Chapter 18

In the first dozen minutes of the match, the Manchester City commentator's tone was rather listless. He even analyzed in detail, saying that Manchester United was completely at a disadvantage. According to the technical statistics, Chelsea's possession rate had already exceeded 70%, and the situation was quite unfavorable for Ferguson. It seemed that this "Big Gun" Jo wasn't entirely useless.

However, when Van Nistelrooy scored in a flash, he simply couldn't believe his eyes, shouting repeatedly, "Oh my God, the ball went in! Van Nistelrooy, the King of the Penalty Box, lives up to his name! Manchester United seized the only opportunity so far and scored, such efficiency is simply astonishing! Ferdinand's tackle, Ronaldo's cross, and Van Nistelrooy's dribble and goal, everything was perfect! Oh God, this is definitely the best goal of the round!"

"Glory to Manchester United, glory to Manchester United, the Red Army moves forward bravely, just like our former Busby Babes. We will let the flag of the Red Devils fly high, and you will witness it everywhere, you will hear people singing proudly..."

With Van Nistelrooy's goal, the emotions of over 21,000 Manchester United fans who had traveled far were finally released. Their spirits soared, and they sang the Manchester United anthem in unison, with red flags fluttering in the stands at Stamford Bridge.

In stark contrast, the Chelsea fans wore expressions of shock and despair. They first stood up in surprise from their seats, then sat back down in a daze. They couldn't believe that Manchester United's first shot on goal had resulted in a goal!

Many fans who didn't think much of Coach Jo Wanxian were furious after the goal, shouting, "Big Gun Jo is an idiot, he bought a useless player from Inter Milan. Can that Italian defend? He actually fell to the ground without the ball!"

Some were even more extreme, shouting for his dismissal. The opening barrage from Chelsea couldn't compare to the importance of Manchester United's one goal.

From the moment the ball was intercepted, Ferguson's eyes were fixed on it. When Van Nistelrooy scored, he jumped up like a child, waving his arms to encourage the team. Glancing to the other side, he saw Jo Wanxian's stunned and bewildered face, and the old爵爷 (Duke) smiled, "Young man, football isn't about boasting. I had already anticipated your moves!"

The camera accurately captured Jo Wanxian's large face, and in the midst of the majority of the fans' curses, Jo Wanxian's expression was abnormally cold, as he suddenly remembered a problem.

The drawback of Shengyuan No. 1!

Shengyuan No. 1 was different from ordinary stimulants, not a chemical drug mixed with blood, but a result of the previous life's Jo Wanxian's research in traditional Chinese medicine, stimulating muscle activity and enhancing human performance based on the body's meridians and qi and blood. In other words, using Shengyuan No. 1 would amplify your physical strengths, but also amplify your physiological weaknesses!

For athletes, the biggest physical weakness is injury. Once a player is injured, their physical performance will definitely decline, and their form will drop. If a physically strong athlete can play with an injury, using Shengyuan No. 1 would amplify their poor condition fivefold!

Van Nistelrooy easily dribbled past Cannavaro, which was absolutely impossible under normal circumstances. Therefore... there was only one possibility!

The Manchester United commentator was gloating, "Haha, let's take a look at Big Gun Jo's face, it's as ridiculous as his loose talk. It seems he has been stunned by Sir Ferguson. Here, I must express sympathy for this young Chelsea manager. Facing the greatest coach in the world, he is indeed under a lot of pressure."

Even the CCTV5 commentator Huang Jianxiang in China, seeing the camera focus on Jo Wanxian's stern face, couldn't help but sigh, "We can't expect too much from Jo Wanxian. After all, he is only 20 years old. Compared to the experienced Ferguson, he seems too naive. I hope our Chinese compatriot can keep up the effort and not be discouraged. After all, there are 38 matches in a season."

Jo Wanxian made no comment on the goal, returning to the bench and asking Boas, "Is Cannavaro injured?"

Boas replied sheepishly, "The doctor reported that he had a slight cold, but based on my judgment, it wouldn't affect his performance. I didn't expect his form to be so poor."

Jo Wanxian nodded heavily and asked, "Is Mutu injured?"

Boas was taken aback and answered straightforwardly, "No! Apart from the injured Rooney, Mutu is the best in terms of physical condition among our forwards!"

"Hmm? That's strange, if he's not injured, why is his form so poor?" Jo Wanxian shook his head, puzzled.

Boas suggested quietly, "Wanxian, Manchester United's two wingers are incredibly fast, and Giggs and Ronaldo are in great form. How about... we change our style? Otherwise, I'm worried..."

Jo Wanxian's lips curled into a smile, "You're worried we'll lose by a large margin at home?"

Boas scratched his head and nodded.

