Chapter 54: Eindhoven

In the away team locker room at Philips Stadium, Utrecht’s players sat in a circle, with Ten Hag speaking at the center.

Everything that needed to be said had already been covered in training; Ten Hag’s pre-match focus was simply to reemphasize key points and boost the players’ morale.

“Everyone over here, everyone over here!”

Ten Hag gestured, and the players, already wearing their cleats, stood and walked to the center.

“That’s all I have to say. Remember: don’t lower your expectations before this match. Our only goal is to win. The opponent is never as strong as you imagine!”

Ten Hag placed his hand in the center; Ramselaar pressed his on top.

“3!”

“2!”

“1!”

“Utrecht forward!”

Slap! Slap! Slap!

“Wuhu!”

The players clapped; Ten Hag was truly an artist—his speech had lifted the team’s spirits considerably.

Tang Ye stayed put; his keen observation noticed Ten Hag’s trembling hand hidden behind his back, so he walked over: “Mr. Eric, no need to be nervous.”

“Th-thanks, bastard, get lost—why the hell are you comforting me?!”

Ten Hag stepped back, glaring at Tang Ye: “You’re the player. I should be comforting you, understand?”

He sized Tang Ye up.

Chewing mint gum, left hand holding a towel, feet… a pair of slippers?

“Where are your cleats?”

“Over there. I tied my laces too tight.”

Tang Ye pointed to a pair of cleats on the ground: “Last time I laced them too tight—I can’t undo them.”

“Damn it! Untie them now!”

Ten Hag rushed over, snatched Tang Ye’s cleats from the floor, and struggled to find the knot: “Six minutes until kickoff—why didn’t you say your laces were tied earlier?!”

…

“Vooruit nu Rood-Witten!”

"Forward, PSV!"

“Watteens d’Oude Glorie”

“aanroem heeft gebracht”

As they stepped onto the pitch, the home fans chanted their anthem to pressure the visitors; the commentator’s rough voice loudly announced the home team’s players.

Each time a home player’s name was called, the stands erupted with “woww!”—but when the commentator introduced Utrecht’s starters, the stands drowned in endless boos.

“Damn, that’s intense.”

Tang Ye looked at the sea of people and flags in the stands, feeling a quiet awe.

Eindhoven truly was one of the Eredivisie’s top three—this fan base was unmatched by any ordinary club!

“Alright, everyone in the livestream, good evening!”

“Today’s still Utrecht’s match, but today’s opponent is tough—PSV Eindhoven.”

“I’m quite familiar with this team—let me introduce the starting lineup to my brothers!”

PSV Eindhoven (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Zout

Defenders: Santiago Arias, Jeffrey Bruma, Hector Moreno, Brener

Midfielders: Proppe, Mahe, Guardado

Forwards: Narsingh, Luc de Jong, Locadia

Head coach: Koek

“No need to introduce Utrecht—you just need to know who their core is.”

“4-3-1-2—the man in the center is No. 99, Tang Ye!”

“Kickoff! I predict Eindhoven will win by 1 to 2 goals—folks in the stream, bet however you like!”

【When will Xiao Chao learn to name every player on the pitch?】

【Fun fact: the streamer is an Eindhoven fan—isn’t it normal to know one team’s name?】

【Tang Ye starts again—haha, even against Eindhoven? Looks like Meng Ge’s spot is secure!】

【I said it: Ten Hag will rise to greatness under Tang Ye’s leadership】

【You back Eindhoven? Why don’t you believe in Tang Ye?!】

【Their combined market value is ten times higher—Utrecht will suffer badly today. Bet on home win outright!】

【I’m betting on Utrecht draw—I don’t care, I’m a diehard Tang Ye fan. I’ll take draw, not away win!】

【Ten times the value? Where’s the difference?】

【Fun fact: Tang Ye’s market value is still zero】

【You’re bold, guy—dissing my Meng Ge? Try me—I’ll get you banned to the black room!】

The match had begun, just as Ten Hag emphasized: Eindhoven loved exploiting wide attacks.

In the 4th minute, Mahe stole the ball from Ramselaar and swiftly passed it to Locadia ahead.

Locadia dodged Tang Ye and surged down the flank!

