Chapter 331: The Winter Window Begins, Ten Hag Doesn't Want to Renew Ibrahimovic's Contract (Chapter 3, Seeking Monthly Votes at the

Professional Footballers' Association: Premier League Player of the Month candidates for December.

1. Tang Ye, Manchester United.

2. Diego Costa, Chelsea.

3. Rashford, Manchester United.

4. Sanchez, Arsenal.

5. Otamendi, Mancheng.

The list of candidates for Player of the Month in December consists of five players in total, with two Manchester United players, Tang Ye and Rashford, selected.

This is the first time this season that two Manchester United players have entered the monthly best player candidate list.

Although they lost to Mancheng and Bournemouth, the Red Devils players quickly adjusted their form and achieved a perfect winning record in the subsequent league matches!

Besides the Player of the Month candidate list, another matter has caught the attention of the fans.

The winter transfer window for the top five leagues is about to open!

Front-page headline of "Villarreal News": Ale has followed Manchester United's Twitter account.

It's him!

Sebastian, ggbond's friend!

The mentor and beloved disciple combination.

The big brother and little brother combination.

The Tom and Jerry combination.

Currently, Manchester United already has three super-strong combinations; the members within these three groups can generate super-strong chemical reactions with each other, even capable of changing the situation of a match.

If Ale transfers over as well, then Manchester United will have a fourth combination emerge.

The God's Believers combination!

Damn!

It is hard to imagine a single team having as many as four combinations capable of generating chemical reactions.

Will Villarreal agree to this transfer?

Apart from news about Manchester United, two pieces of news have also emerged regarding the Chinese national team.

First is the matter of training; starting January 10th, the national team will commence its first training session at the training base in Hainan to prepare for the World Cup, and all non-overseas players must participate.

Then there is Wu Lei.

Check Dongqiu Di pinned post: Media insiders reveal Wu Lei is in contact with a certain La Liga team. (Comment count: 18,231)

【Awesome!】

【Holy crap, after Tang Tang Qiuwang, the second La Liga player is coming, is it you, Wu Tang Qiuwang?】

【I told you there are benefits to entering the World Cup; if you don't enter, people simply won't pay attention to you.】

【Tang Ye in the Premier League, Zhang Zhang Yuning in Fan Fan Dejia, Wu Lei in La Liga, this lineup is invincible.】

【Zhang Zhang Yuning and Wu Lei are bound to be substitutes; only ggbond is a core player.】

【Being a substitute in the top five leagues is still being in the top five leagues.】

After the World Cup qualifiers ended in October, Wu Lei transformed overnight from the Chinese national team's number one striker into the number one striker for a World Cup team.

"Number one striker for a World Cup team"—this title alone is certainly worthy of attention from top five league teams.

It's just unknown which La Liga team Wu Lei is contacting?

Can the negotiations succeed?

"Hmm..."

Zhang Zhang Yuning and Wu Lei are bound to be substitutes?

Tang Ye frowned, lightly tapped on that fan's comment, and then typed rapidly on the screen with both hands.

【Tang Ye replies to Besino's Last-Minute Goal: Everyone starts from being a substitute, don't rush, brother.】

Ding-dong!

Although it was a comment from half an hour ago, he didn't expect the other party to actually be online.

【Besino's Last-Minute Goal: Mainly, the level is indeed poor; Wu Lei is okay, but Zhang Zhang Yuning is much worse; I think he'll hardly get a chance to play in Fan Fan Dejia.】

【Besino's Last-Minute Goal: But brother, how did you come up with this ID?】

【Besino's Last-Minute Goal: Wait a second, brother, how do you have the yellow badge verification? Holy crap, is this the real person?】

【Tang Ye: Not the real person; Tang Ye is still doing extra training; I am his friend.】

【Besino's Last-Minute Goal: Tang Tang Qiuwang, awesome!】

【Following the Female Ghost Up the Wall: Caught Tang Tang Qiuwang!】

【Utrecht First Team Chef: Holy shit, it's Tang Ye himself!】

【Montford Criminal Police: Tang Tang Qiuwang, will Ale go to Manchester United?】

"..."

Scratching his own hair, Tang Ye frowned in thought.

"What's wrong?"

Inside the car, Rashford leaned his head over; the two had just finished attending a charity event and were now on their way back to the base.

"I told the fans I'm not the real person, but they don't believe it."

"Clearly, I didn't say anything."

