Chapter Summaries

Yang Yang scored a late curling shot to help China Team draw 2–2 with Portugal, earning the team its first World Cup group-stage point. With one group match left, China Team still had a chance to advance if it beat Angola and other results went its way.

• Yang Yang beat Cristiano Ronaldo to Zheng Zhi’s pass, cut past two defenders, and scored in the ninetieth minute to equalize for China Team.
• Yang Yang celebrated in front of Cristiano Ronaldo and the crowd as the commentators noted that his three goals made him the World Cup’s leading scorer so far.
• The match ended 2–2, and Yang Yang congratulated Figo and Deco before discussing the final-round results needed for China Team to advance.
• Yang Yang urged Figo to beat Mexico, while Figo joked that Portugal would not try too hard to stop China Team from advancing.
• Yang Yang shook hands with Figo, Deco, and Little Ronaldo, who looked dejected after the draw.

After China drew 2–2 with Portugal, Yang Yang received widespread praise and rose to the top of the World Cup scoring chart. Before China’s decisive match against Angola, Arie Haan named Yang Yang captain, and Yang vowed to lead the team to all three points.

• China drew 2–2 with Portugal, earning its first-ever point in a World Cup finals group stage as Yang Yang scored twice.
• The media praised Yang Yang’s three tournament goals, and he shared the top spot on the scoring chart with Torres.
• China prepared to face Angola knowing that a win was necessary to keep its hopes of advancing alive.
• Arie Haan named Yang Yang captain in Li Weifeng’s absence and fastened the armband around his arm.
• Yang Yang rallied his teammates by declaring that China would take all three points.

China Team struggled to score against Angola in their final World Cup group match, but Yang Yang broke through in the eighty-third minute with a solo run and gave China a 1–0 lead. His goal left the team on the verge of its first World Cup finals victory, despite already being eliminated.

• Arie Haan brought on Hao Junmin and Li Tie, shifted Yang Yang up front, and later substituted Zhou Haibin for Zhao Xuri as China Team focused on defending and counterattacking.
• China Team resisted Angola's late attacks, and Zhao Junzhe intercepted a pass near the penalty area before Zhao Xuri sent the ball to Hao Junmin.
• Hao Junmin passed diagonally behind Angola's defense, and Yang Yang sprinted onto the ball, evaded two defenders, and dribbled past Kali and goalkeeper Ricardo.
• Yang Yang struck the ball into the goal from near the byline in the eighty-third minute, putting China Team ahead 1–0.
• China Team's players rushed to celebrate with Yang Yang as Arie Haan raised his arms on the touchline.

After China Team's historic World Cup win, Yang Yang returned to China as a national hero despite the team's group-stage elimination. As he traveled home, Nike executives met to decide how to respond to Adidas's aggressive pursuit of him.

• Yang Yang said China Team had learned from the World Cup, accepted responsibility for its elimination, and hoped to reach the knockout stage next time.
• China Team returned to Beijing to crowds of cheering fans, disbanded at Xianghe Base, and Yang Yang secretly flew to Quanzhou with Su Ye.
• Nike executives, including Mark Parker and Charles Denson, discussed how their low offer and cold-treatment strategy had allowed Adidas to gain ground in negotiations with Yang Yang.
• Woody McLaughlin warned Nike that Yang Yang's influence across Asia made him crucial to the companies' competition for the Chinese and wider Asian markets.

Yang Yang returned to Quanzhou with Su Ye, where his parents warmly welcomed her and revealed how prosperous the family business had become. After several days of obligations, Yang Yang and Su Ye enjoyed a day out together and she had him put on the ring she had chosen; the chapter ended as she shyly held his hand when he was about to say good night.

• Yang Yang's parents picked him and Su Ye up at the airport, welcomed her warmly, and told them about the villas they had bought near Quanzhou and Xiamen.
• Yang Yang suggested buying a villa for Wei Zheng and Shen Yuzhu, and Yang Yongqiang revealed that the family had already arranged one and planned to give them company shares.
• Visitors and banquets kept Yang Yang occupied for several days while Su Ye explored Quanzhou with Shen Lifang and Shen Yuzhu.
• Yang Yang took Su Ye around the old city and the seaside, and he put the diamond ring she had ordered onto her finger.
• Their families discussed a possible engagement after Yang Yang and Su Ye were older, while Wei Zheng and Shen Yuzhu reminded them to respect the couple's wishes.
• As Yang Yang prepared to leave for the night, Su Ye grabbed his hand and shyly lowered her head.

