Time slowly entered October, and the tranquil sunlight gently sprinkled on the streets of London, making the city less impetuous.
Maël temporarily put aside other training tasks these days and began to concentrate on practicing Ball Control.
This skill is about to break through from lv3 to lv4, and he is very clear that this will be a major improvement.
He really wanted to have a stronger immediate combat power before the next game against Tottenham Hotspur... It was also an ability to catch Tottenham Hotspur by surprise! After each skill is greatly improved, it often makes extremely high contributions in the short term.
This is easy to understand. With the gradual development of various streaming media and analysis software, every player has no secrets.
Good at Long Shot, Cut Inside shots, long passes and Crosses, ground ball through balls, five-star weak foot, and has super physical and Speed.
These are Maël's current strengths. If you want to count the weaknesses, it is the lack of heading scoring methods, average dribbling skills, average agility, weak creativity, and average first touch.
All teams will be wary of his strengths and try to limit him to deal with the ball with his weaknesses.
At this time, if you can suddenly enhance one ability, the opponent will probably not be able to react.
And for a player like him who has many top abilities, as long as the opponent is slightly stunned, he can seize the opportunity to score!
"Nervous?"
During training, José asked while passing the ball to him, "Your first derby, and it's the hot North London derby."
"Pa!"
The moment Maël stopped the ball, he tried to push the ball to the position he wanted to go, and found that he had failed to control the strength well, so he shook his head slightly and said, "Not particularly nervous, you know, my attitude towards important games is generally excitement."
He returned to his position, waiting for José's next pass.
"Boom!"
José kicked the ball out with a smile and asked, "I just checked the history of grievances between the two teams. The earliest can be traced back to the early 20th century, and later evolved into a deadly feud in 1919.
"George Graham's betrayal intensified the conflict. He was once an Arsenal star, and after retiring, he served as the team's coach and achieved success, but after leaving Arsenal, he took up the Tottenham Hotspur's coaching position.
"In '01, Tottenham Hotspur captain Campbell transferred to Arsenal on a free transfer, which is also one of the main unpleasant events between the two sides in recent years.
"If you want to count, Arsenal won the championship at White Hart Lane in 1971, and the undefeated season in '04 was also at White Hart Lane, which aroused Tottenham Hotspur fans' bad memories and anxiety about the current situation."
After listening to his explanation, Maël knew that the other party wanted to ask him what he thought of this matter.
He stopped the ball and said while running back, "The grievances of the older generation have been sealed in history. I only know that I play for Arsenal, and I like this club where many legends were born.
"So naturally, I will regard Tottenham Hotspur as an enemy and hope to do my best to defeat them."
After a few more Ball Controls, Maël's body felt a wonderful feeling, and a large amount of Muscle Memory poured into his body and mind, making him feel clear.
"Pa!"
The next time he stopped the ball, the junction of his chest and shoulders steadily stopped the ball in the area of the marker he had already placed, and the whole person had a feeling of sudden enlightenment.
Ball Control, upgraded!
[Skill: Perfect First Touch lv4]
[Proficiency: (1/2000)]
[Effect: Day and night training has greatly improved your Ball Control ability again. You are gradually discovering that you can stop the ball wherever you want with your first touch!]
"Beautiful!"
José at the far end exclaimed, "Not bad this time, try the Ball Control at sprinting Speed."
"Boom!" As soon as he finished speaking, he kicked the ball to the position in front of Maël, giving Maël a lot of lead to speed up.
Maël suppressed the excitement in his heart, moved his legs and ran forward, using his right foot to push the ball towards the center while running at high speed, just over two meters away.
He turned around and followed the next second, just as the football landed, he pushed the ball a few steps in front of him again, and this time the football landed steadily on the ground.
Perfect First Touch! "Boom!!"
"Clang!!"
He then blasted the ball out with a powerful shot, and the football, swept by violent force, rang the crossbar, shaking the entire goal violently.
"Oh!" José hugged his head and exaggeratedly said, "Seems like you've improved again?"
