January 26th.
Leicester, King Power Stadium.
Before the match even started, the stadium was already packed.
Leicester City fans wearing blue jerseys were loudly singing the club anthem while not forgetting to wave the Blue Foxes scarves in their hands, creating a lively pre-match atmosphere.
And Ling Shan and his wife Julia were also sitting in the VIP section of the King Power Stadium for the first time.
The resounding songs circling the entire stadium made their hearts swell with excitement.
This wasn’t their first time coming to the King Power Stadium to watch a match.
But this time was different from every time before.
Because their precious son was about to make the first start of his professional career in this very stadium!
Yesterday, upon learning he had made the starting lineup, Ling Feng immediately called home to share the good news with his parents.
Then, he asked the club staff for two tickets.
The first start of his professional career, such a milestone moment, naturally had to be witnessed by his family members in this world.
The loud songs inside the stadium also reached the away team’s dressing room.
The Chelsea players who were currently changing clothes, however, wore relaxed expressions.
And the team’s joker, Hazard, even stood shirtless in the center of the dressing room, wearing only his shorts, continuously twisting his body to the rhythm of the music playing from his phone.
His comical dance moves drew loud laughter from his teammates.
Several teammates also mimicked his moves and danced along.
The last time Leicester City and Chelsea clashed was two years ago.
The battlefield was also the FA Cup.
At that time, Chelsea secured a massive 5-2 victory.
Moreover, in the five historical encounters between the two teams, Chelsea had won all five!
Perhaps it was exactly because they had never lost that the Chelsea players, possessing a psychological edge, were so relaxed.
Due to implementing a complete rotation, only Hazard and Lampard in Chelsea’s starting lineup were absolute core starters.
The rest of the positions, including the goalkeeper, were filled by substitutes who rarely saw playing time in the league and the Champions League. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
It’s worth mentioning that the defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic, who had just transferred from Benfica during the winter window for a fee of 21 million pounds, was given his first starting opportunity.
And as a newly transferred rookie, Matic sat quietly in the corner, changing his boots without participating in the “dance party.”
Actually, this silent, tall defensive midfielder was bought by Chelsea as early as 2009 for a fee of 1.5 million pounds.
But due to fierce competition within the squad and his lack of ability at the time, Matic wasted a year in the reserves before being loaned to Vitesse in the Eredivisie.
Fast forward to 2011, Matic, who had no playing opportunities at Chelsea, was sent to Benfica as a makeweight in the deal for Chelsea to buy David Luiz.
The Portuguese giant Benfica, as one of the springboards for many young South American prospects to reach the top five leagues, is a famous “black shop” in the football world.
Their business model usually involves vigorously developing these high-potential youngsters, and then selling the fully-leveled youngsters to top five league teams for hefty prices to make massive profits.
Di Maria, David Luiz, Coentrão…
Each one became a highly renowned star for major clubs!
And Matic, upon arriving in the Portuguese league, was like a fish taking to water, quickly establishing himself and becoming the team’s starting defensive midfielder.
Last season, he helped Benfica secure runner-up finishes in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, the Taça de Portugal, and the Europa League.
And individually, thanks to his outstanding performances throughout the season, he was named the Portuguese league’s Player of the Season.
Such performances earned the recognition of Mourinho, now in his second stint, who bought him back.
As the defensive midfielder specifically requested by Mourinho in the winter window, Matic was the first step in Mourinho building a new tactical structure at Chelsea.
And this FA Cup match against Leicester City was Matic’s first start since returning to Chelsea.
He had to deliver a sufficiently good performance to repay Mourinho’s trust and secure a place in Chelsea’s highly competitive midfield!
While his thoughts were turning, the team’s manager Mourinho walked swiftly into the dressing room.
“Turn off the music!
Sit down!”
Under Mourinho’s unquestionable tone, Hazard immediately turned off the music on his phone.
And the other players scrambled to sit back in their seats.
Looking around, after seeing everyone’s gaze focused on him, Mourinho slowly began to speak:
“Listen, the things that needed to be said and the tactics that needed to be arranged were already covered in the tactical room yesterday.” This chapter was copied from novelping dot com without permission.
“I just want to repeat it once more: no matter who the opponent is, as a team, we must be tough and full of fighting spirit!”
After a brief pep talk, Mourinho looked towards the silently sitting Matic in the corner and said in a deep voice: “Nemanja, your task is very simple, mark that number 23 to death for me!”
Hearing this, Matic’s expression turned serious, and he nodded vigorously.
“Understood, Boss!”
…
Meanwhile, inside the home team dressing room.
Compared to the away team, the atmosphere in the home team dressing room was much calmer.
The starting players, led by Ling Feng, were all focused on doing their own things.
Getting a rare starting opportunity, and against a Premier League giant like Chelsea at that, it was inevitable that their hearts felt a bit excited and nervous.
Even though the manager told them “don’t feel pressured, just play your game freely,” it couldn’t fully soothe the ups and downs in their hearts.
After all, for substitute players, this match was a rare opportunity for them to perform.
However, both Pearson and the players understood that the main purpose of this match was to give players experience and let the regular starters rest.
As for winning or losing, it really wasn’t important…
After a brief pep talk, Pearson prepared to attend the pre-match press conference.
Just as he walked out of the dressing room, assistant manager Walsh next to him suddenly asked:
“By the way, Nigel, the press officer just asked me if we want to bring Ling along to attend the press conference.”
“What do you think?”
Hearing this, Pearson frowned.
Since his sudden emergence in the FA Cup, Ling Feng’s performances had been stunning, making him feel very happy and gratified.
However, such outstanding performances also attracted media reporters like hyenas.
In the football world, Pearson had seen far too many newly debuted young players get excessively hyped by the media because of a few good performances, and then lose themselves, ultimately becoming a classic case of unfulfilled potential.
He didn’t want Ling Feng to turn out like that.
So, Pearson shook his head, rejecting this proposal that could increase the team’s attention and traffic: “He’s still young, I don’t want the media attention and bullshit hype to go to his head!”
(END CHAPTER)