"Arsenal has a set-piece opportunity! Maël has changed into a new jersey and is running back onto the field to take the free kick!"
In the broadcast booth, Zhan Jun turned his head and asked, "Zhang, the first half is almost 30 minutes in, how would you evaluate the performance of the two teams?"
Zhang Lu thought for a moment and said, "Both are playing well. Manchester United has probably fulfilled Ferguson's tactical requirements, and they have the advantage in Ball Control.
"Having the advantage in Ball Control against Arsenal is not easy, which shows Manchester United's dominance on the field during this period.
"As for Arsenal, they have adopted a relatively low profile today. They're not saying, 'I'm the top team, so I have to go toe-to-toe with you and play beautifully at the Emirates Stadium.'
"You can see from Maël's return to defense that they want to establish their defense first."
After saying this, Zhang Lu took a sip of tea and continued, "They're defending well. You see, Mertesacker's return is helpful to this team, and the defense is more stable.
"They don't panic and always resolve Manchester United's attacks with ease. Manchester United only had one or two good chances in the first half.
"Let's see which team can't hold on first and gives the other an opportunity, or which star can use their absolute domain advantage to change the course of the battle with their individual ability."
...
On the field, both Arsenal and Manchester United fans were watching Maël in front of the ball, one side with anticipation, the other with tension.
The player had already taken a free kick shot, and although it wasn't successful, he must have warmed up his touch.
This second free kick is so close to the goal, there is a good chance of scoring.
"Lie down!"
In front of the goal, De Gea waved towards the penalty area, signaling someone to lie down at the bottom of the wall.
Evra finally took the initiative to step forward and lie down. He was very afraid of Maël scoring.
"Hands!"
Seeing Evra lying down, De Gea kept shouting, "Hands! Put your hands down!"
Evra looked back, thinking he was talking about someone else, and quickly realized it was him, hurriedly putting down his hand that was supporting his head.
"Haha..." This scene caused laughter from many Arsenal fans. Evra had just struck a mermaid pose, lying on his side in the penalty area, which was quite comical.
Tense games need this kind of adjustment, and fans occasionally need to relax their brains.
Evra, lying on the ground, also laughed. He even made another mermaid pose, teasing De Gea, as a way to cool down the goalkeeper.
"Clap clap!" De Gea held back his laughter, clapping his hands to warm up his touch, and came to the far corner of the goal to wait for the save.
Maël looked at the referee, while constantly observing the situation in the penalty area with the corner of his eye. The players on both sides were fighting for position on the right side of the penalty spot.
Should he pass the ball?
After Evra lay down behind the wall, the number of defenders in the opponent's penalty area was obviously insufficient, which would be a situation of six defending against eight.
Forget it, he shook his head. Passing it over would depend on his teammates' performance. He was confident in this ball, so he should just go for it!
"Beep!"
After the referee blew the whistle for the free kick, Maël focused his attention on the football. Before the free kick, he glanced at the position of the wall and found that the wall was slightly closer to the right side.
They were just barely blocking the near post, without leaving an angle, seemingly not afraid of him hitting a Curved Shot from the left side of the wall, bypassing it and sneaking into the near corner of the goal.
This was normal. If he wanted to hit that kind of ball, he would have to switch to his left foot, and De Gea would definitely predict it in advance and prepare for it.
But... with two new shooting abilities, he certainly couldn't only choose a Curved Shot now.
Maël stepped backward, while correcting the angle between his body and the football. The angle between him and the football was about 70 degrees, the standard Curved Shot angle.
But this time, the angle between him and the football was about 15 degrees, which was a position for a straight instep shot, and the run-up distance also explained this.
De Gea in front of the goal immediately looked puzzled. It was difficult to get over the wall and hit the near corner without a Curve on a free kick at this distance.
Did he want to shoot at the far corner?
But he was standing in the far corner. Did Maël want to test his reaction with a heavy shot? Was he that confident?
"Clap clap!" He clapped his hands twice again, lowered his center of gravity. Since the other party wanted to have a head-on confrontation with him, then so be it.
Anyway, this saved him trouble. Before, he had to take care of the near corner as well, but now he just needed to watch the far corner.
He was very confident; if he couldn't defend half the goal, he could just go back to his hometown.
If he defended poorly, the ball would be pushed out of the baseline; if he defended well, he would catch it directly and launch a quick counter-attack!
He wasn't the only one puzzled; Smalling, Phil Jones, Rooney, and Valencia, who were forming the wall for Manchester United, all frowned.
This positioning?
This run-up?
Was it a power shot? The four of them immediately raised their arms to shield their faces, some even trembling slightly, instinctively tightening their crotches.
If Maël took a power shot to the far corner, it would be fine, but if he inexplicably took a power shot to the near corner, one of them would likely take a hard hit.
"He's not on good terms with Evra." Phil Jones' legs were shaking as he muttered to comfort himself, "If he wants revenge, he'll kick Evra underground; he won't kick me again."
"Kicking Valencia is also fine; he's the defender marking him. Rooney is also an option; he complained in the media multiple times after not winning the Puskas Award."
"If all else fails, he'll hit Smalling; he's tall and a big target."
Smalling, hearing his words, turned his head and gave him a speechless look.
"Tap tap... tap tap tap!"
