"Did you receive the box of wine I sent you?"
At the entrance of the players' tunnel, Gao Shen ran into Ferguson.
Before the match began, the two stood there for a while, and Gao Shen asked with a smile.
During this trip to Old Trafford, Gao Shen had specifically sent Ferguson a box of Chilean wine, a new product recently launched by his company. It was said to be of better quality than the previous version, and naturally, the price had gone up a bit as well.
According to Su Qing, Gao Jianguo, and Su Zhijun's plan, they intended to use this wine to break into the domestic mid-to-high-end market.
Gao Shen certainly wouldn't miss the opportunity to leverage someone as influential as Ferguson, so he sent him another box without hesitation.
With the experience from the last time, this "operation" went much more smoothly.
"Yeah, I got it." Ferguson couldn't help licking his lips at the mention of wine. He really enjoyed a good drink.
"But to be honest, I've always been curious. You don't exactly seem like the generous type, why are you giving me wine for no reason? Are you up to something?"
"What could I possibly be plotting?" Gao Shen chuckled. "You drank the wine I gave you last time, and you're still standing here, right?"
Ferguson nodded. Nothing had gone wrong.
At most, it had somehow leaked to the media and got reported, but that was hardly unusual.
A big club like Manchester United constantly attracted media attention. Who cared about the occasional leak?
Besides, the few media reports back then were nothing but idle gossip to Ferguson.
"This time, I asked a friend to carefully select some quality Chilean wine. If I had any ulterior motive, it'd be to get you drunk and have you mess up. But aren't you standing here just fine?" Gao Shen said in mock seriousness.
Ferguson believed him.
It was just a box of wine. What could possibly come of it?
"Don't think you can get me to go easy on you just by sending me a gift before the game," Ferguson warned.
"No, don't!" Gao Shen immediately raised his hand to stop him. "I hope you'll be ruthless. If you go easy on my players, that would mean you're not giving me face. I'd be extremely disappointed."
Ferguson was baffled.
Why did it feel like Gao Shen was being extra weird today?
"You're up to no good, aren't you?" Ferguson said suspiciously.
Even after knowing Gao Shen for two years, he still couldn't figure the man out.
That was the generational gap.
"My worst thought is stripping Lineker naked tonight!" Gao Shen burst out laughing.
Ferguson couldn't help but laugh too. "I don't like him either, but I have to say, you won't be able to."
Can't strip him? Then how about you?
Gao Shen shot a mischievous look at Ferguson, gave a light "Let's wait and see," and then turned and walked away.
Ferguson watched him leave, amused.
Even after returning to the home dugout, his brows remained furrowed.
"Tell the players to stay sharp from the kickoff. I've got a strange feeling about City tonight," Ferguson instructed.
He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something felt off.
Throughout the season, Gao Shen had come up with something new for every single match.
Like in the game against Arsenal, who would've thought Robben was in such good form, only to be left on the bench?
And yet, when he came on as a substitute, the Dutchman directly contributed to three goals.
Looking at tonight's starting XI, the biggest surprise from Manchester City was Felipe being benched.
Could this mean Gao Shen was going to pull a similar stunt like he did against Arsenal?
But it didn't feel quite the same.
Felipe, the left-back, was solid on both ends, but in terms of pure ability, he wasn't on the same level as Robben.
Gareth Bale was only 20 years old, a young talent whose performance at Tottenham hadn't exactly been eye-catching. No matter how you looked at it, he was a defensive liability. Could Gao Shen be baiting United into attacking down Bale's side?
Don't laugh, many managers really did that when setting up tactical traps.
Leave one flank open on purpose, so they could fortify other areas with targeted defensive arrangements.
Could that be Gao Shen's plan?
If Ferguson couldn't figure it out, he might as well stop guessing.
In any case, one thing was clear: better safe than sorry!
…
At the BBC headquarters, inside the studio of Match of the Day, the three hosts, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Alan Hansen, along with the production team, were closely following the developments of the match.
The finale of this round's fixtures was the Manchester Derby.
To accommodate a global audience, the Premier League had scheduled it for the afternoon, ensuring fans worldwide could watch live.
Under the supervision of referee Howard Webb, the two captains were doing the coin toss.
Giggs won the toss, giving Manchester United the kick-off. That was the Red Devils' first minor victory of the night.
Lineker let out a loud "Wow" and breathed a sigh of relief.
Shearer, Hansen, and the others standing around found it hilarious.
Even though it was just a bet, if United lost again, no one knew what would happen next.
It wasn't like they could really let Lineker host the show stark naked, right?
Even if he was willing, there's no way the BBC would allow it.