Yang Yang balanced his new relationship with Su Ye against his commitment to disciplined training as the World Cup progressed and his four goals made him a leading contender for the Best Young Player Award. After Raiola called, Yang Yang and Su Ye returned to Beijing, where he secretly met several guests who had traveled there.

• Yang Yang resisted Su Ye's attempts to keep him in bed and went for his morning run, then learned that she had canceled a planned outing because she was feeling unwell.
• Yang Yang resumed his regular training while he and Su Ye grew closer and began living together.
• Yang Yang followed the World Cup as Portugal reached the semifinals and news emerged that Juventus, AC Milan, Lazio, and Fiorentina would face relegation over Calciopoli.
• Yang Yang's four goals kept him near the top of the scoring chart, and he surged ahead in fan voting for FIFA's Best Young Player Award.
• Yang Yang received a call from Raiola, returned to Beijing with Su Ye, and secretly met several visiting guests at a hotel near the airport.

Yang Yang met Liverpool CEO Rick Parry and coach Rafael Benitez to discuss a transfer, making clear that the coach’s plans mattered more to him than the fee or salary. Benitez explained how Yang would fit Liverpool’s attack, leaving Yang tempted by the club’s vision.

• Raiola introduced Yang Yang to Rick Parry and Rafael Benitez in a Beijing hotel room.
• Rick Parry said Liverpool had targeted Yang Yang for a year and offered a transfer fee of forty million euros.
• Yang Yang told the Liverpool representatives that he wanted to hear Benitez’s plans before deciding whether to join.
• Benitez described the Premier League’s intensity and explained that Liverpool planned to pair Yang Yang with Peter Crouch and Dirk Kuyt.
• Benitez said Yang Yang’s goalscoring and fighting spirit would make Liverpool sharper and declared the club the best stage for him.

Yang Yang weighed whether to leave Ajax for Liverpool, and Su Ye encouraged him to pursue the challenge. He visited Liverpool with Su Ye and Raiola to see Anfield and Melwood, while the club prepared to welcome him.

• Yang Yang considered Liverpool after Benitez and Rick Parry expressed strong interest and outlined a role for him.
• Su Ye told Yang Yang she believed in him and would support him if he chose to pursue his dream.
• Yang Yang and Su Ye flew to Britain, toured London, and then traveled to Liverpool with Raiola's arrangements.
• George Owen drove Yang Yang and Su Ye past Anfield, pointing out the stadium and explaining how Yang Yang's posters might feature if he joined.
• Yang Yang visited Melwood and found its exterior modest, though George Owen said its renovated facilities compared well with other Premier League grounds.
• Yang Yang was surprised to see Gerrard and Carragher at Melwood ahead of the new season, alongside Benitez and the coaching staff.

Yang Yang visited Liverpool’s Melwood training ground and discussed his transfer options with Raiola on the way back to London. Convinced Liverpool offered the best fit, Yang Yang told Raiola to negotiate with the club, leaving the contract terms to be settled.

• Gerrard and Carragher introduced Yang Yang to Liverpool’s coaching staff and showed him around Melwood.
• Gerrard and Carragher praised Liverpool’s unity and told Yang Yang they wanted him to join the team.
• Raiola compared Liverpool’s offer with Yang Yang’s other options, arguing that he would face stronger competition for a role at Manchester United.
• Yang Yang agreed that Liverpool suited him best and told Raiola to begin negotiations.
• Raiola promised to pursue a top-level contract and advised Yang Yang not to discuss the transfer with the media.

After China’s Yang Yang won the World Cup Silver Boot and Best Young Player awards, speculation over his next club intensified amid competing bids and sponsorship negotiations. Liverpool ultimately signed him from Ajax for forty million euros, ending the long-running transfer saga.

• Italy won the World Cup, and Yang Yang received the Silver Boot and Best Young Player awards for his performances with China Team.
• After Ramón Calderón became Real Madrid president, media reports linked Yang Yang with Manchester United, Liverpool, and Chelsea as Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Manchester United became uncertain.
• Nike renewed Yang Yang’s sponsorship contract for five years at fifteen million euros per year after competing with Adidas for his endorsement.
• Reports said Yang Yang favored Liverpool, but Mino Raiola’s demand for a weekly salary of one hundred and twenty thousand pounds complicated negotiations.
• Liverpool announced that Yang Yang had joined from Ajax for forty million euros, with Gerrard also set to renew his contract at the same weekly salary.

