September 11.
Arsenal welcomed Bolton Wanderers to their home ground.
Before the match, Wenger was also asked about Li Yufei's comments.
The old man showed just how protective he was of his own:
"I don't think there's anything wrong with it. It's a good thing, because it shows that Li Yufei is ambitious, doesn't it?"
"The quality of the Premier League's top stars has now been surpassed by La Liga. That's an indisputable fact."
"Now that we finally have a super talent like this, I think the media should be tolerant of him. After all, geniuses always like to stand out from the crowd."
"Bear in mind, Li Yufei scored seven goals in his first three matches, and his total playing time in those games was less than 140 minutes."
"That works out to no more than 20 minutes per goal."
"That's an outrageous scoring rate, as I'm sure you all know."
"Don't forget, he's a minor who's only just made it into the first team."
"Given his age and the impact he's already making, his future is full of possibilities. It wouldn't be surprising if he became the World's Best player."
Wenger had made it clear to the media that he would protect Li Yufei at all costs.
He would never allow outside pressure to be placed on Li Yufei.
He had personally chosen Li Yufei to be the future centerpiece of Arsenal, and no one wanted to see him grow up healthy more than Wenger did.
After returning to the dressing room, Wenger spoke with Li Yufei again.
The gist of it was that he shouldn't pay attention to what people were saying about him these days.
Li Yufei patted his chest and declared confidently, "Boss, don't worry. These people just want to see me fall, but I won't give them the satisfaction!"
"Good. I believe in you. Put in a great performance tonight and rub it in the faces of everyone who looks down on you!"
Watching the old man encourage Li Yufei, Wilshere couldn't help feeling envious.
To be honest, he wanted to make bold claims to the media too, but he was worried he wouldn't be able to deliver, and that the backlash would fall on him.
After all, Wilshere hadn't played many matches over the past two years, and his performances hadn't been particularly good either.
At the very least, he hadn't lived up to the expectations the media had had for him when he first broke through.
The four new signings in the dressing room exchanged glances. Hazard said he'd already been tearing it up at Lille.
But on his first day at Arsenal, he'd found someone even more unbelievably awesome than himself.
He'd heard about Li Yufei's comments days ago.
All he could do was admit defeat.
Although he also thought he'd eventually be better than people like Rooney, he didn't dare say it out loud.
Because right now, he wasn't worth a damn. He was just a promising newcomer in Ligue 1.
Hazard had originally planned to spend another season or two honing his skills at Lille.
Once his market value had risen, he'd choose a top club to join.
But Hazard had never imagined that as soon as he emerged in Ligue 1, Wenger—an expert on the league—would set his sights on him.
Faced with the temptation of a top club and a high salary, Hazard ultimately couldn't resist and chose to join the Premier League early.
He knew that right now he was just a kid, so he'd been doing everything he could to keep a low profile.
As for Varane, the youngest of the new signings, he looked completely baffled.
Unlike the others, he hadn't played even a single minute for Lens's first team before Arsenal brought him in.
Until then, he'd been a youth player!
His original plan had been to spend a few seasons with Lens's first team.
Once he'd proven his worth, he'd choose a top club to join.
Instead, he'd skipped the whole stage of developing at Lens and gone straight to the top!
Of course, none of that was what had left Varane most bewildered.
Who could have guessed that on his first day at the club, he'd be told that Arsenal's first-choice center back, Vermaelen, had suffered a recurrence of an old heel injury, opted for surgery, and would miss the rest of the season?
What did that mean? The player he was supposed to back up was out for the season? Then that meant...
That's right! Wenger had told him he'd be starting this match!
The news had stunned Varane.
A young center back who hadn't even turned 18 had arrived at a top club like Arsenal, and on his first matchday, the team's first-choice center back—whose backup he was supposed to be—was ruled out for the season. Then they'd thrown him straight into the starting lineup.
All Varane could do was give it a six.
He simply couldn't imagine any other top club in Europe, aside from Arsenal, giving a newly signed 17-year-old center back the chance to start in a league match.
Probably none! Only Arsenal, with its defense desperately short on players, would make such a risky choice!
Griezmann, who'd just been promoted from the second division to La Liga with Real Sociedad, didn't have any particular thoughts about it.
He was only a rookie who'd just entered a top-flight league. In fact, after signing the first professional contract of his life with Real Sociedad, he hadn't even had time to play a single La Liga match before transferring straight to Arsenal.
He knew his role for now was to be Fabregas's backup, and he wasn't unhappy about it.
After all, he couldn't complain about being the backup to Spain's Golden Boy and Arsenal's captain.
The only seasoned veteran among the four, the 23-year-old Matuidi, was the calmest of them all.
The club had promised him at least 20 starts when they signed him.
On top of that, Arsenal had offered him twice the salary he'd been earning at Saint-Étienne, so Matuidi had little reason to hesitate.
For most Black players, making money was what mattered most.
Matuidi was no exception!
Looking at the familiar faces from his previous life, who seemed far too young in this one, Li Yufei teased them:
"Welcome to Arsenal, newcomers!"
Though he'd only joined a month before them and was acting like a seasoned veteran, Hazard and the others humored him with a few words in reply.
Of course! They weren't idiots. They'd made sure to learn about the club's inner workings as soon as they arrived at Arsenal.
As for Li Yufei, Arsenal's genuine crown prince, they were all inclined to get on his good side if they could.
After chatting for a few minutes, they left the dressing room at the referee's call. The eleven starters headed down the players' tunnel, while the substitutes took their seats on the bench.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Arsenal's home match against Bolton Wanderers in the fourth round of the Premier League is about to begin."
"Let's take a look at the starting lineups."
"Arsenal will line up in a 4-4-2."
"Goalkeeper: Almunia."
"Defenders: Eboue, Varane, Koscielny, Gibbs."
"Midfielders: Alex Song, Wilshere, Rosicky, Fabregas."
"Forwards: Li Yufei, Arshavin."
"Bolton Wanderers will line up in a 4-2-4."
"Goalkeeper: Bogdan."
"Defenders: Paul Robinson, Gary Cahill, Knight, Stanton."
"Midfielders: Muamba, Holden."
"Forwards: Elmander, Kevin Davies, Martin Petrov, Lee Chung-yong."
"As we can see, with Vermaelen out for the season, Arsenal's newly signed 17-year-old French center back, Raphael Varane, has been thrust into the starting lineup."
"I have to say, this is a very bold move. I'm curious where Arsène got the confidence to believe a 17-year-old could play as a starting center back in the Premier League."
"Without further ado, let's get on with the match!"
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