Chapter 83

**Preface: Thank you, Old Friend Nanxi Gonggong, for your consistent support.**

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Tang Hua was half-asleep, dreaming that he was walking on a starlit avenue when he suddenly fell into a puddle. Just as he felt he couldn't breathe, he woke up. His nose was being pinched.

Seeing Tang Hua wake up, the person immediately let go of his nose and said with a sly smile, "It's time," before fleeing the scene.

Still a bit dazed, Tang Hua felt depressed. He stared at the ceiling, which flickered in the dim light, for a long time before sitting up. He thought to himself, why was he doing this? He had class early tomorrow morning, yet he was getting up in the middle of the night to watch a soccer match. Was he trying to kill himself?

After lamenting for a while, Tang Hua yawned, got up, and walked to the sink on the balcony. He splashed water on his face directly with his hands, finally feeling more alert. He checked his watch, and the hands pointed to 2:55 AM.

Then, he pushed open the door and turned into the adjacent dorm room.

As soon as he entered, he almost choked on a strange smell. He thought he could smell peanuts, stinky socks, alcohol, cigarettes, and even perfume... The mixture of these odors made it seem like he had entered a disreputable little restaurant.

He held his breath and walked into the room. The curtains of the floor-to-ceiling windows were tightly drawn. On the left side, a computer screen was on, and four or five people were gathered around it. Sure enough, some were smoking, drinking, eating chicken claws, and even picking their feet...

"Can't you open a window? Are you not afraid of suffocating in here?" Tang Hua frowned as he entered, still not used to this scene despite having seen it several times.

"This is highly inappropriate. During curfew, we must avoid drawing the attention of security and causing trouble," the fat smoker, Zhuang Cong, immediately shook his head and said.

"Damn it, I told you not to smoke. Look what you've done, it's like a land temple in here. People might think we're up to no good," the foot-picking man, Yang Dong, who had long been dissatisfied with the fat smoker, snatched the cigarette from his hand and, after looking for a place to throw it, saw that Chen He, who was drinking, wasn't paying attention, and extinguished it in his drink.

Chen He, seeing the cigarette butt in his drink, didn't get angry but only shook his head and smiled bitterly.

A tall, thin youth with glasses kicked the foot of the foot-picking man, who had his feet on the bed, and angrily said, "Yang, if you put your feet on my bed again, don't blame me for taking drastic action."

...

Tang Hua finally found a corner to sit in, his head full of black lines. These people were supposed to be the future pillars of the country, but who would believe it?

To be honest, even Tang Hua couldn't explain why he had joined this "den of thieves." Compared to staying up all night to watch soccer matches and enduring various "aromas," he would rather immerse himself in the vast sea of books in the library. It wasn't that he was particularly diligent or studious, but rather that with graduation approaching, if he didn't work hard, he wouldn't be able to pass the thesis defense with Old Wu.

All this change started from a casual glance he had taken while visiting a friend's place a while ago.

At the time, the passionate soccer fan, Yang Dong, was browsing sports news. Standing behind him, Tang Hua casually said, "I've seen this person before."

To his surprise, Yang Dong, without turning around, replied, "Bullshit."

Tang Hua was taken aback and said, "Really, he came to our school, to help Li Xin avenge her husband's betrayal. I met him on the sports field."

Hearing Tang Hua's detailed account, Yang Dong turned around and widened his eyes, "Do you know who he is?"

Tang Hua was taken aback again, "What? Is he famous?"

In fact, at that moment, Tang Hua almost said that the person not only came to the school but also spoke to him and even gave him his phone number.

Yang Dong almost jumped up, "He is the only Chinese head coach currently established in a top European team, just like Yao Ming in the NBA. Is he not famous?"

Then, Yang Dong asked again, "Are you sure it was him?"

Tang Hua nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, his name is Lin Sen, right?"

At this, Yang Dong pounded his chest, "Damn! Even you, a bookworm, know his name, so it must be true. I was there too, why didn't I see him, but you, a soccer blind, did?"

At first, Tang Hua found this quite mysterious. Tian Nan University was a good place, and occasionally seeing celebrities wasn't strange. However, why Lin Sen would leave his contact information was a bit puzzling. Recalling their conversation, could it be that Lin Sen thought he had potential in soccer?

