Starting with playing defensive midfield for Evergrande

Chapter 95 Professor, do you need a defensive midfielder? A short, dark-skinned defensive midfielder!
"This was absolutely an unforgettable night! We beat Manchester United 3-1 and continue to maintain our lead over Manchester City in the standings!"

"Before the match, many people thought that without Ramsey, we might not be a match for Moyes, but I'm sorry to disappoint you, we won, and by a clean 3-1!"

The scene at the post-match press conference.

The professor, dressed in a suit and tie, sat down and immediately delivered an extremely domineering opening speech with a smile.

As soon as the professor sat down, the reporters in the audience, packed with people, all raised their right hands with all their might.

After looking around, the professor, as usual, first gave the opportunity to ask a question to Carson, a reporter from the North London Standard, who was sitting in the front row.

As Arsenal's mouthpiece, this old friend of Wenger naturally asked Wenger to talk about how he orchestrated the game and how Arsenal easily defeated Manchester United!

There's no way around it; Carson has already written the headline "Arsenal thrash Manchester United, Wenger's magical formation causes Moyes to collapse in the first half," and now he's just waiting for the professor to sing his praises so he can publish the report directly.

And so, Carson and Wenger put on a show.

However, this greatly worried Wang Dong, a CTV reporter sitting not far from Carson.

For Wang Dong, he knew very well that what domestic fans wanted to see nowadays wasn't Arsenal beating Manchester United or anything like that; what they wanted to see was how the professor would rave about Su Hao, given his one goal and two assists.

After a long wait, Carson and Wenger's charade finally came to an end.

Upon hearing Wenger announce the next move, Wang Dong immediately raised his CTV sign high and shouted "China! China!"

And you know what? Wang Dong's "China" really did attract the professor.

After Su Hao joined Arsenal, Wenger was already preparing to expand into the Chinese market. Now that there was such a good opportunity for promotion, Wenger naturally did not hesitate to point to Wang Dong.

"Hello, Mr. Wenger, I am Wang Dong, a reporter from CTV China. First of all, congratulations on your team's victory over Manchester United. My question is, how would you rate the performance of our player Su Hao in this match?"

A fluent English voice rang out, and all the reporters present fell silent.

There's no way around it; right now, almost every reporter at this press conference wants to know the answer to this question!
He transferred from an Asian league to the Premier League and got a starting opportunity in just a few days. What's even more outrageous is that this 16-year-old guy delivered an exaggeratedly dominant performance throughout the game.

Given this, they also wanted to know what the professor, who usually didn't like to flatter his team members, would say this time!

Everyone turned to look at the professor.

The professor, who was being watched, first adjusted his glasses, then pulled the microphone over.

"Incredible!"
"At 16, oh no, to be precise, on the last day of his 16th year, Suarez at the Emirates Stadium made all Arsenal fans remember him instantly!"

"That aerial burst that still makes me shudder just thinking about it!"

"And those two absolutely brilliant assists!"

"I still can't believe that this is a 16-year-old boy making his first start in his first Premier League game."

Perhaps he was genuinely impressed by Su Hao's performance, or perhaps Wenger wanted to gain favor with Chinese reporters, who are also countless Chinese fans.

In front of all the media, the professor showered Su Hao with all the best praise he could think of!

Meanwhile, Wang Dong, among the reporters, excitedly began taking notes.

Putting everything else aside, just by publishing this report on Wenger's press conference, his performance bonus this month is absolutely guaranteed to be in the top tier!
The professor praised Su Hao lavishly.

Meanwhile, not far away, was the away team's press conference!

"The match was exciting, but the ending was indeed a bit hard for us to accept!"

"In the final stages of the second half, we had actually overtaken Arsenal, and we had several chances in the first half that we were just a hair's breadth away from scoring. If luck had been on our side, I believe the score would have been different!"

"Ok?"

You mean that Chinese player?

"One goal and two assists! I don't know what the point of asking this question is! With these stats, what do you think of his performance?"

With the team suffering another defeat and the standings continuing to plummet, David Moyes could only use bad luck as an excuse for himself.

However, it is clear that this explanation is simply not enough to satisfy the die-hard Manchester United fans who came with the team.

Just as Moyes finished his press conference and left the stadium, a large group of Manchester United fans, who had completely gone berserk, gathered around the Manchester United team bus, throwing objects at it and chanting for Moyes to be sacked and for Ferguson to come back!
Of course, this was happening while Manchester United was in complete chaos.

