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Chapter 312 The final madness
As Wang Lie walked back to his own half, the television broadcast was repeatedly replaying the entire process of his goal.

From Ribeiro's header clearance until Wang Lie scored the goal for Sofia United.

Commentators from all over the world also offered their praise:
"This is truly a work of art!"

"Considering Wang's advanced age of 38, it's unbelievable that he can still accelerate, decelerate, change direction, and start like that on the court!"

"Words fail to describe the magnitude of such a goal. As spectators, all we need to do is raise our hands and lower them in reverence!"

"After scoring this goal, McNeil touched the top of his head—he was incredulous at Wang Lie's goal!"

"Although Wang didn't celebrate, the frenzied Tyne players still rushed up and surrounded him... No one can remain calm in the face of a goal like that... Ah, except for Wang himself!"

Miguel Ribeiro rushed up and hugged him: "My God! I've got an assist?!"

Others joked, "Ha! An assist of the century!"

They surrounded Wang Lie in the center, vying to hug him, and then walked back to the halfway point with him.

Even goalkeeper Elliott Goetz rushed over and gave Wang Lie a bear hug.

The Tyne players were so happy, and it wasn't just because Wang Lie's goal was beautiful.

It was beautiful, of course, but in the hearts of the Tyne players, the significance of that shot was so great that it could be said to have saved their lives.

Before Wang Lie scored, almost everyone was struggling to hold on against the suddenly surging Sofia United.

This is evident from the fact that Ribeiro retreated into the penalty area to participate in the clearance.

It is no exaggeration to say that if Sofia had scored a goal after that, the fragile balance would have been completely shattered.

Tyne's lead went from two goals to one, a huge blow to their confidence and morale.

Sofia's morale will be greatly boosted.

With the score shifting, it's not impossible for Sofia to quickly score another goal and equalize – such precedents are common in the world of football.

If Sofia United manages to equalize, the course of the match will take a completely different turn.

Fortunately, Wang Lie did not let any of this come true; it remained only in their worries.

He stepped up at a crucial moment and scored a goal that stopped the team from falling rapidly.

It's only right that everyone comes to thank him for "saving their lives".

One could even say:
If anyone in Tyne's team doesn't feel that Wang Lie's actions deserve their gratitude, then they should be kicked out of the team because they lack unity with the others and don't deserve to play in this team!
※※※

Jonathan Hall's attention was no longer on the game.

There's no doubt that Mailer Shapman is going to be fired.

The only variable is whether he will announce the news in the locker room as soon as the game is over.

Should we wait until the post-match press conference to discuss this?

Fortunately, when I signed this guy, I learned from the experience of signing Sven Heldon and didn't promise too high a release clause, so firing Shapman put less financial pressure on the club...

Compared to the trivial matter of firing Shapman, what Hall should be more concerned about is the selection of a new head coach.

If you want to choose a head coach who listens to you, like Meler Shapman did back then, it means that such a head coach often doesn't meet the standards for coaching Sofia United.

But if I choose a renowned coach who has proven his abilities, he's unlikely to listen to me...

It's unlikely that a capable head coach who is also willing to follow the club's arrangements can be signed in the short term.

We need to find a successor to Shapman as soon as possible to avoid the embarrassing situation of the team being without a head coach.

Just like when he fired Sven Heldon and then appointed Danilo Lindsay as his interim coach.

Speaking of Lindsay, he's doing well in Kensington now...

Hall regretted not giving him a contract and keeping him.

It's all Sam McNeil's fault for rejecting my invitation!
Otherwise, why would I have gone after that good-for-nothing Mailer Shapman!
Looking at Tyne's achievements this season, Hall believes that if McNeil were managing Sofia United now, even if they couldn't stay unbeaten, they wouldn't have made such a disgraceful impression...

※※※

While Stanley Harris was feeling lost about the upcoming game, his head coach, Meler Shapman, was also feeling lost – specifically when he appeared on camera looking like a soaking wet, expressionless man.

He tried to rouse the team's fighting spirit at halftime, but nothing changed; it was as if he had done nothing at all.

The score changed from 0:2 to 0:3. Trying to change it seems like doing nothing is better than trying to change it.

However, his confusion and pain did not last long this time, and he had recovered from that emotion before Sofia resumed play.

Because he no longer has any unrealistic fantasies about the future, and since he doesn't expect anything, he naturally isn't afraid of losing anything.

No longer hesitant, he made his own adjustments:

French winger Adel Degt, who did not start in this match, was brought on as a substitute.

The only defensive midfielder, Felipe Mega, was substituted.

