Chapter 447: Central Penetration and Wing Explosions: The Return of Manchester United and Bayern

"Wow!!!"

"Tang Ye!"

"That was an incredibly nerve-wracking penalty; when Neuer made his first save, I thought Manchester United had no chance with this shot."

Targeting Rashford, Tang Ye launched his charge.

"Marcus!"

Powerful muscles sent Rashford crashing to the ground!

"Haha, sorry, sorry, are you okay, Marcus?"

Quickly pulling Rashford up from the ground, Tang Ye and his teammates moved to the area below the stands.

"Speak up! You haters, speak up!"

Tang Ye shouted loudly in English.

"Stalin, Stalin!"

"..."

"Forget it, don't say anything!"

Tang Ye placed his index finger on his lips, making a shushing gesture.

The venue suddenly fell silent.

Hmm...

The current situation gave Tang Ye an idea.

Suddenly raising both hands, just as if he had won a championship!

"Wow!!!"

"Glory Glory Man United!"

"Glory Glory Man United!"

Dongqiu Di live match report: Rashford drew a penalty in the box; after Tang Ye missed the penalty, he scored on the rebound, putting Manchester United ahead 1:0.

【Damn, my heart is about to jump out.】

【Thought I, GGBond, only had one kick? Big mistake! There's a second kick too!】

【Neuer is having a meltdown.】

【The power was immense; even if you get a hand to a shot like that, you can't hold onto it.】

Fans only know that their beloved Tang Tang Qiuwang is a master of first-touch control, unaware that his second touch is equally formidable.

Even without the 10% bonus, Tang Ye's shooting stat is a solid 80 points!

"Stay calm!"

The poor Bayern manager began to panic, grabbing his players and giving them an earful.

"Their right side; we need to shut down their right side, and their attacking midfielder too."

"The connection between De Jong and Tom must be severed, do you understand me? It must be severed!"

Even the commentators could see the excellent coordination between Tang Ye and the two players, De Jong and Rodri, so naturally, the Bayern manager saw it too.

The division of labor among Manchester United's three midfielders was actually quite clear.

Rodri handled interceptions in the defensive third and supported Tang Ye's attacks.

De Jong drove the ball forward from the back and supported Tang Ye's attacks.

And then there was GGBond, running around everywhere!

GGBond's brain is too smart; what if we can't figure him out?

No problem; if we find a way to neutralize De Jong and Rodri, then there won't be any issues!

The match continued!

In front of the Manchester United bench, Mata and Martial began their warm-ups!

FCB: 54%.

MUN: 46%.

Neither side cared about possession; Bayern was solely focused on wing attacks, while Manchester United was bent on penetrating through the center, turning this Champions League clash between two super giants into a turn-based game.

Bayern attacked down the wing, lost possession, and Manchester United started a counterattack.

Manchester United attacked through the center, lost possession, and Bayern started a counterattack.

It might seem like a bland back-and-forth, but only the fans present at the scene knew just how damn exciting this match was.

Bang!

Rodri slid in with a tackle but failed to win the ball from Müller.

Bayern's attack...

The pass went to Ribéry on the left!

A direct long-range shot!

Smalling and Bailly slid together, successfully blocking the ball.

"Oh my god..."

"As you can see, although only 35 minutes of the first half have passed, both teams have already produced a total of 12 shots!"

Twelve shots were the result of both sides growing increasingly desperate in this turn-based match.

But today, neither Rashford nor Lewandowski had their shooting boots on.

"Müller, make a run into the box..."

Preparing to play a through ball to Lewandowski, but just as Müller completed the pass, his body was tripped by Smalling.

"Fuck!"

Watching Müller collapse before him, Smalling already realized things were not looking good.

"No, no, no, it wasn't intentional, I didn't touch him, I didn't touch him!"

Manchester United players prepared to rush over to speak up for Smalling, but the referee's decision had already been made.

Beep!

Bayern awarded a penalty!

"Damn it..."

Standing still with both hands clutching his head, Tang Ye's heartbeat began to quicken.

After Manchester United scored from a penalty opportunity, Bayern had now found their own penalty.

Barring any surprises, this kick would be taken by Lewy!

"Hey, bro!"

Outside the arc, Tang Ye shouted at Lewy, who turned his head over.

"Bro, don't score, bro!"

Lewy was smiling; Bayern players immediately complained to the referee: "Interference, this is interference!"

The referee approached Tang Ye: "Watch yourself; if you continue like this, I will consider calling a foul on you."

