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Chapter 290 The Devil's Home Ground
The Ruhr United’s home stadium, the North Rhine-Westphalia Arena, was already packed with people, even though there were still more than two hours before the match was scheduled to start.

However, fans from both sides had already gathered here early on—though they were mostly Ruhr United fans.

"We had a similar scene in our first Champions League home game, but that was because it was our first Champions League home game. Ruhr United has qualified for the Champions League before, so it's really remarkable that they can still have such a scene..."

Outside the North Rhine-Westphalia Arena, Robbie Dixie, wearing a dark blue Tyne jersey, looked at the surging crowd and remarked.

“This is the norm at the North Rhine-Westphalia Arena. Otherwise, why would Ruhr United’s home stadium be known as a ‘devil’s home ground’ throughout Europe?” Ryan said from the side.

“Stop praising our opponents, gentlemen,” Theo Collins reminded them. “They’re our opponents in this game, and the more intimidating their home ground, the more trouble they’ll cause us…”

As he spoke, he pointed forward.

"Did you see those Ruhr United fans?"

As he said this, he raised his hand and pointed forward.

Everyone looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a Ruhr United fan holding a piece of paper and showing it to a media camera.

That's a poster of Wang Lie, showing him shooting a goal.

But don't mistake this person for a Wang Lie fan hiding among Ruhr United fans.

Because a large red X was drawn on Wang Lie's heroic figure.

Someone in the crowd sighed: "I still don't understand why Wang said that... I can totally imagine that when the game starts, the whole stadium will boo as soon as Wang gets the ball..."

"So what if they boo?" Ryan said nonchalantly, scoffing. "They're just booing from the stands; they can't really affect the King. Do you doubt the King's composure, Harry?"

“I don’t doubt Wang, but I’m not sure if every Tyne player can withstand such immense malice and pressure as Wang…” the man argued.

His concern is actually a concern shared by some of Tyne's fans.

No one doubted Wang Lie, and his words would not have any negative impact on him.

But football is a team sport, and it can't be done by Wang Lie alone.

Wang Lie will not be affected, but what about the other Tyne players?
Ryan remained unconcerned: "That's not a problem. I already asked Jon before I came, and he'll be watching the game live with Don at the bar."

Upon hearing this, the companion who had previously expressed concern immediately fell silent.

Because this is a super weapon of mass destruction, the ultimate metaphysics...

※※※

Regardless of how Tyne fans view the upcoming match, Ruhr United fans were indeed very excited before the game, as if they were the ones who had been looking forward to it for a long time.

Facing various media outlets that came to interview them, Ruhr United fans showed their confidence in front of the camera.

Someone waved their fist and shouted:

We will defeat them!

Someone even made a hand gesture to the media reporters, implying that Ruhr Steel Union would crush Tyne 5-0 at home.

One of the Ruhr United fans interviewed by reporters was an elderly man with white hair and gold-rimmed glasses. He appeared refined, but his words were quite harsh:

"...Ruhr Steel Union was already on the King's 'hate list,' and we had some past conflicts with him... so it doesn't matter, let him say whatever he wants, we're not afraid of him!"

He shrugged and shook his head.

Ruhr Steel Union fans were also explaining to reporters the legitimacy of their counterattack against Wang Lie:
"...To be honest, I also sympathize with Wong's experience during his last half-season at Sofia. I previously supported his counterattack against Heldon. But I think Wong went too far—he successfully got Heldon out of Sofia, and their feud should have ended there. I don't understand why he still harbors such hostility towards Heldon..."

"...I don't think Heldon is the most suitable head coach for Ruhr United right now, but he is, after all, the current head coach. He represents our team, and Wang's wanton humiliation of him is tantamount to humiliating Ruhr United, which I cannot condone or accept. I hope that today's game can help him calm down with a victory..."

"If we win this game, will I support Heldon to continue coaching? I don't know, but I think it might be a positive sign. I'll keep watching and see how far Heldon can go... We'll see then."

After the Ruhr United fans finished their interviews and left, the reporters who had come to the Arena North Rhine-Westphalia with questions finally found the answers they were looking for and excitedly began exchanging ideas:
"That's very well said. I think this is probably why so many people online are against Wang these days. He went too far with Heldon and even dragged Ruhr Steel Union into it..."

"Yes! I admit that Wang is in really good form, and it's quite remarkable to be able to play like this at the age of thirty-eight. But it's obvious that he's gotten cocky and thinks he's invincible... I think if you really want Wang to do well, then you should hope that Tyne loses the game today..."

"Ha! You've hit the nail on the head. I feel like it's not just Wang who's gotten cocky, Tyne's gotten cocky too. This team is really acting like nouveau riche this season. You know, they were fighting relegation last season... If they don't experience a defeat, they'll probably really think the Champions League is nothing special. Then, when the Christmas schedule starts, they'll be greeted with a series of devastating defeats..."

