Chapter 558: This Year's Ballon d'Or Is Mine

France Football statement: The 2019 Ballon d'Or voting results circulating online are rumors.

In fact, France Football acted quite quickly; less than twelve hours after the fake photo emerged, the newspaper issued a statement debunking the rumor.

But rumors always spread faster, so many fans are still trapped in the deception and haven't realized the truth.

Some fans who even saw the statement claimed France Football was just making excuses, believing the newspaper was unwilling to admit it leaked the news and was trying to avoid losing face.

However, with less than a week remaining until the official announcement of the winner, fans will naturally know whether this photo is real or fake by then.

Spanish football journalist: As far as I know, Messi has not been informed that he won the Ballon d'Or.

Front-page headline of Liberation of South America Newspaper—The Ballon d'Or winner is confirmed: The King of Argentina's sixth Ballon d'Or trophy!

Click-click!

Chinese national team head coach Lippi accepts reporter interviews in Hainan.

"I don't know the result either, so asking me is useless, but if you want me to make an inference, I think TY might win, because setting aside all other factors, I believe TY's performance over the past year has been the most outstanding."

Lippi offered his view that the Ballon d'Or winner should be the player with the most outstanding individual performance, with all other factors being secondary; based on this concept, Lippi expressed his support for Tang Ye.

"Of course, if TY ultimately does not win, I think that is also possible, because currently, he has not reached the level of prestige enjoyed by Ronaldo and Messi."

Over the past few seasons, Tang Ye's individual performances have been stunning, and with the boost from traffic in China and at Manchester United, he has become a top star in today's football world.

But there is still a huge gap between his prestige and that of Messi and C. Ronaldo; the most intuitive manifestation of this statement is the number of Instagram followers, where a significant disparity still exists between Tang Ye and the duo of Messi and Ronaldo.

Simply put, what Tang Ye lacks is not strength but time; he needs more time to conquer journalists and fans in other countries.

Chinese national team captain Feng Feng Xiaoting: Tang Ye's competitive form in 2019 was phenomenal; breaking the record for the youngest winner soon, I believe this cannot be a reason to deny Tang Ye the Ballon d'Or, as competitive sports must speak through strength.

Time arrives at the day of the match between Manchester United and Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Manchester United bus departs from the Carrington base, heading for Old Trafford stadium.

Many fans run alongside the bus, and some even ride motorcycles ahead, leading the way together with the police.

"Rodri!"

"Tom!"

"TomTom!"

The fans are enthusiastic, while the Manchester United players on the bus pull open the curtains to greet them.

But since this journey takes considerable time, not all fans have the opportunity to interact with their favorite players.

Tang Ye rests his left arm on the windowsill, watching small birds flying in the sky.

Although he is on the bench today rather than in the starting lineup, it is evident that the Manchester United midfielder is in a very good mood.

"Come on, Rod, if you guys play it 2-0, we can rest in the second half."

Tang Ye laughs heartily, very relaxed, because he truly does not feel Shakhtar can pose any threat to his team.

"Tom, you're a substitute, not on rotation rest, hey!"

Mata reminds him from the front.

"Haha, I just hope you score a few more goals; I'll be watching down there, Mata, and if you don't score, it will be awkward—I'll turn into a commentator and criticize you."

"Haha!"

"Hey, I'm a midfielder; isn't it normal for midfielders not to score? Moreover, strikers can't score in every match either."

Mata appears somewhat innocent.

Haha!

Tang Ye laughs very happily, then gestures for Mata to be more serious, because Uncle Mata is a starting player for the upcoming match.

Starting players ought to be more serious!

"Good luck."

Mata and Tang Ye fist-bump: "Scoring is hard to guarantee, but I feel I should have a chance to get an assist."

Manchester Evening News: Two hours before kickoff, Manchester United fans hold a parade outside Old Trafford stadium, chanting slogans for TY's Ballon d'Or.

Manchester Evening News has the news, while Sky Sports conducts live on-site interviews.

"If Tom doesn't win the Ballon d'Or this year, I will never believe FIFA again."

A Manchester United fan says to the camera: "No matter what, the Ballon d'Or should not go to Messi, and even less to Fan Daike; Fan Daike was never a Ballon d'Or player to begin with."

