Chapter 464: Ballon d

【Spread the word: La Liga and the Premier League are at war】

【To be honest, Tang Ye was a bit lacking, no need to…】

【How dare you!!!】

【Modric got too many World Cup bonus points, my King Tang is such a shame】

【Did Luo Zong and Messi just not show up at all?】

Fans analyzed in detail Tang Ye's and Modric's match data and honors during 2018.

Whether in club or national team, Tang Ye's statistics were more dazzling than Modric's.

But Modric had one more Champions League title and one more World Cup runner-up, which was the direct reason Tang Ye lost the voting.

It's like comparing total kills in CS: you get 20 kills in one match, but only play once. Someone else gets 15 kills per match, but plays twice.

So what do we do?

Ggbond didn't know either.

He can't even get 30 kills in one match…

"We cannot deny Tang's ability, but the fact is he only won one EFL Cup and one FA Cup in 2018."

Real Madrid fan organization posted on Twitter.

Notably, the Real Madrid fan organization made statements targeting Tang Ye.

As for the claim "the Ballon d'Or should go to Ronaldo," the fan organization chose silence.

Clearly, this year's Ballon d'Or controversy was quite significant.

Modric, Tang Ye, and Ronaldo all had qualifications, which is why fans and journalists clashed.

L'Équipe, 2018 Ballon d'Or voting results.

1. Luka Modric, 612 points.

2. Tang Ye, 481 points.

3. Ronaldo, 456 points.

4. Griezmann, 392 points.

5. Mbappé, 301 points.

…

10. Kevin De Bruyne, 22 points.

"So I'm actually quite far behind then."

Holding his phone, Tang Ye leaned back on the cafeteria sofa, his mood seeming relatively good.

"Why are you happy when you're so far behind…?"

Rashford was confused by Tang Ye's mood.

"Online everyone says I was just a little short—I really thought I was just a little short."

Tang Ye still held his phone, then covered his head with his hand: "If I was just a little short, that would be a shame. But now I see I wasn't just a little short, so it's not a shame—I really didn't beat him."

"This…"

Rashford took a deep breath.

He found Tang Ye's logic strange, but couldn't pinpoint exactly why.

"Beating Ronaldo is already impressive."

Fan De gave Tang Ye a glass of milk.

"Oh, thank you, Mr. Fan."

"A bit cold… well, fine."

As soon as Fan De finished speaking, Tang Ye downed the entire glass of milk.

It was indeed cold, but he simply liked it icy.

"So, what are you going to say, Tom? You surpassed Cristiano—this is the first time you've beaten him."

Fan De sat down beside Tang Ye.

"Hmm…"

"I don't know how to put it—it's good, but not great."

Tang Ye opened his phone, glanced at it, then did nothing.

"Now I feel awkward even liking Cristiano's Instagram posts."

"Haha!"

…

China Men's National Team, Dragon Team: Congratulations to Chinese star Tang Ye on winning the inaugural L'Équipe Kopa Trophy and finishing second in the annual Ballon d'Or voting.

Dongqiu Di republished a French newspaper report: At the Ballon d'Or ceremony, a reporter asked Tang Ye who was stronger between Ronaldo and Messi; Tang Ye replied, "I don't know."

Fans underestimated Tang Ye's emotional intelligence—now it's clear they were wrong; he avoided the Messi-Ronaldo topic entirely.

But two hours after the news was published, the situation took a twist.

Dongqiu Di republished: An Italian online psychology vlogger's analysis video stated Tang Ye showed "no signs of lying" in his answer—he truly didn't know.

"…"

Fans went black in the eyes.

OK, case solved.

…

"Tangye!"

"Tangye!"

Time quickly arrived at the matchday between Arsenal and Manchester United.

【Sky Sports】

"The buzz from the Ballon d'Or ceremony hasn't faded—fans outside Old Trafford keep chanting Tom's name."

Field reporters held microphones; live broadcast footage showed many fans dressed in Ggbond and Tom Cat costumes.

The summer heat made wearing costumes impractical before.

But now it's perfect!

"Tom missed the Ballon d'Or at the ceremony the day before yesterday; Manchester United fans are deeply dissatisfied. Clearly, Modric's strong World Cup performance alone cannot win over the demanding English fans."

The team bus pulled up at the side gate; players quickly disembarked.

Ten Hag and Fan De walked at the front.

"Wait, are you sure? They told me everything was arranged."

