Chapter 367: The Ups and Downs of the Manchester Derby: Tom Really Just Wants to Win

MCI: 76%

MUN: 24%

Up until the 15th minute, judging by the displayed possession statistics, Mancheng had controlled nearly the entire match.

The Man United fans at the stadium all turned to look in Ten Hag's direction, hoping to read something from their manager's expression.

But they saw nothing useful.

On the pitch, Tang Ye was scanning everywhere, observing his teammates' positioning.

Man United intended to play a possession-based game in this match, but maintaining possession for the entire ninety minutes was certainly unrealistic.

Therefore, Ten Hag had instructed Tang Ye to adapt in real time based on the situation on the field.

Shifting from a counter-attacking style to a possession-based one placed enormous demands on the players' abilities.

But Man United was, after all, Man United; they could do it!

"Come on, come on!"

After taking the ball from Herrera's feet, Tang Ye suddenly signaled for his teammates to push forward.

The Man United players on the pitch immediately understood.

They were about to change their strategy!

The initial phase of adjustment was often the most difficult; waiting for his teammates to provide support, Tang Ye dribbled alone through the center.

De Bruyne pressed high!

Tang Ye stopped abruptly, pulled the ball back, spun, and accelerated, shaking off the Mancheng midfielder.

"Wow!!!"

"Booo!!!!"

Tang Ye had been dribbling in the midfield for over fifteen seconds now, and he had even managed to beat De Bruyne in the process.

It was an extremely arrogant move, provoking the dissatisfaction of the home fans in the stands!

"Hold steady, hold steady!"

Ten Hag shouted loudly.

He didn't know if Tang Ye could hear him, but he had to issue the reminder.

During this tactical transition, if Tang Ye lost the ball, Man United's defense would be in serious trouble!

"Over here, over here!"

Seeing that his teammates were nearly in position, Tang Ye signaled again for Rashford and Mata to drop back and support him.

Snap!

He passed back to Rodri!

Then he sprinted forward!

And received Rodri's through pass!

Gundogan and De Bruyne both ran toward Tang Ye; the latter pointed toward Ale in the center but actually passed the ball to Mata on the right.

"Rod, come up, come up!"

Tang Ye actively drifted wide to the right flank while signaling for Rodri to fill his vacated position.

"Tang Ye has moved out to the right wing, behind Mata."

"Man United looks like they're attempting an attack down the right flank!"

"Tang Ye's series of dribbles and beats just now was brilliant, but the key lies in whether this final attack yields results..."

Dribbling down the line, he pulled the ball back upon encountering pressure, passing it to Tang Ye, who was ready behind him.

Here it comes!

This was a great opportunity; Tang Ye pointed his left hand toward the penalty area and delivered the pass.

Snap!

A 45-degree cross fired directly toward the edge of the box!

Rodri controlled the ball with his chest!

The Mancheng players hadn't expected Tang Ye to choose Rodri over Ale.

Rodri's position was completely open at that moment!

Boom!

A long-range shot was unleashed.

"Gooo——aaaa——llll!!!"

"Goal!"

"Rodri scores!"

"In the 19th minute of the match, Man United opens the scoring!"

No one expected the first goal of the Manchester derby to come from a defensive midfielder; an ecstatic Rodri sprinted quickly toward the stands.

Boom!

"Roar!!!"

Tang Ye followed right behind him!

【You have obtained 10 Counterattack Points】

"Haha, Rod!"

Tang Ye and Rodri high-fived; the two, locking eyes, seemed to have suddenly formed some kind of tacit understanding as Tang Ye pushed Rodri straight to the foot of the stands.

"Vamos!"

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: Tang Ye delivers a 45-degree cross finding Rodri, Rodri scores with a long-range shot, Man United leads by one goal.

【Rodri is really ruthless.】

【What is the Ball King's little brother? A prince!】

The fans marveled at Rodri's goal.

Perhaps due to spending too much time with Tang Ye, Rodri's adjustment in front of the goal was equally swift.

Every gesture and movement bore the shadow of our GGBond.

Rodri has truly made it in this life!

"Play counter-attacks for the next few minutes!"

Ten Hag called the players to the sideline and outlined the upcoming arrangement.

He specifically found Tang Ye: "If the timing is right, play possession football, but not for too long. Understood, Tom?"

"No problem, Mr. Erik."

