Chapter 1 Van Gaal is Annoyed

Van Gaal was very annoyed.

The famous Dutch coach was being interviewed by *De Telegraaf*.

Since being fired by Manchester United, he had rejected a sky-high contract from the Chinese national team of 45 million pounds for three years.

For this famous coach who had won championships in La Liga, the Eredivisie, and the Bundesliga, the experience at Manchester United was like a dream, but he still won an FA Cup.

The female host only posed one question.

Old Van began to rant.

"Arsenal spent 5 million euros to sign Maguire? Damn it, the Hull City owner who was eager to cash out didn't understand his value at all."

"That friendly match with South Korea! Wenger must have eavesdropped on my conversation with Li."

"I said at the time that if Li played as a defensive midfielder, his combination with Maguire could withstand the strongest attacking firepower in Europe, and they wouldn't even need much time to integrate! If you look back at their respective defensive characteristics in past games, they're simply the best partners!"

"Wenger has changed. He no longer deliberately pursues beautiful and sexy football, but closely revolves his tactics around Li."

"The first round of the Champions League group stage..."

"Barcelona's overall strength and value are much stronger. Neymar's value alone may be close to Li's... The strength of most of the other players is superior to Arsenal's."

"There have been conflicts between Messi and Enrique, and there are also differences on a tactical level. The problems in Barcelona's midfield and defense are very serious. He has too much work to do in the game. Maybe the next time he lifts the Champions League trophy... he will be representing another club!"

"I'm more optimistic about Li! He has the ability to decide games."

"Yes, yes, yes, I personally improved Barcelona's number 4 position twice back in the day. Li is the most perfect and outstanding work I left for La Masia."

Van Gaal's face was flushed, and he was in high spirits.

The female host then asked: "Six days later, Arsenal will face your old club, Manchester United..."

The famous Dutch coach counted on his fingers:

"Arsenal will have a tough battle at the Nou Camp in two days, an English League Cup game in four days, and a game against Manchester United in six days..."

"I'm more optimistic about Manchester United."

"Mourinho has more cards to play. He is very good at dealing with a tired Wenger."

....

Let's put aside the grudges between Barcelona and Arsenal and the Earth Defense War for now.

What fans are more interested in is the 'poaching' incident.

In recent years, the Gunners have given people the feeling... like they have been wearing one green hat after another by the galaxy battleship.

Fabregas was put in a Barcelona jersey in the national team, half-pushed and half-willing, and eventually paid out of his own pocket to join Barcelona.

Hleb cried and made a big emotional appeal, strongly demanding that Wenger let him join Barcelona at a low price.

Alex Song...

Vermaelen...

All of them were 'selling at a low price without violating the player's will'...

None of them could be sold at market price.

Don't even mention the loans to build the stadium.

A long time ago, the relationship between the two clubs' fans wasn't so bad.

For example, when Van Gaal coached Barcelona, he at least made Arsenal 40 million pounds in the 1990s.

However.

Now that the crown prince of La Masia has arrived at the Gunners, he has completely thrown back all the green hats of the past decade!

With the Champions League group stage about to begin.

The unrelated *Marca*... ignited the war between the La Liga and Premier League media.

The front page used a cartoon:

A black-haired little boy set up a red and white cannon, aiming at a group of fat-headed... middle-aged men wearing Barcelona jerseys!

Fans all over the world went crazy.

Online media outlets have quoted the image on their homepages.

*The Gunners' Revenge!*

The number of comments, likes, and reposts soared.

-[A plot of rejected engagement.]

-[The weather forecast said that on the day of the match, the Nou Camp will be bathed in bright moonlight, with no rain or clouds.]

-[Football is a team sport. Barcelona has no pressure to take down Arsenal, right? Bloodline suppression! This year Enrique bought so many talented stars again. With a stable midfield and defense, the MSN trio will be in full swing.]

-[The peak Dream Team IV dynasty is about to begin!]

-[According to the previous script: Barcelona will beat Arsenal at the Nou Camp, and then secretly send people to seduce and contact Little Li, then transfer him at a low price, and finally complete the plot of the crown prince returning home... Several stars have joined Barcelona according to this routine.]

-[Think too much, it's not certain who will beat whom.]

-[With Barcelona's midfield and defense lineup, they might be slaughtered by Little Li.]

.....

Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper training base.

Barcelona assistant coach Unzué frowned: "Young Denis and André don't have a deep enough understanding of space. I suggest the team stick to defensive counterattacks..."

Enrique immediately retorted:

"You have to take a good look. Their short-range passing skills are even stronger than Li's."

"I am laying the foundation for Barcelona's midfield cornerstone for the next ten years."

"Their task is far less heavy than Xavi's, and it doesn't require two hundred million! Just pass the ball to Messi and Neymar at the most appropriate time!"

"We already have the capital to play tiki-taka!"

On the green field.

Iniesta and Busquets were correcting young Denis's habits.

"Slow down the rhythm."

"Even slower!"

"When you get home, don't just watch Xavi's videos, you also have to watch Li's videos."

"See how the two of them use rhythm and space..."

Piqué looked at Umtiti with disgust.

It's not that the French black kid is bad.

It's just that the two people's defensive thinking doesn't match up.

"Boss, I think it would be more appropriate to have Mathieu partner with me at center back."

Mathieu?

Hasn't he been kicked out yet?

Enrique realized that he hadn't spoken to him for almost a year.

The Barcelona coaching team's consistent style: cold violence towards players who are not in the plan.

There are also problems in the frontcourt.

André Gomes simply cannot generate a chemical reaction with his attacking teammates.

He is more like a dull piece of wood behind the South American trident.

Neymar had a headache: this kid is so silly, he always has to hear me shout before he passes the ball.

In the distance.

Messi was undergoing rehabilitation training accompanied by the medical team.

He is recovering well.

It's just that his mood is not so pleasant.

Looking at the performance of the new teammates... he roughly guessed that the 150 million invested by Barcelona this summer had gone down the drain again.

It would be better to save a few hundred million and buy Li back.

"You usually have to send more messages to care about Li."

"Tell him that Barcelona is a very humane club."

"La Masia will always be his home."

...

Colney training ground.

Two teams were playing a split scrimmage.

Maguire suddenly had a conflict with Mustafi.

The two were butting heads, and their teammates couldn't pull them apart.

Cech shouted helplessly: "You two guys like to insert forward and participate in the attack so much... who will defend?"

Wenger shook his head and quickly asked the assistant coach to go up and mediate.

In his mind, he began to arrange new combinations of center backs.

As well as defensive midfielder combinations.

The Arsenal coaching team subconsciously didn't want Li Kang to play as a defensive midfielder.

They bought him for two hundred million and planned to deploy tactics according to the "quasi-ball king" style of play.

They were even reluctant to let Li Kang run back to the backcourt to do any dirty work.

They believe that this is not conducive to the team's counterattack.

But the battle at the Nou Camp will face the South American trident, one of the most terrifying attacking combinations in football history...