As a result, Sofia United's formation will change from the 3-4-3 of their starting lineup to a 3-3-4.

Niels Zarek, who started on the right, moved to the center, but not to compete for position with the tall center forward Rich Wedl. Instead, he played as a shadow striker behind Wedl.

This lineup arrangement is a completely desperate, all-or-nothing style of play.

He also instructed Degt to tell center-back Stephen Travey that the team should push higher up the pitch and attack into midfield after he came on.

When Degert heard the coach's arrangement, his eyes widened, thinking he had misheard: "But boss, if Travi loses possession in midfield, there are only two defenders behind him..."

Shapman said in a very unpleasant tone, "I know, but so what? Should we be thinking about defense at this point? What's the difference between losing 0-3 and losing 0-6? Is it something to be proud of to not score, not attack, or even just end the game with the current score?"

This kind of boss was unfamiliar to Degert, but he quickly thought of the rumors that the boss would be sacked if the game was lost—no, those shouldn't be rumors.

Indeed, for the boss, losing 0-3 or losing 0-6 makes no difference; it's all the same—it's a loss.

That's why he wanted to go all out and let the team attack with all their might.

Perhaps... there's still a glimmer of hope?

To be honest, Degt didn't have an easy time under Shapman.

He was a key player for the team for the previous two seasons, but after Shapman arrived, he suddenly became a substitute.

However, Degt didn't actually resent Shapman, because he knew it wasn't something Shapman could control.

The person who truly determined his position was the team's general manager, Jonathan Hall—it was Hall's acquisition of Zarek that caused him to lose his starting position.

So he didn't actually hate Zarek for "stealing" his position; he even felt some sympathy for him.

Because Zarek's best position is actually in the center, not as a winger. He's technically well-rounded and balanced, meaning he doesn't have a particularly outstanding strength, which isn't much of an advantage for a winger...

However, his position in the middle conflicted with Richie Weddell's. If Weddell were to be replaced and Weddell moved to the center, he would have to bear the brunt of the Premier League defenders' attacks alone, which is really asking too much of a forward who is not particularly strong.

When he played for Raopoli in Serie A, the coach paired him with a center forward to maximize his abilities. As a result, Zarek was forced to move to the right wing and take Degert's place, leading to a slump in form and being criticized as a flop by the English media and fans.

Even so, the boss still has to start Zarek.

Because he was the top signing for Sofia United this summer.

How could the boss dare to put the "top bidder" on the bench?
So although he never said it out loud, Degt agreed with Wang Lie's words before the game - even earlier, at the beginning of the season, he believed that Jonathan Hall, the club's general manager, was the root cause of the team's slump.

In fact, Wang Lie said something similar after that league match last season, but Degert didn't take it seriously at the time, thinking that as long as a more capable head coach was brought in, everything would get back on track.

However, at the beginning of the season, after observing Hall's series of shrewd moves, he realized that Wang Lie was right and that he had been naive.

Last season, Sven Heldon took the blame for Hall, allowing Hall to hide behind Heldon and avoid becoming everyone's target.

Now, Mehler Shappman is nothing more than his puppet. He found a head coach who listens to him, so he has to accept the price of stepping into the limelight and becoming the target of public criticism.

※※※

After being substituted on, Adel Degert conveyed the coach's latest instructions to his teammates.

Everyone who heard the head coach's instructions immediately turned to look at the coaching bench.

They seemed unable to believe that this was a decision made by their leader, as if they thought Deget had "falsely conveyed an imperial edict"...

Stephen Travey, in particular, made a mistake during a forward run in the first half, which led to the team conceding their first goal and set the stage for their defeat.

Surprisingly, the boss still ordered him to move forward.

This time, it wasn't his own decision; it had official backing.

Thus, Travi realized that the team was now at a critical juncture, and they had to fight tooth and nail. They would either die a cowardly death or fight for a glimmer of hope in the darkness.

After making the substitutions, Sofia United pressed forward aggressively.

It has to be said that pairing Niels Zarek with a center who can create opportunities and let him roam around that center is indeed the right way to use Zarek.

Zarek's performance improved significantly after changing positions, and his shots became more threatening.

This forced Elliott Goetz to make a very dangerous save.

Meanwhile, the all-out attack by Sofia United also put some pressure on Tyne's defense.

Unfortunately, Sofia's adjustments came too late.

"...If they had made those adjustments at the start of the second half, Sofia might have actually managed to pull one back before Wang completed his hat-trick..." commentator Connor Cowley sighed. "Back then, Tyne's players hadn't yet found their rhythm. But now, Tyne has settled down..."

