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

As it turns out, a tough guy can often be equated with a rough guy, and Dunn didn't mind Lin Yi's jersey being soaked with sweat at all.

After finding a marker and having Lin Yi sign his name, Deng En happily put the jersey on and left. Before leaving, he naturally handed his jersey to Lin Yi and gave him his best wishes.

"Come on, kid, show Barcelona what's what. If you don't score a single goal, I'll lose face."

Lin Yi said irritably, "And you didn't even know how to hold back, you bumped into me and left me covered in bruises, didn't you know to go easy on me?"

Dunn laughed heartily: "No way! In Richard Dunn's dictionary, there is no such word as 'go easy,' only 'go all out'!"

After saying goodbye to Dunn, Lin Yi traveled back to Manchester with the entire Manchester City team by bus. After a two-hour drive, they arrived back in Manchester as the city lights were just coming on.

Head coach Pellegrini immediately announced the disbandment of the team, and the team was given a normal day off the following day.

Lin only came on as a substitute in this round of matches, and played for a total of about 30 minutes.

However, since he came on, Manchester City's attack has basically revolved around him, and for those 30 minutes, he was constantly engaged in a high-intensity battle with Dunn.

Therefore, Lin Yi's level of fatigue was no less than that of someone who had played the entire match.

When Lin Yi dragged his tired body home, his thoughtful Emma had already prepared a bath and a late-night snack. Of course, for Lin Yi's health, the late-night snack was prepared by his aunt from Northeast China, while Emma was only responsible for giving orders and pretending to help.

After eating a little something, Lin Yi lay naked in the bathtub, while Emma knelt by the tub and gently massaged him to help him relax.

As Emma's hands caressed her lover's defined muscles and she gazed at his handsome face, the sorceress Hermione felt a surge of heat within her, as if she had been poisoned by the most potent and rare poison in the martial arts world, "The Extraordinary Aphrodisiac Powder."

She asked tentatively, "Honey, the match against Barcelona is the day after tomorrow, right?"

Completely unaware of the impending danger, Lin Yi casually replied, "That's right."

"You should be able to recover your strength in three days, right?"

"I hope so. I fought a tough Irish guy for half an hour today, and I feel like I'm falling apart."

"Why don't you come home and fight me? Irish hunks are no match for English chicks! I'm the one who should be falling apart!" Emma thought bitterly, a hint of disappointment flashing across her face.

Somewhat unwilling to give up, Emma pressed on, "Are Champions League matches really that important? Do we have to go all out?"

"Of course, for someone like me who will most likely never play in the World Cup, the Champions League is the ultimate stage."

Emma Watson's eyes quickly dimmed, but Lin Yi's next sentence rekindled a glimmer of hope in her.

"However, our main goal this season is still the league. We'll see how far we go in the Champions League. That's what Manuel said. There's no pressure to achieve results, so everyone can just play their best."

Emma's fingers began to draw circles on Lin Yi's chest, and the scent of hormones in the air grew stronger.

Not wanting the conversation to become awkward, Emma casually asked in a sickeningly sweet voice, "Isn't Barcelona amazing?"

Lin sat up abruptly from the bathtub, splashing water all over Emma's face.

"Of course they're formidable, very difficult to deal with. They were last season's Champions League winners, and they completely overwhelmed Manchester United!"

"Since winning the sextuple in 2009, this Barcelona team built by Guardiola has been called the 'Dream Team' by fans, meaning that they can easily defeat opponents on Earth, as if they are a team from outer space."

"There are very powerful characters in all three storylines."

"Goalkeeper Valdes, last season's La Liga best goalkeeper."

"Alves, another Brazilian defender after Cafu who can cover an entire flank."

"Pique, a product of La Masia, combines the physical attributes of an English center-back with the delicate technique of a Spanish player."

"Xavi, Barcelona's breathing machine and metronome, made the most passes and had the highest success rate in all of La Liga."

"Iniesta, with his sharp breakthroughs and unpredictable changes in rhythm, is hard to defend against. He scored the winning goal against the Netherlands in extra time in the 10 World Cup final."

"Busquets, this guy is the metronome in charge of the offensive and defensive transitions, but the most difficult thing to deal with is his acting skills."

"Pedro has scored in six different competitions, setting a historical record."

"Fàbregas, also from La Masia, was handpicked by Wenger as the Gunners' core player at the age of 19, was named Arsenal's Player of the Season at 20, and wore the captain's armband at 21."

"Messi goes without saying. He has dominated the Ballon d'Or since 2009, winning it three times in a row. At only 25 years old, he is on par with Platini, Van Basten, and Cruyff, ranking first in history."

"This guy was last season's La Liga Player of the Year, Top Striker, and Top Assist Provider, Champions League Top Scorer, and UEFA Player of the Season."

"The guy's fellow countrymen are much better than him. I don't know where he gets the nerve to keep bragging that he's the successor to the King of Football. At most, Aguero can help deliver the King of Football's grandson. He probably won't be the one to succeed him."

When Messi was mentioned, Lin Yi's eyes shone brightly. As his wife, Emma, ​​who knew her lover's personality well, knew that this light was not from idol worship or anything like that, but rather from the fighting spirit he had in his heart that refused to admit defeat.

Unfortunately, the stronger Lin Yi's desire to fight the Barcelona team is at this moment, the lower the probability of him fighting against him tonight.

Undeterred, Emma made one last attempt: "So, are you going to conserve your energy tonight and not be with me...?"

"Didn't you say the competition isn't until the day after tomorrow? There's no rush."

Upon hearing this, Emma's eyes lit up, also stemming from her inner fighting spirit. After all, Emma Watson is a person who never gives up.

The next morning, Lin Yi slept in late, which was rare for him. Although the fatigue from the competition had not dissipated because of the wonderful night, his pleasant mood was still very beneficial for the competition.

This good mood lasted until the match against Barcelona on February 15, 2012.

This was Manchester City's first ever appearance in the Champions League knockout stage, and also Lin Yi's first ever Champions League knockout stage match.

This marks the third time a Chinese player has appeared on the Champions League knockout stage, following Sun Xiang and Hao Junmin.

Lin Yi's opponent is the formidable Barcelona, ​​and Lionel Messi, the strongest contender for the title of the world's best footballer.

Lin Yi immediately witnessed Messi's immense influence in the world of football upon their first meeting.

Even though it was a home game, the ball boy that Lin Yi was holding was definitely a Manchester City player. But when the two teams lined up in the tunnel, the boy still ran to Messi first and asked timidly.

"Lionel, I'm a fan of yours, may I shake your hand?"

Seeing the young-looking caddie running towards him from the other side, Messi naturally wouldn't refuse the boy's kindness, and he smiled and extended his hand.

However, to his surprise, just as their hands were about to touch, the caddie suddenly pulled back his right hand, which was hanging in mid-air, put his thumb on his nose, and waved his hand a few times while making a face and saying disdainfully.

"Don't get cocky, Lin will definitely beat you! He definitely will!"

After saying that, he turned and ran, dashing back to Lin Yi's side in a flash. He grabbed Lin Yi's big hand and looked at him triumphantly.

"That's interesting. What's your name?"

The little boy proudly announced his name: "My name is Phil."

The name reminded Lin Yi of Phil Neville, whom he disliked, so he pressed, "What's the full name?"

"Phil Foden!"