Fan De shrugged at Ten Hag, puzzled by Tang Ye's behavior.

Manchester United's management wanted Tang Ye to display the Kopa Trophy before the match, but after hesitation, he outright refused—rendering all their preparations useless.

Ten Hag also shrugged: "They shouldn't have done that in the first place. They should've asked the player before deciding whether to prepare anything. I said it—Mutov is an idiot. I've been asking for three months to hire a Chinese chef because Tom's weight isn't going up, and they only started looking after I said it three times. Do they think Tom's assists are too low?"

Ten Hag and his colleagues seemed to have some tension.

"Maybe… they didn't expect Tom to refuse?"

Fan De tried to defend the executives, but Ten Hag shrugged: "Then they simply don't understand the players well enough."

"The Kopa and Ballon d'Or were awarded together—Tom will only feel his award is secondary. After winning, he didn't even post on Twitter. Believe me, no matter how much you persuade him, he won't agree. Focus on the match."

Ten Hag squeezed Fan De's shoulder, then walked toward the locker room.

"…"

Fan De sighed helplessly, glanced behind, and saw Tang Ye and Ale walking over, chatting.

"…"

"Their goalkeeper is excellent at passing, but their center-backs are average at distribution, so the holding midfielder drops back to receive."

"The holding midfielder drops back—that's similar to our tactic—but I'm telling you, watch out for their goalkeeper's sudden passes. Watch the offside line! Watch the offside line!"

Ten Hag shouted to the players, emphasizing tactics while trying to fire them up.

Tang Ye's gaze drifted, his attention on his system.

【Task Progress: Assists (7/10)】

How about that!

A hat-trick of assists completes the task?

"Hey!"

"Hey Tom!"

Rodri pinched Tang Ye's thigh; the latter suddenly realized all teammates had gathered in the center of the locker room.

"Oh oh, sorry sorry, coming!"

He hurried over to his teammates.

"3, 2, 1!"

"Manchester United, forward!!!"

…

"China Central Television! This is live coverage…"

With the referee's whistle, the match began!

Arsenal (3-4-2-1)

Goalkeeper: Leno

Defenders: Holding, Mustafi, Papastathopoulos

Midfielders: Kolasinac, Gündoğan, Torreira, Bellerín

Forwards: Iwobi, Aubameyang, Ramsey

Head coach: Emery

"With the starting defensive midfielder Zaka suspended for a red card, Arsenal are still somewhat on the back foot in this match."

"Yes, that's right—Arsenal have lost all three of their past matches against Manchester United, so the away side is also the underdog here."

The camera focuses on Tang Ye on the pitch, who is now directing de Jong on his movement.

"Tang Ye! He's the inaugural Kopa Award winner—the Kopa Award, established by France Football…"

Emery seemed anxious, shouting from the sideline and even stepping onto the field, quickly being warned by the fourth official.

Because they're fighting for a top-four league finish—the qualification for next season's Champions League—the pressure on Arsenal's players and coaching staff is high.

"Hey!"

With that shout, Tang Ye delivered his first through pass of the match.

It flew past Bellerín and found Rashford directly.

"Wow!!!"

Rashford!

He charged hard, cutting inside after taking possession.

He looked ready to shoot, but remained calm and passed to Alcácer.

Alcácer passes to Rodri!

Rodri controls the ball, waiting for Tang Ye to come up behind.

Drop it back!

!!!

He had thoughts of shooting, but Ziyech waved him off.

Pah!

The ball was chipped to the right flank.

To the overlapping Ziyech!

"Shoot it!"

Tang Ye shouted.

But Ziyech chose to pass instead.

He didn't deliver it to Alcácer in the center—he passed it straight to the goalkeeper.

"Oh!"

Fans buried their heads in their hands; Manchester United players began sprinting back to defend.

"Press him!"

Ten Hag called out.

Alcácer blocked Leno's path, preventing the Arsenal goalkeeper from launching a counterattack!

"Your mother!"

Leno cursed outright, but Alcácer kept pressing.

"Fuck!"

Frustrated, Leno shoved Alcácer, who fell Shunshidaodi.

"Beeeeep!!!"

Less than ten minutes into the match, the Arsenal goalkeeper had already received a yellow card.

Unwilling to let it go, Arsenal players tried to confront Alcácer again, but were quickly shoved aside by Manchester United players rushing in.

