Chapter 329: The Rivalry Renewed, Manchester City vs. Real Madrid, Lin Quan's Transformation Trial
"Manchester City's strength is still formidable; they blew away Liverpool and AC Milan!" "Indeed, even as a Manchester City fan, it's hard to watch—a 7-0 thrashing of Milan in a friendly match is a bit too harsh!" "Even though Manchester City didn't make big moves in the summer transfer window, why do I feel like their bench strength has actually improved?" "Truly, I didn't expect their defensive lineup, especially the substitutes, to be so solid that AC Milan and Liverpool could barely make a dent." "That new tall defender at Manchester City has really strong defensive skills; that 10 million euros was well spent!" "Compared to PSG spending 50 million pounds on David Luiz, that's an absolute steal!" "Ha, PSG has vividly demonstrated what it means to have more money than sense!"
As the term 'PSG' comes up, the online community bursts into cheerful banter. During this summer break, as the major leagues haven't yet started, fans are left to follow pre-season matches and friendlies, with the International Champions Cup, featuring heavyweights like Manchester City and Real Madrid, naturally drawing major attention.
After watching Manchester City's two matches, their fans are thoroughly reassured. The team hasn't weakened; instead, it seems stronger due to better integration of the squad. This has heightened their expectations for the team's performance in the upcoming season.
However, fans of other teams aren't feeling quite as joyful after watching the matches, especially the longstanding supporters of AC Milan. "Though the exaggerated scoreline was largely against substitutes, it's clear that Manchester City and AC Milan are no longer on the same level." "AC Milan finished eighth in Serie A last season; they are indeed a notch below Manchester City, so it's normal that they couldn't compete." "Alas, the overall situation in Serie A isn't good, and the rapid reduction in investments means there's no money to do anything significant. If only AC Milan had the financial clout of Manchester City!"
AC Milan has many fans worldwide, particularly those who started following football early and witnessed AC Milan's glorious days. Even though the Istanbul night's champagne incident was embarrassing, at least they had the capability to reach the finals to have such an incident. Now, looking at the team that's gradually sinking in the league and missing out on even qualifying for the Champions League finals, the old fans feel deeply melancholic.
However, this is just the beginning. AC Milan's chaos and decline are set to continue for a long time. Compared to AC Milan fans, Liverpool supporters are also deeply worried. The team spent 150 million euros during the transfer window without seeing much improvement, and they still lost decisively to Manchester City.
"Liverpool's strength doesn't even seem as good as last season!" "Ah, when Suárez was around, at least he could be the focal point of the attack. His departure has left Liverpool's offense confused. The opposition's goalkeeper and defenders performed well, but Liverpool's own chaotic attack strategies and the messy performance of the forwards were also to blame."
As deeply as they love, so harshly they criticize. AC Milan is just beginning its decline, and its fans can hardly bear it. The Reds have been sinking for many years. The Premier League has been around for over 20 years, and Liverpool hasn't won it yet.
Compared to the Reds' fans, fans of the Red Devils (Manchester United) are somewhat complacent. In this International Champions Cup, Manchester United performed quite well. They defeated Roma, then overcame Inter Milan, and in their last match against Real Madrid, Manchester United won 3-1, completing a streak of three victories. This outcome was unexpected, especially since the final match against Real Madrid saw both teams field their main players, except for Ronaldo's absence for Real.
The result was still a resounding defeat for Real Madrid. It's worth mentioning that in the 62nd minute, Lingard replaced Rooney, making his debut for Manchester United and almost scored. Unfortunately, Lin's shot was weak, and Casillas easily caught it, posing no threat. Ultimately, Manchester United won all three matches and confidently advanced to the semifinals. On the other side, Manchester City also advanced effortlessly, defeating their last group opponent, Olympiacos, 3-0 to top the group.
Thus, the semifinal matchups were set: Manchester City vs. Real Madrid Liverpool vs. Manchester United These results met the pre-tournament expectations of the pundits, with three Premier League teams advancing to the semifinals, while the Serie A teams were all eliminated. Although harsh, this truly reflected the current gap in strength between Premier League and Serie A teams on the international stage. The decline of Serie A is becoming ever more apparent.
... August 2nd, the International Champions Cup semifinals kicked off with Manchester City facing Real Madrid at the Michigan University stadium, packed with 108,732 fans. Despite soccer not being the traditional sport of the United States, the number of fans was substantial. Thanks to decades of international influence, the crowd was dominated by fans in white Real Madrid jerseys, outnumbering those in Manchester City's sky blue.
However, if one were to count the jerseys of the most supported player, Lin Quan would win hands down, evident from the number of Manchester City No. 10 jerseys in the crowd. Real Madrid might have superstars, but the number of fans wearing Ronaldo's No. 7 jersey was significantly fewer than those supporting Lin, possibly due to the scandal Ronaldo was involved in a few years ago in Las Vegas.
In this match, Manchester City didn't abandon experimenting with their lineup just because it was a semifinal. Pellegrini still fielded several substitutes but, respecting the opponent and the fans, he started Lin Quan. This wise decision won strong support from the fans at the venue. Once the match began, fans continuously cheered for Lin, and amusingly, even some wearing Real Madrid jerseys cheered for him. When asked why they were cheering for a Manchester City player while wearing Real Madrid jerseys, these fans boldly claimed: "Such a talented player will eventually join Real Madrid, so we're cheering for a future Real Madrid player!"
