Chapter 820: Manchester United vs. Real Madrid: The Hua Shan Debate

"I feel we need to play more aggressively against Real Madrid."

At lunchtime, the Manchester United teammates were chatting in the hotel conference room.

The atmosphere was slightly oppressive; Tang Ye knew clearly that he needed to step up at this moment.

"Even though they (Real Madrid) made it to the final, I feel they still can't compare to us."

Crunch!

After saying this, Tang Ye took a bite of his egg tart.

It tasted a bit bad, so after one bite he set it aside and returned his attention to the conversation.

"So you think we're guaranteed to win?"

Ale sat opposite Tang Ye.

"I wouldn't put it quite like that... My point is, if we play more aggressively, our chances of winning increase. Didn't that reporter from either Man Evening or The Guardian say we'd likely draw with Real Madrid in open play? That's just wishful thinking; we'll crush them in open play."

"Haha!"

"Real Madrid isn't weak!"

Dembélé emphasized.

"They're not as strong as you imagine, Ousmane! Back when you were at Barcelona playing terribly, of course Real Madrid looked invincible to you."

Tang Ye immediately spotted Dembélé's flaw in logic.

Dembélé, who once played for Barcelona, was completely a slacker; viewing Real Madrid from a slacker's perspective naturally made the opponent seem terrifying.

But the Dembélé now at Manchester United was no slacker.

"Oh, you make a good point."

Dembélé gave Tang Ye a thumbs-up: "Looks like I also have a chance to win the Ballon d'Or."

Responding to Dembélé's thumbs-up, Tang Ye clenched his left fist and bumped it against Dalot's shoulder: "Aren't you very nervous?"

"... A little bit."

"It's fine, it's fine, we're guaranteed to win; just play normally."

Rodri found Tang Ye's words somewhat amusing: "Why do you give me the feeling of someone who's won the Champions League multiple times?"

"That's not wrong; I have two titles, you only have one, Rod."

"No, no, no, you give me the feeling of being too steady; it should be the feeling of someone who's won twenty Champions League titles."

"Oh, thank you for thinking so highly of me, Rod."

Rodri and Tang Ye fist-bumped.

Although Tang Ye's words carried a hint of showing off, it had to be said that Manchester United with him and without him were indeed quite different.

Last season, Manchester United walked a tightrope in the Champions League knockout stages; this season, after Tang Ye's return, the confidence of the players within the team had increased significantly. As the team's vice-captain, Rodri felt this deeply.

Stade de France.

"Madrid!"

"Madrid!"

"Hala Madrid!"

At this neutral venue, the number of fans present for both sides was roughly equal.

At the same time, there were many neutral fans at today's match; they would pretend to be Real Madrid or Manchester United supporters to blend into each respective camp.

This led to a phenomenon where Real Madrid stands contained Manchester United fans, and Manchester United stands contained Real Madrid fans.

Plus, young people from England and Spain inherently have rather abstract personalities, so some physical scuffles were inevitably unavoidable.

"Come on, come on!"

Two fans pulled at each other's clothes while bystanders continuously shouted "Go get him."

"Hit him, hit him!"

"Hit him!"

"Get him!"

"Over the past few seasons, Ten Hag has led Manchester United to achieve some incredible feats; I believe the current Manchester United is stronger than any Manchester United team in history."

Ancelotti praised Manchester United during a pre-match interview.

Although he was praising the opponent, the Real Madrid head coach's expression remained relatively calm throughout the process: "If we don't deliver a good performance, we will lose the final. We are very clear about this."

"It doesn't matter whether Ronaldo starts; he is a former hero of Real Madrid, but today he is our opponent, and we have suitable methods to target him."

Click-click!

"Do you think the Ceremonial Midfield Three will lose to TY again this time, just like in the 2016-17 season?"

"..."

Once this question was posed, Ancelotti's expression immediately soured.

"Luka and the others (referring to the Ceremonial Midfield Three) have been compared to TY more than once, but I have always believed this comparison makes little sense."

