Dongqiudi match report: Manchester United defeated Chelsea 2-1 away from home, remaining unbeaten in all competitions throughout November. Tang Ye scored twice, while Cristiano Ronaldo provided an assist.
It had indeed been a good match.
Unfortunately, Tang Ye had missed too many Premier League matches in November, which meant he ultimately did not even make the shortlist for Player of the Month.
This was Tang Ye's first time missing out on a league Player of the Month shortlist since the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
But none of that mattered to Tang Ye.
What mattered was Manchester United's current points total.
So far this season, Manchester United had drawn only once and won every other match. They were far ahead at the top of the Premier League table.
Even Manchester City and Liverpool's high win rates were useless, because Manchester United, sitting in first place, simply had not lost a single game!
Once November ended, of course, came December.
The Champions League group stage would conclude this December, and teams from the other four major leagues could be said to be under immense pressure.
The logic was simple: drawing Manchester United in the knockout rounds was no different from exploding on the spot.
This was where the Premier League's advantage showed.
Although Manchester City and Liverpool were being kept below Manchester United in the league, being from the same league meant they could not meet Manchester United in the Round of 16.
Put simply, Manchester City and Liverpool were basically paying their league points to Manchester United as protection money.
For some reason, that was a little heartbreaking!
Still, compared with the Champions League knockout draw, fans cared more about something else.
December was the month when the Ballon d'Or would be revealed!
The Daily Mail front page headline—Three days left