"The tension in this match feels intense—almost like the Manchester derby at the Etihad."

"Haha, yes, that's how it always is when top teams play."

"I wonder if Leno's mindset will be affected by that yellow card."

"…"

Thud!

Tang Ye jumped to avoid Torreira, then displayed his ball control in front of the defenders.

Gündoğan came from the side, trying to tackle.

But Tang Ye evaded him effortlessly!

"Go, go, go!"

He signaled Rashford to hug the touchline, while he himself sprinted left from the center.

Lift your right foot!

Feinted to pass to the baseline, then used a scissors kick to pull the ball into the box.

Target: Alcácer inside the box!

Thud!

He struck a powerful shot—the ball hit the goalkeeper's hand, bounced once on the grass, then rolled into the net.

"Yooooh!!"

The decoy tactic succeeded. Tang Ye shouted loudly, then began celebrating with Alcácer.

"3, 2, 1!"

He prepared for a sliding knee slide—but the referee blew the whistle.

Offside!

"…"

Tang Ye slowed gradually, adjusting his hair.

"Was that really offside?"

Tang Ye looked at Alcácer, who whispered just loud enough for him to hear: "Yeah."

This…

"Can you not call it?"

Tang Ye spread his hands to the referee: "Come on, brother—give us one."

"Hey hey hey!"

Ramsey stepped in front of Tang Ye: "No way, no way."

Play resumes!

That goal gave Emery a sense of relief.

But the pressure didn't ease much.

Clearly, despite attending the Ballon d'Or ceremony in Paris, Tang Ye's form hadn't been affected much.

Damn!

That guy just doesn't seem affected by anything outside the pitch!

"Valencia!"

"Ah, mistake!"

He tried a long ball to Alcácer up front, but Mustafi suddenly surged forward and intercepted it.

Fuck!

Things turned dangerous—Manchester United players began retreating.

Tang Ye retreated slowly, watching for a chance to win the ball back.

Sneaky!

Pretending not to care!

Thud!

Mustafi launched a sudden long pass forward—Tang Ye sprinted and dove.

Pah!

He blocked it!

But Mustafi's pass was too fast—the ball struck Tang Ye's calf and bounced away!

Kolasinac secured the ball and ran off under Tang Ye's gaze.

Great opportunity!

Arsenal players played cautiously—Kolasinac advanced but didn't rush to pass.

Wait for teammates to get into position!

Pah!

The long pass switched to the right flank.

To Ramsey!

Control the ball!

Shoot!

Pah!

Ramsey fired his shot.

The angle was sharp, but De Gea stretched to his limit and dove out to stop it.

DQD Live Match Report: Ramsey's powerful shot saved, Arsenal awarded a corner.

"Beep-beep-beep!!!"

"Xuuuu!!!"

The scene was chaotic; Arsenal players were preparing for their corner.

"Honestly, I think for Arsenal, corners might be their best chance to score. We all know United's strength lies in transitioning the ball from back to front, but their flank defense—especially on corners—has clear weaknesses."

Beep!

"Take the corner!"

"First-point position!"

"Obermeijer!"

Thud!

A light header cleared it, and the next second the ball was in the net.

Zhan Jun's prediction came true.

It was indeed a goal direct from a corner!

United players in the box stared at each other in shock; Arsenal players had already sprinted off to celebrate.

"Why are you watching the ball? Watch the man!"

De Gea shouted at Smalling.

His view was blocked, but the defender failed to mark the opposing striker.

Only the goalkeeper truly understood the helplessness of such a situation.

"Damn, why'd they shoot from so close?"

Tang Ye shook his leg.

He had prepared to clash fiercely with Bellerín, but unexpectedly, the corner was delivered straight into the six-yard box.

"I could've come in to mark."

Tang Ye said simply.

He actually felt he had a natural talent for defending corners.

Unfortunately, his teammates rejected Tang Ye's offer.

If Tang Ye had been knocked down and injured in the box by a United center-back, what punishment would Ten Hag have handed out to the defending players?

Smalling didn't know.

He dared not imagine.

"It's fine, it's fine! Just adjust—focus on marking the man!"

Smalling clapped, and United players encouraged each other.

It was only the 12th minute of the first half; Arsenal's sudden corner goal made United's players realize one thing.

Hmm, they needed to wake up quickly.

……

PS: Rested up. More coming later, but maybe after midnight—wait till tomorrow to read together. Thanks!

(End of Chapter)