Solskjær, as Ye Chen's youth team coach, knew his technical characteristics quite well.
His speed and explosiveness were good, his technique was decent, but his shots were always weak and powerless.
But this long-range shot...
Both the power and accuracy were spot-on!
The most important thing was his timing. The two center-backs didn't press him closely, and the goalkeeper was slightly out of position.
After all, it was a quick transition from attack to defense after the shot was blocked, and young players' concentration wasn't always sharp, which created the opportunity!
But when the chance came, you had to seize it.
Otherwise, it would slip away in the blink of an eye!
"It seems that after going back, he's actually improved!" Solskjær raised an eyebrow. "What exactly happened to him in China?"
Just as Ye Chen took the shot, Januzaj instinctively covered his head.
Such a wild shot—wasn't he wasting the team's hard-earned opportunity?
"Dammit, if I believe in you again, I'll…"
However, at this moment, everyone was staring at the ball in disbelief.
The goalkeeper, Jonathan, saw the ball coming and thought, "Finally, it's my time to shine! I must prove myself in front of the coach!"
He quickly dove, his hands outstretched like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey.
But just as the ball approached, it took a slight dip!
"What just happened?"
Jonathan suddenly panicked, and the ball went right under his arm.
"Whoosh..."
The ball hit the inside of the net, making a crisp sound.
Ye Chen, who had scored, was also stunned.
To be honest, he just wanted to test how it felt with a foot strength of 80.
But he never imagined that the ball would actually go in!
He never thought that this shot would actually go in!
This shot was taken from at least 25 meters away. When he kicked, he used the top part of his foot arch, and at the moment his foot made contact with the ball, it hit perfectly in the center. The key was the slight upward pull of his foot at the moment of impact, which created just enough downward dip for the ball!
Of course, if Jonathan had tried to send the ball out for a goal kick, there was a high chance he would have cleared it. But instead, he wanted to show off his save skills and went for the direct catch, which caught him off guard.
Before Ye Chen could even react, Januzaj pounced on him.
"I love you so much!" Januzaj jumped onto Ye Chen's back. "Ye, I told you we should trust you!"
It took Ye Chen a moment to realize—he scored!
Finally, his first goal since joining Manchester United's U18 team.
If he remembered correctly, the last time he scored was more than three hundred days ago in a U16 match.
This goal was incredible!
His B-team teammates also quickly joined in, rushing to hug him.
Goals always bring happiness!
On the outside, however, Bairny squinted his eyes and clenched his fist.
"Chinese trash, you think scoring one goal makes you win? I'll get serious now!"
Jonathan, far off in the distance, punched the ground and his eyes flared with anger. "This kid is so sly. Celebrate now, but this will be the only time you celebrate in this match!"
But what they didn't know was that, inside Ye Chen's mind, one number had changed.
His previous [Long Shot 15] was now [Long Shot 05], and the entire icon had turned gray.
Simply put, his long-shot "must-score" card had become invalid for this match.
But does that mean he couldn't score without his S-level skill?
Of course not.
The main benefit of that S-level skill card was the boost it gave to his stats and confidence!
Confidence was key to better performance!
Although most of the B-team players were substitutes, being noticed by a club like Manchester United meant they had some exceptional talent.
Take Januzaj, for example. He was now on the B-team, but he was the only player among them who had ever played for Manchester United's first team and scored.
Though his later development didn't go as expected, he was indeed a major discovery during Moyes' time. He was even called up to the national team, playing alongside world-class stars like De Bruyne, Hazard, and Lukaku.
The match resumed, and A-team players were clearly shaken by that goal, making them more focused!
Ye Chen wasn't idle either, actively dropping back to help defend.
Though Ye Chen wasn't particularly strong, his height—over 180 cm—made him one of the taller players on the youth team. He could be of help defensively.
But Solskjær on the sidelines furrowed his brow.
What was he doing?
He hadn't assigned him a defensive role!
What if there was a counterattack opportunity?
Solskjær glanced at the pitch and noticed that Januzaj's position had shifted from his usual wide spot to a more central role.
Could this be Ye Chen's idea?
Solskjær had also noticed Ye Chen speaking to Januzaj earlier, but he couldn't hear the conversation due to the distance.
However, Solskjær intentionally hadn't given tactical instructions for this match, wanting to observe the players' on-the-spot decisions!
After all, Liverpool was a strong opponent, and Sterling could easily break through their defense and throw off his plans. In moments like this, the players' self-judgment was crucial!
Suddenly, Solskjær thought of a strategy.
The development of modern football had made the pace faster, and Barcelona's philosophy of total attack and defense had become mainstream.
Ye Chen's defensive drop helped alleviate some of the pressure, but the question remained—how would Manchester United counterattack?
Soon, Januzaj provided the answer.
At 14 minutes and 24 seconds, after B-team scored against the A-team, they invested more energy into their attack. But after relentless attempts that failed to break through, they grew increasingly frustrated.
Pearson cut inside and shot, but B-team's goalkeeper managed to punch the ball out of the box.
Before the ball even dropped, Ye Chen charged forward and cleared it with a big kick to the right side.
Everyone thought it was just a routine clearance, and they paid little attention. Even A-team's defenders ran towards the ball's expected landing spot.
But one figure had already started moving early.
It was Januzaj!
Although Januzaj usually played as a left-winger for the first team, for the youth team, he mainly played as a right-winger.
And Ye Chen hadn't cleared the ball randomly—he was aiming specifically for Januzaj!
However, due to the short time frame, if Ye Chen hadn't cleared the ball quickly, it could easily have been intercepted in a dangerous area, leading to potential disaster.
On the sidelines, Solskjær's mouth hung open in disbelief.
But on the pitch, Ye Chen was already sprinting at full speed.
His speed advantage was evident!
Without the ball, he was like a supercar with the pedal to the metal!
Januzaj skillfully controlled the ball and, seeing Grimshaw closing in, he smoothly pushed the ball forward, executing a perfect pass-and-go!
At that moment, the two A-team defenders snapped to attention and began quickly retreating.
But Ye Chen was already sprinting to the left, with Januzaj using his own speed to reach the ball that had been flicked forward!
Instead of going to the byline, Januzaj made a quick, horizontal pass at high speed.
The pass was perfectly angled, cutting between the center-back and the goalkeeper.
And the ball was traveling so fast that if the opponents attempted to clear it, there was a high chance of an own goal!
So neither Luke nor McGinty dared to rush in with their feet.
The goalkeeper, Jonathan, also didn't dare to charge out, and could only watch as the ball passed right in front of him...
As the ball sailed past both center-backs and reached the far post, a blue figure appeared in everyone's line of sight.
It was Ye Chen, launching himself toward the ball, his toes outstretched!
Thud!
Ye Chen's toes made perfect contact with the ball, sending it flying with a sharp, muffled sound!