Chapter 208: Popularity soars, number of fans exceeds five million (transition chapter)

In the end, thanks to Lin Quan's stunning overhead kick in injury time, the two teams tied 2:2.

Manchester City escaped unscathed from Chelsea's home ground.

Although their winning streak was interrupted, they still maintained their undefeated record.

Manchester City fans are very satisfied with the result despite the incomplete team lineup.

At the press conference after the game, Pellegrini spent a minute praising Lin Quan's performance, praising him as the best player he had ever coached, no doubt about it!

"As a head coach, I am very happy that my team has a player like Lin Quan. He is the kind of person who can bring you endless surprises, just like Messi of Barcelona and Ronaldo of Real Madrid. I think Lin is obviously a player of this level!"

The annual Ballon d'Or is about to be announced, and Pellegrini is building up momentum for him in advance.

Although Lin Quan’s historical record and honors are far inferior to those of several popular candidates, he still has to create the momentum he needs to create and hype the topics he needs to hype.

Netizens started discussing Pellegrini's words.

"The engineer's words are correct. Emperor Lin is indeed like one of the two most outstanding heroes now!"

"Keep a low profile and don't bring bad things to Emperor Lin. He has to win at least a Champions League trophy and a Ballon d'Or before he can be compared with the two great heroes. Before that, Emperor Lin is still far behind in terms of honors!"

"Haha, I think Lin Huang can take a shortcut, such as winning a World Cup trophy next year. In this way, wouldn't he surpass Messi and Ronaldo directly?"

"That's fine. The value of the World Cup trophy is higher than that of the Champions League trophy. But it's very difficult to win the World Cup trophy!"

"There are many strong teams in next year's World Cup, not to mention the host Brazil, South American powerhouse Argentina, and traditional European powerhouses France, Britain, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany, none of which are easy to mess with.

It is very difficult to fight your way through so many strong teams!"

"The above poster missed one. The strength of the European Red Devils Belgium should not be underestimated. Moreover, Croatia, where Modric and Mandzukic are, is also quite strong. There are indeed many strong teams in Europe!"

"Indeed, many teams in Europe have been relegated to the second or even third tier. There might be a super death group in the group stage. If we are unlucky and are drawn into the death group, given Spain's slow-starting nature, we might be eliminated in the group stage!"

"That's impossible, right? Spain is the defending champion after all, and is currently ranked number one in the world by FIFA. It's impossible that they can't even qualify from the group stage, right?"

"Theoretically, there is a possibility that we may not qualify, but the probability is not high."

After the game, the video of Lin Quan's overhead kick in this match spread rapidly on the Internet.

He also successfully topped the Twitter trend list with this god-like shot.

As a result, Lin Quan's fame and influence were raised to a new level.

The number of followers on Twitter also soared rapidly, breaking through 5 million, surpassing a large number of active stars.

…

When some people are happy, others are sad. After Pellegrini's interview ended, Chelsea's head coach had not yet arrived.

This caused the reporters to whisper: "Is Mourinho afraid to come?"

"Haha, that's possible!"

"He boasted before the game that he would definitely beat Manchester City at home, but in the end they were tied by Manchester City with an incomplete lineup. Now everyone is waiting to see him make a fool of himself. I don't think he has the courage to show up!"

There is no shortage of news wherever Mourinho is, and his madman's personality can easily cause conflicts with reporters.

And every conflict is used as material for extensive media coverage.

After waiting for a while, Mourinho finally arrived, and his face was ashen, as if he had just had an argument with someone.

"I bet Mourinho lost his temper in the dressing room!"

"Hehe, maybe he had a friendly exchange with Abu?"

Reporters speculated.

The group of guys didn't intentionally lower their voices, so Mourinho could hear clearly what they were discussing below.

He snorted coldly, sat down behind the interview desk, and then said:

"I know what you want to ask, but my team ended the opponent's eight-game winning streak, I think this is an acceptable result!"

He anticipated the reporters' questions and wanted to speak first to shut them up.

However, how could the Fleet Street reporters let him off so easily? "But Manchester City is missing a lot of main players in this game. At best, it is just a remnant. If you can't even beat Manchester City, then when you visit the Etihad Stadium in the 24th round of the league, will Chelsea still have a chance of winning?"

Mourinho glanced at the reporter who asked the question and found that he was from The Times, so he gave him some face and did not directly criticize him: "My team is the best team, we can beat any opponent!"