※※※

When the red and black bus carrying the entire Ruhr United team arrived outside the North Rhine-Westphalia Arena, they were greeted by a huge and bustling crowd.

Seeing the fluttering flags and surging crowds before him, Sven Heldon, sitting in the car, couldn't help but smile, a rare sight on his usually expressionless face.

This wasn't his first time leading Ruhr United in the Champions League, but he had never seen such a spectacular scene before.

He had heard about how passionate the Ruhr United fans were, but this was the first time he had witnessed it firsthand.

Perhaps today's North Rhine-Westphalia is the true embodiment of the "devil's home ground".

Faced with this situation, he wanted to thank Wang Lie again, thank this arrogant man for his smugness, and thank him for his crucial assist.

His situation at Ruhr Steel Union was already precarious.

Even after winning two consecutive league matches, there were still discordant voices within the management and locker room, and doubts about his coaching ability never disappeared.

It's easy to imagine how difficult it would be to fight Tyne while carrying such a burden.

At that moment, Wang Lie delivered the best assist. With his arrogant and rude remarks, all the discordant voices disappeared. It should be noted that even the club's general manager, Moritz Udogu, retaliated against Wang Lie's words on social media.

Heldon knew, of course, that all this unity and peace was temporary, and how long it would last depended on the outcome of today's match.

If he can lead his team to defeat Tyne at home and hand them their first loss of the season, it will greatly extend the buff's duration.

And that was indeed his goal.

Wang Lie's arrogance greatly increased his chances of winning.

He admitted that Wang Lie was a tough player to deal with, but Wang Lie had better pray that his teammates were just as tough...

※※※

When Tyne's players arrived at the stadium perimeter in their own bus, what they saw was almost identical to what Heldon had seen before.

The Ruhr United fans gathered outside did not disperse; perhaps they deliberately stayed to give the Tyne team a "baptism of fire."

When the Tyne team bus was spotted, the Ruhr United fans were even more excited than the Tyne fans, waving their red and black Ruhr United flags and shouting deafeningly.

If you ignored the raised middle fingers and the poster of Wang Lie marked with a red X, you might actually think it was a warm welcome to the entire Tyne team...

Seeing this scene outside the car window, assistant coach Varo lowered his voice and whispered in head coach McNeil's ear: "'Devil's Home Ground Plus'..."

McNeil was amused by the word his assistant used.

Seeing McNeil smile, Varo continued, "Aren't you worried?"

McNeil appeared very confident: "These six points were already in my plan when the group draw results came out."

"Did you expect that a single sentence from Wang would unite the entire Ruhr Steel Union in a common hatred of the enemy?"

McNeil didn't answer the question directly, but instead said, "To be honest, Cesar. Before Heldon, I've never seen anyone inspire such hatred in the King—even with Atlético Barcelona, ​​the King was targeting the entire club, not just one individual..."

"Isn't a 9-0 score enough to vent his anger? Besides, I can understand his hatred for Heldon, but now he's made Ruhr United his enemy too. Isn't that a bit unwise?"

"Outsiders might think Ruhr United is innocent. But in Wang's view, from the moment they chose to sign Heldon as head coach, Ruhr United was no longer innocent..."

Varo was quite surprised: "Can't we even make Heldon the head coach?"

“Okay,” McNeil nodded, “but don’t let the King run into him.” Varo was speechless.

He thought that he had worked with Wang Lie for more than half a year and knew enough about this controversial player.

I never imagined that I would be so far behind Sam McNeil, who was once Wang Lie's teammate...

But is it really as Sam says?
Varo still harbored some doubts.

However, with the big battle looming, he chose to keep it to himself, lest it disrupt the team's unity.

Yes, the team is indeed very united right now.

The outside world thought that Wang Lie's outrageous remarks had plunged the Tyne club and team into a media storm, and that the other Tyne players would be very dissatisfied with Wang Lie's selfish and self-serving behavior.

But the truth will surprise the outside world.

No one on the Tyne team expressed dissatisfaction with Wang Lie's statement—he couldn't see the dissatisfaction behind the scenes, but at least from his observation as the assistant coach today, the Tyne players other than Wang Lie remained very calm amid the media storm, showing no signs of being disturbed.

The coaching staff did not confiscate the players' cell phones. In today's mobile internet age, as long as they have cell phones, they can know what is happening outside the team and what trending events are happening.

Therefore, it's impossible for the Tyne players not to know about the media storm stirred up by Wang Lie's words.

Therefore, the fact that they remained so calm and composed even after learning the truth proves something.

That is, Wang Lie, as Tyne's undisputed leader, has an unshakeable authority and status within the team.

Aside from those who were already his fans, everyone else firmly believed that Wang Lie would bring victory to the team.

