Chapter 212: International Champions Cup champions Marsh Brothers join the new Premier League season!

July 12, 2018.

St. Petersburg Stadium.

The semi-final of the Russia World Cup is being held here. The VIP box is filled with stars, mainly retired English players.

5th minute of the game.

England got a free kick at the top of the penalty area. Trippier took the penalty and shot directly, and the ball went over the wall and directly into the goal.

The Crescent Moon Scimitar is back again!

Beckham showed a nostalgic smile. He also used a wonderful free kick to wash away the humiliation and redeem himself.

"Scott, have you ever thought that if you joined the England national team, you would be able to play in the World Cup?"

Chu Feng teased.

McTominay shrugged nonchalantly. “Chu, it’s not just you. I can’t accept the national anthems of other countries playing behind me.”

"But this England team is really strong and has the ability to compete for the World Cup title."

Chu Feng patted McTominay on the shoulder and said earnestly: "Don't underestimate Croatia's resilience. You have to know that they are a group of 'Modric'."

Besides, England still has many curses, and it is too difficult to compete for the championship.

For example, the team known as the Chinese team of Europe and the tough Harry Kane.

Sure enough, in the 68th minute of the game, Fersaljko made a 45-degree cross, and Perisic volleyed the ball to equalize the score.

Then the 32-year-old Mandzukic, the 33-year-old Modric, and the 30-year-old Rakitic played the Croatian rhapsody.

Although they had to fight for three consecutive overtime games, they still ran at full speed, using their abilities to decide victory or defeat and their actions to prove their worth.

109th minute of the game.

Modric's cross from the left was blocked by Kyle Walker, Perisic headed the ball to the left side of the penalty area, and Mandzukic made a volley to score.

Stones and Maguire paid the price of their youth.

Finally Croatia advances to the World Cup final!

People discovered an interesting pattern.

Since the 1982 World Cup, every final has featured players from Inter and Bayern.

Chu Feng saw Maguire standing there dejectedly, and thought that his future teammate was quite strong, and that they would probably have a lot of common topics.

After the game, Chu Feng went to comfort his Manchester United teammates and happened to meet Trippier. They did not communicate with each other at all and ignored each other as strangers.

Harry Kane, as the captain of England, was very enthusiastic and asked him implicitly whether he had considered changing teams next season. Tottenham would be a very good choice.

Chu Feng decisively refused this. He thought that his luck was not as good as Kane's, and it would be difficult for him to win the championship even with the system.

Three days before the World Cup final, an extremely explosive news came out.

C Ronaldo transferred from Real Madrid to Juventus for 105 million euros, and Juventus's stock price has risen by nearly 40%.

What Ronaldo took away is not just what is on the football field. Countless fans followed him from Real Madrid to Juventus, and he also made next season's Champions League even more exciting.

Soon the World Cup final officially started, and the result was also no surprise.

France 4-2 Croatia Mbappe, Pogba and Griezmann each scored a goal. In this game, Pogba started as central midfielder and his performance exceeded everyone's expectations.

And that little boiled egg of Mbappe.

The 20-year-old World Cup champion was bought out by Paris Saint-Germain for 180 million euros at the end of this season and became a celebrity for a while.

This is not just the end of a World Cup, it's more like the end of an old era.

People can't help but look forward to the head-on confrontation between the two, the 19-year-old Champions League champion VS the 20-year-old World Cup champion, what kind of dazzling sparks will be created.

After the World Cup, Chu Feng returned to Manchester and continued to strictly implement the training plan.

Two days later, Manchester United's official website announced that it had purchased Mahrez and Maguire for a total price of 130 million euros. Chu Feng met the two at the training ground that day.

"Chu, I'm so glad to be your teammate!"

Mahrez said seriously.

He joined Leicester City for 500,000 euros at the age of 23. He is a typical player who gets rewarded for his hard work. He has worked his way up from the Championship to the Premier League, and now joins the double champion Manchester United.

In fact, he had hesitated for a long time about choosing Manchester United or Manchester City, but a word from Manchester United's recruitment department deeply touched him.

"Manchester City's left wingers are Sterling and Sane, and our Manchester United's left winger is Chu, the best newcomer in the Premier League last season and the Golden Boot winner. You will be a good partner!"

No one doesn't like honor, and Mahrez is no exception. He hopes to be teammates with stronger people so that he can maximize his abilities.

So he agreed to join Manchester United.

As for Maguire? He grew up watching Manchester United games and his heart is already like that of the Red Devils.

It's just that Leicester City owner Vichai didn't want to let Maguire go. He tried to persuade Maguire to stay for another season with both emotional and logical reasons. But after several long negotiations, Vichai finally chose to respect Maguire's wishes.

When the transfers of the two were finalized, Guardiola became very upset. He didn't expect that he failed to poach the players and was instead snatched away by them.

