[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-start-with-r9-template":3,"chapter-start-with-r9-template-start-with-r9-template-chapter-15":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Start with R9 Template",{"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},1388692,1840,"Chapter 15: No, He's Just Like Us","start-with-r9-template-chapter-15",15,"\u003Cp>The match resumed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slaven Bilic, seeing his moment, waved his arm, ordering his team into a frenzied press to exploit any confusion from the substitution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But United, now 2-0 up, simply sank into their classic Mourinho defensive shell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lukaku dropped back, and Ling and Mkhitaryan tucked inside, forming a flat, compact, four-man midfield line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, Old Trafford was a fortress of red shirts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>West Ham had the ball, but they were mired in difficulty, passing it uselessly in front of an impenetrable wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We can see Ling's movement is very active,\" Zhan Jun noted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He's already dropped back, compensating for his defensive shortcomings with pure work rate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, Matic, a long leg shooting out, made a beautiful, clean tackle and immediately passed the ball to the left flank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling's heart pounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His first touch in the Premier League.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He received the pass and quickly scanned the field, but before he could even think about turning, Pablo Zabaleta was thundering in from behind, giving him no space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'A rookie,' Zabaleta thought, his eyes narrowing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He still had a bitter taste in his mouth from that pre-season friendly, that hot-headed Chinese kid from Bremen, Zhang Yuning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'These young kids are all the same. No composure.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With his years of experience, dispossessing a debutant should be easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lunged, expecting the rookie to panic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the breakthrough had vanished, Ling didn't force it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He calmly, safely, played a one-touch pass back to Matic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Smart!\" Zhan Jun exclaimed in the broadcast booth. \"Very smart. His first touch in the Premier League, under pressure from a legend like Zabaleta, and he doesn't try to be a hero. He keeps possession. That's maturity.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only 5 minutes remained in regular time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>West Ham, unable to get the ball, grew increasingly anxious and pushed high up the pitch, leaving massive gaps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ball returned to Matic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He spotted Paul Pogba in a pocket of space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pogba received the pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why isn't he releasing the ball?!\" Zhan Jun almost shouted, as three West Ham players closed in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Pogba, ever the performer, waited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He invited the press.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He drew them in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He waited for Zabaleta to get sucked inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He waited until he saw the white blur of Ling's shirt on the far-left flank, all alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, just as the trap was about to close, Pogba swung his calf, launching a brilliant, 60-yard cross-field pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a rainbow, soaring over everyone's head, landing perfectly in front of Ling, who had acres of space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling calmly controlled the ball, took one look, and abruptly accelerated, driving straight at the byline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt as if his soul had left his body, teetering on the edge of extreme calm and pure exhilaration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zabaleta, realizing he'd been tricked, scrambled, cutting diagonally toward the penalty area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the blink of an eye, Ling was at the edge of the box.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>West Ham's defenders were scrambling to mark Lukaku and Mkhitaryan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A breakthrough was needed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling gradually slowed his pace, his right foot tapping the ball, inviting the challenge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zabaleta stood firm, bracing for the tackle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'This kid thinks he can get past me?' Zabaleta thought, almost laughing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Back in the Argentine national team, even Messi can't beat me 1-on-1 every time. Who do you think you are?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the sidelines, Mourinho leaned forward, his eyes locked on Ling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Come on, kid,' he thought. 'Prove it. Show them.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not far behind the West Ham bench, a young substitute, Declan Rice, sat bolt upright, his breathing suddenly rapid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The distance between the two players narrowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling tuned out the chaotic noise, slipping into the same pure focus he had during his cone drills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He made his move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Matthews Shoulder Drop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His upper body feinted hard to the right, a violent, sudden sway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zabaleta, the world-class defender, reacted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His hips, his center of gravity, his entire body—all shifted to block the inside cut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was a ghost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling's weight was already on his left foot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that split-second of imbalance, as Zabaleta's feet were planted in the turf, Ling was gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn't just cut inside; he exploded past the veteran's desperate, lunging leg, leaving him for dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Joe Hart, seeing the move, scrambled to shift his position, his eyes wide with panic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn't want to be the punchline again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Trafford held its breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lukaku, free in the center, let out a boisterous shout: \"Here! Here! Here!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling, of course, heard him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His head was up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Joe Hart's desperate gaze, the young #23, in on goal, calmly and unselfishly played a perfect cutback pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lukaku muscled off his marker and gleefully slotted the ball into the empty net.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He may be the poster boy for \"joyful football,\" but he wasn't going to miss that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>3-0!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>WHOOOOOOSH!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound that erupted from Old Trafford was almost tangible, an ear-splitting wave of pure joy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tens of thousands of fans in the Stretford End, the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand, all of them... they rose to their feet, trembling with excitement, wildly waving their arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who is that young man?!\" a fan shouted to his friend.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Number 23? Is he Korean? Are we getting another Park Ji-Sung?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A group of fans nearby, with black hair and yellow skin, glanced at each other, their faces filled with an emotion they hadn't felt in years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One of them turned, his voice thick with pride.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No,\" he said, puffing out his chest. \"Like us, he's Chinese!\"\u003C\u002Fp>",908,"2026-06-05T22:48:22.783Z",1,"novelbin.me","9a6250e4fbdfd4a0783518492b8bd3ebb14730ef764ff501ddff0c0db06684bf","start-with-r9-template-chapter-16","start-with-r9-template-chapter-112",371,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstart-with-r9-template-cover.jpg"]