Although Zhang Kuang did not hold a big birthday party, the club still gave him a gift worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, a watch.
Zhang Kuang was given two days of vacation. During these two precious days of vacation, he focused entirely on his cultivation. He was not interested at all in what others said about going out for fun.
Putting all your time and energy into cultivation is more satisfying than anything else.
Unfortunately, Zhang Kuang was not given much time. He only had two days to practice. After practicing 18 Qi and Blood Points, he returned to Manchester.
On August 22, the second round of Premier League started, Manchester United played against Tottenham Hotspur at home.
Old Trafford.
More than 70,000 seats were filled with red, and Theatre of Dreams looked like a burning furnace in the afternoon sun.
When the Tottenham Hotspur players entered the stadium, they were drowned out by the deafening singing of 'GloryGloryManUnited'.
Ber stood in the tunnel with a serious expression. He had said before the game, 'We are ready,' but when he saw Zhang Kuang standing near the center circle warming up, a crack appeared in that confidence.
The game was one-sided.
In the 6th minute of the game, Zhang Kuang got the ball from the left. Walker came up. The Tottenham Hotspur right back was known for his speed, but he was facing a faster opponent.
Zhang Kuang dunked the ball inward with his left foot, and Walker's center of gravity moved over. At that moment, Zhang Kuang flicked the outside of his right foot, and the whole figure passed by Walker like a bolt of lightning. Suddenly
After entering the penalty area, he glanced at the position of Friedel. The old goalkeeper blocked the near corner.
Zhang Kuang did not hesitate and shot low with his left foot into the far corner. The ball stuck to the turf and penetrated into the lower left corner of the goal. 1:0.
Old Trafford exploded.
In the 23rd minute, De Gea started a fast break by throwing the ball. Rooney made a cross pass to Carrick. Carrick made a long pass over the top and hit Tottenham Hotspur behind the defense.
Zhang Kuang starts from the left wing and sprints at full speed.
Tottenham Hotspur's defenders were chasing after him, but the distance was widening.
Zhang Kuang looked up while running to determine the landing point, and then shot directly in the air at the moment the ball bounced to the ground. The ball bounced over Friedel's head and fell into the empty goal.
2:0.
Zhang Kuang ran towards the corner flag area, jumped, turned around in the air, and moved his hands down. The whole action was done in one go, and the cheers of Theatre of Dreams reached a new height.
In the 41st minute, Manchester United got a corner kick.
Giggs took a tactical corner kick, and the ball rolled to the top of the penalty area, where Zhang Kuang caught the ball. Tottenham Hotspur's defensive player rushed forward, but Zhang Kuang made a fake shot, raised his right foot, and focused his whole body The ball sank, and the defensive player flew to block it, but when Zhang Kuang's foot fell, it turned into a buckle on the inside of his foot. The ball rolled past his left side, and he followed the change of direction and broke into the small penalty area. Facing the attacking Friedel, Zhang Kuang pushed the ball into the near corner, scoring a hat trick.
3:0.
The first half is not over yet, Zhang Kuang has already completed a hat trick.
Manchester United didn't stop in the second half.
Zhang Kuang was replaced by Hernández in the 55th minute.
In the 68th minute, Rooney shot from the front of the penalty area and scored.
4:0
In the 81st minute, Berbatov scored another victory with a volley.
5:0
The final score was fixed at 5:0.
Zhang Kuang only said one sentence in the interview after the game, "The hat trick is for the PFA trophy."
Ber of Tottenham Hotspur walked through the mixed area with a livid face and did not accept any interview.
Manchester United has two consecutive wins and a goal difference of 8 and ranks first, Manchester City has a two-game winning streak and a goal difference of 5 and ranks second, Wolverhampton Wanderers has two consecutive wins and a goal difference and ranks third.
However, what Manchester United should focus on now is not the league. Their next goal is Europe Super Cup held at Monaco Stade Louis II.
August 25th, Monaco, Fairmont Hotel.
At the press conference the night before Europe Super Cup, Ferguson sat in the center of the podium, next to Zhang Kuang.
The press box in the audience was full of people, and the red lights of the cameras were all bright.
The first question comes from "Manchester Evening News": "Sir Ferguson, it is generally believed that Manchester United is far stronger than Porto. Manchester United will win the championship by a big margin. How many goals do you think Porto will win?"
Ferguson chewed gum. "Super Cup is a determined outcome, anything can happen. Porto There are Falcao, Hulk, Moutinho... These players can play the main role in any Europe team. We will not underestimate our opponents.
Of course, we are also confident that we can win the game and win the championship. As for other things, I am not God, so there is no way to predict it."
The second question was posed to Zhang Kuang, from the BBC: "Zhang, this is the first Europe Super Cup of your career, what do you expect?"