Meanwhile, in the home team's locker room at the Emirates Stadium, a very heartwarming scene was unfolding.

Happy birthday to you!

"Happy birthday to you!"

"."

Yes!

After the press conference, the Arsenal players celebrated Su Hao's birthday in the locker room.

Wenger stealthily pushed the cake cart and suddenly walked into the locker room.

When Wenger entered, Su Hao's teammates all stood up and sang him a birthday song.

The Arsenal club's camera crew at the entrance captured this heartwarming scene.

Su Hao, amidst the team's screams and surprise, blew out the candles in front of everyone.

Su Hao knew it was his birthday today, but he hadn't told anyone.

He was originally planning to buy himself a small cake after returning to his apartment, then post it on Weibo to stir up some trending topics on Weibo.

This time
Happy birthday, child!

After blowing out the cake, the professor walked over to Su Hao with a smile, gave him a hug, and said gently.

"Happy birthday, Su! A goal and two assists in your debut, I don't think there could be a better birthday present!"

After the professor hugged Su Hao, Captain Arteta also laughed and hugged Su Hao back.

"Su, are you free tonight? I think I need to throw you a birthday party!"

Altat only says "Happy Birthday" and such, but Walcott is different.

After Su Hao broke his five-game goal drought with a long pass that he loved to create space behind the defense, Walcott was even thinking about introducing Su Hao to his favorite pair of twin sisters that evening.

"Wow! Theo, what's gotten into you today? You're actually treating us?"

After Walcott made that remark, Arteta and the others started to jeer.

It's worth noting that Walcott is notoriously stingy at Arsenal.

After all, this was the first time he had been invited since joining the team, and Arsenal had just won a big victory.

Su Hao naturally couldn't refuse Walcott's invitation.

Moreover, after being egged on by Altat and the others, Walcott finally had no choice but to invite the entire team.

What was originally planned as a private party for Su Hao turned into a team-wide celebration.

With so many people, the gathering naturally became a signature Arsenal-style party.

Because Su Hao was only 17 years old, he didn't touch a single drink during the entire party, but the other group of people did.

In the second half, Wilshere and Sagna actually started chugging from bottles.

The others were all drunk and dazed.

Ok!

Seeing the so-called Premier League giants' players in such a sorry state after the match, Su Hao couldn't help but miss the days when he was with Guangzhou Evergrande.

At least on Evergrande's side, Zhang Linpeng and Liao Lisheng, like myself, strictly prohibit smoking and drinking.

However, Su Hao did not come away empty-handed.

Just like Szczesny!
Su Hao noticed that this guy didn't drink much during the entire drinking session.

And he always liked to sneak out, seemingly because he didn't like the smell of alcohol!

But
until
Then this guy suddenly sat down next to Su Hao, pulled out a thick cigar from his pocket, and...
"Hey Sue! Want one? Authentic Cuban!"

A resounding victory coupled with absolutely top-notch debut statistics.

Just as everyone expected.

The following day, newspapers throughout England reported on Su Hao's stunning debut.

The Times: A 16-year-old Chinese prodigy delivered the most spectacular debut performance in Premier League history, scoring one goal and providing two assists to help Arsenal defeat Manchester United. Wenger has once again acquired a top young talent since Fabregas!
The Guardian: Manchester United suffered an epic defeat, but a 16-year-old Chinese prodigy ignited Arsenal's attacking frenzy with a superb volley, creating three goals and becoming Arsenal's best new signing debut ever!

The Daily Telegraph: The 16-year-old Asian League Best Player made a stunning debut, scoring 1 goal and providing 2 assists to announce the coronation of the new king of the Emirates Stadium!
The Sun: A 16-year-old Asian star with striking good looks goes viral, and post-match statistics show that nearly 9% of Arsenal's female fans are willing to join the team.
Daily Mail:
Yes!

Every newspaper that focuses on football will definitely have Su Hao's name on its front page.

Of course, if Soho from England is already this popular, the situation is even more exaggerated in China.

It starts with the morning news on CTV1 at 7 a.m. the following day.

Any news outlet with even a modicum of influence would undoubtedly report on Su Hao's dazzling performance at the Emirates Stadium.

Even more outrageous, CTV5 rebroadcast Su Hao's Premier League debut from the previous night right after the sports news briefing ended at noon the next day.

The sports channel is rebroadcasting the game that took place in the early hours of the morning—this is a privilege that only the World Cup, which happens once every four years, receives!
Nowadays, because of Su Hao's appearance, the sports channel has even given him a special noon broadcast.

