Chapter 370: Vardy's Red Bull 7: Manchester United Needs Stability in the Late Season

Manchester United legend Ferdinand: The Premier League schedule has disrupted both Manchester United and Mancheng; the timing of the Manchester derby should be postponed.

"You shouldn't have a Manchester derby right before the quarter-finals begin, because players cannot recover quickly from high-intensity matches," Ferdinand stated his views on Manchester United's Champions League elimination when facing a Sky Sports reporter.

Speaking from a player's perspective, Ferdinand explained the reasons for both Manchester United's and Mancheng's Champions League failures.

Five days are enough for professional players to adjust their physical condition to its peak, yet the fact is that high-level football matches consume mental energy to an exaggerated degree.

Facing two powerful opponents within five days, by the time of the second match, the Manchester United players were no longer able to make correct judgments.

There is some truth to what Ferdinand said, but it was quickly dismissed by fans of other leagues as "the excuse of the weak."

The Premier League teams were all wiped out in the quarter-finals; that is the fact.

After finishing dinner and returning home, Tang Ye lay on a chair and briefly reviewed the team's upcoming schedule.

Elimination from the Champions League does not mean the workload for Manchester United players can decrease; in April, Manchester United still has a total of four matches to complete, including three Premier League games and one FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham.

Tang Ye pondered, wishing time could fast-forward thirty days so he would know how many trophies he could ultimately win.

Two, or one, or perhaps none at all?

However, from another perspective, since these events have not yet occurred, the feeling that the future rests in his own hands is quite comfortable.

Ding-dong!

His phone rang; it was Fan Fan Dejiahe contacting Tang Ye.

The Manchester United assistant coach indicated he could help Tang Ye schedule an appointment with a psychologist so the latter could quickly adjust from the defeat.

Tang Ye declined Fan Fan Dejiahe's kindness, stating that he could adjust his mindset on his own.

This statement seemed to contain a hint of showing off.

However, adjusting one's mindset is indeed something Tang Ye excels at!

After ending his conversation with Fan Fan Dejiahe, Tang Ye shifted his attention to his system.

【Phase Three Mission Progress: Assists (6/6)】

Status: Completed

Tang Ye recorded one assist in the second leg, which meant he had completed his Champions League mission.

However, because losing the match was too distressing, Tang Ye had simply not processed his mission rewards until now.

Let's see what he can get!

【Chain Mission Phase Three Completed】

【You have obtained Counterattack Points * 6500】

6500 Counterattack Points!

Tang Ye knew the reward would likely still be Counterattack Points, but this quantity truly exceeded his expectations.

6500 Counterattack Points!

He could use this huge sum to upgrade his items!

【You have obtained Chain Mission · Phase Four】

【Mission Objective: Create 40 scoring opportunities in the Champions League】

【Current Progress: 0/40】

"..."

Although eliminated, Tang Ye still received the Phase Four mission.

Of course, this mission is merely for show; he no longer has any chance to undertake Champions League-related missions this season.

【Spend 2500 Counterattack Points to upgrade Vardy's Red Bull +5 to Vardy's Red Bull +6?】

【...】

Upgrading from +5 to +6 requires 2500 Counterattack Points, and upgrading from +6 to +7 requires the same amount.

With the season nearing its end, Tang Ye needs to improve his immediate combat strength as much as possible, and upgrading Red Bull is the fastest-acting method for him.

【Vardy's Red Bull +7: For the next 120 minutes, you gain 13.5% extra stamina】

【Viking Power: While the Red Bull effect is active, your perception of fatigue is slightly reduced】

Spending 5000 Counterattack Points, he directly upgraded Red Bull from +5 to +7.

Then he checked his current balance of Counterattack Points.

Account Balance: Counterattack Points * 2318

Considering his disadvantage in physical strength, Tang Ye also planned to upgrade 【Ronaldo's Chicken Breast】 to level +5, but his current balance of Counterattack Points did not support him doing so.

There was no choice but to wait for now.

"Phew..."

Exhaling deeply, Tang Ye sat in his gaming chair.

Since being loaned from Utrecht to Yellow Submarine, he had felt greater pressure.

And moving from Yellow Submarine to Manchester United, the pressure on him had multiplied several times over.

The high-pressure environment made him somewhat unaccustomed, but he had to hold on.

Because his teammates and the fans all needed his help!

Mr. Eric certainly did too!

Just as Tang Ye finished upgrading his items, on the other side, Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe were conversing in the office.

They were working overtime again.

Of course, this was not Fan Fan Dejiahe's idea; he was forced to work overtime because he could not let his superior, Eric, handle these matters alone.

