SWR: Chapter 599/600

Chapter 599: Lightning Strike

"Did you receive the box of wine I sent you?"

At the entrance of the players' tunnel, Gao Shen ran into Ferguson.

Before the match began, the two stood there for a while, and Gao Shen asked with a smile.

During this trip to Old Trafford, Gao Shen had specifically sent Ferguson a box of Chilean wine, a new product recently launched by his company. It was said to be of better quality than the previous version, and naturally, the price had gone up a bit as well.

According to Su Qing, Gao Jianguo, and Su Zhijun's plan, they intended to use this wine to break into the domestic mid-to-high-end market.

Gao Shen certainly wouldn't miss the opportunity to leverage someone as influential as Ferguson, so he sent him another box without hesitation.

With the experience from the last time, this "operation" went much more smoothly.

"Yeah, I got it." Ferguson couldn't help licking his lips at the mention of wine. He really enjoyed a good drink.

"But to be honest, I've always been curious. You don't exactly seem like the generous type, why are you giving me wine for no reason? Are you up to something?"

"What could I possibly be plotting?" Gao Shen chuckled. "You drank the wine I gave you last time, and you're still standing here, right?"

Ferguson nodded. Nothing had gone wrong.

At most, it had somehow leaked to the media and got reported, but that was hardly unusual.

A big club like Manchester United constantly attracted media attention. Who cared about the occasional leak?

Besides, the few media reports back then were nothing but idle gossip to Ferguson.

"This time, I asked a friend to carefully select some quality Chilean wine. If I had any ulterior motive, it'd be to get you drunk and have you mess up. But aren't you standing here just fine?" Gao Shen said in mock seriousness.

Ferguson believed him.

It was just a box of wine. What could possibly come of it?

"Don't think you can get me to go easy on you just by sending me a gift before the game," Ferguson warned.

"No, don't!" Gao Shen immediately raised his hand to stop him. "I hope you'll be ruthless. If you go easy on my players, that would mean you're not giving me face. I'd be extremely disappointed."

Ferguson was baffled.

Why did it feel like Gao Shen was being extra weird today?

"You're up to no good, aren't you?" Ferguson said suspiciously.

Even after knowing Gao Shen for two years, he still couldn't figure the man out.

That was the generational gap.

"My worst thought is stripping Lineker naked tonight!" Gao Shen burst out laughing.

Ferguson couldn't help but laugh too. "I don't like him either, but I have to say, you won't be able to."

Can't strip him? Then how about you?

Gao Shen shot a mischievous look at Ferguson, gave a light "Let's wait and see," and then turned and walked away.

Ferguson watched him leave, amused.

Even after returning to the home dugout, his brows remained furrowed.

"Tell the players to stay sharp from the kickoff. I've got a strange feeling about City tonight," Ferguson instructed.

He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something felt off.

Throughout the season, Gao Shen had come up with something new for every single match.

Like in the game against Arsenal, who would've thought Robben was in such good form, only to be left on the bench?

And yet, when he came on as a substitute, the Dutchman directly contributed to three goals.

Looking at tonight's starting XI, the biggest surprise from Manchester City was Felipe being benched.

Could this mean Gao Shen was going to pull a similar stunt like he did against Arsenal?

But it didn't feel quite the same.

Felipe, the left-back, was solid on both ends, but in terms of pure ability, he wasn't on the same level as Robben.

Gareth Bale was only 20 years old, a young talent whose performance at Tottenham hadn't exactly been eye-catching. No matter how you looked at it, he was a defensive liability. Could Gao Shen be baiting United into attacking down Bale's side?

Don't laugh, many managers really did that when setting up tactical traps.

Leave one flank open on purpose, so they could fortify other areas with targeted defensive arrangements.

Could that be Gao Shen's plan?

If Ferguson couldn't figure it out, he might as well stop guessing.

In any case, one thing was clear: better safe than sorry!

…

At the BBC headquarters, inside the studio of Match of the Day, the three hosts, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Alan Hansen, along with the production team, were closely following the developments of the match.

The finale of this round's fixtures was the Manchester Derby.

To accommodate a global audience, the Premier League had scheduled it for the afternoon, ensuring fans worldwide could watch live.

Under the supervision of referee Howard Webb, the two captains were doing the coin toss.

Giggs won the toss, giving Manchester United the kick-off. That was the Red Devils' first minor victory of the night.

Lineker let out a loud "Wow" and breathed a sigh of relief.

Shearer, Hansen, and the others standing around found it hilarious.