Of course, the sports channel's aggressive promotion of Su Hao wasn't without its own ulterior motives. After all, while the midday rebroadcast still garnered explosive viewership, their advertising revenue was also skyrocketing exponentially.

Su Hao was already dominating the internet with domestic reports alone, but what was even more outrageous was that around 4 p.m. that same day...

Arsenal's official website and Arsenal's official Chinese website simultaneously released a well-produced video titled "Happy Birthday, Sue!"

The video shows the entire process from Arsenal staff ordering a cake off the field to Wenger secretly pushing it into the Arsenal dressing room. At the end of the video, the entire Arsenal team recorded a sentence for each of them in broken, hastily learned Chinese – “Su Hao Sheng Ri Kuai Le”.

So thoughtful!
Arsenal's thoughtful gesture touched fans in China!

Moreover, shortly after the video was released, Arsenal's birthday greeting video was pinned to the top of DaDiBa, China's largest comprehensive forum.

then
Within just one hour, the pinned video post had over 200,000 replies.

The number of shares and likes is countless!
-
[Waaaaah, Arsenal went to such lengths! Look at the beginning of that video, the cake was prepared before the match. That means no matter how Su Hao performed, even if they lost the game, Arsenal still planned to celebrate his birthday!]
-
[Yeah, even though I've always been a Manchester United fan, to be honest, Arsenal really showed some humanity this time. And this seems to be the first time a Chinese player playing abroad has received this much attention!]
-
[Nonsense! Don't you think Su Hao is the same as the others? Before he joined Arsenal, all the big clubs were scrambling to sign him. With so many accolades, how could Arsenal not value Su Hao?]
-
[Seriously though, Su Hao's volley was absolutely amazing! I've watched it countless times, and it's still incredibly satisfying to see! Even De Gea was stunned by that shot!]
-
[Haha, yeah, I'm also reminiscing about Su Hao's goal. Guys, do you think Su Hao's goal could be in this week's Premier League top five goals?]
-
[Holy crap, what are you thinking? This week's Top 5 Goals? I wouldn't dare say it's for the Puskás Award or anything, but it's definitely in the top three for best goal of the Premier League this season!]

The nation went into a frenzy, reminiscing about Su Hao's stunning debut.

Meanwhile, in distant London, England.

Su Hao, who had planned to stay home and rest for a day, was unexpectedly woken up by Mendes.

Have no idea!

The competition is temporarily over, but he has been offered an endorsement deal.

Huawei!

Su Hao had originally planned to temporarily stop accepting endorsements and wait until he scored a few more goals to further enhance his influence in the Premier League.

But upon hearing about this brand, Su Hao naturally couldn't refuse.

It's not like Su Hao in his previous life was some kind of Huawei fanatic.

Rather, as someone who had been reborn and knew the entire process of Huawei's rise from zero to its current status under pressure from Europe and the United States, Su Hao truly could not choose to avoid the issue in 2014, Huawei's most crucial year.

"Su! Your performance yesterday was absolutely fantastic, you know? I don't even know how many times I jumped for you in the stands! Even Ronaldo's debut for Manchester United can't compare to yours!"

As soon as he entered, Mendes began to rave about Su Hao's performance in yesterday's match.

Ok!

If someone else had praised him like that, Su Hao would have had absolutely no reaction.

But this is Mendes, and he even compared himself to Ronaldo.

To be honest, after recalling Ronaldo's Manchester United debut, Su Hao really felt that his performance was indeed much better than Ronaldo's debut.

After chattering for a good ten minutes, Mendes finally turned the conversation to the main purpose of his visit that day.

"Huawei! You should know this Chinese telecommunications company, right? According to my investigation, they have been considering expanding into the European market since the second half of last year, and they seem to particularly like to rely on these top European clubs to pave the way for their market!"

"I heard before that they were even about to sign a contract with AC Milan, but for some reason, the contract didn't go through in the end!"

"And just a few days ago, Huawei contacted me. They wanted you to be the spokesperson for their upcoming new model, the MATE7! As for the endorsement fee, Su! They offered a figure we couldn't refuse!"

Mate 7?

Upon hearing this model, Su Hao suddenly remembered that Huawei's mobile phone business took off because of the Mate 7, which broke through the ceiling of the global high-end market by using technological premium.
I was already thinking that with his current image as the crown prince of Evergrande and the crown prince of the national team, pairing him with a Huawei phone would be the best choice. And now it's perfect!

