[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-start-with-r9-template":3,"chapter-start-with-r9-template-start-with-r9-template-chapter-289":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},1388853,1840,"Chapter 289 - 289","start-with-r9-template-chapter-289",289,"\u003Cp>A long-range shot from Newcastle United struck Maguire and bounced near Matić at the edge of the penalty area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Nemanja! Behind you!\" De Gea roared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without a clear line of sight, Matić decisively flicked the ball blind with his heel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ball grazed Diamé's toes and landed perfectly at the feet of Jeremy Ling, who had made a sudden run deep into his own half to receive it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Facing Isaac Hayden's fierce tackle from the side, Ling simply nudged the ball to the left with finesse, easily bypassing the defender.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, he exploded into a full sprint!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Peter Drury: \"Ling is away! He resembles a flame skimming the ground as he charges toward Newcastle United's defensive line! The sheer pace of the man!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the wide-angle camera shot displayed on the screen, the advertising boards on either side seemed to blur as he hit top speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the blink of an eye, Ling arrived at the edge of the Newcastle penalty area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two center-backs, Lascelles and Paul Dummett, closed in like rapidly shutting iron gates, aiming to sandwich Ling and block him outside the penalty area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what happened next left everyone's jaws agape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling didn't slow his charging speed in the slightest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lowering his center of gravity, he forcefully squeezed his way right through the narrow, closing gap between the two massive defenders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just before losing his balance and falling from the heavy contact, he managed to sweep a desperate, poked shot toward the left side of the goal!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ball stumbled past goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka's outstretched fingertips and crossed the goal line!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>0-3!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Peter Drury: \"A MAGNIFICENT SOLO RUN! He ran the length of the pitch and simply overpowered two defenders at the very end! That powerful physique combined with terrifying speed is a nightmare for every defender in this league. I bet Lascelles might have nightmares about Jeremy Ling tonight! The outcome is emphatically settled!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At St. James' Park, even the proud Newcastle United fans stood and applauded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For even as opponents today, they couldn't deny the sheer individual brilliance of that goal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling celebrated passionately before being substituted off to rest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Manchester United naturally sailed to victory, though the remainder of the match felt rather dull, especially since only Lakaka remained in the attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite having shed some weight recently, the Belgian's speed was no match for Ling's.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever he was double-teamed on the counterattack, he struggled to safely distribute the ball or break away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This starkly highlighted the gap in quality between the two players.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lukaku didn't seem bothered when interviewed after the match, however.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He simply laughed and said, \"Jeremy is the player who broke the Premier League scoring record. If I were as fast and as good as him, wouldn't that be something else?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two days after returning to Manchester with the victory, in the FA Cup third round, Manchester United fielded a heavily rotated lineup against Reading at Old Trafford.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The substitute players demonstrated exactly why they were substitutes, delivering a series of cringe-worthy, disjointed performances in the first half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This infuriated Mourinho so much that he lashed out on the touchline and in the dressing room at halftime.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, Reading, a Championship relegation-battling team, still failed to breach Manchester United's goal, largely due to their overall inferior quality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, it was Riyad Mahrez who stepped up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He scored two exquisite curling shots between the 67th and 73rd minutes of the second half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Manchester United ultimately defeated Reading 2-0, advancing safely to the FA Cup round of 32!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After this match, Manchester United's next game wasn't until January 14th against Tottenham, meaning there was a rare nine-day break in the schedule.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mourinho generously gave the players a full day off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ling took Maria to London to attend a massive commercial event hosted by Puma.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the two walked the red carpet, they stunned everyone in attendance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The phrase \"a perfect golden couple\" couldn't have been more fitting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That evening alone, Maria's social media account gained four thousand new followers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After returning to Manchester from London, Jeremy resumed his monotonous, disciplined routine, shuttling between training at Carrington, his university classes, and home day after day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, compared to his peaceful life, the Premier League was stirring up a massive transfer storm!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Manchester United's veteran captain, Antonio Valencia, received concrete offers from Fulham and Newcastle United.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although both were relegation-battling Premier League teams, they could offer him guaranteed playing time in the twilight of his career.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Valencia decisively rejected these offers and stated in a media interview.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Due to knee injuries and declining fitness, I know my level no longer meets Manchester United's requirements for a starting full-back. However, since Manchester United hasn't found a suitable replacement in the market yet, I am currently the best backup option they have. Of course, leaving is only a matter of time—perhaps after this season ends. But until then, Manchester United is still my home, and I will continue to fight for it!