If Ronaldo heard this response, one wonders what he would think! Just months ago, the two teams met in the UEFA Champions League semifinals, so they were well-acquainted with each other's strengths, leading to an immediate onslaught without much probing.
This high-level, fast-paced game thrilled the spectators, who felt they got their money's worth. No wonder Europeans love watching soccer; if they could regularly enjoy such high-quality matches locally, not just Europeans but even Americans would gladly embrace it. Seeing the happiness of American fans, those in China expressed envy: "When can we enjoy such high-quality matches locally?" "Traveling to Europe to watch games is too expensive, and the Chinese Super League's level is too low. It would be great to watch such games locally each summer." "I think our domestic companies could organize something similar to what they do in the U.S., placing the stadiums in several major cities. There'd be no worry about selling tickets!"
The International Champions Cup was also broadcast by CCTV, allowing domestic fans to watch these games. However, watching on TV at home and being at the stadium are completely different experiences. Fans long to watch these top European clubs compete live.
In 2009, the Italians held the Super Cup in China, which was hugely popular. Countless fans flocked to the stadium, and it's said that just the revenue from ticket sales exceeded 70 million! Such figures are unimaginable in Italy. The success of this event revealed the immense potential of the Chinese market to European clubs. Over the years, several top clubs have tried to conduct pre-season training in China, playing warm-up matches against Chinese Super League teams and making some extra money. For instance, during Real Madrid's tour last year, they played a friendly against Chinese Super League champions Guangzhou Evergrande, easily winning 6-1. The vast difference in team strength made the match almost unwatchable, quickly diminishing domestic fans' interest. Compared to playing against local clubs, they much prefer watching matches between European powerhouses like those in the International Champions Cup.
The calls from fans caught the attention of those responsible for sports event operations in China, who have tried to contact the organizers of the International Champions Cup to bring the event to China.
... In the midst of cheers from over a hundred thousand fans, the two teams launched fierce attacks one after another. With no pressure of results in this type of match, both teams played openly, committing more to offense than defense. In the 21st minute of the first half, Manchester City took the lead with a goal from their forward, Aguero. After underperforming in national team matches, Aguero seemed to have regained his form at the club, transforming back into the invincible warrior of the pitch. Real Madrid quickly responded, with Bale performing his trademark wing run in the 27th minute. The Welshman, relying on his speed, breezed past several Manchester City defenders and scored with a curling shot from behind the area to make it 1-1. This spectacular goal earned him applause from the fans.
Excited by the goal, Bale was quite agitated. Whenever there was a match between Real Madrid and Manchester City, the media habitually compared Lin and Ronaldo, often overlooking him. This irritated Bale, who has ambitions of leading the team. He has long sought to replace Ronaldo as the key figure at Real Madrid. Therefore, the cheers from the fans were particularly sweet to him. "As long as I keep performing like this, I will eventually dethrone that guy!"
Seeing Bale's smug expression, Ronaldo was notably annoyed. He signaled Modric and Isco to pass him the ball more. In such a crucial match, as Real Madrid's leading star, how could he not score? Modric might hold off, but Isco obediently sent a few good passes Ronaldo's way. However, the Portuguese seemed not fully recovered from his World Cup slump, wasting the opportunities Isco provided. This turned Isco's expression sour: "Come on, you can't blame me for that!"
Meanwhile, Bale noticed Isco's frequent passes to Ronaldo and started to show his displeasure. "What's this? Passing only to Ronaldo and not to me? Is Ronaldo your 'big brother', and I'm not?"
Unlike the internal competition at Real Madrid, Manchester City played harmoniously. Lin, not particularly keen on scoring, didn't shoot immediately when chances arose. Instead, he would first check his teammates' positions to see if they had better opportunities. If someone was better placed, he unhesitatingly passed the ball. Aguero's goal came from Lin's assist, and in the 42nd minute, Lin, with a clear shot on goal, instead passed back to the advancing De Bruyne, assisting him to score.
"Why didn't you shoot yourself?" De Bruyne asked curiously after scoring. In his view, Lin rarely missed such one-on-one opportunities. Although Casillas had rushed out to block, with Lin's skills, scoring seemed almost guaranteed, yet he chose to pass.
"Because your position was better, almost an open goal. It made more sense to pass to you," Lin explained naturally. As the top scorer of the World Cup, the Champions League, and the Premier League, Lin was no longer chasing goals. Moreover, scoring in such a match was meaningless in terms of progress. Instead, improving his ability to orchestrate play could bring greater value to both himself and the team. This was a path of successful transformation proven by Messi. In 2019, Messi fully transformed into a central playmaker, taking on the roles of organizer, attacker, and finisher, truly leading the team single-handedly. This transformation maximized Messi's talents in game-reading, vision, precise passing, and free-kick skills, significantly enhancing his abilities. Without this successful shift, Argentina might not have claimed the World Cup trophy years later. And thanks to PSG, which provided a less demanding football environment, Messi had the energy to perform at the World Cup after years of exhaustive play at Barcelona.