The phone he wants to endorse is the Huawei MATE7, a groundbreaking super phone.

Su Hao naturally had no more questions to consider!

"Sure, Jorge, if you think the price is right!"

Su Hao made his stance clear, and Mendes showed Su Hao the preliminary contract drafted by Huawei.

3 years, 900 million euros!
What the hell!

Su Hao originally thought that, given his virtually nonexistent influence in Europe, Huawei would at most give him ten or twenty million RMB.

Unexpectedly, Huawei has spent a whopping 900 million euros.

That's a whopping 9 million RMB, which translates to 3 million RMB a year?

This endorsement fee is indeed something Mendes said he couldn't refuse!

Furthermore, Huawei included numerous incentive clauses in the contract, such as an additional one million euros for winning the Premier League Golden Boot and six hundred thousand euros for winning the assist title.
Even making it into the top 30 for the Golden Globe can earn you hundreds of thousands.

Anyway!

There was really nothing in this contract that Su Hao could refuse.

"Su, it's not just about having you personally endorse their phones; Huawei has also approached Arsenal's top management, wanting to sponsor Arsenal!"

"The club needs sponsorship too?"

"Yes!"

Upon hearing that the club had also benefited from it, Su Hao was overjoyed.
"Jorge, you said that since our domestic companies are sponsoring Arsenal, can we get a referral fee or something?"

"Ahem! Su, what are you thinking? This... how is this possible!"

Mendes was calculating how to negotiate with Huawei to further optimize the contract when his boss, Su Hao, asked him a question that even he, as a capitalist, would be embarrassed to ask!
Su Hao and Mendes discussed possible ways to optimize the contract at home.

At the same time, in the top CEO's office of Arsenal Football Club.

Arsenal's current CEO, Ivan Gazidis, is happily instructing his secretary to brew his prized premium coffee for two Chinese businessmen who have just entered his office!
Yes!

Ivan Gazidis is very happy today, even very excited.

It's not because Arsenal beat Manchester United yesterday.

Instead, ever since Su Hao joined Arsenal, Huawei, a Chinese and even global telecommunications giant, has been interested in sponsoring him and has actually come to discuss sponsorship matters with him.

As a global giant, Huawei's spending is so extravagant that even Ivan Gazidis wanted to slap himself.

£2100 million over 3 years!
tsk tsk.
This number!
For a sponsoring company that only needs to use the Arsenal team crest and player images, and at most print the logo on the home stadium's rolling advertising boards for promotion, this amount is absolutely irresistible.

It was this number that made Ivan Gazidis even think that he would do everything he could, even if it meant sacrificing his beloved secretary, to serve the two wealthy men opposite him well!
that's it!
After bowing and scraping and smiling obsequiously for over an hour, Ivan Gazidis finally reached a preliminary agreement with the people sent by Huawei.

Next, the legal and public relations departments of both parties will coordinate, and then they can get 30% of the £2100 million!
Ivan Gazidis is very happy!
However, what made Ivan Gazidis even happier was yet to come.

Because just one hour later.

A company from China called him!

And this company is one that Ivan Gazidis doesn't know about.

Yes!

Evergrande Group!

The company behind the former team, Su Hao, has also officially started discussing sponsorship matters with Arsenal.

Moreover, compared to Huawei's ordinary sponsorship, Evergrande went even further, boldly stating that they would buy all the advertising spaces available to Arsenal.

What about naming rights for jerseys, naming rights for the logos on the stands and seats, and even...
Evergrande even said they were thinking of buying the naming rights for the Emirates Stadium.

Upon hearing this, Ivan Gazidis was so excited that he almost wanted to kneel down before the senior executives of Evergrande on the other end of the phone.

There's nothing I can do, luck just came too suddenly.

If it were last year, and someone had suggested buying Arsenal's naming rights, Ivan Gazidis could only regretfully apologize, since their contract with Emirates Airlines hadn't expired yet.

But it’s different now!

In February 2004, Arsenal signed a blockbuster £100 million contract with Emirates Airlines for the construction of the new Emirates Stadium.

15年（2006–2021）的球场冠名权外加8年(2006–2014)的球衣广告冠名权。

According to the timeline, there is less than a month left before the contract with Emirates expires, and they are currently negotiating a renewal with Emirates.

However, due to dismal results and a lack of championships for many years!

Emirates Airlines not only didn't plan to raise prices, but they even negotiated a lower price with Arsenal.

it's good now!