Maël lifted his feet in place, taking a few small steps to find his rhythm, then started sprinting forward.
He ran faster and faster, and when he was about thirty centimeters away from the ball, he planted his supporting foot and swung his right foot back violently.
De Gea was shocked when he saw this. As a top goalkeeper, he was good at judging the shooting direction and technique based on the distance and position of the striker's supporting foot.
For a power shot, the supporting foot should be close to parallel with the ball, not this far away.
This was an outside of the foot shot! He was going for the near corner!
He immediately wanted to command his left foot to step down and send him to the near corner faster, but the body needed reaction time, and he couldn't move over before Maël shot.
"Bang!!"
A muffled sound rang out. Maël tightened his ankle downwards, and the outside of his foot struck the middle and bottom of the ball hard, exerting full force, so that he could create a better arc.
At the moment of the shot, his body arched backward, which was to generate better force, rather than raising the center of gravity, a standard outside of the foot shot posture! The ball slowly flew up from the ground, spinning violently inward around the outside of the wall.
Smalling, on the far side of the wall, also judged Maël's intention to curve the ball into the near corner with the outside of his foot, twisting his body to expand the defensive range of the near corner.
But the ball was hitting the most awkward position for a defender, the waist. It was impossible to block at this height with a leg, and even more impossible to block with a hand.
Moreover, the ball was too fast, and in reality, whatever he did was useless. He could only jump up and quickly turn his head to look.
He saw the ball bypass them and then violently curve inward again, with an astonishing arc, and then touch the net in the near corner, making a crisp sound, "Swish!"
This wasn't even going around the post into the net; it was almost in the middle!
And De Gea, because his position was too far from the near corner, didn't have time to make an effective save.
Goal! One to zero!
A golden goal!
"Wow!!" At this moment, Arsenal fans seemed to see Robert Carlos's amazing outside of the foot shot in the 1997 International Invitation Tournament. This ball wasn't as far as Carlos's, but the arc was even more amazing.
They scored first!
"Yeah!"
The energy in Maël's body had just subsided a bit after the shot when he saw the ball go into the net, which made him tense up again and excitedly run quickly towards the Arsenal fan area on the side of the field.
The 25th goal! The outside of the foot came in handy!
"BoomBoomBoom!!"
He first threw three farmer punches in a row, each punch more forceful than the last, with a greater range of shaking, venting more emotions.
Then, when Walcott came up beside him, he put one hand on his crotch and raised the other hand like a gun, jumping left and right comically, laughing and doing a magical dance.
This celebration was first done by Griezmann in the later 2018 World Cup, inspired by the Fortnite game character launched in 2017.
The flirtatious jumping and comical dance, once done by Griezmann, swept the world and became a celebration action for many stars.
Now that Fortnite hasn't been launched yet, others can't find the source, so they'll just assume he created it himself.
"Ah!"
"Haha!"
The Arsenal fans close to Maël screamed with laughter, watching Maël's celebration, unsure of what to say.
"So sexy!"
"Huh? Why do I feel a sense of cheekiness, it's hilarious!"
"It is cheeky, more accurately, this celebration is mainly arrogant!"
"Right, jumping left and right, as if expressing that he scored the goal playfully!"
"A very bright and cheerful celebration, so handsome."
"I want to imitate his moves and post them on Twitter!"
The fans discussed enthusiastically, not only accepting Maël's celebration but also having the idea of imitating it.
"25 goals in 22 rounds!"
On the sidelines, Mr. Wenger clapped for his disciple with a smile, laughing heartily a few times, then turned to Henry, "Your single-season league goal record for the team is about to be gone, it's only a matter of time before he exceeds 30 goals."
Henry also clapped, with a dazed expression, "It's too normal for him to break my record, I estimate Alan Shearer and Andy Cole are already trembling.
"Their Premier League single-season goal record is only 34 goals, which is not far off for Maël."
After saying this, Henry remembered the time, it was already the end of January, and he would be leaving in early March to go to the MLS to enjoy a high salary and slowly fade out of the fans' sight.
Originally, he didn't think much of it, he was getting old, and it was time to prepare for retirement.
But now seeing the team's spirit, he suddenly had the idea of strengthening his training and staying at Arsenal for a few more years, even if it meant being a substitute for Maël.
Who wouldn't want to win a championship with the team they spent their youth with, that would be too happy for a player.
"If we win the championship in the end, can I get a champion's medal even if I join and leave midway?"
Henry looked at Mr. Wenger and asked with a smile, "I remember there seems to be this agreement, right?"
"Yes."
Mr. Wenger nodded to him and smiled, "If you win the championship this season, you will receive a Premier League champion's medal in the United States, and your resume will also state that you have won 3 Premier League titles in your career."
Henry nodded, this sentence was just a prelude, what he really wanted to ask was in this sentence, "If I'm in good shape at the end of the season and want to come back, will you sign me?"
Mr. Wenger glanced at him, thought for a while, and smiled, "If we win the championship, the team's financial situation may improve, if the transfer fee is not high, I will consider it.
"If you're serious, I have to add that we may not be able to afford your previous salary at Barcelona and your current salary at New York Red Bulls."
"Haha..." Henry laughed and turned his head, looking at the Emirates Stadium, not knowing what he was thinking.
