The commentator's voice carried across the broadcast, and the excitement among Arsenal supporters only grew louder.
Many of them still remembered the unbeaten Arsenal side that went 49 league matches without defeat. Those memories had never faded.
After the difficult seasons that followed, the hunger for another great run had only grown stronger.
Seven matches into the new campaign, Arsenal had produced six wins and one draw. No defeats.
They had beaten Manchester City away. They had also won at Tottenham. A draw at Chelsea completed the early run.
Supporters began to believe again.
Another unbeaten season remained a dream, of course. At this stage, most fans were thinking about something more immediate. A strong run in both the Premier League and the Champions League.
Those were the competitions that truly mattered.
As for the FA Cup, few people were thinking about that just yet.
During the match against Hull City, Arsenal had already done the hard work in the first half. Two goals gave them a comfortable lead.
"Arsenal is in control at the break. Two goals ahead, and Hull City will need something special to turn this around."
The co-commentator responded in a thoughtful tone.
"Yes. Arsenal moved the ball very well in the first half. Hull struggled to keep up with the tempo."
Hull City made a few changes after the break, trying to inject more energy into the game.
Arsenal stayed with the same approach that had worked earlier, though they were noticeably more cautious. With a two-goal lead, there was no need to take unnecessary risks.
For them, protecting the result was enough.
In the seventy-ninth minute, both sides made substitutions.
Arsenal made a defensive switch. Rio Ferdinand and Per Mertesacker came off, while Laurent Koscielny and Shkodran Mustafi entered the match.
These two defenders had not started the previous two games. Wenger wanted to keep them involved and maintain their rhythm.
A manager also had to think about the mood inside the squad.
Giving them a short run on the pitch helped maintain balance in the dressing room.
After the changes, Hull City began pushing forward with greater urgency.
The commentator's voice rose slightly as the clock moved toward the final minutes.
"Hull City still searching for something here, and they're committing more players forward now."
In the eighty-ninth minute, Hull City finally found their moment.
A quick counterattack opened the space. Uruguayan striker Hernandez burst down the flank, slipped past Hector Bellerin, cut inside, and struck from a tight angle.
The ball flew past the goalkeeper and into the net.
"Well, that's a clever finish. Not an easy angle at all."
"Hull City have one back late in the game. Perhaps a little frustration there for Bellerin."
It was Hull City's only goal of the night.
But it came too late to change the outcome.
When the final whistle sounded, Arsenal secured a 2–1 victory.
Another three points.
After the match, Bellerin looked frustrated. The late mistake clearly bothered him.
He expected a difficult conversation with the manager.
Instead, Arsène Wenger simply walked over and patted him on the shoulder.
"No problem. These things happen."
The calm reaction caught Bellerin completely off guard.
He had been bracing for criticism.
Now he only felt awkward.
Kai watched the exchange from a short distance away, trying to stifle a laugh.
In truth, the manager rarely lashed out at players. It only happened when someone repeated the same mistake again and again, or when the error was extremely basic.
Bellerin's situation was different.
Besides, Wenger was in a good mood after another win.
Allowing a small mistake in a match that was already under control was not a big issue.
With the eighth round of the Premier League completed, Arsenal quickly shifted their focus.
Next came the third round of the Champions League group stage.
Their opponent was the Belgian club Anderlecht, and the match would be played away from home.
Anderlecht remained one of Belgium's most successful clubs. Their history in European competitions was impressive.
They had lifted several continental trophies across different tournaments.
In terms of European honors, their record even surpassed Arsenal's.
But football lives in the present.
And in the present, Arsenal were clearly stronger.
Their squad value alone was more than six times that of Anderlecht. Of course, matches are not decided by numbers on paper, but the gap between the teams was obvious.
Even with home advantage, Anderlecht knew the challenge ahead.
When Arsenal arrived in the city, the atmosphere around the match became tense.
Across Europe, people were praising this Arsenal side.
The pressure on Anderlecht grew quickly.
Before the match had even begun, the weight of expectation was already heavy.
Still, not everyone felt intimidated.
Youri Tielemans certainly did not.
Born in Sint Pieters Leeuw, a small town in northern Belgium, Tielemans had joined Anderlecht's academy when he was only five years old.
As he grew up, his talent became impossible to ignore.
On October 2, 2013, he made history.
At just sixteen years and one hundred forty-eight days old, Tielemans started for Anderlecht in the Champions League as a defensive midfielder.
The moment placed his name in the record books.
He became the youngest Belgian ever to appear in the competition, and the third youngest player in Champions League history.
After his first team debut in the 2013–14 season, he quickly established himself in the squad.
By the following season, he was already sharing midfield responsibilities with experienced players like Steven Defour.
The Belgian league had found its newest prodigy.
