My light shines on Arsenal

Chapter 172 Christmas Dinner
Christmas is getting closer.

On this day, Chen Yao was still sitting in his office at Kearney Base, and the club's administrative staff opened the door to his office.

"Mr. Coach, our last round before Christmas is on December 12, and the next game is on Boxing Day. The club will host a Christmas dinner, and I hope you can attend."

"Oh?" Chen Yao was a little surprised. He didn't remember participating in this event last season.

"It was proposed by Mr. Kroenke. He said that we need to be lively on this day so that everyone can enhance their feelings..."

"Okay, I will participate." Chen Yao smiled, "American humor."

After the club's administrative staff left, Chen Yao reviewed the schedule.

All games in 2012 are almost finished.

Arsenal have three games left, one home and two away. They have to face Reading, Wigan Athletic, and West Ham respectively, all of which are weak opponents.

The Gunners have great hopes of ending their 2012 with three consecutive wins.

If they can secure second place in the standings, Arsenal will occupy a very advantageous position in the second half of the season.

Before the season started, no one could have imagined that Arsenal would be in this position.

Their sharpness is unparalleled. Judging from the pattern of this season, the only one who can block Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United is Arsenal.

Chen Yao turned his seat, and the warm afternoon sunshine from the Islington sky slanted into the office.

He looked at the big "Invincible Army" family portrait on the wall.

Arsenal's legendary players and legendary manager were all smiles in a family photo.

He knew he wouldn't be able to hang another picture on the wall this season, but he hoped to have the opportunity in the future.

……

December 12th, Premier League No. 18 round.

Arsenal vs Reading.

Reading put on a defensive stance from the beginning of the game, which is easy to understand.

Reading's league ranking is No. 20. They are struggling in the relegation zone and have not won a victory for a long time.

For a weak team, staying in the Premier League is the most important thing.

The top league means a lot, and even for tens of millions of pounds in broadcast revenue, they cannot give up any chance of staying in the Premier League.

Brian McDermott has been coaching this team since 2009. It has been more than three years so far. He has brought Reading to the Premier League and is a hero in team history. Now he is also facing a crisis of coaching position.

He arranged a formation of five defenders and two defensive midfielders, shrinking the whole line.

The TV camera gave several shots of the head coaches of both sides, as if to create a contrast.

On one side is the young Arsenal coach. He is wearing a long black down jacket with the Arsenal team logo printed on his chest. His face is calm, but everyone knows that he is the most eye-catching new star in the Premier League.

On the other side was a pale Brian McDermott, with a frown and tight lips.

"Reading fans, honestly, need to thank the coach who brought their home team to the Premier League. But if Reading can't turn things around, I'm afraid Reading's patience with Brian will run out."

"But to get a win against Arsenal who are on the top of their game... it's very difficult."

The commentators and guests in the broadcast room were chatting away.

Their small talk didn't last long, and the balance of the game looked about to be tipped.

In this round of competition, Chen Yao still rested the main players. He felt that he needed to create a period of time for the new players with a lighter game load.

Because after the beginning of next spring, the League Cup, FA Cup, Europa League and Premier League will all have tight schedules, and Arsenal's worst tradition is to injure a large number of players at critical moments.

No matter how excellent the system is, if it loses the players who can support it, it will not be able to exert its combat effectiveness.

Chen Yao gave Aaron Ramsey the opportunity to start, but Ramsey's performance was still so puzzling.

He had many opportunities to hold the ball, and Reading gave it away, but Ramsey always made poor choices after getting the ball.

"Aaron doesn't dare to make moves. When he gets the ball, the team can't operate." Lillo said to Chen Yao.

"Don't be too harsh on him." Bergkamp tried to smooth things over. "It's not easy for Aaron to stand on the court again..."

The first half of the game was boring. Arsenal had a ball possession rate of 70.00%, but they could not break Reading's defense.

Shortly after the start of the second half, Arsenal used a quick strong-side shift to create an opportunity.

Carvajal drew Reading's formation to the right wing after getting under the ball, and he played the ball back to Marco Verratti, who made a beautiful move to the weak side.

