On the evening of November 5.
In the 11th round of the Premier League, Manchester City traveled to Loftus Road in London to face Queens Park Rangers.
Just before kickoff, the players from both sides stepped onto the pitch, led by referee Martin Atkinson. Gao Shen followed and made his way to the away team's technical area. At that moment, QPR head coach Mark Hughes approached him.
"Welcome to my territory!" Mark Hughes said proudly, extending his hand.
Gao Shen was momentarily stunned, then smiled as he shook his predecessor's hand. "Hope you can keep it tonight!"
Hughes had come over deliberately to provoke him, and Gao Shen had no intention of backing down.
"I hope you're still smiling after the game."
With that, Mark Hughes walked off.
Gao Shen looked puzzled. He really had no idea why Mark Hughes hated him so much.
Was it because he replaced him at Manchester City?
Surely not?
Even without Gao Shen, Hughes wouldn't have lasted much longer. Did he really lack that much self-awareness?
"Don't act so innocent. Everyone in Europe knows you screwed him over." Carlo laughed and teased.
"I'm not! I didn't! Don't slander me!" Gao Shen denied it three times in a row.
In truth, everyone in European football knew that Jonathan Howson had been a failed signing.
Of course, that didn't mean his performances in the Championship last season were fake. But he was the kind of player who needed a very specific tactical setup to be effective.
And right now, QPR didn't provide that.
Lampard II?
Please. His technical level was nowhere near Lampard's.
A player like him might survive in the Championship, but the Premier League was a completely different beast.
The most obvious issue: he couldn't even control the ball or complete basic stops under pressure in the top flight. How was he supposed to perform?
Yet for a player like this, Mark Hughes had discarded loyal veterans like Wright-Phillips. It was a total loss—both the troops and the morale.
So it was understandable that he resented Gao Shen now.
After all, Leeds United had been too sharp in business.
"We still need to be cautious. It's obvious he's going all-in tonight," Carlo warned seriously.
He had always been careful and composed.
"That's expected. They just beat Chelsea in their last home game," Gao Shen replied with a smile.
Despite the problems with the Howson signing, Mark Hughes remained a capable head coach.
QPR were currently 12th in the Premier League, with one win, three draws, and one loss at home, plus two wins and three losses away. Interestingly, the only team they had beaten at home so far was Villas-Boas' Chelsea.
They were thrashed 4-0 by Bolton at home in the first round, but followed that with three consecutive draws, and then shocked Chelsea in their last home game. In the previous round, QPR had also played well away against Tottenham. All of this gave Mark Hughes a renewed sense of confidence.
On the other hand, Kompany was suspended in the Premier League after his Champions League suspension, so City had to start Jerome Boateng again at center-back.
This, in Hughes' mind, presented an opening.
But Gao Shen had never feared teams playing to the death. What worried him more were conservative opponents like Moyes.
"What a mysterious confidence," Gao Shen muttered.
…
Mark Hughes was riding a wave of confidence in his squad.
Their recent performances had been strong—particularly in the second half against Tottenham, where they nearly overran Spurs. Despite losing 3-1, they came away with belief.
Facing Manchester City tonight, QPR were well-rested, brimming with energy, and full of fighting spirit.
Especially with City captain Kompany missing.
Everyone knew Jerome Boateng was still inconsistent.
"Tell them to go all out from the first whistle. We need to control the tempo and shake them early—let them know who they're dealing with!" Hughes instructed with confidence.
After glancing at Manchester City's starting lineup, he felt that Gao Shen had gone overconfident.
Now, he was determined to strip the emperor of his new clothes—publicly.
…
Manchester City Starting XI:
Goalkeeper: Neuer.
Defense: David Luiz, Javi Martínez, Jerome Boateng.
Midfield: Gareth Bale, Fernandinho, Yaya Touré, David Silva.
Advanced Midfield: Hazard.
Forwards: Van Persie, Suarez.
Queens Park Rangers lined up in a traditional 4-4-2.
From the opening whistle, Manchester City immediately took control.
