Chapter 99: 45-Degree Cross Lv3! Utrecht

Dongqiu Di: In 20 days, Tang Ye became the player in Utrecht’s history with the shortest interval between two titles won.

The Utrecht Evening News, front page headline: U21 wonderkid from the Eredivisie, Tang delivers 4 assists to help the reserve team win the U21 Cup.

Although Tang Ye received nothing from this U21 Cup match due to triggering the system’s age-overlimit violation mechanism.

But winning a title still made Tang Ye quite happy.

Especially since Zaka took him gaming every day; helping Zaka win a title made Tang Ye feel extremely proud.

Oh right!

Remembering Bohl’s advice to maintain his Instagram account, Tang Ye walked to his desk and took a photo of the Man of the Match trophy he had just won.

Posting just the photo wasn’t enough; Tang Ye decided to add an emoji to it.

What emoji should he use…?

After browsing through options, he finally chose a “Struggle” emoji.

It matched his personality well.

tangye9999: Struggle! (.jpg)

Tang Ye’s Instagram account now had over 90,000 followers; as soon as he posted, Utrecht fans rushed to comment.

[Wonderkid descended from the heavens!]

[Don’t bully kids, okay? Even though you’re the kid.]

[When will you win the Eredivisie title?]

[Tom, can you convince Ten Hag to stay at the club? Or just you stay—don’t go to Germany; Germany isn’t as good as the Netherlands.]

[Those idiots at Ajax—U21 players can’t even beat U19s, yet they call them up. Tom delivered 4 assists in a U21 match; that’s truly impressive.]

[You can’t look at it that way—De Jong is the core at Ajax’s reserve team, but at Utrecht’s first team he’s just a rotation player.]

[Tom, stay at Utrecht! We want to win the title!]

The fans were incredibly enthusiastic; besides them, Utrecht’s official account liked Tang Ye’s post.

Muting notifications to let fans chat first, Tang Ye scrolled through news on Twitter.

1. Amsterdam’s red-light district “Lightpool” brothel was attacked without cause by a drunkard; the brothel’s manager has requested police protection.

2. A man from Montford traveled to China to meet his online girlfriend, waited at the airport for 12 days. Girlfriend: Won’t meet.

3. In the final title-deciding match of the Eredivisie, will Utrecht’s young star Tang be restricted again by the minor protection law?

The first two news items were meaningless, but when Tang Ye saw the third, he sat up straight.

Because the subject of this article was him—TM!

He clicked in to read—it was written by a local Dutch fan.

The match between Utrecht and Alkmaar on May 20th kicked off at 8:45 PM Dutch time.

Tang Ye had just now noticed the odd timing.

Simple calculation: 45 minutes for the first half, 15 minutes halftime…

Plus another 15 minutes.

Holy shit, Tang Ye would only get 60 minutes of playing time in Utrecht’s most crucial match of the season!

Tang Ye was already ready to curse—autumn and winter games had decent times, but come spring and summer, the Eredivisie piled on matches after 8 PM.

How was a minor like him supposed to handle this?

Tang Ye was under serious pressure; Ten Hag had already been detained once because of him.

Last time, Ten Hag was held for three and a half days. Though he didn’t directly target Tang Ye after being released, Tang Ye could feel the resentment radiating from Ten Hag.

If he got detained again, it wouldn’t just be three and a half days—how would Ten Hag manage?

Ten Hag had never told the Utrecht players anything about the final match. Tang Ye really wanted to message him, but it was already late; he’d have to wait until tomorrow.

Tang Ye walked to his desk, ready to play a few Hearthstone matches before sleeping.

At this moment, Dongqiu Di.

[Wait, is Ten Hag going to jail again?]

[It’s not jail—it’s a detention center! Detention center!]

[First time three days, second time must be two or three weeks. Haha, since Ten Hag yells so much, he should stay longer at the police station.]

[Next punishment will definitely be harsher—what if Ten Hag, afraid of punishment, subbed Montgo early?]

[Good idea—now let’s see whether Ten Hag wants the title or wants to go to jail.]

[Can’t Tang the King just change his age? 17 and 18 are basically the same—just change him to 18.]

[Holy shit, everyone else tries to make themselves younger—you’re trying to make yourself older?]

The next day, Utrecht held a shooting training session.

“I’m good at this.”

Tang Ye rubbed his hands.

He loved shooting drills most—each player took turns, just a run-up and a shot, barely any physical exertion.

“Alright, line up, line up!”

Van der Gaag shouted twice; stadium staff placed seven or eight balls beside him.

Van der Gaag was the passer for this drill!

“Go!”

Van der Gaag sent a ball from the flank to the center; Ale rushed forward, controlled it, took two steps, then fired a shot.

Goalkeeper Ruit made a diving save—but it was useless.

“Only one adjustment step!”

Van der Gaag emphasized to the players behind: “In a match, you won’t get this much time to adjust—if you take two or more steps, the goal won’t count!”

The rest of the training was preparation for the final title-deciding match; Alkmaar’s defensive pressure was intense, so Utrecht would rarely get two steps to adjust in attack—that’s why Van der Gaag was so strict.

