Chapter 287: Luke Shaw Returns, Preparing for Liverpool (Requesting Monthly Votes!)

English Football Association, Premier League Player of the Month candidates for September.

1. Morata, Chelsea.

2. Tang Ye, Manchester United.

3. Rashford, Manchester United.

4. Aguero, Mancheng.

5. Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur.

That both Tang Ye and Rashford were selected for the September Player of the Month candidate list was something fans had long expected.

After all, the performances of these two guys in September were truly outstanding!

However, whether for Tang Ye or Rashford, winning the September Player of the Month award would be an extremely difficult task.

Among the five candidate players, Morata and Aguero each had one hat-trick to their names.

Additionally, Tottenham Hotspur's top scorer Harry Kane netted six goals in four matches during September!

"Wow, it seems our chances aren't very high."

In the locker room at the Carrington base, Rashford held his phone, while beside him stood Tang Ye, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts.

"Marcus, what chances?"

Rashford displayed his phone screen before Tang Ye: "The candidate list for September Player of the Month."

"Good news, we both made the list..."

"That's great!"

Tang Ye quickly pulled his training kit over his head, feeling very cheerful.

"No, no, no, I haven't finished yet."

Tang Ye threaded his arms through the sleeves, shook out his clothes, and stood before Rashford: "Alright then, speak quickly."

"Bad news, our opponents are formidable. You know, Aguero, Morata, and Kane."

"I heard about them when I was a child."

Having finished changing, Tang Ye sat on the bench attending to his football boots: "But it doesn't matter; we'll just work harder this month."

Actually, Tang Ye had originally thought he would win the monthly best player award.

Because he remembered achieving an assist hat-trick!

A super assist hat-trick!

But!

Tang Ye hadn't realized that his super assist hat-trick had occurred in August!

This was truly detestable!

"I feel like the players in the Premier League are all quite skilled."

Tang Ye suddenly spoke up: "Don't you think so, Marcus? Especially when playing against Crystal Palace; every time I get the ball, defenders quickly run over to give me trouble, and I always have to find ways to dodge them."

"Last season in La Liga, I played much more comfortably."

Rashford nodded in agreement with Tang Ye's words: "However, Tom, I haven't played in La Liga."

"Oh, I forgot!"

Tang Ye shook his head: "You came up through Manchester United's youth academy; that's very good. Were your youth coaches very formidable?"

Seeing Tang Ye's curious expression, Rashford burst into laughter.

"I feel my youth coaches were quite strict."

"Oh, that's too bad."

Tang Ye shook his head.

Fortunately, he wasn't a product of Manchester United's youth system; otherwise, he estimated he wouldn't have lasted until now, likely retiring directly around the age of fifteen or sixteen.

"Tom."

Rashford called out Tang Ye's name.

Since last year's Golden Boy award ceremony, Rashford had felt very curious about this guy from China.

His way of thinking was slightly different from that of ordinary people.

He actually didn't envy Rashford's background as a Manchester United youth academy graduate!

Wait!

Rashford suddenly remembered something, then lowered his head.

Times had long since changed.

The current manager of Manchester United was Ten Hag!

Speaking of backgrounds, Rashford was completely no match for Tom!

"What's wrong, Marcus?"

Tang Ye leaned his head close to Rashford, squinting as he observed his friend's expression.

"Marcus, you just called my name, but you didn't say anything."

"Oh, I forgot what I was going to say, haha."

Rashford patted Tang Ye on the shoulder, and the two of them ran together toward the training ground.

Thump-thump!

Having heard long ago that this morning was speed training, Tang Ye's heart was currently beating slightly fast.

However, very soon his attention was drawn away by something else.

From the direction of the parking lot, a chubby guy dressed in casual clothes walked over.

Hiss—

Tang Ye felt the man looked familiar; this guy should be a Manchester United player.

Because in Tang Ye's memory, there was an image of this fat guy playing soccer in a Manchester United jersey.

But he just didn't know the fat guy's name.

"Rod, who is he?"

"Uh, Tom, actually I arrived at Manchester United even later than you."

Rodri looked over: "But I know who he is."

"Luke Shaw, left back."

Prompted by Rodri, Tang Ye finally remembered.

Judging by Luke Shaw's condition, he must have just returned to the team after recovering from an injury.

