Manchester United academy product! Eighteen-year-old Chinese youngster may make his Premier League debut tonight: talent, potential, and challenges.
Fans eagerly await the return of a Chinese player to one of Europe's top five leagues after so many years!
The Red Devils' crown prince, a midfield prodigy whose talents combine those of Pirlo and Xavi.
A source of pride for Chinese football.
Ten goals and twenty-four assists in a single youth-team season, with two assists and a goal in the UEFA Youth League final—the Theatre of Dreams was about to open the curtain on a legend.
One news story after another set the Chinese internet ablaze.
Media outlets raced to report that fans hoped the Chinese youngster's Premier League debut tonight would ease the pain caused by "China 1–5 Thailand."
Night fell and the city lights came on. People dragged their tired bodies home, excitedly switched on their TVs, and eagerly prepared to watch the opening match of the 2014/15 Premier League season: Manchester United vs. Swansea City.
Kickoff was still two hours away.
Li Luo's match highlights kept appearing on the TV screen, stirring the hearts of countless Chinese fans.
The streets and alleys buzzed with heated discussion.
"An inside-foot cut, a 360-degree turn, and he dodges a sliding tackle?"
"An outside-foot cut, a half-turn, and he evades the press?"
"V-pull."
"Drag-back and burst in the opposite direction."
"A step-over, then a touch through the defender's legs!"
"Every time Li Luo escapes the press, he finds the perfect passing lane or direction to break through."
"His moves are so simple and unassuming, yet when he does them... why does it look like he's dancing? What a genius!"
"Incredible! A Heavenly Dancer!"
"Wow! It's the Golden Legend!"
"Fantastic! Chinese football is saved!"
Old Trafford.
The Manchester United dressing room.
The deafening Red Devils anthem seeped faintly through the walls, and the air smelled of disinfectant and muscle tape.
Li Luo was panicking...
About ten hours earlier, he had transmigrated into the body of a Manchester United prodigy who shared his name, surname, and age.
When he woke up, he found himself at the scene of a car crash. Miraculously, he was completely unharmed.
He had tried tapping a football with his foot. His mood had gradually shifted from delight to disappointment, then to fear.
I don't fucking know how to play football.
In his previous life, he had never played football and had barely watched any matches. He had only seen the Captain Tsubasa anime and a few highlight reels of star players.
In this life, Li Luo realized he hadn't inherited the original owner's football skills.
Strictly speaking, he hadn't inherited the original owner's ball control, ability to read the game, spatial awareness, anticipation, tactical knowledge... or anything else of the sort.
"Deep Blue, add points!"
Adding points didn't help.
A few hours earlier, the Golden Finger System had indeed activated.
Unfortunately, the attribute panel hadn't come with the original owner's football skills either.
[Name: Li Luo]
[Age: 18]
[Height: 173 cm (still growing)]
[Physical Contact: 79; Stamina: 90]
[Jumping: 80; Shot Power: 81]
[Speed: 86; Ball Control: 8; Passing: 9; Shooting: 6; Curve: 7;]
[Defense: 9; Tackling: 9; Goalkeeping: 2]
[Heading: 8]
"..."
His physical attributes and athleticism were top-tier. Li Luo couldn't help reaching out to feel his eight-pack abs, his sleek, shapely legs, and his full, rounded soleus muscles.
He now had a body that could pass for a work of art, with muscles defined as if carved by a blade.
But his football-related attributes... were all single digits.
[Beginner's reward issued: 50 free attribute points]
"..."
"How should I spend them? Where do I put them?"
At that moment, Li Luo was like a newbie who had just started a game. Even with attribute points to spend, he was afraid to use them carelessly, just as he was afraid to use any of his resources.
He took a deep breath.
He decided to scroll through the news on his phone to steady his nerves and mentally prepare himself.
Stay calm. Hold thunder in your chest, but keep your face as placid as a lake.
Instead, the more he read, the more panicked he became.
He was secretly alarmed.
Ah! The entire country is counting on me to perform well?
I'm doomed. The consequences will be unbearable.
I'm going to let the Party and the people down.
Li Luo loved his country. He couldn't bear the thought of disgracing himself in front of the whole world as a Chinese player.
He glanced at the clock on the wall. There was an hour and forty minutes left until kickoff... What was he supposed to do? He was freaking out.