"Not 'seems like'," Maël smiled and turned his head, "I confirm that my Ball Control skills have improved."
Now, he will have a stronger grasp when facing Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane!
...
On the morning of October 2nd, North London was shrouded in a fiery atmosphere, with Arsenal and Tottenham fans, who had been preparing for a long time, visible everywhere along the streets.
They gathered together in the morning, drinking in pubs, browsing fan supermarkets, organizing cheering events, and so on.
"Wenger is a liar! He colludes with board members and has lost all of Arsenal's money!"
By noon, the cheering events were already very lively. Tottenham fans, dressed in white, raised their hands and gathered together, singing songs mocking Arsenal, "You sell your captains every year! Each year is worse than the last! We will trample you under our feet! Wenger! Liar! Van Persie! Idiot! Maël! A little trash who hasn't even grown his hair yet!"
Tottenham fans' hatred for Arsenal is definitely the most intense in the world. In their view, allowing Arsenal to achieve success on the field is as humiliating as Tottenham being relegated to the EFL Championship.
Countless of them would include Arsenal in their prayers, hoping that the team would suffer misfortune.
"Trash! The worst team in England!"
The Arsenal fan groups quickly joined the cheering events, shouting the club's anthem as they came.
Despite the team's mediocre performance in recent years, they still have a sense of superiority from the inside out when facing Tottenham Hotspur.
This gave them confidence and anticipation, and everyone hoped that the team could beat Tottenham soundly in the derby.
"You are the dirtiest team! You have no faith, and you haven't won a title since the millennium. Get into the Champions League first! Redknapp stole Ancelotti's Manager of the Year award in 09-10, Tottenham are robbers!"
It's hard to say why they would sing such uniform songs, maybe they discussed it in advance on social media, or organized it a second time in the pub.
Or maybe this melody has long been ingrained in everyone's mind, and as long as they add a few singable lyrics, even if they don't rhyme, they can quickly mock the other side in a rhythmic and orderly manner.
"Sizzle, sizzle!"
At two o'clock in the afternoon, as fans of both teams lit white and red smoke bombs and neon lights, the scene slowly became heated, while also adding a bit of chaos.
"Slap!"
"Bang bang!"
"Ouch!"
Small-scale conflicts broke out between the two teams' extremist fans in multiple locations, and soon some people with bruised noses and swollen faces were taken away by ambulances, which further intensified the tension between the two sides.
Occasionally, some itchy people would mix into the smoky crowd, wearing jerseys of the opposing team and attacking the other team's fans with slaps and punches, mostly sneaking in a punch and running away.
If they were caught, the consequences would be more miserable.
"Wul wul.!" Police cars and motorcycle teams quickly dispatched, and several mounted police officers riding tall horses charged into the crowd, driving the fans apart, as if returning to the day of the Great Victory of Orgrimmar.
...
Barcelona, Spain.
Fabregas invited the entire Barcelona team to his home for a gathering today, and also invited media reporters and asked a director to shoot a documentary, recording the journey of returning to his parent team.
The Barcelona players in the camera have extraordinary temperaments, elegant and joyful, this is the peak period of the Dream Three Dynasty.
"After coming to the team, you mostly come off the bench. Do you think Barcelona is a bit dismissive of you?"
On the second floor, Fabregas, wearing a Barcelona jersey, is being interviewed by reporters, but this kind of question is obviously not what he wants to hear.
A few evasive expressions appeared in his eyes, and after looking around and finding that there were no Barcelona players nearby, he replied, "No, I really enjoy working with Guardiola, and I really like everything here.
"Every player needs an adaptation period, and I am currently in this stage. Don't forget that I already have 5 goals and 3 assists, and everything is slowly getting better.
"I think I will definitely be able to achieve important achievements here. You must know that we have won 2 championship trophies at the beginning of the season.
"Real Madrid lost to us in the Spanish Super Cup, and Porto lost to us in the UEFA Super Cup. The team is still unbeaten in 11 games, scoring 41 goals, with amazing firepower."