"You can say our midfield line is inferior to Manchester United's midfield line; of course, I'm not belittling Real Madrid—Manchester United's midfield configuration is indeed the best in current football, there's no doubt about that. But if you say the entire Real Madrid midfield line combined is inferior to TY alone, then I think that is too exaggerated."

"The sum of Luka and the others' market values is indeed less than TY's, but when comparing strength, you cannot simply add up market values."

Check Dongqiu Di pinned post: Champions League Final live broadcast underway (CCTV5, iQiyi), Real Madrid vs. Manchester United: The Hua Shan Debate.

"I won't say anything else, because anything further would be nonsense."

In the away dressing room, the Manchester United players huddled tightly into a large circle as Tang Ye delivered his final encouragement to his teammates: "What I need to say is that we are currently the strongest team in the world; we've only lost two matches this entire season!"

"We won't lose today either; we will claim the championship right here!"

"3, 2, 1!"

"Champion!"

Boom!

Rushing out of the locker room with his teammates, Tang Ye slapped the necks of De Ligt and Luke Shaw: "Shaw, stay sharp."

Tang Ye specifically sought out De Ligt and Luke Shaw, naturally because these two players were in their low point, having delivered unsatisfactory performances in the past few matches.

They were clearly aware of their condition; thus, as soon as Luke Shaw stepped onto the pitch, he immediately performed several accelerating shuttle runs, then roared at the empty air to psyche himself up.

"China Media Group! Good evening, dear audience friends!"

"This is the live broadcast of the UEFA Champions League Final!"

"The match has begun! Allow me to introduce the starting lineups for both teams. First, the home team, Real Madrid, champions of this season's La Liga! Wearing white kits, attacking from the left side of the screen to the right!"

Real Madrid (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Courtois

Defenders: Ferland Mendy, Alaba, Militão, Carvajal

Midfielders: Toni Kroos, Casemiro, Modrić

Forwards: Vinícius, Benzema, Valverde

Head Coach: Ancelotti

"And now the away team, Manchester United, champions of this season's Premier League!"

Manchester United (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: De Gea

Defenders: Dalot, Bailly, De Ligt, Luke Shaw

Midfielders: De Jong, Tang Ye, Rodri

Forwards: Dembélé, Martial, Rashford

Head Coach: Ten Hag

There were no surprises in the starting lineups for either side.

The main surprise came from Manchester United; Ten Hag surprisingly opted for a 4-3-3 formation today instead of his usual 4-2-3-1.

The Dutchman's true intentions remained unclear, but in the eyes of most fans, Ten Hag's tactical shift reflected Manchester United's conservative style of play today.

Manchester United would likely play quite conservatively from the opening whistle!

【Getting fired up】

【Go Real Madrid! Don't lose to anyone, especially not those bandits. If you lose to bandits, how can you still claim to be the world's number one team?】

【Trash Real Madrid! We must cheer for Manchester United. Go Manchester United! Barcelona is number one in the world!】

【Why is it still the 'Ceremonial Midfield Trio'? Ancelotti is truly an idiot; that trio can never handle Tang Ye—he can even see the color of their underwear!】

【If Hazard doesn't play, we'll definitely lose. I'm saying it; relying on Benzema alone won't work.】

This last comment came from a fan displaying the Chelsea club badge.

Coincidentally, just a few minutes after kickoff, the director cut to a shot of Hazard.

Compared to his time at Chelsea, the current Hazard gave people the impression that he had gained weight.

"Speaking of the last few seasons... Ball-King Hazard, eh, his performance has been unsatisfactory, one could even say absolutely terrible!"

"Hmm, it's unknown whether Ancelotti will give Hazard a chance to play today."

Objectively speaking, with Vinícius on the pitch as an explosive threat for Real Madrid, Hazard probably wouldn't get any playing time.

Minute 3.

Vinícius received a ground through-pass from Kroos that seemed to point the way like an immortal guiding the path; upon controlling the ball, he immediately accelerated, preparing to unleash his explosive power.

"Wow!!!"