"The goal is in! Maël's individual ability is on display, he created the free kick himself, and scored it himself!!"
In the broadcast room, Zhan Jun excitedly laughed, "This is what Zhang Lu said, the absolute domain advantage, a goal from individual ability?!"
"Hehe..." Zhang Lu started with a cheeky laugh again, and then said, "That's right, I just said that, and I didn't expect him to score directly from a free kick.
"Wonderful outside of the foot curved shot, this ball was hit impeccably, De Gea didn't have time to react."
Zhan Jun nodded, watching the broadcast screen and continued to roar, "Manchester United may regret it! They stopped Maël with two yellow cards + a free kick, but they didn't expect Maël to score anyway!
"In hindsight, this defense was a failure, it wasn't worth it!"
The broadcast camera was now on Ferguson, the Sir was chewing gum and standing on the sidelines, already gradually turning red.
Why is it always Maël? Why is it that every time the two sides are evenly matched, he comes out and knocks them down, knocking the situation back to Arsenal.
He is the one who is most suitable to write 'Why always me?' on the shirt inside his jersey! The camera then turned to the Manchester United wall area, Evra got up from the ground at this time, his face no longer had the smile he had just had.
When he was lying down, he was facing the goal, and he clearly saw the football flying in from the left side, curling into the near corner.
"De Gea!"
He spread his hands towards De Gea, and said helplessly, "The wall didn't block the near corner, then what's the point of having a wall?"
The meaning of the goalkeeper arranging a wall is to block one side, if it can't be blocked, then to be honest, it's really better to leave the angle open and defend in the penalty area.
De Gea stood there with his legs apart, he also spread his big hands, "I didn't expect it, I thought he was going to use a power shot, who knew he used the outside of the foot."
"I thought."
Center-back Smalling was a bit annoyed and couldn't help but complain, "I thought, I thought, how could things always go according to your predictions?"
"Beep!"
After the restart, Maël's face showed confidence in maintaining their undefeated streak. In the previous few games, they had started from behind. In this game against Manchester United, he didn't expect to be leading.
Keep pushing! If they could shake off Manchester United with a victory, the second half of the season would be much easier!
"Bang!"
Watching Manchester United pass the ball to their backfield, he followed Van Persie's pace and stepped forward to put pressure on the opponent's backfield.
When Manchester United's attack advanced, he quickly ran back, staying close to Valencia and keeping an eye on this point of threat.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
Valencia kept swaying left and right, sometimes accelerating and sometimes stopping abruptly. It was clear that he was very annoyed by Maël's defense.
He rarely encountered such a winger, who was clearly a great threat himself, but was using his Stamina on him.
For a full-back who is good at attacking, he knows how to pass threatening balls and cooperate with Nani to take down the opponent's defensive midfielder and full-back.
Asking him to get rid of defenders like a forward, he really couldn't do it.
A Maël who can run and predict can hold him down firmly here.
As long as Maël doesn't want him to receive the ball, he really won't be able to receive the ball.
"Bang, bang, bang!"
Manchester United then focused their attack on the left, trying to bypass Maël and Gibbs, using the Welbeck and Evra combination to break through Arsenal's right defensive line.
But on this side, Sagna, who had rested for most of the first half, clearly had an unusual intensity.
It was not difficult for him to hold down Welbeck alone. As long as he called Song and Ramsey over to help defend, and let Mertesacker watch behind, it would be difficult for Manchester United's attacking line to break through his side.
"Hey!"
In the 39th minute of the first half, during a dead ball situation, Ferguson anxiously called Valencia over, handed him a piece of paper, and asked him to give it to Giggs after reading it.
He opened the note, which only had one sentence - "Focus on attacking the right in positional attacks. Maël has run 7,000 meters up and down in the first half. If he plays for a while longer, he will run out of Stamina."
Valencia took a deep breath, ran to their playmaker Giggs, and handed over the note in his hand.
"Bang!"
In the 42nd minute of the match, Giggs looked back and observed that Maël had just rushed up. He passed the ball to Nani on the right with one kick, and at the same time approached Nani, signaling him to pass it back.
He wanted to control the rhythm, wait for Valencia to come up, and also force Maël to come back to defend.
"Huff! Huff!"
The two of them quickly rushed over. Valencia was panting heavily. Although he had run less than Maël, he already felt like he couldn't hold on.
Maël had been doing so many rounds of anaerobic exercise in a row, so he wasn't in much better condition. His body did feel a bit tired.
However, his Stamina base was very good, and his recovery Speed should be fast. After a break at halftime, he would be able to rush for a long time in the second half.
"Bang!"
Seeing him come over, Giggs passed the ball to the other side with one kick, completing the transfer, and then leaned over.
Maël saw that it was safe and turned to leave, but the opponent quickly kicked another long ball towards this side.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
He had no choice but to run back. Don't think that the opponent was seemingly carelessly deliberately consuming his Stamina, but as long as he didn't go back once, Gibbs would be in danger.
At that time, the feint attack would turn into a fierce attack, and the defense on this side would be directly breached.
After Maël ran back, he quickly threw himself into the pressing, forcing Manchester United to constantly pass back and send the ball to the backfield.
"Gael!"
On the sidelines, Mr. Wenger was both admiring and worried to see Maël working so hard.