Sir Matt Busby Way.
Manchester United fans wore Red Devils gear and waved team flags.
As far as the eye could see,
they looked like a flowing river of red.
A Chinese TV station had sent a film crew all the way to Old Trafford to broadcast the Chinese prodigy's debut live.
"Good evening, viewers!"
"There's an hour and a half to go before kickoff. Let's interview some local Manchester United fans and hear what they expect from Li Luo."
The host glanced around and approached a group of foreign fans.
After a few pleasantries, he held out the microphone.
The interviewees were excited, eagerly taking turns to share their opinions.
"We're not local fans. We came from Milan."
"Li can't make any ridiculously bad mistakes in his debut. Every young player gets nervous during their first Premier League appearance, but he has to keep his composure. Otherwise, he'll face a lot of doubts and criticism from Red Devils fans. Manchester United has supporters all over the world, and you get all sorts of people. They won't protect an academy youngster the way fans of a small club would. You can look at Pogba and Lingard's experiences."
"Right, that's quite possible. He might be sent out on loan for a while, like Pogba, to gain experience in a less demanding league. The Premier League is so physical, and young players can get injured easily. Just look at that Arsenal youngster... his leg was broken."
"Li will keep growing taller and getting stronger. We're worried that he'll lose control of his center of gravity and become slower on the ball."
"I can't wait to see the Manchester United Crown Prince's brilliant debut!"
The host glanced down at the comments scrolling across the screen. They were all things like "milky-white tits," "his ass is bigger than my head," "what a body," "what material are the saddles on those British guards' horses made of?" "They're fighting! Beer-bottle firebombs!" and "Give the cameraman a bonus chicken leg"...
He quickly thanked them in English, then gestured to the cameraman to adjust the shot.
The Manchester United dressing room.
The senior Red Devils players gave Li Luo reassuring pats on the shoulder.
"Don't worry. Just play like you do in training. Let loose."
"Haha, why are your palms sweaty? You need to act like the crown prince!"
"Don't rush off after the match. I'll take you somewhere fun."
Clap, clap, clap!
Assistant coach Giggs clapped his hands, signaling for everyone to quiet down.
Then he started going over the coaching staff's pre-match plan again.
The little magnets on the tactics board shifted back and forth.
His teammates followed along, nodding from time to time.
Li Luo was completely lost. He understood English and Spanish, but not the technical jargon.
A moment later,
Giggs picked up a small tactics board and called Li Luo over to give him some personal instructions.
"Li, tonight's going to be a little different."
"Van... the boss has spent the past two weeks studying footage from every mid-to-upper-table club in Europe, and he's concluded that the role of midfielders will change this season."
"The 4-4-2 formation is gradually falling out of favor, with Atlético Madrid as the exception."
"You won't have to wait for the fullbacks to push forward before moving inside like you did in the youth team."
"The 4-2-3-1 formation will gradually become the dominant system again for a while. Tonight, we'll give you complete freedom. Your job won't be to combine with the advancing fullbacks anymore. You'll need to cover more ground, help the team create passing options as it builds play, and open up passing routes."
"When we're on the attack, you'll also have to take on part of the frontline's job of finishing chances."
Giggs sounded regretful. Tactics in Europe's top five leagues changed too quickly. Youngsters learned one thing in the academies, only to find it outdated by the time they reached the senior game. Sometimes they had neither the time nor the opportunity to adapt their tactical understanding. These days, it was too hard to become an overnight sensation.
Of course, the few giants with distinctive styles and well-established tactical traditions were exceptions. Whatever changed in football, they only needed to make minor adjustments to their own systems.
"Don't worry. Your talent is a lot like mine when I was young. You'll adapt in no time."
Li Luo was still completely lost.
He couldn't process Giggs's technical jargon so quickly.
What's he babbling about?
Finishing?
Scoring!
Without hesitation,
Li Luo puffed out his chest and jabbed a finger into the air.
[Free attribute points allocated.]
[Heading: 8→58!]
In an instant, the back of his head tingled slightly.
It felt as if some of his body's reflexes had returned.
"Wait, that's not right."
"If I need to finish... why didn't I put the points into shooting?"
Li Luo, a complete football novice, regretted it.
He was 173 centimeters tall, and he'd put all his attribute points into heading?
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