The Arms Race Continues! Manchester City's Going to Have Everyone Working 996!

On the very night Manchester City thrashed Sunderland 3-0 away, manager Pellegrini announced a message on a flight to Manchester.

"Guys, from last Sunday to this Sunday, we've played three games in a whole week. You've all worked hard. I'm announcing that tomorrow is a day off; no training!"

A burst of enthusiastic applause erupted in the cabin.

"Long live the coach!"

"Haha, finally I can rest for a day!"

"I'm so tired, my calves almost cramped up during today's match!"

Amid the players' cheers, Pellegrini reminded them:

"Even though it's a holiday, you all better keep a low profile. If I see any pictures of anyone going to bars or nightclubs in the Sun, you're all sitting on the bench next time!"

Returning home late at night, Toure dragged his exhausted body to bed and fell asleep immediately.

He was so tired!

The 32-year-old Toure has played almost every 90-minute game since the start of the season, making him a true workaholic with perfect attendance.

Although he was reluctant to be substituted after 70 minutes, his twitching calves and soaked jersey made him understand Pellegrini's decision.

He's already a veteran!

He is no longer the Yaya Toure who arrived at Manchester City five years ago, full of ambition and fresh from winning the treble with Barca.

As he aged, his physical condition inevitably declined;

Despite their strict self-discipline in life, the road to retirement for sports stars is never easy.

Toure felt a sense of relief at finally being able to rest for a day.

Before going to sleep, he told his wife, who was sitting by his bedside, the news.

"Really? That's wonderful, honey! Every weekend when the kids have time off, you have to go to training and play soccer, and they always cry to me saying they can't go out and play with their dad. I'll ask the teacher for leave right now, and tomorrow we'll take all four kids to the amusement park, okay?"

Toure embraced his wife, whose figure had changed slightly and whose face now showed some wrinkles, and kissed her deeply.

"No problem, honey! I feel like it's been ages since I took the kids out for a trip since the summer vacation."

The next morning, when Toure woke up, he found that it was already 8:30.

He suddenly rolled out of bed and went to the living room, only to see his wife and four children already dressed and neatly eating breakfast in the living room.

"Daddy! Daddy!"

The adorable children immediately surrounded their father's knees when they saw him come down.

His wife watched him with a smile, then handed him an iced Americano.

Toure finished his breakfast surrounded by the children.

Just as I was getting ready to leave, I inadvertently came across a message on social media.

He noticed that Delph had posted a status update:

[Training continues even on rest days!]

This status update was posted an hour ago, accompanied by a picture of Delph riding a stationary bike.

Toure immediately recognized that the background of the picture was a gym in Manchester City!

Upon seeing this social media status, Toure was taken aback.

In other words, although today was a day off for the whole team given by Pellegrini, Delph not only didn't take a break, but instead arrived at the gym at 7:30 and started his extra training session.

Toure's mind instantly flashed back to yesterday's Premier League match against Sunderland, and the fierce tackling he had received from Delph, who had come on as a substitute for him!

The hearts of the Ivory Coast people began to pound.

He stood frozen in place, motionless.

My brain started working at lightning speed.

"Delph is only 26 years old, which is the peak of a player's physical condition. Even he has started to train extra on his rest days. How can I, a 32-year-old player, fall behind if I want to compete with him for a starting position?"

His wife stood at the door, urging Toure to come out.

What are you still standing there for?

Toure's apple bobbed heavily as he swallowed a large mouthful of saliva.

He looked at his wife's puzzled expression and the expectant eyes of his four children.

Toure suddenly slapped his forehead hard!

The slap was so hard that it startled everyone, who had no idea what had happened.

Toure didn't say anything, but silently walked over and kissed his wife on the forehead, then knelt down and kissed the cheeks of his four children.

"I'm sorry, Dad has to stand you up today. Although Dad has the day off, I still need to go to the training base for extra practice to stay in shape. Sorry, Mom will have to take you out to play today."

Upon hearing this, his children immediately burst into tears, wailing and calling their father a liar.

Toure's wife, who was standing nearby, was also furious.

She pointed at Toure's nose and yelled, "Are you playing us?! You agreed on everything last night, how come you changed your mind this morning? I called each of the teachers late at night to ask for leave so I could take the kids out! How could you do this to me?"

Toure looked troubled and mumbled, "I had no choice. Everyone's training extra, how can I compete with them for a starting position if I slack off?"

At this moment, his wife's eyes reddened, and she couldn't help but sob.

"Football, football, football! Is football all you think about in your life? I truly regret marrying a professional footballer! You've abandoned your family and children for football!"

When Toure was known for his strong sense of justice, heard his wife say she regretted marrying him, he immediately became furious.

"Are you crazy?! Why are you saying these things in front of the children?"

"If it weren't for my hard work playing football, how would you have the money to live in a villa, drive luxury cars, and be a rich wife? If it weren't for me, you'd still be eating porridge in the slums of Ivory Coast!"

The two argued in front of their four children and parted on bad terms.

The wife drove the children to school one by one.