"... Yes, Mr."

Lewandowski...

Bang!

Lewy struck a volley.

De Gea guessed the correct direction, but it was of no use.

Bayern players began their celebration.

The score reached 1:1!

"Grandma's..."

Running a hand through his hair, having the score equalized left Tang Ye in a rather bad mood.

Bayern's wing attacks indeed exerted far too much pressure on Manchester United's defensive line.

This penalty only came about thanks to Rafinha's sprint down the wing!

Play resumed, time slowly approaching the 40th minute of the first half.

"Look at me, look at me!"

Pulling actively out to the right wing, Tang Ye was seeking combination play with Ziyech.

Alaba came over to mark him one-on-one.

But to be honest, it was of little use; as long as Tang Ye did not attempt to dribble past him, the probability of losing the ball in a one-on-one situation remained quite low.

A little La Croqueta feint!

A sudden horizontal pass found De Jong making a run into the center.

Friends for nearly three years, De Jong knew exactly what Tang Ye was thinking right now.

Planting the ball on the spot, then clearing the position!

Here it comes!

Slap!

A curled shot toward the far corner was delivered, aiming for the top-left dead angle of the goal!

"Oh!"

Neuer, who had leaped out, pushed the ball away at the limit of his reach.

The mistake during the penalty save had not affected the German goal god's outstanding competitive form!

Tang Ye used his cleats to scrape the turf on the ground.

Damn!

"That shot was truly a great pity..."

"..."

As the first half neared its end, Bayern, who had been attacking consistently down the wings, suddenly launched a long pass through the center.

A long pass from Süle in the backfield directly found Ribéry sprinting ahead.

Controlling the ball plus dribbling forward, Ribéry played a curved through-ball right to Lewy.

The pass was not entirely accurate, but it was already more than sufficient.

A one-on-one breakaway!

Bang!

A pushed shot into the net.

For a top-tier striker like Lewy, scoring on a one-on-one breakaway was simply too easy.

De Gea just sat inside the six-yard box.

He now had no idea what to say.

"Beep, beep-beep!!"

Dongqiu Di halftime report: Tang Ye's penalty follow-up, Lewy's brace; at halftime Manchester United temporarily trails Bayern 1:2.

Manchester United temporarily trailed by a one-goal deficit.

However, setting aside the goals and examining the detailed statistics revealed that apart from possession percentage, Manchester United led in every other aspect during the first half.

Manchester United even had two more shots on target than Bayern.

The familiar situation had arisen.

Lacking a top-tier striker, Manchester United struggled to capitalize on their shooting opportunities.

【13】 "I said it, I said that when we're defending, someone needs to be behind providing cover!"

"I said it, I said that when we're on the defensive, someone should be protecting us from behind."

"When you see a long ball, your immediate reaction should be to drop back, not stand there watching! What can you see standing there? The Germans' heads?"

Ten Hag had remained calm on the bench, but the temperature rose once they returned to the locker room.

Every Manchester United player, including those who hadn't played, came under indiscriminate attack.

Tang Ye sat on the locker room floor, lost in thought.

The floor was hard, but that no longer mattered.

Damn it.

It felt like we'd done everything right, so why couldn't we win?

Tang Ye hadn't found the answer, but Ten Hag soon explained the reason.

"What we need is deep attacking play. What's the use of keeping possession near the baseline without passing into the area outside the box? Are you just going to keep taking long-range shots? Which is easier to score from—a long-range shot or a finish inside the box?"

Ten Hag offered some suggestions to the players.

1. Press Müller.

2. Contain the wings.

3. Exploit the space behind their defense.

If they could execute these three tactics well, Ten Hag believed it wouldn't be too difficult for Manchester United to equalize.

"Their wingers are formidable, but let me make this clear: if we're talking pure attacking power, we are stronger than Bayern."

"Definitely stronger than Bayern!"

Tang Ye stood up from the floor, brushed the dust off his buttocks with his hands, then patted Rashford's arm.

"Three, two, one!"

"Let's go!"

"Let's go! Let's go!"

"Welcome back, dear viewers, to the UEFA Champions League Group Stage, Group H..."

The match was crucial; neither head coach chose to substitute their core players.

Mimicking Rodri, Tang Ye reached down and touched his own studs.

"Huh? What are you doing?"

Rodri's mouth hung open.

"Nothing, nothing, just checking my studs."

Get ready...

Kickoff!

"You've got to see yourself from far and wide!"

"You've got to hear them assessing with pride!"

"United! Man United!"

