If you are a brother, come and play football

Chapter 175 The Day the Broken Sword is Reforged, the Day the Knight Returns (Please Subscribe)
The scheduling of two important matches in London has led to a surge in tourists to the UK.

The sound of helicopters circling outside the hotel made people want to look up.

They only had one week to prepare after arriving in London.

But Fleet Street is unwilling to give up such a hot news topic.

With both print and television media joining in, it was a frenzy for British media professionals.

Both teams have received varying degrees of attention.

Barcelona appeals to Spanish-speaking fans, while Sampdoria appeals to fans all over the world.

Even assistant coaches are followed when they go out.

In his hotel room, Lu Deyang was reading The Sun.

The newspaper reported: "The drink we found in the trash on the floor where we were staying in Barcelona should have belonged to Zubizarreta, who is from Athletic Bilbao. His trash contained some puffed food and chocolate wrappers, as well as some sticky toilet paper. We have reason to believe that the Barcelona goalkeeper may have done something in his hotel room, or perhaps he watched adult channels."

That's fucking terrifying.

It would be a waste for British journalists not to become detectives.

They can analyze the clues in the trash to find the owner, and then analyze the owner's psychological and physical state, and what they did in the hotel.

No wonder The Sun is a bestseller.

They really do have a way.

"Deyang, are you planning to go out today since it's a day off?"

Redondo, who was reading a book, looked up and asked.

"Going out is too much trouble."

Lu Deyang shook his head and said.

If I get caught by reporters, getting back to the hotel will be a problem.

News about the players from both teams has been incredibly valuable lately.

Even the hotel staff were bribed, and both teams had to rely on logistics personnel to ensure their safety.

The training content was leaked a few days ago.

The training grounds provided by the teams were also drafty.

Tottenham Hotspur even issued a special apology for this.

Arsenal provided Barcelona with a training ground without any problems, which greatly annoyed their arch-rivals Tottenham.

Tottenham Hotspur spent a lot of money hiring a security company to prevent reporters from taking photos without their knowledge, and they even caught two moles who wanted to leak information.

Before the competition, a spy thriller unfolded.

Legends in English football are also more active than ever before.

Jimmy Griffiths, who previously played for Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, and AC Milan, said in an interview: "In my day, scoring 20 or more goals a season was considered the best in the world. I even won the Serie A title with Milan. But times have changed. More and more players can score 30 goals. It's hard to imagine how strong a team like Sampdoria is."

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said in an interview: "I recently had a dream that Dejan was wearing the number seven jersey for Manchester United. That was the second happiest day for me, after marrying Cathy. Everyone knows George Best. I can't say who is better between Best and Dejan, but Dejan's discipline is far superior to Best's. If he doesn't suffer from injuries, his achievements will far surpass Best's. You might not even recognize him when you see him off the pitch. Dejan gives off a very non-aggressive vibe off the pitch, like my neighbor's kid."

After his afternoon nap, Lu Deyang saw Beckenbauer on TV again.

As the head coach of the European All-Star team, he arrived in London early to watch the game.

In an interview, the "Football Emperor" said, "I told the Bayern board a long time ago that we should decisively buy Dejan. Now you see, even if we could afford Dejan, Bayern couldn't afford his $600 million salary. It's football that limits Dejan's income, not that his salary is too outrageous. His performance deserves a $1200 million salary."

"What he said makes a lot of sense."

Redondo said with a smile.

"The Chairman is probably going to have something to worry about again."

Lu Deyang joked.

Paolo Mantovani was afraid that he wanted to leave the team, so he always asked him how he was doing.

Both he and Boskov wanted to give Lu Qiuwang a mobile phone more than once.

Unfortunately, Lu Deyang thought that thing was too big.

Moreover, the signal is not very good, far less reliable than a landline.

Shops along the street usually have landline phones; you can borrow one and pay later.

These days, ordinary people count down the minutes when making phone calls. The first time you dial, you get charged every three minutes. Even if you hang up immediately and the call connects again, you still get charged. And then you get charged every few minutes thereafter.

Most people don't really have the habit of having long phone conversations.

Lu Deyang couldn't possibly let the fans bear this cost.

In the afternoon, Mancini and his teammates came over with playing cards and said, "We're a bit bored, so let's play some games."

