Chapter 100

At the 18th minute of the match, Van Nistelrooy sprinted forward, charging directly into Chelsea's penalty area.

This season, Van Nistelrooy's playing time has been limited due to an injury at the beginning of the season. At one point, Manchester United's Premier League ranking fell to outside the top 10. Fortunately, he returned from injury, and Manchester United began to accumulate points, now ranking third in the league behind Chelsea and Arsenal. The King of the Small Box is undoubtedly the offensive core of the Red Devils in this era.

For Van Nistelrooy, entering the penalty area is like a fish diving into the sea or a tiger entering the mountains! Just like the law of the jungle, this is his survival strategy on the pitch.

However, such a normal run caused a wave of exclamations from the stands at Stamford Bridge. The ball floated behind him, reaching his head just as he stepped onto the penalty line!

Another long pass, and the passer was once again Manchester United's midfield engine, Paul Scholes! He truly is a player who can make even passing masters like Pirlo and Xavi marvel. His 30-meter-long pass was like a precision-guided missile, running on a predetermined trajectory.

Terry dropped back, and Cannavaro moved forward to press. The Chelsea center-back partnership was well-coordinated, with clear division of labor, and they quickly responded.

But... the King of the Small Box performed a dazzling move at the edge of the penalty area.

He leaned back, using his tall stature and strength to outmuscle Cannavaro, and headed the ball lightly to control it. Then he pressed down with his back and leaped with his legs!

The crowd at Stamford Bridge gasped in unison, and 40,000 fans held their breath. Everyone could see that Van Nistelrooy was about to attempt an acrobatic overhead kick from the edge of the penalty area! This was an utterly unbelievable fantasy!

The few Red Devils fans present had already covered their mouths, tears in their eyes. This moment reminded them of the Red Devils hero from five years ago! The Manchester United commentator was also speechless, staring at the scene on the pitch, lost in a daze.

Van Nistelrooy had entered a magical state. There was no one in his line of sight, no sound in his ears, only the ball, the ball that was dancing before his eyes! He leaped and performed an overhead kick... a shot!

"God, God, we see God again!" The Manchester United commentator's scream came simultaneously with Van Nistelrooy's shot, providing a dual visual and auditory shock to the fans watching on TV. The heart-wrenching shout seemed to come from the depths of darkness, with a mesmerizing power: "The King of the Small Box, he chose the most unimaginable way to shoot from the edge of the penalty area. He is performing, he is writing the spirit of the Red Devils!"

If you only looked at the ball's trajectory, it didn't seem like an overhead kick but more like a powerful shot by Roberto Carlos. The white trajectory was like a hurricane on the pitch, whistling towards the goal guarded by Cech.

Cannavaro was already pinned under Van Nistelrooy; Terry watched with a blank expression as Van Nistelrooy performed his elegant move, staring at the ball in flight; Cech leaped as if his feet were springs, diving to save the ball!

"This ball... shouldn't be a problem for Cech..." The Chelsea commentator Ben was secretly praying, feeling his heart race.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL..." The shout from the commentary booth almost scared Ben out of his wits!

"Cech was helpless, the King of the Small Box scored an unparalleled goal, a goal that will go down in history!" The Manchester United commentator and the fans in the stands were equally ecstatic: "This is a goal worthy of a perfect score. Van Nistelrooy's move reminds us of Andy Cole, the Red Devils forward in the 99-00 season, who also scored a stunning goal from this position. The tradition of the Red Devils continues, this is a legend!"

Even Zhang Jun was extremely excited: "Who says Van Nistelrooy is only the King of the Small Box? Outside the penalty area, he is also a cold-blooded killer! At 1.88 meters tall, he completed an elegant overhead kick, truly amazing! Compared to the lead on the scoreboard, Van Nistelrooy's goal is more inspiring and more devastating to the Chelsea players! It can be said that even if the Old Man cannot win at Stamford Bridge, with this goal, he will still be honored in defeat!"

Chinese Red Devils fans, hearing Zhang Jun's words, were so angry they wanted to spit blood. Our team is clearly leading, and you dare to jinx Ferguson's loss? Change the channel! Close the webpage!

On the Manchester United bench, Ferguson jumped up excitedly, waving his fist, wearing his glasses, looking almost like a playful old man. After scoring, Van Nistelrooy ran around the field and came to the bench, giving Ferguson a warm hug.

The faces of the Chelsea fans were not good. Losing the lead was one thing, but the main issue was the team doctor rushing onto the field.

Cannavaro was on the ground, groaning in pain!

Clearly, he was injured in the struggle with Van Nistelrooy.