But over the past few weeks, Match of the Day had been enjoying a surge in popularity, all thanks to Lineker's viral bet, effectively riding a massive wave of attention.
"Relax. Statistically speaking, United should have the edge at home. Ferguson made some questionable decisions in the past, but he's been solid lately. Nothing's going to go wrong," Shearer reassured him.
Lineker forced a smile, though his unease was written all over his face.
"Looking at their lineup, United rested well midweek. Carrick, Sneijder, and Fletcher are all starting, especially Sneijder. His arrival has really improved the flow of United's midfield passing," Hansen added, trying to boost morale.
The ideal outcome tonight was for Gao Shen and his Manchester City to stumble at Old Trafford.
That way, the looming crisis could be completely defused.
So tonight, everyone at Match of the Day was firmly backing Manchester United.
"Ferguson is an old hand. Felipe didn't expect Manchester City's left flank to become a hidden danger today. I'm guessing Ferguson will definitely try to exploit that. But good teams always like to start with a strong attack, so I think Manchester United will play more steadily at the start," Shearer analyzed.
Lineker and Hansen, both legendary players with a deep understanding of the game, agreed with Shearer's assessment.
As he spoke, the live broadcast showed Howard Webb blowing the whistle to start the match.
…
At Old Trafford, amid the cheers of more than 75,000 fans, this world-renowned clash officially kicked off.
Berbatov and Rooney took the kick-off in the center circle, but unlike usual, they didn't pass the ball backward. Instead, Rooney carried the ball forward into Manchester City's half.
Giggs and Berbatov also pushed up simultaneously. It was clear that Manchester United wanted to apply pressure from the start.
However, David Silva and Rakitic dropped in front of Javi Martinez to cover defensively, preventing United from penetrating beyond the 30-meter zone and forcing them to recycle the ball back to the defensive line.
Manchester City immediately launched a counterattack from the front.
Even Suarez, Robinho, and Robben who were usually reluctant to press were now actively chasing and pressing high up the pitch.
"Manchester City's players look sharp and full of energy," praised commentator Andy Gray.
With pressure up front and a solid midfield screen, United were forced to play a long ball toward Berbatov, but David Luiz beat him to it and headed the ball back into midfield.
David Silva got to the second ball and played it back to Javi Martinez.
The Manchester City midfielder used his body to shield off Rooney, held the ball well, and then passed to the now-open David Silva, who quickly laid it off to Rakitic. City switched the play to the right.
At that moment, the game had just passed the one-minute mark.
Robben carried the ball forward down the right, with Evra quickly retreating.
No left-back would be overly confident facing Robben, even if he was playing on his weaker side.
Especially after his performance against Arsenal.
Robben swiftly crossed the halfway line and drove into United's 30-meter zone but didn't manage to create a threat and opted to pass the ball back.
Rakitic, who had also crossed the halfway line, controlled the ball just as Sneijder came pressing.
"Manchester United are retreating quickly and organizing a counter-press near the halfway line."
Rakitic didn't hesitate. Before Sneijder could close him down, he played a horizontal pass to Javi Martinez, who had just moved past the halfway line. The Spanish midfielder was always stationed deep in midfield.
That's the role of a number six.
As soon as Javi Martinez received the ball, Rooney was already pressing, cutting off the passing lane to David Silva and forcing him to look left.
Gareth Bale had just crossed the halfway line and was near the left touchline. When he saw Javi Martinez glance over, he made a short burst forward and raised his hand to call for the ball—but Fletcher noticed and began drifting left.
This left the space behind Fletcher exposed.
Robinho dropped deeper from the front line, diagonally into the space vacated to Carrick's left.
That area should have been Fletcher's to cover, but he had been lured away by Bale's movement.
Using his body to shield the ball from Rooney, Javi Martinez relied on his strength, height, and long legs to prevent the United striker from nicking it away. Instead of passing to Bale on the left, he threaded a ball to the retreating Robinho.
At that moment, Manchester United's midfield defensive structure loosened.
As soon as Javi Martinez released the pass, Fletcher sensed the danger and immediately gave up on Bale, turning to chase Robinho. Carrick also rushed over as quickly as possible.
At the same time, Robinho's movement had dragged O'Shea out of position.
Robinho controlled Javi Martinez's pass cleanly, took one step forward, and with his right foot, slid a pass behind Carrick.
Suarez had dropped from the front line and was now positioned exactly where Carrick had left. He met Robinho's pass and didn't let the ball settle, before Ferdinand could close in, he stopped it with his left foot and, using the outside of his right foot, played a diagonal pass backward and wide into the left side of the penalty area.
It was at that moment that everyone including the live cameras noticed a blue figure surging into United's box from the left channel like a bolt of lightning.
(To be continued.)
***
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