Football: Starting with the Crescent Moon Slash

Chapter 117 The opponent is his former employer?

Inside the locker room, the Liverpool first-team players had already gathered together.

Liverpool's players surrounded new signing Sadio Mane, chatting about this and that, which made the introverted Mane feel a little uncomfortable at first.

Upon seeing Klopp and Jiang Yan, he seemed to see a savior and was the first to shout, "Jiang! You've come!"

Upon hearing Mane's words, everyone greeted Jiang Yan.

Jiang Yan and Mane have a fairly good relationship. They are both new players who were transferred in the summer transfer window, and they are both passionate about charity work.

However, every time Mane said "thank you" to Jiang Yan, Jiang Yan always heard it as a word starting with "F". Apart from that, Mane has almost no flaws.

Besides Mane, another person who impressed him was Liverpool's number 66, Trent Alexander-Arnold.

He was deeply impressed by this person for two reasons: firstly, because of his frequent posts in the group chat, and secondly, because he secretly told Jiang Yan a lot about Liverpool players while chatting with him.

For example, Henderson drinks three cups of English morning tea every day, Firmino always loves to practice his celebration moves in front of the mirror, and Coutinho's shin guards are decorated with simple drawings of his daughter.

Through these bits of gossip, Jiang Yan gradually began to understand the team.

Jiang Yan was also well aware that these polite greetings and warm words were merely superficial friendliness.

To truly establish oneself on this team, one needs not small talk, but performance on the field.

Just then, Klopp clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention: "Alright, lads, the International Champions Cup is about to start, and then there's the new Premier League season right behind. Nobody can afford to mess up!"

"yes!"

Everyone said in unison.

The International Champions Cup is just around the corner, and everyone's first task is to go for a weigh-in!

A qualified football player has very strict requirements regarding body fat percentage.

According to statistics, the average body fat percentage of Premier League players is between 8% and 12%.

Cristiano Ronaldo, on the other hand, has maintained a body fat percentage of 7% for many years.

Inside the weigh-in room, the blue light of the electronic scales glowed softly as the players lined up one by one to come forward. The atmosphere was even more tense than during a formal match!

-

Milner was the first to step up, and the coaching staff read out the numbers on the screen: "10.2% body fat, not bad, well maintained." The team's vice-captain breathed a sigh of relief, patted his stomach, and it seemed that he really didn't dare to eat too much fish and chips during the offseason.

Next up was captain Henderson, whose 9.8% body fat percentage earned Klopp's approval; his daily three cups of morning tea hadn't hindered his self-discipline.

Firmino and Coutinho's statistics were also within the standard range, at 10.5% and 9.7% respectively, indicating that neither of them indulged themselves during the holiday.

When it was Mane's turn, he scratched his head and stood up, and the screen showed 8.9%!

He is even better than many veteran players.

Klopp chuckled and patted him on the shoulder: "Very good, Sadio, keep it up!"

Jiang Yan was the last one to speak.

All eyes were on him.

After all, he came to Liverpool as the most expensive signing in the summer transfer window, and he was the highest-paid player in the team right from the start!

Everyone was also curious about the physical attributes of this midfielder who created a miracle in the Champions League.

Jiang Yan calmly stepped onto the scale. After the blue light flashed for a few seconds, the numbers stopped:

7.8% body fat

The weighing room fell silent for a moment.

His body fat percentage was even slightly lower than the Premier League average. Keep in mind that the holiday had just ended, and many players' body fat percentages tend to spike during the break. Players as disciplined as Jiang Yan are extremely rare, if not exceptional.

Even Jiang Yan himself was somewhat surprised.

My body fat percentage is so low!

I thought back to how I used to eat and drink excessively in China.

It seems that all of this is thanks to the system.

"Thank you, great system!!"

Jiang Yan thought to himself.

Back to the residence.

Jiang Yan turned on the computer and plugged in the USB drive.

Open the contents of the USB drive.

The USB drive contains match videos of all Liverpool's first-team players.

With the match day drawing closer, this was the only way Jiang Yan could learn about his teammates' playing habits.

"Personality doesn't matter, as long as you can understand their playing style and how they like to play, that's fine."

Henderson is active, covers a large area, plays a calm and pragmatic style, and rarely makes risky passes.

Coutinho is known for cutting inside from the left side of the penalty area, and his ability to change pace is a strength. He also likes to curl a shot in front of the goal.

Firmino's positioning is unpredictable; he often drops back to midfield to receive the ball, and then suddenly makes a run behind the defense.

Mane has incredible explosiveness; once he starts moving, almost no one can stop him. He excels at driving on the outside and overtaking aggressively.

Arnold's crosses are pinpointed, especially favoring teammates making runs into the box at the far post.

As Jiang Yan watched, he silently marked the characteristics of each person in his mind.

As the midfield maestro, only by understanding your teammates better than anyone else can you deliver the most perfect passes.

He pieced together the details of each person in his mind, gradually outlining the attacking profile of the entire Liverpool team.