"Deyang, you're not scared, are you?"

Vialli added fuel to the fire from the sidelines.

Lu Deyang immediately realized that the Haier Brothers had probably conspired to beat Lu the Ball King.

"Okay, but let's do something exciting."

Lu Deyang said with a smile, "The Italian way of playing isn't very exciting. Let me teach you a way to double your winnings."

"That's great!"

Mancini said with a smile.

Vialli nodded in agreement; he was afraid it wouldn't be exciting enough.

Lei Dongduo held up the book and chuckled to himself.

Based on his understanding of Lu Deyang, Lu Deyang was probably going to teach those two troublemakers on the front line a lesson today.

They started playing enthusiastically inside the room.

Redondo couldn't resist joining in to take a look.

Because they had good cards and wanted to call for the landlord position, Mancini and Vialli broke up their partnership in no time.

Lei Dongduo admired Lu Deyang to some extent.

The alliance between the two guys was easily broken.

"Change players, change players, none of you have any money," Paliuka jeered from the sidelines.

“Who said that? We can just owe it to him for now. Dejan likes to have people write IOUs anyway,” Mancini said.

Vialli rolled his eyes and switched places with Pagliuca.

He didn't want to continue playing.

As a second-generation rich kid, he knew very well that Lu Deyang was smarter than him.

Continuing to play this game will only give Lu Deyang money.

Several hours passed.

As soon as Pezzotti entered, he saw Vialli and a few other heavy smokers squatting on the windowsill smoking, while the others played cards on the sofa.

"We'll eat in a little while."

Pezzotti said, "Let's go to the restaurant in half an hour."

"Narcissor, do you want to play a couple of rounds?" Mancini invited.

"It looks difficult."

Pezzotti said.

“It’s alright, we can teach you,” Mancini encouraged.

He might win if a new player comes along.

However, half an hour later, only Mancini had a sour face.

Pezzotti chuckled, clutching several hundred dollars, and said, "I didn't expect to be so lucky. I won so much on my first try. I'll have enough money to buy souvenirs on the way back."

"That's because you met Roberto."

Vialli scoffed from the side.

Mancini played quite well, but his expression always changed when he got good cards.

There's no need to even guess.

"You guys should also be careful, just have some fun," the easygoing Pezzotti advised.

20 minutes or so costs several hundred dollars, which is no small sum.

Mancini's face fell immediately.

He can't get a new car anytime soon.

The restaurant prepared a sumptuous dinner, mainly Italian cuisine, with some dishes from other countries as well.

Most people didn't eat much.

In the evening, they spent some time in the tactics room learning about the technical characteristics of the Barcelona players before returning to their rooms to rest.

The next day.

5 month 27 day.

On the day of the Champions League final.

The entire Sampdoria team made their final preparations after their afternoon nap.

Not only that, there are also various things from sponsors.

From snacks for substitutes on the bench to energy drinks like Lucozade, everything will be available at this Champions League event.

Lucozade was invented in 1927, and its main ingredient is glucose.

He's not very well-known in mainland China, but he's popular in Hong Kong.

Pagliuca sat on the sidelines studying the opponent's shooting habits, while Lu Deyang had already put on his headphones and started listening to music to relax.

He is quite familiar with this Barcelona team.

Whether it's the later Dream Team II or Dream Team III, they can't avoid mentioning the name of Dream Team I.

Most football fans have probably seen at least some of the matches that led to Barcelona's first Champions League title.

Around 2 p.m., the whole team set off from the hotel for Wembley.

By this time, London had become a football city.

Many fans were planning to go to Sweden to watch the European Championship, but before that, they came to watch the Champions League and All-Star matches. In addition, there were fans from Barcelona and Genoa, so the streets of London were packed with people.

After finally boarding the bus with the help of security personnel, the bus was moving at a slow speed.

"Won't we be late if this keeps up?"

"Mancini asked."

“How could that be? This place is very close to Wembley Stadium,” Vialli said.

The team clearly chose this location intentionally, so the journey to Tottenham's training ground is a bit far, precisely to avoid missing the match day and being late for Wembley.

Driving at such a slow pace is quite agonizing.

Fortunately, most fans were chanting the names of Sampdoria players.