Having one more powerful left back is definitely good news for Manchester United.

"Beep!"

Fan Fan Dejiahe gathered the players together and then announced Luke Shaw's return.

"Wow!"

Amid the celebratory shouts of the Manchester United players, Luke Shaw, having already changed into his training kit, stood beside Tang Ye.

"Today our tasks are speed, shuttle runs, and changing direction, followed by a long-distance lactate run."

Craig was speaking in front of the players; Tang Ye and Luke Shaw, hiding at the very edge, exchanged a glance, then Tang Ye reached out his hand and placed it on Luke Shaw's belly.

"Tom?"

Luke Shaw took a step back.

"Oh, it's nothing, but... your belly is so big, and your butt is huge too."

Tang Ye blinked his eyes: "My previous fitness coach told me that players with big butts usually run very fast; Xiao, do you run very fast too?"

"I do run quite fast, but probably not as fast as Marcus."

A smile appeared on Luke Shaw's face.

As Manchester United's former starting left back, speed was one of Luke Shaw's strengths.

"Really impressive."

Tang Ye nodded thoughtfully.

He checked his system.

【Speed: 73】

There were still 2 points of Speed attribute needed for Tang Ye to activate the 【Cruyff Backline Turn Template】.

But raising Speed is truly difficult!

Training began quickly; Tang Ye was very curious to know who ran faster between Luke Shaw and Rashford.

However, Luke Shaw, having just rejoined the team, did not participate in the team's speed training, which was a great pity.

Tang Ye kept the unanswered question in his mind, planning to resolve it later when Luke Shaw participated in speed training.

"Faster, faster!"

"Tom! Run, run!"

Ten Hag's voice was loud; Tang Ye, who had just stopped due to fatigue, immediately started running again after being yelled at.

"Faster, faster! Running like this in speed training, what speed are you practicing! (Ten Hag)"

"Henrik, remember to go even faster in the next round; this speed of yours isn't quite enough. (Fan Fan Dejiahe)"

Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe stood together; from their tone and expressions, it was clear that these two Manchester United coaches were under immense pressure.

From October 1st to October 13th, Manchester United did not play a single match.

It seemed very comfortable, indeed.

But on October 14th, the Manchester United players would travel away to play against Liwupu!

Liwupu, also one of the Premier League's Big Six!

This would be the strongest opponent Manchester United had faced so far this season.

And after the match against Liwupu on October 14th ended, on October 18th they would again travel away to play against Benfica, last season's Primeira Liga champions.

Manchester United didn't have many matches in October, but the quality of each one was higher than the last!

"Damn it."

Rushing past the cone markers, Tang Ye plopped down on the ground.

Cough, cough!

【Grealish's Draft Beer】 alleviated his mental suffering, but Tang Ye still had a physical reaction.

A feeling of wanting to vomit!

A very, very uncomfortable feeling!

【Speed: 73→74】

Oh!

That feels better!

Flipping his body over, Tang Ye propped himself up on the grass with both hands.

His head was still a bit dizzy, but Tang Ye was in a good mood now.

A long-overdue increase in the Speed attribute.

With Speed at 74, he was not far from the major threshold of 75!

Tang Ye (39 years old)

【Dribbling: 85; Passing: 88】

【Shooting: 78; Heading: 50; Set Pieces: 76】

【Pace: 74; Stamina: 72; Physicality: 77】

【Defending: 70; Vision: 95】

Overall Rating: 82

His stats panel was becoming increasingly magnificent!

……

The Football Association of England: Harry Kane has won the Premier League Player of the Month for September; the player will receive the award after the next match against Bournemouth.

Having scored six goals in four matches, Kane decisively beat out the other four candidates to claim the Player of the Month award for September.

Loyal fans of Tang Tang Qiuwang felt terrible, but this outcome was only logical.

Because Kane's performance last month was truly exceptional!

【It's fine, brothers. Once Tang Tang Qiuwang and Manchester United are fully integrated, we'll suppress Kane completely.】

【Aguero and Morata are also fierce; Tang Tang Qiuwang must suppress those two as well.】

【Is Mancheng this strong this season? It feels like they're even stronger than Manchester United...】

Amidst the fans' discussions, the match between Liwupu and Manchester United gradually approached.

