Chapter 131 The King of London! A long journey! Yang Cheng: I want to buy Arsenal! [Please subscribe]
“David, we need a reasonable explanation.”
In the conference room of Arsenal’s headquarters office area at the Emirates Stadium, several members of Arsenal’s board of directors, They are also core major shareholders, and they all sit together.
This is an emergency board meeting.
The sponsor is Peter Hill Wood, Chairman.
A man who has been at the helm of Arsenal since 1962.
The issue of the special board of directors involves a European football boss who has served as the club's vice president since 1983.
David Dunn is also the representative of Arsenal in the Premier League and European football in the past few years.
This time, all the board members were present.
Several major shareholders Danny Fishman, Mrs. Smith and representatives of the Carl family were all present.
Obviously, everyone was surprised by David Dunn's actions.
“Usmanov paid 75 million pounds to buy my shares.” David Dunn said frankly.
He had no intention of hiding this matter.
Because he feels that the problem must be clarified before Arsenal can find a way out.
He also expected this board meeting.
£75 million? !
Everyone present was suspicious at first, and then surprised.
This means that Usmanov’s valuation of Arsenal is 500 million pounds.
Everyone here is a businessman, and they are immediately thinking about how many shares they hold, and if it is this valuation, how much money can they get in exchange for it?
Is it worth it?
For reference, from 2003 to 2005, the Glazer family spent a total of 790 million pounds to acquire Manchester United.
Peter Hill Wood is in his early seventies and none of his children are interested in running football.
But he and his family are Arsenal die-hards.
So, he has always refused to sell Arsenal and rejected Kroenke from the United States and Usmanov from Russia.
But he never expected that his right-hand man for many years would secretly "betray" him.
"You violated our previous agreement, David. You didn't get angry with me before." Hillwood was a little angry.
“I’m sorry, Peter, but I think this is a reasonable price and the conditions given by Usmanov are quite good.”
What are the specific conditions? Of course Wei Dunn would not say it.
Usmanov has promised David Dunn will remain at the helm of the Gunners if he buys Arsenal.
In this way, the brokerage business of his son Darren Dunn and his agent Anderson can continue.
But Kroenke refused to commit to David Dunn.
This is no secret at all in the Premier League.
Ferguson's son is also an agent, and his brother is also Manchester United's chief scout.
As long as it is good for the club, what does it matter if our own people do the club’s business?
But now, David Dunn is not going to talk about this topic.
Everyone here is the major shareholder of Arsenal, but it is obvious that they have not realized how serious the problem is.
"You have in front of you an actual financial statement of our club for the past three years."
David Dunn looked at the shareholders in front of him and said solemnly.
“This is the biggest secret of our club. You can only see it in this meeting room. You can’t say a word outside this door.”
Several shareholders were surprised. , opened the documents in front of them one after another, and the financial data involved in it were shocking.
"I would say that in the past two seasons, our failure to qualify for the Champions League has had a far greater impact on our club than we previously anticipated."
Arsenal's finances have never been made public.
There are many secrets involved, such as the remuneration packages of David Dunn and board members.
There are also a series of others.
Everyone outside said that Arsenal owes a lot of debt in order to build a new stadium.
But how much is owed?
Actually, only 260 million pounds.
As early as 1999, the earliest estimate of the project was to invest 150 million pounds, but it later exceeded expectations and reached 300 million pounds.
When the final accounts were completed and the project was completed, the actual cost was 470 million pounds.
Here, Arsenal's liabilities are mainly 260 million pounds borrowed from several banks in 2003. The loan term is 14 years, which is relatively short and the annual repayment pressure is relatively high.
Therefore, in 2006, board members such as David Dunn and Hillwood unanimously decided to issue bonds on the open market, using the completed Emirates Stadium as collateral, and borrowed 210 million pounds of fixed-rate bonds and 50 million pounds of Floating rate bonds.
The loan interest rates are 5.14% and 5.97%, and the maximum repayment period is 25 years.
After getting this money, I paid off the bank loan.
Why should we borrow bonds and repay bank loans?
Arsenal’s external explanation is that the bonds have a long repayment time and the interest rate is more advantageous.
But in reality?
The purpose of paying off a bank loan is to find another bank loan.
In 2006, Arsenal also invested in a large-scale apartment real estate project.
