Chapter 600: Champions League Quarter-Final Draw: Paris Stuns Manchester City with a Last-Second Goal

Check Dongqiu Di pinned post: Ten Hag tests positive for COVID-19 for the second time. (98,311 comments)

【Holy shit???】

【Invincible; the Manchester United players are fine, but the head coach tested positive.】

【Actually, I feel it's still okay? Ten Hag isn't that useful anyway; as long as Tang Ye doesn't test positive, we're good. He just recovered a month ago, so his antibodies are maxed out.】

【Is this really about whether Ten Hag is useful or not?】

The sudden news made both Manchester United fans and Chinese fans tense up.

Ten Hag became the second head coach to test positive for COVID-19 twice, following Arteta, and his infection happened to coincide precisely with the start of the Champions League knockout stage preparations.

Thinking carefully, if only the head coach were infected, it would be manageable, after all, Manchester United assistant coach Fan Fan Dejiahe's capabilities are not poor.

But the problem is that this virus is contagious.

Almost every Manchester United player has had close contact with Ten Hag!

Baidu Hot Search.

No. 1: Manchester United head coach Ten Hag infected with COVID-19.

No. 2: Ten Hag COVID-19.

No. 4: Coach Tang Ye infected with COVID-19.

News about the Manchester United coach's COVID-19 infection quickly spread across the entire internet; even netizens who rarely watch football learned about this incident.

This was because Ten Hag's infection occurred at a very precise moment.

Having just completed the domestic minor treble, Manchester United was preparing for the Champions League quarter-finals; an infection at this critical juncture escalated the severity of the situation to another level.

Upon receiving the news, The Sun's Champions League correspondent attempted to interview Manchester United staff and, unsurprisingly, was rejected.

"Head coach Ten Hag has tested positive for COVID-19; the specific recovery time remains unclear," stated Manchester United's official announcement.

Manchester United legend Ferdinand: Manchester United should now isolate players who have had prolonged contact with Ten Hag; there can be no issues with the Champions League matches.

Besides offering suggestions, another Manchester United legend expressed concern for Ten Hag during a television interview.

Ten Hag is already 50 years old; testing positive twice within four months, one can only hope the Dutchman's constitution is strong enough.

Belenenses Club, Estádio do Restelo.

Located in Lisbon, Estádio do Restelo served as Manchester United's base during this Champions League knockout stage; the players would stay here for training until their Champions League journey concluded.

"Phew..."

Sitting on the steps at the cafeteria entrance, Tang Ye let out a soft sigh.

Ten Hag's infection cast a shadow over the entire Manchester United squad.

It was like going to war: both sides were mobilizing armies, you didn't know who your opponent was or from which direction they would approach, and yet your commander-in-chief dropped first; what could you do about that?

As a general of the Vine Armor Army, Tang Ye now wore a face full of worry, because he knew how crucial the upcoming battle was for their army.

"Actually, we could accept interviews; refusing might make others think we're cowardly."

Tang Ye said to Fan Fan Dejiahe beside him.

"But we are indeed affected, Tom."

Fan Fan Dejiahe replied helplessly.

The players were under pressure, but the pressure on him as the assistant coach was the greatest.

Once Ten Hag was out, he would become the head coach for the matches.

So the question arose: if Manchester United lost the match, would the fans place all the blame on him, the interim head coach?

"It's fine, it's fine; we still have advantages."

Tang Ye patted Fan Fan Dejiahe on the back: "Frenkie has recovered; our main starters are all present. Even without Erik directing us, we can still win the match."

"..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe remained silent.

He was too clear-headed; he knew that what Tang Ye said was merely words of encouragement from the captain to the team members.

"Hey, Mr. Michel!"

Feeling that Fan Fan Dejiahe hadn't taken his words to heart, Tang Ye spread his hands, his expression showing some displeasure: "Do you not believe what I'm saying? I'm not joking with you!"

Tang Ye's expression turned serious: "We will win; trust me, these are all minor issues."

