Let That Kid Taste Some Pain!

Let That Kid Taste Some Pain!

Utrecht FC: number 16 Sofyan Amrabat and number 99 Tang Ye from the reserves had been promoted to the first team and were now registered for the Eredivisie.

"Brother Meng promoted to Utrecht's first team, joining Zhang Yuning in beginning his professional Eredivisie career!"

News from Utrecht's official channels and Dongqiudi spread like wildfire among Chinese fans in no time.

Holy shit, Brother Meng! Two outside-foot passes and he got sent straight to the first team!

It might've been luck, but honestly, watching Little Tang play football is like watching art. He just walks around and somehow gets an assist.

Other athletes find opportunities through their runs on the pitch, but Brother Meng is different. Brother Meng finds opportunities by walking around!

Playing in the Eredivisie at sixteen? Fuck, would Utrecht really let Tang Ye play in matches?

Fun fact: you can't sign a professional contract in the Netherlands before turning eighteen. Little Tang could only play for the first team on a youth contract...

A youth contract was still a youth contract. Joining an Eredivisie first team at sixteen, and a solid upper-mid-table side like Utrecht at that? I was absolutely blown away!

The day after the news was released, fans spotted Tang Ye's name on Utrecht's official squad list.

99 Ye Tang (U17)

He was still wearing number 99. The U17 after Tang Ye's name showed that he had still signed a youth contract with the first team.

However, unlike his youth contract with the reserves, this contract came with a weekly wage of up to 1,000 euros, nearly double what he had earned before.

There was also a release clause. If another club wanted to take Tang Ye away, they would have to pay a release fee of 35,000 euros.

Of course, there was no way any club would be willing to spend that money!

July 28, Amsterdam time. It was Tang Ye's first day after joining the first team. After waking up in the reserve players' dormitory, he headed for the first team's training ground.

Random Daily Task: Complete 25 barbell bench presses at 40 kg

Reward: Comeback Points ×3

The familiar voice rang out. Just as before, Tang Ye paid it no attention.

When he arrived at the training ground, it was 8:55 in the morning. Nearly half an hour had passed since the 8:30 assembly time.

Tang Ye did not hear Merent's voice when he entered the training ground, because this was not the reserves' training ground.

First-team head coach Erik ten Hag was staring at Tang Ye with an expression like his mother had died.

Tang Ye would have felt better if ten Hag had cursed him out like Merent did, but ten Hag said nothing. He simply stared at him with those unblinking eyes, sending a chill down Tang Ye's spine.

"G-good morning, Mr. Erik."

"You were late for your first training session."

Ten Hag glanced at his watch. "Did you go to a bar last night?"

"No, how could I? I'm only sixteen. I couldn't even get through a bar's door. I went straight to sleep after returning to the dormitory last night."

Tang Ye told the truth, but ten Hag did not seem convinced. "You mean you slept from nine at night until eight-thirty in the morning? You slept for eleven and a half hours, then showed up late?"

"Yeah, you could put it that way. But I was only ten-odd minutes late. Does that even count as being late?"

Tang Ye looked ten Hag in the eyes. Back in the reserves, he had been used to arriving half an hour late. Since it was his first day with the first team, out of respect for the job, he had set his alarm twenty minutes earlier.

"Fine. This is your first time, and your last. Understand?"

Ten Hag pointed at Tang Ye's nose. "If you're late again, I won't let you eat in the first-team cafeteria! Now go warm up. Today's training is intense, so be prepared."

As soon as ten Hag finished speaking, Tang Ye ran off to the side to put on his boots.

Not only were the first-team players better than the reserves, even their coaches were fiercer! Tweet!

Assistant coach Mitchell van der Gaag blew his whistle and gathered the players together.

There were only ten days left until Utrecht's first Eredivisie match of the new season. Van der Gaag said their upcoming training would focus on tactical coordination.

Under van der Gaag's instructions, the first-team players formed several circles, with one player in a yellow bib standing inside each circle.

The drill was called rondo. The players around the circle had to pass the ball among themselves while the player in the middle constantly tried to win it back.

The drill trained players' short-range passing combinations, and it was also one of Tang Ye's favorite exercises. The reason was that it was not as physically demanding as an actual match.

"Hey, Tang!"

Striker Haller extended his right hand toward Tang Ye. "Sorry about that one-on-one chance the day before yesterday. I couldn't keep my balance."

"Oh, it's fine."

Tang Ye reached out his hand. "It was only a training match. No big deal."

"But..."

Tang Ye raised his head. "Sebastian, how tall are you?"

"Me? Hahaha! One ninety-one!"

Hmm! Tang Ye took a deep breath.

This really was the first team. A striker who was 1.91 meters tall. It would be great if he could grow that tall too!

"Stop chatting, Tang, take the ball!"

Defender Kum's voice came from behind him. Tang Ye turned toward the sound and saw the ball rolling toward him, along with Ramselaar running at him.

According to the rules of the game, Tang Ye had to pass the ball to any teammate's feet, but he absolutely could not let Ramselaar touch it! His mind raced, and among all the possible options, Tang Ye found one that required the least effort.

Tang Ye simply let the ball run through, sending it to Haller's feet.

Haller reacted quickly. After receiving the ball, before Ramselaar could close in, he immediately played it to Van der Maarel, who had moved in from the left to support.

"Quite creative."

Van der Gaag folded his arms across his chest, expressing his approval of Tang Ye's move.

Ramselaar had been less than a meter away from Tang Ye just now. Any pass Tang Ye made would have carried some risk. The fact that he had thought of letting the ball run through at that moment proved ten Hag's judgment had been right.

This really was a player with exceptional creativity!

"Do you know why he let the ball run through?"

Ten Hag smiled and asked van der Gaag in return.

"Why?"

"Because it was the easiest way to deal with the ball. That kid is only willing to use his brain, never his body!"

After saying that, ten Hag called over Ramselaar, Kum, and the others who had been involved in the rondo. Pointing at Tang Ye in the distance, he quietly instructed them, "Keep an eye on that Chinese kid. If necessary... let him taste some pain."

Three minutes later.

"Fuck!"

Tang Ye blurted out in his native language, spreading his hands at Ramselaar in front of him. "Brother, can you stop tackling me? I'm begging you!"