It is to demolish the original Highbury Stadium and build apartment buildings on the original site.
So, in 2006, Arsenal borrowed bonds and after paying off the bank loan, they turned around and took out a short-term loan of 133.5 million pounds for a period of 4 years.
Therefore, from 2006 to 2010, Arsenal not only had to repay the principal and interest of the previous 260 million pounds of bonds, but also had to repay the principal and interest of the subsequent short-term loan of 133.5 million pounds.
At least £56 million per year.
Did you find it?
Whether it is the bank loan borrowed when building the stadium or the bonds used to repay the loan later, Arsenal is actually within the range of affordability. What is really going to crush Arsenal is the amount of money spent on building apartments. Real estate loans.
In the 2005/06 season, Arsenal's revenue was about 145 million pounds.
The club's original expectation was to reach 180 million pounds by the 2006/07 season.
In this way, repaying 56 million pounds every year is a bit difficult, but it is not too terrible.
Moreover, after the apartment property is completed and sold, you can get the money back.
But now?
The club lost the Champions League qualification in the 2006/07 and 2007/08 seasons, losing at least 20 million pounds each year.
Revenue has fallen far short of expectations.
Before, selling Henry could recover a transfer fee, which was barely bearable.
But now?
Note that the transfer investment for Alan Lennon and Chimbonda will be spread over 6 years.
But Henry's transfer income is directly recorded.
Arsenal's idea at the time was to sign Aaron Lennon and Chimbonda to make up for the club's shortcomings and break into the Champions League.
But who would have thought that it failed in the end.
Not only failed, Chimbanda's performance fell far short of expectations after joining Arsenal.
On one side is the annual principal and interest of 56 million pounds, as well as the club's salary and various expenses. On the other side, the club's revenue has not made progress, but has stagnated.
“We have suffered large losses for two consecutive seasons. By the 2008/09 season, our finances will not be able to sustain it.”
David Dunn reminded all shareholders present very seriously that the situation is very serious.
Peter Hillwood closed the report in front of him and sighed: "Keep on holding on, the situation is good this year, maybe we can return to the Champions League area, and the apartment real estate project will be completed soon. , you can get the money back by selling it, and the pressure will be reduced a lot.”
“Peter!”
David Dunn said loudly, “Let’s stop fooling ourselves, okay?”
“The United States, the United States right across the Atlantic, They have been continuously cutting interest rates and injecting capital to rescue the market.”
"The subprime mortgage crisis has broken out and cannot be stopped."
"Look at the British property market now. Even if we finish building the apartment real estate, will we be able to sell it?"
Present here The shareholders actually know why they decided to build apartment real estate in the first place.
To put it bluntly, everyone wants to make money.
Since you made the decision in the first place and now you have lost the bet, you have to be willing to admit defeat.
David Dunn points out a very cruel reality.
Arsenal will not survive 2009!
Even if the club's financial pressure cannot be relieved, the club will continue to sell people in the summer of 2008.
Selling it will make the team less competitive.
“The Premier League today is completely different from the Premier League when we decided to build a new stadium in 1999, or when we sought a bank loan in 2003. Times have completely changed.”
"We had no idea at the time that Abramovich would completely change the rules of the Premier League game."
"We even less thought that the low-level league team in Hyde Park North would actually change its name. Become an upstart in the Premier League. "
"We have lost the Champions League for two consecutive seasons. Can we afford to gamble this season?"
David Dunn's question, the shareholders present. None of them can answer it.
Compared with ordinary people, they are all rich and wealthy, and they are all upper-class nobles.
But compared with Abramovich and those wealthy people who really spend money playing football, their assets are nothing.
David Dunn has discussed with these shareholders many times in the past few years, either to borrow money from shareholders to ease the club's financial pressure.
This money is considered a loan.
But no one is willing to invest any more money in it.
“Now, we have only two choices, either, we all die together, my shares have been sold anyway.”
"Either, it is to accept foreign investors."
When it comes to investors, shareholders are silent again.
Everyone looks to Peter Hillwood as their leader.
This 70-year-old man is most resistant to foreign investors.
In 2003, he rejected Abramovich's acquisition.
This year, he also rejected Kroenke and Usmanov.
But now, the situation is stronger than the person, and he can no longer be stubborn.
“We can accept capital injections to relieve the club’s financial pressure and let them join the board of directors, but they can only be non-executive directors.”