Lu Deyang keenly noticed that both Redondo and Mancini straightened their backs.

Some teammates simply waved to the fans outside the window.

Boskov stood up and warned, "Don't open the windows, or the fans will throw things into the car."

If a player's head gets broken, things will get really funny.

Materazzi then stopped, as he wanted to greet the fans.

It took more than 40 minutes to walk a few kilometers.

After the bus stopped, the entire Sampdoria team quickly got off.

"Ahhh... Deyang!!!"

The shout, octaves higher, instantly drowned out everyone else.

Many fans joined in the jeering.

Lu Deyang smiled, nodded, and turned to walk onto the court.

He didn't want to provoke the fans at that moment.

Sampdoria was lucky to draw the home team's locker room.

You can be more comfortable in the locker room.

Lu Deyang changed his clothes and opened the system to select the lottery.

[Your good brother Francesco Totti rejected Real Madrid's lucrative offer and chose to stay in Rome. The fairytale of one man and one city continues, so you're drawing a player who has betrayed his team. Ding! You've obtained a 1988-1989 La Liga Round 2 match, Barcelona vs. Osasuna, Michel Laudrup single-match trial card.]

What a traitor to the team!

Laudrup was a player who transferred from Barcelona to Real Madrid before Figo.

Before Laudrup was Barcelona's key player, Schuster.

It seems that Barcelona's core players have a habit of transferring to Real Madrid, and they all perform well in those transfers. This was also the case with the earlier, more established players.

Players who transferred directly from Real Madrid to Barcelona, ​​such as Prosinecki and Hagi, did not perform well at Barcelona.

When Lu Deyang was playing in the second division, Michael Laudrup was playing for Juventus.

However, by the time he transferred to Sampdoria, Laudrup had already followed his idol Cruyff's call and gone to Barcelona.

His later transfer to Real Madrid was reportedly due to a conflict with Cruyff.

Cruyff never got along well with some geniuses, unless your name is Marco van Basten.

After putting on the captain's armband, Boskov immediately said, "Let's go, Dejan, the reporters want to see you too."

Lu Deyang nodded and followed the head coach to the press conference.

Cruyff saw Ludyan and Boskov and nodded with a smile.

Lu Deyang nodded in agreement and sat down with the coach.

"Mr. Cruyff, are you confident of winning?"

"Dejan, it's said that the entire royal family will be at Wembley today to support you. Do you have anything to say about that?"

"Will you transfer to Barcelona, ​​Dejan?"

"Beckenbauer said Bayern missed out on you. Will you play for Bayern in the future, Dejan?"

What are your thoughts on the rosters for the Serie A All-Star team and the European All-Star team? (Dejan)

"Dejan, I heard you haven't bought your own house yet. Why is that? Are you planning to transfer away from Genoa?"

"..."

The Barcelona players and coaches couldn't help but glance at them.

It appears to be Lu Deyang's personal press conference.

The reporters were far more interested in Lu Deyang than in them.

Lu Deyang did not answer, but instead gestured for the two head coaches to speak first.

Cruyff pulled up to the microphone and said, "I have a lot of confidence in the team, but whether we can win depends on the situation of the game. Redondo and Lanna have returned from suspension, which is not good news for us."

"John, do you mean Redondo is better than Guardiola?"

A reporter pressed for an answer.

Cruyff couldn't help but frown.

Guardiola, one of Barcelona's protégés, is a defensive midfielder.

Cruyff said, "Pep is a good player, and Redondo is also very good, but they are completely different types of players and cannot be compared."

"If you had to choose one Sampdoria player other than Dejan, who would you choose to play for Barcelona?" The reporter was clearly unwilling to let Cruyff off the hook and was determined to dig some news out of him.

After a few seconds of silence, Cruyff said, "Lombardo, he's more suited to Barcelona's style."

This answer disappointed many reporters.

Boskov quickly added, "Today we're mainly discussing the game, not summer transfers. I guarantee the team's key players will stay as much as possible, unless someone wants to leave." "Mr. Boskov, do you mean there are players who want to transfer?"

the reporter asked.

“I didn’t mean that,” Boskov said directly. “These things are unpredictable, but the Chairman and I still hope that everyone can stay.”