He turned to an assistant coach holding a computer, "How many meters has Maël run?"
Gerling is the team's data analyst, constantly using software to calculate various data. He glanced at the computer and said, "Total 7284 meters, high-intensity running 940 meters."
This means that Maël's running distance in the first half may exceed 7500 meters, and high-intensity running will also exceed 1000 meters.
Mr. Wenger turned his head, somewhat worried. He could only look at Henry, hoping that Henry could step up if Maël ran out of gas.
"Beep! Beep—!"
Before long, the referee blew the whistle for the end of the first half.
"Oh!" A burst of cheers erupted at the Emirates Stadium, as fans celebrated the somewhat unexpected 'one-nil' lead.
They then began to sing, encouraging their players while teasing the opposing fans, "One-nil, one-nil! We will continue to remain undefeated, Manchester United can only watch our backs get further and further away!"
Manchester United's locker room.
"Maël ran 7561 meters in the first half, with 1042 meters of high-intensity running."
Ferguson stood in front of the players, his face serious, and said, "The total distance and high-intensity running distance are already very close to the Premier League average. In the second half, we must continue to attack fiercely on that side, to exhaust him as soon as possible."
"Don't underestimate him. He holds the record for high-intensity running in the top five leagues this season, and his Stamina is much better than the average."
"Only by constantly attacking, with everyone running a little more on that side, can we prevent him from stopping and slowly draining his Stamina."
Valencia, Giggs, and Nani listened attentively. Maël had indeed caused them too much trouble in the first half.
Not only did he score a goal, but he also made a significant defensive contribution.
If the game ended now, Maël's match rating would likely be around 9.5. His contribution to Arsenal was too great.
However, no one can run like that forever. Otherwise, why wouldn't other top wingers help the team defend? Is it because they don't want to win? In the second half, Maël will definitely slowly fade away, until he completely disappears!
At that time, whether attacking on the left or the right, they will have the advantage of one more attacking player!
In a match between strong teams, if no one makes mistakes, it depends on which side has a numerical advantage in attack and defense. Top players can maximize the use of this advantage.
"Of course, we're not just waiting for him to run out of Stamina before attacking. There will be some small changes in the second half."
Ferguson pulled open the tactical board. "First of all..."
"Well done!"
"If we take down Manchester United and perfectly end January, I believe everything will go much smoother next!"
"Maël, great goal!"
"How's your body?"
Inside the Arsenal locker room, the atmosphere was cheerful. Many people came to Maël to hug the goalscorer, while others were worried about him.
"No problem."
Maël waved his hand at them, patted his thigh muscles. His heart rate had calmed down a lot, and the fatigue in his muscles had also weakened.
The Stamina required for football is definitely not like the long-distance, steady-pace aerobic running Stamina of a marathon.
On the field, they don't run at a constant Frequency. Sometimes they jog, sometimes they run at medium Speed, and sometimes they sprint directly. Sometimes they just stand still.
At this time, you have to develop the habit of letting your body adapt to this constantly changing rhythm of running, improve your anaerobic running ability, and the potential upper limit of your Muscle Endurance, so that your body has a good recovery ability.
Stamina lv4 undoubtedly gives him these abilities. He recovers after a short rest, and his body is very resilient.
Today, he didn't have many attacking opportunities. Whenever he got the ball, he was either double-teamed by Manchester United players or stopped by tactical fouls.
So he concentrated on defense. Anyway, that free kick had already given the team the lead, and he wasn't too worried about Manchester United stealing a goal at the last moment.
"How many minutes can you play?"
Mr. Wenger also walked over at this time, standing next to him and asked, "If you can't, give me a signal, and I'll substitute you immediately. It's easy to get injured when you're tired."
"I don't know." Maël shook his head, then nodded and said, "I know, Mr. Wenger, don't worry."
Mr. Wenger's eyes showed a hint of worry. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he didn't speak, and turned around to talk about tactics.
He still didn't say too much, focusing on encouragement. After more than half a season, the team had formed a system, and it depended more on the players' performance.
"Beep beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded outside the locker room door, urging everyone to go on the field.
Maël got up, placing a hand on Van Persie's shoulder beside him. They didn't exchange words, but both understood that the real battle was about to begin. "Bang, bang!"
In the 49th minute of the second half, Manchester United wanted to launch a quick attack on the right. This time, no one was waiting for Maël; they just wanted to quickly advance and break through the opponent's goal.
"Snap!"
But just as Valencia dribbled forward a few steps, a pair of feet suddenly slid up from behind, kicking the ball out of bounds.
Valencia wiped his face in frustration, looking at Maël, who was like a fly, unable to believe that this was the Premier League's most efficient scorer right now.
He was so anxious that he stamped his feet. When taking the throw-in, he saw that his teammates hadn't come to receive the ball, so he simply held the ball out with his hand, complaining.
"Haha!"
In the commentary box, Zhan Jun and Zhang Lu couldn't help but laugh together at this scene.
"Maël has shown people in this match what kind of intensity his physical condition can bring when he's committed to defense."
Zhang Lu looked at the expressions of Manchester United's players and laughed, "Manchester United is now in a very awkward situation. Originally, they were very effective against Arsenal, with their strong attacking side perfectly targeting Arsenal's weak defensive side."
