The path to becoming a football legend began with being ousted from Carrington by Manchester United.

Manchester City stumbled their way out of the group stage and into the Champions League knockout rounds. Apart from the Italian media being very unhappy and making sarcastic remarks, other media, especially the British media, didn't say much.

Because the local media's attention was drawn to their city rivals, Manchester United.

Manchester United, as a seeded team in the Champions League this season, were placed in Group C, with their opponents Benfica of Portugal, Basel of Switzerland, and Galati Steel of Romania.

This draw was a thousand times better than Manchester City's. However, to everyone's surprise, apart from taking all 6 points from the weak Galati Steels, Manchester United drew with Benfica both home and away, and failed to beat Basel at Old Trafford, losing 1 point to them.

In the most crucial do-or-die match for qualification, Manchester United lost 1-2 away to Basel, and were eliminated by their opponents.

In the eyes of the proud British, the Champions League semi-finals should be dominated by Premier League teams every year. Now that Manchester United has failed in the group stage, it has provided the media with fodder for criticism.

In comparison, Manchester City at least advanced, and this is only their second time participating in the Champions League. This season has been turbulent with a change of manager and injuries to key players, so advancing to the round of 16 is already enough to satisfy the media and fans.

Sir Alex Ferguson's team has been heavily criticized lately, and the dark clouds hanging over the Carrington training ground have even drifted over to Manchester City.

Perhaps influenced by this, Manchester City quickly reciprocated by drawing attention away from Manchester United once again.

踢完欧冠小组赛回到联赛里，曼城在第17轮比赛中2:0轻取斯托克城，大卫·比利亚和阿奎罗分别在比赛进行到77分钟和81分钟时替补登场。

With a home win of 3 points, two injured players returning to the team, and Lin Yi set to return from suspension in the next round, everything seemed perfect. Manchester City fans thought they could have a wonderful Christmas.

The following day, in the 18th round of the league, a fully fit Manchester City team was held to a 0-0 draw away to West Bromwich Albion, a mid-to-lower table team.

Despite a combined performance from Lin Yi, Aguero, and Silva, they failed to score, allowing Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, who both won, to extend their lead to 3 points.

Some media outlets have started targeting Manchester City, which has relieved the pressure on Manchester United.

On the last day of 2011, the 19th round of the Premier League kicked off. The two Manchester clubs seemed to be worried about being overly criticized by the media, and their performances were worse than the other.

In the first match, Manchester United lost at home after taking an early lead, suffering a defeat against Blackburn Rovers, who were second to last in the table.

Manchester City were not to be outdone. On New Year's Day 2012, they lost 0-1 to Sunderland away from home, joining Manchester United in sending warmth to the relegation-threatened teams.

Manchester City have been shut out for two consecutive matches, and the return of three key players has not been as effective as the firepower of the rotated squad.

This finally pushed the media and fans to their limits, and they began to launch a fierce attack on Manchester City players and their manager, Pellegrini.

Mainstream media outlets such as Sky Sports, ESPN, and the BBC have each invited numerous professionals to analyze Manchester City's match footage frame by frame, attempting to find the reason why their once-dominant attacking prowess suddenly went cold.

Most industry insiders pointed out that Manchester City's attacking organization in the last two games was chaotic, with frequent positional interchanges between the forwards, but no sense of teamwork was visible.

Often, Manchester City doesn't need the opponent to do anything; they just make mistakes as the game progresses, either passing the ball to the opponent or getting caught in an offside trap.

No one understands what Pellegrini is trying to do, not even the Manchester City players themselves.

"Lin may have tasted success in the Champions League and always tries to drop back to midfield to receive the ball and go on a solo run. Little does he know that he is Manchester City's only striker. He doesn't stay in his position and runs around everywhere, disrupting Manchester City's entire attacking system," commented Sky Sports guest Alan Smith.

In Manchester City's dressing room, there was no New Year's celebration, only endless silence.

Even after being held to a draw by West Bromwich Albion away from home, Lin Yi and Aguero were still attacking each other, blaming the other for failing to win.

After losing to Sunderland away from home, even the two clowns fell silent, and everyone was plunged into deep self-doubt.

No one doubted Pellegrini's tactics, given the successes of Roma and the Spanish national team. The players were more concerned with their own performance, but no one knew where they had gone wrong.

"Oh, you're all here, that's perfect, I have something to announce." Head coach Pellegrini pushed open the locker room door, breaking the previous tranquility.

"They're probably here to tell you your vacation is canceled, you believe it?" Milner and Joe Hart whispered to each other.

Joe Hart nodded in agreement: "We definitely need to do more practice so everyone can get used to the new tactics."

"From today onwards, no one may accept any interview with any media in any form without my permission. Do you understand? I said any!" Pellegrini abandoned his usual refined and amiable image and solemnly ignited the second major action since taking office.

Pellegrini's request was somewhat unexpected, and the Manchester City players looked at each other, seemingly trying to glean some clues from each other's faces.

Gradually, everyone's attention turned to Lin Yi.

"What the hell do you mean?" Lin Yi felt she was losing face and shouted angrily, "Do you think I'm some kind of gossipy woman who likes to argue with reporters?"

Aguero, Milner, and the others instinctively wanted to nod, but after glancing at Lin Yi's clenched fist, they stopped themselves from doing something reckless.

Pellegrini then set the tone: "Yes! I'm mainly talking about you, Lin!"

Lin Yi shouted, "I'm innocent!"

The crowd whispered among themselves.

"The coach has a really good eye for talent."

"Remember when we first arrived? He got into a fight with the media at the new player introduction event!"

"Is the coach afraid he'll say the wrong thing? No wonder he's a Chilean engineer; he found the crux of the problem right away."

Lin Yi slowly scanned the room. The jumbled noises from before disappeared, and the changing room fell silent once more.

"That's it!" Pellegrini said no more and announced the disbandment.

On the way out of Carrington base, Lin Yi did indeed become the target of media pursuit. Various microphones and recorders were brought out, along with the constant clicking of camera shutters, which gave Lin Yi a headache.

"Lin, let's talk about your recent poor performance?"

"Many people believe you disrupted Manchester City's original balance. What's your response to that?"

"Having only managed one point in two consecutive matches against mid-to-lower table teams, does Manchester City still have a chance to win the title this season? Lin, say something!"

With the help of the team's security personnel, Lin Yi managed to escape the reporters' encirclement, though he had a lot to say.

Feeling down, Lin Yi returned to his apartment and cuddled with Emma while watching TV. Just as he was irritably flipping through channels, he suddenly saw his head coach, Pellegrini, appear on the screen.

This was a news program broadcast live across the UK. Lin Yi didn't hear what questions the interviewer had asked earlier; he only saw the Chilean coach speaking to the camera with a serious expression.

"The team's recent poor performance is entirely my responsibility; it has nothing to do with my players!"

"It's my fault for not being able to unite this highly competitive team. It's entirely my problem and has nothing to do with any of the players. Everyone was playing strictly according to my instructions."

"Our goal for this season will never change: the league title!"

"The Blue Moon Legion has waited for 44 years, and no one wants to wait any longer."

"If I fail to lead the team to the title by the end of the season, I will resign as Manchester City manager!"