Chapter 200: A Ball Boy Bigger Than Tom, Advancing to the Copa del Rey Final

"OK!"

"Today is the Copa del Rey semi-final, with Yellow Submarine hosting Celta at home!"

Because an A-League match was broadcast just before this game, Wang Chao did not need to spend time adjusting his equipment.

His equipment was already perfectly adjusted.

"Hmm, in the first leg, Yellow Submarine defeated Celta 3-0, so this match is basically in the bag."

"My take is that since they have such a large lead from the first leg, Yellow Submarine will likely throw this match."

Let's carefully analyze Yellow Submarine's current schedule.

They have a huge number of matches in February!

So the logic is clear: to ensure good performance in the league matches over the next few days, Yellow Submarine is very likely to throw today's semi-final!

【Streamer, stop talking nonsense and let the match start already!】

【I also favor a draw; 1-1 sounds pretty good.】

【Laughing my ass off; unless GGBond loses possession twenty times in a single match, Celta won't have a single scoring chance.】

【Do you really think it's impossible for my GGBond to lose possession twenty times in one game?】

【The person above, be careful; the Tang Army patrols are very frequent lately. If you get caught, your private messages will explode. Several Jiedushi have already been cyber-bullied by the Tang Army.】

【I'm friendly forces, don't catch me!】

In the slightly unclear footage, players from both teams walked out of the tunnel holding the hands of ball boys.

Soon, the attention of the livestream fans was drawn to Tang Ye.

Tang Ye stood just under 1.78 meters tall, yet before him stood a guy in a Yellow Submarine jersey who was at least 1.85 meters tall.

This was the ball boy assigned to Tang Ye by the home stadium staff!

Tang Ye stood on the grass and looked to his left and right.

The ball boys held by his teammates were all 1.5 or 1.6 meters tall; only Tang Ye's was different.

Tom's ball boy was a third of a head taller than Tom himself!

"Haha."

Ale and Sansone on the side were stifling their laughter while Tang Ye rubbed his nose.

It was slightly awkward!

After thinking it over for a moment, Tang Ye patted the ball boy standing in front of him.

The big fat guy turned his head, and Tang Ye placed his hand on his shoulder: "Brother, how tall are you?"

"1.87 meters."

"Wow."

Tang Ye took a deep breath and nodded.

"Um... could you stand a little bit to the right?"

"Uh, yes, you're blocking me; I can't see the fans in the stands."

"Mm, that's better, thanks."

Escrivá shook hands with the opposing head coach, Berizzo.

At this moment, as the Yellow Submarine players were singing their team anthem, Escrivá noticed the ball boy standing before Tang Ye was taller than the player himself, so he turned to look at Martí.

"What is this situation?"

Martí shook his head: "I don't know either."

"Alright."

Escrivá narrowed his eyes.

Hiss—

He felt that Yellow Submarine's luck in today's match might not be too good?

The match hadn't even started, yet the core midfielder's field of vision was already blocked!

【Tang Ye's ball boy is so huge; it feels like Tang Ye is the ball boy instead.】

【Tang~~~ Ye! The match hasn't even started, and as the on-field↑ ball boy, he is actually~~~ impersonating↑ a player?】

"Mods, ban those few people in the livestream pretending to be football noobs."

"Mm, done."

"Beep!"

"The match has started, brothers!"

Escrivá paced back and forth on the sidelines.

The formation Celta used in today's match couldn't just be called similar to the one in the first leg.

It was exactly the same.

This was what puzzled Escrivá.

They were already down by three goals; shouldn't you do some research to see if there's any possibility of a comeback?

His chest heaved up and down with his breathing; Escrivá had a bad feeling.

He narrowed his eyes and glanced at Berizzo next door.

He felt like this guy was hiding a trick up his sleeve!

But it wasn't a big problem; before the match started, Escrivá had already told the players to play somewhat conservatively today.

There was no need to rush too much in the first half.

Let's first see what the other side has to say!

"Villarreal!"

Bang! Bang!

"Villarreal!"

Bang! Bang!

The cheers of the home fans in the stands echoed throughout the stadium.

This was the advantage brought by leading the score in the first leg!

The Yellow Submarine fans were now extremely confident!

The match clock reached the 26th minute!

Because the Yellow Submarine was playing quite conservatively, no goals had been scored yet.

Musacchio and Ruiz, coordinating with Rodri, passed the ball around in the defensive third, draining the stamina of the opposing forwards.

When the Celta forwards began pressing in full force, Rodri seized the opportunity to loft the ball directly into the attacking third.