The fans expressed their burning desire to defeat Bayern.

However...

Well, judging by the current scoreline, this certainly wasn't an easy task to accomplish.

Bang!

Neuer rushed out to block Allé, after which Bayern launched their counterattack.

Ah!!

A throw-in directly flung forward to Gnabry at the very front!

Damn, damn, damn!

His teammates were already tracking back; following Ten Hag's instructions, Tang Ye decisively chose Müller among the several attacking players nearest to him.

Valencia was responsible for Ribéry!

A very simple and straightforward one-on-one defense, yet it proved effective.

Müller tried to receive the ball, but Tang Ye suddenly stepped forward and shoved him aside.

"Brilliant, Tang Ye!"

"A very smart choice!"

"After gaining possession, pass it back to Bailly coming up!"

The coordination between the midfield and defense was quite good; Manchester United's center-back drove the ball forcefully up to the halfway line before passing it to Luke Shaw.

"You stay here, you stay here!"

After positioning Rodri, Tang Ye slipped directly over to the right wing.

Due to Tang Ye's movement, more than half of Bayern's central defenders instantly vanished from the middle.

At this moment, Tang Ye signaled Luke Shaw to pass the ball to Allé.

Right now, Tang Ye began drifting toward the center, dragging three defending players along with him.

The Bayern players were being toyed with!

"Beat him, beat him!"

"Shoot!"

The fans were growing anxious, but Allé remained perfectly calm.

Pass to Ye He first!

After receiving the ball, Ye He immediately checked his teammates' positions.

First, a feint to shake off the defender.

Wait, wait!

"Here!"

Tang Ye stretched out his hand and ran toward the arc.

Here it comes!

Boom!

A steady through-pass pushed out.

Tang Ye accelerated forward!

Rashford prepared to cut into the penalty area, but Tang Ye made a rather surprising choice between controlling the ball and passing directly.

Boom!

His entire left leg swung out completely; the ball struck by the instep flew past Jerome Jerome Boateng's ear like a cannonball.

And then into the goal.

"Goal!"

"Oh my god!"

"A world-class strike from Tang Ye!"

A long-range shot from 25 meters; this wasn't the farthest distance among all of Tang Ye's long shots, but it was absolutely the fastest in speed.

Apart from Neuer, no Bayern defender reacted in time!

"Roar!!!"

Adrenaline rushed to his brain; the blood vessels on Tang Ye's face were terrifyingly distinct.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Boom!

He collided with the advertising board, bounced up, and then let out an extremely fierce roar at the stands.

"Beep beep beep beep!!"

The stands suddenly descended into chaos; one Manchester United fan jumped down and joined the Manchester United players' celebration group.

"Haha, Tom!"

Allais shouted loudly at Tang Ye, while the latter hopped and skipped to embrace his teammates.

Suddenly, he noticed that someone's touch felt off.

Bro, how come you have less muscle than me?

Huh?

Tang Ye turned his head; this was an unfamiliar face.

Never mind!

"Wow!!!"

With his left arm around the fan and his right arm around Ye He, Tang Ye had not yet emerged from his excited emotions.

【Phase Two Mission Progress: 6/8】

Suddenly feeling a pulling force from the left, he turned to look.

His fan was being dragged away by three security guards.

"Hey, don't go!"

The celebration wasn't over yet; Tang Ye wanted the fan to stay a little longer, but the security guards directly took the person far away.

Oh well.

"Tang Ye!"

"Tang Ye!"

The fans in the stands were still shouting; Tang Ye raised both arms, enjoying this pleasant moment.

"Crown, crown!"

The fans wanted Tang Ye to make the crowning gesture again.

But Tang Ye did not do so.

Paying tribute to a friend shouldn't be too frequent; always remember that the three stripes and summoning the Flame Dragon Armor are his most iconic celebrations!

The celebration ended and the match resumed; the director's camera cut to a man with mixed-race skin sitting on the Manchester United bench.

【Dennis, Manchester United Shooting Coach】

"Wow!!"

"Great, magnificent!"

"Great"

Without thinking, one could tell this was Tom's mentor for long-range shots; the Brazilian immediately won the affection of the Manchester United fans.

Oh?

Seeing his own head on the big screen, Dennis raised his eyebrows, and his originally bent waist suddenly straightened.

"You're welcome! You're welcome!"

"Substituting Thiago? This... Bayern still wants to attack via the wings."

Although the players possessed good ball control and coordination abilities, Kovac was determined today to attack via the wings!

"Hakim Ziyech wants to intercept!"