Ten Hag patted Tang Ye's arm, and the latter slowly jogged back onto the pitch.

Having completed a series of arrangements, Ten Hag returned to the substitutes' bench while clapping.

He spread his hands toward Fan Fan Dejiahe: "The facts are just like this; my tactics are correct."

"..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe felt somewhat awkward; he had truly realized the gap between himself and Ten Hag.

He hadn't expected Manchester United to actually take the lead!

Erik is too strong!

"Uh... Erik, we'd better not play possession football for too long, because our possession play isn't as good as Mancheng's, and neither Tom nor Marcus are endurance-type players."

"I've already said that."

Ten Hag focused intently on the direction of the pitch.

"Fuck, go down the wing! Why are you clustering in the middle!"

Guardiola was no longer calm; he waved his hands frantically, adjusting the team's tactics.

"If Mancheng can defeat Manchester United, they will 100% secure the league title for this season."

This was what the Premier League commentator said, and Guardiola along with the Mancheng players naturally thought the same.

No matter what, this match could not be lost!

The match reached the 28th minute of the first half.

"Manchester United has started defending again, which means Alari has had almost no chance to touch the ball in the past few minutes."

"Beautiful!"

"Danilo delivered a very precise long pass; let's take a look at Mancheng's attack this time..."

Slap!

Sterling easily controlled Danilo's long pass, then immediately cut inside with De Bruyne's assistance.

"I got it, I got it!"

Rodri followed Sterling.

Slap!

Sterling lofted a high ball!

To Sane on the left wing!

Controlling the ball with a feint, Sane attempted to shake off Valencia.

At this moment, Sterling made a forward run into the penalty area!

Bang!

A square pass to the far post!

Sterling followed up with a shot!

Goal!

Sterling's goal!

The instant the goal was scored, all the Manchester United players on the pitch looked toward the corner flag.

What's the call? Was it offside!

This goal was not offside!

"Phew..."

Holding his head, Tang Ye exhaled a long breath.

The thing he feared most had happened after all.

Manchester United's defensive coordination in the backfield was insufficient to counter Mancheng's attack!

"Wow!!!"

Sterling's goal ignited the atmosphere at the Etihad Stadium.

Several Mancheng fans pointed at Tang Ye and shouted loudly: "It's useless; you're about to lose!"

"Man City!"

"Man City!"

"..."

He shook his head.

About to lose?

Tang Ye strongly disagreed with what the Mancheng fans were saying.

Of course, his most important task right now was to focus on the match.

Tom must use the match result to slap the Mancheng fans squarely in the face!

Rodri walked over to Tang Ye; the two clapped hands, then Tang Ye covered his mouth and quickly whispered something into Rodri's ear.

"Watch Marcus, watch Marcus's position!"

Ten Hag and Tang Ye issued the reminder.

He knew Rashford all too well.

Rashford often exploded in the first half, yet once the second half arrived, the English winger's form would begin to decline.

In this match, Rashford had yet to produce any particularly brilliant performance; Man United needed to make proper use of him!

Five minutes later!

On Man United's counterattack, Tang Ye stood at the edge of the center circle and played a through ball directly to Rashford, who was making a forward run down the left flank.

Rashford drove forward with the ball himself!

The Mancheng players knew they could not let Rashford get past, so Danilo immediately reached out and brought him down.

The Mancheng full-back received a yellow card, while Man United earned a direct free-kick opportunity.

Tang Ye and Rashford stood side by side...

Tang Ye!

Crack!

A left-footed free-kick shot straight at goal!

The angle and ball speed were both decent, but Ederson punched it away!

"Damn!"

Biting his jersey, Tang Ye was extremely dissatisfied with his free-kick.

"Mancheng can actually look for set-piece opportunities now."

"Because we know that Man United's set-piece defense has some obvious flaws..."

The commentator had just mentioned the flaws in Man United's set-piece defense when Mancheng immediately won a corner kick.

This corner was taken by De Bruyne!

It was delivered to the near post!

Agüero suddenly burst out, with his back to the Man United goal, and flicked the ball up.

Thump!

His boot struck the turf, sending the ball soaring.

De Gea parried the ball away!

But there was still Kong Pani inside the penalty area!

A very simple poaching task; of course, Kong Pani did not miss.

Goal!

