Becoming a football god from Arsenal

Chapter 282: Champions League draw and European Golden Boot awards! Towards the final battle!
"How's it going?"

As Arsenal's next game was on Boxing Day, Mendes came to Maher's home on the 19th and brought some posters and exquisite small gifts that he had stored.

"I see you've been eliminated on one front, it doesn't matter, right? It's the EFL Cup after all."

"No." Maher smiled and shook his head. "This season's domestic cup competitions focus on the FA Cup. Maybe I will focus on the League Cup next season. Of course, you can also regard this as a helpless statement after being eliminated."

"Ha ha."

Mendes laughed twice, and was relieved to see that Maher was fine. "Yes, there is also the FA Cup, which means you will win the top domestic championship in England. This must be your goal this season."

Mahel invited Mendes to sit on the sofa. He took the gift from Mendes and sat next to him.

The two looked at each other and smiled. There was a sense of unfamiliarity after not seeing each other for a long time, but also a sense of warmth between old acquaintances. They seemed to know what the next topic would be.

"You have every advantage."

Mendes brought up the topic of the Golden Globe Awards, and he was excited, "Although people often say not to set too high expectations to avoid falling too badly, I think this may be the year.

“It’s incredible to think that every month, you move forward so much.

"Even every week, every game, even the games where you don't play well, you're still moving forward and you're always gaining something.

"It's like this a lot of times. After some of the days you feel are ordinary have passed, you suddenly look back and suddenly realize that you have come a long way."

"Yes." Maher also laughed heartily. His mood was hard to describe. "I don't know how to describe it. At the beginning of this season, I was still thinking that it would be good to win the Ballon d'Or at around 20 years old.

"I didn't expect that I would have this opportunity at the age of 19. This is really amazing."

"No one would believe you if you said that at the beginning of the season, hahaha."

"Ha ha.!"

The two laughed out loud. After the laughter stopped, Maher paused for a moment and then said happily, "Why do you say it as if it's a sure thing? In fact, for a big prize like this, no one can be sure that they have more than a 50% chance before they win it."

"I know how you feel." Mendes pointed at Maher with his hand, "Because you know some of my experiences, I know this feeling very well.

“Because you are young and you have accumulated enough confidence, you are not afraid of failure, so you will say these things calmly.

"You weren't like this before, before the Golden Boy Award, before Puskas. But now it's different. This season, especially recently, you have accumulated enough.

"You are now certain that if it is not this year, it will definitely be next year."

After listening to this, Maher glanced at Mendes and thought that it was indeed true. He was somewhat impressed by this sophisticated football businessman, as he was indeed very accurate in his judgment.

He has this kind of confidence, which in fact does not entirely rely on his current strength and his growth rate. Another very important point is that he knows very well that Messi will not be in this state in the future.

Unlike a football game which is full of variables, as a time traveler, the memories of certain people in his mind will not change much, so he is very reassured about this.

Even if the opponent may avoid injury in the following year due to some butterfly effect caused by his time travel, it will be difficult for him to maintain the same state as this year.

With his current level of 80-90 goals per year, as long as Messi and Ronaldo don't explode, he can win even if he stays where he is, not to mention that he won't stay where he is.

"We play Newcastle on Boxing Day and Southampton at the end of the month. Are you confident?"

Mendes mentioned this and said: "Completing 58 unbeaten games is just this month. If you can lead the team to achieve this, I think your chips will be much more. Now many judges are watching this."

"It's the same rhetoric. The first 56 steps have been taken. There is no way Arsenal will stop at the last two steps."

Maher smiled and nodded to express his confidence, and then said: "When is the Golden Globe Awards ceremony? I will prepare early this time and try to make a perfect appearance."

"January 1th." Seeing Maher so confident, Mendes also gained confidence. He pointed at Maher and joked, "Haha! We really need to prepare early. Don't wear other people's clothes like last time."

Maher shook his head and smiled. He would definitely not feel that kind of embarrassment anymore, nor should he feel that kind of embarrassment again, especially not at such an important award ceremony.

The two chatted about other things and then talked about today's Champions League quarter-final draw.

Maher checked the time and discovered that the draw ceremony was about to begin, so he turned on the TV to watch.

Mendes was sitting next to him and was also very curious about who Arsenal's opponent would be in the round of 16 of the Champions League this year.