Zhang Kuang leaned back in his chair with an arrogant expression. "Of course my expectation is to win the championship. Now many fans criticize me for having too few championships. I have been looking forward to this game for a long time.
Porto is the UEFA Europa League Cup champion. They have tradition and strength, but we are the UEFA Champions League champion. I came to Monaco just to score goals and win the championship. It's that simple."
The third question comes from "The Sun". The reporter said with a narrow-minded smile, "Zhang, after Community Shield, you praised Čech for 'making progress in saving the ball', which caused controversy, and then praised Foster's 'conceded four goals but was the best of the match' has once again caused controversy. If you win against Porto tomorrow night, will you praise Porto's goalkeeper Helton?"
There was a burst of laughter from the audience.
Zhang Kuang raised his eyebrows. "I praise people because they did perform well. If Helton saves my must-goal tomorrow, I will still say he is good. But the premise is that he can save it."
The tone of this sentence was one of naked confidence, and the reporters in the audience quickly recorded it.
Ferguson added, "Let me say one more thing on his behalf. Zhang Kuang never praises the opponent's goalkeeper in the locker room. He only tries to find ways to kick the ball into the goal on the field."
"..."
Porto head coach Vito Pereira spoke at the pre-match press conference, "Everyone knows the strength of Manchester United. Manchester United defeated the powerful Barcelona team in the UEFA Champions League finals, which shows that their strength is amazing.
Sir Ferguson has built a rich and experienced team, but we came to Monaco not to watch the game, we came to win.
Porto has excellent counterattack ability, and Falcao and Hulk know how to seize the holes in the opponent's defense. We will restrict Manchester United's midfield ball and compress the space for their forwards to receive the ball.
I attach great importance to the 'world's number one shooter' Zhang Kuang. This player's breakthrough threat is huge, and the back line must stay focused throughout.
The championship of UEFA Europa League Cup proves that we have the confidence to compete with any giants, and we will do our best to bring Europe Super Cup back to Portugal."
Reporter: "Your predecessor Boas led Chelsea to lose to Manchester United on Community Shield twenty days ago. Do you think you are stronger than your predecessor?"
Pereira:"He is him, I am me, we are different..."
"..."
After the release meeting, Ferguson said to Zhang Kuang in the corridor, "Helton's habit of standing closer to the goal post, and the far corner is his blind spot. When you shoot, hit the far corner more often."
Zhang Kuang nodded. "I got it, BOSS."
The reporters who came to Monaco that day not only paid attention to the pre-match news of Super Cup, but also paid attention to the lottery ceremony of the UEFA Champions League group that night.
In the end, after UEFA drew lots that night, Manchester United was assigned to Group C. The opponents in the group were Benfica, Basel, and Oțelul Galați.
Manchester United's group luck is pretty good. I should say that I am the best among the seeded teams. There are almost no top teams except Benfica which is slightly stronger.
Look at Group A, that is called the death group among the dead.
Group A is divided into: Bayern Munich, Villarreal, Manchester City, Napoli. Dare I ask which of these four teams is the weak team? Which one is not famous in Europe and even the world?
Let's look at the grouping of the second death group: Group F: Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Marseille, Olympiacos.
The three teams Arsenal, Dortmund, and Marseille are of equal strength, which is also quite fatal.
However, it is Group D that fans are more concerned about.
Group D: Real Madrid, Lyon, Ajax, Dinamo Zagreb.
Got it?
From 2005 to 2010, Lyon was called the 'Galácticos nemesis' and produced Real Madrid's famous UEFA Champions League 'Jokuro's Nightmare'.
Therefore, in the group stage, Real Madrid was once again placed together with Lyon. This is how many Real Madrid fans feel "difficult to reconcile". This is good to see.
Therefore, with these highlights, the attention of Manchester United plummeted, and even the news of Super Cup was not the headline news on August 26, it could only be peripheral news.
--
On the evening of August 26th, after nightfall.
The lights of Monaco Stade Louis II light up in the night.
The sea breeze at the end of August blew through the stands with a warm salty smell, and more than 18,000 spectators filled the stadium to capacity.
Manchester United fans covered the entire north stand with a huge TIFO, with 'THEKINGOFEUROPE' written underneath Ferguson's avatar.
Porto fans in the South Stand showed a fire-breathing dragon. The Portugal slang "DRAGÃOINVICTO" below means: undefeated dragon.
In the players tunnel, Zhang Kuang stood in the middle of the team, with his hands on his hips and looking down at the turf under his feet.
In front of him is Berbatov, and behind him is Rooney.
In Sky Sports's commentary booth, Martin·Tyler and Gary·Neville are already in place.
There was a tactical board in front of the two of them, and the real-time video of Stade Louis II was playing on the big screen behind them.
