Chapter 420: Tang Ye's Daydream: A Lazy Yet Competitive Manchester United

July 15th.

Traveling from Italy to Manchester, Tang Ye returned to the team to report for duty.

With France and Croatia being the two finalist teams, and Martial being the only Frenchman in the Manchester United squad—who furthermore failed to make the French national team roster—all of Tang Ye's teammates were already present upon his return.

Without going to the locker room, Tang Ye, carrying his backpack, headed straight to Daoshitang, casually tossing his bag by the entrance.

"Damn, it's so hot..."

"Hey, Tom!"

Just as he was preparing to leave Daoshitang, Mata encountered Tang Ye entering.

At Mata's call, the Manchester United players in the cafeteria all turned their heads.

"Come on, Tom!"

Ashley Young raised both hands: "Didn't you say you'd be back this afternoon?"

"Uh, I originally planned to go home and sleep first, but I slept enough on the plane, so I came straight here,"

Tang Ye said, sitting down at the table with the most teammates; Rashford made space for him and followed up with a big hug.

For the best Tom!

"I watched your match live,"

Allé suddenly said, causing Tang Ye to pause.

"Huh? Which one?"

"The one against Brazil. I was in the stands just below the presidential box. I even waved at you when you came out of the player tunnel, but you didn't see me."

Although Ivory Coast failed to qualify for the World Cup finals, Allé, who loves watching football, still went to the World Cup venue.

"Hmm, Sébastien, my fault!"

Tang Ye patted Allé on the shoulder: "But I was thinking about how to play against Brazil, so I didn't hear you."

Having failed to acknowledge a friend's greeting due to his own lapse, Tang Ye now felt extremely guilty.

"Sébastien, you should have sent me a text after the match,"

Tang Ye said, while Allé shrugged: "I intended to, but it didn't feel right. Because... well, you weren't very happy after the match."

"Sorry, Tom."

"Oh, no, it's fine. It's been a long time now; I'm not thinking about the World Cup anymore."

Tang Ye said: "I felt pretty bad back then, but it's okay now. There was really no way to beat Brazil; they were far too strong for us."

"But you did play really well,"

Rashford added: "You were practically dragging the team forward."

"But we didn't succeed."

Leaning back in his chair, Tang Ye noticed fries on Rashford's plate, grabbed one, and popped it into his mouth: "Hiss, aren't you going to get some ketchup or something? Though plain is okay too; I usually eat half plain and half with ketchup."

"Marcus, didn't you and Young nearly make it to the finals?"

Tang Ye suddenly asked, to which Rashford spread his hands: "We got knocked out by a last-minute goal. I don't know what to say; why wasn't I played in the first half?"

"Oh oh oh!!!"

The Manchester United players began to jeer, and Tang Ye laughed heartily: "Marcus, you've got an issue with the coach, huh? Haha."

Rashford took the ketchup that Rodri had fetched for Tang Ye and handed it to him: "But I really didn't play well. I feel like if I'd started, I might have done better, but I couldn't compete with Sterling; I don't have his dribbling skills."

"But your free-kicks are amazing,"

Tang Ye said: "Anyway, anyway, let's not talk about the World Cup anymore."

Tang Ye, seemingly hungry, continued eating fries when Lin Lin Jiade suddenly chimed in: "Tom, is it true that Ronaldo is swapping with you?"

Tang Ye lifted his head; the teammates around him were all looking at him.

"Hmm."

"Do you guys want Ronaldo to come over?"

"No, no way!"

Rodri shouted directly: "That guy nearly took us out during the World Cup!"

"Hahaha."

Rodri was of course referring to the group stage match between Portugal and Spain, where Manchester United legend C. Ronaldo scored a hat-trick single-handedly, securing a last-minute equalizer against Spain.

"Rodri, you should have told the coach to put you on earlier,"

Tang Ye said to Rodri.

"But damn, Ronaldo is truly incredible; scoring three goals in one match."

"So, will you leave?"

Mata pressed further, while Tang Ye spread his hands: "I'm not leaving. Real Madrid's midfield is very solid now; there'd be no use for me there. Moreover,"

Real Madrid already having a stable midfield was the reason Tang Ye was unwilling to go.

Furthermore, with C. Ronaldo's departure, the forward line composed of Benzema and the frequently injured Bale held no appeal for Tang Ye.

Of course, this wasn't even the main reason.