However, as soon as they turned on the TV, they saw another piece of news on the football channel.

"At 19:14.00 London time on the 09th, Barcelona superstar Messi received last season's European Golden Boot Award in his mansion. This is the second time the Argentine has won this award. He won in "

In the picture, a presenter in a suit came to Messi's mansion in Barcelona, ​​holding a glittering golden football boot trophy, and took a photo with Messi smiling in front of the camera.

European Golden Shoe Award!
This is the highest award in the hearts of all forward players, because it basically represents the forward player who is in the best form, scores the most goals, and is the strongest player of the season!

This award is selected among all players playing in European leagues. Only league goals are counted, and goals in cup and European competitions are not counted. Each goal is worth 1 point, which is then multiplied by the football coefficient of the player's country.

The football coefficient of the four major leagues is 2, the league coefficient of 2 Champions League participating teams is 1.5, and the league coefficient of one Champions League participating team is 1.

It can be said that this is a relatively fair selection method, and the winner is basically the best and most efficient striker of that year.

Watching Messi receiving the award, Maher and Mendes in front of the TV both felt a little uncomfortable.

In fact, they may not feel anything if they watch it alone, but when they sit and watch it together, they will consider each other's thoughts, and therefore have this feeling.

“梅西去年在西甲联赛中打进了50粒进球，因此获得100个积分，这超越了联赛46球共获得92个积分的罗纳尔多，与联赛43球共获得86分的马埃尔。

"From this data, it can be seen that Messi was indeed the best striker last season, and the trend of a three-way competition in football has indeed been formed, with the three strikers far ahead of the fourth place, and the gap between them is very small.

"."

After watching this, the Champions League draw ceremony gradually began, and some football legends started shaking the balls.

Mendes sat back and consoled them: "It was a pity last season, in fact the difference was only 7 goals, which is not a small number, and Messi was in really good form that season.

"You should have no worries this season, right? This award is definitely yours.

"Messi's form is not much worse than last season, but you have completely exploded. 18 goals in 31 games. If you continue to play like this, it is possible that your points will exceed 120."

Maher chuckled and nodded without replying. In fact, he did not need such comfort. He seldom thought about the past. He was always looking towards the future.

Just as Mendes said, this season's European Golden Boot is basically in his pocket.

After 17 rounds of La Liga, Messi has scored 24 goals and Ronaldo has scored 17, which is a big gap from him.

Moreover, as his strength improves, his condition in the second half of the season will definitely be better than the first half, and it will not be difficult for him to score more goals then.

120 point?
Conservative 130!

Without saying anything more, the two of them focused on the draw for the Champions League round of 16. Soon, the entire round of 16 matchups were laid out in front of them.

Shakhtar Donetsk VS Dortmund
Real Madrid VS Manchester United
Galatsaray vs Schalke 04
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich

Celtic vs Juventus
Valencia VS Paris Saint-Germain
AC Milan vs Barcelona
The moment he saw Arsenal draw Bayern Munich, Maher seemed to be filled with magic music and hummed a familiar melody, "Play Barcelona, ​​play Barcelona. Play Bayern Munich, my factory is broken!"

This Champions League theme song, adapted by Chinese fans, is about the difficult situation Arsenal is facing during this period.

They seem to be able to qualify as the first in the group in the Champions League every time and gain the initiative in the draw.

But they always seemed to run into a relatively weak team, and they always ran into the Dream Three Barcelona and the peak Bayern Munich, which were in poor form in the group stage, and were always beaten badly.
This is truly metaphysics, and it really made Arsenal fans in this period of history cry.

"What's wrong?" Mendes asked with a smile while listening to Maher humming the Champions League theme song, "Do you miss the Champions League so much? Can't wait?"

"I guess so." Maher smiled perfunctorily, but unfortunately he couldn't explain the joke to Mendes.

But it’s okay, Arsenal has changed a lot now. They are going all out to compete in the Champions League this season and they will not be like last season. No matter who they meet, they will not be afraid and will strive for the final victory!

After watching the draw ceremony, it was already late, so Mendes stood up and prepared to leave.

Maher saw him out the door, and when he saw Mendes turning around again, he said expectantly, "I'll be staying in London recently. I'll go to your company tomorrow to coordinate the final promotional sprint between Maher and Mendes.

"See you when you are free, hopefully we can sit together and celebrate in mid-January. I believe we will."