"Eh, so close!"

"..."

"Koman, who just came on, can be seen integrating into the match very quickly."

"Eh, a super, super, super huge mistake!"

"Valencia let Koman pass directly!"

Boom!

The shot is taken.

De Gea made a desperate save but couldn't help his team.

2:3!

The situation on the field changes once again!

"Ah..."

Valencia sat on the grass, devastated.

As captain, he had made a mistake at the critical moment!

"It's okay, it's okay!"

Smalling and Tang Ye each came over to give Valencia a hug.

"There are still 20 minutes left; it's enough, definitely enough. We won't lose."

Though actually somewhat tired, Tang Ye spoke with an extremely affirmative tone, enough to instill confidence in his teammates.

"Pull yourself together, pull yourself together!"

De Gea shouted loudly at his teammates while waving his hands.

If they lost this match, Manchester United's status as group leaders would not be secured.

This was something no one wanted to see!

"Push forward; just come up with me."

Tang Ye whispered to De Jong.

"Anyway, if it's about defense, you won't be able to track back in time, so just follow me directly."

The Dutch defender looked at Tang Ye with eyes that regarded him as a big brother.

The great Tom had pointed out the direction of the match!

Cough, cough!

Feeling a bit out of breath, Tang Ye secretly went to the sideline to rinse his mouth, also washing his hands to adjust his condition.

"The current situation doesn't seem very favorable for Manchester United; they might lose their position as group leaders, which would be very disadvantageous for the knockout stage draw."

"Smalling, beautiful!"

The center-back delivered another perfect block, and Manchester United's counterattack finally materialized.

Ignoring his teammates, Tang Ye ran straight toward the front field.

De Jong followed right behind him!

"Come!"

Valencia passed the ball to Ziyech, and Ziyech controlled it and turned.

Slap!

A low, long pass found De Jong.

De Jong passed to Tang Ye!

A super great opportunity; Tang Ye lifted his head to look toward the front field.

Slap!

The target was Rashford; Manchester United had also created a one-on-one chance.

"Wow!!!"

Last season, Rashford would falter as soon as the second half began, but now this situation had improved considerably.

Using speed to overpower the defender, Rashford delivered a cross from an extreme position.

Haller arrived just in time!

Slap!

A standard pushed shot to seize the point!

"GOOO——AAAA——LLLL!!!"

The ball went in!

With an extremely fluid counterattacking combination, Manchester United capitalized on Bayern's mistake, successfully leveling the score.

"The scorer is..."

"Sebastien Haller!!!!"

Boom boom!

Boom boom boom!

After confirming Haller's shot had gone in, Tang Ye propped his hands on his knees.

Manchester United's goal difference was greater than Bayern's, so if this match ended in a draw, they could completely secure their position as group leaders, which was very good.

"Haha!"

Valencia pulled Tang Ye up from the ground: "Celebrate!"

Adjusting his clothes, Tang Ye followed Valencia and slowly jogged forward.

Captain Antonio is so energetic.

Of course, this is perfectly understandable for a young person.

After the match entered the 80th minute, Ten Hag asked Tang Ye if he wanted to be substituted early, but was politely declined.

Thus, the final substitution slot was given to Ashley Young, replacing Luke Shaw, who could no longer run.

"Steady, steady!"

Ashley Young brought a new tactical signal to his teammates.

Today, Manchester United's overall tactics had some issues, making them appear somewhat passive.

In that case, ending the match in a draw is actually a fairly good choice.

"..."

"Tang Ye!"

"One more shot!"

Boom!

The ball speed remained very fast; the cannonball shot straight into the stands.

"Damn, are you okay, bro?"

A fan got hit, but GGBond was definitely not intentional about it.

In the final moments, Bayern still wanted to score another goal, but after Ziyech cleared the ball out for a throw-in, the referee blew the whistle immediately.

"Beep, beep-beep—!!!"

Squatting on the grass, Tang Ye now felt exhausted, happy, and sad all at once.

Football is like this: adrenaline rushes to the brain when scoring, depression hits immediately when conceding, and excitement surges again with another goal.

"Actually, Seba, I feel we should have won today."

Tang Ye whispered to Allé beside him.

"I just didn't expect them to play down the wings; they ran me to death."

Propping himself up with both hands on the grass, he tilted his head back.

The terrible Kovac came up with a terrible tactic, and poor GGBond suffered a whole lot of hardship.

PS: There should be one more update.

Things are pretty much resolved, haha.

(End of Chapter)