"You lost to Barcelona once before, are you confident of winning this time?"

one reporter asked.

Boskov nodded and said, "You know what I mean. Dejan can't possibly lose with us. Say whatever you want, like 'Dejan dependency'."

The reporter turned to Lu Deyang and asked, "Prince Henry said you are his idol. What's your opinion, Deyang?"

"I'm happy to be a role model, as it will constantly remind me to do better."

Lu Deyang said.

"What are your thoughts on the Serie A All-Star team roster?" the reporter asked.

This is a topic that fans are very concerned about.

"It's great to play with Diego and Marco, but Mr. Zoff is obviously going to have a headache over starting positions. Roberto Baggio and Diego Maradona are both players who play behind the strikers."

Lu Deyang said with schadenfreude.

Zoff can't let Baggio play on the left wing and compete with Lu Guowang for a position.

Unless Zoff arranges a 4-3-3 formation with a single defensive midfielder and two attacking midfielders, Redondo is likely to be riddled with holes.

Even the strongest defensive midfielder will find it difficult to hold his own against a team of European All-Star caliber.

"So, who do you think should start between them?"

The reporter pressed for an answer.

“I think Roberto Mancini should start because he’s my teammate and my friend,” Lu Deyang said, winking.

The reporters couldn't help but roll their eyes.

They really managed to avoid offending anyone.

"Won't it feel a little strange playing alongside Paolo Maldini for the first time? He loses to you several times every season," a reporter asked.

"You should ask Paul what it's like to be on the winning team."

Lu Deyang said with a smile, "Today is the Champions Cup final, we should talk about things related to the match."

Who do you think is Barcelona's most threatening player?

The reporter quickly asked.

"Coman, Rodman Coman's long passes are very dangerous."

Lu Deyang said.

Koeman's long passes are excellent; even from the back line, he can play a role in quickly getting the ball into the attacking third.

"Do you have any ideas on how to counter Koeman's long passes?"

"You should ask the coach that. Okay, that's all for today's press conference. I still need to warm up with my teammates."

As he spoke, Lu Deyang stood up.

Boskov quickly got up and left with them.

Even after coaching for so many years, he still doesn't really like facing reporters.

God knows what kind of coach can talk so eloquently at a press conference.

"Dejan, be careful on the field. The Dutch aren't as clean as the newspapers make them out to be," Boskov warned as they walked back.

"Don't worry, Coach, I will."

Lu Deyang said.

Lu Deyang has always felt that the Dutch team is what the Chinese national football team should learn from, as they combine skill and technique quite perfectly.

The players are technically skilled, and when they really foul, they're incredibly ruthless, frequently putting up a high level of intensity against their opponents in major tournaments.

Unfortunately, kung fu is easy to learn, but traditional culture is much harder to master in terms of technique.

"Let's go, it's time to warm up."

Lu Deyang greeted them after pushing open the locker room door.

boom--

As Lu Deyang walked out of the tunnel, Wembley erupted in thunderous cheers.

The Wembley DJs were chanting, "Today we're going to witness a great match, let's welcome Dejan and Sampdoria!"

The cheers from the stands grew louder and louder, with the local fans even more enthusiastic than the Sampdoria fans.

"What's going on with those British guys?"

Redondo asked, puzzled, "Didn't we just thrash Arsenal?"

"It's because of Maradona, right? Dejan kept winning against Napoli, which helped the British get revenge," Parry explained with a laugh. "Haven't you seen Hilton praising Dejan in the newspapers all day long? That's just the mentality of the British."

"cut."

Redondo and Mancini made disdainful sounds almost simultaneously.

The two looked at each other and nodded.

I feel ashamed that I need someone else's help to get revenge.

If you're so capable, why don't you let British players transfer to Juventus and play for Maradona?

During the warm-up, Barcelona was more flamboyant than Sampdoria, like a peacock displaying its feathers and showing off its skills.

Sampdoria mainly focuses on passing and receiving the ball.

Occasionally, Lu Deyang would dribble towards the defensive players to warm them up.

The director is already overwhelmed with work.

There were so many celebrities and legends in the stands.

Several European royal families were present at the event.

The British Royal Family must be present at matches at Wembley.

