Chapter 513: Old Trafford's Asian Cup Champion's Medal, Manchester United

Pinned poster: The second Premier League "Double Red" clash of the 2018/19 season arrives; Tang Ye will display his Asian Cup champion's medal before kickoff.

Three weeks have passed since China won the Asian Cup, yet Manchester United has waited until now to let Tang Ye showcase the champion's medal.

This is because it is Manchester United's first home match in February!

Players from both Manchester United and Liverpool emerged one by one from the tunnel, the stands terrifyingly lively.

"Tang Ye!"

"Tang Ye!"

"Tang Ye!"

All players on both teams' rosters came out to warm up.

Except for Tang Ye.

He was also the object of the Manchester United fans' cheers.

Manchester United players formed two lines at the front of the tunnel as the stadium lights focused there.

"Now, let us warmly welcome the champion of... (Let us give a warm welcome to the winner of the 2019 UAE Asian Cup)"

"Tang Ye!"

The announcer and the fans shouted Tang Ye's name together; the next second, the familiar Manchester United number 10 walked out under the flashbulbs.

Wearing a golden medal around his neck and holding a golden boot in his hand, Tang Ye used his free hand to greet the fans.

These were the Asian Cup champion's medal and the Golden Boot.

Actually, GG Bond also had an Asian Cup MVP award, but after consideration, he decided to forgo displaying the MVP trophy.

Because GG Bond is not Nezha; he only has two hands, and if he held all the trophies, he wouldn't be able to greet the fans!

"Tang Ye!"

"Tang Ye!"

Tang Ye raised the medal around his neck while several professional photographers followed alongside him.

His Manchester United teammates stood in two rows, welcoming Tang Ye, who had just entered the pitch, with applause.

"Amazing, Tom!"

"Haha, long live!"

Tang Ye high-fived Rodri, Ashley Young, Rashford...

Every single teammate had to receive a high-five!

And of course, the respected Mr. Erik!

The Liverpool players were also clapping; Tang Ye wanted to go over and greet them.

But recalling the strange and peculiar grudge between Manchester United and Liverpool, he ultimately gave up.

GG Bond is not God; he cannot do whatever he wants.

If he high-fived the Liverpool players, he would be fiercely condemned by his own fans!

"Tang Ye, midfielder for the Chinese national team, champions of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in the UAE; scoring 14 goals across three group stage matches and four knockout matches, breaking the tournament record..."

【Grandmaster GG!!!】

【The Asian Cup champion's medal makes its debut on a Premier League pitch; our King of Football Tang really has some presence.】

【Does the international web know about the Grandmaster GG meme?】

【GG Bond definitely knows; whether Grandmaster GG is known is hard to say, but I feel it's probably similar; many foreign Manchester United fans watch Chinese national team matches.】

【Manchester United: Liverpool, do you have a senior national team tournament championship? We have the Asian Cup championship.】

The medal display timing was just right; with half an hour left before kickoff, Manchester United had already established a momentum advantage.

Walking around the stands, Tang Ye held the medal high so the fans in the stands could clearly see the inscription on it.

"Viva Tom Tom!"

"Viva Tom Tom!!!"

While Tang Ye interacted with the fans, Manchester United's official account released photos of him emerging from the tunnel wearing the champion's medal.

Accompanied by the caption: Old Trafford's first Asian Cup champion. #ggmu #ggbond #Tang Ye #asiancupandunited

"China Central Television, Central..."

"After the Asian Cup champion's medal display ceremony concluded, the second 'Double Red' clash of this Premier League season has begun."

"We can see personal posters of Tang Ye covering the stands now. Speaking of which, Manchester United's timing for this medal display was just right!"

After briefly reviewing the difficult journey the Chinese team took to win the Asian Cup championship, the commentators began introducing the starting lineups for both sides.

Liverpool (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Alisson

Defenders: Robertson, Fan Daike, Matip, Alexander-Arnold

Midfielders: Wijnaldum, Fabinho, Henderson

Forwards: Mané, Firmino, Salah

Head Coach: Klopp

The away side Liverpool's starting lineup today is very classic; in comparison, Manchester United's lineup today is somewhat bold.

De Jong suffered a leg cramp injury during training, so for this match, Red Devils academy graduate McTominay replaces De Jong in the starting lineup.

Actually, when the starting lineup was first released, Manchester United fans were somewhat nervous.

Including now.

Because McTominay truly lacks experience in confronting strong Premier League teams!

"Manchester United still needs to be careful here. Yes, because Liverpool is very likely to target McTominay as a weak point."

"After all, for Liwupu, young players like McTominay are the easiest to break through."

"Yes, so while Rodri and Tang Ye are carrying out their tasks, they must also keep an eye on McTominay."

What He Wei said in the live broadcast room, Fan Fan Dejiahe had of course already told the Manchester United players.