A reporter from the Independent asked:

"After this match, Manchester City is still 7 points ahead of Chelsea, and Arsenal is 3 points ahead of you. Is Chelsea's goal this season still to win the championship?"

Mourinho said dismissively:

"Of course, my team and I's goal has always been to win the championship. The league has just begun, and there are 29 games left, which is enough for my team to catch up!"

The Guardian reporter was not satisfied with Mourinho's answer and refuted it with data: "But in these nine rounds, Chelsea lost one game and drew three games. The team's striker problem remains unsolved. Among the traditional Premier League giants, Chelsea's current number of goals is only higher than that of the turbulent Manchester United, lagging behind the other three teams and far behind Manchester City!"

Mourinho sneered: "Wenger's Arsenal are very strong at the beginning of every season, giving people a feeling that they are about to win the championship, but you have seen what Arsenal is like in the second half of the season!"

"I admit that Manchester City has a good record now, but they lack experience and will quickly make mistakes when fighting on multiple fronts, but my team won't!"

The reporters present couldn't help but roll their eyes. How could this person be so shameless? Who lost the first away game of the Champions League to Basel by a large margin?

Manchester City is now undefeated in the Champions League and their chances of qualifying for the group stage are bright.

You, Chelsea, still have to compete with Werder Bremen for the first place in the group. It is not certain whether you can get the first place in the group or even qualify!

Even with this, you still have the nerve to say that your team will not make mistakes.

I think you, Mourinho, are just being stubborn!

Seeing Mourinho bragging like this, the reporter from The Sun said:

"Coach Mourinho, before the game you said you would definitely beat Manchester City at home, but you failed. How do you evaluate your boast before the game?"

This is a slap in the face! Mourinho can be a little more polite to reporters from the Times and other mainstream newspapers, but he is not as polite as the tabloids like The Sun.

Then he won't be polite at all! "I can stand on the Stamford Bridge field and command the team, but you can only hide in the dark corner and say mean things to hurt others.

Chelsea asked me to be their head coach because I am better than you and everyone here. Otherwise, why wouldn't they ask you to be their head coach? "

After saying this, he walked away, ending the press conference directly.

…

As the focus of this round of Premier League games, after the game ended, the entire Fleet Street news media were reporting on this game.

Lin Quan's goal was undoubtedly selected as the best goal of this round of the Premier League.

In the history of Manchester City, the only goal that can be compared to Lin Quan's is probably Aguero's buzzer-beating goal before the halftime whistle in the last round of the 2011-2012 season against Queens Park Rangers!

Of course, in terms of excitement, Lin Quan's goal is obviously the winner.

But in terms of thrills and importance to the team.

Then Aguero's shot is obviously more important, after all, that shot brought a championship trophy.

After the game, Aguero, who was sidelined due to illness, praised Lin Quan's performance on social media.

"It's incredible. Lin has done what every striker wants to do but can't do. I think I have to learn the technique of overhead kick from him after I return to the team!"

A Real Madrid striker who wishes to remain anonymous secretly gave Aguero a thumbs up. Lin Quan's shooting skills are really useful after learning them. Anyone who uses them will know!

After seeing Aguero's tweet, Lin Quan also tweeted: "Is it easy to do a hook shot? You just need to jump up, lift your foot, aim at the ball and kick it hard!"

Aguero: "??? Is it really that simple? I don't have much education, don't lie to me!"

Reus: "This guy is cheating. When he shoots with his right foot, the height he lifts exceeds his height. If you want to complete a shot like that, you must be able to jump that high first!"

Is it enough to jump high? After hearing this, a winger worth 100 million euros from Real Madrid was eager to try it out on the field.

A certain Serie A player with world-class problems below the brain level also wanted to give it a try after hearing the news.

Read the error-free version on 6Ⅹ9Ⅹ bookⅩ bar! 6Ⅹ9 book bar first publishes a novel.

So, in AC Milan's away game against Parma, he really tried to replicate Lin Quan's goal on the field.

Then……

Balotelli received a yellow card because he missed the ball and kicked the opponent's defender...

…

As the losing side, Chelsea fans felt very bitter.

But there is also good news. Torres, who scored in two consecutive games, is clearly in better shape.

This gives Chelsea fans some comfort. If Torres can continue this form, Chelsea may be able to reverse the situation and win the championship.

The World Cup group stage draw is about to take place, and before that, some reporters found Torres and asked him about his views on the club and national team.

"I feel like my form is recovering and I am confident that I can help the team continue to win!"