---

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. We are now presenting a key match of the ninth round of the Spanish La Liga, Barcelona vs. Malaga. As the biggest surprise of this season, Malaga currently leads the league. Lin Sen, who left Atletico Madrid last season, has had a stunning start with Malaga. Barcelona, under the leadership of Guardiola, has also gradually settled into a steady rhythm... Now, let's introduce the starting lineups of both teams..."

The voice from the speaker drew Tang Hua's attention back. Seeing the screen finally switch to the match, the few people who had been slouching around finally perked up and began to comment on the starting lineups. The match was being broadcast by CCTV, and as Lin Sen gained recognition in La Liga, CCTV began to increase the number of Malaga's live broadcasts. Since this match was against Barcelona, despite the late hour, it was still scheduled for live broadcast.

"Barcelona is playing their usual 4-3-3 formation. The goalkeeper is Valdes, the defense from left to right is Abidal, Pique, Puyol, and Alves. In midfield, Yaya Toure is the defensive midfielder, with Iniesta and Xavi responsible for the playmaking. Up front are Henry, Eto'o, and Messi. Now, let's look at Malaga's starting lineup. After the loss in the last match, most of the rotation players are back in the starting lineup. The goalkeeper is Gonda, the left-back is Rosatto, the center-backs are Rosatto and Wellington, and the right-back is Gamez. In midfield, Gabi and Apoño are the defensive midfielders. Notably, the recovered Gundogan is back in the starting lineup, with Koke and Duda on either side. Up front is the team's top scorer, Lewandowski..."

"Lin Sen is really daring. Gundogan hasn't played for over a month, and he's starting him directly," Yang Dong said, wide-eyed at the starting lineup.

"Not more or less, exactly thirty days, one month," the glasses-wearing man, Zhang Feng, said.

"It seems Lin Sen is planning to defend in this match..."

"Isn't that obvious? Should they attack Barcelona? That would be like lighting a lamp in a toilet—asking for death."

"Even if they can defend, it would be good, but I'm afraid they won't be able to..."

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**Camp Nou Stadium.**

Not all visiting team managers are greeted with boos at Camp Nou, as boos, like applause, require qualification.

This was Lin Sen's first time as a manager at Camp Nou. When he appeared on the pitch, the home fans did not react in any specific way, and the noise in the stands did not change at all. It seemed as if Camp Nou had ignored his presence. However, less than a minute after Lin Sen walked out of the players' tunnel, the arrival of one person turned Camp Nou into a sea of cheers, with fans chanting a name in unison: Guardiola.

The elegant Guardiola seemed to be used to this spontaneous fan ceremony, neither clapping in response nor slowing his pace, but walking calmly to the home team's bench. As the players gradually took the field, the cheers at Camp Nou never ceased...

If he could, Lin Sen would not have used his special eyes today. He knew what he would see, and it would be a burden on his confidence. In this match, what he needed most was confidence. Only by standing confidently on the sidelines could his team stand tall and proud on the pitch.

This was by no means an easy task.

In the luxurious away team dressing room at Camp Nou, Lin Sen first experienced the pressure of reputation. The noise from the stadium seemed to be right above their heads, creating an invisible psychological pressure for most of the players who were visiting Camp Nou for the first time. Previously, when facing Real Madrid at home, Lin Sen had encouraged his players to ignore their opponents' status, resulting in a thrilling 4-3 win that, while satisfying the fans, was less than ideal from Lin Sen's perspective.

Now, facing the other strongest team in La Liga, Lin Sen had to calm his players down. Offense requires passion, but defense requires calm. This match would be the biggest test for Malaga's defense this season, as they would face the most powerful attack in the world.

Barcelona would undoubtedly display their unparalleled passing and control, so Lin Sen would let them have the possession. They would also launch relentless attacks, so Lin Sen would let them have the shots. If Barcelona wanted more, Lin Sen would give them more, but there was one thing he would not give up.

That was space!

For Malaga, Lin Sen's requirements for this match were very simple: maintain the team's formation and compress, compress as much as possible!

In this match, Lin Sen did not expect Malaga to cover the entire field with their defense as they had before. This time, he did not plan to park the bus in front of the goal. Instead, he would fill his half of the field with thorns for Barcelona. As for the other half, it would be a training ground for Barcelona to improve their passing statistics.

After all, why should Malaga, who were inferior in passing and control, not have this excellent reason?