With Evergrande, a wealthy Chinese company, joining the fray, isn't this like a godsend?

Ever since!
Driven by that damned money, Ivan Gazidis spoke on the phone in such a gentle tone, as if he were calling his own father, begging Evergrande to send someone over for a face-to-face meeting. He even flattered Evergrande by saying that if possible, he could fly to China at any time and in the fastest possible speed!
Mendes' efficiency is astounding.

It took less than three days from when I started talking to Su Hao about the Huawei endorsement.

That is, January 15, 2014.

Mendes then finalized all the contract details with Huawei.

And at four o'clock that afternoon!

Su Hao and Mendes then traveled in a car sent by Huawei to a conference hall in a high-end hotel in London to officially sign an endorsement contract with Huawei.

Huawei's requirements are very simple!
After signing the contract, Su Hao only needed to continue using their Mate series phones.

Moreover, a maximum of two new product advertisements can be filmed each year.

Of course, if Su Hao gets some exposure for the Mate phone in some formal, high-profile occasions, Huawei will pay extra fees based on the level of exposure.

In short!
For Su Hao, the 9 million over the past three years was as if he had received it for free.

Su Hao was very satisfied, and Huawei was equally satisfied.

After all, putting aside the overseas market, just considering Su Hao's popularity in China, recouping the nine million euros would be a piece of cake.

Moreover, given Su Hao's current growth rate, it's possible that in less than three years, Su Hao's reputation in Europe will reach the top tier.

By then, it will be absolutely impossible to sign Su Hao for three years for a few million!
Late at night on January 15th!
Arsenal and Suarez both happily received a lovely sum of money.
But Wenger continued his monotonous daily overtime work routine.

After defeating Manchester United, Arsenal remain at the top of the Premier League table. But Manchester City didn't lose either!

In the standings, Manchester City are still clinging to the lead by a mere two points.

It was this pressure that kept Wenger from relaxing for even a day.

Furthermore, in the upcoming 23rd round of the league, Arsenal's opponent is Southampton, who are widely regarded as the dark horse of this season by all the media.

Putting everything else aside, just looking at Southampton's current Premier League ranking under the leadership of Argentine manager Mauricio Pochettino shows how tough Southampton is to beat.

6th in the league!

Yes!

The previously unknown Southampton team has surprisingly reached sixth place in the league this season.

This ranking is even two places higher than the defending champions Manchester United. Well, it should be third now!

"Boss! It's almost 12 o'clock, how about..." Steve Bold, as usual, brought his professor a cup of unsweetened strong coffee before leaving get off work.

"Okay! You go back first, Steve!"

Without looking up, the professor continued his work with a furrowed brow.

There's nothing Wenger can do. Even after working overtime until now, he still hasn't found a way to contain Southampton's super striker Pellè, who is 1.94 meters tall!
Graziano Pellè (yes, you read that right, the Shandong Luneng legend) has scored a total of 11 headers in all competitions this season, averaging 6.8 aerial duels won per game.

With his formidable physique and top-notch heading ability, having such a top-class target man, Wenger is honestly quite worried about whether his two players will perform well at Southampton's home ground.
that's it!
Wenger finally dragged his exhausted body home after 2 a.m.

only.
Perhaps the professor was born to suffer.

He was clearly giving it his all.

But
the next day!
He still saw what he had been most afraid of since Christmas.

"what!!!"

It was just a practice match!

Wilshire, whom he loved most, suddenly clutched his right knee and fell onto the grass during a relatively mild confrontation with Flamini.

The heart-wrenching screams made Wenger's heart leap into his throat.

Flamini was so frightened that he covered his head, and the entire Arsenal team rushed to Wilshere's side.

"what!!!"

However, even after such a long time, Wilshire's screams had not stopped.

It wasn't until the team doctor arrived and gave them a brief examination that the situation improved.

A piece of devastating news completely chilled Wenger's heart.

"It looks like a torn cruciate ligament!"

A ligament was torn?

And it's the cruciate ligament?
It's not just Wenger.

Standing behind the others, Su Hao was also startled by the team doctor's pronouncement.

Injuries to this area are arguably the most feared injuries for football players, no, for all athletes.

A tear can keep someone on hiatus for six months, so a break would take at least a year!

Moreover, even after surgery, this area will remain like a time bomb, potentially breaking apart again at any time.

Just like Ronaldo, the alien who is hailed by everyone as the greatest striker in football history without equal!

