"Oh!!"
In the Sheffield fan section of the South Stand, thousands of fans wearing red and white Sheffield United jerseys erupted in a deafening cheer, igniting the area near the South Stand, "Yeah!!"
In the first two games, the team had conceded six goals without scoring any.
They even suffered the humiliation of being shut out by a National League team.
Their emotions had long been in a state of extreme repression, with only their deep-seated love for the team supporting them on every away game.
Now, they finally saw a goal!
"Who is it? Who is that kid?!" Someone raised their hands in celebration, their eyes filled with hope.
"Evans! Evans scored the first goal of the new season!" Someone excitedly replied.
"No, I'm talking about the one who assisted! He's so inspired, a seamless combination of skillful breakthrough and cross!" The person who asked exclaimed in admiration.
"Number 31, never seen him before!"
"Me neither."
"17 years old, on loan from Arsenal, seems to be called Maël, his debut today!" Someone who had checked the pre-match information explained to everyone.
Since most of them were curious about the 'assisting player', Maël's name spread rapidly throughout the stands like a whirlwind, and Sheffield United fans became familiar with elements such as his debut.
To let that young kid on the field remember this beautiful moment and enjoy the treatment he deserved, some fans spontaneously organized and called out his name.
"Maël Maël!"
At first, the sound was very small, until more and more people joined in, and the sound gradually resounded through the clouds, "Maël Maël!!"
On the sidelines by the field.
"Beautiful!"
Gilbert, wearing a substitute vest, had long been burning with enthusiasm, and this time he took the lead in rushing out, clenching his fists and shouting: "Maël, you did it!!"
Having spent two months together day and night, there was actually no difference between the other party's involvement in a goal and his own involvement in a goal.
Gilbert was genuinely happy, knowing that after today his friend would be taking a new step.
"Come on!!"
Following him was Gareth Speed, the young manager who had just experienced an emotional outburst, and did not expect the team to score a goal at this time.
His emotions were ignited again, and he clenched his right fist, bent over, and punched the air to release his emotions, venting all his previous dissatisfaction.
After celebrating, Gareth Speed turned his gaze to an area of the fan zone, where Chief Scout Joelson had just turned his head.
It was a flushed face, too far away to tell if there were tears in his eyes, but he must have been feeling excited.
Gareth Speed gave him a thumbs up, as if to say well done.
As for the team's head coach Kevin, his face was more of surprise and complexity, with several emotions mixed in his heart, making him unable to express anything.
Inside the arena, a fiery atmosphere enveloped the place.
"Here it comes!"
Maël's hairs stood on end, his eyes widened as he ran quickly towards Evans, who had completed the goal, his chest seemed to be filled with flames, forcing him to breathe in and out heavily.
The first statistic of his professional career, the first assist in the EFL Championship! This was what he had been looking forward to for a long time, and it finally arrived on this important day! After seeing Evans running towards him, Maël stood in place and lowered his center of gravity, because he clearly captured that Evans was preparing to jump.
"Good pass! Good pass!"
Evans shouted as he ran, taking off and pouncing on Maël from about a meter away.
"Well done!"
Maël praised with a laugh, then felt a strong impact, and he subconsciously raised his hands and hugged Evans.
Then, they put their arms around each other's shoulders and rushed towards the fan zone by the field.
The other teammates quickly followed, and most of them congratulated the two.
"This must be a day you won't forget."
The team's midfielder Janu Hans even came to Maël with a smile, put his arm around his shoulder and asked, "What else do you want?"
"Victory."
Maël returned a smile, saying his true thoughts, he didn't want to endure the bitterness of defeat on this day that should be filled with joy until the end.
His answer surprised many people, they thought Maël would say a goal or a second assist.
"Let's work hard together."
Evans stated his position, he was ready to give his all, but he didn't know about others, "What about you guys?"
"I don't want to leave Maël with bad memories of this first time."
Janu Hans also expressed his thoughts, he turned his gaze to several close teammates, and saw them all nod.
The group walked towards their own half together, cheering each other on along the way, their morale boosted a lot.
"Good job, kid!"
After returning to his position, Maël heard a voice from the backfield, he turned his head and saw the team's goalkeeper Robert raising his hands and applauding for him.
Robert is one of the few veterans in the team with a very successful career, and also the captain of Sheffield United. He is usually very kind and takes good care of him.
He thanked him and turned around, feeling that everything was great, new hopes and goals were waiting for him ahead.
"Beep!"
The referee blew the whistle for the third kickoff, and the Cardiff City center forward kicked off from the center circle.
Maël moved his legs again and rushed into the opponent's territory, this time, his fighting spirit was even higher.
Colney Training Base, Youth Team meeting room.
There was some delay here, but they had already seen Maël's cross and Evans in the middle.
"Bang!"
The moment the football touched the net, Coach Hans, who had been unable to restrain himself, slammed the table heavily, and then raised his arms, "First assist! Maël's cross equalizes the score! He's really something, so wonderful!"
Surprise came like waves, impacting their hearts one after another.
"Oh," the other Arsenal U17 players couldn't help but stand up and exclaim, they were either shouting or clapping, already immersed in Maël's role.
From initially hearing that Maël was going to play, to discovering that Maël was in the starting lineup, and now to completing an assist!
Everyone seemed to be in a magical picture scroll, unable to extricate themselves, but the familiar handsome face on the TV told them that it was real.
"Don't block me! I want to see him celebrate!"
"Me too!"
"Didn't you kick a football at him before? What are you looking at?"
"That was a long time ago!"
"So handsome, if it were me, I would slide on my knees."
The players all craned their necks, watching Maël's celebration, many of them even convulsed, their bodies numb.
They desperately hoped that the person in the screen was themselves! That was the EFL Championship, the gold content of getting an assist there was much higher than their Youth Team League.
"Is there a bonus for an assist in the EFL Championship?" a player asked curiously.
"1500 pounds!"
Hans turned his head and replied with a smile, "And the bonuses for professional teams are generally after-tax amounts."
More people fell into a state of spasm, this one kick was worth more than half a month's salary for them, it was worth a thousand gold in every way.
Aix, France.
In the Clermont's house, a family of five sat on the sofa, watching the game intently.
"Got the ball, past him, good!"
Clermont had the hobby of most male fans when watching football, he liked to be a coach, as if he was holding a gamepad in his hand, "Pass, if I don't score I'll... ah... scored! Maël's assist!"
He stood up holding the beer can in his hand, his excited gaze swept over the others, "A toast to my nephew!"
The eldest and second eldest of the family, along with his wife, all raised their glasses, smiling and excitedly clinking them together with him.
"Big brother is amazing!"
Ava didn't drink, and didn't yet understand what kind of achievement her big brother had accomplished, she just kept clapping her hands: "Big brother makes lots of money, he has to buy me eight pizzas!"
She belonged to the atmosphere squad, every time she saw Maël appear in the camera, she would gesticulate to remind everyone.
"I knew he could do it!"
Clermont was already drunk, boasting with a flushed face: "Back in the day..."
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