Chapter 82 — Xia Qi's Rookie Wall; The Premier League Returns to the Ferguson–Wenger Rivalry
Penguin livestream:
"Xia Qi slipped past Čech!"
"Incredible — it wasn't Messi's shoulder drop imitation, it was the real drop of the shoulder. This is no longer a technical duel, it's a psychological game."
"I predicted your prediction."
"Congratulations to Xia Qi on a four-goal haul."
"Although Kevin De Bruyne doesn't get a stat entry for this goal, he deserves at least half the credit — the other half goes to Mario Balotelli and Xia Qi."
"If Arsenal's performance tonight is not just a players' improvisation but a regular tactic, then in February's Champions League tie against Bayern, Arsenal will have a real fighting chance."
"This is Arsenal's third time meeting Bayern; the first two times they were helplessly eliminated. There's a Chinese saying, things don't happen more than three times — let's hope Arsenal can avenge themselves this year."
Zhan Jun's comments sparked heavy interest among netizens.
The livestream bullet chat exploded.
"Feel the pain? Look at the Gunners meeting their nemesis. Five years Barca, three years Bayern — Xiao Qiang's fate hasn't been this hard."
"Don't be so pessimistic. With Arsenal in this form tonight, they should be able to exact revenge."
"Still, Bayern beat the real Tiki-Taka. De Bruyne's play is Tiki-Taka-ish, but Bayern are Barca's kryptonite. Even genuine Tiki-Taka can't beat Bayern, let alone a copy."
"There's also a non-human out there — averaging nearly three goals per game; the advantage this time is on my side."
"Don't say the advantage's yours, it's creepy."
"Why overthink? Just go beat him and become the king of London. Turn him into London soil, that's all."
"Can you really turn him into London soil? Do we need you to say it?"
"..."
...
Online it was lively, and the stadium was lively too.
Arsenal fans were dominant — they had taken over Stamford Bridge.
This goal brought double joy!
Fans not only witnessed a London derby victory but also saw the winter-window signings paying off.
That meant the team truly had the strength of a top side.
On the touchline, Arsène Wenger alone looked calm.
This lineup had been designed to deal with Bayern; tonight was just a small test.
Not worth shouting about!
Yet when he saw Jack Wilshere on the bench punching the air in rage, he smiled happily — in Wenger's eyes that was more important than the win...
Xia Qi and the others returned from celebrating and the match continued.
At this point there were fewer than ten minutes remaining.
Chelsea were trailing 2–4, the game was effectively lost.
But they didn't give up.
Roberto Di Matteo withdrew a midfielder and brought on a forward — Daniel Sturridge replaced John Obi Mikel.
"Two goals down, Di Matteo wants to strengthen his attack. The idea is right.
But strengthening the attack isn't just about adding one more forward.
Chelsea have competent forwards — Torres, Mata, Hazard are top-quality.
Chelsea's problem now is how to get their attack pushed up to the edge of Arsenal's penalty area.
Clearly, this problem isn't solved simply by adding a striker."
Zhang Lu thought Di Matteo didn't fix the right problem, but substitutions on the pitch still look like changes of blade.
In the 88th minute, Hazard and Mata combined with a one-two; after evading Cazorla they burst down the wing, beat a defender, and shot.
Martínez palmed the ball away; Frank Lampard hammered a shot from the edge of the box that flew up into the stand.
In the 91st minute, deep into stoppage time, Chelsea mounted a comeback: Oscar lofted the ball into the box, Mertesacker headed it out, and Mata curled a shot into Arsenal's right side of the area.
Samuel Umtiti blocked it with his body; chaos ensued in the Arsenal box, Gibbs nodded it clear.
John Terry arriving at the far post unleashed a thunderous strike — finally breaking Emiliano Martínez's ten-finger grip.
He cut the deficit to 3–4!
But it was too late.
After Arsenal's restart, Santi Cazorla, Mikel Arteta and Kevin De Bruyne ran out the stoppage-time Tiki-Taka.
The referee blew for full-time.
Arsenal had taken the crucial mountain-top clash.
Next up, they'd return home to face Liverpool.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the match is over. This is the best match we've streamed of Xia Qi's games — bar none."