The reporter thinks this fan is perhaps a bit impulsive, but subsequent events prove he was actually relatively calm.

"Fuck you!"

A second Manchester United fan jumps into the frame: "If the Ballon d'Or doesn't go to TY this year, Mr. Infantino, you better watch your head!"

Click!

The reporter takes a photo, and a few seconds later, the live stream goes black.

Everyone knows English fans like to talk big without acting on it, but what the fan just said involves a personal threat, which is not allowed to be broadcast.

Dongqiu Di reposts: On-site Manchester United fans state that if Tang Ye does not win the Ballon d'Or, then Infantino (FIFA President) needs to watch his head.

【Haha, I feel Manchester United fans are even more worked up than us.】

【Don't laugh; this kind of thing is no joke.】

【Yes, no jokes; I think we really should do something to Infantino.】

【Infantino should be on China's side; I don't think it's Infantino's problem—hang up all those South American newspapers with voting qualifications and beat them until they confess.】

【Wait, have you all already assumed Tang Ye won't get the Ballon d'Or? Be more confident, okay!】

Just as fans were discussing the Ballon d'Or, their attention was quickly drawn elsewhere.

GG Bond is on the bench today!

Doesn't that mean the Miner has... a chance?

"..."

"Kovalenko! Goal for Kovalenko!"

"A goal for Shakhtar Donetsk!"

"1:0, the away team leads! The away team leads!"

The commentator shouted loudly, because no one expected the Miners to be the side scoring first in this match.

Has my great Manchester United lost all shame!

The Miner players were celebrating, while the stands were filled with boos from Manchester United fans.

The director naturally knew what the fans wanted to see, so the camera locked directly onto Ten Hag.

Ten Hag rubbed his head; beyond that, he showed no reaction.

Nothing could be done about it, so the director shifted the camera to Tang Ye on the substitutes' bench; at this moment, Tang Ye was sitting alongside Greenwood, both of them chewing gum.

Quickly noticing his own head appearing on the big screen, Tang Ye reminded Greenwood, and the two waved together at the camera.

The fans thought the Manchester United players were about to panic, but in reality, they were not.

The Manchester United players on the substitutes' bench firmly believed their teammates could equalize before the end of the first half!

"Wait, this is already the 5th round..."

Tang Ye suddenly looked at Greenwood: "This is already the 5th round; I recall I haven't played against the Miners before."

"Weren't you in the hospital before?"

Greenwood reminded him in a low voice.

"Oh, right."

Remembering now, that made sense.

Due to injury, he had not played in the match against the Miners during the first leg of the group stage, and today he was again a substitute, resulting in Tang Ye still not having faced the Miners up to this point.

In the 34th minute of the first half, the Miners opened Manchester United's goal again via an indirect free kick.

"Oh, my goodness!"

"It's the Miners again; this is Shakhtar Donetsk's second goal!"

"2:0! The away team has extended their lead!"

Boom boom boom!!!

The Miner fans were extremely excited.

In the previous four rounds, they had earned only one point and seemed already eliminated, yet today Manchester United suddenly played terribly, dragging the hopeless Miners back into contention.

"This..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe placed his hands on his head; the Manchester United assistant coach performed the exact same action as Ten Hag.

The Miners' special attacking tactics had caught Manchester United somewhat off guard.

Coupled with the players' negligence, Manchester United now trailed by two goals.

"Damn!"

"Are you even playing football? What the hell are you playing!?"

Ten Hag roared at the players on the field: "Use your brains when defending, huh? Can't even one man mark one man? Track them!"

After scolding, Ten Hag calmed down and turned to look at Tang Ye on the substitutes' bench.

"..."

Tang Ye spat the gum out of his mouth and wrapped it in a tissue.

Then he pointed at his own mouth: "Want me to warm up?"

"Not yet,"

Fan Fan Dejiahe said, so Tang Ye settled his butt back onto the chair: "Alright then, I'll wait a bit longer."

Time moved into the second half.

Shortly after the match resumed, the director once again gave the camera to Tang Ye.

"As we can see, Tang Ye is still sitting on the substitutes' bench... It seems Ten Hag has no intention of fielding Tang Ye in today's match."