After the goal, the Mancheng players ran out together with Kong Pani, while the Man United players inside the box had already started cursing.

"No, mark him!"

De Gea spread his hands at Smalling: "Couldn't you just block his position and give me time to get up?"

"How am I supposed to block his position? Am I supposed to defend two men by myself?"

Seeing that De Gea and Smalling were about to start arguing, Ashley Young quickly pushed Smalling away.

For the Man United players, this goal by Kong Pani that turned the score around was indeed not an easy thing to accept.

Originally, Man United had been leading by one goal.

But now they were trailing by one goal!

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: Kong Pani scores from a poached chance; just before the end of the first half, Mancheng reverses the situation 2–1.

【This is Mancheng! Take off!】

【I'm done, damn it; is nobody marking Kong Pani despite him being such a huge figure in the box?】

【The commentator called it; Man United's set-piece defense...】

【It's over then; Mancheng is going to win the title.】

The Check Dongqiu Di comments section was filled with wails of despair.

In the first-leg league Manchester derby, Man United had lost.

Were they going to lose again in this season's second meeting!

In the final moments of the first half, Tang Ye charged into the penalty area alone with the ball.

It was a very good opportunity, but because Otamendi tightly blocked his positioning, Tang Ye simply could not get a shot off.

Otamendi had completely sealed off Tang Ye!

"Tsk..."

Having lost possession, Tang Ye clasped his head with both hands inside the box; soon, the referee's whistle sounded in his ears.

The first half was over!

"United! (Manchester United)"

"Booooo!!!!"

"United!"

"Booooo!!!!"

The home fans were trying to disrupt the Man United players' mentality; halfway through their chanting, they realized that Man United's most crucial point was Tang Ye, and that if they could just take Tang Ye out, Mancheng would have this match secured.

So the home fans switched what they were chanting.

"Tom!"

"T-o-m!"

"Boo——!!!"

Uh...

His name suddenly rang out from the stands.

But boos were hardly a good thing; Tang Ye chewed his gum, slow anger rising in his heart.

Recalling the image of Ashley Young kicking a trash can at Old Trafford, Tang Ye wanted to imitate it.

But this was his first time at the Etihad; after searching for ages without finding a trash can, he could only let it go for now.

Tom felt bitter, but Tom said nothing.

The second half of the match!

When the second half began, Tom would vent his fury!

Agüero, Otamendi, and even Kong Pani—all would be buried with him!

De Bruyne...

Never mind Kevin; Tom wouldn't lay a hand on his friend.

Halftime, Mancheng's locker room.

"Everyone sit down, no talking."

Guardiola pulled out the tactics board: "I've already emphasized to you that Tom is a critical point; we cannot let him run freely with the ball on the pitch, because he poses a massive threat to our goal."

"Defensive organization in open play must be solid; on offense, as you can feel, set pieces are our opportunity—a very good one."

"Break up their defense, then find shooting chances inside the box."

As Guardiola spoke, Kong Pani suddenly reminded him, "Pep, the substitutions for the second half."

"No substitutions for now!"

Guardiola shook his head.

Before this match, Guardiola's plan had been to substitute some key players if they took the lead, thereby preparing for the Champions League second leg against Bayern.

But the reality was that the current situation did not support such a move.

Manchester United had brought out something new, and those new elements made the Mancheng head coach uneasy!

"Hey, Kevin."

Tang Ye shook hands with De Bruyne; the latter said nothing and decisively pulled Tang Ye into an embrace.

Kevin was a friendly guy, but Tang Ye didn't know why he disliked speaking.

Talking with friends was quite enjoyable; it was truly a pity that De Bruyne rarely spoke.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

Captain Ashley Young came down from the front, high-fiving his teammates one by one.

Hiss—

Hoo—

Taking a deep breath, Tang Ye followed his teammates out onto the pitch.

"Beep!"

Arai passed back to Smalling.

Seizing the kickoff, Manchester United immediately launched their first attack of the second half.

His teammates had already started making forward runs, while Tang Ye actively dropped deep to receive.

"Watch number 10, watch number 10!"

Guardiola's voice rang out; De Bruyne and Sané both ran toward Tang Ye.

Agüero pressed at the front!

Mancheng's tactic of marking Tang Ye was truly very clever; precisely because of this marking, Manchester United's well-planned quick attack failed to materialize.