Even though it was just a bet, if United lost again, no one knew what would happen next.

It wasn't like they could really let Lineker host the show stark naked, right?

Even if he was willing, there's no way the BBC would allow it.

But over the past few weeks, Match of the Day had been enjoying a surge in popularity, all thanks to Lineker's viral bet, effectively riding a massive wave of attention.

"Relax. Statistically speaking, United should have the edge at home. Ferguson made some questionable decisions in the past, but he's been solid lately. Nothing's going to go wrong," Shearer reassured him.

Lineker forced a smile, though his unease was written all over his face.

"Looking at their lineup, United rested well midweek. Carrick, Sneijder, and Fletcher are all starting, especially Sneijder. His arrival has really improved the flow of United's midfield passing," Hansen added, trying to boost morale.

The ideal outcome tonight was for Gao Shen and his Manchester City to stumble at Old Trafford.

That way, the looming crisis could be completely defused.

So tonight, everyone at Match of the Day was firmly backing Manchester United.

"Ferguson is an old hand. Felipe didn't expect Manchester City's left flank to become a hidden danger today. I'm guessing Ferguson will definitely try to exploit that. But good teams always like to start with a strong attack, so I think Manchester United will play more steadily at the start," Shearer analyzed.

Lineker and Hansen, both legendary players with a deep understanding of the game, agreed with Shearer's assessment.

As he spoke, the live broadcast showed Howard Webb blowing the whistle to start the match.

…

At Old Trafford, amid the cheers of more than 75,000 fans, this world-renowned clash officially kicked off.

Berbatov and Rooney took the kick-off in the center circle, but unlike usual, they didn't pass the ball backward. Instead, Rooney carried the ball forward into Manchester City's half.

Giggs and Berbatov also pushed up simultaneously. It was clear that Manchester United wanted to apply pressure from the start.

However, David Silva and Rakitic dropped in front of Javi Martinez to cover defensively, preventing United from penetrating beyond the 30-meter zone and forcing them to recycle the ball back to the defensive line.

Manchester City immediately launched a counterattack from the front.

Even Suarez, Robinho, and Robben who were usually reluctant to press were now actively chasing and pressing high up the pitch.

"Manchester City's players look sharp and full of energy," praised commentator Andy Gray.

With pressure up front and a solid midfield screen, United were forced to play a long ball toward Berbatov, but David Luiz beat him to it and headed the ball back into midfield.

David Silva got to the second ball and played it back to Javi Martinez.

The Manchester City midfielder used his body to shield off Rooney, held the ball well, and then passed to the now-open David Silva, who quickly laid it off to Rakitic. City switched the play to the right.

At that moment, the game had just passed the one-minute mark.

Robben carried the ball forward down the right, with Evra quickly retreating.

No left-back would be overly confident facing Robben, even if he was playing on his weaker side.

Especially after his performance against Arsenal.

Robben swiftly crossed the halfway line and drove into United's 30-meter zone but didn't manage to create a threat and opted to pass the ball back.

Rakitic, who had also crossed the halfway line, controlled the ball just as Sneijder came pressing.

"Manchester United are retreating quickly and organizing a counter-press near the halfway line."

Rakitic didn't hesitate. Before Sneijder could close him down, he played a horizontal pass to Javi Martinez, who had just moved past the halfway line. The Spanish midfielder was always stationed deep in midfield.

That's the role of a number six.

As soon as Javi Martinez received the ball, Rooney was already pressing, cutting off the passing lane to David Silva and forcing him to look left.

Gareth Bale had just crossed the halfway line and was near the left touchline. When he saw Javi Martinez glance over, he made a short burst forward and raised his hand to call for the ball—but Fletcher noticed and began drifting left.

This left the space behind Fletcher exposed.

Robinho dropped deeper from the front line, diagonally into the space vacated to Carrick's left.

That area should have been Fletcher's to cover, but he had been lured away by Bale's movement.

Using his body to shield the ball from Rooney, Javi Martinez relied on his strength, height, and long legs to prevent the United striker from nicking it away. Instead of passing to Bale on the left, he threaded a ball to the retreating Robinho.

At that moment, Manchester United's midfield defensive structure loosened.

As soon as Javi Martinez released the pass, Fletcher sensed the danger and immediately gave up on Bale, turning to chase Robinho. Carrick also rushed over as quickly as possible.

At the same time, Robinho's movement had dragged O'Shea out of position.

Robinho controlled Javi Martinez's pass cleanly, took one step forward, and with his right foot, slid a pass behind Carrick.

