Chapter 16: Shy Thomas
September 3, 2003, in the city of Wolverhampton, the weather was not very good in the early morning, and the ancient town was covered with misty drizzle.
But the honking of numerous vehicles, the chatting of pedestrians on the road, and all kinds of noise filled the entire city, telling the citizens of Wolverhampton that a new day had arrived.
The people who finally arrived at their destination in a hurry took their time to pick up the must-read daily newspaper "Wolverhampton Post" and turned directly to the sports page.
"In the Islam Stadium, the 16-year-old Allen Wang, with long dark hair, light yellow skin and handsome appearance, headed for the goal in a very cool manner. Next to him, Hedrick, who was wearing the red uniform of the Manchester United team, followed behind him with a bewildered expression on his face. In the stands in the distance, many fans wearing the uniforms of the Wolverhampton team stood up and stared at this scene."
This is a huge photo, and Wolverhampton reporters captured this moment forever from next to the goal.
This photo took up most of the page. For Wolverhampton fans, even the game of Wolverhampton youth team can make them feel excited from the bottom of their hearts.
《The dance master of the youth team, the new idol of Wolverhampton City》
This young man named Alan Wang almost tied the game against Manchester United Youth Team by himself. He made one assist and one goal, and his performance as the best player of the game made Paul McGuinness say sourly after the game: "The game belongs to Wolverhampton's No. 10 player. Almost none of my players could stop him. Congratulations to Wolverhampton Youth Team for adding another genius."
The team tied with Manchester United Youth Team at home, but Wang Li's outstanding performance did not make old Wood dizzy with joy. He said slowly and modestly: "Alan Wang is the future of Wolverhampton. He still has many technical defects at present. We will do our best to train him."
Wang Li's special bloodline, his graceful posture when dribbling the ball, his handsome looks and so on made him a household name in Wolverhampton overnight.
......
Manchester's Sports Star also reported on the youth team's match.
"The Black-Haired Boy from Wolverhampton" is the title of this report, which describes the ups and downs of the entire game in great detail.
"Alan Wang, the black-haired boy from Wolverhampton, performed two beautiful waltzes at the Islam Stadium. He fooled the entire Manchester United youth team at the start and helped Wolverhampton take the lead. The powerful one-on-one goal at the end slapped the Manchester United youth team in the face. These expensive talents, what on earth did you do?"
"Should Sir Alex consider bringing this kid to Manchester United?" the article concluded.
Other media tycoons also gave Wang Li a shot to varying degrees.
But relatively speaking, Wang Li has only just become a little famous among Wolverhampton people. If he wants to become the darling of these media giants, he must enter the Premier League.
......
In Wolverhampton's players' dormitory, the bathroom door was opened and Wang Li walked out naked in shorts with a towel in his hand.
He quickly climbed to the bed and casually draped his legs over the edge of the bed, still a little out of breath.
Last night, he had received a physical training program specially formulated for him from coach Jason Barber. From 10 a.m. to now, nearly two and a half hours, he had been exercising endlessly. However, Wang Li was somewhat happy. Although this kind of training was very tiring and boring, if he persisted in it for a long time, it would definitely greatly improve his physical fitness and endurance.
Starting from today, he will insist on about three hours of physical training every day, and receive tactical guidance from coach Stephen Cooper every Friday.
After yesterday's intense game, he found that he had fallen in love with football, a popular sport. So no matter how hard or tiring it was, he would stick to it and work hard to improve his strength.
No matter how the outside media hypes him up, Wang Li knows that he is not as strong as he imagined. Whether it is physical fitness or physique, he is worse than others. His overall view and positioning are his biggest flaws, which will become fatal in high-level competitions. His only capital is the internal force training method and martial arts moves brought from his previous life.
He sat cross-legged on the bed, his hands resting lightly on his thighs, ready to start practicing his internal strength again. After his rebirth, Wang Li would intensify his internal strength training whenever he had free time. Before he had achieved minor success in the Xiao Wuxiang Gong, he felt a little powerless no matter what he did. At this speed of training, it would take at least two more months to achieve a preliminary understanding of the art, and it would take at least three years to achieve minor success.
"Creaky", the door of the dormitory was pushed open, and Thomas walked in with a gloomy face. Wang Li opened his eyes and looked up at him, and found that his expression was different from usual.
"Hey, Alan, you're back so early. Are you practicing Chinese Kung Fu again?" He saw Wang Li sitting cross-legged on the bed as usual, and said absentmindedly.
Wang Li looked at him puzzledly and asked doubtfully: "Well, but what happened to you today? You don't seem to be in a good mood. What happened?"
Thomas slowly climbed onto the bed, took off his coat, and placed it neatly beside the bed. He said to Wang Li with a evasive look in his eyes, "Nothing."
Seeing his expression, Wang Li almost laughed out loud. He never knew that Thomas, who usually talked nonsense, would be so timid and at a loss when telling lies. It was almost as if "I'm lying" was written on his face.
"What's the matter? The expression on your face tells me that you are lying. Thomas, what's the matter? Can I help you?" Wang Li said directly. Although he had not been with Thomas for a long time, he felt that this big white guy had a good character and was very caring for others. He was a friend worth making close friends with.
Thomas thought for a moment, pursed his lips, and asked, "Are you free after this afternoon's training? How about helping me practice goalkeeping skills?"
Wang Li was stunned. When did Thomas become so motivated that he would take the initiative to practice more. He asked, "What's wrong?"
Thomas grumbled a few words and continued, "You know, I'm already eighteen years old, but I'm still just a substitute goalkeeper in the youth team. My father called me today and wanted me to go to college, but I really like football..."
Wang Li nodded. He also needed to practice his shooting skills anyway, and Thomas was his best friend, so it wouldn't hurt to help him.
"All right."