With Salah returning to Liwupu for 40 million euros during the summer transfer window and performing excellently, alongside Tang Ye, the Premier League's most expensive signing at 180 million euros, this "Double Red Derby" was generating maximum hype.

Three days before kickoff, the FA released a teaser tweet tagging both Manchester United and Liverpool; subsequently, both clubs posted training photos of their preparations for the Merseyside Derby. Check Check Dongqiu Di's match preview: Premier League Round 8, Liverpool vs. Manchester United; Tang Ye may be set for his first Merseyside Derby in his Manchester United career.

Manchester United beat reporter: Luke Shaw has returned, but he likely hasn't recovered to his best match fitness; the probability of the player appearing in the next round against Liwupu is low.

……

"Go, go, go!"

Slap!

【De Bruyne 45-Degree Cross Lv4: Realistic】

Proficiency: 421/500

The cross went to the far post, and Mata immediately glued the ball to his feet!

Hmm, so strong!

Tang Ye marveled at Mata's ball control while moving toward the penalty area.

He loved running into the penalty area himself after passing the ball there, because if luck held, he could find an opportunity to shoot on the rebound!

Mata controlled the ball, and Lin Lin Jiade ran over to mark him one-on-one.

Slap!

Mata passed back to Martial!

Shot!

!

Martial's driven shot hit Bailly, rebounded, and landed squarely in Tang Ye's direction.

"Mine!"

After shouting, he jumped up decisively.

As a result, the ball grazed Tang Ye's scalp and flew behind him.

"Haha!"

"No, no, no, don't laugh, Mata, don't laugh."

Tang Ye spread his hands: "I almost touched it."

"Jump higher then!"

Tang Ye shook his head: "I thought that height was about enough."

Tang Ye possessed some heading ability, but he always struggled to stabilize his core.

Compared to jumping to head the ball, Tang Ye's success rate was much higher when heading while standing firmly on the ground.

But the fact remained that if he didn't jump, Tang Ye sometimes couldn't even reach the ball!

"Beep!"

It was Ten Hag's whistle; today's training had ended.

"Phew..."

With hands on his hips and chewing gum, Tang Ye focused his attention on his system.

【De Bruyne 45-Degree Cross Lv4: Realistic】

Proficiency: 421/500

The 45-degree cross was currently Tang Ye's fastest-growing template for leveling up.

He had previously sensed that once he leveled up another passing skill to Lv5, his passing attribute would increase by one point; this was precisely why Tang Ye had intentionally practiced 45-degree crosses during training over the past few days.

Unfortunately, Ten Hag had not arranged much passing training, leaving Tang Ye still needing 80 proficiency points to complete the upgrade for his 45-degree cross.

Hiss—

Previously, Tang Ye had hoped to upgrade 【45-Degree Cross】 to the next level before the next match, but now it seemed completely impossible.

"Tom."

Mata walked over from behind and patted Tang Ye's arm: "What are you thinking about? The match against Liwupu?"

Tang Ye nodded.

He had heard of Liwupu since childhood, just as he had heard the name Manchester United.

Manchester United and Liwupu were both historic powerhouses in English football.

Tang Ye could feel that his teammates were formidable—Marcus, and Uncle Mata, they were all incredibly skilled.

Liwupu was also a giant club; their players must be extremely powerful as well!

"Mata, why is our relationship with Liwupu so bad?"

Tang Ye voiced his confusion, then added after glancing at the red crest on his training kit: "Is it because we're both red?"

"You don't know about this? Then I need to explain it to you."

Mata walked toward the physiotherapy room alongside Tang Ye: "It probably started in the 18th century..."

"Stop, stop, stop! The 18th century? No, I don't like history, I don't like history!"

On the team bus, Tang Ye sat in his seat shivering, lacking even the courage to pull back the curtain and take a look outside.

Because their bus had been surrounded by the home team's fans!

"When you walk through a storm~ (When you walk through a storm)"

"Hold your head up high~ (Please hold Gao Ang your head)"

"And don't be afraid of the dark~"

"At the end of a storm is a golden sky~ (At the end of that storm lies a golden sky)"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"United!"

"Boooooo—!!!!"

After sitting on the chair for about five minutes, Tang Ye felt as though the bus hadn't moved an inch from its spot.

He turned to look at Rodri, who was listening to music beside him: "Rode, do you think we're going to get beaten to death?"

"Hmm... I don't think so."

