the football flew out of the baseline again.

Morata and Welbeck communicated: shrugging at each other.

Sideline.

Bould covered his forehead helplessly.

Only then did he realize that before Li appeared, Morata and Welbeck were both strikers who could produce hilarious compilations of wasted opportunities...

...

Heavy emotions gradually devoured the Emirates Stadium.

Some Islington fans started cursing Arsenal's coaching staff.

Scattered debris was砸落 on the awning of the coaching area, rattling.

Wenger's expression was calm.

The cold wind whipped his cheeks.

With his left hand in his coat pocket, he directed the team with his right hand.

...

"The situation is not optimistic."

"Southampton has had many good counter-attack opportunities, but fortunately Cech is in great form."

"Van Dijk's performance has conquered North London!"

"He will definitely become the most sought-after center-back in the summer transfer window!"

"In the European arena, it has been a long time since such a hero who defended the defense line with his own strength has appeared!"

As if he could hear the commentator's lines.

Van Dijk's eyes became more and more firm.

Like a great general sitting in the rear, strategizing and commanding thousands of troops.

Tonight's Emirates Stadium is my stage.

The invincible Arsenal, cannot break through...

Suddenly.

He saw a familiar figure appearing outside the center circle.

His face changed drastically.

...

"Arsenal may have to accept a draw again."

"Li Kang!"

"83rd minute of the game, Li Kang stood on the sidelines!"

During the dead ball stage.

The director immediately moved the camera to the outside of the center circle.

The eyes of the entire Emirates Stadium were focused there.

Wenger patted Li Kang on the shoulder.

The fourth official raised the LED number plate.

"Arsenal's second substitution."

"Replace Gibbs with Li Kang!"

"Only 7 minutes left in the regular time of the game."

"Can the two-hundred-million-dollar man change the game?"

...

It happened to be Arsenal's throw-in opportunity.

The throw-in position is approximately in Southampton's half, thirty meters from the goal.

The moment Li Kang stepped onto the green field.

A burly phantom appeared in his sight.

Stoke City No. 24.

Delap!

...

"Eh?"

"Li Kang signaled to Monreal that he would take this throw-in?"

"Very rare."

"Monreal's face was full of disbelief, as if to say: Big brother, are you ready to receive the ball and organize the attack?"

"The director's camera cut to the command area, Bould and Wenger were also a little shocked."

"Not a tactic arranged by Arsenal's coaching staff?"

Under everyone's surprised eyes.

Li Kang took the football, stood outside the boundary, and began to retreat.

Puel was very calm and slowly directed his disciples: "Don't panic, widen the defensive distance a little. Could it be that Li can throw a cannonball-like pass with his hand?"

Van Dijk also agreed.

Impossible.

It is impossible for Li to create a threatening opportunity directly with his hand from such a distance.

Well, he must pass it to Ramsey.

Arsenal's offensive direction should be concentrated in the side ribs area.

...

Everyone thought this was a very ordinary free kick.

The media reporters believed that Li Kang just wanted to try the opportunity to throw the ball in an official game.

However.

The next moment.

Li Kang's movements and posture made them change their minds!

"This posture?"

"Is he trying to smash the ball directly into the penalty area?"

"He has a golden left foot, but he doesn't have a golden arm!"

...

During the run-up.

Li Kang raised the ball high to the back of his head.

His body leaned back to an extremely exaggerated extent.

The whole person is like a giant siege trebuchet!

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Arsenal No. 10's footsteps seemed to make the entire Emirates Stadium tremble slightly.

In the field of vision.

One person and one phantom completely overlapped.

...

The football left those hands.

The terrifying running speed seemed to tear the air!

Super heavy artillery!

Fierce and domineering!

Unstoppable!

Whistling and bombarding towards Southampton's penalty area!

...

The Emirates Stadium was extremely quiet.

All the spectators were dumbfounded!

Is this still a football game?

Puel trembled all over.

Wenger was dumbfounded. This unbelievable scene reminded him of an unpleasant episode.

...

Van Dijk was mentally strained.

He immediately turned around.

Too late.

No matter how fast people are, they are not as fast as the ball!

Bang!

The football hit a little black egg heavily.

Reflected into the net!

2:1!!!

Goalkeeper Forster was stunned.

Really stunned.

How many times have you personally seen the opponent throw grenades directly from dozens of meters away?

...

"Amazing hand grenade throw-in!"

"Li Kang changed the score as soon as he came on the field!"

"Beautiful!"

"This ball went in... oh, goal scorer Welbeck fell to the ground!"

"The referee immediately urged the team doctor to enter the field!"

"It's okay!"

"Welbeck got up!"

"Great header!"

...

The long-silent livestream room was instantly dominated by barrages.

Like a pool of calm lake water, a grenade was thrown in.

-[Awesome!]

-[Popeye!]

-[Am I watching a football game?]

-[Can football be played like this... or hit?]

-[Let's play football together after school!]

-[Li Mingdeng's arsenal +1!]

-[Premier League stadium, Popeye reappears!]

-[Welbeck doesn't have a concussion? The physique of black people is really awesome!]

-[Li Mingdeng: You stand there and don't move, I'll feed you the cake with my hand.]

-[Fun fact: 2008/2009 season. Stoke City defeated Arsenal 2:1 at home. Both goals came from Delap's powerful throw-in!]

-[Fun fact supplement: In those years, many coaches asked FIFA to revise the throw-in rules... When Premier League clubs encountered Stoke City, they would rather give the opponent a corner kick than a throw-in!]

-[Back then, there was a man who used throw-ins to create 9 assists in half a season!]