Yang Yang arrived in Liverpool, passed his medical, and signed a five-year contract before Benitez welcomed him to the club. Benitez introduced him to Liverpool’s traditions and the Anfield tunnel, leaving Yang Yang ready to begin his new career.

• Yang Yang arrived at John Lennon Airport, greeted Liverpool fans, and called Su Ye to let her know he had landed.
• Raiola discussed Ibrahimovic’s struggle to leave Juventus after the club was relegated.
• Yang Yang passed Liverpool’s medical examination with results that impressed Mark Waller and the club’s doctors.
• Yang Yang signed a five-year Liverpool contract, and Benitez welcomed him to the club.
• Benitez showed Yang Yang the home dressing room, where Yang changed into Liverpool’s number eleven shirt.
• Benitez took Yang Yang to the tunnel sign reading “This is Anfield” and explained its significance before they posed for a photograph.

Yang Yang completed his Liverpool welcome and press interviews, then met Steven Gerrard while viewing a house near Sefton Park. He accepted the home after Gerrard offered to rent it to him, and they agreed on a monthly rent of £2,500.

• Benitez showed Yang Yang around Anfield, warned him to stay off the substitutes' bench, and posed with him for media photographs.
• George Owen explained that Yang Yang’s changed jersey would be auctioned for charity and that Gerrard and Carragher had sent him welcoming messages.
• George Owen described Gerrard’s leadership and predicted that he and Yang Yang would become friends, while Yang Yang said Gerrard was Liverpool’s only leader.
• Yang Yang and Su Ye discovered that the house she had chosen belonged to Gerrard, who offered to rent it to Yang Yang.
• Yang Yang and Gerrard haggled over the rent, and George Owen helped them settle on £2,500 per month.

Yang Yang settled into his new Liverpool home and joined the squad at Melwood, where Gerrard introduced him to his teammates. He felt welcomed by the club and joined their determination to challenge for the league and Champions League.

• Yang Yang paid a year’s rent on his house, and Gerrard and George Owen arranged support for his move to Liverpool.
• Yang Yang and Su Ye explored Sefton Park, bought household necessities, and returned home together.
• Gerrard drove Yang Yang to Melwood and warned him about burglaries in the area, prompting Yang Yang to remind Su Ye to stay alert.
• Carragher and the other Liverpool players warmly welcomed Yang Yang to the dressing room, and Gerrard rallied the squad to pursue major titles.
• Yang Yang felt that he had quickly fitted into the team and wanted to give everything for Liverpool.

Yang Yang settled into Liverpool and scored in several preseason friendlies, but he struggled to feel physically right. In his Liverpool debut against Maccabi Haifa, he scored early and then realized he had injured his right foot.

• Yang Yang befriended Kuyt, Xabi Alonso, and Reina, while Dudek lamented that his stolen car had contained his championship medal.
• Yang Yang adapted to Liverpool’s demanding training culture and asked the coaches to build his strength without sacrificing his speed, explosiveness, or agility.
• Yang Yang did not play in Liverpool’s first two friendlies, then scored and assisted against Kaiserslautern as Reina unexpectedly scored after being sent forward.
• Yang Yang scored against Grasshoppers and assisted against Mainz, but felt his physical condition was not right; Mainz defeated Liverpool 5–2.
• Yang Yang started Liverpool’s match against Maccabi Haifa, scored with a curling shot in the tenth minute, and felt a sharp pain in his right foot as he began to celebrate.

After Yang Yang suffered a muscle strain during Liverpool’s win over Maccabi Haifa, Benitez investigated the training program and learned that the young fitness coach Justo Lillo had lost the players’ trust. Yang Yang then asked Winston Bogarde to come to Liverpool and help correct the training problems while he recovered.

• Liverpool beat Maccabi Haifa 3–1, but Yang Yang came off injured after scoring, and Liverpool Echo blamed the team’s training methods and Justo Lillo.
• Paco Yestaran told Benitez that Yang Yang had a strain rather than a tear and that the injury occurred during a sudden burst of speed in the match.
• Benitez learned that Yang Yang and other players distrusted Justo Lillo’s training, and he discussed replacing the fitness coach with Paco Yestaran.
• At home, Yang Yang reassured Su Ye and called Winston Bogarde to investigate whether his training plan had caused the injury.
• Winston Bogarde judged the plan too focused on strength for Yang Yang’s age and playing style, and agreed to leave Wei Zhen in charge in Beijing and come to Liverpool.