Apart from the Red Devils fans still jumping and cheering, Stamford Bridge was quiet, with everyone praying for Cannavaro. This Italian captain had won the hearts of the fans with his virus-like speed, his excellent defensive awareness, and calm tackles. He and Terry formed the most reliable defensive partnership.

And now, with the French center-back Gallas gone to Liverpool, who could partner Terry reliably?

"Mr. Wan has another problem..." The commentator's voice was heavy.

The team doctor carried Cannavaro off on a stretcher, and Jowain Xian went over to inquire, sighing in relief.

Fortunately, it wasn't a fracture.

After a preliminary examination by the team doctor, it was just a thigh muscle strain, and he could recover in half a month. Jowain Xian's mood improved, patted Cannavaro's shoulder, and whispered a few words of comfort before walking to the bench.

"Huth!" Jowain Xian called a name, "Get ready to come on!"

Huth is a German defender, only 21 years old. Although he was selected for the German national team after the European Cup to seek fresh blood, Jowain Xian had never heard of him before, meaning he was an average player and not highly regarded. This season, he had played in 9 matches, mostly against weaker opponents.

"Sure enough, number 29 Huth comes on, but based on his playing record this season, he doesn't seem to be highly regarded by Mr. Wan. We are puzzled as to why Mr. Wan sent such an excellent center-back as Gallas to Liverpool. Was it really because of the fight between Gallas and Rooney?" The Chelsea commentator also noticed that this 21-year-old center-back didn't seem reliable. Could he withstand the attacks of Van Nistelrooy and Smith? And with Cristiano Ronaldo and Robben being goal-scoring wingers, how could he defend once they cut inside?

"Huh? Uh... It seems we are overthinking it. Jowain Xian is smiling! It looks like being only one goal behind is still within his expectations. But it's a pity that he sent on a rookie. When the defense is completely broken, I wonder how he can still smile!" The Manchester United commentator teased.

After the substitution, the match continued.

The Manchester United fans were in high spirits, and the song "Glory to Manchester United" echoed through the sky.

"Glory to Manchester United... the red army moves forward... just like the 'Busby Babes' of old... we will make the Red Devils' flag fly high... we will witness it everywhere... you will hear people singing with pride..."

On the pitch, the Manchester United players were greatly invigorated by the "unexpected" goal. Taking advantage of the unstable Chelsea defense and the players' agitation, they launched a fierce offensive. Scholes orchestrated the attack, and Gremio disrupted the play, pinning Chelsea to their half for defense.

Actually, on the pitch, one move affects the whole. With Chelsea's weak defense, Roy Keane had to drop back to help, breaking the connection with the two attacking midfielders and weakening the midfield's control, naturally losing possession.

The fans at Stamford Bridge were repeatedly chilled by Manchester United's attacks, especially the wing attacks by Robben and Cristiano Ronaldo, which felt like knives stabbing into their hearts. Fortunately, Robben was not adapted to the English football atmosphere, and Grosso was in excellent form, tightly defending against Cristiano Ronaldo. Keane's drop back to support the defense prevented Chelsea from conceding another goal.

Seeing the situation on the pitch, Jowain Xian suddenly regretted sending on Huth. This was clearly giving Manchester United an opportunity. With Ferguson's keen observation, he would certainly notice the chain reaction caused by Huth, making Chelsea's situation inevitably passive.

Jowain Xian turned to Boas, "Shouldn't we have sent on Huth?"

Boas nodded but tried to find a reason to save face for Jowain Xian, "At the start, Manchester United mainly attacked down the right wing, and we didn't expect Robben to perform so poorly. And Ramos has always played as a right-back, so suddenly switching to center-back might not be effective."

Jowain Xian smiled, this Boas really understood all his thoughts.

Jowain Xian stood up and stretched, smiling, "Boas, what do you do when you make a mistake?"

"Mistake? You correct it!" Boas said matter-of-factly.

Jowain Xian nodded, "Exactly, if you make a mistake, you correct it!" He took a deep breath and shouted to the bench again, "Glen Johnson, get ready to warm up!"

Seeing Johnson warming up on the sidelines, Ramos looked puzzled. What was going on? I had Robben completely under control, even more stable than Grosso's defense against Cristiano Ronaldo on the left. Why would the boss think of substituting me? Is Johnson that much better than me?

At the 30th minute of the first half, the fourth official raised the board again, and Chelsea used their second substitution of the match.

The stands at Stamford Bridge were already filled with applause, and a huge cheer was sent to Jowain Xian.

This scene was so familiar. In the first league match against Manchester United, Jowain Xian had made two magical substitutions in the first half, scoring 6 goals to win 6-1. Was he going to repeat that performance?

Ferguson stood up in surprise, looking at Jowain Xian in shock.