Football: Selling Stars Every Year, Winning the Championship Every Year!

Good news, veteran fan Li Shiguang has been reborn and reincarnated as a rich second-generation.

Bad news, his father, who was Leeds United's largest shareholder, passed away right before...

Chapter 55 The Dense Premier League Schedule

Seeing that his leader was beginning to consider his earlier suggestion, Zhang Beiyong stopped talking, picked up the teacup on the leader's desk, and turned to get water for Zhou Guanlong.

Just as he was getting water, Zhou Guanlong's voice came from behind him: "Bei Yong, your suggestion is very good. Here's what I'll do: please contact the domestic clubs first to get their opinions. If everyone is willing to give it a try, then contact the owner of Leeds United and see what he says."

Upon hearing his superior speak, Zhang Beiyong quickly returned with his teacup, placed it on the table, and replied, "No problem, boss, I'll go scout it out right away."

In fact, Zhang Beiyong is very confident about domestic clubs. In the Chinese football circle, the Chinese Football Association is basically all-powerful. No matter how big your boss is, as long as you want to enter this circle, you must act within the rules set by the Chinese Football Association.

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Li Shiguang was unaware of the attention from within China, but his remarks in an interview after Sunday's match, amplified by various media outlets, ignited a firestorm in the Premier League community. After all, the manager of a newly promoted Premier League team, after winning just one game, directly stated that the goal for this season was to finish in the top four of the league, especially since this person was of Asian descent. This was something that the traditional and conservative British people simply could not accept!

You know, Chelsea, even though they have foreign owners, they invest at least a small amount of euros in the club every year and achieve good results, which is to be expected.

But for a club that only managed to pay off its debts by selling players, isn't it a bit much to boast about kicking one of the BIG4 out of the league after winning just one game?

"Look at this Asian man's face! He actually said Drogba's goal was a gift from God!"

"These arrogant Easterners have only won one game and they've already started spouting nonsense. I don't know where they got their confidence from."

"They beat another team that only knows how to park the bus by parking the bus. I don't know what kind of illusion this Asian man has that makes him think Leeds United can play in the Champions League next season."

"Hey, you Easterner, you should think about how to avoid relegation first!"

"Don't panic, everyone! Sir Alex Ferguson will take action!"

Li Shiguang, who was surfing the internet in his office, also saw these comments.

In the original owner's memory, he had a deep understanding of the British people's conservatism and xenophobia.

As someone who had immigrated to England decades ago and was considered a well-known entrepreneur in Leeds, the father faced considerable opposition from fans when he took over Leeds United. At that time, fans even blocked the club's entrance demanding his resignation.

When it was his turn to take over, initially no one supported him except for the club staff. Fortunately, he activated the system and gradually led Leeds United out of the mire, which won over the Leeds United fans.

However, a hint of doubt flashed through Li Shiguang's mind when the system was mentioned.

Although I know the system issues tasks randomly, it has been several months since the last task was issued.

I thought there would be a task for them in this match against Chelsea, but there was no news until the end of the game.

If Li Shiguang hadn't seen that Schmeichel's defensive intensity increased by 1 point after the game, he would have thought the system was malfunctioning.

After browsing through the online reviews of himself, Li Shiguang closed the webpage, leaned back in his chair, and began mentally studying Leeds United's schedule.

The remaining schedule this month is extremely tight, posing a significant challenge to the players' form and physical fitness.

This Saturday, I will be leading Leeds United on a road trip to London to play Charlton at The Valley. After Charlton, we will travel to Manchester next Thursday to play the formidable Manchester United away, and then return home to face our old Championship rivals Sunderland three days later.

Li Shiguang sighed. The Premier League's schedule is indeed grueling. This is even without the FA Cup and Champions League, which is equivalent to three matches in two weeks. The schedule will become even more intensive after the FA Cup starts next month.

Charlton's strength is average, and they have been in the lower half of the Premier League for the past few years. If they field their full-strength squad, Leeds United should be able to win this game.

But Ferguson's Manchester United is a big problem.

In fact, Li Shiguang knew very well that the biggest reason he was able to beat Chelsea in the first round was that he took advantage of Mourinho's underestimation of him. Secondly, the return of the injured card was a great help, and the fully fit Deisler caught Mourinho off guard.

Mourinho originally intended to crush the opponent in the first half, but instead, he allowed Mourinho, who parked the bus, to steal the first goal.

However, whether from his previous life's knowledge of Ferguson on television and the internet, or from his interactions with him after his rebirth, Li Shiguang knew how terrifying this old Scottish man was.

Manchester United was a united front under his leadership, and no one could question Ferguson's authority at the club.

Aside from that, Ferguson was one of the world's top tactical masters in that era, especially in his on-field command, where he was among the best in the world of football.

Ferguson never used a fixed formation. He would always adjust the formation and tactics according to the situation of the game and the actual situation of the team. Moreover, he would not rigidly require the players to play according to the tactics he set before the game. Instead, he would give full play to their creativity based on the situation on the field and the players' own abilities. Therefore, Manchester United's games were often very imaginative during this period. So even if Manchester United was behind in the score, they often equalized or even scored a last-minute winner near the end of the game.

This is a headache for all Premier League managers.

Moreover, the match against Manchester United is right in the middle. If they want to go all out against Manchester United, they will have to rotate their squad in the other two matches. Otherwise, no matter how young Leeds United's players are, they will not be able to withstand a series of tough battles.

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Therefore, in Saturday's away game against Charlton, Li Shiguang fielded almost an entirely reserve lineup.

Vardy and Dzeko both started, while the midfield consisted of Toure, Bale, Javi Garcia and Mascherano. Lahm, Kompany and Chiellini were rested in defense, and Mills, Forlan and Silva replaced them.

The goalkeeper position was given to the young Neuer to experience the atmosphere of the Premier League.

The final result was pretty much as Li Shiguang had predicted: Leeds United, fielding a reserve team, drew 0-0 with Charlton away from home.

This surprised the media and fans who thought Leeds United would easily defeat their opponents, and they began to question Lee Shih-shih again.

After all, you just said last week that your goal this season is to finish in the top 4 of the Premier League, and then the next game you played to a dull draw with Charlton.

With this level of skill, what makes you think you can compete for a top 4 spot?