London, Fulham district.
Loftus Road Stadium, home of Queens Park Rangers, where a top-of-the-table clash had just concluded.
"Clap clap clap," the home team fans clapped their hands, and warm applause rang out throughout the stadium. They felt that this result was acceptable.
At least they hadn't lost to Norwich, allowing Norwich to close the gap on them.
And among these applauding fans, almost everyone in each fan section was holding a mobile phone, anxiously checking the situation on the other side.
"90+2!"
"90+3!"
They kept refreshing, but instead of seeing a score of three to three, they saw a new page: "Match ended!"
Three to two! Sheffield United defeated Cardiff City at home, bringing their points total to 90!
"Ah..." A small commotion started, gradually expanding and enveloping the entire stadium. The applause slowly died down.
They instantly felt that drawing with Norwich at home didn't seem so great anymore; instead, it was a bit unacceptable.
It was obvious that with their top-of-the-table clash ending in a draw, Sheffield United was the biggest beneficiary.
"F*ck!!"
At this moment, an even larger commotion erupted in the South Stand, as many fans angrily threw their water bottles onto the field and tore their team jerseys to shreds.
"Neil out!!"
"Get lost, look at what you've turned this team into."
"Norwich was ahead of Sheffield United for a whole season, and you spent so much money reinforcing the team in the winter transfer window. Where did all that money go?!"
"You were leading by as much as 7 points and got overtaken. Do you even know how to lead a team?"
The Norwich fans, also likely informed of the victory on the other side, knew that their ranking on the league table had slipped to third place, out of the promotion zone.
This was unacceptable. They had seen the hope of direct promotion in 46 rounds and were becoming increasingly confident.
But in this final sprint, they suddenly fell, and might have to participate in the uncertain playoffs. No one could bear this huge psychological gap.
They didn't care that the team's points total this season would have been enough to win the championship in previous seasons. All they cared about was whether the team could be promoted and reach the top league! The Queens Park Rangers fans felt a little more balanced seeing their state. After all, they were still in first place with a 3-point lead, and the situation wasn't critical yet.
Thinking this, they silently left the stadium, leaving the field to the angry Norwich supporters.
Under the stadium, Queens Park Rangers' coach Warnock, like his fans, silently returned to the locker room, leaving Neil, the Norwich coach, behind.
"Cough cough."
Neil gathered his disappointed players together, hesitated for a moment, and organized his thoughts.
He was actually bearing the brunt of it. He had spent more than 20 million pounds of the club owner's money in the summer and winter transfer windows combined, and the owner's anger would be enough to make him suffer.
Not to mention the promises he had made to the fans in front of the media, the promises he had made to the players in the locker room, and the expectations of his friends and family.
"At the end of the first half of the season, I held my granddaughter and circled our home stadium, enjoying the cheers of the fans."
He finally chose to start the topic with himself, encouraging the players: "At that time, I told her that at the end of the season, there would be an even bigger carnival party here, a celebration of honor, and I would definitely bring her.
"You must also have people around you who are looking forward to you, like my granddaughter, waiting to attend the celebration with you.
"Don't forget what they have placed on you, and even more so, don't forget the fans. There is only a 1-point difference. Raise your heads and continue to fight!"
The players bit their lips and slowly raised their heads. Neil clenched his right fist, his right arm trembling constantly: "Go, Norwich!"
"Go, Norwich!" The players clapped and shouted, their fighting spirit rekindled, casting the result of the game behind them.
Neil then led them all to the away fans' stand, standing in a row to face the team's fans, facing failure.
"Clap clap clap," they clapped their hands, listening to the fans' accusations and even abuse, feeling their eyes change from eager expectation to disappointment and even despair.
They had to remember this moment of guilt and humiliation, and strive to use victory after victory to prevent this emotion from appearing on themselves again!
From any perspective, they were admirable opponents.
April 16, EFL Championship Round 42.