Marvin Block knew this too, but he chose to cheer on Sofia United: "Including stoppage time, there are still about 30 minutes left in the game, so it's not entirely impossible... At the very least, let's score a goal first."

In their last two encounters, Sofia United failed to score against Tyne, so scoring a goal would certainly be a positive sign.

Connor Cowley agreed with Bullock's assessment: "It's definitely worth scoring first, otherwise it would be too embarrassing to be thrashed by Tyne on home soil!"

He didn't believe that Sofia United could turn the tide, so scoring a goal to save face was Sofia United's most realistic goal.

Sofia United doesn't focus on defense at all; they just attack.

Tyne did not retreat into defense despite Sofia United's fierce offensive.

They were almost beaten by Sofia United before. If it weren't for Wang Lie's timely goal, they might have become a laughing stock. How could they swallow this insult?

You attack?
Okay, I'll attack too!

As a result, the last thirty minutes of the match turned into a thrilling back-and-forth battle, with a faster pace of offense and defense.

Meanwhile, the torrential rain made the field slippery, increasing the chances of mistakes made by both teams during offensive and defensive transitions.

This created many unexpected attacking opportunities.

All of these factors made the match intense and exciting to watch.

But frankly, for Sofia United, going all out is not a good option; it's more like a desperate emotional outburst, just with the excuse that "losing 0-3 is losing, losing 0-6 is losing, so might as well give it a shot."

If we're really talking about attacking firepower, even if this Sofia United team fielded four forwards, they still couldn't compete with Tyne's attacking trident plus the midfield iron triangle...

The attacking trident needs little introduction; every player in Tyne's midfield triangle is capable of attacking. Renzo Pisano and Sergi Cabella are, of course, stronger offensively than defensively. Even defensive midfielder Lenny Isala can make forward runs and score with long-range shots, or temporarily fill in as a center forward in the penalty area, setting up teammates and freeing up Wang Lie to operate more freely, rather than confining him to the vicinity of the penalty area.

Moreover, after Sofia United launched a major offensive push, they only had two defenders behind them, leaving their backline vulnerable, which made it perfect for Tyne to launch counter-attacks.

Tain's attacking lineup is indeed very suitable for counter-attacks—just as Marvin Block said before: whether it's Wang Lie, Vitini, or Ribeiro, they are all forwards with speed, good dribbling skills, and strong individual combat abilities.

When they launch a fast counter-attack, unleashing three attacks simultaneously, most teams really can't withstand it.

Not to mention Sofia United, who only had two defenders left in the backfield...

In the 67th minute, Tyne capitalized on a misplaced pass by Sofia United in the attacking third to launch a quick counter-attack.

Pisano made a long pass into the space in Sofia United's backfield, then Ribeiro made a high-speed forward run, received the ball outside the penalty area, cut inside and shot!
The football curved through the air, bypassing goalkeeper Diego Ferrer's fingertips, and flew into the goal for the fourth time!
4: 0!

After conceding the fourth goal, Mehler Shapman's strategy was to make further substitutions, bringing on right-back José Gomez. This wasn't to change the defensive strategy, but rather because the starting right wing-back, Byron Droujf, was exhausted and unable to continue attacking. So, he brought on the physically fit Gomez to continue the attack.

In addition, he substituted substitute midfielder Bastin Alatere for Aaron Skoten, also because the latter's physical condition was not up to par, which affected his performance in attack.

The main purpose of these two substitutions remains the same: to attack.

Shapman is determined to go down this path to the bitter end.

So even after conceding four goals, Sofia United continued to press forward and attack after the game restarted, completely disregarding the vast gaps behind them...

The outcome of continuing like this is obvious.

In the 74th minute, Cabella received a pass from Wang Lie in the penalty area and scored with a low shot.

5: 0!

Jonathan Hall, sitting on the podium, finally couldn't help but exclaim:
"What the hell is that idiot up to?!"

He believes that Shapman is now giving up and deliberately embarrassing himself.

After all, losing so badly at home must have put some pressure on them.

Because every goal Tyne scored felt like a slap in the face to his own boss.

Five goals, that's five slaps in the face!

This bastard is trying to make himself look bad in front of the boss!
It's unbelievable that the head coach, who has always listened to me, would now want to break free from my control. It's like the heavens are turning against me!

Who does he think he is?

Who does he think gave him everything?!

Hall made a decision: he would not wait for the press conference to end; he would go directly to the locker room after the game to announce the firing of Meler Shapman!

He wouldn't let that idiot show his face at the post-match press conference as the manager of Sofia United!
(End of this chapter)