Tang Ye brought up matters from their time at Utrecht with Fan Fan Dejiahe.

Back then, Ten Hag had been locked up in a detention center, yet without a head coach, Fan Fan Dejiahe still led Utrecht to consecutive victories.

"We can do it this time too."

"..."

Fan Fan Dejiahe leaned his upper body backward.

He wanted to say that the Eredivisie and the Premier League were completely different concepts, but after thinking it over carefully, he ultimately didn't say it.

"Mm, let's do our best."

Standing up, Fan Fan Dejiahe rubbed Tang Ye's jet-black hair with his hand.

The Sun front-page headline: Currently, no second positive case has appeared within the Manchester United squad; additionally, De Jong has recovered and returned to the team, making him available to play in the quarter-finals.

"Regarding Ten Hag's infection, Manchester United plans to hold a press conference at Estádio do Restelo, where interim head coach Fan Fan Dejiahe and team captain TY will answer reporters' questions. Due to epidemic prevention requirements, the number of reporters attending the press conference is limited to 35, and they must present a nucleic acid test report from within the last 24 hours."

Three days after Manchester United arrived in Lisbon, the remaining Round of 16 matches of the Champions League officially kicked off.

Although Manchester United had already advanced in March, the remaining Round of 16 matches still drew the attention of the Manchester United coaching staff.

The reason is simple: Manchester United does not yet know their quarter-final opponent, so preparing in advance cannot be wrong.

【Starting from the quarter-finals, the Champions League knockout stage mechanism has been modified; your mission has changed.】

【Original Mission Objective: Achieve a combined total of 5 goals and assists in the Champions League.】

【Revised Objective: Achieve a combined total of 3 goals and assists in the Champions League.】

【Mission Reward: Unknown.】

The System is quite humane; it knows to adjust the mission difficulty now that the two-legged ties have become single-leg matches.

In the past, Tang Ye would have been extremely delighted.

But now his reaction is merely lukewarm; the sudden severe situation has left Tang Ye with no mind to attend to the mission.

Manchester United faces imminent disaster!

Time advanced to August 9; the four unfinished second-leg matches of the Round of 16 were all completed, and the eagerly awaited quarter-final draw officially arrived.

Headline Today: The draw results for the 2019-20 Champions League quarter-finals are out!

This Champions League quarter-final draw still followed the live on-site mechanism; the difference was that no team representatives were present, and CCTV-5 did not broadcast live due to scheduling conflicts.

However, this did not mean the draw results lacked attention; on the contrary, viewership for this Champions League knockout stage was the highest in recent years.

Because all five major leagues had concluded, there was nothing else to watch besides the Champions League!

Pinned: Champions League Quarter-Final Draw Results Released. (130,238 comments)

Paris vs Mancheng. (August 13, 3:00 AM Beijing Time)

Juventus vs Barcelona. (August 14)

Atalanta vs Bayern. (August 15)

RB Leipzig vs Manchester United. (August 16)

【Hahaha, what a favorable draw!】

【Why couldn't they have drawn like this earlier? What is UEFA playing at, making Manchester United face Real Madrid in the Round of 16?】

【Don't tell me you think Leipzig is weak? Leipzig finished second in Fan Fan Dejia this season, ranking ahead of Borussia Dortmund.】

【Then wouldn't both Dortmund and Bayern also get crushed by Manchester United?】

Manchester United fans were overjoyed; in their eyes, Ten Hag had sacrificed himself to secure a favorable draw for the team.

RB Leipzig, this Fan Fan Dejia team, displayed surprisingly good form after the pandemic resumption, overtaking Dortmund to reach second place in Fan Fan Dejia.

They are indeed formidable, but looking at the other seven teams in the draw, RB Leipzig represents a fairly good outcome for Manchester United.

Many fans often make a mistake: even after their home team has advanced to the Champions League knockout stage, they still think about crushing weak opponents and expect a smooth advancement; these notions are inappropriate.

Because once the Champions League reaches the knockout stage, one will never encounter weak teams again.