After hearing this, David Dunn sneered. .
“Peter, do you think I’m a fool?”
Peter Hillwood's face showed anger, but he quickly sighed.
“I can say it again now, we have no choice, either accept a capital injection and dilute everyone’s shares, or sell our shares to one of the investors and let him acquire all the shares of the club. , and then inject capital.”
No matter which option it is, it is actually something Arsenal shareholders are unwilling to choose.
After speaking, David Dunn reminded everyone present that this financial statement must not be leaked.
Then he got up and left.
Several people in the conference room were left, looking at each other, obviously unable to make a decision.
……
On the evening of November 6th, Wembley Stadium, London.
In the fourth round of the Champions League group stage, Bayswater Chinese faced Real Madrid at home.
Only 100 seconds into the game, the Bayswater Chinese used an overhead shot near the penalty spot, threatening Casillas' goal.
This is a masterpiece from Arshavin.
Russians are apparently addicted to barbs.
This also directly detonated the atmosphere at the scene.
The Bayswater Chinese took advantage of the home team at the beginning and took turns attacking Real Madrid's defense.
Unlike the previous game, this time several of Real Madrid's injured players have returned.
Goalkeeper: Casillas;
Defense: Heinze, Skrtel, Cannavaro and Ramos;
Midfield: Sneijder, Gago, Mohamed Diarra and Robinho;
Forwards: Raul and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Schuster's team still adopts the 442 formation.
Unlike the first round, Robinho appeared on the right.
Obviously they want to attack the left side of the Bayswater Chinese.
Because Leighton Baines was injured, Marcelo started this game.
Schuster obviously also knows that Marcelo is strong offensively and weak defensively, so he wants to play on this side.
Yang Cheng also knew what the other party meant, and did not want to make up for it, but wanted to have a head-on fight with Real Madrid.
He has such confidence!
Moreover, he also wants to bring a more exciting football feast to the home fans.
Therefore, the Bayswater Chinese did not have many reservations from the beginning and attacked Real Madrid's defense directly.
Real Madrid itself is weak offensively and defensively, and has a lot of defensive problems.
As a result, the two sides formed a confrontational situation.
In the 14th minute, when the Bayswater Chinese were pressing in the frontcourt, Real Madrid's defense made a passing error.
The ball passed by Heinze to Skrtel was intercepted by Dzeko first.
After stealing the ball, the Bosnia and Herzegovina center broke into the penalty area, passed Scotter and passed with his left foot. Arshavin stepped in and shot, opening the scoring for the Bayswater Chinese.
1 to 0!
But just 5 minutes later, the Bayswater Chinese defense was also attacked by Real Madrid.
Sneijder sent a diagonal pass in a quick counterattack. Robinho quickly broke into the penalty area from the right and formed a single shot. He scored Neuer's goal with a low shot and successfully equalized the score.
1 to 1!
The two teams are going head-to-head with each other, and no one is willing to give in!
In the 24th minute, the Bayswater Chinese frontcourt attack received a corner kick from the left.
Modric took the corner kick and accurately delivered it to the front post.
Pepe grabbed the first spot and headed the ball across.
The back point Yaya Toure beat Cannavaro and Ramos, headed the ball into the Real Madrid goal.
2 to 1!
The fans at the scene were almost overjoyed.
Have you ever seen this kind of football game where defense is not taken into account and the goal is directly against the sniper?
After falling behind by one goal, Real Madrid also got angry and began to press out to attack.
In the 31st minute, Gareth Bale received Modric's pass from the left. Under Ramos' marking, he shot a long shot directly high.
The Welshman, who has performed very well in recent times, was heavily targeted by Ramos in this game, and his performance was greatly reduced.
This is also a common problem among young players, whose performance fluctuates greatly.
But in the 35th minute, the Bayswater Chinese stole the ball in the midfield. After Lars Diarra stole the ball, he wanted to go straight to Dzeko, just like the previous game against Newcastle. Same as the game.
The French midfielder is addicted.
As a result, the passing intention of this ball was too obvious, and it was directly blocked by Mohamed Diarra.
The ball fell at Modric's feet.
As soon as the Croatian stopped, he sent another direct pass.
This pass was as precise as a scalpel. It slid on the grass for more than 20 meters and reached the feet of Dzeko in the penalty area.