The main reason was:

"I told the reporters we're going to take down Mancheng next season; I definitely can't bail halfway through."

"Hahaha."

Manchester Evening News — Three matches fewer, yet Tom remains the top assister of this World Cup; if the Chinese team had lasted one more knockout round, might the Best Young Player award have gone to someone other than Mbappé?

The Athletic — Ten Hag wants to sell Martial to raise the transfer fee needed to buy Dembélé, but Manchester United must first ensure Barcelona is willing to trade Dembélé.

The Athletic can be considered the most authoritative among football newspapers; generally, its news does not contain errors.

Ten Hag wanted to sell Martial to buy Dembélé, but he encountered two problems in this matter.

1. It is currently unclear what Martial's potential truly is, and since his performance last season was poor, the Frenchman's price in this summer window is destined not to be high; if he is sold cheaply only to break out later, Manchester United would suffer a massive loss.

2. Even if selling Martial generated enough money, Barcelona might still refuse to let Dembélé go.

Long before Ten Hag bought De Jong, the Barcelona president had already stated that unless Manchester United was willing to put up Tom as a bargaining chip, Dembélé was absolutely not for sale.

……

In the afternoon, having just returned, Tang Ye did not rush to join the new season's training camp, but instead went back to his apartment to rest and recover from jet lag.

Tomorrow afternoon, Tang Ye will officially begin the club's training camp for the new season!

While news about transfers in the top five leagues flew everywhere outside, Tang Ye lay in bed sleeping soundly.

Standing on a patch of grass, Tang Ye looked left and right.

This is…

The Samara Arena!

Tang Ye naturally knew where he was currently standing.

This was the place where they lost to Brazil!

Tang Ye did not know why he had returned here, but he noticed that there was not a single person in the stadium stands.

Probably because the World Cup had ended, all the fans had left.

He walked slowly across the pitch.

"Tom!"

"Holy shit!"

Tang Ye was startled and quickly turned around.

Before him stood…

Cristiano Ronaldo, wearing the Portugal number 7 jersey!

"Hm? Cristiano, you…"

Tang Ye did not know why Cristiano Ronaldo was here, but Ronaldo's appearance gave him a slight sense of relief.

After all, in such a huge stadium, if only Tom were present, it would be truly terrifying.

Cristiano Ronaldo walked forward a few steps, gradually approaching Tang Ye, and said as he walked, "Eliminated in the Round of 16, are you willing to accept that?"

"Uh, Cristiano? I, I'm okay with it."

"You are willing? But I am not willing!"

Cristiano Ronaldo's expression was somewhat terrifying, frightening Tang Ye into unconsciously stepping backward.

What's going on, Cristiano, what are you doing!

"Why was I eliminated in the Round of 16? Is it because I'm not good enough? Is it because my playing is trash?"

"…"

Tang Ye did not dare to speak.

"Then let me ask you, in a 4-4-2 formation there are only two strikers, so shouldn't I be creating chances for the other striker? If I'm creating chances for him, doesn't that mean I can't get into the penalty area? Why did that Gonçalo Guedes keep missing every shot after I set him up?"

"Is it because I'm not good enough?"

"Then let me ask you, do you think Guedes is even human? With so many chances, if he had scored just one to drag us into extra time, we wouldn't have lost, right? And yet, as captain, I couldn't even curse him out directly."

Uh…

Tang Ye neither nodded nor shook his head.

But he felt Cristiano Ronaldo's words made quite a bit of sense: "Uh, indeed, if the teammates had played better, Cristiano, you could have advanced; I also favored Portugal before the match."

"And then, what exactly is that Adrién Silva? Laozi, a striker worth 100 million euros, paired with a midfielder like that—do you think I played comfortably? Compare my club teammates to my national team teammates!"

Cristiano Ronaldo spread his hands, his expression looking extremely furious.

Tang Ye wanted to say 'good luck in four years,' but thinking that Cristiano Ronaldo would be 37 years old by then, he held his tongue.

"I gave my all but still couldn't advance, so let me ask you, am I willing? Do you think I am willing?"

"No, not willing…"

Tang Ye continued to step backward.

"Then are you willing?"

"I, I…"

Tang Ye's situation was actually not that bad.

Although he wanted to advance, he could clearly see the gap between his team and Brazil.

The strength gap between Portugal and Uruguay was very small, but the strength gap between China and Brazil was extraordinarily large.

