"In this biting cold weather, Maël, wearing warm gloves, has returned to Bramall Lane Stadium!"
"More than 30,000 Sheffield United fans rise to applaud, using this method to commemorate the person who brought them countless joys! They are expressing the highest respect to the player!"
"In just one year, Maël's loan transformed this club, winning the championship in record-breaking fashion and returning to the Premier League! It also ignited the local football market! Today, the player returns wearing the jersey of the powerhouse team Arsenal!"
Zhan Jun's voice paused here for a long time, then raised to a higher pitch, "Can you imagine?! In just half a year, he has reached his peak at Arsenal and become a top star!"
"Gareth Speed would be proud of him, McCabe would applaud him, and the Sheffield United fans would also feel proud!"
Amidst his roaring voice, the players from both sides walked out of the player tunnel, stepped onto the field, and prepared to conclude the first half of their 11-12 Premier League journey.
This will be a summary battle!
Maël, holding the hand of a young ball boy, stepped onto the familiar path he had walked more than twenty times, and stood in the center of the familiar stadium.
"Clap clap clap!"
He could clearly see every Sheffield United fan rising to applaud him, and he could see many people holding up banners of various lengths.
——"Welcome home!"
——"Mr. Golden Boy, please don't forget Sheffield United!"
——"You are our eternal glory! We will always remember you!"
The West Stand even displayed a banner of him wearing the Sheffield United Number 31 jersey, passed down from top to bottom through the hands of the fans.
Maël smiled as he looked at them, raising his hand and clapping a few times as a gesture to all the fans.
It seems that in the year and a half since he came to this world, he has done one thing well, gaining the love and support of countless fans in this industry he loves.
"Good luck!"
"Hope it's a great game!"
Before he could recover, the starting players of Sheffield United had already lined up to shake hands.
He saw many unfamiliar faces in the opposing lineup, but fortunately, Evans and Janu Hans were still there, and they quickly came to his side.
"Maël."
Evans stepped forward, looking at the young man who had provided him with countless passes, looking at the Arsenal jersey on him, and couldn't help but sigh, "The change is too great, your value has increased several times over, I really envy you."
He reached out and shook hands with Maël, and because there were people lined up behind him, he quickly walked away.
"You little brat." Janu Hans followed closely, embracing Maël with a bright smile. They were once the best midfield partners, "Never thought, huh, I have 5 assists in the Premier League too."
"Truly amazing."
Maël hugged him, and after separating, he saw envy and longing in Janu Hans' eyes, as well as some happiness and faint inferiority, in short, it was very complicated.
"You've already forgotten me." Next up was Lotton, who pointed at Maël with a resentful expression, "Remember that training match when you first came to Sheffield United? I tackled you flying as soon as we met."
"Haha..."
Of course, Maël hadn't forgotten him. When he shook hands with him, he said, "Don't even think about tackling me flying today, my Strength is not at the same level as before."
"I know."
After Lotton finished his prepared opening remarks, he lowered his head somewhat awkwardly. In the presence of the current Maël, they easily felt a sense of inferiority, like a firefly seeing the bright moon.
Logically speaking, this feeling shouldn't exist. They had spent a happy time together, only separated by a little over half a year.
Not long ago, they were all fireflies, shining together in a cage, at most Maël's light was a little brighter.
But precisely because of this, they had a stronger sense of inferiority... Maël's rate of expansion was too fast, and in a short period of time, he had reached a level that was out of their reach.
The past impressions of the other party's highlights and skills had turned into bubbles. He was now wearing a new jersey, with a completely new level and countless new highlights.
"Things have really changed."
He finally patted Maël's shoulder and walked aside to shake hands with others.
Maël could feel their thoughts, which made his own thoughts become complicated, not knowing what to say.
"Xuxu~!" Just then, a whistle came from the sidelines.
He turned his head and saw Gilbert, dressed in casual clothes, standing at the entrance of the player tunnel, putting his hands in his mouth and whistling at him.
The opposing team included an avoidance clause in his loan agreement, so he can't play against Arsenal for Sheffield United today. However, he must have requested to watch the game from the stadium to witness his performance in person.
Maël smiled and waved at him. He saw Wenger from the Arsenal coaching staff quickly approach Gilbert, who immediately shrunk his neck.
"Haha." He chuckled and turned his gaze elsewhere, where the applause was particularly loud.
"Clap clap clap!" It was Gareth Speed, Joelson, and a few former teammates wearing substitute vests, all standing with smiles and applauding for him.
Everything felt so familiar, as if overlapping with the scenes in his memory, only to look down and see that the team emblem on his jersey had changed to Arsenal.
Play well! Don't embarrass the old coaching staff and the McCabe family. Show your best form and let your former teammates and fans see the changes you've made this season.
"Bip!"
Before long, with a whistle from the referee, this Premier League Round 19 match officially kicked off at Bramall Lane Stadium.
"Bang!" Evans kicked off from the center circle. They were fielding a 5-4-1 defensive formation today, fully prepared for a counter-attacking strategy.
