Chapter 1 Birmingham Thinks

Birmingham believed there was nothing to fear from Liverpool's reserves, especially at their home ground.

They had analyzed Liverpool's first League Cup match, and saw that Reading had managed to push Liverpool to the brink. If it hadn't been for Chen Hero's incredible performance, they figured Liverpool would have been sent packing after just one League Cup game.

Although last season's Liverpool reserves were strong, this was a completely different team. The media's analysis was spot on: last season's success was due to perfect timing, location, and luck. But how could Liverpool expect such favorable circumstances every year?

It was their turn to be unlucky this time.

Not only did the people of Birmingham think so, but many fans did as well. Thanks to the media hype, everyone knew about the problems facing Liverpool's reserves. Chen Hero's dream of going to Wembley with the reserves was unrealistic.

It was a nice thought, but it depended on whether anyone could make it happen.

Everyone was well aware of the current state of Liverpool's reserves after their first game against Reading.

This team was indeed different from last season's.

Hoping for them to win the championship would probably be difficult.

Even Liverpool fans were worried about their reserves.

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But from the start of the game, everyone realized that things were not as they had expected.

This Liverpool reserve team was a completely different beast compared to their last match!

They attacked aggressively, defended tenaciously, and showed no signs of being overwhelmed.

Birmingham, on the other hand, couldn't break through their defense at all. They had no way to attack the goal except for long-range shots.

In reality, everyone had fallen into a trap. They assumed that since Reading, a team that had been relegated for many years, could cause so much trouble for Liverpool, then Birmingham, who had just been relegated, would be even more of a challenge.

But no one bothered to study the real reason why Reading had made Liverpool look so bad.

It wasn't because they were so strong, but because… their tactics were perfectly suited to countering Liverpool.

Birmingham was different. Their tactics were different from Reading's, and they still relied on technical play. And Liverpool feared nothing more than… technical play.

So, while Birmingham appeared stronger than Reading, their actual performance on the field was worse.

They laid siege to Liverpool's goal for nearly twenty minutes without scoring.

Liverpool's reserves scored first.

Everyone was stunned when the goal happened.

What surprised them wasn't that Liverpool's reserves were leading Birmingham, but that the scorer wasn't Chen Hero! It wasn't Chen Hero who had opened the scoring for the team!

The goal was assisted by Chen Hero, and the young winger Carlton Cole, who had just been promoted from the under-18 team this year, shot the ball into the goal.

At the time, Chen Hero had attracted all of Birmingham's defensive attention, leaving the other Liverpool reserve players practically walking in a vacuum.

Chen Hero passed the ball, and with the youth team player's ability, it didn't take much effort to score.

When Cole saw the ball flying towards him, he also heard Chen Hero shout, "Shoot!"

He then instinctively swung his leg, creating an arc that allowed the ball to bypass the Birmingham goalkeeper's outstretched fingers and go straight into the far corner.

Liverpool's first goal had arrived just like that.

Cole was still stunned after scoring when Chen Hero rushed towards him with a group of teammates.

"Well done, Carlton!" Chen Hero was the first to hug him.

When Cole's small body was suddenly hit by Chen Hero, he realized that he had scored in the game, and that he had been assisted by… Hero. He hadn't let him down!

His eyes instantly turned red.

To prevent himself from crying, he opened his mouth and roared, "I fucking scored!!"

More teammates rushed up, patting him. "You're so lucky, Carlton! I want to be assisted by Hero too!"

"Good job, Carlton! Good job! You didn't embarrass our youth team!"

Everyone hugged him enthusiastically, as if they were embracing their dreams.

They could feel the fire in their hearts burning brightly, illuminating the road to Wembley Stadium.

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Martin O'Neill, who was watching this scene from the sidelines, lowered his head. It seemed they could continue on…

His lowered head was only for a moment. Soon, he raised his head again, raised his arms, and cheered for the goal.

Behind him, Clark, who was also cheering, had a smile of relief hidden in his eyes.

These disciples of his had finally not embarrassed him. It seemed that what he had said had worked…

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The Liverpool players were cheering, for their goal, for their lead.

The Birmingham players, however, were a little depressed.

Before the game, they believed that the biggest threat to Liverpool was Chen Hero, so they were only thinking about how to deal with Chen Hero, and not how to deal with Liverpool.

They didn't think they were underestimating the opposition, they felt they were careful enough. They just didn't think it was necessary to pay so much attention to this Liverpool reserve team. If it had been last season's Liverpool reserve team, they would have been on high alert, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

But who would have thought… who would have thought… that in the end, their underestimation would allow Liverpool's reserves to take the lead.

How depressing!

The Birmingham players were depressed, while the Liverpool players were ecstatic.