"It's actually okay, after all, I did give my full effort, and then…"

"You gave your full effort?"

Tang Ye spoke, but was directly interrupted by Cristiano Ronaldo.

"Then let me ask you, regarding the system's daily missions that reward 3 to 10 Counterattack Points each day, have you been completing those missions every single day? Is this what you call giving your full effort?"

"I, I… What the hell?"

Tang Ye stopped stepping backward, completely stunned.

Wait, bro, how do you know I'm using cheats?

This doesn't seem right, does it?

"Then let me ask you, before the World Cup your chicken breast stat was already at +4, so shouldn't you have been training your body properly?"

Tang Ye had no idea why Cristiano Ronaldo understood him so well.

Right now, he only felt the terror of being completely seen through!

Cristiano Ronaldo continued to close in.

"Then let me ask you, didn't Ten Hag say you needed extra physical training? Didn't he say your physique is currently your biggest weakness, and that training it would make you stronger quickly? But did you train?"

"Look in my eyes!"

!

Cristiano Ronaldo's expression was ferocious, scaring Tang Ye so much that he plopped down onto the ground.

"Get your physique up; do you think those few Brazilian midfielders could still handle you? Aren't you ten thousand times stronger than that so-called Coutinho or Paulinho?"

Tang Ye:...

"Think about the reason for losing the match yourself; if you had been knocked down fewer times, could that Brazilian defensive line have held up? You lost even though Brazil was so weak this year, yet you're still called the world's best midfielder; has this 'world's best midfielder' been preparing with full effort?"

Tang Ye:...

"Knowing full well the World Cup is in June this year, yet in January and February you were still playing with penalties, practicing penalties during training, and even when playing games at home, you were still playing with penalties."

Cristiano Ronaldo squatted down, looking into the eyes of Tang Ye, who was sitting on the grass before him.

"Lazy yet competitive; I don't know why these two traits appear in the same person."

"Tell me!"

"Tell me why!"

Seeing Cristiano Ronaldo about to open his mouth and eat him alive, Tang Ye was startled and sat straight up right where he was.

"Huff, huff-huff, huff-huff..."

He was already drenched in sweat.

The Cristiano Ronaldo before him...

Before him was a mechanical keyboard still glowing.

"Uh..."

Alright.

Tang Ye now knew why Cristiano Ronaldo knew so many of his secrets.

It was another dream...

Covered entirely in sweat, Tang Ye decided not to sleep; he got up, used a towel to wipe his body, and after finishing, sat back down in his chair to ponder.

"Look in my eyes!"

The words of his Manchester United senior from the dream still lingered in his mind, refusing to fade.

Lazy yet competitive?

GGBond was clearly a great talent; why was he being scolded like this by Cristiano?

But thinking about it carefully.

Cristiano Ronaldo had indeed put in the effort; falling in the Round of 16 was unavoidable.

But what about Tang Ye's side?

If he had trained his physical confrontation to 90+, his stamina to 90+, and his speed to 90+ as well, pairing them with 90 passing, wouldn't Brazil's three midfielders be mere toys for GGBond?

The 2:5 scoreline was produced by the Chinese team, but clearly, it was not the best scoreline the Chinese team could have achieved against Brazil.

Because over the past few seasons, Tang Ye had not been maximizing his attributes with full effort.

It was all passively improved through system rewards and team training!

Swish—!

Pulling open the cabinet, Tang Ye took out a handful of chewing gum, tore open all the wrappers, and stuffed them into his mouth, hoping this would alleviate his current terrible state.

But it did not succeed.

Lazy yet competitive.

Tom had been severely scolded by his Manchester United senior.

But was this statement false?

It seemed not.

Romano: Here We Go! Cristiano Ronaldo transfers to Juventus; the contract lasts four years, with a transfer fee of 100 million euros, plus or minus 10 million euros.

"This is the most shocking transfer news of the summer; Ronaldo is confirmed to leave Real Madrid, as negotiations between Real Madrid and Manchester United have broken down," Romano said facing the camera.

Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Real Madrid to join Juventus caused quite a stir in the global football world.

When Cristiano Ronaldo won his first Ballon d'Or at Real Madrid, fans even thought the Portuguese would stay at Real Madrid until retirement.

Yet, this summer, this Ballon d'Or gentleman is about to depart for Italy.

Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer triggered a chain reaction; with Real Madrid losing a key general, Barcelona temporarily halted its frantic pursuit of Tang Ye.

Once ties with Barcelona were severed, transfer rumors surrounding Manchester United instantly decreased by more than half, and reporters' attention shifted to the team's training camp.

On the afternoon of the second day after Tang Ye arrived in Manchester, reporters photographed Manchester United's number 10 appearing on the training ground.

Check Dongqiu Di: Manchester United will travel to the United States on July 19 for preseason preparations for the new season; currently, Tang Ye has confirmed his return to the team to resume training.

Manchester United fans are quite looking forward to the preseason friendly matches for the new season.

In the friendlies, Manchester United needs to face AC Milan, Liwupu, as well as Real Madrid and Bayern, four powerhouses in succession, and these four matches will undoubtedly test Manchester United's condition for the new season.

What kind of performance can the midfield composed of Tang Ye, Rodri, and De Jong deliver in the Premier League?

Meanwhile, at the Manchester United base, the players had finished this afternoon's training.

"I told you, as long as we bring Frankie over, our midfield progression will definitely be better."

In the office, Ten Hag leaned back in his chair, looking very content.

After Tang Ye returned, Manchester United simply played an internal friendly match; although the players hadn't played together for several months, the effect shown in the friendly was indeed better than imagined.

Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe were now both extremely happy!

Thump, thump!

The office door suddenly sounded; Ten Hag and Fan Fan Dejiahe exchanged a glance: "Come in!"

The visitor was Tang Ye.

"Mr. Sitting Like, Mr. Michael."

Tang Ye greeted the two coaches; Ten Hag gestured for Tang Ye to sit on the sofa, and the latter did not decline, patting his rear before sitting down beside Fan Fan Dejiahe, and casually pinching the Manchester United assistant's shoulder.

"Oh!"

"Haha."

"Um, Mr. Sitting Like, I just wanted to ask, given the current situation, is the best way for me to improve still by training my body?"

"Yes, of course."

Ten Hag answered quickly, while Fan Fan Dejiahe suddenly remembered something: "Right, Tom, I have to tell you, last season Eric and I started discussing this, meaning that this season we will increase the intensity of your physical training."

"It might be a bit tiring, but I hope you won't refuse, because boosting your physique will help you greatly at this stage."

As he spoke, Fan Fan Dejiahe reached for the notebook on the table to show Tang Ye the plan he had arranged together with the fitness coach.

"Look here, Tom, you'll have 20%-25% more training volume per week than other players; doing this will yield obvious results in three months, and after two seasons your muscles will become much bigger."

Fan Fan Dejiahe placed the notebook on his thigh and gestured with his hand to Tang Ye: "Roughly at least 10% bigger than your current muscles! The data might not seem high, but the difference will be very obvious to the eye."

"Mm..."

Tang Ye nodded lightly.

After hesitating for a while, he finally asked Fan Fan Dejiahe a question.

"Then what if the training volume is even greater? Will it shorten the time?"

"More training volume?"

Fan Fan Dejiahe was somewhat surprised that Tang Ye would ask such a question.

"Of course it's possible, but we still have matches to play; we must ensure you are in your best condition during games, so an extra 25% training volume is already the limit."

"Uh, Mr. Michael, what I mean is... before the season starts, isn't there still twenty days left now?"

Tang Ye gestured with both hands: "Just reduce those passing and shooting drills, and spend these twenty days focusing solely on physical training."

"Hiss..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe and Ten Hag exchanged a glance: "Eh, now that you mention it, that seems feasible."

Ten Hag nodded: "So your meaning is, we arrange a fitness coach for you to train your weaknesses individually, and you temporarily do not participate in the team's collective training, is that correct?"

Tang Ye's plan was good, but it had one prerequisite: he needed to be willing to make sacrifices.

After all, physical training was not just a little more tiring than ball-based collective training.

"That's exactly what I mean, Mr. Eric."

"However..."

Tang Ye looked up: "There's no need for the club to find me a coach; I've already made arrangements."

"I'll go with you all to the United States, but when you play the friendly matches, I'll go train on my own things. Um... Mr. Eric, if you think this is appropriate."

"I don't think I actually need much time to blend in; if collective training is absolutely necessary, I can return for the final matches against Real Madrid and Bayern. I'll just stay in Los Angeles; flying anywhere from there is quick."

(End of chapter)