There are not many excellent right wingers in football now. Manchester City cannot find a suitable candidate for the time being, so they can only boldly use the 18-year-old Foden, and Sane is barely enough.

Manchester United then started its final sale.

Mata moved to Barcelona for 38 million euros and Rojo moved to Estudiantes de La Plata for 6 million euros.

However, Manchester United's crazy acquisition has not ended yet. They bought Wan Bissaka from Crystal Palace for 43 million euros and activated the buyout contract for 39 million euros to keep Kovacic.

So far, Manchester United's investment has exceeded 200 million euros, ranking among the top three in the five major leagues. There is still half a month left before the end of the transfer period, and no one knows whether the wealthy Mourinho will continue to spend money.

But recently there is a piece of news that makes Manchester United fans very worried, that is the news of Rashford leaving the team.

Because of insufficient playing time and opportunities, many English legends have suggested that Rashford leave Manchester United, either on loan or by transfer to at least ensure that he can play football.

Otherwise he will be wasting the most important years of his career.

Rashford's original firm belief began to waver. Originally, after Mata left, he could still play as a right winger, but who knew that Mourinho bought Mahrez.

Then he can only serve as Chu Feng's substitute, but Chu Feng has been like an animal recently, his condition is simply explosive, and he rarely gets injured.

Mourinho found Rashford that day.

"Chu won't always be a left winger, because it would be difficult to design tactics with him as the core. This season I will let him try the No. 9 position."

"Of course, I wouldn't stop you if you left, but I'd prefer you to stay at Manchester United because it would be a shame to miss the chance to create the future."

“.”

After a thorough conversation, Rashford still hadn't made a decision and Mourinho didn't push him.

Soon it was July 20th, Manchester United's first pre-season friendly match.

Ajax vs Manchester United!

Old Trafford Stadium.

As the World Cup has just ended, some Manchester United players have been injured, such as Lukaku, Romero, Matic, Herrera and Valencia.

Well, it's no longer part of it.

Perhaps Manchester United has injury DNA in its bones, as can be seen from the crutches United last season.

So Mourinho arranged a 4-3-3 formation and boldly used players who had just joined the team, treating this game as a training match.

In the players' tunnel.

Chu Feng was still thinking about the conversation he had just had with Mourinho.

"Valencia has been injured recently and you have become the second captain of the team. How does it feel to wear the armband?"

"It's a bit complicated. I haven't thought about it."

"So what do you think the captain's duties are?"

"Lead the team to victory and help teammates solve problems."

"No more?"

“No more.”

"Then I have a few words for you. You can be the most formidable leader, a highly skilled player, and the spiritual symbol of the club."

"You need to set the highest standards for yourself, let your teammates follow your example, and solve problems for them on the field."

"But can you become a captain just because you have a big fist? Obviously not. Being good at fighting may make your teammates fear you, but it won't make them admire you."

"The gap between them is the captain."

"But no matter what, you have to remember two words - responsibility."

“Others can fall but you cannot, others can admit defeat but you cannot, others can give up but you cannot.”

"Look back before every game, you have to take responsibility for them!"

Chu Feng subconsciously looked back. De Gea, Luke Shaw, Maguire Everyone looked at him with more or less trust in their eyes. Chu Feng suddenly felt something extra on his shoulders, heavy but very warm.

Maybe he hasn't really understood the meaning of captain yet, but he has indeed taken the first step towards becoming captain.

In this long process, boys will gradually become men.

Amid the cheers of Manchester United fans, players from both teams walked out of the player tunnel, and Ten Hag and Mourinho shook hands.

The former looked at the magnificent Old Trafford and thought that if he could become the head coach of Manchester United in the future, he would definitely make Manchester United stronger.

Ajax, with all their main players, launched a fierce attack at the start of the game.

The central axis of De Ligt, Frenkie de Jong and Ziyech showed their talents, and they all knew that this was an opportunity to show themselves to the outside world.

It's a pity that the Brazilian genius player Anthony is still in Sao Paulo, otherwise he would have appeared at Old Trafford earlier.

Manchester United continued with last season's defensive counterattack tactics, with the overall formation compressed to their own half.

23rd minute of the game.

Maguire and Lindelof seemed to misunderstand each other and leaked Frenkie de Jong's through ball behind them.

As both players' turning speeds were comparable to those of an aircraft carrier, Ziyech was able to break through directly, and after entering the penalty area, he shot and scored.

0-1!

It was Ajax who scored the first goal, and Manchester United fans were caught off guard, considering that they were the Premier League and Champions League champions last season.

Ajax was eliminated in the Champions League qualifiers.

Manchester United fans felt a strong sense of crisis and even thought that this lineup was very bad.

This is a typical case of being worried about gains and losses. Since we have achieved good results before, we cannot have any downward momentum now.