"Both teams traded blows from the start. The scoreline kept changing until Xia Qi received Mario Balotelli's assist, completed his four-goal haul, and sealed the win."
"Beyond the drama, all six goals were of high quality. In future, whenever someone mentions overhead kicks you'll remember tonight and that dark-haired youngster."
"There were many great moments tonight — Kevin De Bruyne, Emiliano Martínez, Petr Čech… they all impressed us."
"All right, that's tonight's broadcast. See you at the next match."
"Thanks for watching, goodbye!"
At the post-match press conference reporters asked Di Matteo why he'd helped the opposition — was Roman Abramovich missing that 20 million? — and he absorbed all the blame, apologizing to the fans in public.
The media-sought inside story was smoothed over lightly by Di Matteo.
The next day Chelsea announced that Di Matteo had been sacked; former Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez became the Blues' new boss.
In this sacking drama there were no losers.
Fans won — their demand was met.
Di Matteo won — he left with a bulging wallet and his dignity intact.
Benítez was a winner — he went on to lift the Europa League with the remnants of the old staff. (That's later.)
Of course the club was the biggest winner — it kept both fans and results. If not the club, who else?
At the press conference, when asked whether Arsenal could win the Premier League and the Champions League, Arsène Wenger answered firmly: yes!
"We strengthened in the winter break to win titles... to end Arsenal's eight-year drought."
He praised Xia Qi, Kevin De Bruyne, Mario Balotelli... and even the substituted Jack Wilshere profusely.
For Arsenal fans, this London derby win was double the joy.
When Xia Qi returned to the Jack household, the Jack family were in the yard having a barbecue.
Seeing Xia Qi come in, Jack raised his beer: "To our four-goal hero!"
Xia Qi clinked a cup with him, chatted briefly with the three, then went back to his room.
He opened his attributes panel.
Tonight five of his skill training bars were full. His stat total rose from 85 to 87.
87 wasn't Xia Qi's final number — he still had attribute points earned from recent matches to assign.
After applying them:
Technical attributes (88/100):
Ball control: 80+
Passing: 70+
Crossing: 70+
Dribbling: 80+
Marking: 70+
Tackling: 62+
Penalties: 85+
Corners: 45+
Heading: 80+
Long shots: 90+
Throw-ins: 52+
Free kicks: 60+
Shooting: 95+
Physical attributes (97/100):
Explosiveness: 97+
Jumping: 86+
Agility: 85+
Stamina: 90+
Balance: 94+
Pace: 97+
Vision: 95+
Strength: 98+
Fitness/constitution: 100
Mental attributes (77/100):
Creativity: 62+
Defensive positioning: 68+
Work rate: 72+
Concentration: 78+
Decisions: 68+
Determination: 75+
Aggression: ~50
Teamwork: 80+
Off-the-ball movement: 88+
Imagination: 75+
Influence: 62+
Bravery: 88+
Anticipation: 70+
Composure: 85+
...
Final attribute panel:
Host: Xia Qi
Bone age: 18 years
Height: 189 cm
Weight: 88 kg
Host ability rating: 90
Unallocated ability points: 0
Unallocated attribute points: 0
A swell of pride rose in Xia Qi's chest — if the system were to go, he could still survive in one of the Big Five leagues.
By the way: when Arsenal beat Chelsea 4–2, Tottenham drew Manchester United 1–1 at home. Arsenal led United by four points in the table.
Before the start of Premier League Round 24, Arsenal and Manchester United fielded reserve squads in the FA Cup fourth round and both lost — signaling they would focus fully on the Premier League and Champions League.
...
On 30 January 2013 Arsenal hosted Liverpool — the focal match of Round 24.
Earlier this season Liverpool lost 2–4 at home to Arsenal.
Tonight Liverpool vowed revenge, claiming Arsenal were a team that were dragons away from home and worms at home.
But the media thought that was old news — this season Arsenal were still unbeaten at home.
Before the match, nobody really fancied Liverpool except Liverpool themselves.
For this game, Arsenal set up with Mario Balotelli as a lone striker, Xia Qi shifted to left attacking midfield, Theo Walcott on the right. Jack Wilshere played as the number 10; Mikel Arteta and Santi Cazorla continued as the double pivot.
Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martínez; left-back Kieran Gibbs; center-backs Per Mertesacker and Samuel Umtiti; Aurélien Tchouaméni? (text names Ori—assume Serge Aurier) — actually it named Aurier as right-back.
This would be the Bayern-tested lineup; Wenger was using Liverpool to trial his setup.
Liverpool's lineup was similar to last time, with captain Jordan Henderson returning from injury to anchor the midfield.
At kickoff Liverpool were more proactive than Arsenal.
In the 4th minute Raheem Sterling cut inside into the penalty area and fired a low shot that Martinez saved.
A minute later, Henderson robbed Wilshere and Liverpool countered.
Lucas passed into the area; Luis Suárez attacked the far post and his instep shot didn't hit the target.
In the 8th minute Joe Allen fouled Xia Qi and received the game's first yellow card.
In the 10th minute Xia Qi played a diagonal ball from the left; Balotelli pulled the ball back and hammered a shot — Pepe Reina tipped it over the bar.
Wilshere swung a corner; Xia Qi rose at the near post with a lion's head flick; Reina again produced a miraculous save, pawing the ball over the crossbar.
Wilshere's second corner was cleared by Coates.
Liverpool launched a quick counter; Suárez used Mertesacker as a shield and nodded it on; Steven Gerrard hammered a shot from the edge of the area and opened the scoring.
After conceding, under the crowd's shouts, Arsenal played with some urgency; Henderson and two mates patrolled the center circle and stole possession again.
Sterling stormed down the wing and crossed; Suárez outmuscled Mertesacker and headed at goal.
Martínez produced another miraculous save.
In the 21st minute Sterling again beat three men on the left to the byline and Aurier hooked the ball out for a corner.
Gerrard's corner found Henderson at the far post who struck a world-class volley that smashed the crossbar — almost a contender for a top goal of the night.
In the 23rd minute Sterling and Joe Allen exchanged runs down the right; Henderson ran into the box from the outside and, using his run, headed over Umtiti.
Martínez leapt up and caught the ball.
In the 27th minute, Balotelli — offside — still finished a shot after the whistle and picked up an entirely unnecessary yellow card.
Wenger walked to the touchline with a gloomy face but did not berate him Mourinho-style; hands in pockets, he gave Balotelli a cold stare.
That calm but steely manner unnerved Balotelli; he hid behind Xia Qi asking what to do.
Xia Qi in AI-mode couldn't reply.
In the 29th minute Gerrard nearly produced a Beckham-style wonder lob.
He advanced past midfield, saw Martínez standing up, and tried a super-long lob. The ball hit the post — almost in.
In the 35th minute Xia Qi carried the ball in a 50m run from his half and unleashed a strike from the edge of the area — goal bound!
But Keko threw himself in the way and blocked the shot with his body.
Both sides had several more attempts but no more goals.
In the 44th minute Luis Suárez elbowed Xia Qi while battling for the ball in midfield and was booked.
Wenger protested to the fourth official, insisting it warranted a red card.
Half-time: Arsenal 0–1 Liverpool.
Second half began.
At the Emirates it poured rain. In the 47th minute Theo Walcott broke on the right and crossed into the box.
Balotelli's presence in the middle distracted defenders though he didn't get the ball. Xia Qi arrived unmarked on the left and calmly shot.
But Reina again made a world-class save and collected the ball.
In the 54th minute Balotelli intercepted in the middle and squared the ball; Xia Qi arrived at the near post and poked it in — Reina, off-balance, nevertheless got a leg to it and kept it out.
Xia Qi, covered in mud and no expression on his face, had tears running in his head: What's happening tonight? Why won't these sitters go in? Bad luck meets godlike form!
At the 70th minute, things got worse: Cazorla clipped Suárez from the side and the referee gave a red card.
Arsenal, already a goal down, were reduced to ten men.
Liverpool seized the chance, replacing Sturridge with Adam Lallana (or Downing? The text says Downing swapped on for Sturridge), looking to capitalize on Arsenal having one fewer player and secure victory.