It could also be seen during the match that Rodri was very attentive to McTominay.

As for Tang Ye...

There was no need to emphasize tactics for this guy.

Even if Fan Fan Dejiahe said nothing, he would still think of his teammates in every way!

Bang!

Smolain completed the interception, and McTominay rushed up quickly.

Getting the ball before Salah!

"Beautiful, McTominay!"

"Turn and shake him off!"

"Sss! This move looks like it was learned from Tang Ye."

McTominay learned something from the team's big brother and applied it in the actual match.

However, there is a huge difference between showing off for one second and performing excellently throughout the entire match.

Let's see what McTominay does next!

Dribbling forward himself!

To Tang Ye!

Having grasped the situation in the front field before receiving the ball, Tang Ye made his choice the moment the ball came to him.

The supporting foot planted.

The body twisted!

Then!

Pa!

A long pass without stopping the ball directly split the defense to Rashford on the left wing making his run to the baseline!

"Oh!"

"Beat him, beat him!"

Amidst the fans' screams, Rashford accelerated forward.

Arnold was already returning to defend!

Rashford wanted to pass the ball to a teammate, but was refused by Tang Ye.

"Dribble it yourself, dribble it yourself!"

"Through the middle!"

Tang Ye pointed out a clear path for Rashford; the latter decisively cut inside, and the sudden change of direction caused Arnold to struggle to keep up.

Seeing this, Rashford pushed his speed to the limit and successfully shook off Arnold.

Bang!

A through ball to Valencia on the right baseline!

Robertson jumped out ready to block, but it was too late.

Pa!

Valencia sent in a cross!

A high ball cut back diagonally straight to Tang Ye!

Sss—

Taking a deep breath, Tang Ye steadied his mindset.

With the buff of the first touch, he could stop the ball very easily with his foot.

But he wanted to exploit a bug.

Bang!

Valencia's long pass struck Tang Ye's chest.

While retaining the first touch, Tang Ye completed the stop.

Prepare...

Bang!

The instant Tang Ye struck for a long-range shot, Fabinho successfully slid in to block.

"Damn!"

Clutching his head with both hands, Tang Ye regretted it bitterly.

If he had known Fabinho's defense was so timely, he should have volleyed it!

"Be bolder!"

Ten Hag shouted loudly.

He could see that Tang Ye was playing a bit too cautiously today.

For other players, caution might be a good thing.

But for Tang Ye, it was not the case.

Fans familiar with ggbond know that the Master is an opportunist.

And the core of opportunism is trying.

You have to keep trying!

"..."

The match reached the 10th minute.

Liwupu's possession rate led only slightly over Man United's, which aroused Klopp's dissatisfaction.

The German wearing a cap was loudly berating the Liwupu players on the field!

However, possession rate was not something entirely controlled by Liwupu; Tang Ye's sudden caution meant Man United's possession in this match was destined not to drop too low.

With Salah, Firmino, and Mané coordinating their press, Man United's backfield unsurprisingly encountered difficulties playing out again.

"I've got it!"

McTominay boldly took the ball.

De Gea passed the ball over!

Slap!

Mané rushed up and tangled with McTominay.

The Liwupu forward's original plan had been to use his physical advantage to win the ball, but he failed on the first attempt.

After wasting that chance, a second attempt to press would constitute a foul.

Bang!

Mané tripped McTominay, and the referee blew for an attacking foul by Liwupu.

The Man United fans could be said to have breathed a sigh of relief.

The Liwupu forward's foul could be said to have directly resolved Man United's crisis in playing out this time.

Check Dongqiu Di live match report: In the 17th minute, Tang Ye took on Alexander-Arnold one-on-one, then was fouled and fell.

"Hey!"

Rashford spread his hands, Rodri quickly ran up, and chest-bumped Alexander-Arnold.

"Hmm... After knocking Tang Ye down, Alexander-Arnold didn't help him up but walked away directly. This seems to have caused some dissatisfaction among the Man United players..."

Man United and Liwupu erupted into their first confrontation of the match, unexpectedly over such a minor foul.

"McTominay, hey, the lad is strong, keeping Salah and Firmino outside so they can't get in, haha."

"The confrontation is over; this is a direct free-kick opportunity for Man United."

For the direct free-kick from a position slightly left of center, Rashford and Tang Ye stood on the left and right respectively.

These were the two players with the highest free-kick ability within the Man United squad!

"Tang Ye!"

"If it's Tang Ye, then most likely he'll shoot directly."

He ran to the free-kick spot.

Everyone expected Tang Ye to shoot directly, but unexpectedly, he stepped over the ball.

It was Rashford!

Bang!

The free-kick was struck.

Rashford's free-kick cleared the wall, then began to dip.

This was a very standard knuckleball!