The center of Bosnia and Herzegovina stops the ball and kicks off the ball in one go, and his movements are extremely graceful.
The ball went into Real Madrid's goal.
3 to 1!
Subsequently, the two teams continued to create opportunities and frequently hit the goal.
But no one could score again.
Neither side made any substitutions during the halftime break.
In the second half, the team changed sides and fought again. In the 54th minute, Robinho broke through with the ball on the right, was fouled by Marcelo, and got a free kick opportunity in the frontcourt.
Sneijder took the free kick and Ramos headed the goal, 2 to 3!
Real Madrid is still lagging behind and continues to attack.
Although the Bayswater Chinese took a one-goal lead, they played mercilessly.
If they really want to attack, the Chinese in Bayswater have never been afraid of anyone!
Yang Cheng quickly replaced Walcott, replacing Dzeko who had played two games in a row.
The center of Bosnia and Herzegovina played one pass and one shot in this game, and his performance was very eye-catching.
The fans at the scene also stood up and gave Dzeko warm applause.
After taking turns to make substitutions, the two teams still maintained an open attack, and no one had any intention of showing weakness.
This was a great experience for the fans at the scene.
In the 87th minute of the second half, Real Madrid got a corner kick in the frontcourt.
Sneijder threw the ball into the penalty area and was pushed out by the defensive player.
The ball fell in front of Gago and others on the outside.
Gareth Bale competed with Gago for the top and gave the ball to Walcott, who was unguarded in the left rib.
The little tiger stopped the ball directly in front of him with one kick, and his whole body was like a sharp arrow, starting instantly.
Everyone saw a red figure. After catching up with the football at a very fast speed, he kicked the ball out with a strong kick and quickly caught up again. The speed of the entire sprint did not slow down at all. .
In an instant, he passed the defensive zone of white players one after another.
The entire Wembley Stadium, with more than 70,000 fans, all screamed crazily.
The huge impact brought by this lightning speed made everyone's blood boil.
Walcott broke through all the defenses at great speed, rushed into Real Madrid's penalty area, and faced the last defender.
I saw a skillful fried meatball from the little tiger, which instantly passed Casillas who fell to the ground to save, and sent the ball into the unmanned goal with his left foot.
The moment the football rolled into Real Madrid's goal, more than 75,000 fans in the audience shouted Walcott's name crazily.
Nothing can arouse the enthusiasm of fans more than this wonderful long-distance run.
Especially after such a wonderful offensive battle, Walcott's long-distance run brought the whole game to a perfect end!
After standing up from their seats, the countless fans in the stands never sat down again.
They were always applauding the players in the stadium.
Warm applause spread to every corner of Wembley Stadium.
This made everyone feel the fans' satisfaction with this game.
4 to 2!
A total of 6 goals!
There was not even a minute of silence in the whole game.
Both teams completely forgot about defense and were attacking like crazy.
In the end, the Bayswater Chinese offensive was superior to Real Madrid's.
……
After the game at Wembley Stadium, the whole of Europe spoke highly of this game.
The Bayswater Chinese and Real Madrid faced off. In the 90 minutes of the game, the two teams fired 41 shots.
This is simply a crazy rhythm!
On average, a shot is taken every 2 minutes.
Imagine what kind of game this is?
The number of shots taken, Bayswater Chinese had 23 times and Real Madrid had 18 times.
But in terms of the number of shots on goal, the Bayswater Chinese shot 14 times and scored 4 goals, while Real Madrid only shot 7 times and scored 2 goals.
Whether it is the number of attacks or shooting efficiency, both teams are still very good.
Especially the Bayswater Chinese.
14 shots on target, only scored 4 goals.
The most obvious result is that after the game, Casillas was elected the best player of the game.
Although they lost, AS reported Real Madrid highly, believing that Real Madrid had a lot of shining points in this battle at Wembley Stadium.
From Sneijder to Robinho, they all performed brilliantly.
In addition, Gago also did a good job in passing and sorting out the ball in this game.
But Aspen also mentioned that Sneijder and Robinho still need continuous and stable performance.
The British media also spoke highly of the Bayswater Chinese, believing that after this game, the Bayswater Chinese won 4 consecutive games, took first place in the group ahead of schedule, and advanced to the top 16 of the Champions League.