"Right? The attacking combination of Evra and Welbeck on the left is simply no match for the attacking combination of Nani and Valencia on the right."
"And the opponents they face are also different, with one side facing Sagna and Mertesacker, and the other facing Gibbs and Koscielny."
"If they played according to the book, they would have already torn through Arsenal's right flank, creating absolute scoring opportunities for Rooney and others."
"But Maël is a variable. His constant tracking back has injected new strength into Arsenal's local defense, which has made the in-form 'Vana' combination very frustrated."
He couldn't help but laugh twice, "The key is, he not only contributes well defensively, but he also scored a goal against you in attack, putting you behind."
"So what to do now? Before Maël runs out of Stamina, they probably won't be able to attack. Should they switch Valencia to the center to play as a four-back, or switch him to the left?"
"..."
On the field, Arsenal completed an interception in midfield, and Ramsey passed a half-high ball to Maël on the wing.
"Bang!"
As Maël controlled the ball, he saw Giggs rushing over again. Instead of stopping the ball at his feet, he directly flicked it over Giggs' head.
Giggs couldn't stop, and seeing that he was about to be passed, he subconsciously hooked his foot back.
"Thump!" Maël, who was rushing forward, was once again heavily tripped to the ground.
"Ugh!" A sound of dissatisfaction instantly echoed throughout the Emirates Stadium, as fans put pressure on the referee, demanding that he give Giggs another yellow card, sending him off the field.
Giggs regretted hooking his foot the moment he did it. He raised his hands, constantly indicating that he didn't mean to, and even pretended to help Maël up from the ground in a friendly manner.
"Beep!"
The referee blew his whistle and strolled over, seemingly hesitant.
Giggs was very nervous, clasping his hands together and bowing to the referee, begging him to be lenient.
Perhaps out of consideration for the Premier League veteran, the referee ultimately did not pull out a second yellow card, shouting, "Last time! Next time, regardless of the severity of the foul, a yellow card will be issued directly!"
"Phew," Giggs breathed a sigh of relief, but looking at Maël beside him, there was still worry in his eyes.
The last get-out-of-jail-free card had been used. Next, either he would complete a steal, or Maël would directly charge towards the backfield.
"F*ck!"
"Boo!"
"Xu ~!"
A burst of dissatisfaction came from the stands at this time, as Arsenal fans kindly greeted the referee's family.
Time passed by, and Manchester United's players gradually became anxious. They occasionally played the ball to the right wing, trying to create several attacks with a numerical advantage.
But disappointingly, Maël was still able to return every time, always in position. He was more like a central midfielder on the wing.
What was even more deadly was that he could not only be in position when defending, but also when attacking.
As soon as possession changed, he would appear in the left winger position, putting pressure on Manchester United's other four defenders, preventing them from assisting in the attack.
Calculating it this way, Manchester United invested six players in each attack, while Arsenal, apart from Van Persie alone at center forward, had all nine other players defending in the backfield.
Although Walcott was sometimes out of position, Maël was always reliably in the position he should be, ensuring at least eight players in defense.
The advantage of having two extra defenders gradually made Manchester United's attack more difficult, and they could only occasionally threaten the goal with long shots.
"Bang!"
In the 69th minute, Rooney forcibly turned around under Mertesacker's close marking and took a forced shot.
The shot lacked both power and angle, and was caught directly by Szczęsny, who patted it a few times to delay the game, then placed it at his feet, waiting for Manchester United players to press.
Rooney's emotions were already on the verge of explosion, and seeing this scene, his temper flared up, and he rushed straight towards Szczęsny.
"Bang!"
Szczęsny punted the ball towards Maël's position, but Rooney didn't seem to slow down, directly knocking him over with an arm.
"Hey!" The Arsenal fans at the Emirates Stadium erupted again with dissatisfaction and boos, many pulling at their Arsenal jerseys, signaling the referee to give Rooney a red card.
Maël, at the ball's landing point, also caught the ball with his hands, using the pause in the attack to put pressure on the referee.
"Beep!" The referee looked back and blew his whistle, but he didn't pull out a red card, only giving Rooney a yellow card.
"It's always like this!"
On the sidelines, Mr. Wenger raised his right hand high, complaining, "It's always like this! There should be at least one red card today, but no, are you afraid to give Manchester United's stars red cards?"
Ferguson, on the other side, heard it clearly. He was already full of fire, and at this moment, he couldn't help but explode, walking straight up and shouting, "Are you accusing us of bribing the referee?!"
"I didn't say that."
Mr. Wenger didn't budge, standing in place waiting for Ferguson, pointing to the field and continuing to complain, "Don't you think that's a red card foul? A retaliatory action after the ball was played!"
"Alright, alright...!" The assistant coaches of both teams were used to the two's disputes and quickly came up to pull them apart.
The commotion on the scene grew even louder, not only from Arsenal fans but also from Manchester United fans, both sides trying to create chaos and cause some impact on the other.
"Rooney's confrontation with Szczęsny, Mr. Wenger's argument with Ferguson, these are all a microcosm of what's happening on the field right now!"
In the broadcast booth, Zhan Jun, watching the chaotic situation, gave his opinion, "Manchester United's players are getting more and more anxious. Their attacking firepower in the league is second only to Arsenal, and they've been controlling the ball all day.
