The visiting team's locker room at Anfield is large and luxurious.
There are not only independent massage and rest areas, bathing areas, medical areas, tactical areas, but also simple fitness areas.
Of course, the color scheme in the visiting team's locker area is also bright red, which is full of symbolic meaning.
There is also a small restaurant next to the visiting team's locker room.
After a brief rest, the players went to the small restaurant next door to have their meal.
Gu Ran's exclusive nutritionist Loina also came with the team. She had already prepared an enhanced version of the magic lunch for Gu Ran in the players' restaurant.
While other players were enjoying the special food at Anfield Stadium, Gu Ran could only eat chicken breast and drink white snake grass water.
I want to eat people...
After lunch, the players returned to the visiting team's locker room to rest.
Some players took out their own handheld game consoles to play games, some players listened to music with headphones to relax, and some players laughed and talked with their teammates about the female fans they met in the bar a few days ago.
Gu Ran took his personal coach Jacob to do some simple indoor balance training.
Coach Jacob didn't expect that Gu Ran would still have to train at this time.
This is much crazier than when he was studying at Real Madrid...
At around 2 o'clock in the afternoon, there were sudden bursts of almost crazy cheers outside the stadium, which could even be clearly felt in the visiting team's locker room.
No doubt, this must be the Liverpool team bus entering Anfield Stadium.
As the home team, Liverpool should have conducted adaptive training in the morning. However, this game was just a friendly match and the opponent was a League One team, so Liverpool did not take it too seriously.
With the arrival of the Liverpool team, fans also began to check their tickets and enter the stadium.
The silent Anfield stadium immediately became lively.
The KOP stands were full early on.
The enthusiasm of die-hard fans is unquestionable.
Although season tickets cannot be used for pre-season tickets, the average ticket price for this pre-season game reached 42 pounds, far exceeding the usual ticket price of 9 pounds per game for KOP fans, but for KOP diehards, this price increase is nothing.
Even if the opponent is a League One team, the KOP diehard fans will definitely not be absent.
After experiencing various losses last season, KOPs really need a satisfying pre-season victory to start the new season.
"The clubs have made good arrangements! The first pre-season game is against a weak team in League One!"
"That's right, let's start with the weak team! Let's get off to a good start!"
"Liverpool! You'll Never Walk Alone!"
"What a pity, Torres is still on vacation! Lampard and others probably won't play either!"
"As long as we can win!"
"By the way, which team is the other side?"
"How should I know!"
The Phoenix team flag was waving wildly in the KOP stands, and the crazy fans sang the Beatles' "Hey Jude" in unison to warm up the audience.
At this time, fans from the Glorious Centennial Stand and the Main Stand also quickly entered the stadium to the singing of the KOP fans and sang along with the songs.
More than half an hour before the game officially started, more than half of the fans were already sitting in the Centennial Stand and the Main Stand.
It can be predicted that the attendance for this game will be good.
And in the Anfield Road stands reserved for visiting teams, most of the stands were occupied at this time.
And in the stands reserved for visiting teams - the Anfield Road stands that can accommodate more than 9,000 fans, most of the stands were occupied at this time.
At least 5,000 Southampton fans came to Anfield.
Many of them were wearing Gu Ran's new No. 8 jersey.
Domestic fans such as MaxxRT were also invited to the scene and sat in the fifth row behind the visiting team's bench.
Unfortunately, their application for live streaming has not been approved yet, so they have no right to record this game and can only watch it on site to satisfy their own curiosity.
Sister Elizabeth Olsen also arrived at Anfield Stadium on time.
She was wearing a white dress today, and with her naturally melancholy expression, she immediately attracted the attention of the surrounding fans just by standing there.
Elizabeth is still unknown, so she doesn't have any idol baggage.
She looked at the ticket in her hand, then sat down confidently in the wives' seat in the first row behind the visiting team's bench.
Many Southampton fans couldn't help but wonder which player this beautiful long-legged girl belonged to.
Elizabeth is not the most dazzling person in the entire Anfield Road stands.
The most eye-catching scenery in the Anfield Road stands is the beautiful cheerleaders in miniskirts holding fan signs of [Gu Ran Global Support Club].
Although Elizabeth's appearance can crush any cheerleader when compared individually, the cheerleaders' advantage is that they are more numerous and more uniform.
They wore the same No. 8 jersey on their upper bodies, and those with miniskirts had to rely on the jerseys to cover up their short skirts.
When these beautiful cheerleaders stood up collectively, doing the Kang Kang thigh dance and shouting "Come on Gu Ran", the entire Anfield stadium was shocked.
The fans of KOP even stopped waving their team flags and whispered to each other: "Who is Gu Ran? The star player on the other side?"
"I don't know, I've never heard of this star's name!"
"Haha, Southampton Football Club is not good at playing football, but they are very good at doing things!"
"I've been watching football for half my life, but this is the first time I've seen a player bring a cheerleading team with him!"
"The game will start soon. Let's pay more attention to No. 8 and see who he is."