QPR, hoping to press and disrupt City early, were aggressive from the start.
But just as the home side surged forward to press, they found that Suarez didn't play the ball back at kickoff. Instead, he moved it quickly to the right, to David Silva.
Silva, a left-footed player, was positioned on the right—something he had done before. After receiving the ball in space, he took two steps inward and passed to Suarez, who had dropped to receive.
The Uruguayan immediately laid it back for a one-two. Silva cut into the channel, received the return, and made a horizontal pass.
Yaya Touré arrived late at pace, collected Silva's pass near the edge of the penalty area, and without waiting for defenders to close him down, he unleashed a powerful shot from nearly 30 meters out.
Goalkeeper Paddy Kenny was stunned.
He never expected Touré to shoot so early—especially with defenders still between him and the goal.
But the shot flew straight into the right corner of the net.
Goal!
Loftus Road, packed with over 18,000 fans, fell completely silent.
QPR's players froze on the pitch.
Mark Hughes, standing on the sidelines, was dumbfounded.
How long had it been?
Half a minute? No, not even ten seconds?
How did they concede already?
…
The first goal stunned QPR. But Manchester City didn't let up—they pounced like wolves.
After the restart, the visitors pressed high up the pitch, forcing QPR to play out from deep and immediately putting them under pressure near their own penalty area.
Van Persie and Suarez led the line. Hazard, Gareth Bale, and David Silva pushed up from the wings. Even Yaya Touré joined in.
QPR were overwhelmed. They nearly gave up a goal after a poor back pass, which handed Manchester City a corner kick.
All of this happened within the first two minutes.
David Silva quickly took the corner, but Anton Ferdinand got to the ball first and headed it clear.
Hazard picked it up outside the box, weaved past his marker, and delivered a sharp through ball into the area.
Van Persie received with his back to goal, spun past center-back Gabbidon, and, without hesitation, fired a low shot with his left foot into the bottom-left corner.
GOAL!
2-0 in less than three minutes!
"Manchester City's start tonight is incredible!"
"QPR clearly wanted to get the upper hand early, but they were blindsided by City."
"Two goals in three minutes—can it get better than this?"
Actually, yes.
…
Just five minutes later, David Silva harassed left-back Armand Traoré in the final third and won the ball. He played a low pass into the right side of the box.
Hazard sprinted to the ball, controlled it near the byline, and, under pressure from Anton Ferdinand and Joey Barton, lifted it perfectly between the two defenders into the six-yard box.
Suarez timed his run to perfection, chested the ball down, and volleyed it before it touched the ground.
The shot was too close for Paddy Kenny to stop.
3-0!
Less than nine minutes played, three shots, three goals!
Madness!
Manchester City had gone completely berserk!
Whether it was the QPR fans in the stands, the players on the pitch, or the commentators in the booths, everyone was stunned.
Everyone knew Manchester City were strong. But it was rare to see them attack with such relentless aggression from the opening whistle.
QPR simply couldn't respond.
After falling three behind, they tried to rally and build some momentum.
But in the 15th minute, Manchester City struck again.
On the right flank, Suarez and Hazard combined with a slick one-two. Suarez then cut inside, drawing defenders with him before slipping the ball back with his heel.
David Silva ran onto it, shifted the ball inside, and curled it with his left foot into the far corner.
Once again, the ball rolled into the bottom-left corner of the net.
4-0!
And the clock hadn't even reached the 16-minute mark.
Five shots, four goals. Manchester City's efficiency was off the charts!
Almost everyone believed this was turning into a massacre.
Because even after going up by four goals, Manchester City showed no signs of easing off. They continued pressing, suffocating QPR.
Mark Hughes was no longer the confident figure from before. On the touchline, he had lost control.
He screamed at his players, begging them to calm down and hold their shape. But how could they?
Even if they wanted to hold firm—Manchester City's strength simply didn't allow it!
And just nine minutes later, City added a
fifth.
This time, it was Van Persie assisting Hazard to score.
5-0!
Mark Hughes' defense was completely shattered!
(To be continued.)
***
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