Chapter 672: The Battle to Break the Deadlock at the Etihad (Bonus Chapter for Monthly Votes!)

【De Bruyne 45-Degree Cross lv5: Replicate → lv6: Learn from All Without Shame】

【Passing: 95 → 96】

!!!

The moment he received the system notification, Tang Ye immediately broke into a joyful smile.

He had originally thought that a lv6 growth template wouldn't help his Passing attribute break through the 95 barrier, but it now seemed he had indeed underestimated the true value of the words "Learn from All Without Shame."

Reaching a Passing attribute of 96 was, for Tang Ye, nothing short of a phase-defining improvement.

It came with an additional 10% bonus to first-touch control.

So, pray tell, what level is Tang Ye's first-touch passing now?

Answer: 105.6

This figure can only be displayed on a calculator; you won't see it on the FIFA official website or even on Tang Ye's status panel.

Because the overflow is simply too massive...

Tang Ye (22 years old)

【Ball Control: 92; Passing: 96】

【Shooting: 91; Heading: 62; Set Pieces: 93】

【Pace: 82; Stamina: 85; Physicality: 89】

【Defending: 78; Vision: 99】

Overall Rating: 95

To be ashamed to admit, Tang Ye never actually intended to walk the path of raw stats, yet he found himself already deeply entrenched in it, with no possibility of escape.

With 【Inverted Triangle Cross】 maxed out, the last remaining growth template Tang Ye hadn't fully upgraded was 【Far-Corner Curled Shot】.

【De Bruyne Far-Corner Curled Shot lv5: Replicate (Transcendent State)】

Proficiency: 688/3000

"..."

This one still had a rather huge gap to cover.

Tang Ye shook his head slightly.

Best to let it simmer for now; he would drag it out for intensive training when it was close to leveling up!

Match Preview: At 3 AM on April 29, in the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals, Dortmund visits the Etihad to face Mancheng; with Haaland injured and absent, can Tang Ye lead the team to break the deadlock?

Tomorrow was match day, but the Dortmund players had already arrived in Manchester a day early.

Playing the away leg first was indeed very advantageous, but from another perspective, if Dortmund lost by too many goals in the away leg, they would be directly finished off afterward.

Therefore, this match was extremely crucial for Dortmund.

According to Escrivá's plan, Dortmund needed to keep the goal deficit to strictly one goal at most.

Of course, a draw would be ideal (this was the best-case scenario).

"Since you are restricted by a suspension from serving as the on-field commander for the two semi-final matches, do you believe the team will encounter trouble because of this?"

Click!

"... First of all, this is naturally a regret; I wish I could be by their side when the players need me most, but because I made a mistake last month, I cannot do so now. As for the impact of my absence on the team..."

Escrivá did not dodge the topic but chose to speak the plain truth: "To be honest, there will certainly be an impact, but definitely not as great as you imagine. My suspension happened last month; some time has passed since then, and our players have had sufficient time to prepare for all of this."

"Then... I wish you success."

The reporter from the Munich Times concluded this interview with Escrivá.

They wished to continue interviewing Tang Ye, but alas, the information they received from the club staff was that no Dortmund players would accept any interviews until the first-leg match was completely over.

Pinned Post: Breaking News!!! The date for Manchester United's China Tour has been confirmed for July, with the match venue set for the Bird's Nest Stadium; ticket sale times and platforms will be announced later. (153,842 comments)

【As you know, this is the news I actually want to see】

【July is perfect; it's right after the Gaokao ends, so I'll go straight to BJ for a trip, first to see Gaoshan, that great peak of GGBond, and then to see the Great Wall】

【If you upstairs can actually grab a ticket, I'll admit you're impressive; I feel this will rely entirely on scalpers; tens of millions of people fighting over 80,000 tickets, damn】

【This is what journalism is like; the entire article doesn't say whether Tang Ye will come or not; if Tang Ye isn't coming, why is your Manchester United even coming? What do they have this season besides the Club World Cup and the Community Shield?】

【He's definitely coming; the loan ends in June; if Tang Ye hasn't returned to Manchester United by July, then Dortmund should be starting their China tour; those management folks are smart as hell】

【China tour or no China tour, just let my Dortmund clash with Mancheng first; let's exact revenge for Manchester United right away, okay?】

The majority of fans in China are Manchester United supporters; having won the league title for two consecutive seasons, only to be left far behind by Mancheng this season, the fans naturally couldn't accept it.