Wilfried Zaha on the weak side showed off his skills, speeding up and beating Reading right back Stephen Kelly, cutting into the penalty area and shooting.

This opportunity is almost Zaha's personal show. The 27-year-old goalkeeper Adam Fidrich fully demonstrated the qualities of a relegation team goalkeeper, that is, he can definitely throw the ball that should be conceded.

One to zero.

After taking the lead, Arsenal's game rhythm was much smoother.

Reading was forced to increase their counterattacks, and their formation had more holes.

This is the rhythm that this group of Arsenal players like on the field.

Verratti sent out two consecutive assists in the second half. They were exactly the same, both assisting Aubameyang's shot in the counterattack.

The characteristics of the Gabonese forward are fully demonstrated in such a game.

At the 65th minute, Chen Yao asked some of the main players to come on to find a feeling, including Olivier Giroud.

"Coach, I told you, I'm really not tired at all." Giroud took off his coat and geared up.

"In France, you are preparing for vacation at this time." Chen Yao patted Giroud on the back, "Don't be too excited."

"no problem."

Giroud scored another goal before the end. Carvajal's cross was met by Giroud's header and scored with a header.

Four to zero.

Chen Yao was a little bit dumbfounded by this goal.

When you really need Giroud to score, he can squander the chances that are close at hand.

But when you have an indifferent attitude about whether he scores or not, Giroud is like a god of war, able to put the ball into the goal in various postures.

"Do you still want to change to a striker?" Lillo asked Chen Yao quietly.

"Olivier is very good, I like him very much." Chen Yao said, and then he muttered, "I won't sell him, but that doesn't mean I won't want to find a better striker." "All over the world. Elite forwards are rare goods." Lillo said, "And they are all players who can't be bought for less than 5000 to [-] million. Or we can also train Auba, his sense of smell is top-notch."

Chen Yao waved his hand, "We can mention it when we meet Tim and Josh later. But don't expect their support."

……

Four days later, Arsenal played away to Wigan Athletic.

This is Arsenal's penultimate game in 2012, and Wigan Athletic's league ranking is No. 18.

Chen Yao is bound to win this game.

But the result of the game made him very depressed. Arsenal and Wigan Athletic ended up drawing one to one.

What made him even more troubled was that Koscielny was injured in this game.

Near the end of the first half, during a counterattack by Wigan Athletic, Koscielny, who was chasing back at high speed, seemed to have strained a muscle.

He failed to complete this defense. Wigan Athletic's forward Arauna Kone left behind the French central defender who was slowed down by injury and shot a single shot past Szczesny's fingers.

The second half of the game was very stalemate. Arsenal pressed hard to threaten Wigan Athletic's goal, but it was not until 10 minutes before the end of the game that they scored on a set-piece opportunity.

The goal was scored by Santi Cazorla, who cleverly scored after goalkeeper Ali-Al Habisi saved the ball.

However, Cazorla, who completed the supplementary shot, was roughly knocked down in the penalty area by the Reading defender. He lay on the ground, which caused a conflict between players from both sides.

Wigan Athletic's players were happy to let the clash last longer so they had a better chance of holding on to the tie.

Arsenal failed to complete the reversal in the end, and Cazorla was a little uncomfortable when he came off the field.

"Boss, I'm fine. Maybe the physical confrontation was too intense." Cazorla reassured his coach.

Chen Yao didn't dare to blame him. He asked the team doctor to give Cazorla a good check-up.

He knows how draining the Premier League can be and his players are still struggling to keep their spirits up, but their physical fitness may have been exhausted.

With two starting players knocked down in one game, Chen Yao is inevitably worried that the wave of injuries will strike at a familiar time.

……

On Christmas night, it started to snow lightly in London.

The streets are filled with Christmas trees and neon lights, and people in this city don’t skimp on enjoying the festive season.

The Kearney base was also wrapped in the Christmas atmosphere under the careful arrangements of the club staff. They cleared a clean and spacious venue and turned it into a decorated dinner banquet hall.

"I could go book a fancy hotel, Tim, you know, but why are we in... uh, Kearney?"