“Shit…”

Seeing Utrecht’s midfield line so easily bypassed, Ten Hag clutched his head.

“Fall back, fall back!”

Ramselaar interrupted Tang Ye’s attempt to tackle Locadia.

He knew Tang Ye couldn’t stop Locadia—better to have him retreat to cover defensive space.

Hearing his teammate’s command, Tang Ye didn’t hesitate—he sprinted back, glancing over his shoulder constantly.

Tang Ye aimed to intercept the ball the instant Locadia passed—but Locadia lofted it high.

“Locadia to Narsingh—perfect layoff!”

“Narsingh, take it wide—Jansen is under heavy pressure, Jansen is chasing back!”

“Hold position—Narsingh and de Jong link up!”

“De Jong returns to Narsingh!”

Eindhoven executed a textbook one-two on the flank; Jansen and Stried were overwhelmed.

Both of them were beaten!

Narsingh reached the byline!

Narsingh versus Kang Boyi—one-on-one!

Kang Boyi’s tackling ability was among the weakest of all defenders—he knew his weakness well, so he didn’t dare to lunge.

Narsingh pressed Utrecht’s defensive line!

“Middle!”

Tang Ye shouted; Stried reacted and sprinted toward the arc—but too late. Narsingh’s cut-back found de Jong perfectly at the arc.

!!!

Riëuw was not going to let de Jong shoot—he sprinted forward decisively.

De Jong flicked the ball wide to Arias, who had surged up to support.

Arias struck on the volley!

Lechert and Riëuw both collapsed in the box, trying to block Arias’s long-range shot—but failed.

Goalkeeper Ruiter made a save—but his view was blocked by Riëuw and de Jong; he didn’t spot Arias’s shot until it was too late.

“Goal!”

“Goal!”

“Incredible, Arias—world-class strike! Sixth minute, Eindhoven takes the lead!”

“Follow my rhythm, folks—Eindhoven will lead by at least one goal. Two or three? Not impossible!”

Wang Chao clapped enthusiastically.

Of Utrecht’s last ten matches, this was the only one Wang Chao didn’t back them to win.

Simple reason: Wang Chao was an Eindhoven fan.

A PSV Eindhoven fan!

【The streamer defected!】

“Oh, damn!”

Seeing Arias score, Ten Hag scowled, turned, and sat back down on the bench.

Eindhoven’s overall strength was indeed superior to Utrecht’s.

But was this goal coming too early?

The home fans erupted in celebration; Ten Hag sat on his chair, thinking—something felt off. He quickly stood up.

“Fall back! Defensive line fall back!”

Eindhoven’s wide attacks were terrifyingly strong. To counter such a team that exploited width, Ten Hag’s solution was to have Stried, the central midfielder, drop back into the center-back position.

Four defenders became five!

Ten Hag’s decision was actually something the Dutchman had just thought up on the spot, and he wasn’t even sure if it would work.

We’ll just have to try it!

The first goal had been scored; now it was Utrecht’s turn to restart, with Aale kicking off from the center circle.

He passed it straight back to Jansen!

Tang Ye began moving forward; Eindhoven applied heavy pressure—by the time Aale kicked off, all three of their forwards had already crossed the halfway line.

Jansen launched a long pass, aiming directly for Barazite.

Tang Ye had originally planned to move into the central area, but before he ran, he took a quick glance and noticed Mah making a run toward Barazite.

So Tang Ye followed him.

Barazite was preparing to receive the ball!

He looked up—Jansen’s pass was too fast; he couldn’t be sure he could control it cleanly.

He looked for Ramselaar on the right, but Ramselaar was already tightly marked by Guardado.

He’d have to control it himself!

“Give it to me!”

Barazite had already raised his foot to receive it, when Tang Ye suddenly sprinted in to demand the ball.

Without hesitation, Barazite turned and used his chest to cushion the ball, sending it to Tang Ye on his right.

The ball was still in midair when Mah spun and charged toward Tang Ye, giving him no chance to settle it.

“Turn and shield the ball!”

Aale shouted, but Tang Ye did something flashy—he raised his right leg, didn’t even look, and kicked the half-volley toward the left baseline.

wow！？

Realizing he was holding up his teammate’s momentum, Aale immediately turned and sprinted toward the baseline.