Outsiders thought Wang Lie was arrogant and conceited, but the team members just felt that since we were going to win anyway, why couldn't we say it in advance?

Of course, I probably wouldn't have done that. That's because I'm not Wang's type of person.

Given the king's personality, there's absolutely nothing wrong with him saying that.

If anyone is making a fuss, it only means that either they don't understand the King, or they're pretending to be ignorant—they're just looking for an angle to criticize the King while feigning ignorance...

Looking out the window at the enthusiastic Ruhr United fans, Miguel Ribeiro felt not fear, but rather excitement – ​​the feeling of standing shoulder to shoulder with his idol and fighting against the whole world was just too exhilarating!

Previously, he could only do this kind of thing online, passionately arguing with "Wang haters," which was really not satisfying.

Because verbal provocation has limited impact and cannot truly break down the defenses of haters.

Only on the court can I prove my critics wrong with a victory.

For example, why did those people break down when Wang simply said before the game that he came here to win?
Is there anything wrong with what Wang said?
If we don't say we came here to win, are we supposed to say we came here to lose?

So the logic is correct. The fact that the opponent broke down because of this means there's only one explanation: they're afraid of us, and they know they'll lose at home! They know Wang is telling the truth, and the truth is the most hurtful!

If not, if they are confident of beating us at home, why would they react so strongly to such an ordinary statement?

Ribeiro thought to himself that if the roles were reversed, and a team came to challenge Tyne saying, "We're here to win," if he were very confident, he would think they were talking nonsense, and his reaction would only be a contemptuous smile, and then he would wait to prove them wrong on the field.

I would never complain about being disrespected on social media accounts or when speaking to reporters.

What a joke!

When Wang was facing online harassment from all over the world, did he complain and plead his case in the media?
Even that farewell letter only revealed some inside information that none of us knew.

He was just secretly accumulating strength, and then using goals, victories, and actions to slap those people in the face!

This is what a true strong person should do!
Because he has enough confidence in himself!

Ribeiro takes this as his goal, hoping that one day he can be as strong and confident as his idol.

But now, what he needs to do is help his idol fulfill the promise he made before the match.

Defeat Ruhr United and tell all those who were chattering before:

Wang was simply stating a fact.

Facts are facts, and they will not change according to your wishes.

What? You can't even handle this level of intensity?

Looking at the excited, ferocious faces of the Ruhr United fans outside, Ribeiro's mind automatically conjured up images of them with bruised and swollen faces.

What could be more satisfying than humiliating your opponent on their home turf?!

※※※

The miners' bar was packed with Tyne fans who hadn't managed to snag tickets for the away game.

Even without Wang Lie's remarks at the pre-match press conference, the match against Ruhr United would have attracted the attention of Tyne fans.

Because Wang Lie's opponent in this match is Sven Heldon.

Do you all still remember how Wang Lie tore Heldon to shreds with six goals and three assists in the league last season?

So many people are paying attention to this match because they hope that Wang Lie can continue his excellent form from last season against Heldon.

This would give the team a better chance of winning away against Bundesliga giants, established powerhouses, and last season's "mini-treble" winners—they weren't as confident as Wang Lie, who said they came here specifically to win. They felt that a draw against Ruhr United away from home would already be a very good result.

Many people thought the same thing, especially after seeing the massive crowd of Ruhr United fans on the live stream.

Although they all respected Wang Lie.

Wang Lie had his reasons, and these ordinary Tyne fans also had their own considerations.

Harry Collins, who was on duty at the bar today, pushed two glasses of light beer in front of Jon Bogles and Don Lin, then took out his phone to record the two of them.

He then explained to Tang Lin, "I'll send a video to my dad and the others so they know you actually came to watch the game."

Tang Lin was somewhat speechless, but he understood why they had to do it—when they were playing against a strong team like Ruhr United away from home, and Wang Lie had just stirred up the opposing team's ire with his outrageous remarks, his presence at the game could indeed provide some sense of security for the Tyne fans at the miners' bar…

He has now become a kind of lucky charm or mascot.

Whether it really works or not is another matter, but at least it did a good job as a "placebo".

So he tries his best to smile when facing the camera.

Harry Collins continued filming with his camera, while asking him, "Don, do you think we can win this game?"

He asked, "Can we win?" instead of "Can we avoid losing?"

Jon Berg noticed the crux of Harry's question and wanted to remind Don Lin of it.

But before he could speak, Tang Lin nodded, giving Harry a very affirmative answer:

"Can win!"

Upon hearing his reply, Harry Collins laughed and ended the filming, then sent the video to his father, Theo Collins.

The important work has been completed; now we just need to wait to watch the live broadcast of the match.

※※※

P.S., sorry, I forgot to set up automatic updates...

(End of this chapter)