"Many young people are like this; they think they have sufficient ability to adjust their emotions, but in reality, they do not. You should ask a few more times later; it would be best for Tom to see a psychologist, and Marcus too; that match was difficult for all of us to accept."

Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe were speaking.

"I'll have a chat with them tomorrow afternoon, but... Erik, I really don't think Tom is someone who needs a psychiatrist."

Fan Fan Dejiahe spread his hands: "You saw it yourself; he seems quite optimistic, chewing his gum and claiming it helps relieve stress? I don't know if that's true or not."

Ten Hag, who was currently chewing gum, suddenly burst out laughing.

"Let's not talk about the gum anymore; just remember to mention it to him again."

Repost: Manchester United releases the starting lineup for the home match against West Brom, led by Ashley Young, with Tang Ye on the bench.

Having just finished a Champions League match not long ago, Ten Hag decided to keep both Tang Ye and Rashford on the bench for this game, deciding their playing time based on the actual situation on the field.

Sitting on the bench alongside Rashford, Tang Ye carefully observed the situation on the pitch.

"Marcus, do you think we'll get to play?"

"I have a feeling we will."

Rashford leaned back in his chair, sounding somewhat listless as he spoke. The Manchester United winger clearly hadn't recovered from the Champions League defeat yet, which was precisely why Ten Hag had kept him on the bench to rest.

"The opposition is playing well; if we don't give our all, we probably won't win."

Tang Ye nodded, expressing agreement with what Rashford had said.

Indeed, compared to their league encounter in the first half of the season, West Brom had become much stronger now.

Live match report from Check Dongqiu Di: In the 37th minute, Lin Lin Jiade's long-range shot was saved; the score remains 0:0. Tang Ye begins warming up, while Rashford remains on standby.

【Tang Tang Qiuwang is coming!】

【I knew GGBond would play in this match; luckily I didn't go straight to sleep, so this was worth it.】

【West Brom is playing really well; their passing and control feel even smoother than Manchester United's.】

【Once Tang Ye gets on, that's when Manchester United's passing and control will truly begin.】

Standing in front of the bench doing stretches, Tang Ye suddenly stopped his movements.

Because at that moment, Manchester United launched an attack.

Lin Lin Jiade played a through ball to find Mata!

Mata passed again to Ale!

Bang!

Ale heads the ball!

Goal!

Just before the end of the first half, Manchester United broke through West Brom's defense.

1:0!

"Amazing, Sebastian!"

Tang Ye applauded his teammate, then slowly walked over to Ten Hag while the players on the field celebrated: "Mr. Erik, should I still go on?"

"Yes, go on."

Although leading by one goal, Ten Hag still decided to send Tang Ye on as a substitute.

Entering halftime with a one-goal advantage, the second half soon began!

A substitution for Manchester United: Tang Ye replaces Lin Lin Jiade, who had performed well in the first half!

"Good luck!"

"Yeah!"

After high-fiving Lin Lin Jiade, Tang Ye quickly ran onto the pitch, while simultaneously, the Manchester United fans in the stands began to stir.

"Tom!"

"Go Tom, go Tom!"

The camera cut to the away team's head coach, Darren Moore.

"Manchester United has brought on their star player; it's clear that the West Brom coaching staff is now under considerable pressure..."

With Tang Ye entering the game, Manchester United made simple adjustments to their tactical approach.

"Come!"

Holding the ball in the center.

Turning his back to shake off the defender!

"Wow!!"

Less than ten minutes after coming on, Tang Ye immediately showcased a central attack.

Looking for an opportunity!

Slap!

A through ball to Ashley Young on the left!

Ashley Young crosses!

Ashley Young's cross went straight out of play!

Somewhat embarrassed, Ashley Young touched his head as Ten Hag's voice came from afar.

"Adjust properly before crossing! Observe first!"

Ashley Young always wanted to imitate Tang Ye, attempting a deadly cross without adjusting first; however, that style of passing relies heavily on talent, something Ashley Young had failed to master.

"Sorry, sorry."

Raising a hand in Ten Hag's direction, Ashley Young led his teammates in retreating.

The clock reached the 72nd minute!

Slap slap!

A series of combined passes on the left flank saw Tang Ye receive the ball from Allé before driving straight to the left byline.

"Get inside, get inside!"

Signaling for Allé to make a forward run, Tang Ye prepared himself.

Boom!

【De Bruyne Underlap Cross Lv4: Deceptive】

Proficiency: 552/800

The cross flew into the penalty area.

Allé's poaching finish!

Goal!

2:0!

【You have obtained 10 Counterattack Points】

This assist completely pulled Tang Ye out of his depression over the Champions League defeat.