The happiest of all were not the Liverpool fans in the stands or in front of the TV, but the Liverpool reserve players.

The goal gave them a lot of confidence, making them feel that their hard training these days had finally paid off and was worthwhile.

They had finally managed to keep up with Chen Hero's rapid pace.

Going to Wembley together, this wish seemed closer and closer.

The goal greatly boosted the morale of the Liverpool players, and in the subsequent game, Liverpool's reserves, led by Chen Hero, gradually took control of the game.

Not only Carlton Cole, who scored the goal, but also the other players, regardless of their position, performed well and put in a lot of effort.

Liverpool's youth training has a good tradition, but it gradually lagged behind in previous years due to lack of investment. However, after Liverpool decided to shift the focus of team building to the youth team at the end of last season, the youth team has developed and improved. At the same time, there are many good seedlings in the youth team. They may not be able to adapt to the identity of Liverpool's first-team players for a while, but in the reserve team, they are all outstanding players.

These players have the ability, but they lack the experience of playing in this kind of game. Once they accumulate experience, they are definitely no worse than the first teams in the lower leagues. What's more, many of them have been playing together in the youth team for several years, and their understanding is perfect.

Therefore, when Chen Hero stimulated them, and they exploded with great fighting power, it was naturally something that Birmingham, who underestimated them, could not resist.

The following game became one-sided, and Birmingham, playing at home, was completely suppressed by the Liverpool reserves.

If there was only a Liverpool reserve team, Birmingham would not have been so embarrassed.

At this time, the protagonist appeared—Chen Hero's existence was the last straw that broke Birmingham's back.

When the Birmingham players just wanted to rush out and fight Liverpool's reserves to the death, Chen Hero would step forward and give them a harsh blow, forcing them to cover their faces and shrink back.

This was Birmingham's home ground! But their performance was like playing away, which was really frustrating!

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Near the end of the first half, Chen Hero finally scored, using a long shot from outside the penalty area to send the ball into Birmingham's goal.

With a score of 2:0, combined with what everyone saw in the first half, and considering the strength gap between the two teams, many people felt that the suspense of this game had basically been lost.

In the remaining forty-five minutes of the second half, Birmingham was unlikely to tie the score, let alone overtake it. The reason was simple: Chen Hero wasn't a pushover. He only scored one goal in this game, and he certainly wouldn't let it go in the second half. He would score more goals.

So Birmingham should pray that they wouldn't lose too badly in the end, rather than praying that they could still reverse the victory…

The final score was 4:1. Chen Hero scored another goal in the second half, and Carlton Cole, who was in good form in this game, also scored another goal. Both of them scored twice.

Although Chen Hero was named the best player of the game, he pulled Carlton Cole over and took pictures with him, holding the champagne together. Then he said to the reporters, "Remember his name, he's Carlton Cole, and he's very powerful!"

The reporters immediately pointed their cameras at the young Cole, and the flashes kept flashing.

Carlton Cole obviously didn't expect that he would receive such treatment, and that Chen Hero would give him such high praise.

He certainly knew what benefits this treatment would bring him. All of England would know his name overnight. Although he had already scored twice, everyone would only treat him as an ordinary player. But with Chen Hero pointing him out, it was completely different. Maybe they would even put a few "genius" hats on him.

After this, his development would be smoother than before.

Happiness came too quickly, and Cole didn't even know how to deal with it. He lowered his head, looking a little embarrassed and excited.

But his heart was as sweet as honey.

The teammates were also very envious of Cole, but no one was jealous of him, because this was the reward he earned with his own strength and performance. This was what he deserved, and no one could question it. If they also wanted to get the same treatment as Cole, they would have to work harder in training and games, and perform better.

Because of Chen Hero's actions, the morale within the Liverpool reserve team was even higher, and they were more confident in the future. They were even more determined to follow Chen Hero.

The fighting power of Liverpool's reserves has been upgraded again.

Of course, Chen Hero wouldn't have known any of this. It was just an unintentional act at the time. He felt that Cole's performance was indeed great and deserved the award. Out of a "big brother" attitude, he should also help this junior, so he formally introduced Cole to the media reporters, and also to the whole of England.

Sure enough, the next day, when the major English media reported on this League Cup game, they focused on Carlton Cole, this young man who was only nineteen years old. He played as a winger in the youth team, could play on both sides, was fast, had good technique, and had a strong sense of forward movement.

For a time, many "genius" titles fell on Cole's head.

Cole's own qualities were certainly good, but Chen Hero couldn't help him whether he could really become a talent. After all, he had to walk his own path in the future. If he was lost in the sudden praise of everyone, and eventually became mediocre, it was his own business…