After he finished speaking, the reporter nodded slightly and continued, "But I heard authoritative media reports that Guardiola will leave Barcelona after this season and go to the Premier League."
A flustered expression flashed across Fabregas's face. He didn't want to face this kind of question, and quickly retorted, "No media is authoritative, and neither are you, understand?"
He turned his head to look at the side and asked, "Can you change someone to ask questions?"
The documentary director looked at him, pursed his lips and shook his head. If Fabregas was going to react like this, why didn't he say so before filming started? He could have completely directed and acted himself.
Fabregas endured his anger and turned his head, sitting on the spot like he was on pins and needles.
He turned on the TV, turned to the Premier League broadcast channel, and waited for an important game to begin.
"Arsenal will play against Tottenham at White Hart Lane today. After many months, can you tell us the truth about that day? Did Maël and Gilbert really hit you?"
The reporter, seeing the television, shifted his attention and steered the topic towards Arsenal, "Why didn't you fight back? Why didn't you run away?"
Fabregas didn't speak, sitting there staring at the reporter, planning to have the documentary director cut this part out later.
"Gilbert has already scored 3 goals and 1 assist in the Premier League this season, performing excellently."
The reporter continued to twist the knife, just to provoke Fabregas's anger, "Not to mention Maël, the player Arsenal fans call their new hope, has 10 goals and 6 assists in all competitions in the past February, an astonishingly high efficiency.
"Oh, right, you said you scored 5 goals and 3 assists this season. Maël has 5 goals and 3 assists for two consecutive months."
Fabregas finally couldn't bear it any longer, glaring at the reporter and saying, "What does that represent? He's a forward, and I'm a midfielder.
"He has more shooting rights and offensive emphasis, none of which I have. My goals and assists are things I fight for myself.
"Plus, the Premier League defenders aren't familiar with him, and everyone in the team is feeding him the ball. He's only been arrogant for two months; it definitely won't last."
He knew there were many unreasonable things in what he said, but few people can remain calm when facing someone with hostile intentions.
In most situations, the moment you open your mouth, it's filled with slander and aggression, even if you're usually a docile person on the outside.
"Haha..." The reporter was directly amused, a hint of speechlessness in his expression, "Then by the same logic, aren't the defenders in La Liga also unfamiliar with you?"
"Enough!"
Fabregas stepped forward and grabbed the reporter's press badge, frowning, "Are you a reporter from the Spanish media?"
"Yes." The reporter nodded, smiling, "Please answer my question."
"I have very little playing time." Fabregas threw out an excuse, gritting his teeth, "In terms of time spent per goal, my efficiency is higher."
The reporter wasn't planning on letting him off the hook, picking out the flaws in his previous words, "And you said that he has more shooting rights and offensive emphasis, but you don't, right?
"Doesn't that represent the predicament you're in in the Spanish league, something you're unwilling to face? It's strange, why would you give up Arsenal, who treated you like a treasure, only to come to Barcelona, which puts you in a difficult situation?"
Fabregas's teeth chattered, his body trembled slightly, and his fists under the table were clenched tightly.
The reporter noticed this, got up, put away his microphone, and prepared to leave, not forgetting to deliver one last killing blow before leaving, "One last thing, Fabregas, you should compare him to your performance at 18.
"You're already treating him as a player on the same level as you are now, which doesn't match the indifference you showed towards him before."
Fabregas suddenly erupted, he hated it when people mentioned this, because it was what he feared most, "But I have championships! He has nothing! Understand?!
"Staying at Arsenal, he won't have anything, even if he's better than I was at 18!"
The reporter was startled, took two steps back, and his press badge fell to the ground. When he reached out to pick it up, everyone saw the Arsenal jersey under his vest.
"Hehe..." Seeing that he had been discovered, he laughed awkwardly twice, pointed to the television, and said, "By the way, I think Arsenal will win this game, bye-bye."
"Cut it out!"
"Cut it all out!"
*"Bang!"*
That day, all the Barcelona players heard the sound of a glass breaking upstairs.
...