Inside Bramall Lane Stadium, the lights shone brilliantly, and songs echoed loudly as Sheffield United faced off against Barnsley.
"Janu Hans has crossed the midfield line, and he's still accelerating! A beautiful Marseille Turn, he's broken free, there are openings on the left and in the center!
"What will he choose? Evans suddenly accelerates, can he pass it?! Evans receives the ball!! A chip shot! Goal! One-nil, Sheffield United takes the lead! Bramall Lane is boiling, they see the flame of hope for the team to secure a playoff spot!! Perhaps, they might even launch an assault on the EFL Championship title!"
...
"Janu Hans seems very excited today, he's battling with Shackell, a flick over his head followed by a turn!! Beautiful! A seamless connection into a shot!!
"Oh!! It hits the crossbar and rebounds into the penalty area! Maël rushes out from an angle, he gets the ball! Trippier is following him, not letting him turn and shoot! A forced turn! A collision! Oh!! Trippier falls in his own penalty area, raising his hand to signal to the referee! The referee doesn't react, it's a fair physical challenge!
"Maël turns around, about to shoot!! Aaah! It hits the crossbar and bounces into the net! Waaagh!! Unbelievable! Absolutely phenomenal play!
"Barnsley's players surround the referee demanding an explanation, they believe Maël committed a foul before shooting, but the referee probably won't change his mind, he points to the center circle!"
...
"A direct confrontation between Maël and Trippier, he's very fast, Trippier can't keep up, he wants to slide tackle!
"Maël jumps to avoid the sliding tackle, there's open space in front of him, a center-back is coming out to cover! Barnsley's penalty area is already in chaos, Maël arrives at the edge of the box!
"He passes it directly to the center, Janu Hans is about to volley a shot!! Three-nil!! Oh ho.! An unparalleled first half! These two players who were selected for the Mid-Season Best lineup have shown their quality as core players in this match, working together to make the team's victory more and more secure!"
...
"Gareth Speed is making substitutions, he's taking off Maël, Janu Hans, and Evans, who were all involved in the goals, preparing to conserve energy for future matches!"
...
"The match ends, another 3 points! On the other side, Queens Park Rangers are also leading Crystal Palace by a score of three to one, the points between the two teams are infinitely close to 100! If a team wins the final EFL Championship title with a score of over 100 points, it would undoubtedly be a new EFL Championship record, and also a record for all levels of English leagues!"
At the final whistle, Sheffield United's fans were reluctant to leave, they sang their support songs with a look of intoxication, waving flags and shouting that they wanted to drink all night.
Gareth Speed and the players stood in the center circle, looking up and smiling at the beautiful Bramall Lane Stadium at this moment.
"Lads."
He didn't mention the idea of challenging for the championship, being in this position, the players must be very clear about this.
He used points to express his expectations for the last few games of the season, "We want to hit 100 points! We want to leave our mark on the history of the EFL Championship after this dream season!"
"Come on!!"
"Vamos!!"
A burst of encouragement sounded, the players high-fived and hugged each other, encouraging each other.
"First: Queens Park Rangers, 96 points. Second: Sheffield United, 93 points. Third: Norwich, 92 points." - EFL Championship standings on April 23, EFL Championship Round 43.
Sheffield United traveled to Swansea's Liberty Stadium for the penultimate fourth round of the league.
In this match, they encountered trouble, Swansea, who desperately needed to secure a playoff spot, exploded with amazing combat power.
"Maguire's clearance is flicked to Dobie's feet! He lunges at Dobie, he lunges too hard! Dobie easily cuts past him, there's danger!
"One-nil! Dobie appeared in the right position through amazing instinct, and finally seized Maguire's mistake to score a goal! In fact, after scoring his first career goal, Maguire's performance has improved significantly, and he has gradually become an indispensable figure in Sheffield United's defense, but he still often makes small mistakes.
"At this moment, the price of making mistakes is high, he must be careful!"
...