“Got it, got it!”

The second player, Ramseyer, raised his hand; Van der Gaag delivered a cross from the flank, and Ramseyer immediately sprinted.

Bam!

Ramseyer shot without adjusting—the ball flew out of bounds.

“Lower your center of gravity!”

Ten Hag reminded him.

Training continued; Tang Ye waited at the back of the line for his turn, but after seeing Van der Gaag standing on the right flank, he had a new idea.

Shooting drills were fun, but Tang Ye’s 45-degree cross skill was about to level up.

Hmm…

Tang Ye stood still, thinking.

He hesitated—but then he remembered that winning the Eredivisie title would grant him a final template, and he made his decision.

He walked slowly toward Van der Gaag: “Mr. Michel, can I take over passing?”

“Huh? You?”

Van der Gaag glanced at Tang Ye, then looked toward Ten Hag.

Ten Hag had no objection.

Right-flank crosses were already one of Tang Ye’s responsibilities on the pitch.

“Alright, you take over.”

Van der Gaag stepped aside; Tang Ye pointed to the empty space behind him: “Can we move the passing point back a bit?”

If he passed from this position, Tang Ye knew from experience, he wouldn’t trigger the [45-degree Cross] proficiency.

“Sure, that’s fine.”

Van der Gaag nodded: “But you know, the farther back you go, the harder it is to pass accurately.”

“No problem.”

Tang Ye kicked the ball backward; Van der Gaag expected him to retreat four or five meters—but this guy went back twenty meters.

“Hey, can you even pass from there?”

Ten Hag shouted: “We’re training—you must get every ball into the box, or we’ll waste too much time!”

“I can do it, I can do it!”

Tang Ye raised his right hand; he saw Balazic raise his hand too.

[You purchased Paul Pogba’s hair gel]

Run-up!

Cross!

Bam!

[De Bruyne 45-degree Cross Lv2: Similar]

Proficiency: 88.2/100

The ball curved in a reverse “C” shape from the right flank into the box, landing perfectly in front of Balazic, who controlled it with his chest, then unleashed a volley to score.

“Haha!”

Balazic spun around in celebration; teammates waiting behind the arc clapped for him.

“Alright…”

Van der Gaag lowered his head.

It wasn’t that Utrecht’s players were bad at shooting—it was that his passing was terrible!

“Keep going, keep going!”

Ten Hag blew the whistle, De Jong reached out.

“OK, here it comes!”

Tang Ye delivered another 45-degree cross.

Proficiency: 88.4/100

De Jong was different from Balazic—he chose to stop the ball with the inside of his foot.

Adjusted one step.

Then shoot!

【At 38, you gave your all, sacrificing your own shooting practice to help teammates chain shots and assist the coach with passing】

【You gained 10 Comeback Points】

“Uh...”

Tang Ye hadn’t expected this to trigger a system reward.

But whether he got these 10 Comeback Points or not didn’t matter—he now needed to use the proficiency bonus from Borges’ gel to quickly upgrade 【45-Degree Cross】 to Lv3.

“Let’s go, let’s go!”

“Snap!”

Half an hour later, De Jong ran over and asked to swap positions with Tang Ye, but Tang Ye refused.

This damn spirit of self-sacrifice!

Ten Hag and Van Dijk exchanged a glance.

They realized they were wrong.

Tang Ye wasn’t a slacker—he was the most selfless player on Utrecht’s roster! Van Dijk nodded: “I’ll go talk to him about switching positions later.”

“Snap!”

【De Bruyne 45-Degree Cross Lv2: Similar】

Proficiency: 99/100

【From Borges’ gel, you gained an extra 1 point of proficiency】

【De Bruyne 45-Degree Cross Lv3: Simulated】

Proficiency: 1/100

“Phew...”

Hands on hips, Tang Ye watched Ale head his cross into the net, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

All his effort wasn’t in vain.

His teammates were amazing!

“Tom!”

Van Dijk came around from behind and joined Tang Ye: “You’ve passed enough—let me take over now!”

“Sure, sure.”

!

“Huh?”

Before Van Dijk could react, Tang Ye had already run off to begin his shooting drill.

“Hey!”

Van Dijk spread his arms wide.

Damn it, shouldn’t you have refused me?

“How was that? Wasn’t my passing decent?”

At lunch in the cafeteria, Tang Ye bit into his burger and reviewed the morning’s shooting drills with his teammates.

Ale nodded: “Nine out of ten crosses landed inside the box—honestly, your 45-degree cross is solid, but your shooting’s weak.”

Ale seized Tang Ye’s weakness: “So just leave the shooting to me—you handle the passing.”

“No, Tang, don’t listen to him—he’s just tricking you into passing to him!”

Balazic pointed at Ale: “Listen, Tang, Ale’s not a good guy—don’t let him fool you.”

“Haha, stop arguing—you two! This is our last match of the season; we should be thinking about the title, not goals!”

Ramselaar clenched his fist tightly: “We have to win this final match!”

“By the way, I think I can only play 60 minutes in the last game.”

Tang Ye suddenly remembered the news he’d seen last night.

Like Tang Ye, none of the players at the table had remembered to check the exact match time.