"Of course." Maher waved at Mendes and looked forward to that day.

“Kill at the start!! Kill at the start! The game had just started and before I had the chance to introduce the starting lineups for both teams, Maher had already scored the first goal of the day!

"This is his 32nd goal in the Premier League this season! Not even 20 rounds have passed and he is about to catch up with the Premier League goal record from the 11-12 season! It's incredible!
"I don't know what Alan Shearer and Andy Cole would think when they saw this!"

"."

"The second one! And the 33rd one of the season! This is horrible, who could have expected such a player to emerge in the Premier League?

"Before this, people called the Premier League a 'chaotic' league, which of course was a biased statement.

"I think he wanted to say that the competition here is fierce, the intensity is high, and it's not always easy for strikers here.

"Therefore, people thought that the upper limit of the Premier League was 30+ goals, but no one thought that Maher would raise this limit to 40+ goals. What's more, this year, looking at this momentum, he may have 50+ goals!
"Playing the Premier League as if it were La Liga? I certainly don't mean to belittle La Liga, but..."

"."

"OhFucFantastic!! A hat trick in the first half!! A hat trick in the whole game!!
"Here it comes again! Here it comes again!! The 34th!! Maher has reached the upper limit of Premier League scorers in the past many years in just 19 league rounds!

"Alan Shearer, Andy Cole, you must have seen it, right?"

"."

"A cross! Bale!! Headed the ball into the goal!!"

"."

"This time it's Van Persie! Haha, the massacre is coming again. Arsenal, who are so depressed, are going to find a venue in the Premier League and the Carabao Cup!"

"."

"It was not easy for Newcastle to pull one back. This is a face-saving goal!"

"."

"Mael's assist! Gilbert's goal! Five to one!"

"."

"sixth!"

"."

"Seven to one! I wonder what the Newcastle coach is thinking right now. Should he strengthen his defense to avoid 10 goals?"

"."

"The game is over. Arsenal have completed their 57-match unbeaten streak in the league with overwhelming momentum! They are only one game away from Milan's unbeaten record!

“I believe that everyone who watches this game will be absolutely convinced that they must be the one to break Milan’s record!!

"No one can stop them! No one!"

"."

After the end of this round of games, some fans threw several Arsenal team flags in the stands.

All Arsenal players took it with a smile, and waved the flags around the field, letting the red Gunners flag flutter majestically in the wind at the Emirates Stadium.

Maher stood in the center circle and applauded. He looked excited, and his eyes, filled with all kinds of emotions, looked towards somewhere in the sky, full of stories.

No one knew what he was thinking exactly, but everyone knew that one of the things he was thinking about was to have the Arsenal flag flying at the highest point.

The Boxing Day battle finally came to an end. Arsenal players let all Arsenal fans have a happy Christmas and stepped into the new year with full expectations.

"First: Arsenal, 53 points, second: Manchester City, 44 points, third: Chelsea, 43 points, fourth: Manchester United, 41 points." - Premier League standings at the end of round 19
On December 12th, still at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal faced the 30th round of the season, which was the 20th game across the season.

“Beep, beep, bang, bang, bang.!!”

Amid the sounds of drums and gongs and shouts, Maher led the Arsenal players out of the player tunnel, hand in hand with the ball caddy, and stepped onto the familiar stadium, but with a completely different state of mind from countless previous times.

This may not be the final battle of their team, but it can definitely be regarded as a summary battle from the beginning of the 11-12 season to today!

"Last year we lost to Milan in the Champions League quarter-finals, but we consoled ourselves with 1 games unbeaten."

Maher gathered his teammates in the center circle, bent over, lowered his head and placed his hands in the center, “But at that time, we were not sure whether we could complete the undefeated season, and we never thought that we would be standing here today.

"Now, we stand here carrying the glory and will of our entire careers, the grass under our feet and the fans on both sides will witness this historic day, a legendary game!
"We will definitely beat our opponent. Come on Arsenal!!"

"Go Arsenal!"*10
All the Arsenal players pressed their hands hard on Maher's hand, and their hysterical shouts were full of confidence and fighting spirit.

After completing the pre-match cheering activities, everyone scattered and ran to their positions as fast as possible. They seemed to have infinite power and vigor and seemed invincible.

When many people in Southampton saw this scene, their calves began to tremble.

(End of this chapter)