"It doesn't matter. Friendly matches are to find problems. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

"Next, strengthen on-field communication and speak out your ideas!"

Chu Feng patted Maguire's shoulder vigorously and spoke seriously in a calm tone.

He knew that words would never speak louder than actions, so after the game started, he took the lead in maintaining frequent communication with his teammates.

Maguire's nervousness began to relax and he gradually integrated into Manchester United's defensive system.

His market value could exceed 50 million euros, and although there are issues with his household registration, his abilities are unquestionable.

He was the only outfield player in the Premier League to play full minutes last season.

When England played against Sweden in the World Cup quarter-finals, he was hailed as the "God of War" by the fans.

Manchester United quickly got into the game. In the 35th minute, Maguire made an accurate interception and then passed the ball diagonally to the right.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

Kovacic stopped and dribbled past Frenkie de Jong and passed the ball along the sideline to Mahrez.

2015-16 Premier League MVP, English Premier League champion.

He immediately demonstrated his strength. Although he did not have a strong body, he was very skilled in ball control.

With continuous touches of the ball and shaking of the center of gravity, he passed Tagliafico neatly and passed the ball to the middle from the right side of the penalty area.

After hearing the familiar voice, Rashford decisively passed the ball behind him.

As the camera quickly shifted, two figures appeared in the picture.

Chu Feng and De Ligt.

The sharp spear and solid shield of the younger generation, the youngest captains of Manchester United and Ajax, face off at this moment! Two bicycle connections, shoulder drops and changes of direction!

The terrifying magnitude of the scene makes one's knees ache just by looking at it.

De Ligt's turning speed is comparable to Maguire's. The continuous shift of center of gravity has already made him extremely miserable, and he finally inadvertently exposed the space in the middle.

Chu Feng was able to change direction while moving at high speed and rushed out like an arrow.

Facing the dark-skinned Onana, Chu Feng fell to the ground and shot!

Compared to De Gea, Onana was indeed a little slow in getting to the ground, and the football went directly into the goal from under his armpit.

This crucial goal was like a shot in the arm, allowing Manchester United players to find the feeling of last season.

But the shortcomings of the lineup were soon exposed. Maguire and Lindelof were not very mobile, so a strong enough defensive midfielder was needed.

McTominay is clearly not at Matic's level yet.

Ajax then attacked Manchester United's flank fiercely, continuously sending threatening passes, and Tadic scored another goal near the end of the first half.

In the second half, Mourinho began to adjust his tactics in an attempt to find the best central defender combination.

After all, Manchester United still relies on defense. As long as they can stabilize the backcourt defense and counterattack with the strong speed of Chu Feng, Rashford and Mahrez on the front line, they will definitely be able to maximize their scoring opportunities.

When Bailly replaced Lindelof, Maguire immediately felt much more comfortable because Bailly could provide enough defensive toughness.

One of them rushed forward to steal the ball, while the other assisted in defense, and they managed the backcourt in great order.

65th minute of the game.

Pogba and Chu Feng made continuous wall passes on the wing. Chu Feng attracted the defense of three players, and then he passed the ball through the gap between the players.

Pogba followed up with a long pass.

Mahrez stopped the ball smoothly, then cut inside and scored with his left foot! His left foot is undoubtedly at the top level, but his right foot is only at the middle level, the same as Argentina's vice-top player Di Maria.

But this is exactly the player that Manchester United lacks.

The following game was uneventful, with both teams making large-scale substitutions, and Manchester United eventually won the game 4-3.

In the post-match interview, Ten Hag was in high spirits: "We played an excellent performance, we completely controlled the game and created many good opportunities, but unfortunately we didn't seize them."

July 26th.

The entire Manchester United team set off for China to participate in the International Champions Cup, facing AC Milan, Inter Milan and Dortmund in a week.

The International Champions Cup, also known as the Guinness Cup, is essentially a commercial competition and therefore does not have much value.

The clubs don’t really care about it and basically just deal with it casually.

At the Jinling Olympic Sports Center, among the tens of thousands of fans on site, 99% were Chu Feng’s fans.

Whether he dribbles, breaks through, runs, passes, shoots, etc., the fans will burst into deafening noise.

Although the temperature in Jinling reached 38 degrees Celsius that day, Chu Feng still insisted on playing the whole game. Fortunately, the intensity of the game was not high, otherwise he would not have been able to hold on.

After three rounds of matches, Manchester United had 2 wins and 1 loss with 7 points, and finally won the International Champions Cup China Zone Championship.

Tottenham Hotspur won the North American championship as they wished, and Harry Kane won the second championship of his career.

As for the first championship? It was the Algarve U17 International Invitational Tournament 8 years ago.

As the time approached August 9, the deadline for the summer transfer window, Manchester United's management held another meeting, and the topic was naturally about recruiting players.