"Dobie breaks into the penalty area again! Janu Hans chases back, physical contact, Dobie falls! The referee awards a penalty!!
"Scott Sinclair is here to take the penalty! He fools Robert and puts the ball into the bottom left corner!! Two-nil!"
...
"Half-time ends, on the other side, Norwich is leading Bristol City by a score of two to one, Queens Park Rangers and Leicester City are temporarily tied at zero-zero!"
...
"Maël's dribbling horizontally! He's still too far from the opponent's defense, defending him is Swansea's midfielder Britton! He's fighting fiercely, constantly stretching his feet and constantly bumping his body into Maël! Maël, towards the right side of the box! The ball is very fast, passing through the midfield line and the defensive line! In the box, Ward is following up!! This ball is passed very comfortably, very accurately! Ward doesn't need to stop the ball! A push shot!! Goal!! Ward returns to the center circle with the ball in his arms, Maël's pass has sounded the horn for the team's counterattack! This is a through ball that spans two defensive lines, the most penetrating through ball I've seen this season!
"For a moment, I seemed to see Xabi Alonso standing in that position, seeing Pirlo raising his long hair!"
...
"Maël is going for it himself!! A Cannon Shot! De Vries has no ability to block this ball!!"
"Two-two draw! Pure football magic! There must be something wrong with his right foot, I've never seen anyone score so many long shots in a single season!
"He keeps breaking the EFL Championship's single-season goal record! When he chose to stay with the team mid-season, I predicted he had a chance to do something in the second half, and now, my prediction wasn't bold enough!
"He's leaving an almost impossible record for those who come after! Maël's name will be forever etched in the 10-11 EFL Championship season!
"Now, let's see if he has the ability to lead Sheffield United to even greater achievements!"
...
"Gilbert is brought down! The referee awards a penalty! Swansea's players can't believe it, this is a very critical moment!
"Janu Hans takes the penalty and shoots towards the center! What a big heart!! Goal!!! Three-two! An incredible comeback!!"
...
"The game is over! Sheffield United has pulled off a thrilling comeback!! A 3 points filled with twists and turns, they are officially launching their final assault on 100 points!!"
Swansea's players knelt on the ground, and in the huge Liberty Stadium, only the cheers of Sheffield United's expeditionary fans remained. After the game, the players rushed to the fan zone to celebrate with their own fans.
On the other side, Queens Park Rangers drew one-one with Leicester City at home, while Norwich defeated Bristol City, gaining three points.
The distance is really close! "First: Queens Park Rangers, 97 points. Second: Sheffield United, 96 points. Third: Norwich, 95 points." – EFL Championship standings. "The EFL Championship has seen an explosion of amazing competitiveness this season! The three giants have all scored record-breaking high scores, each leading or trailing by only 1 point, making the final championship battle full of suspense!" – The Guardian
April 24th, Bolton.
"Beep! Beep! Beep—!"
The match between Arsenal and Bolton Wanderers at the Macron Stadium came to an end, with the score being two-one, the home team surprisingly defeating Arsenal.
In front of the coaching bench, Wenger stood there blankly, not knowing what he was thinking.
"Buzz...!" There was an uproar in the team's South Stand. Because the distance was too far, it was impossible to hear what they were saying, only a burst of noise could be heard.
However, anyone could guess that they must be dissatisfied with the team's performance and were complaining fiercely.
After this round of matches, Arsenal completely lost the opportunity to compete with Manchester United for the top spot in the standings. Even if they won all their remaining matches, they would not be able to surpass Manchester United.
Although everyone knew long ago that it was basically impossible for Arsenal to win the championship this season.
But the fans must still have a fluke mentality, with a faint hope in their hearts, hoping that Arsenal could create a miracle.
At the moment when all of this was completely shattered, the dissatisfaction they had accumulated throughout the season completely erupted.
Even the players' attitudes were noticeably different from before.
Fabregas, who had been rumored to be transferring for a long time, had a dark face when he came off the field, and put his arm around Nasri's shoulder, saying something.