As night deepened outside the window, a cool breeze from Liverpool blew into the room.

Jiang Yan took the opportunity to get up and move around while closing the window.

Just then.

Buzz—Buzz—

The phone rang.

It was a group message from Klopp.

"The opponents for the International Champions Cup have been determined: Chelsea, AC Milan—and Real Madrid!"

Jiang Yan was stunned when he saw the words "Real Madrid".

I just left the Bernabéu, and I never expected that less than a month later I would run into my old club again!

"This plot is so melodramatic."

He read the message twice, and the complex emotions in his heart were quickly replaced by fighting spirit.

Yeah.

Reuniting with his former master gave him a chance to prove himself.

Now, he's going to show Real Madrid's management who their true core player is!

For their first stop in the International Champions Cup, the entire Liverpool team traveled to the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California, USA.

The first match is against Chelsea.

The sun in Pasadena was scorching and blinding. A large number of fans had already poured into the stands of the Rose Bowl Stadium early on. The red and white jerseys and the blue and black jerseys were intertwined, and the noise could be clearly heard even through the players' tunnel.

Many fans in the stands were wearing Jiang Yan's number 18 jersey. It seems that many fans bought tickets specifically to see Jiang Yan because of his transfer.

To Jiang Yan's greatest surprise, Milner actually handed over the captain's armband to him!

In this match, neither captain Henderson nor vice-captain Milner was included in the squad. Apart from Jiang Yan, Mane and Arnold, the rest of the squad consisted mainly of youth academy players or players who rarely get playing time.

At first, Jiang Yan was a little confused as to why he was chosen as the captain's armband.

But considering the King of Football skill [Emperor's Might] that I acquired some time ago, everything makes sense.

It's probably because of the skill that influenced the players around him.

Klopp also expressed his support for Milner's decision.

He had always considered Jiang Yan to be Liverpool's future captain.

It's good to let him experience what it's like to be a team leader sooner rather than later.

When the fans saw Jiang Yan step onto the field wearing the captain's armband, they instantly erupted in cheers, all pulling out their phones to record the moment.

Jiang Yan was able to wear the captain's armband in his first appearance for Liverpool!

Although it wasn't an official Premier League match, it shows how much Liverpool values ​​Jiang Yan!

Meanwhile, in the distant land of China.

Traditionally, Chinese television stations would not broadcast such unimportant matches live.

But if Jiang Yan participates, the situation will be very different.

Chinese television stations spent a large sum of money to buy the broadcasting rights for the match!

Even He Wei and Zhan Jun, who were still on vacation, were forcibly dragged back to commentate on the game.

In the studio, the commentators were already in place. The camera panned across the screen, and the words "International Champions Cup, Jiang Yan's Liverpool debut, Liverpool vs. Chelsea" were prominently displayed on the backdrop.

Domestic night owls, students, and office workers were already glued to their screens, and related trending topics shot up to the top of the list at an alarming speed.

Is Jiang Yan wearing the captain's armband now?

[Wow, this is clearly making Jiang Yan the core member!]

[Hey upstairs, don't be so quick to judge. Look at Liverpool's lineup! A bunch of players I've never heard of.]

[Don't even mention Liverpool, Chelsea is almost the same, just fielding players whose names I've never heard of!]

[This is the only kind of competition where I can be captain. Once I get to the Premier League, I'll still have to be a subordinate.]

"Zhuangdianer Station! Zhuangdianer Station! We are now broadcasting live the 2016 International Champions Cup! Liverpool vs. Chelsea, which is also Jiang Yan's Liverpool debut!"

Let me briefly introduce Liverpool's lineup.

Goalkeeper: Karius.

Right-back: Trent Alexander-Arnold —

Midfielder: Jiang Yan —

Forward: Mane —

"As for Chelsea, they sent out—"

As Zhan Jun finished announcing the names of the dishes, the referee blew his whistle.

"The competition has officially begun!"

Chelsea's players are not familiar with Jiang Yan. Although they have watched countless videos of him, the pressure they would face playing against him would be immense, especially since Jiang Yan now possesses the "Imperial Majesty."

This is a nightmare for some inexperienced players!

Just one minute into the competition, Jiang Yan made it clear to everyone with his actions that he was there to win the championship.

Chelsea's young midfielder had just received the pass back and hadn't even had time to adjust when a red figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

Jiang Yan anticipated all his movements, his footwork precise and fierce, accompanied by an invisible sense of oppression.

The combined effects of [Emperor's Might] and [Interception] allowed them to easily steal the ball.

After intercepting the ball, Jiang Yan did not hesitate at all and passed the ball directly to Mane on the right wing.

Mane saw the ball's trajectory and suddenly started his run, speeding down the right flank.

He had heard about Jiang Yan's no-look passing technique, so he had to stay alert at all times.

-

Mane dribbled into the penalty area, cut inside, and curled a shot into the net.

1-0!!!

"1-0!! Liverpool get off to a dream start! That £1.1 million was totally worth it!!!!"