At this time, Elizabeth Olsen, who was sitting in the wives' group seat, opened her eyes wide in surprise. She couldn't help but look back again and again at the beautiful cheerleaders who were holding eye-catching signs such as "Gu Ran, I love you", "Gu Ran, let's get married", and "Gu Ran, you are my male god".
Didn't Gu Ran say that he was just a newbie who had just got a professional contract?
Didn't Gu Ran say that he was a substitute among substitutes? Could it be that Southampton Club was so good to the substitute players? Elizabeth's face was full of disbelief.
On the other side of the field, "Happy Boy" Sterling, carrying a sports bag and wearing headphones, sat quietly in the stands behind the home team's bench.
Today's game is Liverpool's, but Sterling came mainly to watch Gu Ran play.
He really wanted to know how Gu Ran, who was able to crush him in the youth team competition, would perform in the first team.
At this moment, a burst of crazy cheers came from the direction of the main stand.
Linda, the owner of Liverpool, appeared in her seat on the podium in a red dress.
The Liverpool fans at the scene immediately shifted their attention from the Southampton cheerleaders to the beautiful lady boss! Almost all of the Liverpool fans stood up and cheered and applauded for the lady boss's arrival.
No one expected that Linda would show up at this warm-up match! This also shows that Linda really likes football and really likes Liverpool!
This made the already fanatical Liverpool fans even more excited.
The applause from Liverpool fans died down only when Linda and other Liverpool executives took their seats on the podium.
Linda glanced at the beautiful cheerleaders of the Gu Ran Global Fan Club, then turned to ask Michael Edwards, the technical analysis director, "Are you sure Gu Ran will play today?"
Edwards adjusted his black-rimmed glasses and nodded seriously, "Yes, ma'am. When we invited them to play this friendly match, we wrote the requirement that Gu Ran must play into the friendly match contract."
Linda smiled with satisfaction, "Very good."
2:25.
Reporters from all walks of life gathered in the media room at Anfield with their cameras.
The coaches of both teams arrived with a player each, ready to accept a brief pre-match interview - Liverpool Club made this friendly match very formal.
Southampton head coach Adkins attended the pre-match press conference with No. 20 player Lallana.
The coaches of both teams exchanged a friendly and cordial handshake under the witness of the cameras of various media reporters.
Generally speaking, the player brought by the head coach is either the captain of the team, a core player of the team, or a player who has performed well recently or has been quite newsworthy.
Although Lallana is not the captain, he is definitely a core player of the team.
Bringing Lallana to the pre-match press conference is also a respect for Liverpool.
But Liverpool only brought Spearing.
Spearing is a product of Liverpool's youth training team and was once the captain of Liverpool U18, but in Liverpool's first team, Spearing is at most a substitute for Gerrard.
Hodgson brought Spearing to the pre-match press conference, which showed that he somewhat looked down on the Southampton team.
After both parties were seated, the press officer announced that reporters could ask questions.
First up is an interview with the Liverpool team.
The reporters in the audience raised their hands enthusiastically.
Hodgson looked around, raised his hand and pointed at a pretty young female reporter and said, "You go ahead and ask."
"Thank you." The beautiful young female reporter stood up and said with a smile, "Hello, Mr. Hodgson. I am Evelyn Adelaide, a reporter from the Advance Saints. My question is, there is definite news that Liverpool Club took the initiative to invite our Southampton Club to this friendly match and gave away most of the ticket revenue - what do you think about this? Are you trying to poach our rising star Gu Ran?"
As soon as these words came out, the reporters below began to whisper to each other in astonishment:
"No way? A giant club like Liverpool actually took the initiative to invite Southampton to play a friendly match?"
"Haha, this Southampton female reporter is so hot! She asked such harsh questions right from the start!"
"Hodgson thought she was young and pretty and wouldn't ask any questions, but now she's been unable to put down her head!"
"Southampton's rising star Gu Ran? How come I've never heard of him?"
"I have heard that Gu Ran has had affairs with Liverpool's boss Linda and Chelsea's Miss NO..."
"Hahaha! You believe this? I made it up."
"Waterfake! You are the reporter from The Sun!"
"You idiot... you still have the nerve to come here? Go back and update!"
Coach Hodgson was stunned for a moment after hearing Evelyn's question, then he smiled very experiencedly, "First of all, Liverpool invited Southampton to play this friendly match. The starting point is to hone our own team. It has nothing to do with anything else. Southampton is a team with very strong offensive characteristics, and their players are not bad. I believe that starting our pre-season with a team of Southampton's strength will be a good transition process for our players who have just returned from vacation."
Although this was clearly a compliment to Southampton, everyone present could hear what Hodgson really meant: Southampton is a weak team. We wanted to target you before the new season, so we invited you. You are going to die soon, and you are still happy? "Also, what about the revenue from selling most of the tickets? Sorry, this is not a question that I, as the head coach, am concerned about, so I can't answer you on this question. You should probably interview our financial director."
"Okay, next one--" Hodgson raised his hand and pointed at a local reporter he was familiar with.