This long pass was struck with great force, but its accuracy was indeed lacking; near the left touchline, Majo secured the ball a step ahead of Ale.

"We can win it!"

Sansone shouted and immediately sprinted forward.

At that moment, Ale positioned himself behind Majo, blocking his path.

Preventing Majo from turning!

Bang!

Sansone collided with Majo, successfully knocking the ball away from Majo's feet.

"Support!"

Berisso shouted loudly.

But honestly, it was already too late; Ale turned and sprinted out, rescuing the ball just before it rolled out of play over the touchline.

This was extremely comfortable; Tang Ye drifted back and forth in the center like a thief.

That damned Dias kept shadowing him, making Tang Ye feel very uncomfortable.

He needed to find an opportunity.

A suitable opportunity!

And then shake off Dias's tight marking!

After receiving the ball near the left touchline, Ale first checked Tang Ye's position.

Tang Ye's position wasn't ideal, so Ale passed the ball back to Sansone behind him before making a run into the penalty area.

Ale needed to use his tall frame to draw the attention of the defenders inside the box.

Only then would his teammates outside the box have a chance!

"Sansone, do a step-over near the touchline first."

"OK, cut inside toward the box!"

"The director's camera is on Tan... oh, I see Tang Ye! Right at the back."

"But his position is currently blocked!"

"That number 5 on the opposing side is quite disgusting!"

With Tang Ye's position blocked and no chance to receive the ball, Rodri, noticing the situation, made a run forward from behind.

Receiving Sansone's cutback pass!

Tang Ye seized the opportunity and sprinted directly into the penalty area.

At the same time, he pointed toward Ale inside the box!

Although Tang Ye was not tall, his current running motion meant a dynamic attacker would draw more opponent attention than a static one.

Tang Ye was very clear about this!

Slap!

He lofted the ball toward Ale's position!

Rodri saw Tang Ye's gesture!

Ale!

Holding his ground against Roncaglia's physical challenge.

Jumping up!

Tang Ye only needed a glance from the corner of his eye to know Ale would reach the ball first, but his position made shooting impossible.

So Tang Ye ran to a position slightly more to the right.

Ale's attention was now entirely on the ball; he wouldn't constantly observe his surroundings like Tang Ye did.

At this moment, Tang Ye needed to shout.

"Here!"

Bang!

Ale headed the ball down onto the grass right in front of Tang Ye.

Damn!

Kicking it now would easily send the ball sky-high, so Tang Ye dropped straight to his knees.

Using his head to meet it!

Goalkeeper Alvarez could actually have saved Tang Ye's header.

However, just two seconds prior, he had been deceived by Ale's feinted shot and real pass, diving to the left.

Tang Ye nearly scored into an empty net!

"Gooooooaaaaalllll!!!"

"Goal!"

"Tang Ye's header!"

"Woow!!!!"

The atmosphere in the Ceramic Stadium ignited; Tang Ye quickly scrambled up from the ground.

A header!

It was his header that broke the deadlock!

Spreading his arms wide, he rushed quickly to the sideline.

"Roar!!!"

"Wow!!"

"Tom!"

"Tom!"

The fans' cheers were deafening; those few supporters in the lowest tier of the stands kept trying to reach out and touch Tang Ye's face.

Tang Ye embraced his teammates, then reached out to high-five the fans in the stands.

Leaving the stands and walking toward his own half, Tang Ye glanced back once more at the crowd just behind him, raising his right hand high.

"Vamos Villarreal!"

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: In the 29th minute, Tang Ye scored the first header of his professional career; Yellow Submarine leads 1–0 at home, 4–0 on aggregate against Celta.

This is Tom's first-ever header in his professional career!

After the goal, the Ceramic Stadium grew even more raucous.

Escribá, who had been feeling some pressure, now felt much more at ease; from standing still, he began to pace slowly.

He glanced again at Berizzo next door.

The Celta manager's expression remained utterly unchanged—this was what had been troubling Escribá all along.

Damn it!

If there's anything else, bring it out now!

Escribá was the sort of fellow who felt pressure quite easily.

Unless a match was absolutely secure, he would not relax!

Soon the game entered the second half. At this moment, Berizzo made a long-overdue substitution.

Bouvi came on for Hjulsager.

A like-for-like swap at the forward position!

Is it coming...

Escribá rose from his chair, his attention fixed firmly on the pitch.

Celta was likely about to change tactics, but the good news was that Yellow Submarine now held a substantial lead.

If Celta made any sudden changes, Escribá would immediately alert the players on the field so they could make corresponding adjustments.

They didn't need to do anything spectacular; they just had to maintain their current advantage!