Maël crossed the midfield line, rushing towards the opponent's backfield amidst cheers from both sets of fans.
The summary battle is here! On the sidelines, Wenger had his arm around Gilbert's neck. Gilbert wasn't wearing a jersey today, so the gesture didn't seem out of place.
"You had fewer goals and assists in the second half of the first leg, but more tackles. Are you intentionally developing in that direction?"
He chuckled as he looked at this outstanding representative of Arsenal's youth training, a young star who came out of Colney Base with Maël. Even if they were moving up at different speeds, they were still considered Arsenal's hope.
"Yes."
Gilbert was a little shy in front of Wenger, nodding and saying, "In the youth team, I was known for my footwork, but after coming to the Premier League, that advantage of mine isn't so obvious."
"If I want to go back to Arsenal and play, I have to make some changes... If I can become a midfielder with both technique and defensive toughness, my competitiveness will increase a lot."
He didn't hide his ambition, frankly telling the head coach of his parent team his thoughts.
Sometimes these things need to be expressed, as it's the only way to have a higher probability of impressing the team's head coach.
After saying that, he drooped his head and smiled, "And as Maël's threat becomes greater and greater, he may be subjected to more and more fierce fouls. I can protect him a bit from behind."
"I'm determined to play with him. Since I don't have much attacking talent, I'll strive to be a workhorse behind him."
"Haha." Wenger laughed twice, lightly patted the back of his head, and then returned to his seat, focusing on the game.
On the other side, in front of the Sheffield United coaching bench, Gareth Speed was also chatting with Joelson about topics related to Maël.
"You can clearly see when he runs that he's become stronger."
Joelson looked at the young player he had personally discovered reaching this point, his face full of pride. "It's great. He's actually become a top Premier League striker."
"Do you think it's possible for him to break the EFL Championship's goal record last year, and then break the Premier League's record this year?"
"Hard to say." Gareth Speed shook his head, smiling and saying, "If he scores a goal later, and you show even a hint of celebration in front of me, I'll ask the referee for a red card and send you to the stands."
Joelson laughed loudly and spread his hands, puzzled, "Why would the referee listen to you?"
"Why?"
Gareth Speed turned to look at him, holding back a smile as he joked, "I can tell him you were cursing him next to me. No, that makes me seem like a lunatic too... I'll imitate your voice and curse the fourth official."
The two chuckled together. In this kind of match with a relatively large difference in strength, they were relatively relaxed, only hoping not to concede too many goals.
On the field, Arsenal was pressing hard in Sheffield United's backfield, playing positional offense and defense. They didn't feel much pressure playing against a promoted team.
Maël was waiting on the left wing. Sheffield United's defensive line was almost entirely new faces. He only recognized Lotton and two other defenders from other teams he had met in the EFL Championship.
In the 11th minute of the match, he finally received a through ball from a teammate amidst various interceptions, ushering in a good opportunity for a breakthrough attack.
"Bang bang...!"
He dribbled towards the opponent's full-back and covering center-back, taking on two opponents alone.
"Maël's breakthrough! He's now in the Premier League, and being double-teamed is already the norm for him! The key is that even two people can't necessarily defend against him, and three aren't particularly safe!" His change of direction and acceleration! A sudden stop and turn, then cut towards the penalty area! He's past them!
"A beautiful one-on-two breakthrough! I wonder how Sheffield United's fans feel seeing this scene, with the player reappearing at the old stadium in this manner!"
"…"
"Oh!" Amidst a burst of exclamations, Maël broke through two players in succession, bringing the ball to the center of the penalty area.
"Bang!"
Looking at the opposing goalkeeper, who was waiting in full battle array, and the almost completely blocked shooting angle, he swept the ball towards the front of the goal, but Van Persie, who was trying to score in the middle, missed the ball.
Walcott, the winger on the other side, quickly received the ball at the far post. He was immediately blocked when he got the ball and couldn't turn around, so he could only pass it back.
"Bang!!" Ramsey, who followed up, pushed the ball towards the lower right corner of the goal.
Three Sheffield United players in a row fell to the ground in the penalty area to block the shot. They threw their bodies out directly, trying to create obstacles in the path of the football, but the ball slipped past them first.
"Swish!" As the football quickly touched the net, Arsenal easily took a 1-0 lead.
"Yeah!"
The players ran to the sidelines in groups of three or five, laughing and celebrating together. Ramsey was breathing heavily in the cold weather, clenching his fists and shouting, his emotions were agitated.
Maël stepped forward and gave them high-fives, without making any celebratory gestures. He had to be careful when returning to his hometown.
He looked at Walcott and said with a smile, "It's hard to understand that this goal isn't my assist. I've paid back what I owed you before, so we're even!"
"Haha..." Walcott laughed, having long forgotten the frustration of having his stats stolen before. However, he understood that Maël was teasing him jokingly, and patted Maël.
"Bang!"