Toure was left standing alone in the living room, lost in thought.

Just last night, as he was getting off his flight, he received another call from the mayor of his hometown.

In the past, when the local officials asked him for this or that, he would just let it go, even if it meant building roads or bridges.

But this time the reason is truly outrageous!

The mayor mentioned that the city planned to build a spaceport and launch spacecraft to explore the universe, and asked Toure for a loan of Pound Sterling 4 million to support the development of Ivory Coast's space program.

Upon hearing this, Toure was immediately enraged, and years of pent-up anger finally erupted at this moment.

"Go to hell! Ivory Coast's industrial level is so low, they can't even build a motorcycle, let alone build a spaceship! And you have the nerve to ask me for money? Tell me honestly, how much of this money went into your own pocket? You think I'm an ATM?!"

Toure had an argument with the mayor on the phone.

I immediately hung up the phone and blocked him.

At that moment, Toure finally understood.

At 32 years old, past his prime, how many more years can he play football?

He didn't want to live for others anymore; he wanted to make a final push for the last few years of his career!

He wants to prove to the world that he, Toure, is a master, whether at Barca or Manchester City.

He has the ability to be a starter on any team, and he would never do something like drawing a starter's salary while being a substitute or just coasting along.

This is not something Toure should have done.

If he had done that, he wouldn't have left Barca to Britain after winning the treble with Barca in 2010.

He recalled his original reason for leaving Barca: I don't want to play center-back, I Toure, am a midfielder!

With this in mind, Toure's resolve grew stronger.

He picked up the car keys and floored the accelerator.

With a roar, the 8-cylinder Mercedes-Benz C63s sped off like an arrow toward Manchester City's training ground.

"Hey, what's the occasion? You're here for extra practice too!"

When the old gatekeeper said "also" to him, Toure knew without a second thought that he was referring to Delph.

Unlike the last time when he voluntarily added extra practice sessions, when he lied to the old gatekeeper, saying he was picking up his child early and happened to be passing by, this time Toure made no attempt to hide anything.

"Even if my teammates keep practicing, I still have to practice. Otherwise, at my age, if I don't have a football club to play with, I'll have to compete with you for a job as a doorman or security guard!"

Toure changed his clothes and shoes in the car and headed straight to the gym.

As he strode along, he silently repeated to himself:

"Delph, don't let your complaints about not seeing any future at Manchester City fool you. You're actually quite ambitious, aren't you? Heh heh, if you don't step up your training, you might steal my starting position this season Delph. Dream on!"

Toure has already identified the younger Delph as his hypothetical rival in the defensive midfield position and is determined not to lose to the youngster.

However, as soon as he reached the gym entrance, Toure sensed something was wrong.

There were noisy sounds coming from inside, including panting and the clanging of dumbbells and barbells.

Toure was puzzled. Could Delph have caused such a commotion all by himself?

The moment he pushed open the door, the scene before him completely stunned Toure!

At 9 a. m. on a rest day, the gym in Manchester City was bustling with noise and excitement!

Delph was lying on the chair by the door doing dumbbell flyes, two conspicuous 25-kilogram dumbbells held in his hands, pushing and lifting them back and forth with his well-defined muscles;

Fernando and Fernandinho, both Brazil defensive midfielders, were chatting as one did a barbell bench press and the other held the weights beside him.

David Silva, the slender Spain attacking midfielder who rarely goes to the gym, is now sweating profusely on a spin bike, the whooshing sound of the chain like the roar of an airplane engine;

Across from Silva, Bony was practicing his legwork alone, chanting, "45, 46, 47, come on, you are the best!"

To Toure's greatest surprise, he actually saw France player Nasri in the gym!

In Toure's memory, this France usually had a weak sense of discipline and a carefree attitude;

Last season, he was fined Pound Sterling 20,000 and suspended for two matches by Pellegrini for being 20 minutes late.

He was always the last to arrive at the morning training session, almost at the very last minute.

Right now, Nasri is also sweating profusely on a rowing machine, constantly working out his back muscles.

Including Toure, there were a total of 7 players in Manchester City's gym who voluntarily trained extra on their rest days!

Seeing Toure standing blankly at the door, the players who were doing extra training only glanced at him, waved to him, and then continued with their training.

After thinking it over carefully, Toure realized that with Fernando, Fernandinho, Delph, and himself, the team now had all four regular defensive midfielders.

Needless to say, it was because Tang Long started in the defensive midfield position for two consecutive games, which made them, like themselves, feel a sense of crisis about their positions!

As for Bony, Nasri, Silva, and Navas, Tang Long can also play in the positions of these forwards.

Tang Long has delivered outstanding performances in all positions, including defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder, and striker!

Although Toure was too embarrassed to ask everyone why they were doing extra practice, he felt that everyone knew the reason.

It seems that Tang Long's arrival at Manchester City has acted like a catfish, significantly intensifying the team's internal competition.

"My goodness, everyone's working so hard, I need to hurry up and do my best too!"

Toure felt an unprecedented sense of oppression.

