Chapter 130: The Coordination of the Three of Them in the Midfield is Very Strong!

Check Dongqiu Di Match Preview: La Liga Round 5, Villarreal away against Real Madrid, will Tang Ye get another starting opportunity?

Real Madrid team reporter Jose Padilla — currently the injured players in the Real Madrid squad are: Pepe, Coentrao, Navas; all other players are available to play.

La Liga Match Preview — a clash between two teams on a four-match winning streak, which of Real Madrid or Villarreal will become the first team this season to achieve five consecutive league wins?

The match between Real Madrid and Villarreal has high heat; the former is one of the La Liga hegemonies and also last year's Champions League champion. The latter, Villarreal, is no less impressive; the total market value of their starting lineup is less than 150 million Euros, yet Villarreal managed to occupy the third position on the standings table after the fourth round of the league ended.

Of course, there is another point of focus: Tang Ye.

What kind of performance will the young genius from Villarreal put on when facing Real Madrid stars?

Because many people are following this match, Check Dongqiu Di has specially opened a voting column.

Those supporting Real Madrid to win account for 42%, while those supporting Villarreal to win account for 58%.

An astonishing voting statistic: Check Dongqiu Di fans actually support Tang Ye's Villarreal more!

Has Tang Ye's popularity surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo, surpassed Gareth Bale, surpassed the entire Real Madrid team?

Obviously not; this vote is very unfair to Real Madrid.

Barcelona fans and Villarreal fans have stood together!

【Ok, Villarreal is leading, looks like tomorrow's match is secure】

【Secure my ass, this is support rate, not win rate】

【Villarreal has bad luck, meeting Real Madrid so soon】

【It's already the 5th round, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico must meet one of them; just don't know if Villarreal can withstand the pressure】

【Villarreal will probably not withstand the pressure, but my Tang Tang Qiuwang certainly can】

【Damn, haven't checked Check Dongqiu Di for so long, a Chinese player is going to play against Cristiano Ronaldo?】

【Being able to compete on the same stage as Tang Tang Qiuwang, Cristiano Ronaldo's prestige has gone up too】

……

After afternoon training ended, the Villarreal players gathered together to eat.

Ale deliberately placed a slice of raw herring into the plate.

He sat down beside Tang Ye, then put the herring slice into Tang Ye's plate: "Come, Tom, for you!"

"This is..."

Tang Ye held a phone in one hand and pointed at the herring slice in the plate with the other.

"Remembered it? The thing you ate every day before."

"..."

Tang Ye carefully picked up the herring slice with a fork, then put it into Musakyo's plate: "Mateo, this is for you, witnessing our friendship."

???

Musakyo took a deep breath, pushed his plate in front of Bruno: "Captain, Tom gave me this thing, now I give it to you, witnessing the friendship of the three of us. Oh, and Sebastian (Ale), witnessing the friendship of the four of us!"

"Get lost!"

Bruno picked up the herring slice and put it into Cherishev's plate; this Russian was the only one in the entire Villarreal squad willing to eat raw herring.

"Tomorrow is the match, we should be serious now; Real Madrid is not an opponent easy to deal with!"

Bruno said very seriously.

Of course, he was faking it.

Actually, regarding tomorrow's match, the Villarreal players were not as nervous as imagined.

The reason is simple: because they simply didn't feel they could win tomorrow's match.

"Ronaldo, Rodriguez, Ramos, Varane, Bale, Benzema..."

Bruno counted on his fingers: "These are all our opponents tomorrow; didn't Ma Ti say it? Real Madrid only injured Navas and Pepe; we will play very uncomfortably tomorrow."

"Don't be nervous."

Tang Ye suddenly spoke; the players at the dining table turned their attention to Tang Ye sitting beside Ale.

"Ok!"

Tang Ye raised both hands to celebrate, noticed his teammates at the table were all looking at him, so he picked up his phone and displayed the content on the screen in front of his teammates.

Tang Ye ate relatively fast; while waiting for his teammates, he started a game.

The opponent happened to be using the Real Madrid club crest.

The score is...

VCF: RMA

6:1

"Pfft!"

Cherishev spat out the raw herring he had just put in his mouth.

"Damn, damn, get away quickly, don't eat this here!"

Musakyo pushed Cherishev away; the latter was defending himself: "This is raw herring, very nutritious, much better than the beef you guys eat."