Then Yellow Submarine could advance to the final!

However...

After watching for a few minutes, Berizzo's substitution seemed to bring no obvious improvement to his team?

!

The 57th minute!

Clap! Clap!

From a one-two between Cheryshev and Tang Ye, it ended with Tang Ye, positioned farther forward, sprinting toward the right-wing byline.

Bakambu stood ahead; Tang Ye decisively passed the ball out to him.

After receiving and turning, Bakambu prepared to drive forward himself, but he was quickly closed down by Planas.

With no other option, he flicked the ball behind him, back to Tang Ye.

"Number 10!"

"Watch number 10!"

The head coach and the center-back in the penalty area shouted together.

Tom's crosses from the byline are pinpoint accurate—a fact known to every La Liga club's fans!

Planas decisively abandoned Bakambu and lunged toward Tang Ye behind him.

"Tang Ye!"

"Pass quickly!"

Wang Chao was under immense pressure.

Tang Ye's ball-shielding ability wasn't great; if he didn't pass the ball out soon, it might be too late!

Yet Tang Ye wasn't panicked in the least; he dribbled forward first.

Just as Planas prepared to stretch out his foot, Tang Ye's body suddenly hitched.

Escribá:!

A familiar feeling.

That 0.1-second pause button!

Speed restored.

But Planas was truly fast; after failing the first interception, he immediately chased back up.

At that moment, Tang Ye knocked the ball back with his right foot, directly onto his left.

Planas had to commit!

Planas threw out a split, but unexpectedly, after controlling the ball with his left foot, Tang Ye paused for a moment.

Then he crossed again!

【De Bruyne Bottom Cross Lv3: Simulation】

Proficiency: 74/500

A bottom cross, but specifically a left-footed cross from the right-wing byline!

Rodri charged up from the top of the arc.

He jumped, leveraging the speed from his run-up.

A direct header!

"Ggg——ooooo——llllll!!!"

"2:0!"

"Damn, Yellow Submarine is still awesome!"

I guessed a draw but got it wrong; I can only say it's a bit of a pity.

But it doesn't matter!

The haters in the livestream room once again felt the greatness of Tang Tang Qiuwang.

That was enough!

"Wow!"

Escrivá waved his hand, turned toward the substitute bench, and while walking, twisted his head to glance at Berizzo, who was standing not far away.

Damn it.

I thought you had something up your sleeve!

Turns out you have nothing at all!

After celebrating the 2:0 lead, Yellow Submarine immediately started making substitutions.

Tom, the biggest contributor to the match so far, was substituted off at this moment, causing a chorus of wails in the livestream room.

【Don't sub him, don't sub him!】

【What a handsome header, Tang Tang Qiuwang! King of Headers!】

【Saint Escrivá, what are you doing? You can't make a substitution at a time like this!】

【With a five-goal lead, hurry up and let Big Bro go down for a rest, right? Saint Escrivá knows what's up.】

【Little Tang Ren in the livestream room, calm down; isn't this just preparing for the upcoming matches? Don't rush.】

【King's Cup Final! Tang Tang Qiuwang must punish Barcelona!】

"Clap clap clap!"

Applause from the home fans rang out across the Ceramic Stadium.

"Haha!"

While jogging off the field, Tang Ye clapped his hands, high-fived Soriano, and then raised both hands into the air.

"Well done."

Escrivá gently pushed Tang Ye's waist.

Tang Ye greeted the fans in the stands.

It was a very nice feeling.

He thoroughly enjoyed this feeling!

"Haha, impressive, Tom!"

González handed Tang Ye a bottle of mineral water, and the latter hugged the bottle with both hands and gulped down several large mouthfuls.

It was a pity that Captain Bruno's ankle hadn't healed yet, so he wasn't at the scene today; otherwise, Tang Ye would definitely have shared with him the feeling of that header from the first half.

GG Bond's first-ever career header!

A super header!

After falling two goals behind, Celta's state became somewhat listless.

After Tang Ye was substituted off, head coach Berizzo immediately made two substitutions, trying to turn the situation around a bit.

But Yellow Submarine's defenders were extremely reliable; over twenty minutes of dense defense simply didn't let the opponent find a single chance to score.

The match reached the 75th minute.

At this moment, the score on the field was still 2:0!

"Yellow Submarine has secured it; with an aggregate five-goal lead now, Celta has no chance left."

"I hereby announce in advance that Tang Tang Qiuwang has led the team to advance to the King's Cup Final!"

"Actually, Yellow Submarine's form in this season's King's Cup and Europa League has already been maxed out, but playing Barcelona in the final will be very difficult."