"Yes, from Manchester United's lineup today, one can see that most of the players fielded are substitutes, with even a few rookies. If they were to switch to the starting lineup now, it would consume all three substitution slots."

"Actually, I think it's still worth a try, just need to be careful with the Miners' set pieces."

When the second half reached the 55th minute, Manchester United earned a penalty through a bizarre refereeing decision, sparking dissatisfaction among the Miner fans.

However, the referee ultimately did not revoke his decision.

Rodri took the ball and easily scored.

1:2!

Manchester United pulled one back!

After scoring, the players did not celebrate; Rodri went straight into the goal to retrieve the ball.

Tang Ye, meanwhile, looked in Ten Hag's direction.

As if by telepathy, two seconds after Tang Ye looked at Ten Hag, Ten Hag also looked over, making eye contact with Tang Ye.

The Manchester United head coach made a downward pressing gesture with his right hand, palm flat.

Tang Ye immediately understood the meaning.

He would not be playing in this match.

"..." "It's already the 62nd minute, and Tang Ye hasn't started warming up yet; we can only apologize to the fans who are still waiting."

"We see that Ten Hag has held back quite a lot this season, especially regarding Tang Ye. Of course, this could also be because Manchester United has a special tactical arrangement for today."

"Hmm, the third substitution is here, Greenwood!"

As Greenwood came to the bench to take off his clothes, Tang Ye reached out his hand, indicating that Greenwood could toss his jacket to him.

But Greenwood was still quite sensible; he didn't do that, instead walking over himself to put the jacket down.

Greenwood had a very bad temper and could even be impulsive at times.

However, there were two types of people he greatly respected: players far superior to him, and the team's head coach.

Tang Ye patted Greenwood on the back: "Go get 'em, Mason."

……

Check Dongqiu Di Match Report: Mancheng drew 2-2 at home against Miner; Rodri scored from a penalty, De Ligt headed one in, while Tang Ye warmed the bench the entire match. (Comments: 52,164)

"Glory Glory Man United~ Glory Glory Man United~"

Although they didn't secure three points, this scoreline was acceptable to Mancheng fans.

Because, to be honest, before entering the knockout stage, Mancheng's focus had to remain on the league, not the Champions League.

Mancheng's current primary focus was achieving a winning streak in the league.

So what was the secondary focus?

A Champions League victory?

No, it wasn't.

The secondary focus rested on Tang Ye.

"Ballon d'Or! (Golden Ball Award)"

"Ballon d'Or!"

"TY! TY! TY!"

During the post-match acknowledgment, before the Mancheng players had even reached the area below the stands, the fans were already shouting.

Tang Ye immediately stood up from his seat and ran quickly toward the stands.

From far away, he could already see the banners displayed by the fans in the stands.

【This year's Ballon d'Or does not belong to Messi, nor does it belong to Ronaldo】

【TY, no matter what happens, we support you!】

【King of Mancheng】

Raising both hands to greet the fans, Tang Ye even saw local supporters waving red flags representing China.

……

Click-click!

In the press conference room.

Although Tang Ye had not played today, due to the reporters' requests and the fans' strong demands, Mancheng still arranged for Tang Ye to come out and accept interviews.

Tang Ye, Ten Hag, Rodri, and Greenwood sat in a row of four.

The reporters first questioned Ten Hag.

But the first question had nothing to do with today's match.

"The Ballon d'Or results will be announced within a week; according to the list of nominees, Mancheng has five players who need to attend the award ceremony, and during the award period, you still have a match scheduled..."

"Oh, there's no need to worry about that; our players will attend the award ceremony, and as for the match, we will figure something out."

Before the reporter could finish asking, Ten Hag directly jumped in to answer.

"Then, if TY ultimately doesn't win the Ballon d'Or, will the Mancheng players still attend the award ceremony?"

"..."

This question was quite interesting; once asked, the scene immediately fell silent.

Of course, you could still hear the sound of camera shutters.

Click-click!

Last year, when Modrić won the Ballon d'Or, neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Messi attended.

Now, was it Tang Ye's turn?

"This..."

"We will attend the award ceremony; although we don't know the result yet, we have already arranged a chartered flight, and our players will go together with the Mancheng players."