Especially for the die-hard Manchester United fans, losing to their favorite player would be bad enough, but if that same favorite player then fell before their city rivals, it would be truly disastrous.

If possible, Manchester United fans hoped Dortmund could overturn Mancheng.

But judging by the betting odds... well, actually, not many fans were favoring Dortmund.

There was no helping it; Mancheng this season was simply too strong!

Mancheng released their Champions League semi-final home match teaser poster: 【God-Slayer】.

The poster featured Guardiola with his back to the camera; at first glance, it seemed like nothing special, just as low-key as Dortmund's poster.

But the targeted nature of this poster's caption was excessively obvious.

Starting straight with "God-Slayer"; who is being slain, I won't say; you'll have to guess that yourselves!

On match day, at the Etihad Stadium.

On the left and right sides of the stadium entrance hung two posters respectively, featuring Kyle Walker and Reus.

Logically, De Bruyne and Tang Ye should have been used for the posters, but the Mancheng staff handled the details exceptionally well; doing so directly avoided Dortmund fans comparing Tang Ye to De Bruyne.

"Bluemoon~ (Blue Moon)"

"You knew just what I was there for~ (You knew I was right there)"

"You heard me saying a prayer for~ (You heard the prayer in my heart)"

"Someone I really could care for! (For the one I truly care about in my heart)"

"..."

"Nananana... City! City! City!"

"City! Eon City!"

Standing in the player tunnel, Tang Ye could nevertheless distinguish every single word sung by the Mancheng fans with perfect clarity.

Was it that his English was too good, or his ears too sharp?

"Tom."

De Bruyne and Ruben Dias approached together, each embracing Tang Ye.

They were all old rivals.

But unlike their last encounter, Aguero was nowhere to be seen today.

Additionally, Mancheng's new genius was slowly rising.

"Can I have your jersey? I mean, after the match?"

Foden stepped forward and made the request cautiously.

"Mm, ok."

Tang Ye patted Foden on the head.

"Beep!!"

Tang Ye gave Reus a gentle push from behind, and players from both sides began to file out.

"China Central Television! Here is the live broadcast of the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League..."

"As you can see, players from both teams are emerging from the tunnel!"

The camera focused on Tang Ye, and the Dortmund midfielder immediately drew boos from the Mancheng fans on site.

Tang Ye held no deep grudge against Mancheng, but this was the treatment any opponent received at the Etihad; Mancheng fans would never show GG Bond a friendly face!

Tang Ye and Brandt stood left and right of the center circle; Dortmund was tasked with the kickoff today.

"Beep!!!"

"Wow!!!"

Bang!

A low pass backward, Tang Ye sent the ball straight to Hummels in the defense.

At the same moment, all Dortmund players began pressing forward in force.

De Bruyne, filling in as striker, charged toward Hummels!

"Oh!!!"

Slap!

Hummels moved quickly, passing the ball before the opponent's press could arrive.

The target was clear: find Tang Ye, who was drifting through the center in the attacking third!

Bang!

Tang Ye collided with B. Silva; relying on his physical advantage, he successfully secured possession.

"Beautiful!"

Marti shouted.

B. Silva scrambled up from the ground, attempting an immediate counter-press.

At this moment, Tang Ye executed a textbook shield, planting his right foot on the right side of the ball.

If B. Silva tackled now, he would earn a card!

With Foden running toward him from behind, Tang Ye turned forty-five degrees.

Bang!

Foden collided with Tang Ye from behind.

It was indeed a foul, but at the very moment of impact, Tang Ye had already passed the ball away.