This is the second consecutive season that the Bayswater Chinese have reached the top 16 of the Champions League.
Everyone believes that with the level shown by the Bayswater Chinese, there is definitely a chance to achieve better results than last season.
After all, Modric, Lass Diarra and Yaya Toure in the midfield are all more mature and stronger than last season.
Many media are paying attention to the young Chinese people in Bayswater.
Walcott and Rakitic both performed very well. Although Marcelo was a little embarrassed by Robinho, his contribution on the offensive end was not small.
Marcelo's performance was indeed very controversial by England's standards.
On the one hand, his offensive strength, whether it is technology, stopping the ball, passing, or even long passes, is very good. His overall strength is really quite good, and it is typical at first glance. Brazilian full-back.
Especially his long pass transfer from the left is still very threatening.
But on the other hand, his defense is really good.
Otherwise, Schuster would not have immediately switched Robinho to the right as soon as he saw him starting.
The most praised one is Walcott.
The long-distance run after coming on as a substitute made the British media happy as if it were a holiday.
Everyone said that he had the same demeanor as Irving back in the day.
Yang Cheng is also accustomed to the British media's practice of praising local stars. In his opinion, whether it is Theo Walcott, Gareth Bale, or Aaron Ramsey, they have done a very good job in self-discipline and have no bad habits.
The most important thing is to listen to advice.
The biggest fear among young people is that they feel they can do anything just after they emerge.
Having character and arrogance is a good thing.
This is how young players should be.
But you must be able to listen to advice and be able to discern what is good for you.
For those who insist on having their own way, no matter how talented they are, it is basically difficult to fulfill them.
……
Noon on November 10th, Wembley Stadium, London.
In the 13th round of the Premier League, Bayswater Chinese faced Arsenal at home.
When the game reached the 44th minute, the score on the scoreboard was still 0-0.
The Bayswater Chinese attacked from the right and got a chance for a corner kick.
Modric ran over quickly, preparing to take a corner kick.
The Bayswater Chinese players quickly rushed into Arsenal's penalty area.
At this moment, nearly 65,000 fans in the audience were all shouting desperately.
On the sidelines, in front of the visiting team's coaching bench, Wenger stared nervously at the court without saying a word.
He desperately tried to hide his inner worry, but his eyes betrayed him.
With a whistle from referee Rob Stiles, Modric quickly took a run and fired a curve ball.
The arc of this kick was relatively low and landed in front of the Arsenal goal.
Very forward point.
Koscielny rushed forward quickly and raised his head when no one was guarding him.
The ball fell towards the goal at a faster speed.
Arsenal’s penalty area has long been a mess.
Many people’s attention has been attracted by Koscielny.
As a result, when the ball fell towards the small penalty area, all the people gathered at the front point missed it.
Either he didn't react, or his kick missed.
There are Bayswater Chinese players and Arsenal players.
Everyone is the same.
But right in front of the small restricted area, a burly and majestic red figure rushed over quickly.
The momentum with which he rushed into the small restricted area was like a heavy truck rushing into a crowded commercial pedestrian street.
Who can stop it?
And just in front of Arsenal goalkeeper Almunia, Yaya Toure stepped in.
The ball slipped under the outstretched hands of the Spanish goalkeeper and into the Arsenal goal.
The referee Stiles will blow the whistle immediately!
Yaya Toure had already turned around and ran away. The Ivory Coast midfielder seemed extremely excited. He kept waving his hands all the way and rushed to the sideline with shouts, directed at Bass in the stands. Walter Chinese fans opened their arms boldly.
At this moment, the score on the scoreboard became 1-0!
All the fans in the audience were shouting one name.
Yaya Toure!
……
Wenger has always felt that his memory is very good.
He is especially sensitive to various data.
Even if it was some things or numbers from long ago, he could still remember them very clearly.
However, he forgot, when did Yaya Toure come to Arsenal for trial training, and how long did he stay for trial training?
The only thing he can be sure of is that it should have been in the summer of 2003, when the team was training to prepare for the game.
At that time, Kolo Toure found him and hoped to recommend his younger brother to come to Arsenal for trial training.
The Ivorian defender performed well and Wenger gave him face, so he agreed.
Not long after, this player who played in the Belgian low-level league came to Arsenal.
Wenger didn't remember him well, he only remembered that he had been training with the team and played in the midfield.
