Chapter 1 The Morning

The morning mist hangs heavy.

At the Cobham Training Centre, the sounds of balls being kicked fill the air.

Diego Costa, after finishing his warm-up, heads over to the youth team's field, as usual, to offer some guidance to the young players.

Since his conflict with Conte escalated, he's been temporarily barred from training with the first team.

"Mount, you need to actively seek contact, don't be like that sissy Abraham!"

"Not bad, you remind me of Li."

"James, your forward run timing is too early!"

The youth team coach, Viveash, looks embarrassed, quickly signaling to the first-team veteran to quiet down.

A football flies out of bounds.

The young player, Musonda, throws his hands up, muttering, "What's a guy who's about to go to the Chinese Super League doing here?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the thin mist and reached Diego Costa's ears.

Viveash picks up the football, throws it back onto the field, and scolds, "If it weren't for that mouth of yours, you'd have made a name for yourself at Real Betis a long time ago!"

He then turns to look at the hot-tempered Chelsea striker, fearing he might do something irrational.

Diego Costa doesn't say a word, puts his hands in his pockets, and turns away.

On the pitch, he's a dirty bully, but off the pitch, after taking off his jersey, he's mostly gentle, especially after becoming a father.

Viveash sighs: if this guy were mute, his career would reach unbelievable heights.

...

Recently.

The conflict in Chelsea's locker room has become the most-watched topic for the English Premier League media.

Diego Costa first had his third argument with Conte, then got into a brawl with fitness coach Julio Tous.

The media even revealed photos of him and his agent, Mendes, having dinner with the owner of a Chinese Super League club.

In the head coach's office.

Assistant coach Holland takes out a stack of documents, adopts a respectful attitude, and softly suggests:

"Diego Costa only made small mistakes. He took the initiative to reconcile with Julio. We don't have a better striker than him at the moment. I suggest calling him back to the first team as soon as possible."

"If we let Diego Costa go next season, he won't go to the Chinese Super League. Simeone wants him to return to Atletico Madrid, and other big clubs are very interested in him."

"There's also the issue with Fabregas. In his limited playing time, he's provided far more key passes than other midfielders. He's maintaining his form very well."

Conte's face is stern.

He hasn't fully succeeded in "Italianizing" the Chelsea coaching staff, and these Stamford Bridge veterans are always nagging him... although their tone and attitude are still okay.

"They're excellent, but they don't fit my tactical philosophy."

"The team-building blueprint still needs time to piece together. I already have my ideal forward signings for next season in mind."

"Alright, let Diego Costa return to first-team training. We still need him for now."

After saying this.

Conte seems to remember something and quickly says, "Regarding Diego Costa's behavior of drinking beer after the game, you can convey this to the media: the head coach believes that drinking beer in moderation after the game can replenish fluids."

With a big battle on the horizon.

Chelsea can't afford any more internal strife scandals.

Holland nods in surprise: "What about the fine?"

"Impose the standard penalty according to the rules."

On the training ground.

Chelsea players are practicing passing in a circle.

Matic says, "Kante, the coaching staff will definitely have you mark Li closely, he's very..."

Kante shakes his head and says innocently, "The coach encouraged me to push forward more and participate in the attack and drive forward. He said that a midfielder who can only defend will be completely eliminated by the times in the next few seasons."

"The coach told me to practice shooting more."

Everyone falls silent.

Although they aren't completely convinced by Conte in their hearts, they have to agree with the development directions he's pointed out for each player.

"The coach also said that Arsenal only has five players who are relatively strong in their lineup: Morata, Li, Sanchez, Cazorla, and Cech. The level of the other players is average, but in our lineup, only Moses and Marcos's level is relatively average. The three-center-back system can make up for their weaknesses..."

There's no malice in this sentence.

The honest Kante accidentally relayed Conte's views...

In the distance.

Moses and Marcos are practicing one-on-one, completely unaware of Kante's remarks.

Terry quickly interrupts, "What the boss says isn't necessarily completely correct..."

Kante nods earnestly.

Hazard scratches his crotch, wondering what kind of burger he should have for lunch.

...

At the Cobham training base.

After a slow-paced legends game.

It took Li Kang 40 minutes to readjust to the intensity of the Premier League in the team's scrimmage.

Morata hands him a sports drink and says softly, "Arsenal is better. If we had gone to Chelsea back then, we might have had to find ways to please Conte."

"Did you see the news? Chelsea's locker room is a mess. I reckon that even if Conte wins the Premier League title, his ending next season will be similar to Mourinho's."

That being said.

The Spanish striker doesn't dare to be careless.

During this period in history, there are two clubs in European football that have a curse of internal strife rumors: Chelsea and Bayern Munich. Whenever the conflicts within them escalate, they'll explode with amazing combat power in the upcoming matches.

Fans jokingly call it: a super smokescreen.

Morata thinks for a moment and says, "Of course, if you had gone to Chelsea, Conte might not have become Chelsea's head coach."

Li Kang smiles, not speculating about things that didn't happen.

Simeone and Buffon have both given suggestions on how to break Conte's three-center-back system, but Conte's ability to adapt on the fly isn't bad either, and his bench is also deep.

The match between Arsenal and Chelsea still won't be easy.

In the system panel, the achievement section flickers with a faint light.

[King of London: 3/6.]

[Opponents not yet defeated: Fulham, Chelsea, Crystal Palace.]

[After this achievement is unlocked, a mascot from a London team can be randomly summoned at the Emirates Stadium.]

On the sidelines.

Bould hands over a report: "Boss, Li didn't expend much energy in the legends game, and he wasn't injured. All the indicators in his physical examination are normal."

Wenger puts his hands in his jacket pockets and says, "As long as we defeat Chelsea, we'll almost have the Premier League trophy in our grasp."

The last time Arsenal won the Premier League title was in the 2003-04 season.

It's been thirteen years since then.

Bould clenches his fist excitedly: "Boss, we only spent two hundred million... and we've created an Arsenal dynasty!"

...

The days pass one by one.

The English Premier League matchday arrives.

Li Kang and his teammates arrive at Stamford Bridge.

The four stands are gradually filled with fans.

The atmosphere isn't very loud.

Compared to the clamor of Anfield and Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge is more like a quiet library.

Although there are restrictions on the number of away tickets, passionate away fans can always find ways to get some tickets for the home stands.

In the VIP box.

Abramovich rests his chin on his hand, gazing mournfully at Li Kang, who is warming up on the field.

"I almost bought Arsenal back then, damn Swiss bank investigators."