【Streamer, who do you favor to win the King's Cup championship?】

"That's hard to say; although Yellow Submarine has Tang Ye, Barcelona is also very fierce."

As he spoke, Wang Chao suddenly remembered his identity as a diehard fan of Tang Tang Qiuwang and quickly changed his rhetoric.

"Actually, as long as Barcelona reaches the final, winning the King's Cup championship is basically a sure thing."

"But do you know? Barcelona has had bad luck this season; they ran into Tang... Yellow Submarine! With Yellow Submarine being such a fierce team, it's not like Barcelona is guaranteed to win even if they come."

"So I favor Yellow Submarine more!"

The second leg of the semi-final wasn't completely over yet, but Yellow Submarine had already taken out a loan on the King's Cup championship.

There was no helping it; this was Tom's influence!

Super influence!

……

Spain's Channel Six: Villarreal defeated Celta with an aggregate score of 5:0 over two legs to advance; the Yellow Submarine will face the terrifying Barcelona in the final!

"AS" editor-in-chief Roncero: The Yellow Submarine's current form is nearly perfect; apart from Real Madrid, no team has a 100% chance of beating them. "Barça is strong, but they only look strong; Real Madrid and the Yellow Submarine are truly strong."

The gap between the Copa del Rey semi-finals and the final is quite large.

The semi-finals were played in early February, but according to past conventions, the Copa del Rey final is estimated to wait until May.

Exactly which day in May remains unclear; this will only be known after the Spanish Football Federation announces it in a few days.

Two days later.

"The final isn't until May?"

On the training ground, Tang Ye, having just learned the final's timing from Bruno, suddenly shouted.

"Damn, I thought we'd finish playing it this very month!"

Tang Ye had no idea the Copa del Rey schedule was so strange.

Previously, when he played in the KNVB Cup, less than two months separated the semi-finals and the final.

He remembered the semi-finals being in March, and then the final directly in April.

But!

More than three months separated the Copa del Rey semi-finals and the final!

"It's most likely like that; previously it was always late May, and this year should be the same; I feel it will be around May 25th."

Bruno said to Tang Ye while doing his stretches.

"That's so long; can't it start earlier? We're very free in March, right?"

Upon learning the news, Tang Ye's mood was not too good.

He glanced at Rodri, who was stretching his thigh muscles beside him.

Previously, Tang Ye had told Rodri that during the championship award ceremony, the confetti must naturally fall upon him, and he must not use his hands to block it.

Tang Ye had thought the final would be played next month, or at the earliest, this very month!

As a result, they still had to wait this long!

If they waited that long, by the time it arrived, Rodri would have forgotten what Tang Ye had told him!

"I feel this should be a good thing for us."

Ma Ti, who was preparing today's training items nearby, suddenly spoke up: "Our tactics are not yet perfect; playing Barça a bit later is actually a good thing."

Just as Ma Ti said.

The Yellow Submarine was currently in a tactical adjustment period; at this time, the Yellow Submarine was relatively weak.

Playing the final directly at this time was not as good as waiting a few more months.

They should wait for the Yellow Submarine to slowly adapt to the tactics of the adjustment period and grow into its strongest state.

Only then should they go head-to-head with Barça!

And then... seize that damn Copa del Rey championship!

Front-page headline of "Mundo Deportivo"—Copa del Rey finalists Barcelona and Villarreal are participating in the knockout stages of the Champions League and Europa League respectively. Considering both teams' European match schedules in May, the Spanish Football Federation might adjust the Copa del Rey final to take place in April.

Secondary headline on the front page of "Marca"—The Copa del Rey final is unlikely to take place in April, because if they advance to the Europa League quarter-finals, Villarreal will have nine matches in April; the Spanish Football Federation should consider this issue.

Reporters and fans discussed the start time of the Copa del Rey final, but no conclusion was ever reached.

Some Yellow Submarine fans carefully analyzed the schedules of both the Yellow Submarine and Barça.

Assuming both teams need to play the Europa League and Champions League finals respectively, then March would be the most suitable time for the match.

But the problem is that in recent years, the Copa del Rey has generally been held in April or May; whether the Spanish Football Federation would be willing to compromise on the match time remains to be seen.

Because viewership ratings for a March final might not be very good!

And besides the match time, there is another factor that needs consideration.

That is the match venue.

"Mundo Deportivo" reporter Cornarga: Real Madrid's Bernabéu Stadium holds an advantageous position in the contest to host the Copa del Rey final.

Ber... Bernabéu?

……

(End of Chapter)