[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back":3,"chapter-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-11":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Football: At 16, Let Me Retire and Come Back?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2299981,4499,"Chapter 11: Brazilian Star Treasure Box!","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-11",11,"\u003Cp>“I can prove that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearby, Amrabat said; he had known Tang Ye for a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Merent said he’s a possession-minded midfielder!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing the two men’s accounts, Ten Hag froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I think I’m a possession-minded midfielder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mr. Merent said he’s a possession-minded midfielder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye not only spoke up himself, but also had his second-team coach backing him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This actually sounds pretty reasonable?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait, wait, wait!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten Hag nearly got led astray by Amrabat: “Tang, give me a clear answer—are you a possession-minded midfielder? What type of player are you? Only you know best.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Me? Me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye pointed at his own nose, looking anxious: “I don’t know…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“OK, you win!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten Hag covered his face with his hand; only now did he realize the teenage prodigy he’d brought up from the second team wasn’t just a lazy pig.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he was also…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A stupid pig!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t even know what position he played!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amrabat elbowed Tang Ye: “You should’ve said you’re a possession-minded midfielder—that way Eric will play you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye shook his head: “But I really don’t know if I am.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Tang Ye seemed to have said the wrong thing, his earlier remarks had sparked Ten Hag’s curiosity about him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Ten Hag’s mind, Tang Ye was just a talented kid good at running and positioning, with a bit of outside-of-the-foot touch—he’d pulled him into the first team on a whim, never truly considering his overall playing style.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that’s the case…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Start warming up. We’ll play a 5v5 small-sided match next. The pace might be a bit fast—make sure you warm up thoroughly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The warm-up match began. Tang Ye’s Team C was assigned two midfielders and three forwards, while the opposing team had three midfielders, one forward, and one defender.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Assistant coach Fan Dejia deliberately gave Team C one fewer midfielder than Team D, aiming to give Tang Ye more possession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You said you think you’re a possession-minded midfielder? Let’s see how you handle all this ball!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twenty minutes later, training ended. Ten Hag picked up his pencil and began scribbling furiously in his notebook.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was an analysis report on Tang Ye!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>1. Good vision—he could find nearly all attacking gaps in the five-a-side pitch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>2. Extremely poor discipline—he dislikes eating in the first-team cafeteria.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>3. Has some ball-retention ability, but not strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conclusion…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he wrote the word “Conclusion,” Ten Hag’s pen suddenly stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He realized a very serious problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as head coach of a Dutch Eredivisie club, he couldn’t determine what type of player Tang Ye was!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two days later, on August 16 in Amsterdam time, the second round of the Eredivisie began, with Utrecht hosting Heerenveen at home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks to Ale’s penalty, Utrecht took the lead in the first half, but in the 56th minute of the second half, Amrabat’s handball gifted the opponent a penalty, tying the score 1-1.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sudden goal lifted Heerenveen’s spirits, and in the final seventy minutes, the away team completed a comeback.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two straight losses! The team had bombed in both of their opening matches, and Ten Hag was thrust into the spotlight of Utrecht fans’ fury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, Chinese fans were also furious with Ten Hag.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Utrecht’s attack is pure shit—seriously, it’s better to just let Mengge take a wild shot.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Amrabat, who got promoted with Tang Ye, is a genius—he handed the opponent a penalty in his second first-team game!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night, the light in an office at Utrecht’s training base remained on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten Hag and Fan Dejia sat together, both with grim expressions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we’d had a bigger transfer budget in the summer window…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten Hag sighed helplessly: “If we’d had even one midfielder who could hold the ball, we wouldn’t be stuck at zero points.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Um… we do have a possession-minded midfielder.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Dejia, sitting across from him, whispered. Ten Hag clasped his bald head: “You mean I should put a lazy pig on the bench? Good heavens—if fans see I’ve brought a lazy pig to the first team, they’ll tear me apart!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten Hag was extremely proud of his image—that’s why he always made excuses in post-match interviews after losses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, they won’t. Everyone saw Tang’s two brilliant passes in the warm-up match—the second-team fans saw them, and so will the first-team fans.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Dejia explained: “Bringing a player into the first team because of two great passes is completely reasonable. You don’t need to worry about what the fans will say.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Listening to Fan Dejia, Ten Hag didn’t immediately rebut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The truth was, it was exactly like that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe he really should let that lazy pig play.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, Tang Ye was registered in the Eerste Divisie—if he flopped, Ten Hag could just send him back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then… let’s try it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the following days, Tang Ye slowly began integrating into the first-team training.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, \"integrating\" meant on the training pitch—his coordination with the first-team teammates had grown increasingly seamless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their chemistry had improved, yes, but Tang Ye’s chronic lateness remained uncorrected, which was why he still couldn’t enter the first-team cafeteria even after half a month with the squad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【At age 37, you still insist on training with the team—your skills have improved.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Ball Control: 69→70】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Shooting: 44→45】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This stuff is really hard to improve!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye sighed—he’d trained with the first team for half a month and gained only two attribute points!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Beep! Everyone, gather here!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Dejia called the players together, holding a thick notebook: “Tomorrow, the 23rd, we play our third-round away match against ADO Den Haag. Mr. Ten Hag and I have finalized the squad—memorize it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The lineup’s out!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amrabat clenched his fist—he’d handed the opponent a penalty last game; he didn’t know if he’d make the squad again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“First, the starters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Dejia scanned the players before him, then began reading from his notebook.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Goalkeeper: Ruit!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Defenders: Nganioni, Koom, Lechert, Van der Maarel, Klebe!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Midfielders: Ramselaar, Jansen, Ayoub!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Forwards: Ale and Barazite!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The starting eleven showed little change. Fan Dejia began reading the substitutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the tensest moment—Amrabat’s palms were sweating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Tang Ye had no reason to worry—Ten Hag wouldn’t even let him into the cafeteria, let alone the matchday squad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Defender: Cortijer—you’re the only one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Forwards: Petersen, Ruwen—you two.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Midfielders will be a bit more.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dimos, Stried, Ludwig, and Tang—yes, that’s it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snap!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fan Dejia closed his notebook. At the same moment, a familiar voice echoed in Tang Ye’s mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【My god, at 37 you’ve chosen to return to the Eredivisie—this is the perfect revenge against the trolls! Those hateful trolls have been calling you a lazy pig since you were 16—now’s your chance to slap their faces!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【You’ve received the Brazil Treasure Box: Premium】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Ding! Senior Card—your reward has been upgraded】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【You’ve received… Brazil Treasure Box: Star】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1137,"2026-06-20T06:50:08.245Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","c621fefc5436db76fa3b3e621c4e25cec587cd73c0d94291f7bd5352210feb83","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-12","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-10",918,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ffootball-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-cover.jpg"]