It’s hard to say which position he plays, because he plays very randomly.
It is said that he has played as an attacking midfielder, central midfielder, defensive midfielder, central defender, and he can even play on the wing.
All in all, he said, he could do it all.
In order to stay at Arsenal.
Wenger is used to this kind of attitude from young people. His first impression of Yaya Toure is that he is really strong!
When he got on the court, he discovered that his skills with his feet were really good.
It’s just a bit sticky.
This is a common problem among many players who have not experienced formal youth training and polishing, and they have a strong street style.
Wenger has long forgotten how long Yaya Toure has been training at Arsenal.
It seems like we played a warm-up match.
I specially arranged for him to play, but he messed up.
And at that time, he had no way to apply for a labor certificate.
Oh, by the way, Wenger remembered.
July.
Because the British media reported on the labor certificate at that time.
A team from the third tier league actually applied for the first labor certificate in England, and it was given to a skinny kid from Croatia.
The most outrageous thing is that the rich second-generation owner of that third-level league team actually said wildly that that skinny kid would be a midfield genius!
All in all, the whole of Britain took this matter as a joke at that time.
Many people even think that this will become another joke for the Football Association.
Times may change.
Four years have passed in a hurry.
Now, that third-level league team has transformed into the defending champion of the Premier League, become its opponent in today's game, and has become an upstart in European football.
The kid who was everyone's joke, the skinny kid who was looked down upon by countless people, is now the captain of the Bayswater Chinese and the core of the midfield.
Modric is really low-key, and his statistics are not particularly eye-catching, but anyone who knows football knows that he is a real genius!
And the rich second generation who spoke arrogantly back then created all of this!
Yaya Toure, for whom Wenger was unwilling to apply for a labor certificate, had just a moment ago scored against the Gunners on behalf of the former third-tier league team.
All the memories intertwined in Wenger's mind in an instant, forming a very absurd memory that was somewhat difficult for Wenger to accept.
Wenger can understand why Yaya Toure is so excited every time he plays for Arsenal.
Many players are like this.
They simply want to make all people like Wenger regret what they did back then.
Wenger turned around silently and returned to the coaching bench.
After sitting down, he simply closed his eyes, rubbed his eyebrows, and tried hard to suppress the irritability in his heart.
Because he really regrets it!
……
The first half ended with Yaya Toure’s 1-0 lead.
But there is still the second half of the game, and it is far from time to relax our vigilance.
“Arsenal is one of the only two unbeaten teams in the five major leagues this season!”
In the locker room at halftime, Yang Cheng was mobilizing all the players.
“Facing such a team, we must devote 200% of our investment.”
Yang Cheng was not satisfied with the team’s opening performance in the first half.
The Bayswater Chinese had a very unsatisfactory start, which resulted in the entire first half being dominated by Arsenal.
If it weren’t for the corner kick in the final stage and if it weren’t for Yaya Toure’s goal, the Bayswater Chinese would have had a very difficult game.
Now, he has to ask his players to make changes.
"Arsenal will not choose to defend because they can't defend!"
Yang Cheng is very sure.
Gilberto Silva is injured and is out, so the two central midfielders arranged by Wenger for this game are Flamini and Cesc Fabregas.
Coincidentally, this is not Flamini’s contract year.
Arsenal's performance throughout the first half proved that they were not at their best.
They just failed in the UEFA Cup.
Arsenal is in good shape this season and is currently ranked third in the Premier League. Wenger wants to strive for the top four and qualify for the Champions League next season.
But the Gunners' lineup configuration is obviously not enough to fight on multiple lines at the same time.
So Wenger must make some trade-offs.
Everyone knows what to choose.
"In the second half, they will definitely attack!"
"And our task is to fight back their attack!"
"This is not just 3 Points, this is Arsenal’s challenge to us in the standings!”
“I hope that you will use this game to tell the more than 65,000 fans in the audience and tell the whole of London who is the best! The true King of London!”
...
After the start of the second half, the game situation was exactly as Yang Cheng expected.
Arsenal, who took the first kick off, took the initiative to attack.
In less than 1 minute, the Gunners shot two consecutive shots on the left side of the Bayswater Chinese penalty area, but both were blocked and failed to threaten the goal.
But the Gunners were still not satisfied and continued to attack.
