Chapter 25: Can't Waste the Broccoli

【You have obtained Cristiano Ronaldo's broccoli; within the next 12 hours, the effectiveness of ball-training will double.】

【De Bruyne Curved Through Ball, Lv2: Similar】

【Proficiency: 5/50】

Inside the Utrecht training ground, the first-team players were engaged in their scrimmage.

Ten Hag encouraged Tang Ye to boldly attempt long passes, and Tang Ye indeed did so.

Unfortunately, his De Bruyne Curved Ball technique had only just reached the Lv2 "Similar" level, still a long way from the next stage, Lv3 "Simulation."

Out of 12 long-pass attempts, only 4 successfully reached the front field, with Haller receiving one of them.

According to the system's calculation, as long as you pass to a position near the front field, it counts toward proficiency regardless of whether the striker receives the ball.

But since this was training, each successful pass yielded only 1 point of proficiency.

Tang Ye's 4 successful passes, boosted by the broccoli, successfully earned him 4 points of proficiency.

The Lv2 progress bar instantly jumped by one-fifth!

"Hmm, I'm getting the feel for it!"

Tang Ye shrugged his shoulders.

It had to be said, Cristiano Ronaldo's broccoli was truly useful!

"Beep!"

Fan Fan Dejiahe blew the whistle to stop the scrimmage; Ten Hag walked over and began relaying the issues he had just observed to the Utrecht players on the pitch, point by point.

"Beautiful pass!"

Haller and Tang Ye high-fived in celebration.

Out of 12 passes, 4 reached suitable positions.

It might look like only a one-third success rate, but you must remember, Tang Ye's passes originated from the back field.

He was at least 30 meters, perhaps even 40 meters, away from Haller and Balazite!

Haller placed his hand on Tang Ye's shoulder: "I told you, if you're willing to train hard, you'll become incredibly formidable!"

"Quiet down!"

Ten Hag silenced the players, then announced that afternoon's training had concluded.

"Finished? Wait, why?"

Someone grew anxious, but to Ten Hag's surprise, the anxious one was actually Tang Ye: "Come on, lazy pig, what are you rushing for? Aren't you the one who loves resting the most?"

"Of course I'm rushing; I've always been the most serious about training; I don't like resting!"

"Wow~~"

As soon as Tang Ye finished speaking, jeering noises immediately erupted from the crowd, with Amrabat incessantly raising his eyebrows at Tang Ye.

"Oh~ 'I've always been the most serious about training,' wow~"

Tang Ye turned his head and ignored Amrabat.

This guy was his hater.

His biggest hater!

Today he had spent a full 10 Counterattack Points to buy that broccoli.

Yet training ended an hour early.

Wasn't this a fucking massive loss!

Eyes turned to Ten Hag; the Dutch head coach was looking at him with amusement: "We have a KNVB Cup match tomorrow; the schedule is very tight, so you must have time to rest."

The facts were exactly as Ten Hag stated.

This season's KNVB Cup matches were about to begin.

Under such a dense schedule, coaches needed to reduce players' training load to ensure they could perform well in matches.

Ten Hag also wished these Utrecht players could train a bit longer.

Alas, conditions did not permit it!

Ten Hag gave a brief summary of today's training content, then instructed the players to go to the physiotherapy room for muscle massage.

After giving these instructions, Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe headed together to the second floor of the base.

That was where the Utrecht coaching offices were located; Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe needed to use this time to finalize tomorrow's squad list.

First, which players to bring was basically undisputed; the Utrecht first team had only 24 players in total, so selecting 18 from these 24 to enter the squad list was a very easy task.

Moreover, because the polarization among players within the Utrecht team was quite severe, Ten Hag compiled the starting lineup very quickly.

"Goalkeeper: Ruit"

"Defenders: Nganioni, Stried, Timo-Letschert, Van der Marel, Kleibe"

"Forwards: Haller, Balazite"

The goalkeeper, defenders, and forwards sparked little controversy.

As for the midfield...

Ten Hag's pencil hovered in mid-air; he had already written down the names of Ramselaar and Jansen.

Next, he needed to make a choice between Ayoub and Amrabat.

Both had their strengths and weaknesses.

Ayoub was a veteran of the Eredivisie; his experience was rich, but his drawback lay in his poor form over the last two seasons.

Amrabat, on the other hand, was the exact opposite; as a reserve-team player, this was his first season in the Eredivisie.

Amrabat had delivered performances good enough, and convincing enough, to win over Ten Hag.

But due to lack of experience, sufficient trust had not yet formed between Ten Hag and Amrabat.

"Forget it, let's give it a try!"

Ten Hag steeled his heart and wrote down the number representing Amrabat on the paper.

"Are we really going to start Sofyan?"

Fan Fan Dejiahe felt somewhat surprised by the decision Ten Hag had made.

"Whatever; Sofyan's performance has indeed been good, so we can give it a try first."

"Moreover..."

Ten Hag suddenly paused mid-sentence.

"Moreover what?"

"In a competition like the KNVB Cup, anything short of winning the championship is useless. Do you think we can win the title this season?"

"No," Fan Fan Dejiahe shook his head decisively.

"Then that settles it."

Ten Hag spread his hands: "The task of fighting for league standings this season is arduous. My point is to treat the KNVB Cup directly as a training ground, let Sofyan go out and try; his form is truly excellent."

Ten Hag's attitude made it clear he had no intention of going far in this season's KNVB Cup.

Win as many matches as possible.

What if we can't win?

If we can't win, then so be it.

Just as the starting lineup was confirmed and Ten Hag was preparing to discuss tomorrow's match tasks with Fan Fan Dejiahe, a knock sounded on the office door.

The one who entered was Haller.

Utrecht's top scorer!

"Erik, Michiel!"

Haller walked in and immediately spotted the notebook on Ten Hag's desk.

For Haller, this core player, Ten Hag hid nothing, directly spreading out the starting lineup for him to see.

"We've made some slight adjustments; Sofyan will replace Ayoub. I know you have a good relationship with Ayoub, but I believe Sofyan will be the better choice."

Ten Hag had expected Haller to speak up for Ayoub.

But he did not.

His attention remained fixed on the starting formation; he seemed to be searching for someone.

But he did not find the person he was looking for.

Haller lifted his head and asked a question Ten Hag had never expected him to ask: "Erik, have you considered starting Tang?"

"No, Sebastian, that is impossible."

Ten Hag gently pushed off with his feet, and with the help of the wheels, his office chair rolled slightly backward: "His experience is far too insufficient. Have you ever seen a sixteen-year-old player start in the Eredivisie, in the Netherlands' top-tier football league?"

"Moreover, he is a lazy pig; if Michiel and I didn't urge him to train, he would just hide in the dormitory sleeping!"

Haller said nothing, but instead pulled open the curtains, gesturing for Ten Hag to look outside.

Hm?

Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe exchanged a glance, then both moved to the window and looked down.

Tang Ye was on the pitch wearing his training kit.

He was currently...

Simulating back-court passing drills!

"What is this?"

Ten Hag looked at Fan Fan Dejiahe, pointing a finger at Tang Ye on the pitch: "Did you hold a gun to his head?"

"No, how could that be possible!"

Fan Fan Dejiahe took a step back, while Haller spread his hands toward Ten Hag: "It is a fact that no sixteen-year-old player has ever started in the Eredivisie."

"But have you ever seen a sixteen-year-old player make passes like that?"

"I am a striker; I know who makes a suitable midfielder. Erik, please trust me; I can tell!"

(End of Chapter)