And prodigies rarely lack confidence.
At seventeen, Tielemans was not interested in playing the respectful youngster.
Instead, he went directly for Arsenal's superstar.
When asked after training in a brief interview about Kai and their upcoming game, he had things to say.
"Yeah, Kai is wonderful. Arguably the best defensive midfielder in the world, but I think I have one thing over him."
"What could that be?"
"I was playing Champions League at sixteen."
It was a clear swipe at Kai.
Kai could only shake his head when he saw it.
He partly understood. Being an upcoming talent and wanting to prove yourself against one of the best.
Whether it was youthful exuberance or arrogance, he will see if Tielemans can back it up on the field.
His teammates, however, reacted very differently.
Inside the dressing room, the mood instantly turned lively.
"Cap, he's calling you out!"
"Oi, Kai, you got to teach the brat a lesson."
"Come on, Kai, how are you going to answer that?"
"A seventeen-year-old kid talking like that. You cannot let that go."
Kai looked at the group, all of them fired up as if the insult had been directed at them personally.
He understood the situation perfectly.
These guys were enjoying the drama far more than he was.
Kai had no intention of responding to the challenge.
That decision left several Arsenal teammates disappointed.
From the other side, Anderlecht supporters were delighted.
To them, a seventeen-year-old Youri Tielemans openly challenging Kai showed courage. When Kai stayed silent, many of those fans interpreted it as weakness.
In their minds, Tielemans had already won.
Kai never bothered trying to understand that line of thinking. He did not care to.
From his perspective, talking meant very little. The only response that mattered would come on the pitch.
With that tension hanging in the air, the third round of the Champions League group stage finally arrived.
Arsenal travelled to Brussels and stepped into the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium, the home of Anderlecht.
The moment the Arsenal team bus arrived outside the stadium, the atmosphere turned hostile.
Large groups of Anderlecht supporters surrounded the entrance area, shouting as the players stepped off the bus.
"Hey, Kai. Why didn't you answer Tielemans?"
"Tielemans is more talented than you!"
The taunts were sharp and relentless. Even some Arsenal players felt their tempers rising.
Yet Kai walked forward calmly, his expression unchanged, as if none of the noise mattered.
That calm reaction did not have the same effect on everyone inside the squad.
The constant taunts, combined with Kai's silence, began to affect the mood in the dressing room.
Kai noticed it immediately.
Originally, he truly had no interest in responding to a teenager's provocation. It felt unnecessary.
Now the situation had changed.
If he continued to ignore it, the tension could spread through the team.
Inside the dressing room, Arsène Wenger finished explaining the tactical plan for the match.
When he finished, Kai slowly stood up from his seat.
Wenger glanced at him and stepped aside without a word, quietly giving him the space.
All eyes in the room turned toward their captain.
Kai walked to the center of the dressing room and looked around at his teammates.
His voice was calm.
"I never planned to respond. That kind of provocation is childish and pointless."
He paused briefly.
"But it looks like some of you are letting it get to you."
The room remained silent.
Everyone understood what he meant.
Kai was the leader of the team. When the captain was publicly challenged and said nothing, it could shake the confidence of the squad.
Kai sighed softly.
"Alright. Since you want an answer, I'll give one."
Several players leaned forward in their seats.
Kai continued.
"He said he was playing in the Champions League at sixteen."
Kai lifted the captain's armband from his right hand.
Under the watchful eyes of the entire room, he calmly wrapped it around his left arm.
He adjusted it, then tapped it lightly.
His voice rose slightly.
"I'm twenty-two years old."
He looked at everyone.
"And I'm the captain of Arsenal. and Premier League winner."
For a moment, the dressing room was completely silent.
Then the room exploded.
Players jumped to their feet.
Someone slapped the locker behind him.
"Brilliant, captain!"
"That's the answer!"
Laughter and cheers filled the room.
The logic behind Kai's reply was simple.
Playing in the Champions League at sixteen was impressive, but it was not unique. Others had done it before.
Tielemans was not even the youngest player in the history of the competition.
A twenty-two-year-old captain of one of the Premier League's biggest clubs and pivot in their title-winning season.
That was a different level entirely.
He had not been afraid to respond.
He simply did not think the challenge deserved his attention.
Tielemans had not earned that level of importance yet.
As the players prepared to head out, the mood inside the Arsenal dressing room had completely shifted.
Energy filled the room.
At the door, N'Golo Kanté clapped his hands excitedly.
He pointed toward the tunnel with a wide grin.
"Come on. We show them."
Players began filing out of the dressing room.
Their voices echoed down the corridor.
"Forward, Gunners!"
"Forward, Gunners!"
One after another, they marched toward the pitch with renewed intensity.
At the front of the group walked Kai.
. . .
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