Before his first cruciate ligament rupture during his time with Inter Milan in 2000, the "Alien" was a terrifying player who scored over 60 goals a year. However, after returning from injury a year later, his ability was reduced by half!
All those long-range shots and free kicks from heavy artillery have disappeared!

"God! We need to get to the hospital right away!"

"Damn it! Damn it!"

"I hope Wilshire will be able to come back!"

"."

All the team members prayed for Wilshere in terror.

Flamini, who had just faced Wilshere, squatted down on the grass and started crying.

"I didn't mean to, I... I didn't even use any force... Waaah!"

Clearly, Flamini was also frightened by Wilshere's serious injury, which could almost end his entire career.

Everyone knows that Wilshere's injury has nothing to do with him.
"It's alright! He'll be fine, Mathieu, don't worry! Don't worry!"

Seeing Flamini's somewhat helpless appearance, Su Hao naturally rushed over to Flamini to comfort his new partner, who might have to work with him from now on.

"Su! Believe me, I really didn't mean it!"

“I know! Mathieu, you did nothing wrong!”

The training session came to an abrupt end.

Wenger was in a hurry and got into the car to go to the hospital with the team doctor.

The other Arsenal players were all dressed and followed Wenger in their cars.

11 o'clock in the morning.

After waiting in the hospital lounge for half an hour.

Wenger and the others still heard the verdict they least wanted to hear!

"He has a torn cruciate ligament and needs to have surgery in the US as soon as possible. Even in the most optimistic scenario, Wilshere will need at least eight months to start acclimatization training and nine months to start ball training!"

As soon as the doctor finished speaking, many of the Arsenal players present covered their heads.

As for Wenger, who cares most about Wilshere.
The professor silently walked out of the room alone.

Moreover, outside the room, Wenger, unusually, disregarded the players present and pulled a cigarette from the lining of his clothes!

perhaps
At this moment!

Only the pungent smell of tobacco could drive away Wenger's near-plummeting despair!

Noon that day!
The Times then broke the news on its official website that Wilshere had suffered a season-ending ACL injury.

Other newspapers followed suit and began reporting on the story.

With Wilshere sidelined for the rest of the season, Arsenal, currently at the top of the table, is once again being criticized by everyone.

There's no other way, Ramsey plus Wilshere!
Arsenal's two biggest midfielders, who have been instrumental in keeping them at the top of the table this season, are both injured. With only three players left in midfield, Wenger has truly run out of options!

In this situation, the media outlets that didn't particularly like Wenger and Arsenal naturally went into a frenzy once again.

Reports such as Arsenal being overtaken by Manchester City and Wenger going trophyless again this season have sprung up like mushrooms after rain.

"Wow! How could it be such a coincidence?"

Because the team disbanded early, Su Hao could only return to his apartment and play Warcraft.

Upon logging in, Su Hao was surprised to find that Feng Xiaoting was queuing for random dungeons with Liao Lisheng.

Without hesitation, Su Hao, who hadn't chatted with those guys from Evergrande for several days, immediately sent a team invitation and opened a voice group chat.

then
Feng Xiaoting, who had also seen news of Wilshere's season-ending injury in China, directly asked Su Hao, the person involved who was present at the scene, about it.

"Hehe! It's his fault for not passing you the ball. In the last game, I watched with Zhi-ge, Zhang Linpeng and the others. After seeing that number 10 ignore you several times, Zhi-ge was even thinking of bringing us to London as a group to take down that kid!"

"Hey! Brother Ting, don't say that! Even though we haven't known each other for long, you're still my teammate!"

"Tch! Only you would consider someone a teammate. That bastard was obviously afraid you'd steal his position. Now look what happened, we don't even need to deal with him, he just GG himself. Hey! Holy crap, Lisheng, how did you manage to pull the mobs like that? I got killed!"

"Sorry, Brother Ting! I got so excited listening to your chatter about Wilshire that I didn't notice the monster I missed!"

"Forget it, I'll just run back to my corpse! Oh, by the way, Xiao Hao, Wilshere's injured, so you'll have to play attacking midfielder right away, ignoring all the defensive hassles. I think you could be a contender for the team's top scorer?"

Got it!
In the end, this is what Feng Xiaoting is actually concerned about.

"What's the point of being the team's top scorer? The Champions League is less than a month away, and we don't even have anyone available for the league, so there's even less hope for the Champions League!"

"Hey! It's not your problem to worry about not having anyone available. You can't just conjure up a midfielder, can you? If you can, then conjure a defensive midfielder, and then you can play attacking midfielder. I still want to see you score goals!"