The angle wasn't great, but the ball speed was fast enough, so Alisson failed to make the save.

"Gooo——aaaaaa——llllll!!!"

"The first goal of the match has been born!"

"Rashford!"

"From Marcus Rashford!!!"

A rather beautiful knuckleball goal; the Man United players immediately began their celebration.

"Roar!!!"

Bang!

Rashford executed a knee slide, then stood up and let out a roar toward the stands.

The Man United players were rushing over!

The replay was shown.

"Man United's set-piece tactic this time was very successful."

"Yes, Tang Ye jumped away directly; that's something the Liwupu players didn't notice."

"Rashford's free-kick was also struck perfectly."

With heaven's timing, earth's advantage, and human harmony, in the 20th minute, Man United smashed open Liwupu's goal courtesy of a free-kick from Rashford.

"Awesome, Marcus."

Too excited, Tang Ye directly blurted out Chinese during the celebration.

Rodri was watching Tang Ye from the sideline; the latter decisively placed his hand on Rodri's shoulder: "Rodri, no need to look, you're awesome too."

Slap!

The players high-fived each other for encouragement, while Klopp shouted loudly at the Liwupu players.

"Stay focused! Don't be deceived."

"I've emphasized this to you: besides Tom, Man United has other free-kick takers. When Tom moves, you all move. And then what?"

Klopp spread his hands: "And then our wall disappeared completely. One person moves, and the entire wall we arranged scatters. What are we defending then? Are we just handing the goal over to the opponent to shoot!"

Klopp berated Liwupu's defensive players, and the attacking players did not escape unscathed either.

If the Liwupu players harbored fear of Master GG, then they would be unable to achieve victory in the Double Red Derby.

"Pull yourselves together, no fear!"

The match resumes.

Time reaches the 25th minute of the match, which is 5 minutes after the first goal was scored.

"Manchester United is currently leading, so they can play a bit more conservatively."

"Yes, exactly. After all, Manchester United fielded young players in this match. If it weren't a full-strength lineup like Liwupu's, I would still recommend Manchester United to play a bit more cautiously."

The commentator's suggestion is good.

But it cannot reach the ears of the Manchester United players on the field.

From the moment Tang Ye displayed his Asian Cup champion medal on the pitch, Manchester United had no intention of letting the opponent control the rhythm of this match.

They want to play a pressing game!

Ye He takes on Robertson one-on-one!

Robertson defends very steadily.

Ye He finds no suitable opportunity!

Passes back to Valencia!

As soon as he receives the ball, Valencia is immediately marked by Henderson.

Helplessly, he can only pass to Rodri.

Snap!

A long pass from Rodri, targeting the Liwupu penalty area.

Haller!

Boom!

Haller heads the ball, but Alisson clears it.

"That's a foul!"

Rodri slaps his own shoulder with his hand, shouting at the referee: "Interference, there was interference!"

"Foul!"

Tang Ye shouts along with him.

"This call seems a bit controversial..."

"Hmm, from the replay, when Alisson jumped to clear, his left hand seems to have pressed down on Haller's shoulder, preventing Haller from reaching his maximum jumping height."

From the live broadcast footage, this call is actually not easy to make.

Because just watching the video replay, you cannot determine exactly how much force Alisson exerted on Haller, or whether it caused actual interference to Haller.

If this is called, it will be a penalty kick, so the referee is under great pressure.

"No, no, no, Mr., listen to me."

Alisson runs out of the penalty area and has an intense exchange with the referee.

The referee takes the advice of the Video Assistant Referee team and ultimately only gives Alisson a verbal warning.

Tang Ye shrugs and spreads his hands at the camera.

The referee simply won't award the penalty.

Brother, there's nothing we can do about that.

"Damn!"

Missing the penalty opportunity, Ten Hag angrily waves his hand; failing to get satisfaction from complaining to the fourth official, he wants to curse, but is pulled back by Fan Fan Dejiahe.

"There's still a corner kick, there's still a corner kick!"

Fan Fan Dejiahe reminds him.

Over the past three seasons, Manchester United's corner kicks have been somewhat lackluster.

But no matter how low the scoring probability, it is still a scoring chance, so there is still reason to hope.

Luke Shaw...

Snap!

A long pass is whipped out to the far post.

Tang Ye shakes off Fabinho and runs forward!

Having learned from the previous lesson, Tang Ye modifies his method of handling the ball this time.

Slows down his speed.

Lifts his right leg!

Snap!

Strikes with the outside of his right foot.

Tang Ye's volley with the outside of his foot shoots out like a cannonball, but is blocked by a Liwupu player.

However, the matter does not end there.

"Penalty!"

Rodri rushes to the referee immediately, slapping his right hand with his left: "Hit the hand, hit the hand! I'm sure, one hundred percent!"

PS: There's more.

(End of chapter)