However, the princess appeared in the box with her youngest son instead of in the stands with the rest of the royal family.

Spanish Prince Felipe Juan Alfonso was also in the stands, determined to show his stance regardless of the Catalan protests.

King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and his family were also present at Wembley.

The European Championship is being held in Sweden this summer, so they're taking this opportunity to warm up for the tournament and promote it.

These royal families had already become wary long before Germany abolished the monarchy.

They fear that one day the public might become interested and oust the monarchy.

Especially with the development of media, they always want to find opportunities to create a good public image.

Football legends were also sitting in large groups in the stands.

Many players who hadn't gone on vacation yet were in the same situation after the English League One season ended.

Beckenbauer, Pelé, and Manchester United legends sat together.

The football emperor and the football king both played in the United States, so communication was not a problem.

“George, Ferguson says Dejan’s achievements will far surpass yours.”

Pele joked.

He has always admired Best's playing style.

Best shrugged and said, "That's on the football field. If it's in bed, I've achieved more than him."

Bobby Charlton was furious; if it weren't for the occasion, he would have punched his teammate.

Who the hell cares how many Miss Worlds you've slept with?

However, Pelé and Beckenbauer were both flamboyant figures, and the group seemed to be having a very pleasant conversation.

These top football players all have one hobby: cheating on their partners.

Pelé and Beckenbauer always seem to repeat the cycle of marriage, infidelity, and divorce.

In this respect, Best is similar to Maradona; both of them prefer their original spouses no matter what.

……

When Totti saw Buffon on TV, he was incredibly envious.

Because his parents took him on a trip, he had to decline Lu Deyang's invitation and was unable to attend the game.

"Your plans caused me to miss the final Champions League title, Dad."

Totti complained.

Enzo Totti, who was tidying up his fishing rod, joked, "Can you spell the last few words of the Champions League, Francisco?"

"dad!!!"

Totti shouted angrily.

Others may say what they want, but why won't his father let him off the hook?

At this point, both teams returned to the tunnel, and the Englishmen began their prepared performance.

Enzo also put down his work and sat down in front of the television.

"I wish Roma could play in the Champions League final," Enzo Totti remarked.

Francesco Totti pursed his lips, sensing that Rome was in a bit of trouble.

Let's not talk about Sampdoria.

Both Milan clubs are undeniably strong.

If they can't even beat their opponents in Serie A, how can they possibly win the Champions League?
"Today was truly a football feast, but I heard that Sampdoria players are more concerned about revenge against Barcelona."

"That should be the case. In the 1988 season, they lost the Cup Winners' Cup final against Cruyff's Barcelona. Today, Sampdoria is definitely eager for revenge."

"With Deyang around, revenge is not a difficult task."

"Ahem, let's take a look at the starting lineups for both sides first."

Sampdoria's 4-4-2 formation with two central midfielders:

Goalkeeper: Pagliuca

Defenders: Lanna, Wiljoward, Materazzi, Mannini

Midfielders: Ludjohnsen, Redondo, Parry, Dossena

Forwards: Vialli, Mancini.

Barcelona 3-5-2 single defensive midfielder:
Goalkeeper: Anthony Zubizarreta
Defenders: Fernando Muñoz García, Rodman Coman, Albert Ferrer
Midfielders: Juan Carlos, Michel Laudrup, Pep Guardiola, José Bakro, Eusevio
Forwards: Giulio Salinas, Hristo Stoichkov.

"Barcelona's formation is more suited to controlling the game, but they may not have a technical advantage against Sampdoria."

"That's right. Guardiola's defensive ability is definitely not as good as Redondo's. The two will have a very interesting match in midfield. Redondo likes to push forward and move around, so we can see how Guardiola performs. A defensive midfielder wearing the number 10 jersey is always a very interesting player."

At this time, Guardiola, who had just been promoted to the first team, was still wearing the number 10 jersey.

There aren't many players who can pass to the number 10 in his position.

As both teams were making their final preparations, Lu Deyang attracted a lot of curious glances when he stretched.

Although Barcelona players had never faced Lu Deyang, they all knew that he had led Sampdoria to a thrashing of Real Madrid. During that time, the Catalan media reported on it extensively, mocking their arch-rivals.

