novelraw Chapter 10: A Pleasing Debut at Anfield!
Chapter 10: A Pleasing Debut at Anfield!
"Oh?"
"Is our Chinese player Chang Huan about to have a dream Premier League debut?"
"The last Chinese player to appear in the Premier League was on May 11, 2008!"
Sun Jihai will represent Manchester City in the final match of the 07-08 Premier League season!
The broadcast switched to the home team's coaching bench, where Chang Huan, having changed into his jersey, came to stand next to Klopp. Sports commentator Zhan Jun was filled with excitement.
Liverpool fans watching the live broadcast of the match, as well as Chinese fans who saw the related push notifications, all became excited.
"Your task is simple: stay active in these two areas, actively demand the ball, dribble whenever possible, don't be afraid of losing possession, and use long passes to disrupt Middlesbrough's defense when necessary. The transition from attack to defense must adhere to the three-second rule..."
Buvac flipped through the tactics book and spoke quickly.
Chang Huan nodded repeatedly, and would ask questions when she didn't quite understand something.
Half a minute later.
Head coach Klopp put his arm around Chang Huan's neck as they entered the substitution area, patting his chest and saying, "Kid, don't be nervous, just enjoy your Premier League debut."
Shortly after, the ball became dead.
In the 84th minute, referee Atkinson blew his whistle, turned to the technical area on the sidelines, and signaled for a substitution.
The fourth official stood next to Chang Huan, holding up an electronic sign.
The red indicator shows 15↓
Green display 69↑
Liverpool fielded a 17-year-old, 141-day-old Chinese player, Chang! The youngest player in the club's history to make his eighth appearance!
Sky Sports commentator Martin Taylor turned to look at his partner.
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher said: "As far as I know, Chang is an underrated, atypical winger. He joined the Kirkby academy at age 8, progressed normally to the U18 level, and was once close to being released, but... he recently had a breakout performance..."
"At 17 years and 141 days old, our player Chang Huan replaced Sturridge on the field! He made his first-team debut! He is the eighth youngest player to represent Liverpool! He is also the youngest Chinese player to play in a European league!"
Zhan Jun spoke with great passion and eloquence.
The live TV broadcast was instantly flooded with comments.
Wow, that's amazing!
[Starting today, I'm a 30-year Kop!]
[At this moment, Manchester City is nothing! Sleeper berths are the true kings of Britain!]
[Warning: 20 Top League Champions!]
What's so exciting about going on stage after securing the victory? It's clearly all about the Chinese market!
[He lacks any sense of national team honor, how can you expect him to perform well? It's laughable!]
May all haters and their families die!
……
Chang's parents and agent, Vinnie Grella, who came to watch the game, were very excited and joined the Liverpool fans in the stands in releasing their passion.
Sturridge slowly walked toward the sidelines.
Chang Huan, waiting to go on the field, adjusted his breathing, tucked his jersey into his shorts, bent over and pulled down his red socks and shin guards, exposing half of his calf.
"Keep it up, kid."
"must!"
After high-fiving Sturridge, Chang Huan quickly ran onto the field and informed his teammates of the coaching staff's adjustments.
The formation remains unchanged, still 4-3-3.
However, Chang Huan is not a pure winger, but an attacking midfielder.
Milner, playing as a makeshift left-back, threw the ball in from the outside, and Emre Can passed it to Chang Huan, who was ready to receive it on the left flank.
Former Manchester United player Fabio went up to teach this Premier League newbie a lesson.
Unexpectedly, Chang Huan's reaction speed was beyond imagination; he quickly touched the ball with both feet and finished making the fried meatball.
???
Fabio, who had just been beaten, was filled with countless question marks.
So... it was passed?
"woooooow——"
A collective gasp rippled through the Liverpool fans in the stands.
That dribbling past them was so smooth!
Former Liverpool player Stuart Downing hops and extends his leg to poke the ball.
Chang Huan's footwork was faster, and he managed to deflect the ball away first.
Referee Atkinson blew his whistle.
Stuart Downing was indeed a beat too slow in his tackle, which caused the man to fall, and he didn't argue.
"Beautiful fried dough balls!"
Zhan Jun's voice rose eight octaves: "Chang Huan dribbled past Fabio, drawing a foul from former Liverpool player Downing, and Liverpool won a free kick on the left side of the attacking third."
"Um?"
Commentator Li Yuankui, seeing Chang Huan positioned behind the ball on the right, exclaimed in surprise, "Is young Chang Huan going to take a free kick?"
"Isn't this to cover for Milner?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the whistle blew, and Chang Huan, who had taken the lead, kicked the soccer ball with his left foot.
The ball is touched by the inside of the foot.
The football, rising from the ground with a strong inward spin, quickly swept over the heads of the unjumping players and headed towards the penalty spot.
Goalkeeper Guzan watched the ball spin wildly in mid-air and didn't dare to come out.
Liverpool center-back Matip, positioned on the edge of the penalty area, emerged and appeared at the landing point under the cover of Emre Can and Lovren.
Jump, twist your waist, and swing your head!
The football, flying towards the goal at an even faster speed, spun an even larger arc, almost grazing the outside of the right goalpost before going out of bounds.
A sigh of regret echoed over Anfield.
Matip, who had missed the opportunity, gave Chang Huan a thumbs up.