"But what happened? They haven't scored a single goal and are still trailing by one goal. If it ends with this score, Arsenal will widen the gap with them!
"Maël's goal is becoming more and more valuable! This is inseparable from his own efforts!
"And speaking of Mr. Wenger and Ferguson, they must both be very nervous right now, wanting to see events that favor their own team, which would mean they have a greater chance of winning!"
"One to zero, one to zero! We will continue to remain undefeated, and Manchester United can only watch our backs get further and further away...!"
As time passed 75 minutes, the home team Arsenal fans' shouts of support grew louder and louder, and many fans even put their arms around each other's shoulders and jumped up and down, "Where's Rooney? Where's Valencia? Where's Evra...?!"
Listening to the song full of taunting attributes, the Manchester United fans were both angry and anxious, their faces pale, gritting their teeth as they watched the field, but they were helpless.
If they lost this game, the team would be 4 points behind Arsenal and tied with Manchester City.
More importantly, once Arsenal clears them on the road to the title and still maintains their undefeated streak, one can imagine how much confidence and fighting spirit this team will have, which will support them in finding their form from the beginning of the season.
"How much?"
Ferguson's face became increasingly red. He walked towards the data analyst, asked a question, and found that the other party didn't respond, so he could only roar, "How much?!"
"Huh?" The data analyst was startled and quickly asked, "What?"
"Maël's running data!"
"Oh, oh... let me see." The data analyst pulled up the data from the software, took a look, and his eyes filled with shock, "14042, high-intensity running 1738 meters, both data are the best in the Premier League this season."
Ferguson chewed the gum in his mouth a few times, as if entrusting all his unwillingness and anger to his teeth, venting his pressure by biting the gum hard.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
He turned his head and happened to see Maël quickly surge forward in an attack, receiving a direct pass from Gibbs.
Manchester United's defense suddenly became tense, everyone burying their heads and chasing back, but including Giggs and Valencia, their legs were obviously running out of steam.
Thanks to Phil Jones' good sealing of the inside, Maël dribbled the ball all the way to the baseline, finally sending in a Cross.
"Bang!!"
In the middle, Van Persie dived and headed the ball towards the net.
"Slap!" But De Gea reacted quickly, pushing out his palm at close range, blocking the ball, and then catching it in his arms with a second reaction.
"Ah!" A sound of regret arose from the Arsenal fan section as Van Persie, looking incredulous, knelt on the ground, rubbing his face.
"Bang!"
De Gea immediately launched a quick counter-attack with a throw, sending the ball to Valencia, who had just tracked back past the halfway line.
As the ball flew towards Valencia, Maël also sprinted towards him. By the time Valencia received the ball, he could already hear Maël's hellish footsteps behind him.
"Bang, bang..."
He took two weak touches, feeling a slight weakness in his legs.
It wasn't a matter of Stamina. As an attacking wing-back, Valencia had good sprinting ability up and down the field; otherwise, he wouldn't be a world-class player in that position.
He hadn't done much defending in this game, focusing on attacking. His total distance covered should be around 11,000 meters, which he could handle.
The key reason was a sense of despair. He knew as soon as he heard the footsteps that no matter how fast he sprinted, the devil behind him would always catch up.
Even if he advanced into the attacking third, Maël would follow, working with Gibbs and Arteta to defend.
"Snap!"
Maël then came from behind and to the side, poking the ball away from his feet.
Numbly, he walked towards the sideline, took the ball from a ball boy, and prepared to take a throw-in.
"Maël! Maël!"
On the sidelines, Mr. Wenger and Henry stood together, waving and shouting at Maël, "Do you want to be substituted?!"
Maël felt acid rising in his mouth, his throat seemingly unable to produce sound. He gritted his teeth, adjusted his breathing, and waved to the sidelines, indicating that he didn't need to be substituted. He also completed his defensive positioning, coming in front of Gibbs.
Valencia watched Maël wave, holding the ball at the sideline with a speechless feeling.
If he could, he wanted to throw the ball to the other side of the field, allowing the team to attack from the left.
He finally threw the ball to Nani, who was immediately dispossessed by Gibbs with a move to the front.
"Bang!"
Gibbs was decisive after getting the ball, pushing it forward to Maël.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
Maël turned and accelerated again. Valencia rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth, following him. As he passed Ferguson, he couldn't help but glance at the old manager.
If there was time, he would definitely ask, 'Do you think Maël is running out of Stamina?'
"Bang!!"
Maël timed his Cut Inside perfectly, unleashing a Curved Shot that hit the target. Fortunately, De Gea made another brilliant save, pushing the ball out for a corner.
Corner kick!
An opportunity to waste time! "Huh, huh...!"
On the sidelines, Ferguson exhaled heavily, glanced at his watch, and felt that things were going badly.
"He really doesn't stop running."
On the other side, Henry said to Mr. Wenger with admiration, "How is his body constructed? With this ability combined with his attacking skills, he really has the potential to compete with Messi and Ronaldo."
"Indeed." Mr. Wenger looked at Maël, who was protecting the ball in the corner area, and his affection grew as he thought about his proactive sacrifice and contribution in this game.
He was truly working hard for the championship, doing everything he could! Which team wouldn't want such a player, which coach wouldn't covet him?!
