With no matches scheduled, Manchester seemed to have returned to its usual tranquility.
On Hale Green Road in the evening.
Maria handed over a gift bag, her eyes smiling as she softly said, "This is the result of my studies in Spain."
Ling took it and curiously examined it—it was a Spanish-style suit.
"What made you think of making clothes for me?"
"If not for you, who else would I make them for?"
"Hmm... Uncle?"
Maria was momentarily speechless upon hearing this—she had genuinely forgotten about her father.
After a while, she earnestly reminded Ling, "Please don't tell him I designed a suit for you, or he'll start nagging me again."
"Is there anywhere you'd like to go this summer?"
Ling nodded with a light smile.
Maria rested her chin on her hand, thought for a moment, and then her eyes lit up excitedly. "China! I want to see where you grew up. Oh, right, and pandas!"
She had actually wanted to visit China for a long time but never found the opportunity.
After all, her father was Guardiola.
"Sure, we can bring Marius and Valentina along. I'm sure the little ones would love to go too." Ling considered asking Mendes to postpone some commercial activities.
Unconsciously, the two arrived in front of Guardiola's villa, just as Guardiola stepped out of his car.
The future father-in-law didn't seem to be in a good mood today.
As for the reason? It wasn't hard to guess—it was related to the match.
Leicester City's aggressive start had Manchester City struggling and complaining.
The match remained goalless until the 70th minute.
Just as everyone thought it would end in a draw, Aymeric Laporte passed the ball to Vincent Kompany, and the Belgian veteran scored a brilliant long-range shot, forcefully breaking through Leicester City's defense.
In the end, Manchester City won 1-0 thanks to that goal.
But Guardiola couldn't bring himself to feel happy.
Because Manchester City hadn't played well in that match—neither their tactical execution nor the players' performances met Guardiola's expectations.
However, when Guardiola saw his daughter walking side by side with Ling, with Ling carrying an exquisitely packaged clothing bag, his mood instantly worsened.
"Aren't you playing in the Champions League Semi-final tomorrow? What are you doing wandering around here late at night? Shouldn't you be heading to Liverpool early?" Guardiola asked in a displeased tone.
Ling could only sigh helplessly... He hadn't done anything at all, so why had he managed to offend Guardiola again?
And what did he mean by "late at night"? It was only 6:30 p.m., and he hadn't even had dinner yet!
Guardiola also knew he shouldn't have said that.
But the thought of his precious daughter forgetting about her old father after falling in love, combined with the fact that the Manchester City team he coached kept losing to Manchester United, made him feel uncomfortable just looking at Ling.
Fortunately, his future mother-in-law, Cristina, came to the rescue just in time.
"Dinner is ready. Come in and eat."
"He can't eat. Pre-match meals have to follow the team's arrangements," Guardiola explained on Ling's behalf.
"Auntie, I'll come over for a meal after this match is over," Ling chimed in.
Then he winked at Maria and prepared to leave.
Maria waved and called out, "I'll be at the stadium tomorrow to cheer for you in the match against Liverpool."
Ling raised the garment bag in response.
Beside them, Guardiola felt another devastating blow!
His bald head seemed to lose its shine under the streetlights.
Even at this critical moment in the League Title race, his daughter hadn't come to cheer for him at the stadium.
Fortunately, he still had another little treasure.
But then Valentina came running out of the house, "thump-thump," and hugged Maria's arm, whining.
"Can I skip school tomorrow and go to Liverpool with my sister?"
"No!" Guardiola flatly refused.
Upon hearing this, Valentina pouted, neither speaking nor making a fuss, just staring at Guardiola.
Seeing Valentina's teary-eyed expression, Guardiola felt worse than after losing a match.
He waved his hand helplessly. "Fine, go if you want. Ask Ling for the tickets."
Only then did Valentina's tears turn into a smile.
...
Around 7:30 p.m., Ling drove to the training base, had a meal with his teammates, and then boarded the bus to Liverpool.
The journey from Manchester to Liverpool took only about 55 minutes.
Ling sat in his familiar window seat.
The receding streetlights formed continuous lines, creating a gentle scene against the night sky.
"Let's start with our arrangements," Mourinho said, accustomed to using spare time to discuss tactics.
He pointed to the screen at the front of the bus and continued, "We'll stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation, but there will be some positional changes. Romelu will play as the center forward, and Ling, you'll be on the left wing."
"This is because our left flank's defensive strength is limited. Once Liverpool seize the opportunity to press us there, we'll be stuck in a passive situation. That's exactly what happened in the last match, so we need to change!" Mourinho's deep voice echoed through the bus.
"It's similar to the tactics we used against Liverpool last season. We'll use strong attacking pressure to counter-press Liverpool, leveraging Ling's individual ability to create breakthroughs and force Liverpool to shift defensive resources."
The screen switched to match footage.
On Liverpool's right flank, Salah was responsible for ball distribution, and Arnold's forward runs were also highly threatening.
If they could force these two to drop back and defend, the pressure on Manchester United's left flank would be significantly reduced, allowing them to spread their influence across the entire midfield and attack.
Against Liverpool, they couldn't rely on sudden bursts of play.
They needed to gradually take control of the match's rhythm. Mourinho had been working tirelessly lately.
Although Klopp's tactical expertise was high, Mourinho was no slouch either!
When Conte's three-center-back formation dominated the Premier League, it was Mourinho who devised the solution, and the other Premier League clubs simply copied his answer.
Now, Liverpool's tactics are straightforward—an asymmetrical setup on the left and right wings.
They exploit the advantage created on the right flank, then swiftly shift to the other side, leaving Manchester United no time to reorganize their defense.
But Manchester United doesn't need to figure out how to solve this—they can simply mimic Liverpool by building their own advantage on the wings.
In truth, Mourinho knew Klopp would anticipate this.
But anticipating it doesn't mean being able to solve it.
"Ling, you must apply relentless pressure on Liverpool, draw as many defenders as possible, so they'll expose their defensive weak side." Mourinho didn't ask if it could be done because he believed Ling had the ability.
From their first meeting, he knew that the greater the pressure on Ling, the more energy he could unleash.
Just like his former self.
Ling withdrew his gaze from the screen, looked up toward the front of the bus, and nodded seriously.
"I will."
Although he had played as a striker for this season, he hadn't forgotten his winger skills.
After all, many positions in football share common principles.
Besides, if he couldn't gain an advantage against Arnold, he might as well retire right away!
Ling had that much confidence in himself.
As Mourinho laid out his detailed arrangements, the bus gradually made its way toward Liverpool, toward that magnificent stadium under the night sky.
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