"Mr. Kroenke, the players can come just after training. And our activities will not last long. The important thing is... you can say hello to everyone in the club."

Josh Kroenke frowned and looked at the surrounding environment, and Tim Lewis followed the boss and answered patiently.

"What you said makes sense, although I don't have much interest in football." Josh Kroenke shrugged, adjusted his facial muscles, put on a friendly smile, and walked towards the players and coaches in the room.

"Everyone, please be quiet." Tim Lewis jogged a few steps to the crowd and raised his voice to attract people's attention. "Today, Mr. Kroenke also came to the scene."

"Woohoo, boss, Merry Christmas!" a player shouted.

"It's time for us to raise our wages, boss. We are now No. 2 in the Premier League."

Another player shouted, causing laughter.

Josh Kroenke stood among the players and staff with a well-trained smile. His posture and appearance were impeccable, and the words he spoke were also in a standard aristocratic accent.

"I have to say, boys, you have created brilliant results. I don't know much about football. The most popular sport here is a group of people holding rugby balls and rushing against each other. But I can understand the standings and understand The score. And what I see is this - Arsenal is one of the best teams in the Premier League. This is all due to you."

Players and staff erupted in applause.

"On behalf of the KSE, I would like to extend festive greetings to you all. I know many of you have just arrived in London not long ago, Anthony, Olivier, and Santi, am I right?"

The players who were called out were stunned.

"Yes, boss." Griezmann looked a little flattered, while Giroud and Cazorla were much more calm and politely thanked Josh for his attention.

"I just came here not long ago." Josh smiled, "This damn weather, I miss the sunshine and the Great Plains of North America. I believe you also miss the sea breeze and sunshine of the Mediterranean."

The players laughed along.

"In addition, I want to congratulate someone." Josh Kroenke looked at the Arsenal coach who was standing quietly aside with a smile. "Coach Chen Yao, I want to congratulate you. You are the best in the past six months." As a young coach, it is also under your leadership that our team can achieve results that far exceed pre-season expectations."

Chen Yao raised his glass to show Josh, "Thank you, boss. This is not my personal credit, but the credit of the joint efforts of all players, coaches and club staff."

"Of course." He added with a smile, "Josh, I'm grateful to you too. We all look forward to you bringing the best players in the world to us tomorrow."

Everyone laughed, and Josh Kroenke came over, stood in front of Chen Yao and said, "I trust you. I hope you can be the one to lead this team forward."

"I also hope you can be the boss this team needs, Josh."

The two people looked at each other and smiled.

Josh's speech ended quickly. The players did not dare to drink under the supervision of the coaching staff, and they also ate very moderately.

They won't waste much time here.

The atmosphere in the room was very harmonious. Arsenal's current players all have good personalities and are not thorny. Everyone was chatting with each other, eating food and passing the time.

"Mr. Coach." Tim Lewis walked to Chen Yao, "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas Tim."

Tim Lewis drank some wine and said slowly: "You are very smart, and I admit, it seems that I underestimated your ability... So, on behalf of the board of directors, I can say, congratulations on passing the probation period."

"In addition, I am drafting a contract for a longer period. My plan is to give you a three-year contract extension. If we can enter the Champions League at the end of this season, you can get this contract."

Tim Lewis and Chen Yao clinked glasses, "But you don't have to be too nervous. We understand the difficulties the team faces. If you don't end up in the top four, it doesn't mean you won't get the contract, it just We will consider more options."

"I need this job very much, and I also need time very much, you know, Tim." Chen Yao said, "You know better, in European football, at this stage, a coach who can lead our team to achieve such a record. ,rare."

"Haha." Tim Lewis smiled quietly, "You have a very clear understanding of your value. But, coach, you are still too young. But there is still some tacit understanding between us."

"That's up to you, Tim."

"Yeah." Tim Lewis looked to the side. The corner they were in was very secluded, and no one else had the sense to come over.

"I still have to talk to you about something." Tim Lewis said, "Before that, I think you need to know something: Ivan has a problem with you."

"I know, always."

(End of this chapter)