"Haha! Brother Ting, are you kidding me? Do you think this is a random dungeon where you can just use a group finder to summon a DPS if you're missing one?"

A summoning stone?
How did they manage to create a defensive midfielder?
hiss!
Although Feng Xiaoting and Liao Lisheng were joking, a thought suddenly flashed through Su Hao's mind when he heard this.

Yes, although there's no summoning stone in reality, doesn't he already have a list of players who will eventually make it in his head?

Midfield!!!

2014.
They hadn't even made it big yet, so it was something Arsenal, with their pathetic financial resources, could only snatch before the winter transfer window closed.
It seems there really is one?
As I recall, that guy was still in Ligue 2 at that time?

If they really do buy that guy, then Arsenal's midfield setup will be...
"Hey! Xiao Hao, can you stop slacking off? Look at your DPS, it's so low, you'll get reported and kicked!"

"Oh my god! Damn it, behold my judgment, and another holy storm!"

Ramsey is injured, and Wilshere is out for the season.

Arsenal have officially entered their most familiar period of injury collapse in the second half of the season.

This seemingly hopeless news for Arsenal, however, excited Mauricio Pochettino, the manager of Southampton, who was more than 100 kilometers away.

Unfortunately, Pochettino's original plan was to force a draw against Arsenal to secure a point and maintain their current sixth-place position in the league.

but now?

With two key midfielders missing, Pochettino was naturally thinking about whether he could change his plan from 1 point to 3 points.

Yes!
There have been rumors throughout England lately about the incredible talent of the young Chinese player that Wenger signed in the winter transfer window.

But you have to understand that football isn't a one-man sport!

Furthermore, no matter how strong a newcomer is, it's impossible for him to become completely familiar with an entire team in just over ten days!

Of course, the most important thing is that Pochettino has complete confidence in his Southampton youth team.

In attack, he has Lallana (the future Liverpool), Mane (no explanation needed), and Pellè (a Shandong Luneng legend). He has both speed and impact.

In midfield, the combination of Schneiderlin (future Manchester United) and Wanyama (future Manchester City) is also capable of competing with top clubs.

As for the defense!
Nathaniel Clyne (future Liverpool player), Fonte (Southampton legend and captain), Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham star player), Luke Shaw (future Manchester United player)
This super youth team, with an average age of only 23, has made Southampton the biggest dark horse of the season, climbing to sixth place in the league.

"Boss! We're not going to play 4-5-1 anymore?"

That is, the afternoon of the same day Wilshere announced that he would miss the rest of the season.

Pochettino decisively changed his pre-prepared formation and setup.

"Yes! Play 4-3-3! Go attacking against Arsenal!"

Pochettino is a decisive and efficient person.

After giving orders to his assistant coach, Pochettino assembled his youth team that afternoon.

Moreover, Pochettino, without any hesitation, announced his attacking plan directly to these young men, who were eager to show themselves in matches against top clubs, on the training ground.

A group of young people in their early twenties were shocked to hear that their boss was going to put them on home soil to play a high-scoring game against Arsenal, the team that is best at attacking in the world.

Naturally, they became excited immediately.

Yes!

Play an attacking game against Arsenal.

Regardless of the outcome, this match will definitely be the most exciting super battle of the next round of the Premier League.

For these young people, what could be more exciting than having the attention of the world's top clubs?

that's it!
These future star players of top clubs seemed to see their own future of instant fame in the future, and without any complaints, they immediately started an extra training session!

The three days passed quickly.

January 18, 2014, 3:00 PM local time.

The red bus carrying all the Arsenal players finally slowly drove into the tunnel inside Southampton St. Mary's Stadium, which can hold more than 30,000 fans.

As soon as the car stopped, the professor frowned and walked towards the pre-match press conference.

Perhaps Pochettino also felt sorry for Wenger's situation.

Therefore, Pochettino can be said to have adopted the lowest possible stance at this press conference.

Throughout the press conference, Pochettino repeatedly emphasized that Arsenal is at the top of the Premier League, with a glorious history and an unbeaten season that no one will be able to break in the future.

It was this extremely friendly flattery that led Wenger, who had originally intended to engage in a war of words with Pochettino, to ultimately take the initiative to shake hands with Pochettino in a friendly manner.

However, what Wenger didn't expect was that Pochettino, who was so gentle and refined at the press conference, would undergo a complete 180-degree transformation after returning to his dressing room!