Mourinho deserves to be at the top of the list of coaches' signings spending in the top five leagues.

After spending more than 200 million euros, he still felt it was not enough and wanted to buy another mobile defensive midfielder, such as Kante.

However, according to the Premier League's Financial Fair Play policy, clubs are required to have relevant income greater than or equal to relevant expenditure each season.

Although Manchester United is still some distance away from the penalty red line, they have to leave enough space to prevent accidents.

Therefore, unless Manchester United sells players again, it will be impossible to buy players.

Not to mention that a defensive midfielder like Kante would probably cost at least 80 million euros, so Mourinho had no choice but to give up the idea.

At this time, the Manchester United players were holding a farewell ceremony.

Ibrahimovic, Mata, Damian, Fellaini, Rojo, Smalling They left Manchester United one after another, heading for their own poetry and distant places, with helplessness or reluctance, all of which turned into thousands of unresolvable sorrows.

Ibrahimovic drunkenly put his arm around Chu Feng's shoulders, "Didn't you once ask me why I could hold on for so long?"

"The most important thing is to do what makes you happy and don't care what other people think. You are doing it for yourself, not for others."

“So you have to believe in yourself so that you can persist longer.”

"Of course, I'm not saying this to make you a selfish person, but I hope you can think more about yourself. Do you know what your biggest shortcoming is?"

Chu Feng shook his head and took a sip of wine.

In more than a year since joining Manchester United's first team, the person he is most reluctant to part with is Ibrahimovic.

In the eyes of outsiders, Ibrahimovic is selfish and irritable, but in his eyes, Ibrahimovic is a gentle tough guy who has given him a lot of experience in every aspect.

How to get rid of laziness, how to coordinate and move Without Ibrahimovic's help, his growth rate would definitely not be so fast, and he might not win the Champions League in the end.

Perhaps this is the case, every sip and every bite is cause and effect.

Ibrahimovic then continued: "You like to take the pressure on yourself too much, which is actually not a good thing."

"Everyone is playing in the top league. No one will take the time to wait. You have to learn to put pressure on your teammates and make them play their best efforts."

"Some people can take more, some can take less, and some can't take it at all."

"You need to distinguish these for yourself. This is the real way to take responsibility, rather than blindly shouldering everything."

"I hope I can see a more mature Chu in the future. As for sticking to training, I won't say much. You do better than me in this regard."

"Sometimes I really doubt that you are a robot!"

Then Ibrahimovic raised his glass high and said to the Manchester United players: "I am very happy to be teammates with you and have gone through a wonderful journey together. I think I will never forget it in my life."

"At Manchester United I won five titles including the Europa League, Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup, which is considered to have fulfilled my original promise."

"Next I will conquer American football, and we will definitely see each other on the field in the future!"

Manchester United players raised their glasses and gave their most sincere blessings.

Chu Feng stared at the swirling liquid in the wine glass and thought carefully about what Ibrahimovic had just said. After his rebirth, he was indeed more accustomed to doing everything by himself.

But he will never become a qualified leader in this way, he recalled the conversation with Mourinho.

Responsibility covers many aspects, and supervising teammates is one of them. His previous understanding was too one-sided.

After a while, Fellaini walked towards Chu Feng and said, "I'm going to your hometown tomorrow. Is there anything you want to tell me?"

"I suggest you climb Mount Tai first and experience the land for yourself."

"You must maintain your competitive form and professionalism. I believe you will like the Chinese fans, and they will like you too."

Chu Feng said with a smile.

At the end, he made another joke: "If you need anything, tell me your name, although it may not be helpful."

After Fellaini clinked glasses with Chu Feng, he nodded seriously.

The drinking and chatting dispelled the sadness of parting.

Tonight is the first time Chu Feng gets drunk after his rebirth, both to commemorate the years of fighting side by side with his teammates and to move towards a bright and brilliant future. —— August 11th.

The British continent is in turmoil, with many strong Premier League teams standing side by side. Who will be able to lift the final championship trophy?

Is it the heavy metal frenzy of Liverpool, the impeccable Manchester City, the unchanging Tottenham, the Arsenal entering a new era, or the Manchester United striving to defend the title?

Or will there be a new miracle? This season's Premier League will undoubtedly be even more exciting! Old Trafford.

Seventy thousand people packed the stands, loud cheers rang out, and a red wave surged.

"Good evening, viewers. Now we are broadcasting the first round of the 2018-19 Premier League season!"

“Manchester United vs Leicester City!”

"Manchester United poached two big players from Leicester City in the summer transfer window, and now the two teams happen to meet again in the opening match of the new season. It will surely be an exciting match!"

"How will Maguire and Mahrez perform? Can Xiaochu continue his dominance in the Champions League final?"

"Let's wait and see!"

(End of this chapter)