But in the 48th minute, Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas got the ball and was caught by Modric.
The two were stuck together on the left side of the center circle in Arsenal's half to grab the ball.
No one got it in the end.
The ball escaped the control of the two men and rolled to the left.
Di Maria rushed over immediately, got ahead of Fabregas, pushed the ball forward, and suddenly accelerated to catch up.
At this time, Dzeko in the frontcourt had already started to move forward.
Arsenal’s two central defenders were a bit too far apart.
Di Maria sent a through pass to the front of Dzeko between Kolo Toure and Gallas.
The Bosnia and Herzegovina center quickly rushed over, took the lead, blocked Kolo Toure with his body, rushed the ball with his right foot into Arsenal's penalty area, and got ahead of the attacking goalkeeper Almunia. , one kick.
The ball went over Almunia's head and fell into the unguarded goal behind him.
Gallas chased him all the way, trying to kick the ball out in front of the goal line.
As a result, the ball is faster than people!
“The ball has been scored!!!”
“Only 3 minutes into the second half, the Bayswater Chinese scored Arsenal’s goal again.”
“2 vs. 0!
"Di Maria's direct pass was very beautiful."
"Edin Dzeko's back insertion was also handled very smartly, but Kolo Toure still suffered a physical disadvantage. ”
The sound of fans shouting for Dzeko came from the entire stadium.
Everyone cheered.
……
Before the end of the game, Arsenal got a chance for a corner kick.
As a result, this corner kick caused chaos in the Bayswater Chinese penalty area.
Hleb caught a hint of murderous intent in the chaos, took advantage of the chaos, and sent the ball into the Bayswater Chinese goal.
1 to 2!
At this time, it is already the 87th minute.
In the end, the Bayswater Chinese defeated Arsenal 2-1.
The moment the whistle sounded at the end of the game, deafening cheers came from the entire stadium.
All the fans in the audience stood up and gave the team warm applause and cheers.
Arsenal’s undefeated streak is finally broken!
From now on, there is only one unbeaten team left in the five major leagues this season.
That's Liverpool!
Also in this round, Liverpool defeated Fulham 2-0 at home.
After experiencing outstanding performances in the past few rounds, Chelsea was held to a 1-1 home draw by Everton in this round.
Manchester United defeated Blackburn 2-0 at home with Ronaldo's brace.
After 13 rounds, Manchester United leads the standings with 32 points.
The Bayswater Chinese are close behind with 30 points.
Arsenal has the same score as Liverpool with 27 points.
Manchester City is ranked 5th with 26 points, and Chelsea is ranked 6th with 25 points.
......
After the game, Yang Cheng took the initiative to shake hands with Wenger and say hello.
As usual, he asked politely if he wanted to go have a drink.
In the past, Wenger has always refused.
But today, for some reason, he actually agreed.
Now it was Yang Cheng who was embarrassed.
I was just asking casually, just to be polite, why did you take it seriously?
I didn't prepare any wine!
Seeing Yang Cheng's appearance, Wenger's bitter mood due to losing suddenly improved a lot.
Hypocritical guy, your mask has been blown away now, right?
"The whole UK knows that your boy is a vampire who can only get in and out. What's wrong? You can't even bear to treat us with a bottle of red wine?" Wenger teased.
How could Yang Cheng let Wenger take advantage?
How do you say something?
If you can’t get it on the court, don’t get it from the wine shop!
Yang Cheng is familiar with the groundskeepers at Wembley, so he can borrow some from them. If you don’t believe me, they won’t drink.
So, he invited Wenger over and asked Brian Kidd to find someone to borrow it.
Sure enough, after a while, the wine was borrowed.
"This wine...is not good." Wenger felt a little disgusted.
Yang Cheng chuckled, "In your current mood, no matter how good the wine is, it will taste sour."
Wenger did not refute.
Seeing Yang Cheng pour two glasses, he picked up one of them and knocked it. He picked it up and took a sip, tutting twice.
Sure enough, this wine is not good.
I don’t know where this stingy guy found it temporarily.
"I understand, I have never invited anyone to drink in this stadium."
"So, everyone says you are the stingiest in the Premier League."
"Since you know I'm stingy, you still agree? You are the most ignorant person in the Premier League." Yang Cheng retorted.
Wenger laughed.
In terms of thickness of skin, I really don't think I can beat Yang Cheng.