Torres did not seem to be affected too much by this game. At least judging from the confidence he showed, it was much better than when he was goal-less in the previous few months.

But the reporters were clearly not satisfied with this answer.

Reporters want breaking news.

"Fernando, we know that you were the absolute main force for Spain in the South Africa World Cup and the 2012 European Championship, but after Lin Quan came to the team, you lost this position.

But you have been in such good form recently. If you can continue this excellent form in the subsequent league and Champions League games, do you think coach Bosque will put you back in the starting position? "

The reporter obviously had bad intentions and wanted to sow discord between Lin Quan and Torres.

As a famous star, it is impossible for Torres to have no complaints about losing his starting position.

As long as he expresses any dissatisfaction in the interview, reporters can make a big news and exaggerate it into a huge conflict within the Spanish national team.

As the defending champions and the current top-ranked national team in FIFA rankings, the Spanish national team has a lot of traffic.

There are many readers for news about them, and if they can create some explosive news, their newspapers will definitely sell out!

In addition, the British also want to take this opportunity to undermine the stability and unity of the Spanish national team's locker room and add some uncertainty to the defending champion's World Cup journey next year.

Among all the countries participating in the World Cup, probably no one except the Spanish fans wants them to successfully defend their title.

The British are no exception! Torres is not a rookie. He has played in the Premier League for several years and knows the tricks of the unscrupulous reporters on Fleet Street.

So he considered his words and answered carefully:

"I am confident that I can continue this state. I know how hard it is to come by."

Torres' goal drought lasted not one or two days, but one or two years. Since he came to Chelsea, he could not find the scoring form he had in Liverpool, so Torres cherishes this recovery in form very much.

"As for the starting position in the national team, it will depend on the coach's own use of players and tactical style. I will try my best to show my best condition to impress the coach and let the coach see my strength."

This answer was actually quite cautious, but Torres still overestimated the moral integrity of the Fleet Street reporters.

"The Holy Infant is dissatisfied with Lin Quan - he stole my first start!"

Torres was stunned when he saw the report of the unscrupulous reporter: These reporters really have no moral integrity and no bottom line! His answer did not express such a meaning at all. These guys deliberately distorted the facts!

However, after this news report came out, it immediately caused a sensation in the football world.

Media from all over the world reprinted or followed up on the report, making the news known to everyone.

After all, the Spanish national team is ranked number one in the world, and after winning multiple championship trophies in a row, their popularity and traffic far exceed that of other competitors.

This has made people very interested in the competition for the striker of the Spanish national team, and many of Torres' fans have begun to stand up for him.

"Strongly request Bosque to put Torres in the starting lineup. Toni deserves a starting spot!"

"With Torres' level, it's okay to call him the best striker in Spain, right? But it's outrageous that he can't even make the starting lineup!"

"Not to mention Torres, Villa is also sitting on the bench. Since Lin Quan joined the team, the chances of these players to play have indeed been greatly reduced."

"Alas, these old players have made so many contributions to the Spanish national team, but now they are kicked out. This is really a bit disheartening!"

"The Spanish coaching staff's approach is indeed questionable. I think they should give more opportunities to veteran players, instead of just pushing Lin Huang like they are doing now. Even if Lin Huang is an iron man, he can't stand starting every game!"

Doubts about the Spanish coaching staff began to appear on the Internet. Because the Spanish national team is too strong, there has always been a voice in the outside world that even if a dog is tied to Bosque's position, they can win the game.

In this situation, the work of the Spanish coaching staff can easily be overlooked.

After all, the tactical style was copied from Barcelona, ​​and most of the players are also from Barcelona.

It is more like the Barcelona team than the Spanish national team.

Seeing that the matter had become a big deal, Torres had realized that he had done something wrong, regardless of whether those unscrupulous reporters had distorted the facts.

At this time, he must stand up and refute the rumors, clarify the facts as soon as possible, and not let the false rumors continue to ferment.

However, the outside world did not believe Torres' public clarification. Many people felt that he was under pressure from the Spanish national team and was forced to publicly refute the rumors.

Seeing that the situation was about to get out of control, Bosque stood up and said: "Torres and Lin are both excellent players. I will not compare who is better or worse between them.

As for the team's starting lineup, I will try to use the 442 formation in the next game to give them a chance to start! "

This is a fair competition for the two. Under the double striker tactic, who has the better goal-scoring ability will be clear after a few games! (End of this chapter)