Martin·Tyler: "Good evening, dear viewers, welcome to Monaco Stade Louis II. Here is the live broadcast of Europe Super Cup in 2011. The two sides are last season's UEFA Champions League champion Manchester United, and UEFA Europa League Cup champion Porto. I am Martin·Tyler, and the commentator with me today is Gary·Neville."
Neville nodded. "Good evening, Martin, there are too many things to watch in this game. Manchester United won Community Shield in the summer, and Premier League scored nine goals in two consecutive victories in the beginning. The state is astonishingly hot.
Although Porto has gone through a change of coach - Boas went to Chelsea, and Pereira took over, they had an equally good start at Primeira Liga, winning both games and being solid on both offense and defense."
Martin: "Let's take a look at the starting lineups of both sides first. On Manchester United's side, Jazz Ferguson still arranged a 4-3-3 formation.
The goalkeeper position is the 20-year-old Spain rising star De Gea. His performance in the first two rounds of Premier League and Community Shield was amazing. His many key saves proved his ability to take over from Van der Sar."
Neville interjected. "De Gea's shooting style is very solid, and his attack judgment is very accurate. This is rare for a 20-year-old goalkeeper.
But tonight he has to face Falcao. The Colombian has a variety of shooting methods, including headers, feet, points, counterattacks, everything. This is the strongest striker De Gea has faced so far this season."
Martin continues. "Manchester United's defense line from left to right: No. 3 Evra, No. 15 Vidić as captain, No. 5 Ferdinand, No. 21 Rafael.
This line of defense is rich in experience, but Rafael has to face the impact of Hulk. Brazil is known as 'The Incredible Hulk', and his physical resistance is extremely terrifying. Rafael will have a hard time today."
Neville: "Indeed, Evra's side is not easy either. Rodríguez's speed and dribbling are equally threatening.
But Manchester United's central defender combination is top-notch. Vidić and Ferdinand have worked together for many years, and their tacit understanding is enough to make up for possible problems on the wing."
Martin: "In the midfield: No. 16 Carrick plays as a defensive midfielder, No. 11 Giggs and No. 24 Fletcher are separated on the left and right.
This midfield combination focuses on experience and control, with Giggs responsible for connecting the frontcourt, Fletcher providing running coverage, and Carrick responsible for scheduling and interception."
Neville: "Sir Ferguson did not send Anderson and Cleverley, but chose Giggs and Fletcher. This shows that he values stability and experience in this game.
Porto's midfielder has a metronome like Moutinho. If Manchester United's midfielder cannot control the rhythm, the game will be very passive."
Martin: "The frontcourt trident: No. 33 Zhang Kuang is on the left, No. 9 Berbatov is forward, and No. 10 Rooney is on the right. This combination of Premier League and UEFA Champions League last year can be said to be the most powerful offensive combination of Manchester United.
Today they face Porto's central defender combination Rolando and Otamendi. The former is the Portugal international and the latter is the Argentina strongman. The two have complementary styles, but they have a common problem: their turning speed is slow."
Neville smiled, "The speed of turning around is too slow, facing Zhang Kuang... I don't dare to think about this scene. Zhang Kuang's first step is unique to Premier League. If Porto's central defender gives him space to start, it will be a disaster."
Martin: "Let's take a look at Porto... Well, this, Pereira also plays a 4-3-3 formation. The goalkeeper is No. 1 Helton, Portugal Guomen has rich experience and position selection is his strength. Defense line: No. 21 Săpunaru plays right back, No. 4 Rolando and No. 6 Otamendi partner as central defenders, and No. 5 Fazio plays left back.
Midfielder: No. 8 Moutinho is centrally organized, No. 23 Fernando and No. 16 Lucho Gonzalez are on both sides. Both of them are tough in defense and active in running.
Frontcourt: No. 12 Hulk is on the right, No. 9 Falcao is forward, No. 7 Cris Tian·Rodríguez is on the left. Gary, what do you want to say about Porto's starting lineup?"
Neville smiled knowingly, "Facing the UEFA Champions League champion, and with the 'world's number one shooter' Zhang Kuang present, as the opponent team, instead of thinking about defensive counterattacks, they lined up a 433 offensive formation. I have to say that Pereira is really brave.
Although the Porto attack line is very unique, Falcao is the killer in the penalty area, Hulk is the winger Bulldozer, and Rodríguez is the combination of speed and dribbling.
But they are facing Manchester United. Do you all understand? There is still a certain gap between the UEFA Europa League Cup champion, Primeira Liga champion and UEFA Champions League champion, Premier League champion."
Martin: "Hmm, there is a piece of information worth noting here. Porto has only lost one game in the past ten European games, which was the second leg of the semi-finals before the UEFA Europa League Cup final last season. They have very rich experience in European games.
