Chapter 1

February 28, 2021.

Spain.

Camp Nou Stadium.

Barcelona faced the visiting promoted team, Huesca.

Huesca, the champion of the Segunda División last year, had just been promoted to the top league this year.

Currently, Huesca's performance was not good, ranking last in La Liga.

Everyone originally thought this would be a match with no suspense.

However, shockingly, it was already the 35th minute of the second half, with only 10 minutes left to go.

Score: 0-2.

The home team Barcelona was actually being outscored by the league's bottom team, Huesca, at Camp Nou.

Barcelona's forwards seemed to have left their shooting boots at home today.

Antoine Griezmann, who transferred from Atlético Madrid two years ago, had no impact.

Memphis Depay, the Dutch striker who was highly anticipated, was like a headless fly, running around aimlessly on the field.

Lionel Messi, Barcelona's leading figure, was also in poor form today.

As the soul of Barcelona, Messi had been mentally and physically drained after the transfer saga of the previous season.

The Messi of today was no longer the sprite of Camp Nou.

The entire Barcelona team was in decline.

The fans in the stands were silent.

In the Champions League, Barcelona had already been eliminated.

In the Copa del Rey, Barcelona had long given up.

Only the league remained. Barcelona had played 25 matches, with 16 wins, 5 draws, and 4 losses, accumulating 53 points and ranking second.

Third place was Real Madrid, with 16 wins, 4 draws, and 4 losses, having played one fewer match, accumulating 52 points and ranking third.

First place was Atlético Madrid, with 17 wins, 4 draws, and 2 losses, having played two fewer matches, accumulating 55 points.

With only a dozen matches left, if Barcelona did not want to end the season empty-handed, every match from now on would be crucial.

However, in this match that they were determined to win, Barcelona was about to suffer a setback.

"Lee, I'm giving you only one minute to warm up!"

Barcelona's head coach, the Dutchman Ronald Koeman, with his arms crossed, shouted in a low, grim voice.

Lee Mingyu, on the bench, sprang up like a spring and began his warm-up on the side of the field.

The broadcast camera quickly focused on Lee Mingyu.

After all, with Barcelona trailing by two goals, everyone wanted to see how Koeman would react.

In the previous two instances of trailing, Koeman had made quick adjustments, but the results were average.

This last substitution would be Koeman's final chance!

"Lee... he seems to be of Chinese descent. According to the information, he is a young player promoted from La Masia. I feel that Koeman is taking a risk. In such a situation, bringing on such a young and inexperienced player, what will it bring to the team?"

The commentator at Camp Nou was somewhat dejected. In the past two years, Barcelona had been in a state of turmoil.

Two years ago, a tragedy that all Barcelona fans would rather forget.

In the Champions League, Barcelona faced a red-hot Bayern Munich, suffering an unbearable 8-2 defeat, which completely exposed their weaknesses.

The head coach resigned, Messi faced a crisis of trust, and the entire team was in turmoil.

Barcelona could no longer afford any more setbacks.

If they couldn't win this match against the bottom team, Koeman would likely be out of a job.

With no cards left to play, Koeman had placed his last bet on a 19-year-old Chinese player.

Lee Mingyu's heart was pounding wildly. As a 19-year-old player, being promoted to Barcelona's first team was the highest honor.

Lee Mingyu never expected that after being promoted to the first team just yesterday, he would get the chance to play today.

As the saying goes, a young bull is fearless.

While warming up, Lee Mingyu carefully observed every move on the field.

The Barcelona players on the field were losing their spirit. A careless pass by Messi was intercepted by the opponent, and as the counterattack was about to start, Messi, without hesitation, pulled down the opponent.

The entire Camp Nou fell into a deep silence.

Messi's heart sank as he clutched his head, looking desperately at the referee.

He had already received a yellow card in the first half for a push from behind.

And this time...

Referee Novella did not show any leniency because it was Messi. He took a yellow card from his pocket, showed it to Messi, and then took a red card from his shorts pocket, sending Messi off the field.

This completely demoralized the Barcelona players.

In such situations, players usually protest to the referee.

This time, the Barcelona players stood still, unwilling to move.

Messi, with a resigned look, took off his captain's armband and threw it to Griezmann, then walked off the field dejectedly.

Even Koeman stood at the edge of the field, expressionless, as Messi walked past him like a zombie, with no eye contact or handshake.

"Coach!" A somewhat stiff Spanish voice rang in Koeman's ear.

Koeman, as if waking from a nightmare, turned his head mechanically. The speaker was Lee Mingyu.

Koeman, seemingly stimulated by the fiery determination in Lee Mingyu's eyes, said in a deep voice, "Lee, once you're on the field, use whatever method you can to get that damn ball into the opponent's goal!"

Lee Mingyu's face hardened, and he shouted, "Don't worry, Coach, I will do it!"

Lee Mingyu's voice made Messi, who was about to return to the dressing room, turn his head slightly. Seeing Lee Mingyu's back, Messi gave a bitter, wistful smile.

Being young is so great!

Born in 1987, Messi was not yet 34, but he already felt the weight of his years.

"Koeman has played his last card, choosing to bring on the 36-year-old Lee Mingyu and take off the 21-year-old midfielder Frenkie de Jong. This is a do-or-die substitution!"

When De Jong came off, he gave Lee Mingyu a light hug and returned to the bench with a blank expression.

Lee Mingyu was incredibly excited. This was his first La Liga match and his first official senior match.

The moment Lee Mingyu's right foot touched the grass,

[Stadium Check-in System successfully bound. Please check in.]

Lee Mingyu's feet paused slightly. Seeing that the opponent had already kicked off, he silently said, "Check in," and then, like a fierce tiger descending from the mountains, pounced towards the ball.

[Congratulations, Host. Successfully checked in at Camp Nou Stadium. You have obtained the passive talent, Ronaldo's Absolute Speed.]