Suarez had dropped from the front line and was now positioned exactly where Carrick had left. He met Robinho's pass and didn't let the ball settle, before Ferdinand could close in, he stopped it with his left foot and, using the outside of his right foot, played a diagonal pass backward and wide into the left side of the penalty area.

It was at that moment that everyone including the live cameras noticed a blue figure surging into United's box from the left channel like a bolt of lightning.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 600: My Soldiers...

Three days before the Manchester Derby.

After Manchester United's tough away match against Beşiktaş in Istanbul, a rare scene unfolded at Manchester City's Carrington training ground, Gao Shen personally stepped onto the pitch.

As everyone knew, aside from playing a few school matches in middle school, Gao Shen had never truly played football.

So whether he was coaching at Real Madrid, later at Napoli, or now at Manchester City, he always remained on the sidelines during training. He rarely participated directly. At most, he would call out instructions when spotting problems in the team's sessions.

So for him to get personally involved like this was extremely rare.

Not only were Manchester City's players surprised, even the coaching staff were caught off guard. In three or four years of working together, none of them had ever seen Gao Shen step onto the field and demonstrate anything himself.

Many players watching from the sidelines couldn't help but worry: Is Gao Shen going to get embarrassed by Gareth Bale?

After all, Gao Shen really didn't know how to play football.

But the outcome stunned everyone, Bale didn't embarrass Gao Shen at all.

On the contrary, what happened next left everyone speechless.

Gao Shen asked technical coach Borrell to deliver a horizontal pass near the top of the arc. Gareth Bale was instructed to sprint from the left at full speed, cut diagonally into the left channel, latch onto Borrell's pass on the left side of the penalty area, and shoot with his left foot.

There were only two possible shooting angles: near post or far post, both tough for a keeper to deal with.

What shocked everyone was that Bale was insanely fast.

But even at such high speed, he could control his left-footed shots perfectly.

Whether shooting to the near post or far post, he hit the target with precision and nearly every shot struck the bottom of the post before finding the net.

What did that mean?

It required not only top-level technique and power, but also the ability to execute it all at maximum speed. Incredible!

Everyone was in awe.

He took ten shots in a row, every single one landed in the blind spot.

Gao Shen then changed the drill, asking the staff to set up mannequins on the left side of the penalty area. Bale would now dribble from the left, cut into the box, and shoot.

The Welshman charged forward again. This time, out of ten shots, nine flew into the top corner. The only one that didn't hit the dead zone still found the net, only slightly off-target.

And all of this was done while dribbling at full speed.

Everyone was dumbfounded!

Neuer, a bit skeptical, stepped in to defend the goal himself.

He soon gave up.

Because it really was almost impossible to stop.

If he guarded the near post, Bale went far. If he guarded the far post, Bale went near. And if he guessed neither, Bale had even more options.

More importantly, Bale's technique was identical every time, so stable. Each shot had precise placement, powerful force, and lightning speed, making it virtually impossible to react in time.

"Hey Gareth, how did I never realize you were this good at shooting from the left side of the box?" Neuer was dumbfounded.

Neuer was extremely confident in his ability.

If even he couldn't stop Bale, who could provided Bale was given the opportunity in that zone?

Soon, everyone realized—Bale himself was just as surprised.

He had always played as a left-back, and while he'd scored from that area before, it was usually from bursting runs out of defense.

But now, this advanced training session had shown him something new: in this specific zone, combining his speed with his shooting technique made him incredibly lethal.

The key was, he was in excellent physical condition. With his speed, he could truly become a nightmare for defenders when charging into the box.

In that moment, everyone's perception of Gao Shen changed.

Because they all knew, if this move worked, Bale could rise to become one of the best left-sided attackers in Europe, maybe even the world. At that point, would he still be a full-back?

And Gao Shen's ability to unlock this potential in Bale left everyone in awe.

Who wouldn't want such a devastating weapon?

But what shocked them even more was how Gao Shen evaluated Bale.

"Gareth, I need to correct a common misconception. Your greatest assets aren't your speed or explosiveness."

Everyone on the scene froze again.

Was that wrong?

Gareth Bale was clearly the fastest player on the team. Even Robben couldn't catch up with him anymore.

Even Bale himself was stunned. He had always thought that was his strength.

"In European football, especially the Premier League, there are plenty of players with elite speed and explosiveness. Arsenal's Walcott, United's Valencia, Tottenham's Aaron Lennon… they're all lightning fast. So relying solely on speed has its limits."

After hearing that, everyone nodded.

There's an old saying: "In all martial arts, speed cannot be defeated."