"Get lost!"

Musakyo pushed Cherishev away and turned his attention to Tang Ye's phone: "6:1, us playing Real Madrid, is it like this?"

"Yes."

Tang Ye showed the phone screen to Bruno again.

This was an absolute crushing victory.

"If Ale hadn't put the herring slice in my plate, he wouldn't have scored a single goal."

"6:0, Villarreal 6:0 Real Madrid!"

Tang Ye placed his phone on the table.

"Hahaha, good, good, good! Tom, hurry home and find your bicycle, or you'll have to walk to work again tomorrow."

Bruno put his arm around Tang Ye's shoulders, while the latter spread his hands: "There's no rush about the bicycle; even if I have to walk, I won't be late from now on."

This morning's incident was purely an accident; last night, Tang Ye had found a Chinese restaurant local to Villarreal, so he got up early, took a taxi there for breakfast, and then returned to his apartment to fetch his gear.

If he hadn't been going to that Chinese restaurant, Tang Ye would have eaten breakfast at the training base.

Eating breakfast at the base made being late an impossibility!

"You're thinking too simply; Real Madrid is formidable, Tom. Do you see that guy in front of you?"

Bruno rested his right hand on Tang Ye's shoulder while pointing with his left at Musacchio opposite them.

"Mateo?"

"Yes, Mateo. Ronaldo needs only one simple touch to get past him."

"Oh, come on!"

Musacchio spread his hands: "I'm not that useless, you know."

"Actually, their forwards are manageable; as long as our defenders stay compact, there shouldn't be any major issues."

Ale spoke slowly: "It's mainly their midfield; their midfielders are incredibly strong."

"I'm incredibly strong too,"

Tang Ye reminded them.

"Sebastian, don't forget about Tom!"

Bruno and Ale said together.

"Haha, I know, I know. What I mean is that Real Madrid's three midfielders combine wonderfully; their passing will put immense pressure on us."

Tang Ye wiped his mouth with a napkin, rummaged in his pocket for chewing gum, and asked: "Which midfielders are they? Modrić, and Rodríguez?"

"It's Modrić, Casemiro, and Kroos!"

Musacchio answered Tang Ye's question: "There's chemistry between those three midfielders; can you imagine it? When they play, it's as if they are a single person!"

"Yes, their coordination is so perfect it's like the abilities of three players are fused into one!"

Ale nodded.

It was clear he was feeling somewhat excited.

A loss would be no disgrace, a draw would be a huge gain; the Ivorian must be starting to look forward to tomorrow's clash with Real Madrid.

That would be a magnificent match!

Chemistry, huh...

Tang Ye nodded.

He took a glance at his system.

【Modrić Outside-of-the-Foot Template】

【Casemiro Tackle Template】

【Toni Kroos Safe-Pass Template】

They're all here, so why hasn't any chemistry appeared?

On match day, the yellow bus carrying the Yellow Submarine players slowly pulled into the underground parking lot of the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

Seated in his spot, Tang Ye heard the Yellow Submarine fans chanting the team's name, but it was quickly drowned out by the voices of the Real Madrid supporters.

This move by the Real Madrid fans was nothing more than a declaration of ownership.

The Bernabéu was Real Madrid's home ground, after all!

He hooked the curtain with his finger and peeked outside secretly.

Saying nothing else, the Bernabéu Stadium was truly massive.

Apart from the stadiums he had seen as a child when his father took him to watch NFL games in the United States, the Bernabéu was probably the largest stadium Tang Ye had encountered in his professional career.

"You're not scared to death, are you?"

Bruno, sitting in front, waved his hand before Tang Ye's eyes: "Hey, Tom!"

"Oh, I'm here, I'm here."

Tang Ye shook his head, pulled his hand back, and the curtain naturally fell back into place.

"Tom, they make stadiums this big just to intimidate us away players; just don't look, and you'll be fine."

As the team's veteran captain, Bruno shared his experience with Tang Ye, the newcomer.

Just don't look, and you'll be fine.

Tang Ye silently committed Bruno's words to memory.

The match was about to begin; with both teams' players lined up in the tunnel, Tang Ye, hiding behind Ale, clearly heard the sounds coming from outside the stadium.