"What's up with the fans? Wow, does this number mean comment count? Nearly 20,000 comments, what's happening?"

Rashford felt curious about what Tang Ye was looking at.

A comment count nearing 20,000 is rare even on mainstream media platforms like Instagram and Twitter!

Hiss—

For a moment, he didn't know how to put it, so Tang Ye quickly organized his thoughts.

"It's just that a teammate of mine from the national team might be transferring to La Liga, and the fans are extremely excited,"

Tang Ye said seriously, suddenly remembering something.

"When I went to Villarreal, they were just as excited. Marcus, let me tell you, if the transfer is confirmed, there will be at least 50,000 comments. I'm not joking with you."

Rashford nodded gently, unable not to feel shocked by the exaggerated size of China's fanbase.

"By the way, that friend of yours, the very tall striker you mentioned, will he be coming over?"

The striker Rashford was referring to was, of course, Haller.

Looking at his phone, Tang Ye said, "I feel like he should come; I chat with Sebastian almost every day, and he told me he wants to come."

As he explained this to Rashford, Tang Ye's heartbeat unconsciously quickened.

He was about to meet Sebastian!

Manchester Evening News Headline: Villarreal's Head Coach is Persuading Haller to Stay, as Their Tactics Require the Support of a Target Man.

The Sun Headline: Haller's Current Transfer Market Value is 45 Million Euros, While His Release Clause is Only 65 Million Euros.

"Villarreal's upper management did not expect Haller to finish second in the La Liga top scorers list last season; they judged the Ivorian to be a striker worth around 20 million euros, which led them to set an erroneous release clause."

"A 65 million euro release clause is very dangerous, because the club interested in Haller is Manchester United," a staff member from The Sun stated.

"..."

"Huff, huff huff..."

Sitting on the living room sofa and reading the news in the newspaper he held, Ibrahimović's hands were trembling rapidly.

No!

Why!

Hadn't he already spoken with Erik about extending his contract?

Checking his statistics from the past one and a half seasons at Manchester United on his phone, the Swedish striker furrowed his brow.

Logically speaking, these statistics should warrant Manchester United offering a contract extension, shouldn't they?

Could it be that Ten Hag wants to find a rotation player for him?

Holding onto this thought, Ibrahimović dialed the Manchester United head coach's number.

Seventeen minutes later.

"..."

Hanging up the phone, Ibrahimović gently placed his mobile on the coffee table, his face displaying not a shred of expression.

He walked over to the balcony and fell into deep thought.

His performance during his Manchester United career had been good; Ibrahimović had always firmly believed this sentence, that his performance was sufficiently outstanding.

Yet Ten Hag still showed no intention of activating the contract extension clause.

Perhaps Ten Hag felt he was too old?

While pondering team matters, a sound came from the stairs at that moment.

A smile suddenly appeared on Ibrahimović's face, because walking up was his eleven-year-old son, Maximilian.

"Dad, during our training today, a huge mouse ran onto the pitch! Haha, there are simply too many mice in Manchester!"

Maximilian looked very happy: "To be honest, I still think Italy is better, but Dad, that mouse was quite interesting; we wanted to keep it, but the coach said the mouse had to be driven away, so there was nothing we could do."

Maximilian flopped down onto the sofa.

"Let me tell you, Dad, that mouse kept darting back and forth across the training ground; it must have thought it was really something!"

"But no matter how impressive it was, it was useless, because our coach has already declared it must be driven away. Fuck, what a pity!"

Hiss—

"This, this..."

By the balcony, Ibrahimović stood stunned in place, unable to utter a single word.

Manchester United beat reporter Whitwell: Reliable information indicates that Manchester United has contacted De Jong's agent. Ten Hag told Manchester United's upper management that the Barcelona midfielder is one of the players he once coached, and he is optimistic about De Jong's prospects at Manchester United.

News from the Manchester United beat reporter quickly surged to the top of the trending searches.

Besides Haller, Ten Hag also wants to secure De Jong during the winter transfer window!

Frenkie de Jong!

Some fans who have only recently started watching football might not know who this is, but introducing De Jong to new fans is actually very simple.

One sentence.

The Armored Army!

With just one sentence of three words, De Jong's noble status was directly revealed.

Former Utrecht defensive midfielder, one of Ten Hag's favorite disciples!

The news that De Jong was coming excited the fans, because this guy's performance during his time at Utrecht was still very brilliant.