"Thump, thump, thump!"
As the clock ticked past 88 minutes, Ferguson spat out his already tasteless chewing gum when he saw Maël accelerate back again, a sense of despair rising in his heart.
He watched from the sidelines for a while, and after seeing the team's attack being delayed by Maël and then losing its threat, he returned to the coach's seat in frustration.
Looking at the data analyst beside him, he habitually asked, "How much?"
The data analyst reacted quickly this time, but his voice trembled: "15,952 meters, 1,932 meters of high-intensity running."
Ferguson suddenly felt a sense of relief, leaned back in his seat, and stopped talking. After a long time, he asked, "What was Beckham's highest running distance, not just at Manchester United?"
The data analyst checked and then said, "16,142 meters, in the World Cup match between England and Greece."
Watching Maël still jogging slowly with heavy legs, Ferguson bit his lip, knowing that Beckham was the record holder.
In other words, with his amazing Stamina and willpower, Maël was highly likely to break the record for distance covered and defeat them with a free kick, allowing Arsenal to maintain their lead at the top of the league.
"Devil."
Ferguson swallowed, seemingly feeling that this title was no longer appropriate, and changed it to, "Ghost."
On the sidelines, the referee quickly raised the injury time board, indicating that there would be 2 minutes of added time in the second half.
Ferguson was too lazy to get up and argue about the short amount of time. He could see that his players had no fighting spirit left. They had been defeated by Maël's will.
On the field, in the final moments, everyone's Stamina had reached its limit, and players began to make frequent mistakes, giving away possession.
The ball changed hands several times, flying in the air for a while, before finally landing at Giggs' feet.
"Oh!"
Manchester United fans all stood up, hoping that the genius who had scored the Game-winning goal against Arsenal in the FA Cup final to help the team win the championship could save the team again this time.
Giggs had actually done his best. At his age, it was really not easy to persevere in such an intense match.
"Bang, bang...!"
He took the ball two steps to the left, took a deep breath, and prepared to try a Long Shot. After all, he was not the same as he used to be, able to take the ball past the defense and score.
After adjusting everything, he poured all his hope into the football under his feet, swung his leg, and used the last bit of Strength he had to complete the shot.
"Bang!"
"Crack!"
Just as he looked up to see the trajectory of the football, he found that the football had disappeared from his sight. Along with the sound of contact was the sound of his leg rubbing against the ground, and the muffled sound of a block.
He looked down at his feet and saw Maël sliding out in a very graceful manner, and the ball he had kicked was already flying out of bounds on the other side.
"." No regrets were heard, and Manchester United fans were completely disheartened.
Many Manchester United players sat directly on the ground, and some even lay down. Even those who were standing mostly lowered their heads, clenching their faces and gritting their teeth unwillingly.
"Yeah!" The cheers of Arsenal fans rang out, as if they were one step closer to victory.
"Beep! Beep!"
When the first two whistles sounded, some people were not sure if they had heard them because of the excessive noise in the stadium, until people turned to look at the referee and saw the whistle in his mouth, and then they clearly heard the last sound, "Beep——!!"
"Aahhhhhh!!" A long and loud roar rang out from the stadium, and Arsenal fans celebrated wildly as if it were the New Year.
"One to zero! The game is over!!"
The broadcast cameras all over the world were focused on Maël, who was shaking hands with Van Persie at this moment. Everyone knew who the biggest contributor was today.
"With Maël's Game-winning Outside of the Foot Shot free kick! Arsenal defeated their biggest competitor on the road to the championship, Manchester United, at home, and won this 6-point battle! Now, their advantage over the second-place team in the standings has reached 4 points, and the situation for winning the championship is very good! The tireless Maël! A great goal! He left countless deep impressions on people today! This is a player destined for success!"
"..."
"Oh!" All the substitute players and assistant coaches sprinted towards the field, their goal clear: Maël, who was already sitting on the ground panting for breath.
Mr. Wenger came to the sidelines and shook hands with his old rival Ferguson.
Ferguson took the initiative to come to the extension of the center line, which was considered a display of his demeanor, but he didn't mince words, "I didn't lose to you, I just lost to Maël."
"Haha..." Mr. Wenger laughed twice, and then said, "I'm happy to hear you say that."
Ferguson was expressionless, turned around, and walked into the player tunnel.
Mr. Wenger turned around and walked to the coaching bench, picked up the data analyst's computer, and searched for Maël's running distance in this game.
Soon, he saw an extremely shocking number - Total distance: 16203, High-intensity distance: 2104!
Mr. Wenger also quickly walked towards Maël. Ferguson was right. It was because of Maël that they were able to end this difficult month in such an inspiring way.
Although they only achieved two consecutive draws against relegation teams, they still managed to get two consecutive draws with difficulty, and they had not experienced the feeling of winning in the Premier League for a long time.
But fortunately, they won the game they needed to win the most!
"Yeah! Yeah!!"
On the field, Maël lay on the ground, closed his eyes, clenched his fists, and roared loudly at the sky.
They won!
They won against Manchester United! His legs had already lost all feeling. The distance and intensity of his running today had definitely exceeded his ability limit by a significant margin.