Jo Wanxian stood up abruptly, facing the substitutes with an unusually determined look, "We've only lost one goal, it's nothing! I said we would win this match, and we will win by a large margin!"

The substitutes smiled, but their smiles were a bit forced.

Jo Wanxian shouted, "Gudjohnsen, Gallas, get ready to come on!"

"What?"

Gudjohnsen, Gallas, Boas, and the entire coaching staff and substitutes were stunned! It was just the 20th minute of the first half, and he wanted to replace two starters at once? Was he treating the game like a children's game?

However, being able to play in the match is every professional player's dream. Realizing this, Gudjohnsen and Gallas quickly took off their coats, revealing their blue match uniforms, and happily came to Jo Wanxian's side.

"Huh? Why isn't the referee restarting the game? Oh... God, the fourth official is holding up a board, Chelsea is making substitutions... The Icelandic Prince Gudjohnsen and French defender Gallas are on the sideline. Could it be that Big Gun Jo is making two substitutions in the 17th minute of the first half?"

The London TV commentator asked several rhetorical questions in a row, clearly shocked by Jo Wanxian's move.

The Manchester United commentator was laughing so hard his stomach hurt, "This Big Gun Jo, he's really making a mess, making substitutions for the starting forward and main defender in the 17th minute? Oh... right, this Italian is said to be one of Big Gun Jo's key signings this summer. This performance will probably make Abramovich bleed from anger!... Huh? Haha, what is Big Gun Jo doing? He's putting his hand inside Gudjohnsen's shirt, oh God, Big Gun Jo is touching Gudjohnsen's butt! Does he... does he have a thing for men? We've never heard that Big Gun Jo has a girlfriend!"

Fans watching on TV were laughing so hard they were rolling on the floor. This Chelsea manager actually touched Gudjohnsen and Gallas' butts, what a heavy taste! If he was going to touch, he should touch someone like Kaka or Ramos!

Others didn't know, but Jo Wanxian was actually applying Shengyuan No. 1 to their waists, not their butts!

Seeing Mutu and Cannavaro walk off the field dejectedly, Jo Wanxian encouraged them, "It's okay, play well in the second half."

Mutu smiled bitterly, while Cannavaro sighed with a hint of shame, feeling he had let the boss down, especially for the fatal mistake on Van Nistelrooy.

Amidst the boos from the fans, Gudjohnsen and Gallas happily entered the field, and the game resumed.

Chelsea's tactical approach remained unchanged, still pressing Manchester United into their own half as per Jo Wanxian's pre-match plan. If you didn't look at the score, you might think it was a half-field defensive drill.

However, this defensive drill didn't receive cheers from the Chelsea fans, as their attention was fixed on the two fast wingers, Giggs and Ronaldo. They were like two sharp knives, constantly threatening Chelsea's defense.

In the 25th minute, the French bald man Gallas headed the ball to Lampard, who sent a precise 30-meter pass to the rapidly advancing Gudjohnsen. Unfortunately, the Icelandic Prince was strongly interfered with by Ferdinand during his run, and his final shot was saved by goalkeeper Howard, who pushed it over the crossbar...

In the 30th minute, Makelele intercepted the ball in midfield and passed it to Kaka on the left. Kaka had a clear path ahead and quickly advanced towards the Manchester United penalty area. Meanwhile, Lampard, Gudjohnsen, and Joe Cole ran hard to draw defenders, finally giving Kaka a chance to shoot from the edge of the penalty area. Howard had no reaction, watching the ball's flight path with a cold sweat, but unfortunately, the ball hit the crossbar...

In the 36th minute, Kaka made another long run, causing the Manchester United fans in the stands to nearly have heart attacks. Unfortunately, just as Kaka was about to shoot, he was brought down by Sylvain, earning a free kick and a yellow card...

By the 40th minute of the first half, Chelsea had 18 shots, 9 on target, 3 hitting the woodwork, and a possession rate of 71%, with 23 fewer fouls than the opposition!

Despite leading in all statistics, they were 1 goal behind Manchester United!

Chelsea's attacking football put a lot of pressure on the opposing fans and the fans of both sides, fearing a quick counterattack at any moment. However, the midfield and forward cooperation of Chelsea was almost perfect, and despite the score being behind, many "non-utilitarian" fans were satisfied with the game, cheering louder and louder, with a faint smile on Abramovich's face in the stands.

Finally, at a certain moment, a large banner appeared in the south stand of Chelsea: "Big Gun Jo, we love you! Winning or losing is not important, a great game is what we pursue!"

Seeing this banner, Jo Wanxian was almost moved to tears. Oh God, this is the first time someone has praised me?

"No, with such support from the fans, we cannot end the first half with a score deficit!" Jo Wanxian stood up abruptly, his expression stern, adjusted his black sunglasses, stood by the sideline, and pointed at Kaka.