Just as the reporter stood up and prepared to ask a question, Evelyn said, "Sorry! Mr. Hodgson, you haven't answered my third question yet! Please answer directly, do you Liverpool want to poach our rising star Gu Ran!?"
Hodgson smiled faintly, "Gu Ran? I don't know any Gu Ran."
Evelin said without giving in, “But your club has made three consecutive offers to our rising star Gu Ran! The German transfer market has records of it!”
Hodgson shrugged his shoulders. "That may be the club buying players for the youth team. That's how we bought Sterling from our youth team, but it has nothing to do with our Liverpool first team. So, I really don't know the Gu Ran you are talking about. Okay, next one!"
Evelin suppressed her anger and said proudly, “You’ll get to know him soon.”
After saying that, he passed the microphone to the next reporter.
Hodgson smiled and didn't care at all.
After Hodgson answered a few irrelevant questions from local reporters, the press officer announced that Southampton head coach Adkins would be interviewed next.
Coach Adkins raised his hand and pointed at a male reporter, "You go ahead and ask."
——He also didn’t want to be questioned by Evelin.
The male reporter stood up and took the microphone. "Hello, Coach Adkins. I am a reporter from the Liverpool Echo. My question is, this should be your first time playing against our Liverpool team. How do you evaluate your opponent? What do you predict the result of today's game will be?"
This question is tinged with obvious arrogance.
Coach Adkins still had that poker face, "In my opinion, Liverpool is undoubtedly a top club."
The male reporter from the Echo laughed triumphantly.
Coach Adkins paused for a beat and continued, "Although they failed to win any of the four major titles last season, finishing seventh in the league, were eliminated early in the FA Cup and League Cup, and didn't even make it past the first round of the Europa League. They didn't even qualify for the Europa League this year, but they are still a top team."
The smile on the Echo reporter's face could no longer be maintained.
Coach Hodgson, who was sitting next to him, couldn't help but frown slightly.
Is this a compliment? That's too much!
Coach Adkins continued: "In comparison, our Southampton club is a weak team. We suffered a devastating blow in the past few seasons, sliding from the Premier League to League One and struggling in the middle of League One."
"But we got through it. It was really not easy for our club and our fans."
"I would like to call all the staff, players and fans of the club the true warriors."
"When Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and other teams lined up to invite us to play pre-season games, to be honest, I was really hesitant and conflicted."
"I chose Liverpool because they are the best team for us to play against among the four big clubs."
As soon as these words were spoken, many reporters in the audience were already laughing secretly.
Although this coach Adkins is playing against a team of Liverpool's level for the first time, he is definitely not a novice! It seems that he is praising Liverpool, but in fact he is dragging Liverpool to the same position as Southampton! Are you Liverpool great? Didn't Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester United line up to invite us to play friendly matches? Then I heard Coach Adkins continue: "As for the result of this game, I can't predict it. After all, this is just a friendly match with unlimited substitutions. I also believe that Coach Hodgson and I have the same goal, not for victory or defeat, but to take this good opportunity to observe the players and run-in the team."
Without waiting for the male reporter to ask again, Adkins pointed to another fat reporter and said, "Next one."
The chubby reporter stood up cheerfully. "Hello, Coach Adkins. I'm a reporter from The Sun. This morning, Liverpool's new boss Linda posted an INS saying that she is meeting an important person today. Is this important person Gu Ran? Will they have a conversation in a place where no one can see?"
Coach Adkins: “…”
Are you here to interview or to create topics?
The press officer cleared his throat. "Someone, get this guy from The Sun out! This is the end of the pre-match press conference!"
Coach Hodgson and Coach Adkins were both relieved and stood up for a friendly handshake.
Coach Hodgson smiled and said, "Good luck to you, Mr. Adkins, because you need it so badly."
Coach Adkins still had a poker face, "Thank you, Coach Hodgson, you are very generous."
The two smiled at each other again, then each took their players back to the locker room.
At this time, the DJ at Anfield Stadium was already warming up the crowd.
All the Liverpool fans in the stadium sang "Allez Allez Allez" along with the DJ's live electric guitar: We've conquered all of Europe~ We 're never going to stop ~ From Paris down to Turkey~ We 've won the fucking lot ~ Bob Paisley and Bill Shankly ~ The fields of Anfield Road~ We are loyal supporters~ And we come from Liverpool! Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ The whole stadium was like a grand and crazy concert with 40,000 people.
In contrast, Southampton's 'Saints March On' song was barely audible at all.
It's not that the Southampton Saints' fighting power is too poor, but that the Liverpool Reds are too strong.
Putting aside the team's record and just talking about the diehard fans, the Liverpool Red Army swept the world.
The passionate singing of "Allez Allez Allez" also reached the visiting team's locker room - before the game even started, the strong home pressure made the visiting team's locker room feel a little breathless.
At this time, Chamberlain hummed along with the soft voice of "Allez Allez Allez".
All the players stared at Chamberlain.
Chamberlain was stunned, then he quickly shut up.
The game will start soon...
Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ Allez Allez Allez~ (End of this chapter)
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