When passing by Wenger, he deliberately amplified his voice: "No championship, nothing! Staying here is just wasting time! You won't make it!"
He was putting pressure on Wenger, he wanted to use this firm attitude to let Arsenal know that it was impossible to keep himself this season, so they should negotiate a price with Barcelona and let him go as soon as possible.
Unexpectedly, this time Wenger did not continue to tolerate as usual, nor did he turn a blind eye.
Anger occupied his brain, even causing him to lose his gentlemanly demeanor. He directly bypassed the Bolton Wanderers coach who was waiting for the post-match handshake and strode towards the player tunnel.
"What did you say?"
He stopped Fabregas and Nasri, blocking them in a corner, "I've cultivated you for 8 years, and this is the evaluation I get in return?!"
The Arsenal players and coaching staff next to them were afraid of a conflict breaking out, so they quickly stepped forward to stop them.
At the critical moment, Philip stood aside and stretched out his hand, stopping everyone. He knew that some things had to be settled.
Fabregas was stunned, and Nasri next to him was even more at a loss. The two took a step back, almost touching the wall.
After reacting, Fabregas noticed many eyes around him, and suddenly felt a little embarrassed, and his anger was stirred up.
He slammed the shin guards in his hand on the ground, waved his hand and walked around Wenger, "Don't try to kidnap me anymore, I've had enough, I've had enough! Starting tomorrow, I will no longer participate in any of Arsenal's training sessions!"
After taking two steps, he turned to look at Nasri, with some disappointment. "What about you?!"
Nasri swallowed, glanced at Wenger, his eyes a little evasive, "The season is coming to an end, and I want to rest too."
Manchester City has been in contact with him recently and has promised him an extremely generous contract.
He was afraid that he would spend a whole year here like Fabregas did last year, so he decided to put pressure on him in advance.
Wenger stood there, looking at the shin guards that Fabregas had scattered, trembling all over. He pointed at Nasri and Fabregas's backs and said in a trembling voice: "Maël will replace you."
It's not about position, it's about tactical importance.
"Haha."
Fabregas burst into laughter. He was young and full of vigor at this time, and he felt very good about himself. "I haven't won any major championships here for several years. If he comes, how many more years will it take?
"Aren't you tired of mentioning him every day? Mr. Wenger, if he can lead Arsenal to win the championship, then I will definitely fly back to London to celebrate with you!"
After speaking, he walked towards a reporter holding a camera, slapped his camera away with a heavy blow, and then stepped forward and smashed it with a few kicks. "I'll pay you for a new one!"
"Fabregas."
Alexandre Song, who was on the side, couldn't stand it anymore. He was afraid that Fabregas would intensify the conflict: "Enough! Stop talking, let's go!"
"What do you think you are?"
Fabregas completely went crazy, attacking indiscriminately: "How many times have you complained to me that you are not satisfied with your salary? How many more years will you stay here?!"
Alexandre Song glanced at Wenger, wanting to say something, but opened and closed his mouth several times without making a sound.
The scene fell into silence, and the farce ended here. Fabregas and Nasri completely stood on the opposite side of the club.
Wenger went to the stadium toilet, lit a cigarette, and smoked alone, not knowing what he was thinking.
Philip quickly followed. His footsteps were very light. He didn't want to disturb him, but Wenger's back was really lonely and pitiful.
"Sir."
He stepped forward and said, "Actually, it's not a season without any expectations or gains. Sheffield United is expected to win the championship with 100 points and create history."
His meaning was obvious, shift your attention to Maël, to the future of the team, and let this season pass.
"Yes." Wenger didn't turn around. He exhaled a puff of smoke, his voice very soft: "I will go and see."
-----------
This high quality machine translation is powered by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
To read the full translation, as well as more than 130+ full translations or to request new translations, check out: https:// randomtranslator.com/
You can also join the Random Translator Community on Discord to connect with other readers: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------