Chapter 1 To the Utmost

To maximize the profits from broadcasting revenue,

UEFA racked their brains over the scheduling of the 1/8 elimination round.

Finally, they arranged the most reasonable match time slots.

Starting at the same time as the Emirates Stadium match was Benfica vs. Juventus.

The Portuguese Super League powerhouse lacked star power.

Juventus, having lost Pirlo, had significantly reduced appeal.

As a result, most fans paid more attention to Arsenal's game.

ESPN live broadcast room.

-【I saw the weather forecast, it won't rain, Arsenal is sure to win! Look at Leverkusen's defense...】

-【Experts reviewed the Camp Nou battle and came to a unified conclusion: fire Enrique, put a dog on the Barcelona coaching bench, and they still wouldn't be defeated by Leverkusen!】

-【Enrique isn't bad, he was just careless. Now other teams in Europe know how to deal with Leverkusen.】

-【Football tactics have evolved to the point where any weakness in the lineup will be exploited by the opponent. Besides, the difference in strength between Leverkusen and Arsenal on paper is huge!】

-【The outcome doesn't matter, both teams are strong in attack and weak in defense, just go all out!】

-【Fun fact, Arsenal's defense at the beginning of each season is top-notch!】

......

The Leverkusen team bus slowly approached the Emirates Stadium.

Everyone's attention was drawn to the huge team logo on the outer wall.

The background of the logo featured the numbers of five Arsenal legends.

The luxurious and grand appearance was ten times better than the BayArena.

No matter how poor Arsenal was, their investment in all aspects was many times greater than Leverkusen's.

Brandt leaned out of the car window and exclaimed, "Henry's sliding celebration statue!"

Kramer quickly pulled him back: "There are also statues of Adams, Bergkamp, and Chapman! Calm down! The Londoners will think we North Rhine people are hicks!"

Havertz was stunned for a moment and whispered, "Li, the Premier League is not only richer than the Bundesliga, but the football culture is also very different. In the future..."

Li Kang put a green tangerine-flavored chewing gum into his mouth.

His mental state instantly reached its peak.

....

Pre-match press conference.

The flashbulbs flickered non-stop.

A reporter asked, "Mr. Toppmöller, what do you think of the match against Arsenal?"

Old man Toppmöller frowned and said, "The width of the Emirates Stadium is relatively narrow, which is not suitable for Leverkusen's fan-shaped attack. The difference in humidity between the grass in London and the grass in North Rhine is also very large, and the temperature..."

Dino opened his mouth in surprise and couldn't help but take out his notebook to write down these words.

The boss is indeed a famous coach! The coaching staff really didn't think about the issues of stadium width and grass differences!

The reporters were a little confused: who cares about these things?

On the other side.

Wenger smiled and did not refute this.

It's just that the width of the Emirates Stadium and the BayArena only differ by 18 centimeters...

"Mr. Wenger! Rumors say that Leverkusen's number 10 is your most important target for the next transfer window..."

The Arsenal coach did not answer directly, but sighed and said, "Li Kang is very good. He can seamlessly integrate with our tactical system. The most important thing is that he is very healthy. If time could be reversed, we would only need to spend 1 million euros..."

Before he could finish speaking,

The press conference burst into laughter.

Several La Liga reporters swallowed the question of "Arsenal copying Barcelona's system" back down.

......

In the players' tunnel.

Arsenal captain Per Mertesacker warmly greeted the Leverkusen players. He used to be the main center-back for the German national team.

Bellerín took the initiative to shake hands with Li Kang.

Both came from La Masia and were national teammates, but their relationship was very ordinary.

They were three years apart in age and had never spoken during their youth training.

Li Kang only vaguely remembered Bellerín's face.

...

Rams asked in a low voice, "He's really cold, huh? You guys really came from La Masia? You were much warmer when you met Deulofeu last time."

Bellerín shook his head and whispered, "Maybe it's the character flaw formed by being bullied and isolated every day as a kid... His adoptive mother is Castilian, and Li is Asian... Why are you looking at me like that? I never bullied him!"

Sánchez looked disdainful.

He was not disdaining Li Kang, but the Catalans of Barcelona.

He faintly recalled the past in Barcelona.

The line moved.

The referee team led the players from both sides out of the tunnel.

....

The Emirates Stadium was like a giant stage.

Pitch black.

Only the Champions League flag in the center circle flickered with a faint light.

The moment the players stepped onto the green field,

The familiar Champions League theme song sounded from the stadium's speakers.

All the spotlights lit up at the same time!

The stands erupted in a thunderous cheer!

“Co

Leno stepped lightly, quickly blocking the opponent's shooting angle!

Arsenal's Little Tiger, raised his left foot, making a shooting posture!

Bang!

The football did not roar towards Leverkusen's goal!

Instead, it was chipped into the twelve-yard area!

Giroud leaped high!

And fiercely shook his head!

The football went into the net!

1:0!!!

"Beautiful!"

"The ball went in!"

"So tacit! So gorgeous!"

"A crushing of team strength!"

"Arsenal passed the ball into Leverkusen's goal!"

"Ramsey's fatal pass! Walcott gave the opportunity to Giroud!"

....

Dragon Country Live Broadcast.

The barrage was neat and uniform.

-【Giroud! I'm sorry!】

-【Ramsey! I'm sorry!】

-【Professor! I'm sorry!】

-【...】

This season, the most worrying players for the fans were Giroud and Ramsey!

Especially Giroud.

He was known as a super flop!

.........

On the sidelines.

Wenger did not make overly crazy celebrations.

Instead, he clapped his hands gently with a smile on his face.

On the other side.

Dino explained dejectedly: "We practiced it before the game, but there's no way, their passing speed is too fast...our defenders can't keep up with Arsenal's passing timeline..."

Old man Toppmöller squeezed the mineral water bottle flat: "Calm down! Arsenal's passing success rate is not always very high! They will make mistakes! While attacking, the space exposed in the backcourt is also very large!"

He vaguely recalled the fear of being dominated by Arsenal more than ten years ago.

The same style of play!

The basic offensive framework has not changed much after more than ten years.

It's just that players from different eras have given different offensive details!

.....

After scoring the goal, Giroud was momentarily excited and pulled down his pants.