The two joked with each other a few more times, and the topic was also rambling.
Yang Cheng suddenly thought of the recent news and immediately asked it in a gossipy way.
"Hey, how did I hear that your team will be sold recently?"
"Fake news." Wenger said impatiently.
He was tired of being asked this question.
Looking at his expression, Yang Cheng felt even more confident.
If this news is false, damn it!
“Even the Guardian published it, and the previous news about Usmanov from Reuters, aren’t they all fake?”
Wenger asked back angrily. In one sentence, "We are mortal enemies, why do you care about this?"
"I'm going to buy your Arsenal!" Yang Cheng joked seriously.
Wenger was indeed amused.
This is where the comedy effect comes from.
“Really planning to sell it?” Yang Cheng continued to ask.
Wenger snorted twice. He seriously suspected that this kid was here to find out the truth.
"If we really get attached to a local tycoon and get acquired, and I get a large transfer fee, the first thing I will do is to hollow out all your players."
Yang Cheng suddenly laughed. come out.
How could he be fooled by Wenger?
"Yes, as long as you are willing to spend the money, I can sell it to you whoever you want to buy!"
Wenger was a little surprised. The shrewd eyes on his old face were always They all stared at Yang Cheng, as if they wanted to see his guilty conscience from Yang Cheng's face.
But who is Yang Cheng?
As a man of three generations, can Wenger see through him?
“I really can’t understand you.” Wenger sighed, “How can you be so sure?”
Yang Cheng grinned, “Because you can’t get out at all. Pay the price I want!”
Wenger hesitated and had nothing to say.
This person is the most boring, always chatting to death.
If you really say that, of course I can't afford the price.
For example, Gareth Bale, you just shouted out 100 million pounds.
The hell can I afford it? Am I crazy? Spend 100 million pounds to buy Gareth Bale?
I went to find Ferguson to buy Cristiano Ronaldo, but I probably wouldn’t have spent that much.
If not, I will go to Barcelona to buy Messi!
"So, I really plan to sell it." Yang Cheng changed the subject and brought the topic back to Arsenal.
"That is to say, the rumors outside are true. If you can't find the money again, if you can't enter the Champions League again, your life will be very sad."
"So. "Look at what you did, is it a personnel matter?" Wenger finally admitted.
This kind of thing is not too confidential.
Besides, after a while, everything settled and everyone knew.
"Is it Russian? Or American?" Yang Cheng continued to use his gossip spirit.
“I don’t know.” Wenger shook his head.
How can you ask for his opinion on board matters without a general direction?
For this kind of thing, Yang Cheng just watched it with cold eyes and definitely had no interest in participating.
Whether it is Kroenke or Usmanov, who can guarantee whether it is good or bad?
In the final analysis, these guys have no profit and cannot afford to be early.
Do you really think they are running a charity?
It’s just that the interests sought are different.
Including like Abramovich versus Chelsea, true love?
Nonsense!
However, Yang Cheng has something that he can cooperate with Wenger on.
This is also the reason why he decided to invite Wenger to drink.
That is to call on the Premier League to strengthen the punishment of fouls, especially serious fouls, such as fouls with the intention of hurting others, which should be severely punished and severely punished.
Wenger supports this with both hands and feet.
In the past few years, Arsenal has been bullied by the Premier League teams in order to "pay off their debts".
The idea proposed by Yang Cheng really hit it off.
That’s not to say that mid- and lower-tier teams are not allowed to use foul tactics, but at least it is necessary to clearly distinguish which ones are malicious and which ones are tactical.
The Premier League’s standards for flagrant fouls are still too lenient.
This is not good for young players, and it is not good for technical players.
On this point, Yang Cheng and Wenger have the same position.
But the Bayswater Chinese are now alone. Adam Crozier can say a few words and appeal for a while, but he also needs players like Arsenal, David Dunn, and Wenger. People came out to help.
This is something that is beneficial to both parties.
Maybe it can also prevent Eduardo da Silva’s broken leg incident from happening.
It also helps the overall image and commercial promotion of the Premier League.
Wenger agreed on the spot.
As for how the two clubs plan to cooperate in the future, how to promote and appeal, and how to contact more teams, Wenger said that he will communicate with David Dunn after returning.
At that time, the two parties will coordinate at the club level.
(End of this chapter)