Chapter 353: The Intensifying Premier League
Ibrahimović pointed towards Bruno and sprinted towards him, causing Bruno to back up repeatedly, afraid of being caught in a bear hug from the big man. If he got pinned down on the grass, it would be exhausting!
Manchester United's continuous attacks had completely driven them into a frenzy!
Not only did they find their rhythm, but their attacking play also became increasingly fluid and cohesive.
Everyone could clearly see the changes Bruno had brought to United's attack, making it more dangerous.
Despite Mourinho placing him as a left midfielder, Bruno's range of activity was vast, often positioning himself even further forward than Ibrahimović, who was frequently dropping back to support the play.
Whether it was cutting inside from the left or making quick diagonal runs behind the defense, these were Bruno's specialties.
More importantly, his passing and teamwork were exceptional.
In the 36th minute, he once again received the ball on the left, and with a long pass, switched the play to the right. Rooney quickly followed up, controlled the ball, and crossed it, almost assisting Ibrahimović for another header.
Bruno's dribbling and crossing from the left were very threatening. The second goal came from a corner kick he won with a breakthrough.
In the 44th minute, Bruno's strong breakthrough on the left won another corner.
Mata delivered the corner to the near post, where Van Dijk flicked it on towards the penalty spot. Bruno, lurking on the edge of the box, suddenly darted in and, without controlling the ball, unleashed a powerful volley!
The ball rocketed into Hull City's net!
3:0!
Bruno spread his arms like an airplane, gliding across the KCOM Stadium, while the traveling United fans chanted his name again.
After three rounds of the Premier League, Manchester United led the table with three consecutive wins, scoring eight goals and conceding none. However, they did not have a points advantage, only leading by goal difference.
The other two teams with perfect records also won their matches. Chelsea triumphed 3:0 at home against Burnley, and Manchester City defeated West Ham United 3:1 at home.
Following these top three teams was another traditional powerhouse, Everton. The Toffees had two wins and one draw in their first three matches, accumulating seven points and ranking fourth.
After the third round of the Premier League, Bruno once again marveled at the league's difficulty. Out of ten matches, the away teams' results were 2 wins, 4 draws, and 4 losses, with the home teams winning only 40% of the time.
In comparison, the away teams' records in Serie A were 3 wins, 2 draws, and 5 losses; in La Liga, 2 wins, 5 draws, and 3 losses; in the Bundesliga, 1 win, 2 draws, and 6 losses; and in Ligue 1, 1 win, 3 draws, and 6 losses.
It was evident that the more competitive the league, the better the away teams performed.
Two of the away wins were Manchester United's 3:0 victory over Hull City and Arsenal's 3:1 win against Watford.
Arsenal's win was their first of the new season. The Gunners had narrowly lost 3:4 to Liverpool in their opening home match and drew 0:0 with defending champions Leicester City in the second round.
With four points from three matches, Arsenal were eighth in the standings.
Liverpool, who beat Arsenal in the first round, were ranked even lower. The Reds, also with four points, were 11th. They suffered a 0:2 defeat at Burnley in the second round and drew 1:1 with Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane in the third round.
Bruno's two goals and one assist in this match earned him the Man of the Match award for the third consecutive game.
The media widely praised Bruno's performance, especially the pro-United outlets like The Guardian and Manchester Evening News, which extensively covered Bruno's impact on United's attack.
United legend Gary Neville, in his Sky Sports column, commented on Bruno's arrival as a major transformation for United.
"I was at the KCOM Stadium on match night. Watching the game live is very different from watching it on TV. TV broadcasts are limited, showing only part of the game through the camera lens, while live viewing allows seeing everything outside the camera's range."
"I want to say, although the season is only three rounds in, I believe, barring any accidents, Bruno will become United's most successful and greatest signing in history because he has shocked and surprised me too many times in the game."
"I watched the game with Sir Alex Ferguson. We both noticed how intelligent Bruno's positioning was during the match. He constantly exploited the defensive gaps, and all his teammates needed to do was pass the ball to him. The best example was his counter-attack goal."
"If you only watch the TV broadcast, you would only see Mata's pass and Bruno's run into the space on the left. But at the stadium, we saw Bruno first move from the central area to the left, pulling the defenders away before making a sudden diagonal run."
"Under Bruno's constant pressure, Clucas couldn't stop him, and Hull City's defense was torn apart, leading to Mata's pass and Bruno's fantastic goal."
"I share this to tell all United fans that Bruno is an exceptional player. We have no reason to doubt his ability. As long as he is healthy, he will be United's most lethal weapon."
"200 million euros? After just three games, I think he's worth every penny!"
Neville's column provided more unknown details, making it more convincing.
Other media outlets also gave Bruno high praise. Even those close to other teams, like the Liverpool Echo and the Daily Mail, had to admit that Bruno was the best-performing player in the Premier League this season, bar none.
Statistics don't lie. Whether it was passing or successful passes, Bruno ranked first among all Premier League players. Even in defensive stats like interceptions and aerial duels, Bruno was near the top.