But he still gritted his teeth and finished the game with willpower, contributing the most he could to the team! This was a habit he had honed in day-to-day training. He could always push beyond his limits and unleash more of his body's potential! It was as if he always made it a habit to do a little more than the last time, to persevere a little longer when he was most tired! He had never been so grateful for himself on the training ground as he was now, and he had never felt so much sense of accomplishment.
It could be said that he didn't play beautifully in this game. He didn't overwhelm Manchester United's defense in attack, and he didn't bulldoze his way through with two or three goals.
But he definitely did the most, and he was definitely the number one contributor to this game!
Three or four interceptions, two blocks, two steals and disruptions, and a running distance that surpassed everyone on the team – this was his contribution to the team, and of course, there was also that goal.
One skill after another that he had worked hard to master day and night finally stood out when they were most needed, helping him achieve the most crucial victory! Stamina!
Outside of the Foot Shot! Decisiveness!
These three lv4 skills, these three skills that seemed insignificant on weekdays, showed their role in the tug-of-war today!
This was very likely to be a battle that laid the foundation for Arsenal's championship. When he looked back at the end of the season, he would probably thank himself for fighting Manchester United in this game!
The road ahead was already wide open. The remaining Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Manchester City could not bring them too much pressure.
Not to mention the remaining 11 mid-table teams and relegation teams.
He would carry the momentum accumulated in this game and rush forward like a hot knife through butter to complete his goal and win the first top league championship trophy of his career! Exhilarating!
Endless exhilaration! Maël squeezed out the last bit of strength in his body and shouted one last "Yeah!" towards the gloomy sky.
Even if the gloomy sky wouldn't open a bright opening for him, his heart was already full of brightness.
"I'll treat you to a big meal!"
Van Persie rushed to his side excitedly, squatted down, raised his head with both hands, and shouted while butting heads with him, "I'll record five shows for you for free, how about that?!"
Sagna and others soon came over and surrounded him.
"Come and shine the shoes of the hero!"
"The game is over, what are you shining! Massage his legs, massage his legs!"
"Yes, yes, yes!"
"That last tackle was so handsome, we won!"
They started serving Maël, everyone knew what kind of game Maël had helped the team complete.
Mr. Wenger also came over quickly. He pushed through the crowd and came to Maël's side. He didn't say anything, just looked at Maël, whose clothes were already soaked and whose temples and neck were constantly secreting sweat.
These drops of sweat would eventually turn into bright orange-red molten iron, helping them cast the championship trophy! At the post-match press conference, Ferguson and Giggs, whose hair had been wet, sat here with calm expressions.
"BBC reporter, it's a pity that the team lost this game. Is Maël's tactical significance greater than expected? The player seems to be very comprehensive and has a humble attitude towards the game."
Hearing that headache-inducing name, Ferguson frowned slightly. He suddenly smiled, "We didn't see Maël. There was only a constantly flashing ghost on the left wing. How can humans defeat ghosts and gods?"
This great battle came to an end like this. There was nothing earth-shattering, and the score of one to zero didn't give people any unexpected or shocking feeling.
But those who watched the game knew that this player, Maël, seemed to be even better than they thought.
"One to zero! Maël's winning goal helps Arsenal beat Manchester United! The player's post-match score is 10, the second player to get 10 points this season!" - BBC column
"Arsenal is on the rise again? Great goal, great victory! 18-year-old Lionel Maël carries the team forward!" - Football Record
"Record broken! Maël breaks Beckham's record for the highest running distance in a single game with a total running distance of 16,203 meters! His 2,104 meters of high-intensity running also breaks Drogba's record in the 06-07 season!" - EP Data Network
"Another double first in data! Maël's 45 million euro price is very likely to rise again by more than 15 million in the next update, reaching 60 million euros! He will become the most valuable player in football history under the age of 20!" - French L'Équipe
"Arsenal perfectly ends January! In February, with the addition of Kyle Walker, can they show stronger competitiveness for the championship?" - The Times
ps: It's late today, but the daily update is 26.4, the pace is going to be faster.
I don't know if everyone can accept this kind of game writing, which is to carry but not just score goals. Of course, his strongest point is his offensive ability, and in the future, he will definitely rely on his personal ability to violently push through the offensive line. It's just that this occasional adjustment can also be said to be a more realistic way of writing, supplementing many details and giving his other abilities a chance to show themselves.
I don't suppress the protagonist's strength much. I've hardly ever done it since I started writing, because I'm better at deducing the world in my mind based on my settings. I never set limits for the protagonist, such as whether to suppress the upgrade speed or whether to suppress the number of goals in the first season.
I never do that. I always try to deduce and restore his performance in the real world based on his existing abilities, because I'm not worried about running out of things to write later. I have too much material, including what I've seen, what I've accumulated, my experiences playing football, and the psychological feelings of winning championships at different times (youth team). I will definitely be able to write it very excitingly. Please look forward to it.
At the same time, I'm also racking my brains to deduce every game. For example, in this game against Manchester United, I can form a kind of Ferguson's circle encirclement tactic in my mind, know what the situation is roughly, and how Maël should choose to maximize his benefits, and what he would do with his state of mind at the time.
So, don't be disappointed if there's no crazy killing sometimes. The different tactics, different mentalities, fighting spirit, and tactical arrangements of the two teams will all affect the players' performance. When he should be killing wildly, I will definitely not shrink back.
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