Sky Sports commentator Jamie Carragher exclaimed in admiration: "I must say, Chang's free kick placement was superb, as if it had been precisely calculated by a computer!"
"Wow, Chang Huan's left foot is something else! He found the perfect spot, bypassing the defender and landing precisely on his teammate's head. It's a pity Matip was too focused on finding the right angle."
The screen was flooded with comments on China Network Television's bullet screen once again.
[Speak up, haters!]
Being able to take free kicks in a match definitely means you've earned the approval of the coaching staff and teammates during training!
[His dribbling and passing are so smooth; I feel like I'm witnessing the rise of Chinese football!]
[Rise my ass! They've been expelled from all levels of the national team for two years by Lord Yu!]
Isn't this better? They can develop in peace.
Guzan kicks a short goal kick.
Middlesbrough organize their attack from the backfield.
Chang Huan, Firmino and other players launched a high press.
To avoid a counter-attack, Chambers, just to be safe, launched a long ball forward.
Blindly making long passes makes it difficult to find teammates.
Lovren, with Matip's assistance, controlled possession of the ball.
Bamford, Negredo, Downing, and other Middlesbrough players immediately launched a high press, and Milner, who received the ball, passed it to Wijnaldum for a transition.
Firmino pulls back to connect.
Danny Ince received the ball, dribbled past Leadbitt, and passed it to Chang Huan, who had moved to the left.
Having learned from his previous experience, Fabio maintained a safe distance while verbally harassing him: "Kid, you're not getting past me this time!"
Middlesbrough's defense gradually moved closer to the right flank, and Chang Huan, having obtained the Sky Eye Fragment, experienced a significant improvement in his vision, making him more confident in delivering passes with better routes.
Chang Huan's lips curled up, and he swung his left foot directly.
Complete a long diagonal pass!
???
Fabio's brain went blank for a moment.
I let you try me out!
Why pass the ball?
The live broadcast switch shots, revealing Klein, who is making a high-speed run along the right flank with no one marking him!
The atmosphere in the stadium suddenly intensified as Clyne controlled the ball, adjusted his position, and delivered a powerful low cross.
Center-back Ben Gibbs risked an own goal by going down and poking the ball out of bounds before Firmino could reach it.
Most Chinese fans watching the live broadcast of the game became excited.
Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Liverpool's attacking momentum after Lallana was completely different!
Sports commentators Zhan Jun and Li Yuankui praised it highly.
The live chat continued to flood with comments.
The number of negative comments has decreased significantly, and almost all of them are positive.
Middlesbrough interim manager Steve Agnew saw the reason for Liverpool's attacking changes and made a slight adjustment during a dead ball situation.
Chang Huan found that the space to handle the ball was significantly smaller this time. Due to his poor vision and weak physique, he struggled to deal with the close marking of the muscular man.
Mistakes are inevitable.
Fortunately, he adheres to the three-second rule and always assists his teammates in disrupting or counter-attacking the ball in the first instance.
Faced with Middlesbrough's high-intensity defense, Chang Huan realized he should run more and increase his running range without affecting his teammates.
Klopp, in the home team's control area, smiled and said, "What a clever little guy."
"Yes, they know to actively look for opportunities by running, and they don't hold onto the ball as much as before."
Lindes, the development coach who connects youth training, couldn't hide his admiration.
The skillful and fluid movements of the small-scale fried meatballs always elicit cheers from the home fans.
Although it wasn't as stunning as its debut, it still had its highlights.
After 90 minutes of regulation time, the fourth official raised the electronic sign indicating three minutes of injury time in stoppage time.
By this point in time, neither side had much of a desire to fight anymore.
Klein received a long diagonal pass from Chang Huan and then crossed from the right wing, but his cross went too deep and the ball flew out of bounds.
Liverpool made their final adjustment.
Arnold replaces Klein and brings the latest tactical instructions.
Control the situation.
There is half a minute left in stoppage time.
Liverpool's attack developed down the right flank.
Arnold passed the ball laterally to the left, Wijnaldum cut inside on the right flank and delivered a diagonal through ball, Firmino, with his back to the goal, laid the ball off to the right from the edge of the left penalty area.
Chang Huan cleverly used a fritter to break through the defense on the left flank, facing a pressing Clayton.
The atmosphere at the scene was heightened once again.
Fabio was very quick to cover, but Chang Huan handled the ball even faster!
He wrapped the ball with the outside of his outstretched left foot, flicked it slightly to the left to dodge Fabio's tackle, and then quickly passed a through ball to the left.
Milner's cross during his run was headed away by Chambers at the near post.
Wijnaldum positioned himself at the edge of the penalty area and headed the ball back to Emre Can.
The German international passed the ball directly to the left flank.
Chang Huan stopped the ball half a meter in front of him with the instep of his left foot, then quickly followed up with his right foot for support, and kicked the ball close to the ground with his left foot.
Forty-five-degree top-long pass!
The football soared into the air and swept across the Middlesbrough penalty area.
The graceful arc drawn in mid-air resembled a crescent moon, bypassing the players from both sides at the near post and in the middle of the penalty area, precisely finding Danny Ince, who was running towards the far post unmarked.
Guzan was completely helpless against such a powerful header from close range, and could only watch the ball helplessly...