Regarding the scoring and assists charts, Bruno also topped both with three goals and three assists!
Many media outlets published Mourinho's comments from the post-match press conference.
"I'm not surprised by Bruno's performance because he hasn't reached his best form yet and hasn't peaked in his career. I believe he can do even better. He will turn 22 next month!"
After three rounds of the Premier League, the major European leagues entered a break, and international football saw the first international break of the new season.
As a top Premier League club, United naturally had no shortage of international players. Almost all of United's first-team players were called up by their national teams. Not just stars like Bruno, Ibrahimović, and Rooney, even young players like Januzaj and Rashford were selected.
The only exceptions were veterans Carrick and Schweinsteiger, who had long retired from international football. Carrick had announced his retirement from the England national team in 2012, and Schweinsteiger retired from the German national team in late July.
Before the international matches began, on the evening of August 31 in Europe, the summer transfer window for the 2016 international football season officially closed.
Many last-minute transfers occurred before the deadline.
At United, two players transferred out.
On August 31, French club Lyon officially announced the signing of United star Memphis Depay on a four-year contract.
According to media reports, United received a transfer fee of 30 million pounds, with an additional 3 million pounds if Lyon qualifies for the Champions League next season. United also retained a buy-back option and a sell-on clause.
On the same day, French giants Paris Saint-Germain announced the signing of 2015 Golden Boy winner and United star Anthony Martial on a four-year contract.
This transfer garnered more attention, as Martial was the 2015 Golden Boy and United's top scorer last season, with 19 goals and 14 assists in 56 appearances across all competitions.
In the new season, Martial played in United's first four matches, contributing one goal and two assists.
However, when the media revealed the transfer fee, people were not surprised: United's signing of the supernova Martial for 36 million pounds last year had now fetched 70 million pounds!
In one year, United nearly doubled their profit!
Of course, United's actual profit was not that high, as there were many hidden clauses in Martial's contract, such as additional fees based on goal counts and a sell-on percentage to Monaco.
Nevertheless, United made at least 15 million pounds in profit from Martial's transfer.
Most importantly, United recouped 100 million pounds from the sales of Martial and Depay, significantly easing their financial fair play pressure.
Initially, United spent 341 million euros on signing Bruno, Kante, Maguire, Van Dijk, and Gündoğan, setting a record for the highest transfer fee spent by a club in a single window.
Along with the high salaries of Bruno and free agent Ibrahimović, United faced immense financial fair play pressure despite their high annual revenue.
By selling Martial and Depay, United recovered 120 million euros in transfer funds, significantly alleviating their financial fair play burden.
When the 2016 summer transfer window officially closed, German media outlet Transfermarkt compiled the total spending and sales of the top five European leagues, showing that the Premier League was the biggest spender, with an astounding 1.5 billion euros spent on signings, far surpassing the other four leagues.
In terms of net spending, the Premier League's 835 million euros were ten times more than the second-placed Bundesliga!
On the transfer deadline day, the Premier League continued its frenzied signings, shaking up the entire football market. The most notable were the Manchester clubs controlled by Middle Eastern oil money.
Manchester United signed six stars this summer, spending 341 million euros, becoming the first club in football history to spend over 300 million euros in a single transfer window. Their net spending of 221 million euros also set a record for the highest net spending in a single transfer window.
In contrast, Manchester City was not outdone. The Blues signed nine players this summer, including Stones, Sané, Mkhitaryan, Jesus, Bravo, Nolito, Moreno, Rulli, and Zinchenko, practically buying an entire new team.
These nine players cost 230 million euros!
In terms of net spending, City was not far behind United. The Blues only recovered 13 million euros from selling Džeko and Lejeune, resulting in a net spend of 218 million euros, just 3 million euros less than United!
The two clubs waged a fierce arms race!
It wasn't just the Manchester clubs making jaw-dropping signings; other Premier League giants were also spending big.
Chelsea, currently competing with the Manchester clubs at the top of the Premier League table, invested over 100 million euros this summer, signing stars like David Luiz, Eduardo, Batshuayi, and Marcos Alonso.
Arsenal also spent heavily, with 45 million euros on Xhaka and 42 million euros on Mustafi. Other new signings like Lucas Pérez, Takuma Asano, and Rob Holding cost Arsenal 27 million euros, bringing their total summer spending to 114 million euros!
Liverpool, too, made big moves, spending 41.2 million euros on Mané from Southampton, 27.5 million euros on Wijnaldum, and additional amounts on Karius and Klavan, totaling 80 million euros.
Tottenham Hotspur also spent 80 million euros, signing Janssen, Wanyama, Moussa Sissoko, and N'Koudou.
In other words, none of the Premier League's "Big Six" spent less than 80 million euros on signings this summer!
For most European powerhouses, 80 million euros in transfer spending is a staggering amount, but for the Premier League's "Big Six," it's just the starting point!
The level of spending in the Premier League has reached jaw-dropping heights!
(End of Chapter)
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