At this moment, in the heavy rain, in the south stand the Ashburton Army (Arsenal's supporters group) did an astonishing thing: they took off their raincoats to stand with the players in the elements.
The players on the pitch were shivering from the cold, and the fans below doing this was an act bordering on self-harm — but it lifted the team's spirit.
On the pitch Arsenal's morale surged.
They ignored being a man down and lacking a crucial defensive midfielder and counterattacked Liverpool.
In the 75th minute, after a one-two with Balotelli, Xia Qi pulled back and unleashed a fierce shot which Reina punched out with both fists.
Balotelli knocked away defender Glen (Glen Johnson?) and followed up with a tap-in to make it 1–1.
In the 78th minute Xia Qi came storming back: he burst down the left, cut inside and threaded a pass — Balotelli arrived to tap into an open net, 2–1 and Arsenal took the lead.
Liverpool intensified their attack after falling behind.
After all, Arsenal were a man down and missing a very important defensive midfielder.
Liverpool soon dominated again.
In the 82nd minute Suárez received a clever pass from Gerrard and shot — it shaved the post and went out.
In the 87th minute Gerrard slipped a brilliant through-ball; Downing, just brought on in the second half, smashed in from a tight left angle — Martínez couldn't keep it out.
Both teams finished 2–2!
That was the final score.
It was Xia Qi's first match without a goal; he had a single assist. By stats alone this was his worst performance.
After the match, media reported Xia Qi had hit the "rookie wall."
Rookie wall, my foot!
Xia Qi was on auto-pilot!
There's no such thing as rookie wall — just mere mortals can't beat gods. Reina was divine tonight.
A week later, Round 25 of the Premier League began.
Arsenal won 1–0 at home against Stoke; Xia Qi still didn't score.
Wenger was experimenting in that match.
With Santi Cazorla suspended after his red, Wenger made a bold move: Wilshere and Kevin De Bruyne started together.
Wilshere and Arteta manned the deeper midfield; De Bruyne played as the attacking midfielder.
Like England's "two Dees won't coexist" theory, Arsenal played like garbage in this match. They didn't lose mainly because the opponent's football was very merry.
Stoke had two breakaway chances and enjoyed themselves.
Xia Qi didn't score because he played in a deeper midfield role; without him, Stoke's joy would have doubled.
After this match the myth of Xia Qi's rookie wall was cemented.
Xia Qi's parents called to "encourage" him. Emma Watson told reporters she believed Xia Qi would quickly come out of the slump and that she'd go to Sunderland to cheer him on.
Round 26 of the Premier League — at Sunderland.
Powered by the force of "love," Xia Qi headed and volleyed a hat-trick to lead Arsenal to a 5–0 drubbing of their opponents.
After Round 26 the table stood:
Arsenal 20 wins, 4 draws, 2 losses — 64 points
Manchester United 20 wins, 2 draws, 4 losses — 62 points
Manchester City 14 wins, 7 draws, 5 losses — 49 points
From then on, Manchester City had fallen behind; the Premier League had returned to the Ferguson–Wenger rivalry era.
After the match Xia Qi denied being motivated by romance and bounced back strongly.
"Miss Watson and I have only met once. We are not in a romantic relationship. I came to Arsenal to win titles, not for love…"
Xia Qi's statement won praise and support across Arsenal.
Arsenal were on the right track, and in the Premier League marathon they certainly didn't want their top scorer distracted by off-field matters.
Xia Qi's aloofness came from the fact that he was still Xia Pingzhi — he wouldn't return to his true self until March.
Most importantly, although Emma Watson was pretty, her aesthetic appeal didn't compare to Mi Jie or Dilraba Dilmurat in drawing Xia Qi's interest.
Xia Qi's comments angered Emma Watson's fans; they swarmed Arsenal's official site and Xia Qi's Twitter with insults and ridicule...
Arsenal and Xia Qi's supporters — people such as Alice and others — took to the internet to fight back.
The online world turned bloody.
Joanna told Xia Qi not to go online for a few days and to focus on preparing for the Bayern match.
Her negotiations with brands for his signature boot and three-stripe deal weren't going smoothly.
Xia Qi needed to make a breakthrough in the Champions League.
(END CHAPTER)
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