[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back":3,"chapter-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-862":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Football: At 16, Let Me Retire and Come Back?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2300832,4499,"Chapter 862: Ten Hag Watches Live: China","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-862",862,"\u003Cp>Aren’t all you guys awake? Come to watch me, Tang the King of Football, get crushed? You’re really nasty—don’t watch when we’re dominating, now you’re rushing over to watch us play Spain?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How’s watching me, Tang the King of Football, called “just joining the hype”?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn it, why isn’t Rodri Chinese? Today’s match is basically a Manchester United derby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lose one, we win; lose two, it’s still acceptable. I’ve already given up and laid back—let’s see how Tang the King of Football pulls this off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over fifty million live viewers at 3 a.m. is truly absurd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This number is nearly three times higher than the final of the last World Cup!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From comment sections across major social media platforms, Chinese fans have been surprisingly considerate—they know facing Spain is no easy task for the national team, so they haven’t set overly strict expectations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lose one goal and it’s a win, because that alone would set China’s best-ever World Cup knockout-stage result!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that’s the case, just lie back and watch Tang the King of Football perform.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As everyone knows, my ggbond’s tackling ability ranks top three globally—if China goes all-in on defense, they’re absolutely not weak!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tom!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the player tunnel, Rodri, wearing the captain’s armband, shook hands with Tang Ye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How come you’re captain now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The armband on Rodri’s arm surprised Tang Ye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since early this year. Didn’t you watch our group stage matches?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I only paid attention to the scores in the group stage…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye shrugged, bringing up the third group stage match. Rodri burst out laughing: “Sorry, Tom!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Whatever. What can you do? Just go win the game.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye embraced Gavi beside Rodri, agreeing to the Spanish midfielder’s request for a jersey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rodri followed behind Tang Ye: “If I eliminate you… you won’t hold it against me, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye turned and shot Rodri a glance: “Do you think I’m that kind of petty person?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Okok, my bad!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rodri raised both hands in surrender to Tang Ye: “Then I’m at ease.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stopping at the tunnel entrance, Tang Ye placed his hand on his Manchester United teammate’s shoulder: “Don’t get too confident, Rod.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rodri said nothing, but his eyebrows suddenly lifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether Tang Ye was joking or not, the national team captain’s gaze gave Rodri a faint sense of dread.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back at the club, Tang Ye always acted as the anchor in crucial matches—now he’s on the other side…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shit… Rodri felt an inexplicable tension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good luck, Tom!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rodri slapped Tang Ye’s shoulder hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course. You too—don’t lose too badly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“China Central Television…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“BEEP—!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the referee’s whistle, the match began.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The 40,000-seat stadium split into home and away sections; Chinese fans slightly outnumbered Spanish fans, but not by much.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The camera panned to below the VIP box, revealing familiar faces among the crowd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The legendary chosen one of the multiverse, the man blessed by the gambling god—GGBond’s father, GGBond Zhengxiong!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Zhengxiong’s expression was unusually serious—he clearly sensed how difficult this match would be.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The camera swept left, and fans soon spotted another familiar face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Erik ten Hag—the head coach of Manchester United in the Premier League, and also the club coach of both captains, Tang Ye and Rodri. Hmm… if I recall correctly, this should be Ten Hag’s first-ever World Cup match in Qatar.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, this match truly deserved to be watched live, haha!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s a focal clash, but the real focus lies on Tang Ye and Rodri. If comparing overall team strength, Spain’s squad is clearly superior to China’s—but good news: Jiang Guangtai has returned from injury, a crucial boost to China’s defense!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gavi, oh, beautiful!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gavi raised his right leg high and successfully intercepted Zhang Xizhe’s pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Holy shit!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through the broadcast, Zhang Xizhe’s voice was clearly audible—Chinese fans are hypersensitive to the word “holy shit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Xizhe charged forward to win the ball back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t go!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye shouted, but it was too late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gavi pulled the ball under control, turned sideways, and passed to Busquets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Busquets stepped forward—the space left by Zhang Xizhe’s pressing became the key to breaking the defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seizing the opportunity, Busquets delivered a low, direct through-ball.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Llorente, making a run down the right flank, collected the ball!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“¡Vamos!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Morata shouted from the bench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cover! Cover!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enrique signaled teammates to support; Llorente continued his forward run.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Xizhe was returning to position, but he wouldn’t make it in time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Llorente slowed down—just one second before Zhang Xizhe closed in, he played a through-ball; Asensio, arriving from the wing, collected it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Almost simultaneously, Ferran Torres, originally on the right wing, cut inside, completing a diagonal run with Asensio.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wow!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Asensio drove to the byline, one-on-one against Wang Shanchao!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cut inside!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His change of direction was slow—he didn’t shake off Wang Shanchao immediately, but Asensio didn’t care—he kept driving forward, using his body to shield and pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Torres in the center!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Torres was surrounded by defenders, but the Spaniard was clever—he lifted his foot and let the ball slip through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now it’s Ollmo with the ball!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Running past Zhang Linpeng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ollmo!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shot—the ball struck the six-yard box, bounced once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dalei lunged sideways—but Ollmo’s shot hit the right post, rebounded, and was then cleared away by Gavi’s follow-up strike.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gavi swung his right fist out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh!!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Less than three minutes into the first half, the stadium grew chaotic—Spain’s rapid counterattack taught China’s players a hard lesson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was fast and precise—but Gavi’s follow-up was oddly abstract.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s fine!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gavi received encouragement from Busquets and Asensio for missing the chance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In stark contrast, China’s side was in disarray.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why did you go up?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye shouted at Zhang Xizhe: “When you lose the ball, fall back! If you push forward, our formation collapses—I can’t cover your position!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just Tang Ye—coach Escribá on the sideline was also stressing formation discipline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Be careful!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pressed his hands downward, visibly tense: “Be careful!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heh, Spain’s attack is really aggressive—they’re not giving the opponent any space, heh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Lu remarked—this commentator already seemed to be writing off the national team.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beside him, Huang Jianxiang quickly jumped in to defend China.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though their attack flows well, Spain’s wingers and midfielders aren’t in top form.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, that’s clear from group stage stats—Gavi, Torres, and Busquets weren’t sharp. Meanwhile, China’s players are in better shape.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>8th minute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye collided with Pedri; the Chinese national team captain won this aerial duel, but his teammates’ reactions were a bit too slow, allowing Busquets to claim the ball.\u003C\u002Fp>",1096,"2026-06-20T06:50:12.695Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","dab9ca683ed2db922b671493dd10f28a78a692b9090d82005b29f92d3bceac55","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-863","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-861",918,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ffootball-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-cover.jpg"]