After Yang Yang’s injury sparked hostile media speculation about whether he could adapt to the Premier League, Liverpool’s players and staff reassured him and arranged his rehabilitation. With Benitez’s approval, Yang Yang’s personal coach Winston Bogarde would help oversee his recovery, and Yang Yang ended by declaring his first goal for the new season.

• British newspapers criticized Yang Yang’s injury and questioned whether he could succeed in the Premier League, while Liverpool legends Dalglish and Alan Hansen defended him.
• George Owen told Yang Yang that Liverpool had fired fitness coach Justo Lillo, and Gerrard and other teammates encouraged Yang Yang to focus on recovering.
• Benitez and Paco Yestaran reassured Yang Yang that the club trusted him and agreed to let Winston Bogarde participate in his rehabilitation plan.
• Yestaran explained the British newspapers’ club loyalties and advised Yang Yang which coverage he could ignore.
• In an interview with Liverpool’s official television station, Yang Yang confidently announced his first goal for the new season.

While Yang Yang rehabilitated from injury, Liverpool struggled to score and dropped points in the Community Shield, the Premier League opener, and their Champions League qualifier. Cristiano Ronaldo revealed that he had stayed at Manchester United to defeat Yang Yang, while Liverpool advanced to the Champions League group stage amid growing calls for Yang Yang’s return.

• Cristiano Ronaldo watched Yang Yang announce his scoring target and told Mike Clegg that he had stayed at Manchester United to take Yang Yang down.
• Winston Bogarde arrived in Liverpool to help Yang Yang recover, while Liverpool lost 2–1 to Chelsea in the Community Shield without him.
• Liverpool drew 1–1 away to Sheffield United in the Premier League opener as Yang Yang watched from home and worried about the team’s attack.
• Liverpool drew 1–1 away to Maccabi Haifa, then advanced to the Champions League group stage with a 4–2 aggregate victory.
• Liverpool’s fans and media called for Yang Yang to return as he worked hard through his rehabilitation without rushing his recovery.

Yang Yang completed a successful fitness test and was cleared to return to action after recovering from his injury. Liverpool welcomed him back ahead of their match against Newcastle, where he declared his ambition to score twenty-five league goals.

• Yang Yang sprinted through the final kilometer at Sefton Park, and Winston Bogarde judged that he had nearly recovered while warning him to keep building his fitness.
• Paco Yestaran gave Benitez Yang Yang’s medical report, which confirmed that he could return to action, and Benitez asked Yang Yang to persuade Winston Bogarde to join Liverpool’s staff.
• Yang Yang told Benitez he was eager to play, but said Winston Bogarde was unlikely to leave his gym in Beijing, which fulfilled his lifelong dream.
• Liverpool’s players warmly welcomed Yang Yang back to the dressing room, including teammates whose positions he had occupied during his absence.
• Yang Yang declared that Liverpool’s future opponents would struggle against them and set a target of twenty-five league goals for the season ahead of the home match against Newcastle.

Yang Yang returned to Liverpool’s squad for the match against Newcastle, drawing intense attention from the British media and supporters. As the teams entered Anfield, he looked composed and ready to answer his doubters with his performance.

• Benitez announced that Yang Yang had returned to the team and praised his condition, while Newcastle manager Glenn Roeder publicly challenged Liverpool ahead of the match.
• Glenn Roeder planned an attacking start and assigned Stephen Carr to mark Yang Yang, while Carr and his teammates mocked the idea that he might become the next Robben.
• Liverpool’s players arrived at Anfield to a warm reception, and Yang Yang received cheers comparable to those for captain Gerrard.
• In the dressing room, Yang Yang exchanged encouragement with Xabi Alonso and Kuyt before closing his eyes to steady himself.
• The Anfield crowd roared Yang Yang’s name as the teams entered, and Su Ye and Winston Bogarde watched him walk onto the pitch looking confident and composed.

Yang Yang scored in his Premier League debut as Liverpool overwhelmed Newcastle at Anfield. He scored once and assisted Peter Crouch before scoring again to give Liverpool a 3–0 lead by halftime.

• Yang Yang finished Gerrard's counterattacking pass with a chip over Steve Harper to put Liverpool ahead in the thirteenth minute.
• Yang Yang drew a foul and later set up Dirk Kuyt for a shot, but Harper saved both Liverpool attempts.
• Yang Yang beat Stephen Carr and crossed for Peter Crouch to head Liverpool's second goal in the twenty-eighth minute.
• Yang Yang helped drive Liverpool's attacks as the team took control of the match.
• Yang Yang volleyed Daniel Agger's flick-on into the net in the forty-fourth minute, making it 3–0.