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Ling saw this news quote, he felt deeply moved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Valencia was born in a poor city in Ecuador, where his family of eight struggled to survive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He started collecting bottles as a child just to help support his family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn't until he discovered football that his life underwent a dramatic change. Despite earning countless banknotes, luxurious supercars, and extravagant luxuries, Valencia never lost his original intentions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many in the football world, after being exposed to such wealth, inevitably succumbed to corruption or laziness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not Valencia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He even fired his own agent to force a move to Manchester United years ago and had literally broken a leg for the club.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People often said Jeremy Ling was the inheritor of the Manchester United spirit, but Ling firmly believed the true inheritor was the veteran captain, Antonio Valencia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not long after, Manchester United's official website announced another piece of massive news: the long-term contract renewal of Spanish goalkeeper David De Gea, tying him to the club until 2024.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This delighted Manchester United fans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>De Gea's world-class performances in recent seasons had been evident to all, and absolutely no one wanted to let go of their savior between the sticks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for recruitment efforts?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rumors swirled that Manchester United was actively negotiating with Chelsea to exchange Mateo Kovačić for N'Golo Kanté.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said Maurizio Sarri was actually tempted by the offer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in the specific 4-3-3 formation Sarri employed, there could only be one deep-lying playmaker, and he naturally favored his former Napoli disciple, Jorginho.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, Kanté was a player whose defensive contributions vastly outweighed his offensive ones, which hindered Sarri's preferred style of quick wing progression and possession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, there were still significant disagreements between the two clubs over the final transfer fee and valuation of the swap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Other teams also began strengthening their squads in the January window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Manchester City had their eyes firmly on Ajax's rising star Frenkie de Jong, hoping to use him as a long-term replacement for the aging Fernandinho.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, there were also issues with City's wage structure, leaving it up to Guardiola to convince the board.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chelsea's biggest problem remained their severe lack of firepower up front.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Neither Alvaro Morata nor Olivier Giroud performed well consistently, and Eden Hazard's form as a false-nine was unsatisfactory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Chelsea spent £57.6 million to sign Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund, though the American would only officially join in the summer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Additionally, to solve their immediate striker crisis, they loaned Gonzalo Higuaín from Juventus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was clear that Roman Abramovich was no longer as financially extravagant as before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past, Chelsea would never have resorted to \"try before you buy\" loan deals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arsenal also tightened their purse strings, only managing to loan Spanish midfielder Denis Suárez.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur were even more extreme, adopting a \"save wherever possible\" strategy and spending not a single penny in January.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The former, having splurged massively in two consecutive transfer windows to sign Alisson and Van Dijk, now had a complete squad and didn't need major changes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The latter was in the midst of rebuilding their new stadium, costing a staggering £1 billion, leaving their pockets emptier than their trophy cabinet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pochettino desperately wanted to buy players but simply couldn't afford to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, in the Chinese football scene, strict spending caps were finally implemented following a massive corruption scandal, heavily controlling the financial flows of the major Super League clubs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, there was also some very good news for Chinese fans: star forward Wu Lei officially joined La Liga side Espanyol for 2 million euros.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After many years of a severe downturn, the trend of Chinese players going abroad to play in Europe was showing early signs of a resurgence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several European clubs were beginning to pay close attention to outstanding young Chinese players, inspired by Ling's success.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This became a new opportunity for Chinese football to revive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although this opportunity might not necessarily lead to immediate success, it at least offered a glimmer of hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>@TransferNewsLive: BREAKING: Chelsea and Manchester United are in advanced talks over a sensational swap deal involving Mateo Kovačić and N'Golo Kanté. 🚨\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>@CarefreeChelsea: Sarri is actually going to sell Kanté just so Jorginho can pass sideways 100 times a game. I'm sick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>@UtdFaithful: KANTÉ AND POGBA IN THE SAME MIDFIELD?! GET IT DONE ED WOODWARD!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On January 10th, exactly four days before Manchester United's massive clash against Tottenham Hotspur, the Premier League was rocked by the official announcement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rumors were true.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chelsea's tireless engine, N'Golo Kanté, had officially joined Manchester United!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---------\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Read 30 chapters ahead and support me on patreon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>patreon (.)com\u002FNewbietranslator\u003C\u002Fp>",1605,"2026-06-05T22:48:23.062Z",1,"novelbin.me","e72b53729a56e96be4b9aaabf07f875261e25c79da580620d8ddf82cf0518802","start-with-r9-template-chapter-350","start-with-r9-template-chapter-288",371,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstart-with-r9-template-cover.jpg"]