At 6:15 p.m., the referee from Germany, Aaron Schmidhuber, blew the whistle to start the match.

It was still dark in London at that time.

Barcelona, ​​who kicked off first, passed the ball back cautiously, but Sampdoria's pressing was not as intense as before.

Barcelona is clearly a special opponent for Sampdoria.

Koeman adjusted his long kick and sent the ball to the right flank of the attacking third. Eusebio wasn't tall, but he had good physical attributes. Lanna went up for him but got the short end of the stick and was knocked aside.

Wiljoward tried to cover immediately, but the opponent launched a long ball into the penalty area.

"Pagliuca! Pagliuca has successfully caught the ball. Barcelona chose to launch a surprise attack right from the start, which was clearly premeditated. They wanted to create a threat with a cross before Sampdoria realized the problem, but fortunately, Pagliuca was very focused."

"Cruyff's team has a good ability to make long passes, and I estimate that Materazzi will start again today. Boskov has this in mind."

Pagliuca, who had the ball, quickly threw it to Lanna.

Lanna received the ball and charged forward. Although Eusebio was originally a defensive midfielder, he couldn't withstand Lanna's impact and was squeezed between him and the sideline.

Lanna's speed is very fast, which makes the Barcelona players very uneasy.

Bakro and Guardiola went up to meet them almost at the same time.

"Go back, go back now!!!"

Cruyff waved and shouted from the sidelines.

Oh shit!

Lu Deyang was trying to minimize his presence at the beginning of the game, so why didn't you see him suddenly move forward?
It's a pity it's too late.

Lanna has already chipped the ball over Bakro's head.

click -

Lu Deyang slightly turned his body and pushed the ball forward, then started dribbling forward.

The entire unloading process was completed while running, without wasting even half a second.

Fernando Garcia and Coman rushed towards Lu Deyang together, completely ignoring the fact that the middle lane was already empty.

Facing Garcia, Lu Deyang suddenly stepped forward with his left foot, pretending to go to the middle, causing the opponent to lose his center of gravity. Immediately afterwards, he pushed forward with his left foot and continued to charge forward.

Somewhat annoyed, Garcia approached Lu Deyang again.

Snapped,
However, Lu Deyang tapped his left foot and accelerated forward again, which made Garcia feel a bit strained.

Fortunately, my teammates are almost here.

Koeman positioned himself in advance, and the moment Lu Deyang shook off Garcia, Garcia chose to extend his leg.

*Crunch*—deep-fried meatballs.

Lu Deyang pushed the ball forward with his left foot and immediately passed it to his right foot.

Koeman stretched out his leg and fell to the ground in a sorry state, while Lu Deyang easily slipped between the two men, making many Barcelona fans' eyelids twitch.

boom--

Guardiola, who had run back, opted for a sliding tackle, but Lu Deyang got there first and lobbed the ball towards the goal, but unfortunately Zubizarreta caught it.

Even so, Wembley Stadium erupted in applause.

Compared to Barcelona's two long passes, Sampdoria's attack was clearly more interesting.

Barcelona's defenders looked very flustered in the face of Lu Deyang's breakthrough.

This made many British fans laugh, completely forgetting why Tony Adams was suspended in the first place.

Cruyff stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed.

His furrowed brows just wouldn't unfurrow.

He saw more from this: a three-man defense wasn't very effective at this point, and Eusebio wasn't smart enough; this versatile midfielder probably wouldn't be able to stop Lu Deyang.

If things continue like this, it's only a matter of time before we concede a goal; the left flank is attracting too much defensive attention.

A few minutes later, Parry pushed Laudrup down, and Cruyff quickly waved and called out to the field, "Pep, Pep, come here..."

"Boss, what's wrong?"

Guardiola, still sporting hair, jogged to the sidelines and asked.

"Don't push forward. Just wait until Dejan gets the ball and help your teammates mark him. I don't need you to intercept the ball, but just slow down his pace." Cruyff put his arm around Guardiola's neck and said, "Just make sure he can't get a shot off immediately. That's all you need to do, and I believe you can do it."

Guardiola nodded with a grim expression. Delaying Lu Deyang's chance to make a move was no different from making a tackle; that guy used too many feints...

(End of this chapter)