My light shines on Arsenal

Chapter 170 The end disappears in a dream
When the time came to December 2012, no one could have imagined that Arsenal's league ranking would reach second place.

On December 12, before the 1th round of the Premier League, Sir Alex Ferguson, who was about to lead his team to challenge Reading, talked about Arsenal at the pre-match press conference.

"Chen has done a fantastic job at Arsenal. They are behind us, I know that. They have been unstoppable since the opening three defeats."

Ferguson knocked on the table, "But please allow me to remind everyone that Manchester United is still No. 1 in the Premier League standings. We are giving Arsenal a fourth defeat this season."

"Sir Alex Ferguson, how long do you think Arsenal's good form will last? Will they compete with Manchester United?"

The Star reporter asked Ferguson questions, and his attitude was very respectful.

Reporters across the UK know that this may be Ferguson's last season, and Ferguson will definitely want to end his glorious coaching career with a championship.

"Mr. Reporter, there will always be No. 2 in the standings, and the top team will always face competition from them."

Ferguson adjusted his sitting posture and glanced around the conference room. This coach with deep roots in British football made all reporters hold their breath involuntarily.

"I have been coaching at Manchester United for 26 years, 26 years. I have spent countless summers and winters. Gentlemen, do you know how many stories happen every season, on and off the pitch, and in the locker room?"

The reporters were silent.

"You don't know, but I do. Do you know how many moments every season this team is on the verge of derailing?"

Still no reporter spoke.

"You still don't know, but I know. So many years of experience have told me one thing, in the world of football, there is no eternal good state. When you feel that nothing can stop you, it is precisely the low point. Coming towards you."

Ferguson straightened the microphone and said, "I won't be nervous. I have enough confidence to stay ahead. I'm looking forward to Arsenal's performance. The Premier League hasn't had such an interesting opponent for a long time."

He smiled like a strong man missing his long-lost opponent, "The last time I felt like this was seven or eight years ago."

……

Ferguson's speech was like some kind of omen. That afternoon, Arsenal, playing at home, was in trouble.

Chen Yao has never been superstitious about luck, and he also believes that status is not eternal.

He and the coaching staff have already been mentally prepared for the ups and downs the team may encounter.

When Arsenal entered the Champions League double-match week, the team was forced to increase their rotation, and their competitive state once fell to a low point.

But the boys survived, and their indomitable momentum gave the team strong inertia, breaking through the first trough period and continuing to maintain a winning rhythm.

But now, the energy that kept them going seemed to be drying up.

The cheering songs at the Emirates Stadium are still loud, but Arsenal's opponent in this game, Swansea, is not as weak and vulnerable as the middle and lower-tier teams they have encountered before.

Swansea's Premier League ranking at this time is No. 8. Before the game, Chen Yao and Lillo complained about this team.

"Juan, in the UK, the most important thing you have to be careful about are the mid-range teams." He said, "They won't just take advantage of you, and sometimes they will try to tear a piece of flesh from you even if they fight for their lives. "

"Can they do it?" Lillo asked curiously.

"From time to time." Chen Yao shrugged. "They can play tenaciously against wealthy teams, and then lose to their relegation opponents in the next game. Don't use common sense to measure these teams."

"Interesting, let's see."

Arsenal had several good chances in the early stages of the game, but they were unable to knock on the goal guarded by Michael Vorm.

Giroud missed two shooting opportunities in the first 10 minutes. There was space in front of him, but his speed and movement failed to allow the shot to appear.

"If Olivier's feet can be harder, we can score five more goals this season." Lillo sighed to Chen Yao.

"Olivier's role is more than just scoring goals, Juan."

"I know." Lillo shrugged, "but who would complain about not scoring enough goals."

"We just have to play the cards we're dealt."

Swansea regained order after a brief panic. Unlike other teams, Swansea chose to calmly control the ball in the face of Arsenal's high pressure.

This season, Swansea are wearing a white-on-gold jersey. Their head coach is Michael Laudrup, who has brought a unique technical football to this team called "Swan Sea".