"Historia que tú hiciste (The history you made)"

"Historia por hacer (The history yet to be made)"

"Porque nadie resiste (Because no one can resist)"

"Tus ganas de vencer (Your desire to win)"

"..."

"Madrid!"

"Madrid!"

"Hala Madrid!"

"Y nada más!"

This is Real Madrid's latest team anthem, released this year to commemorate their 2015-16 Champions League title.

The song was created to commemorate Real Madrid's eleventh Champions League trophy in their history!

The singing is deep and powerful; you can feel the epicness even without hearing the lyrics.

Holding the hand of a ball boy only a few years younger than himself in his left hand, Tang Ye looked to his right.

Standing on his right was Cristiano Ronaldo, the number one star of Real Madrid.

Tang Ye wanted to greet Cristiano Ronaldo, but after taking a deep breath, he pulled his hand back.

Real Madrid is strong, but Villarreal can definitely go head-to-head with them!

【You have received a new mission: The Sinking of the Ship】

Here it comes!

Following Soriano ahead out of the player tunnel, Tang Ye's attention was completely on his system.

【In 2038, Real Madrid, having already won 20 Champions League trophies, has entered their low point. Now is the weakest period for the Galaxy Battleship, and also the best time to defeat them!】

Tang Ye was truly screwed.

The wrong timeline caused the system to make an incorrect assessment of Real Madrid's strength.

What the hell is "weakest Galaxy Battleship"? The peak Galaxy Battleship is walking into the stadium right now on his right!

【This mission has three completion levels】

1. Flee in panic, defeat Real Madrid, and leave the Bernabéu by bus. Reward: Real Madrid Castilla Youth Training Template.

2. Match evenly, force a draw against the weakened Galaxy Battleship. Reward: Real Madrid Advanced/Star Template.

3. The Sinking of the Ship, decisively defeat the weakened Galaxy Battleship. Reward: Real Madrid Legend Template.

Damn...

Just like the Ultimate Template, the new mission Tang Ye received also has three rewards.

Win, draw, and loss represent three completely different rewards.

But Tang Ye also had a question.

Why is there such a huge gap between the first reward and the second reward?

Only the loser deserves the Youth Training Template, right?

Then it seems this match absolutely cannot end in a draw!

Standing in position on the pitch, Tang Ye skillfully tore open the chewing gum wrapper with one hand and put the gum in his mouth.

"Beep—!!!"

【You purchased Vardy's Red Bull】

"CCTV, this is the live broadcast of the La Liga match between Real Madrid and Villarreal at Real Madrid's home ground. This is a key match of the season."

"Currently, both Real Madrid and Villarreal are on a four-match winning streak, which means today one team's four-match winning streak must end!"

"Now I will introduce the starting lineups for this match. First, the home team Real Madrid, wearing yellow and white jerseys!"

Real Madrid (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Casillas

Defenders: Danilo, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo

Midfielders: Toni Kroos, Casemiro, Modric

Forwards: Bale, Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo

"The head coach is Real Madrid and French national team legend Zidane. The camera cuts to Zidane."

"The Real Madrid coaching staff and the players on the bench look quite serious. You can tell they are very confident about winning this match!"

"That's right. Looking at the lineups of both sides in this match, Real Madrid's forward line alone is probably more expensive than Villarreal's entire starting lineup combined."

"Although there are many fans supporting Real Madrid, as the weaker side, I actually hope to see how Villarreal will face this strong opponent."

The CCTV commentator seems to be supporting the underdog in this match, but anyone with eyes can see the truth.

He Wei is most likely a Tang Ye fanboy too!

【Go go go!】

【Tang Ye, go! Real Madrid, go!】

【Buddy, if you hadn't said that, I would have thought Tang Ye was a Real Madrid player...】

【Don't just shout for Tang Ye, go Yellow Submarine!】

Less than five minutes into the match, there should be over three million people in the CCTV live stream room.

Considering this is a match played at 2 AM Beijing time, this online viewer count is truly outrageous.

Good news: after arriving in Spain, Tang Tang Qiuwang will no longer be restricted by the Minor Protection Law!

Bang!

Casemiro completed a tackle on Bruno in the backfield, and the Villarreal captain rolled back and forth on the ground.

"Hey!"

Chercheshev gestured to the referee: "Foul!"

Referee Gonzalez made no indication.