Thud!

A mineral water bottle smashed against the glass window next to Tang Ye, causing his body to jerk.

What a terrifying feeling!

"Rode, if they rush into the bus, I'll take you with me when I run; I won't leave you behind."

Tang Ye nudged Rodri with his elbow, then suddenly realized the bus they were sitting in had started moving.

"Wow, perfect!"

There was still noise coming from outside; Tang Ye pressed his head against the glass, trying to peek through the curtain to see the situation outdoors.

But the curtain was too thick; having no choice, Tang Ye could only stealthily pull back a corner of it, just as he was accustomed to doing.

"Wow, they're fighting! That police officer has been blocked!"

Spotting a crowd flipping the bird at him, Tang Ye hastily pulled his upper body back inside.

Whoosh, whoosh.

He checked the current time.

There were still four hours until the match against Liwupu officially kicked off, yet Tang Ye was already under maximum pressure.

Could it be that he and his friends were about to become sacrificial lambs in the club's rivalry!

Repost: Manchester United vs. Liwupu starting lineups announced; Tang Ye and Mkhitaryan to play, Rashford clashes with Salah.

【Just watched a Liwupu match; Salah is quite fierce.】

【Not as good as Rashford.】

【Damn, because of Tang Tang Qiuwang, I'm now watching Manchester United players through rose-tinted glasses.】

【Rashford and Martial are truly awesome.】

【Go Liwupu!】

Swish! Swish!

In the player tunnel, Tang Ye, who had originally been standing behind Valencia, stepped forward and positioned himself in front of Valencia.

"What's wrong, Tom?"

"I want to see something."

As he spoke, Tang Ye's eyes remained fixed on a sign hanging above the player tunnel.

His eyesight was excellent, but the characters written on that sign were simply too small.

So Tang Ye swapped positions again with Herrera and Martial, who were ahead of him.

This time, he could finally see clearly.

【This Is Anfield】

"So this is Anfield..."

Tang Ye kept his mouth shut and said nothing.

"China Media Group! We are bringing you live coverage of..."

"As you can see, players from both sides are already ready on the pitch!"

This Red Derby was taking place at noon local time, which corresponded to 7:30 PM Beijing time.

This timing was far too friendly for the loyal Tang Army fans far away in China!

And for this long-awaited match, the television commentators were filled with immense passion.

"The match has begun; allow me to introduce the starting lineups for both teams in this game!"

"First, the home team, Liwupu, wearing red jerseys, attacking from the left side of the screen to the right!"

Liwupu (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Mignolet

Defenders: Joe Gomez, Matip, Lovren, Moreno

Midfielders: Wijnaldum, Henderson, Emre Can

Forwards: Salah, Firmino, Coutinho

Head Coach: Klopp

"Liverpool!"

Boom! Boom!

"Liverpool!"

Boom! Boom!

The Liwupu fans in the stadium were extremely passionate.

Since the start of this season, Liwupu's match results could only be described as average; they certainly couldn't compare to the heaven-defying performances of Mancheng and Manchester United.

But a team's ranking on the points table is not absolutely proportional to its strength!

Manchester United, ranked second on the points table, was not necessarily stronger than Liwupu, ranked fifth.

And when the gap in player strength between both sides wasn't large, the team's tactics became extremely important.

The director's camera cut to the sidelines.

On the home team's bench was Klopp, wearing a hat on his head; on the away team's bench was Ten Hag, with nothing on his head.

Manchester United vs. Liwupu.

Ten Hag versus Klopp!

"Go, go, go!"

Shouting quickly, Tang Ye sent a long pass forward with one kick.

Right at the start of the match, Liwupu pushed the pace very fast, something the Manchester United players were unwilling to accept.

They wanted to seize control of the tempo right from the opening whistle.

Both sides were playing intensely; at this moment, a news item successfully shot to the top of Check Dongqiu Di.

"The Sun"—Tang Ye's father had been invited by Liwupu to the chairman's box to watch the match; he was a die-hard Liwupu fan.

!

……

PS: Regarding errors in the article, you can long-press to report them; I can see those immediately. I sometimes miss corrections posted in the comments.

I've been staring at the screen for too long, causing my eyes to blur when I proofread, so sometimes I can't spot my own mistakes... I'm truly sorry.

Thank you!

(End of Chapter)