However, regarding whether De Jong could actually arrive at Manchester United during the winter transfer window, fans remained skeptical.

Last summer transfer window, Manchester United spent far, far too much money to acquire Tang Ye.

So, can Manchester United simultaneously satisfy the demands of both Villarreal and Barcelona in this winter transfer window?

【He probably can't come; it's said this De Jong has a 'Childhood Barcelona Dream'.】

【What use is a 'Childhood Barcelona Dream'? Although De Jong has talent, Barcelona gives him absolutely no playing opportunities.】

【Will he get playing opportunities if he comes to Manchester United?】

"It's hard to say; I watched some of De Jong's Eredivisie match footage, and he seems like high-quality goods."

"Whether he's high-quality goods or not, anyone coming from under Ten Hag is a hundred percent guaranteed to start for Manchester United."

"That's true enough."

... Time arrived at January 1st.

2018 had begun!

Stepping off the train, Tang Ye shouldered his backpack and quickly ran onto the team bus.

This was Liwupu, England, also the location of Everton's home ground, Manchester United's opponent today.

As early as last night, Manchester United's official account posted a teaser poster for this match on Instagram, with the caption: The First Battle of 2018.

Facing the mid-table league team Everton, Manchester United was eager to secure their first victory of 2018.

"You actually didn't ask me for leave yesterday; that surprised me a bit."

Ten Hag, sitting in the seat in front of Tang Ye, suddenly spoke.

"Hmm, Mr. Sitting Like, why would I need to ask for leave?"

"Wasn't yesterday New Year's Day?"

!

"New Year's Day?"

Tang Ye paused for a moment.

"It's a festival over in your part of China, said to be quite important?"

Ten Hag wore an expression of contemplation.

"Oh, you mean Yuan Dan (Chinese), but Yuan Dan is today."

"Chinese festivals definitely follow Chinese time; by last night our time, it was already Yuan Dan in China."

"That is true..."

Finding Ten Hag's words quite reasonable, Tang Ye nodded lightly.

"However, Mr. Sitting Like, my parents have already been to Manchester once; since I didn't go to the cafeteria for dinner last night, I spent the Spring Festival with my parents at a Chinese restaurant. By the way, I also invited Rod and Marcus."

Tang Ye patted Rodri, who was sitting to his right.

"No, Tom, you didn't invite me."

Mata stood in the aisle and spread his hands toward Tang Ye.

"No, no, it's not what you think, Mata; next time I will definitely invite you, okay?"

Tang Ye explained very quickly.

"By the way, Mr. Sitting Like, I saw in the news that Frenkie is also coming; is that true or false?"

Ten Hag shrugged: "I did indeed contact Frenkie, but we probably won't consider him again during this winter window, because funding is truly an issue; Barcelona won't let him go for a price lower than 40 million euros, as they can see Frenkie's talent."

"But Frenkie told me that his dream is to play for Barcelona."

Ten Hag raised an eyebrow: "I know that, but... when did he tell you that?"

"I can't remember clearly; it should have been at the end of a KNVB Cup match; we were celebrating then, and Frenkie said he wanted to play for Barcelona."

"That's not a problem."

Ten Hag seemed fully prepared.

"Frenkie isn't getting many playing opportunities at Barcelona right now; he is too young, so he will agree to come over."

"That's great then!"

Tang Ye's mood suddenly improved.

All the transfers arriving were friends he knew.

This feeling was simply too wonderful!

Check Dongqiu Di pinned post: Away match against Everton, Manchester United aims for the first victory of the new year.

Click-clack! Click-clack!

In the press room of Goodison Park, Ten Hag accepted pre-match interviews from reporters.

"Will Alli arrive at Manchester United during the winter window?"

As expected, the reporters' first question was about Alli.

After all, Alli was the recipient of last season's La Liga Silver Boot; although he hasn't scored as many goals this season, he is ultimately still a star player for Yellow Submarine!

Ten Hag had long prepared an answer for this question.

Spreading his right hand open: "As you can see, we are communicating with Villarreal, although progress may not be that smooth."

Subsequently, reporters asked about Ibrahimović's contract renewal; Ten Hag's answer was that it was still unclear, as the winter window period is very long.

The final question concerned De Jong.

"Of course we want to secure De Jong, because I know he is an excellent player; although among all the players I have coached, Frenkie is not the most outstanding, he possesses great potential, and I believe he can become a key player for Manchester United."