He saw clearly that Casemiro indeed touched the ball first; this was a very clean sliding tackle interception!

No choice, the Villarreal players immediately started to defend.

Everyone has a player they need to mark; Tang Ye's target is Modric.

Snap!

Benzema, running back, passed the ball back to Varane, who kicked it long to the front field.

The defender's long pass went straight to the striker, delivered to...

Cristiano Ronaldo!

Looking up to track the landing spot, Cristiano Ronaldo and Soriano were tangled together on the wing.

After a bout of physical contention between the two, neither managed to win the first touch.

Varane's long pass bounced off the ground and looked set to go out over the byline, but Cristiano Ronaldo shook off Soriano and controlled the ball.

He then sprinted straight forward.

Oh no!

Soriano silently thought things were going badly and quickly reached out to grab Cristiano Ronaldo's jersey.

He missed.

Good heavens.

This is even worse!

"Wooww!!"

The fans in the stands were cheering as Cristiano Ronaldo sprinted from the left wing down to the left byline.

Gaspar and Cristiano Ronaldo faced off one-on-one on the byline!

Tang Ye did not rush; he knew that going over there now would not help his teammate.

All he needed to do was mark Modrić tightly, ensuring the opposing players could not pass the ball to Modrić.

"Cristiano Ronaldo, move toward Gaspar's position!"

"Do a step-over!"

"Accelerate toward the byline!"

"Gaspar hasn't left any opening, so Cristiano Ronaldo has no choice but to pass back to Marcelo!"

A striker passing back to a defender; one would expect Real Madrid's attack to slow down slightly, but unexpectedly, Marcelo was also a ruthless character, pretending to be a striker as he ran straight into Villarreal's penalty area.

Damn!

Soriano and Gaspar both ran toward Marcelo, who chose to pass the ball to Benzema, who had dropped back into the center to receive.

Benzema played a straight through-ball, returning the ball to the left byline.

A chance for Cristiano Ronaldo!

He controlled the ball and moved horizontally toward the penalty area!

Musacchio stepped up to block the shooting angle!

Cristiano Ronaldo chose to change direction, heading for the byline!

He lifted his left foot!

In the camera shot, Cristiano Ronaldo struck with his left foot just before the ball rolled out over the byline.

Bang!

The struck ball flew straight toward the far corner of the goal.

Asenjo's body had already blocked the near corner of the goal, but his outstretched hand failed to stop Cristiano Ronaldo's left-footed shot.

"Wooww!!"

The north stand instantly erupted into noise; the Villarreal players stood frozen, watching Cristiano Ronaldo, who had scored, charge toward the corner flag on the left.

Three!

Two!

One!

Just as the final count reached the jump, the home fans in the stands prepared themselves; by now, Cristiano Ronaldo had already completed a mid-air turn, raising his arms above his head before swinging them down to his sides twice.

"SIUUUU!!!!"

Phew...

Tang Ye pressed his lips together, faint forehead wrinkles appearing on his brow.

He had actually wanted to contribute to the team during this defensive sequence, but alas, Real Madrid simply hadn't given Tang Ye the opportunity.

The clever, short-range combination play between Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcelo, and Benzema had torn open Villarreal's rear defensive line!

【At 38, you fought a fierce battle against a declining Real Madrid, yet you conceded a goal to the 52-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo; although you enjoy subsidies for middle-aged men, losing to an old man is a bit excessive.】

【Counterattack Points -1】

"..."

Tang Ye took a deep breath, then turned to look at Bruno beside him: "What do we do now..."

"It's fine, it's fine, we still have a chance!"

Bruno patted Tang Ye on the shoulder.

Although Real Madrid had scored first, as a player on the pitch, Bruno could feel that they still had a chance to defeat Real Madrid.

Although most of their starters were on the field, today's Real Madrid was not in their best form.

"A chance, for real?"

"For real!"

Bruno slapped Tang Ye on the butt.

Alright then!

Tang Ye rubbed his hands together.

For the sake of Real Madrid's template chest, he must give his all in this match!

"Madrid!"

"Madrid!"

"Hala Madrid!"

Tang Ye forced himself not to listen to the voices of the fans in the stands, but he simply could not do it.

The home atmosphere of the Bernabéu was too exaggerated!

……

PS: Today is just under 20,000 at 19,000, but tomorrow will be 22,000.

(End of Chapter)