Instead, Mancheng gained possession!

The Manchester United players began retreating quickly.

They were already one goal behind Mancheng; if they conceded another, there would truly be no chance left!

Sterling gained possession!

He dribbled forward himself!

He cut inside!

"Far corner, far corner!"

Tang Ye shouted loudly, and at that very moment Sterling also took his shot.

It was a curled shot toward the far corner.

But it sailed high!

Wow?

Tang Ye froze for a moment, then looked at Sterling.

He found it hard to believe that such a far-corner curler had been struck by a Premier League player.

Bro, what are you doing?

Sterling's curling shot was so absurd that many Mancheng fans in the stands began to voice their displeasure.

Sterling's shooting form was off.

Tang Ye filed this key point in his mind, preparing to make something of it.

The match enters the 60th minute.

At this moment, the score on the field remains 1:2, and neither side shows any intention of making substitutions.

Mancheng has Champions League matches to play, and Manchester United also has Champions League matches to play.

But they have all decided to focus their priorities on today's Manchester derby first.

After all, if they lose today's match, there is no way they can perform well in the Champions League knockout stage a week later!

The 63rd minute!

"Fuck!"

Mata is brought down to the ground by Fernandinho!

The Mancheng players are slowly retreating; at this moment, Tang Ye suddenly creeps up from behind.

!

Allais notices Tang Ye's movement, understands immediately, and decisively starts making a forward run!

"Defend!"

Sensing something amiss, Guardiola reminds the Mancheng players on the field.

But it is already too late.

Tang Ye bends down to touch the ball with his hand, stands up, and immediately delivers a through pass.

"Eh!"

"Tang Ye has chosen to take the free kick quickly!"

"He found a great position!"

It is a quick free kick full of imagination; the Mancheng players' sprinting back to defend can no longer serve any purpose.

Allais controls the ball!

The control isn't very good, but it doesn't matter.

Adjust a bit!

Bang!

A pushed shot is fired out!

"Goal!"

"A goal by Allais!"

"Oh my god, Manchester United's quick free kick has directly helped them equalize the score."

The camera focuses on Tang Ye; Manchester United's number 10 spreads his arms and runs toward his teammates.

The director quickly shows the replay of this goal.

At the very moment Fernandinho committed the foul, Tang Ye had already slowed down, but after glancing toward the attacking half and understanding the situation, he ran directly to the spot where Mata had fallen.

And Tang Ye's sudden acceleration successfully caught the attention of Rashford and Allais!

【Assist brace achieved; you gain an extra 20 Counterattack Points.】

Bang!

Near the corner flag, Tang Ye and Allais collide fiercely.

"Roar!!!"

The Believer Combination lets out their most ferocious roar!

"Glory Glory Man United~"

"Glory Glory..."

Rarely, the anthem of Manchester United rings out from the Etihad!

【Go get them, Tang Tang Qiuwang!】

【Feels like there's hope, brothers; what do you think?】

【Tang Ye is truly carrying; if he keeps playing like this, he'll probably be Player of the Season again.】

"Beep!"

Kickoff!

After it becomes 2:2, the match officially enters a white-hot phase!

On the sidelines, having just finished giving instructions, Guardiola glances in the direction where Ten Hag is located, only to suddenly discover that Ten Hag is looking at him as well.

"..."

Guardiola does not greet Ten Hag; instead, he decisively turns his head back and focuses his attention on the match.

If it weren't for Manchester United, Mancheng might have already secured the league championship by now!

A tenacious team!

Because they just equalized the score, the Manchester United players are now all in excellent form.

In the center of the field, Tang Ye once again executes possession play.

"Manchester United has slightly changed their strategy."

"As we can see, unlike Mancheng's overall possession style, Manchester United's possession is being conducted between three people: Tang Ye, Rodri, and Mata."

"Although there are only three of them, Tang Ye's outstanding individual ability has created many possibilities for Manchester United..."

Slap slap!

Consecutive one-two passes are executed, and Tang Ye arrives at the right-wing byline.

He lifts his head to observe.

Inside the penalty area is Allais, along with Rashford, who is trying to find a way to insert himself into the box.

Both are good passing options, and Tang Ye needs to choose the one with the highest probability of scoring.

Cross it in!

It's Ale at the penalty spot!

"Ale!"

"Header!"

……

(End of Chapter)