Click-clack! Click-clack!

Ten Hag held De Jong in very high regard, yet when facing reporters, he explicitly stated that De Jong was not the most formidable among all the players he had ever coached.

Wasn't this showing too little face to De Jong?

Don't ask why.

This is not the question to ask!

"China Central Television! Here is the live broadcast currently being brought to you..."

"The match has begun; now let me introduce the starting lineups for both sides in this game!"

"First, the home team, Everton!"

Everton (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Pickford

Defenders: Royle, Michael Keane, Ashley Williams, Martina

Midfielders: Tom Davies, Rooney, Schneiderlin

Forwards: Vlasic, Niasse, Bolasie

Besides Rooney, another player within the Everton squad had caught the attention of Manchester United fans.

Tom Williams!

The opposing side actually has a Tom too!

It's just unknown how strong this Tom is!

Check Dongqiu Di pinned post: Come watch quickly! The first battle of 2018, Everton vs. Manchester United, the Tom Derby kicks off at Goodison Park!

【Tom Davies wanting to pass himself off as our great Tom is thinking too much; they aren't even in the same league.】

【Holy sh*t, the Tom Derby, damn it.】

Tom Davies and Tom!

What is the gap in strength between these two? The veteran Premier League fans in the comments section soon provided an explanation.

Tom Davies is merely a little Tom, not even worth mentioning.

Then what is Tang Ye?

Tang Ye is the big Tom.

The Tom King!

Although he is a lazy Tom King, he is still not someone like Davies, this little Tom, can compare to!

15th minute of the first half!

"Go!"

Tang Ye lofted the ball directly to Mkhitaryan up front.

Manchester United's attacking players began pushing forward!

In the first match of the new year, the Manchester United players seemed to have refreshed their physical condition, each one running faster than the last.

Although Tang Ye was not fast, if he could get going, he was still quite fast.

Mkhitaryan dribbled the ball himself to near the byline!

Slap!

A cutback found Ibrahimović!

Ibrahimović passed again to Rashford!

Bang!

Rashford crossed horizontally to find Ibrahimović inside the penalty area!

"Shot!"

"Goal!"

"17th minute of the match, a goal by Zlatan Ibrahimović! Manchester United opens the scoring!"

"Beautiful!"

Using "beautiful" to describe this Manchester United attack was indeed very appropriate.

Starting from Tang Ye's lofted ball, Manchester United's attack flowed very smoothly, just like a traditional possession-based team.

"It's not over yet, stay steady, remember to stay steady!"

While celebrating, Valencia reminded his teammates.

"Let's go!"

Rashford and Tang Ye high-fived.

"Mm, let's go, Marcus!"

Ten Hag leaned back in his chair on the substitutes' bench, glancing at Fan Fan Dejiahe beside him who was staring at the screen: "Michel, no need to be too nervous for this match."

Fan Fan Dejiahe nodded quickly.

Even so, his eyes still hadn't left the laptop screen.

Ten Hag sighed; this was just how Fan Fan Dejiahe was—his heart rate wouldn't come down until the match ended.

"Wow!!!"

Suddenly, cheers from the fans erupted in the stands.

Everton's counter-attack succeeded!

Pickford's long kick bypassed the defensive players Manchester United had arranged on the wings.

Near the byline, Rooney received the ball!

First pass to a teammate, then cut inside to a position where he could shoot.

Then receive the ball again!

Rooney had already prepared for a long-range shot, but at this moment, Rodri rushed out from who-knows-where, positioned himself in front of Rooney, and directly stole the ball.

Rooney had significant weight, but in physical confrontations, he was still no match for Rodri.

Beautiful, Rodri!

Mentally praising his little brother, he immediately signaled his teammates to get the ball out.

"Counter-attack, counter-attack!"

"Look at me, look at me, look at me!"

Shaking his head in all directions to find a suitable position, Tang Ye sprinted over quickly.

He arrived beside Rashford.

Slap!

A long pass from Valencia in the backfield!

"Move forward, move forward!"

Tang Ye signaled for Rashford to make a forward run, then swayed leisurely to the spot beneath the ball's landing point.

Lift the right foot!

Boom!

Using the chance to control the ball, he tapped it forward to Rashford ahead!

"Wow!"

"Tang Ye, an almost perfect ball control!"

"Rashford dribbles forward!"

"Look at Everton's backfield; the defenders are about to get into position!"

(End of Chapter)