He was even somewhat relieved that he had seen the picture Delph posted on social media before leaving home, and that he hadn't wanted to be left behind, so he rushed over.

Thinking of this, Toure, who had just stepped onto the elliptical machine to stretch his muscles, suddenly felt a jolt in his heart.

"I only saw Delph because he was showing off on social media, but what about the others? I wouldn't know unless they told me! In Manchester City's gym, there are supervisors on duty to keep it open during the day. How many people in the team are secretly training in the shadows?"

Thinking of this, Toure tensed up, not daring to waste time with idle thoughts, and immediately threw himself into training.

He wielded the elliptical trainer with incredible skill, almost causing the machine to fall apart!

An hour and a half later.

Toure collapsed to the ground, too tired to move.

Large beads of sweat seeped from his forehead and dripped onto the ground with a "plop, plop".

He has never worked this hard in the gym since joining Manchester City.

Having just finished an away game, the fatigue in Toure's thighs was still lingering.

The intense self-training session that just took an hour and a half had almost completely exhausted Toure's physical strength.

Exhausted, Toure originally planned to take a shower in the locker room and then go home to sleep.

But then they heard Bony yelling in the locker room, "Guys, wanna go out onto the soccer field and kick a few balls?"

Before a bewildered Toure could react, he heard Silva chime in, "Sure, bro, you can't learn anything just by working out in the gym. Go get some real experience on the pitch. I'd love to practice some positioning with you!"

So the six people in the gym— Silva, Bony, Delph, Fernando, Fernandinho —took off their sneakers, changed into soccer shoes, and stomped downstairs to the training field.

Only Toure, drenched in sweat, was left alone in the gym, panting.

Ten minutes later, he stood up, leaning on a chair, took off his shirt, revealing his upper body, which looked as if it had been soaking in water.

"Aaaaaaahhhhh!!!!"

Toure roared so loudly that the floorboards vibrated.

He was heartbroken!

At this age, is it worth training so hard?

Many players at this age are already the absolute leaders of their teams, and even the head coach has to listen to them. They can play when they want and sit on the sidelines drinking water when they don't, embodying a carefree attitude.

But 32-year-old Toure is still struggling to maintain his starting position and secure a new contract extension!

At that moment, Toure did consider giving up and lying down.

However, the sense of dignity that comes with being a world-class midfielder made that thought vanish instantly.

Toure quickly changed his clothes, put on his sneakers, and ran to the training field.

These young men, in their late twenties and early thirties, are all willing to give up their holidays and voluntarily train extra.

As the senior member of the team, I have the most experience. I don't need to be a role model for them, but at least I can't fall behind these young people!

"Great shot, Sergio! Beautiful shot!"

As Toure, panting heavily, jogged to the football field, he saw Caballero shouting at Agüero and giving him a thumbs up.

Toure was momentarily stunned, and Agüero unleashed three more long-range shots, each one powerful.

Meanwhile, substitute goalkeeper Caballero also made diving saves left and right like a spring!

A beautiful shot, and a brilliant save!

After Agüero fired his shot, Bony immediately sprinted forward.

Navas delivered a cross from the wing, and Bony unleashed a long-range diving header from the edge of the penalty area, which went just over the goal!

On the other side, Silva and the two defensive midfielders, Fernando and Fernandinho, formed a triangle, moving the ball back and forth between them like a bouncing ball while maintaining the formation's movement.

"Caballero and Agüero are here too! My goodness, it turns out there were more than just the six guys in the gym doing extra training; there were two more who were already on the field practicing!"

While Agüero was off the field to get a drink of water, Toure greeted him with a smile.

"Sergio, what brings you here for extra training on your day off?"

Toure found it strange because even if Tang Long performed well on the front line, it couldn't possibly affect Agüero's position; he was an absolute legend at the club.

Why did he roll it up too?

Agüero gulped down several mouthfuls of sports drink, finishing the whole bottle in one go, then tossed the bottle into the trash can with two precise "thuds".

"Did you see the news? Bayern's Poland Lewandowski scored 5 goals in 9 minutes last round! He's left me far behind in the Europe top scorer rankings. Sigh, the competition this season is just too fierce. Not to mention the European Golden Shoe, in the Premier League, Agüero, Icardi, and Kane are also strong competitors. If I don't train harder, I'll be wasting Tang's excellent passing skills!"

The author's keyboard is practically smoking from typing so much, but thankfully, the author kept their promise, updating three chapters a day from Monday to Friday, averaging 13,000 words per day, without breaking their word.

My five-day annual leave is over. I'll resume two updates a day starting Saturday, but I'll still write three chapters over the weekend and save two chapters so I can release them on schedule later without having to wait until night.

Without taking a break, I can't manage three updates a day. On average, I write 2000 words per hour. To write 13,000 words, I'd need to type continuously for at least six hours, and then rest for twenty minutes after each chapter. So, normally I only update twice a day, seven or eight thousand words a day, which already takes up all my evenings after get off work. I really can't write anymore. crying