It sounded logical, but in reality, it wasn't entirely true.

Speed alone wasn't enough.

In fact, to some extent, speed wasn't even the decisive factor.

"You have enough stamina to sustain your top speed. At the same time, your solid fundamentals ensure your technique doesn't fall apart while sprinting at full pace."

Anyone who's sprinted knows, it's impossible to maintain top speed for long. It forms a parabola.

But in Gao Shen's past life, what made Gareth Bale so terrifying?

Was it just speed?

No.

It was that he could maintain top speed over long distances and even accelerate repeatedly during bursts. Over 90 minutes, he could sprint full-out multiple times even in the closing stages.

What enabled this?

Insane endurance!

Most people only noticed Bale's speed. But they forgot that even back in high school, in addition to football, he played rugby, hockey, and competed in long-distance running, all of which contributed to his incredible physical development and stamina.

Most players, after a full-speed sprint, need time to recover, catch their breath. Even someone like Cristiano Ronaldo didn't always track back, saving energy for forward bursts.

But Bale, thanks to his stamina, could sprint repeatedly without fading. Who could stop that?

How do you defend against a Gareth Bale who keeps sprinting and accelerating, and can finish with pinpoint shots while running at full speed?

Unless you park the bus or flood his area with numbers, there really isn't a better answer.

This was also the real reason Gareth Bale's career declined after joining Real Madrid in Gao Shen's past life.

When the injuries started piling up, when his endurance faded, and when he was moved to the right flank, where he couldn't make the most of his strengths, his performances declined.

Real Madrid isn't a charity, and Florentino Pérez isn't a fool. Spending that much money on Gareth Bale must've involved a comprehensive and calculated evaluation.

Back in 2013, the valuation of footballers in European football hadn't yet spiraled out of control the way it would in later years. The fact that such a high transfer fee was paid for Gareth Bale at that time shows that the Welshman already possessed outstanding qualities—very, very eye-catching qualities.

Now, Gao Shen's mission was to unearth those qualities ahead of time.

…

Manchester Derby.

As Gareth Bale crossed the halfway line from the back, raising his hand to signal for a pass from Javi Martinez, he noticed that the Spanish midfielder didn't play the ball to him directly. Instead, he passed it into the space ahead.

Robinho dragged O'Shea out of position, while Fletcher and Carrick were getting ready to double up on him.

In that split second, everything Gao Shen had drilled into Bale during training over the past few days, his role in the system, his positioning, flashed through his mind.

The Welshman didn't hesitate. As soon as Fletcher stepped up to press Robinho, Bale accelerated from the outside at full speed.

At that moment, all eyes were on Robinho, who had received the ball.

The Brazilian quickly laid it off to Suarez just outside the penalty area.

Seeing the Uruguayan drop deeper, Bale—sprinting at full pace down the left—let out a shout, alerting his teammates to his run. Suarez glanced left before controlling the ball, clearly aware of what was happening.

Then, with his left foot, Suarez stopped the ball and, using the outside of his right foot, played it into the right area of the box.

Gareth Bale, sprinting at full throttle like a bolt of lightning, sped past Fletcher and O'Shea, darted into the penalty area, and latched onto Suarez's pass.

The Uruguayan's delivery was perfect, neither too strong nor too soft, just like they'd practiced all week.

As Bale caught up with the ball, he felt that familiar rhythm from training. Without taking a touch, he struck it with his left foot.

The ball stayed low, skimming the turf as it rocketed toward the bottom left corner of United's goal.

Foster had already begun shifting his weight to the left, but before he could adjust, the ball slammed off the inside of the right post and flew into the net.

"Goallllllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!"

"It's been less than two minutes since kick-off!"

"Oh my God! Less than two minutes into the match, Manchester City's first attack—Gareth Bale tears down the left and unleashes an incredible left-footed strike to open the scoring for City!"

"One–nil!"

After unleashing the shot, Bale lost his balance and fell to the ground, but he immediately popped back up and continued sprinting off the pitch without missing a beat.

"My God, what a start from Manchester City!"

"Less than two minutes in. The buildup was so calm, and then—suddenly—Gareth Bale!"

"We had no idea where he came from!"

"It was like a celetial being descended—appearing out of nowhere on the left side of United's box to meet Suarez's pass and hammer it home. Absolutely incredible!"

"Remember this name: Gareth Bale!"

"A 20-year-old Welshman!"

"Every match under Gao Shen brings a new surprise—and tonight, it's Gareth Bale!"

(To be continued.)