Although Tang Ye’s pass wasn’t precise, because he’d observed ahead of time, the general positioning was still solid—Aale stretched out his foot and controlled the ball.

“Tang Ye, holy shit, a blind pass! Tang Ye’s got guts!”

“Now it’s Aale versus Arias!”

“Aale, beat Arias, keep driving into the box—Bruema’s coming!”

Tang Ye kept watching—when he saw Bruema move to mark Aale, he quietly slipped behind him.

Bruema stuck out his foot and poked the ball away from Aale’s control—right onto Tang Ye’s foot.

Ha ha!

Tang Ye smiled.

This wasn’t a lucky steal!

This was pure skill!

He flicked the ball with the outside of his foot!

He looked up at the goal!

He curled it toward the far corner!

【De Bruyne far-corner curler, Lv1: Imitate】

Proficiency: 27/50

A Level 1 far-corner curler might seem weak, but Tang Ye already had half the proficiency.

It looks like Level 1, but it’s really Level 1.5!

“Long shot—not very fast!”

“Zot! The goalkeeper Zot didn’t reach it!”

“What the hell is going on?!”

Wang Chao clutched his head, helplessly watching the ball fly into the net.

“How the hell did he not save that?”

“What the hell?! Why?! Zot, when did you become this bad?!”

【Hahaha, watching the streamer lose his mind is so satisfying】

【Corner shot, awesome!】

【The home team just scored, and the away team equalized immediately? That’s insane!】

【The streamer’s exploded—this is the price of not believing in Tang, the King of Balls!】

【Don’t you get it? Zot never expected Tang to shoot—he was blocked from view by Bruema and Aale, both 1.9 meters tall, so he couldn’t see the 1.7-meter Tang behind them.】

【Fuck you, 1.7 meters? Mongol is at least 175 cm, don’t lie, little brat!】

“Beautiful!”

Utrecht’s players sprinted across the pitch as Ten Hag raised his arms triumphantly.

Although they fell behind early, it didn’t matter—Utrecht had equalized right away.

How did Utrecht manage to equalize?

Because after conceding, Ten Hag adjusted tactics, stretching the team’s defensive width!

This was why Utrecht’s attack succeeded!

“Stay calm, stay focused!”

Ten Hag shouted to his players: “Follow my instructions—we can still get a point!”

The match continued; after being equalized, Cocu’s expression didn’t change.

Although Utrecht had suddenly shown strong long-ball attacking ability, Cocu still felt this was within his control, so there was no need to panic.

Now Eindhoven had possession; head coach Cocu’s gaze fixed on Tang Ye, who was strolling through the center.

Cocu had long heard of this 16-year-old prodigy.

Currently, Tang Ye’s impression on Cocu rested on three points.

1. He doesn’t run much.

2. He avoids physical challenges.

3. His first touch is extremely solid.

“What do you think?”

The assistant coach looked at Cocu beside him—he knew the Eindhoven manager was deeply interested in Tang Ye.

Cocu shook his head.

“As a midfielder, No. 99 lacks sufficient coverage. Midfielders like him rarely make it.”

The assistant nodded: “But…”

“But what?”

“But we just got scored on by him.”

「……」

……

At the 30th minute, the backend displayed the teams’ possession statistics.

PSV：68%

UTR：32%

“Alright guys, from possession stats, Eindhoven still looks solid.”

“It’s 1-1 now; my advice is to bet on Eindhoven to win by a large margin.”

“Hey hey, don’t jump on me—I’m not betraying you, I’m stating facts. Aside from Tang’s curler, Utrecht hasn’t created any real chances.”

As the streamer said, Utrecht had only three shots on target so far, one of which came from Tang.

It’s genuinely underwhelming!

“Listen to me—before halftime, Eindhoven will score again.”

“I think it’ll be a forward—Narsingh, De Jong, or Lokka…”

“Here it comes!”

“Mah and Guardado! Another one-two combination—Jansen can’t handle it!”

“Tang Ye, run back!”

“Don’t worry about him—Tang King won’t make it back to that position.”

“Mah!”

……

(End of Chapter)