He transformed from a humble gentleman into a master of manipulation, wielding two large bowls of super-strong stimulants.

"Do you know what? All the eyes in England are on this place today!"

"They may not be here to see how good you are; they're here to see how Arsenal falls from grace!"

"But! You must remember this!"

"Every move you make, every dribble, even every pass and every goal you score, could very well appear in every English newspaper tomorrow!"

"Defeat them!"

"Defeat them with their best counter-attack!"

"Then I can say with certainty that the names appearing in tomorrow's newspapers will not be Giroud, Podolski, or Walcott!"

"Mane, Lallana, Pellè, Schneiderlin, Wanyama"

"These names will overshadow those so-called elite football stars!"

"."

In the home team's locker room, Pochettino made his players, who were already confused, scream in bewilderment.

On the other hand, look at the away team's locker room.

The shadow of their teammate's serious injury seems to have not yet dissipated over these Arsenal players.

Even Wenger's tactical explanations lacked their original passion.

that's it!
With two extreme mindsets at play, the 22nd round of the Premier League has officially begun!

Southampton
Goalkeeper: Fraser Foster!
Defenders: Luke Shaw, Dejan Lovren, Jose Fonte, Nathaniel Klein!

Midfielders: Morgan Schneiderlin, Adam Lallana, Victor Wanyama

Three forwards: Mane, Lazio Pellè, Steven Davies!
4-3-3!

Pochettino truly unleashed a wild 4-3-3 formation against Wenger!

As for Arsenal, after Wilshere's injury, they could only hastily put Rosicky, who had been out of action for a long time, to the rescue.

In Wenger's view, the new combination of Rosicky, Suho, and Arteta should be able to somewhat restrain the current young team.

only!
When the referee blew his whistle, a youthful storm called Southampton swept through St. Mary's Stadium.

Pochettino abandoned the idea of ​​penetrating through the middle and engaging in skirmishes.

He simplified his tactics to their most basic form: having Mane and Steven Davies, two fast horses, relentlessly attack Arsenal's old and weak wing defense.

Meanwhile, the 1.94-meter-tall Laziano Pellè in the middle is responsible for winning headers, while Adam Lallana is responsible for organizing long-range shots from the middle!

It was this relentless, all-out sprint that left both Sania and Gibbs breathless and exhausted in just over twenty minutes.

29th minute of the match!

Southampton's first goal has been scored.

Mane made a rapid breakthrough on the right wing, and after getting past Gibbs, who was already struggling to keep up with Mane's speed, he passed the ball back!
The ball passed past its own center forward, Pellè, and also past Su Hao, who had been helping Koscielny out of trouble during this period.

Lallana followed up with a shot, and the ball nestled into the bottom right corner of Arsenal's net.

0: 1!

Arsenal are behind.

After scoring this goal, the already incredibly excited youth team reached their peak morale.

After repeated attacks, Arsenal suffered another heavy blow in the 42nd minute of the match.

Pelle!

This 1.94-meter tall target man finally showcased his unparalleled heading power in front of the home fans.

Despite outmaneuvering Mertesacker, Pellè delivered a powerful header that sent the ball into Szczesny's goal for the second time.

0: 2!

At halftime, Arsenal were down by two goals.

During halftime, Wenger played two cards in a row, replacing Rosicky, who hadn't made any contributions in the first half, and putting Su Hao in the attacking midfield position.

But
This young team's attack was completely insane, and their defense in the middle and backfield was riddled with holes.

Even though Su Hao used his playmaking skills to help Giroud and Podolski score a goal each in the 67th and 84th minutes of the match, respectively, Su Hao still managed to score.

Arsenal were still unable to reverse the defeat.

2: 3!

Arsenal lost to the young Southampton in the most crucial match for points.

Meanwhile, Manchester City, far away in Manchester, easily defeated Sunderland 5-1.

It was this defeat that made Manchester City excited and allowed them to climb to the top of the league table for the first time in a season.

Losing the top spot!

In an era when all of England is mocking Arsenal for their lack of a title.

Arsenal naturally became the target of criticism once again!

Wenger has been ridiculed by numerous media outlets, who predict that this season will be like the past few years, with no goals scored!
However.
What no one knew was that the day after the defeat in this match, Su Hao, like a little butterfly, finally managed to dial the professor's number.

PS: Here's 12,000 words for today. It's during the work week, and I really tried my best to write this. I'm begging for your monthly votes!

(End of this chapter)