And what about Manchester United? They remained unbeaten in UEFA Champions League last season and finally defeated Barcelona in the final. Both teams are at their peak in the European war.
But what Gary said makes sense. There is a difference between UEFA Europa League Cup champion and UEFA Champions League champion. I wish Porto good luck tonight."
Almost at the same time, He Wei and Xu Yang were already in place in BJ's CCTV studio.
The aerial footage of Stade Louis II was played on the big screen: the stadium was close to the Mediterranean Sea, the sea surface glowed with a dark blue luster in the night, and the lights illuminated the stadium brightly.
He Wei's voice is clear and calm. "China Central Television, China Central Television, good evening, all viewers. This is BJ Studio, we are live broadcasting the 2011 Europe Super Cup for you The final of: Manchester United vs. Porto. I am He Wei, and the person I am explaining to you today is the coach Xu Yang."
Xu Yang: "Hello everyone, I am Xu Yang. This game can be said to be the first heavyweight showdown in Europe football in the new season.
The UEFA Champions League champion versus the UEFA Europa League Cup champion is not as good as the UEFA Champions League final in terms of competition level, but the gold content is still very high.
And Manchester United's form this summer is still terrible, Community Shield won the championship, Premier League scored nine goals in two rounds, and Zhang Kuang scored five goals in the league alone."
He Wei: "Speaking of Zhang Kuang, just ten days ago, he just received the PFA Players' Player of the Year trophy at London. This is the first time in the history of China player to receive this honor, and it is also the best recognition of his 105 goals last season.
I think all China fans are looking forward to what kind of performance he will show on the Europe Super Cup stage today."
Xu Yang: "And there is another background - Manchester United's goal this season is to win six championships. They have already won Community Shield. If they win Europe Super Cup tonight, they will win two championships.
At the end of the year, there is FIFA Club World Cup, followed by Premier League, Football Association Cup, League Cup, and UEFA Champions League. No, this is the seventh crown. Hehe, maybe everyone does not count Community Shield as the official champion.
Ferguson said personally at the pre-match press conference that he wanted to win the six-time championship. This is no joke."
He Wei: "Well, basically Community Shield is not included in the Six Crowns. Manchester United is here to watch the competition for the Six Crowns, and Porto is also interesting here.
Boas went to Chelsea in the summer, and Pereira maintained the stability of the lineup after taking over the team... Okay, the director has cut into the live signal. We can see that the stands of Stade Louis II are being filled with red, blue and white colors.
Manchester United fans created a huge TIFO: Sir Ferguson's face says 'THEKINGOFEUROPE' below.
Porto fans are not to be outdone. Their TIFO is a fire-breathing dragon with a trophy in its mouth. The Portugal slang word 'DRAGÃOINVICTO' below means "the undefeated dragon". Both fans have entered the state."
Xu Yang: "This atmosphere is great. Although Europe Super Cup has not as long a history as UEFA Champions League, being able to play in the finals at Stade Louis II is a highlight of any player's career.
So this is not only a duel between teams, but also a duel between fans from both sides, and a duel between different football cultures..."
Player tunnel: The referee Kuipers turned around and confirmed that the captains of the two teams, Vidić and Moutinho, were already in place. Then the referee waved his hand and took the lead towards the court.
The players from the two teams followed behind, holding the caddy's hand, and walked along the channel into the light.
When Zhang Kuang saw the familiar China flag in the stands, about thirty or forty Chinese fans gathered in a corner of the visiting team's stand, holding a red banner with the words 'Zhang Kuang, China proud' in Chinese and English.
They were holding up their mobile phones to take pictures, and someone was shouting something with a small speaker. Although the specific content could not be heard clearly, the eager gaze Zhang Kuang could be felt halfway across the stadium.
He nodded slightly in that direction.
The broadcast camera captured this moment, and when it was played back on the big screen, it was explained by Martin as "Zhang Kuang pays tribute to the Chinese fans."
Players from both teams line up on both sides of the center circle.
Play the UEFA song, exchange team flags, shake hands, and guess coins.
Manchester United won the right to kick off. Rooney and Berbatov stood in the center circle with the ball under their feet.
Zhang Kuang stands on the left side outside the center circle, with his hands on his hips, his legs slightly apart, and his center of gravity lowered.
His eyes crossed the center circle and landed on Porto's half. Falcao stood at the top of the center circle, Hulk was on the right, and Rodríguez was on the left.
Helton is standing in front of the goal, adjusting the position of his gloves.
Everything is in place.
The referee Kuipers lowered his head to confirm the timer in his hand, then raised his right hand and blew the whistle hanging on his chest.
'Beep!'
Europe Super Cup, officially started in 2011.