London, next to White Hart Lane stadium.
Arsenal's bus slowly drove in, attracting a siege from many Tottenham Hotspur fans.
"F*ck you!"
"B*tch!!"
"Maël, come down if you have the guts!!"
They threw rotten eggs and tomatoes at the bus, mixed with vegetable leaves. Even with the police trying to stop them, they still couldn't stop some people from causing trouble in the chaos.
Maël sat on the bus, looking at their appearance, and joked with Van Persie beside him, "Add some bacon, add some meat, and we can make a burger to replenish our energy."
"Haha..." Van Persie laughed twice, looking at the eggs and tomatoes on the car window, he didn't feel so affected, but instead found it a bit cute.
"Season tickets."
Wenger came to Maël's side at this time, holding four tickets, "You've also seen the situation outside, should I have the staff give them to them?"
"It's okay." Maël glanced outside and said, "I'll get off at the fence, I promised them I'd give them to them personally."
"Be careful." Wenger handed the season tickets to Maël, secretly marveling in his heart, he didn't expect Maël to be so concerned about this kind of thing.
"Shit!"
"Bitch!"
Before long, the bus slowly pulled up to the fence, and the Arsenal players quickly passed through the red carpet amidst the abuse and entered the stadium.
"Bastards!"
"Poor things!"
"Need Grandpa's pity?"
Maël fared even worse; his background gave these fans an opportunity to attack and mock him.
He gritted his teeth secretly, glared at these Tottenham fans, noted it in his heart, and then walked towards the corner of the fence.
He is Maël now, no doubt about it. He could feel a few traces of anger and sadness rising in his heart, not knowing whether he was mourning for the fate of this life or missing his parents from his previous life.
But it doesn't matter, the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold. What doesn't defeat him will only make him stronger and give him a more resilient character.
"He actually dares to come over?"
"What is he going to do?"
Many Tottenham fans saw Maël walking towards the railing post and immediately crowded over, looking at him with surprise, even forgetting to throw eggs.
Maël quickly found the four fans; their characteristics were still very obvious.
"Long time no see."
He stepped forward, and under the abuse and the watchful eyes of hundreds of Tottenham fans, he showed his gentlest smile and hugged the little girl standing in the front.
The little girl's face changed, but she couldn't express her emotions. She could clearly feel the pressure brought by the Tottenham fans.
Anxious and flustered, her eyes reddened again as she stammered, constantly pointing to the gate leading into the stadium, signaling Maël to go in first.
"Go in quickly, Maël! I know what she wants to say, we will be your fans for life!"
The old man in the wheelchair expressed his affection to Maël, and David and the little boy also quickly nodded, agreeing with this statement.
The little girl was still anxious. She came behind David, put the paper on his back, and quickly wrote something.
When she picked up the paper, Maël saw the words on it, which were a few simple sentences: "I will always love you. I wore the jersey you left a message on today, hoping they won't bully me anymore, and hoping I can 'loudly' celebrate your goals."
The little girl tugged at her jersey, smiling through her tears, and also shook her fist at Maël, signaling him to cheer up.
A few complex emotions welled up in Maël's heart. Softness, grief, sympathy, and other emotions intertwined, leaving him at a loss.
"What's your name?" He stepped forward and asked.
"Chloe."
She wrote her name down and placed it in front of Maël.
Maël patted her shoulder. He knew the meaning of this name: budding and youth. It was a pity that the little girl's childhood and adolescence were not happy.
Hopefully, he can bring her happiness on the field. He confirmed something in his heart and turned to hug the other three.
"Come on! Maël!"
"You are the best!"
"Win the derby for us!"
"Thank you for the season tickets. If you need us to do anything for you, please be sure to contact us, although we may not be able to help you much."
Maël nodded to comfort them, and before leaving, he saw Chloe anxiously writing something, so he waited.
"King!"
Looking at the smile on her face, Maël's heart seemed to melt. He gave her a gentle smile and waved to her one last time.
Then, he walked towards today's battlefield.
Monthly update: 31,500, target: 540,000
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