Swansea completed several passes in the backcourt, but Arsenal failed to effectively suppress them.

Laudrup carefully designed the ball route for Swansea.

Chen Yao realized that his team was a bit dull. Maybe their record in the Premier League was a bit too smooth, or maybe Swansea couldn't arouse their desire to fight. They allowed Swansea to penetrate the frontcourt many times. Line of defense.

"Sooner or later something will go wrong like this." Chen Yao shook his head, walked to the sidelines, and shouted a few words to the players to remind them to concentrate.

No. 40 In the second minute, Swansea launched an attack.

Most of Arsenal's players have not returned to defensive positions. Not long ago, they were attacking around Swansea's penalty area, and Swansea's offensive and defensive transition speed was unexpected.

Swansea's players quickly approached the Arsenal penalty area, and the space between Koscielny and Mertesacker was terrifyingly large.

Koscielny took the risk to destroy the ball. He rushed to Swansea center Danny Graham very quickly, surprising the opponent player and making a mistake with the ball.

Shadow forward Michu stepped in from behind, passed the ball past Koscielny, ran into the Arsenal penalty area, and shot through Szczesny's fingers.

One to zero.

Michael Laudrup gave his players a round of applause, while Chen Yao's face turned ugly.

Swansea is different this season, and Michu is the core member of this unique team.

He is 1.8 meters tall, has excellent vision and awareness of moving without the ball, and has a violent shooting hand.

In the second half, Michu scored another goal. His elusive movement left Arsenal's defenders at a loss.

Arsenal had no outstanding performance throughout the game, and they lost to Swansea [-]-[-].

Swansea's season of robbing the rich and giving to the poor continues.

This seems to confirm what Sir Alex Ferguson said.

The next day, Manchester United defeated Reading [-]-[-], widening the points gap with Arsenal once again.

……

Christmas is coming.

The club's business officers approached Chen Yao. As the team's head coach, they hoped that Chen Yao could do a set of publicity for the club so that the team could sell more peripheral products during Christmas.

From the beginning of December, the club prepares for Christmas.

"We have designed hats, sweaters, and coats... Do you have any suggestions?"

"Well, just the hat."

Chen Yao clicked on a sample Christmas hat with the Arsenal team emblem printed on the tablet handed over by the business staff.

"Okay, we will bring a batch of samples over. If possible, I hope you and the team members can help us do a little publicity."

"It should be." Chen Yao politely agreed to the request.

Arsenal's business development has never been satisfactory, and Chen Yao will not be stingy where he can help the club.

What's more, the club's income also means an increase in his transfer fee.He can now feel at ease that he is the head coach of Arsenal and can participate in club activities with this status, which is what he dreams of.

……

Arsenal players got their Christmas hats ahead of the final round of the Champions League group stage.

"You look like the Elf from Lord of the Rings, Thomas."

Vermaelen joked about Tomas Rosicky.

The Czech midfielder himself has a melancholy temperament like an artist. He put on a Santa hat, revealing some blond hair that was not covered by the hat, like a character from a fantasy novel.

Vermaelen and Rosicky are veteran players who have been in this team for a long time. Rosicky was not angry at the Belgian's teasing.

"Thomas, oh, you are Thomas too." Rosicky smiled, "You wear it like a priest, Gandalf."

"What do you think I look like?" Arteta interjected.

Rosicky and Vermaelen looked at each other and looked back at Arteta.

"Mikel, you look like an old man."

Compared to the friendly and gentle banter among the senior team members, the young people were more noisy.

Jorginho put his hat on Verratti's head backwards, relying on his height to bully Verratti.

"Jorge, is this really how you wear your hat?" Verratti asked with a frown.

"I promise, that's how it is." Jorginho said seriously.

Zaha stood aside and said something fair: "Shut up Jorge, stop bullying him."

Giroud pulled Griezmann and stood in front of the mirror.

"Anthony, you know what I want to say."

"Oliver, I'm listening."

