[Brain storage area...]
[When in doubt, parallel universe. Everything follows the rules of the book. Hehe...]
July 20, 2010.
London.
Hertfordshire.
Colney Training Centre.
A group of players in yellow and blue kits were working up a sweat on the grass.
Among them, a mixed-race player with distinct Asian features was dribbling past opponents.
When a player in a blue kit saw that the one with the ball was the Asian-looking youngster, his expression turned grave, as if facing a formidable enemy.
"Hi, bro. Relax. I'm not a monster. I don't eat people!"
The Asian teenager teased the young Brit in front of him.
"Li Yufei, I'm perfectly relaxed. Don't think I'm one of those wimps who go weak at the knees when they see you!"
The young Brit protested unconvincingly. Though his face looked awful, he was still quick to talk tough.
"Okay, okay, bro. You know I've always thought you were brave..."
Before he could finish, Li Yufei dipped his shoulder and changed direction, shifting the young Brit's balance. He slipped inside and beat him with ease.
As the next defender stepped up, Li Yufei changed direction again and accelerated, cutting diagonally into the penalty area.
The whole move flowed seamlessly. In barely two seconds, Li Yufei had a clear one-on-one chance.
"Shit!!!"
The young Brit behind him realized Li Yufei had fooled him again. He cursed under his breath and hurried forward to make contact and disrupt him.
With the goalkeeper rushing toward the near post, Li Yufei brushed aside the defender's sneaky attempts to interfere from behind, then curled a shot.
The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air, just clearing the goalkeeper's left hand before dropping into the net and sending up a white spray.
"Wow!!!"
"Nice!!!"
"Li Yufei, you're incredible!"
As his teammates rushed over to celebrate, Li Yufei remained composed. He raised his right hand and pushed it downward, playing it cool as naturally as breathing.
After all, it was already his third goal in the training match. He was starting to find it all rather dull.
Just then, Neil Banfield, Arsenal's reserve-team coach, who had been quietly watching from the sidelines, spoke to the older man beside him, who wore a VENNGER shirt:
"This kid doesn't belong in the reserves anymore. His very presence is a nightmare for the other youth players. If this keeps up, their confidence will be completely crushed."
After a pause, Neil offered his suggestion. "It's time to promote him to the first team. He's more than good enough to make it in the Premier League! What do you think, Arsène?"
The old man was none other than the renowned Arsenal patriarch, Arsène Wenger.
He had come to Colney Training Centre that day specifically to watch the Asian-looking youngster tearing it up on the pitch.
At that moment, hearing his old friend's words, Arsène nodded without objection.
"Neil, you're right. This boy belongs in the Premier League, in Europe, and in the whole world."
"I was only worried that he was too young, and that playing in a top league too early might damage his body. If his career were cut short, it would be a real loss for world football."
Wenger sighed, as if recalling something.
Neil didn't interrupt him. Instead, he watched with interest as the youngster continued to run riot on the pitch.
"Beep-beep-beep, beeeeeep—"
The final whistle blew, three short blasts followed by one long one, bringing the training match to an end.
The yellow team had won 6–2, with Li Yufei scoring three goals and assisting two more, directly contributing to five goals.
As soon as the match ended, reserve-team coach Neil Banfield called him over.
"Sir, did you need something?"
The moment Li Yufei asked, he noticed Wenger beside him and quickly greeted him. "Boss, what are you doing here?"
Wenger looked at the Asian teenager with a kindly expression and spoke slowly. "Li Yufei, Coach Neil just told me that he thinks you no longer belong in the youth setup. The first team is where you should be."
"I think he has a point. I called you over to hear what you think."
"Are you ready, son?"
Li Yufei seemed to have expected this. His expression was resolute, and his voice brimming with confidence. "Of course, boss. I've been ready for ages. I just want to get out there and kick Manchester United's ass!"
Neither Wenger nor Neil was surprised by the boy's brazen words.
This exceptional talent had always been so arrogant, as if no one else could catch his eye.
Well, that wasn't entirely true... His sister, already famous across America and now spreading her fame around the world, could turn him into a "good boy" and make him put away all his sharp edges.
But as far as Wenger knew, she was the only one.
Even this boy's father, Mr. Li, a world-class tycoon worth tens of billions, struggled to deal with his somewhat rebellious son.
Perhaps remembering what the boy was like, Wenger laid down the law before anything else. "Son, how much playing time you get in the first team will depend on your performance. I won't put you straight into the starting lineup because of your father."
"If you don't perform well, you'll be sitting on the bench for a long time."
Wenger's stern tone didn't faze Li Yufei. He looked utterly certain of himself. "Don't worry, boss. I don't need you to do that old man any favors. Being handed a place because of connections would be an insult to me. I have absolute confidence in my own ability!"
In fact, Li Yufei had never considered using his father's connections.
Given that his father had bought Arsenal in 2006, it would have been ridiculously easy for him to secure a starting spot if he'd wanted to rely on his old man.
When Li Yufei first joined Arsenal's youth academy, plenty of people had assumed he was a rich kid with connections, with the eldest son of the Li family just there to experience life.
Li Yufei still remembered how the Fleet Street media had spared no effort in hyping him up back then.
At first, he'd become famous because the damn Fleet Street press wouldn't let go of the "nepotism" angle. They acted as though a super-rich heir playing football had to be hiding some ulterior motive.
They never considered whether a boy who'd grown up with a silver spoon in his mouth might actually have exceptional football talent.
Fortunately, after Li Yufei tore through the youth teams at every level, the rumors that he was there through connections gradually faded away. In their place came the label "super football talent from a family of world-class tycoons."
The same media who had attacked Li Yufei so fiercely at first went just as overboard praising him later!
But to Li Yufei, who had lived through the information explosion of his previous life, this was just how the media operated. It was nothing to be surprised about.
As for Wenger, seeing the confidence on Li Yufei's face, he knew the proud youngster would never accept the label of "nepotism." The boy's words just now had only been meant to provoke him.
"Good. Get your things in order, and report to the first team next week. You can rest for a few days first. The first team doesn't play as many matches in a year as the youth teams, but the intensity is on a completely different level. You'll need to be ready both physically and mentally."
Wenger gave him one final reminder, then left.
"I've been ready for ages, boss!"
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