After Ten Hag gave his response, the reporters turned their attention to Tang Ye: "Tom, may I ask if you have received any advance news? For instance, whether you have already won the Ballon d'Or or not?"

"I haven't received any news yet, sorry, haha."

"Then, if Fan Daike or Messi wins the Ballon d'Or, will you be there on site to offer them your congratulations?"

"Mm, yes, of course."

……

"Tom!"

"Viva Tom Tom!"

On the pitch, fans were still loudly chanting Tang Ye's name; even while walking in the tunnel, you could hear it clearly.

"Phew..."

Pushing the door open, Mata looked at Tang Ye: "To be honest, you can't really be blamed for being this nervous, Tom, haha."

Sitting down in his own spot, Mata spoke as he walked: "Although I didn't make the list of nominees, I can already feel this pressure."

Tang Ye had been so nervous in the cafeteria that he couldn't eat much; at the time, Mata and Ashley Young had thought Tang Ye didn't need to be so nervous, but now it seemed they were both wrong.

Putting oneself in his shoes, Tang Ye's ability to withstand pressure was actually quite strong!

The pressure from the fans and reporters was truly extraordinary!

"But there's no other way."

Ashley Young sighed: "Anyway, I think Tom should win the award; Messi has no Champions League data this year—all his goals came from the league and the Copa del Rey, and La Liga isn't even strong."

After Ashley Young finished speaking, the locker room fell silent for a moment, until Fan Fan Dejiahe suddenly shouted: "Hey, hey hey hey! Come look, come look!"

"Breaking news!"

Fan Fan Dejiahe's words quickly attracted the Manchester United players; Mata and Aleix went over together.

"What's wrong?"

Rashford lifted his head; although he didn't walk over, he was also very concerned about this matter.

"Read it, read it."

Facing Ashley Young's reminder, Fan Fan Dejiahe, Mata, and the others said nothing.

"What is it? Speak up!"

"..."

"Forget it."

"It's fine, it's fine, just say it directly; there's no one else here in the locker room."

Under the strong insistence of Ashley Young and De Jong, Fan Fan Dejiahe slowly opened his mouth: "Romano: We have received news..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe: "Maybe... we should just forget it?"

"Sigh, you've already started! Finish it, finish it!"

"We have received news that Messi is this year's Ballon d'Or winner; this is his..."

The complete content also included the sentence "this is his sixth Ballon d'Or," but Fan Fan Dejiahe felt there was no need to say that last part.

Messi is this year's Ballon d'Or winner...

"Oh..."

"Shit."

After Fan Fan Dejiahe finished speaking, he stood motionless on the spot, while Ashley Young kicked a water bottle nearby.

Looking toward Tang Ye, who was currently sitting next to Rodri, both of their faces showing little expression.

Although Tang Ye showed no expression, Ashley Young could already imagine Tang Ye's state of mind.

"This is unfair."

Ashley Young: "It's definitely the fault of those South American journalists; those South American journalists love to gang up, and they all voted for Messi!"

"I'm truly fed up, damn it."

Aleix waved his hands and returned to his seat: "I think you really don't need to go; their behavior clearly shows they are targeting us."

"I agree."

De Gea packed his gloves into his backpack: "How about we just don't go at all? Those of you who made the candidate list, say something."

"Haha!"

In this serious atmosphere, someone suddenly laughed, turning all the players' attention in the locker room toward him.

They discovered it was Rodri laughing.

"What are you doing?"

Ashley Young stared at Rodri, who raised both hands to show innocence, then pointed at Tang Ye beside him, who was trying hard to suppress his laughter.

"Huff, huff... cough."

With one hand covering his mouth, Tang Ye's expression was twisted; it was clear he was exerting great effort to hold back his laughter.

"This..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe keenly realized something.

"Tom, do you know something?"

"Haha."

Tang Ye remained seated on the floor, his right hand resting on the bench behind him: "They've already called me."

"A call? What did they say?"

Many Manchester United players in the locker room were holding their breath, waiting for an answer.

Tang Ye tilted his head slightly, a smile on his face.

He spoke.

"This year's Ballon d'Or is mine."

(End of Chapter)