"Sebastian!"

Boom!

Tang Ye collided with Allé, followed by Mata and Herrera.

"Keep going, keep going, there's still time, there's still time!"

Having been substituted on in the second half, and with Red Bull just upgraded to +7, Tang Ye was now brimming with stamina.

Tom would use his perfect mental state to influence his teammates on the pitch!

"Beep!"

A direct free-kick opportunity for Manchester United!

After a brief exchange between Tang Ye and Mata, the ball ultimately went to Tang Ye.

The distance was a bit too far, so Tang Ye chose not to shoot directly.

Boom!

He delivered a low driven pass straight through, targeting Bailly inside the penalty area.

Bailly!

With a simple push shot, Bailly successfully opened the scoring against West Brom.

"GOOOO——AAAA——LLLL!!!"

"Goal!"

"3:0!"

"Capitalizing on this free-kick opportunity, Manchester United has extended their lead once again!"

Check Dongqiu Di Match Report: Manchester United defeats West Brom 3:0 at home; substitute Tang Ye provides two assists.

Although he came on as a substitute, Tang Ye still claimed the Man of the Match award.

"Yes, this is exactly what we said before: as a player who is only 19 years old, Tang Ye's ability to adjust his mindset is outstanding."

He Wei lavished praise on Tang Ye during the live broadcast.

A professional player's future is closely tied to their character, and Tang Ye's ability to adjust his competitive state naturally speaks volumes about its benefit to his career.

"3, 2, 1"

"Roar!!!"

Back in the locker room, Tang Ye and Allé roared at the empty air, instantly turning the previously quiet room into a lively scene.

"Okay, okay, that's the way."

Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe returned to the locker room together, and the Manchester United players, who had been horseplaying, quickly cleared space in the center.

"We didn't play very well in the first half today, but we found our rhythm in the second half; I am very satisfied with the second-half performance because we did well in every aspect," Ten Hag said slowly.

Ten Hag spoke gradually.

Tang Ye fell silent.

He was delighted, knowing that Ten Hag was praising him, even if Mr. Eric hadn't singled him out specifically.

Scanning the players around the room, Ten Hag continued his unfinished thought: "I know the Champions League hit you hard; I feel the same way, and I can't accept it either. But we have been eliminated; that is a fact, and we cannot keep thinking about the Champions League."

"..."

The Manchester United players remained silent, one and all.

The reason Ten Hag specifically brought this up after today's match was mainly because he had seen everything clearly from the sidelines.

"Some of you have not yet adjusted your states, which disappoints me greatly."

Ten Hag's gaze fell sequentially on Ashley Young, Smalling, Rodrigues, and others: "Look forward, okay? I need you to look forward and focus on the upcoming matches; that is what you need to be doing right now."

"Not the Champions League, but the FA Cup and the Premier League, guys, do you understand what I mean?"

"Come on, everyone gather round!"

At Ten Hag's call, the players moved to the center.

Once again, it was up to the great Tom to lead this chant.

Because Tom's voice was incredibly fierce!

He was the best person for the job!

"3, 2, 1!"

"Manchester United!"

April 16th, two days before Manchester United's away match against Bournemouth.

And besides Bournemouth, Manchester United will also face their FA Cup semi-final opponent, Tottenham Hotspur, on April 21st, which is five days from now.

Tottenham Hotspur is obviously a more important opponent than Bournemouth, so the Manchester United coaching staff decided to start preparing for both matches today.

Walking out of the locker room, Tang Ye rubbed his hands together.

"Ha~"

He blew a breath into his palms.

After April began, the weather in Manchester finally started to warm up slowly; now, when blowing air into his palms, no mist was visible.

Today was a rare sunny day!

If the match day against Bournemouth were also sunny, that would be great; playing in his favorite weather, Tang Ye believed he would perform well.

Thinking of this, Tang Ye took his phone out of his pocket.

"Wow, you didn't leave your phone in the locker room?"

Rashford walked backward while talking to Tang Ye.

"I'll just put it on the chair in a bit. By the way, Marcus, which city is Bournemouth in? I want to check the weather forecast."

Marcus had grown up in England since childhood, so asking him about such things was most appropriate.

"Bourn seems to be right in Bournemouth."

Well, the team name was the city name.

Tang Ye opened the weather forecast app and slowly typed the first few letters of Bournemouth.

The match time should be at 7 PM.

【11°C-12°C, partly cloudy】

An evening match with temperatures above 10 degrees was quite comfortable!

"Beep!"

A new day of training began; today's focus was on set-piece defense.

The specific reasons need not be elaborated; Manchester United's set-piece defense had been a problem since last season, and Bournemouth was a team very skilled at corner kick attacks.