"This hat is so stupid." Giroud opened the hat and put it on his head. "Even my charm can't control him."

Griezmann also put on his hat obediently.

"You're quite cute." Giroud complained.

Chen Yao opened the door, walked in and shouted loudly: "Stop making trouble, boys. Finish these chores quickly, we have a game tomorrow."

The players fell silent and looked at their coach.

"Coach, I..." Walcott covered his mouth, "I think it's funny how you are doing this."

Chen Yao was not angry at all, "Theo, if you look in the mirror, you will know that we are almost the same."

He looked around at the players and found that many of them were covering their mouths and laughing.

"Is it really that funny?" Chen Yao touched the hat on his head hesitantly.

……

The joyful atmosphere did not extend to the next day.

Arsenal's official account released a Christmas promotional photo of the team, in which every player is smiling brightly.

On December 12, Arsenal played against Real Madrid.

Arsenal have won two consecutive matches in the Champions League group stages.

They are still three points behind Dortmund. If they beat Real Madrid in this round, they will have a chance to finish second in the group and successfully qualify.

Chen Yao has never thought about giving up the Champions League. Every game against Europe's top teams, win or lose, is a valuable training for this team.

Besides, they should be rewarded for coming out of adversity.

Even if the opponent is Real Madrid, so what?

Ninety-ten minutes later, Chen Yao stood in the cold wind in London. Mourinho came over with an unpleasant look on his face, shook hands with him casually, and turned to walk into the locker room.

Mourinho's side held Arsenal to a [-]-[-] draw in London.

The Real Madrid coach was not satisfied with the result, he wanted victory.

But this result is not too bad. Real Madrid successfully qualified and did not spend too much on the away game.

Mourinho did not let this draw disturb his mood. He is the head coach of Europe's top giants and he has many things to consider.

He disappeared down the corridor.

Although Real Madrid failed to capture the Emirates Stadium, this also meant that Arsenal lost the opportunity to advance to the knockout rounds.

Arsenal failed to complete their comeback after losing all the first three rounds.

For a while, when Chen Yao asked his players not to give up on the Champions League, they worked hard to regain their form and beat two of their three opponents in the group stage.

But in the end, they still fell in the death group.

"That's how life is. You work hard, you fight hard, but the final result is not always equal."

Juan Lillo stood beside Chen Yao, standing tall with him in the London wind.

Lillo understands this feeling very well. In his decades of coaching career, he has seen many players training hard just to gain a foothold in the professional league.

He himself is the same.

Lillo was a fanatical fan of tactics. He devoted his efforts to studying tactics and coaching players, but he spent half his life without the opportunity to enter the coaching bench of a top league giant.

Hasn't he given enough?Lillo never felt that way.For so many years, he did not regard his efforts as pain, but as a matter of course.

Even so, Lillo didn't have the opportunity to come to the Premier League until this age, and it was as an assistant coach.

"Juan, do you know? There is a saying on the Internet that December 2012 is the focus of the Mayan solar calendar, and the end of the world will come." Chen Yao put on his down jacket and said.

"I've heard it, but it's just a boring rumor. I believe in science."

"You said you believe in science... So Juan, is there a possibility that many things cannot be explained by science. Maybe you and I can stand here and it is unscientific. Originally, what we all have is not The same life, all this is just a dream.”

"Coach, in the 20 years that I have been crazy about you, I have understood a truth. Since I can get here, I have to enjoy everything here. Whether it is real or illusory, it is my life. .”

Chen Yao looked at Lillo, and the 47-year-old Spanish assistant coach also looked at him, "I said that I have great ambitions. But since I promised to help you, I will go all out to help you."

"I'm still waiting for you to let me win the Big Ear Cup. Besides, I guess we still have a chance to participate in the Europa League. Don't you want to win a European championship?" Lillo turned his body sideways to the court, "Go ahead. , coach, get among your players."

"You are right." Chen Yao said softly, "The sun will still rise, and this is not a dream."

"And this team ... is going to get what they want."

(End of this chapter)