Whether the match was at 5:45 p.m. or 8:45 p.m. made no difference to Utrecht’s players.

But for Tang Ye, the difference was huge!

“That’s right—damn it!”

Amrabat frowned: “So I’d have to come on at the 60th minute—if I handball and screw you guys over, what then?”

“Haha, you know you’re a handball liability!”

Ramselaar pulled Amrabat close: “But no need to worry—Eric will probably let Tang play the full match. It’s the last game—this crucial a match, even a 100,000-euro fine is worth it!”

“But Mr. Eric might get arrested!”

Tang Ye pointed out the problem—the Utrecht players fell silent.

Right!

Damn it!

They’d forgotten—if Tang Ye plays the full match again, this will be Ten Hag’s fifth violation of the Minor Protection Law this season.

What do we do?

“Uh...”

Ale tapped the table with his index finger: “How long do you get locked up the second time?”

“I don’t know.”

Tang Ye shoved the rest of his burger into his mouth and stood up: “I’m going to ask Mr. Eric in his office—I’ll tell you after afternoon training.”

As he’d said, Tang Ye went to Ten Hag’s office on the second floor of the base.

He pushed the door open—Van Dijk was lying on the sofa reading a newspaper.

Tang Ye greeted Van Dijk, then walked straight to Ten Hag and asked whether he could play the full match in the final game.

“You don’t need to worry about that.”

“Mr. Eric, ‘don’t worry’ means...?”

“You’ll play the full match. As long as you’re not injured, you’ll play the full match—I guarantee it.”

To Tang Ye’s surprise, Ten Hag spoke with a relaxed expression.

As if...

As if he’d already made his sacrifice!

Walking out of the office, Tang Ye’s heart warmed.

Mr. Eric was a bastard, but sometimes, he was genuinely admirable.

For the team, for Tang Ye—he was willing to sacrifice himself!

This damn personal charisma!

It was May 18th—the final round of the Eredivisie began. PSV Eindhoven defeated their opponent Cambuur 4-0, returning to the top of the table after playing one more game.

With this final win, Eindhoven locked in their season total at 78 points.

The current Eredivisie standings were as follows:

1. PSV Eindhoven, 34 games, 78 points

2. Utrecht, 33 games, 78 points

3. Ajax, 33 games, 74 points

4. Feyenoord, 34 games, 60 points

The point gaps among the top three were tiny; Utrecht and Eindhoven differed by only four goal difference.

That meant Utrecht didn’t even need to win—they could just draw the final match and overturn Eindhoven again.

As for Ajax, it didn’t matter at all.

Even if Utrecht lost and Ajax won, Ajax couldn’t overtake Utrecht on points.

The decisive league match was about to begin—the Utrecht players were under immense pressure.

Worse still, the match time restricted their rising star, Tang Ye!

On match day, the Utrecht players boarded the bus at the base, heading for Goffert Stadium.

Before they departed, hundreds of fans had already gathered outside the base.

“Utrecht!”

“Utrecht!”

“Ten Hag!”

The fans’ chants were loud, showing their support for the home team.

Some fans even brought along rally signs.

What mattered wasn’t the rally signs themselves, but the words written on them.

【Put Tom on, I’ll take Tenghahe ’s place in jail!】

«…»

Van Gaal in the team bus was speechless.

These fans clearly didn’t understand the difference between a detention center and a prison.

But it didn’t matter anymore—ten days before the match, Utrecht’s coaching staff had already held a discussion about Tang Ye playing.

They had already made their decision!

…

Click!

Click-click!

Van Gaal and Fan Dejia entered the press room together—this was the most crowded press conference Utrecht had ever held at home this season.

Unlike previous matches against PSV and Ajax, today’s large media presence wasn’t due to the opponent’s popularity.

It was because Utrecht itself was hot!

Under Van Gaal’s leadership, Utrecht had become a top-tier team in the Eredivisie.

Most importantly, they weren’t just popular—they were winning!

«Eric, will you substitute Tom off at the 60th minute if you’re losing at that point?»

«I think not. From what I know, Tang will play the full match today.»

Van Gaal replied.

I think not?

Huh…

The reporters were baffled by Van Gaal’s words: «Eric, why did you say ‘I think’?»

«There’s no reason. Tang will start and play the full match. That’s what I’ve been told.»

Van Gaal smiled.

The reporters looked at each other, none of them understanding what Van Gaal meant.

«Do you think you can win this match and claim Utrecht’s first Eredivisie title in club history?»

«Of course.»

…

At 6 p.m., with less than three hours until kickoff, Utrecht released their official matchday squad via social media.

Starting players like Ale, Barazite, Ramsey, and others were all listed—along with Tang Ye.

Further down, the previously injured Jansen had returned to the squad.

Then came the coaching staff.

Seeing the coaching section on Utrecht’s official squad list, reporters and fans finally understood what Van Gaal had meant in his earlier interview.

Head Coach: Michel Fan Dejia

Assistant Coach: Eric Van Gaal

The starting lineup was decided solely by the head coach; Assistant Coach Van Gaal had no knowledge of it.

He was…

Innocent!

…

(End of Chapter)