Some targeted adjustments had to be made, otherwise Manchester United would have a very difficult time on match day.

For the new corner defense tactic, Tang Ye, whose height was under 1.80 meters, was still arranged outside the wall.

Ten Hag noticed Tang Ye's frustration and offered a few words: "Play to your strengths; keeping you outside to observe is best for us. Remember to help your teammates judge the landing point."

"No problem."

Tang Ye gave a thumbs-up, standing on the sideline watching Fan Fan Dejiahe arrange the wall positioning for his teammates.

Ten Hag gave Tang Ye a task: mark the attacking player positioned at the top of the arc on the opposing side.

"That's too simple, Mr. Erik. I can tackle; if he tries to shoot, I'll block it directly."

Although he disliked physical confrontations, Tang Ye was always very brave when it came to using his body to block the ball; this was a major reason for his solid defensive statistics in the backfield.

"Beep!"

"Watch out, aim for the far post! Yes, Marcus, you need to move up too; don't stick tight yet, keep a little distance."

"Faster, faster!"

"Watch the landing point, watch the landing point!"

"..."

The morning set-piece training ended quickly; Tang Ye sat directly on the grass to rest, while nearby, Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe were chatting.

They were discussing transfer matters; players usually needed to avoid such topics, but seeing that it was Tang Ye sitting nearby, the two paid no heed and continued talking among themselves.

Tang Ye wasn't particularly interested in transfer matters, but after listening for a few moments, his attention suddenly sharpened.

Fan Fan Dejiahe told Ten Hag that the Manchester United youth academy had reported a genius right winger.

Mason Greenwood, only 16 years old this year, but Manchester United scouts indicated he had the potential to become a starting striker for Manchester United.

Greenwood!

Tang Ye knew this guy because he had encountered Greenwood once when he first arrived at Manchester United and moved into the dormitory.

Moreover, he possessed one of Greenwood's templates for adjusting in front of the goal.

From Fan Fan Dejiahe's words, one could sense that the Manchester United assistant coach greatly admired Greenwood's abilities.

But there was a problem.

That was, Greenwood was simply too young; his speed and experience were insufficient to support high-intensity Premier League matches.

"So we still have to buy someone..."

Ten Hag exhaled a breath.

Even if Greenwood was truly a genius, it would take at least one to two years for him to mature; what Manchester United needed now was immediate combat effectiveness.

So they still had to buy a right winger!

A right winger capable of handling Premier League intensity!

The moment this issue was raised, several figures of right wingers from Utrecht floated in Ten Hag's mind.

In Ten Hag's eyes, familiar faces were the ones worth trusting.

Even if there were a right winger valued at 10 million euros within the Utrecht squad, he might have already made a move.

But as a non-powerhouse team in the Eredivisie, Utrecht's strongest right winger was valued at less than 3 million euros; even placed in Manchester United's second team, he wouldn't be able to play as a substitute.

The gap was simply too large, so buying a familiar right winger from Utrecht was definitely unrealistic.

Then who should they buy...

Which right winger in today's top five leagues was trustworthy?

"Um, Mr. Erik"

Tang Ye, who had remained silent until now, suddenly turned his head: "I have a friend who also plays as a right winger; he is very strong—yes, the extremely strong kind. I'm not lying."

Ten Hag paused for a moment, then immediately caught on.

If there are no suitable confidants available, then perhaps a confidant of a confidant might be a good choice?

It is true that Rattan Armor is very formidable.

But Sugar-Coated is no slouch either!

"Tom, who are you talking about?"

"Dembélé! Oh right, not the Dembélé from Tottenham, but the Dembélé from Dortmund; he's playing for Barcelona now."

"Dembélé?"

"No, no, no."

Upon realizing that the very formidable friend Tang Ye spoke of was Dembélé, Ten Hag quickly shook his head.

"Dembélé won't do."

Last summer, Dembélé joined Barcelona for a transfer fee of around 130 million euros, attracting considerable attention.

But in his first season with Barcelona, he got injured!

So far, Dembélé has only scored three goals in La Liga; Ten Hag would absolutely not be impressed by such statistics!

Yes, even if Dembélé were draped in Sugar-Coated, it would be useless!

Hearing Ten Hag say that Dembélé would not do, Tang Ye lowered his head.

Ousmane is very formidable!

If Mr. Sitting Like does not buy him, he will surely suffer a huge loss!

Pinned Post: In Round 35 of the Premier League, Manchester United suffered a shocking 0–1 away defeat to Bournemouth. With the FA Cup semi-final approaching, the Red Devils urgently need to adjust their competitive form.

……

(End of Chapter)