In the 41st minute of the first half, Van Persie received a through ball from Ramsey in the penalty area and hit a shot with his right foot after controlling the ball.
The football brushed past the blocking defender's forehead and finally smashed into the net.
Two to zero! Easily extend the lead!
The undefeated first half of the season is really coming! "Oh!"
Van Persie roared and rushed to the sidelines, making his favorite sliding celebration gesture, signaling to the Arsenal fans.
Maël ran behind him, and although he hadn't gained any stats yet, he was in a good mood.
Arsenal will perfectly end the first half of the season with a revival, which will definitely give the team a strong motivation to compete for the championship and achieve a virtuous cycle of morale.
"Bang!!"
It wasn't over after this goal. In the second minute of injury time in the first half, Arteta blasted a long shot from outside the penalty area, changing the score to three to zero.
Three to zero in the first half! "Arsenal's players are going crazy today! Sheffield United lined up with a five-defender formation, but they still collapsed quickly! Gareth Speed's team has played quite well against strong teams in the past, so why do they go weak in the knees when they encounter Arsenal? Is it because they can't bear to attack the team where last season's hero is?"
"I wonder if Maël will also show mercy. It rarely happens that the whole team scores 3 goals, but he hasn't scored yet."
"..."
"Beep! Beep——!"
The referee blew the whistle to end the first half soon after. Arsenal's players easily returned to the locker room to rest, while Sheffield United's players lowered their heads with shame and worry.
"Too strong."
Janu Hans looked at the backs of the Arsenal players as he left the field and sighed, "As expected of the team at the top of the standings. It's really bad luck to meet them when they're going crazy like this."
Evans walked beside him, staring at Maël the whole time. "He's also terrifyingly strong now. He's a threat as soon as he gets the ball. He's dribbled past people at least 8-9 times in the first half."
Janu Hans nodded, looked around to make sure no one was there, and said, "Do you think he'll score today? Will he let us off easy?"
"I don't know." Evans shook his head. As he walked into the player tunnel, he heard the staff next to him also talking about this topic. It seemed that everyone regarded Maël as the focus of this game.
Behind them, Wenger walked down the steps at this time, met Gareth Speed, and shook hands with a smile.
Thanks to Maël and Gilbert, although he and Gareth Speed hadn't met a few times, they definitely had a good impression of each other.
"Call it quits." Gareth Speed joked, then pulled Joelson up and introduced him, "For the sake of him discovering Maël and Gilbert, and for the sake of us helping you train your troops."
Wenger shook his head with a smile and raised his eyebrows, "Going all out is respect for the opponent."
At the start of the second half, Wenger substituted Arshavin and played him on the left wing.
Thinking that this was his beloved disciple Maël's homecoming battle, he didn't take Maël off, but let him play in the middle, just like in the last game.
"Good luck."
Maël didn't have any uncomfortable emotions. After seeing Arshavin come on the field, he encouraged him.
This game is not only of great significance to him, but also to Arshavin. This is likely to be his farewell battle.
"Wait for my pass." Arshavin was very optimistic today, winking his right eye at Maël and running actively on the field.
Arsenal's fans also knew this might be Arshavin's farewell match, and they raised banners in the stands.
--"Arshavin, thank you for your 28 goals and 35 assists! Thank you for your contributions to Arsenal over the years!"
"Arshavin! Arshavin!" The shouts rang out as the fans paid their respects to him, once their beloved player.
He had been largely forgotten this season, mainly because Maël's performance had been too good, diverting people's attention. Now that they thought about it, they felt somewhat indebted to him.
Arshavin heard the voices behind him and a smile appeared on his lips, but he didn't greet the fans. Instead, he quickened his pace and ran even more aggressively.
In the 68th minute of the match, he intercepted the opposing full-back's dribble and turned to launch an attack on Sheffield United's defense.
"Bang, bang...!"
But the opponent's defensive area was very dense, as if they hadn't yet emerged from the shadow Maël had cast over them, mistaking him for Maël.
Arshavin had no choice but to dribble towards the center, cutting inside, enduring two rough challenges in the process.
He gritted his teeth and persevered, not wanting to fall here. Arsenal's set-piece attacks weren't particularly strong, so it was better for him to create the threat.
Soon, he found himself in a slightly awkward situation. Because he had been focused on dribbling, he hadn't noticed that the opponent's midfielders had surrounded him.
Arshavin glanced forward, looking for a passing opportunity, but only saw Maël, who was tightly marked by a defender.
"Bang!" He said "Sorry" and "It's up to you" in Russian, passing the ball to Maël in front of him with one kick. It definitely wasn't a good time to pass, but if he continued to dribble, he would lose the ball.
He could only let Maël try! Sheffield United's defensive line immediately became vigilant. Center-back Paul stuck close behind Maël, preventing him from turning directly into the penalty area.
Lotton also came to a position in front of Maël, preventing Maël from shooting directly after a first touch.
"Snap!"
In this situation, Maël ran towards the ball and suddenly hooked it with his heel, hooking it in the opposite direction of everyone's running.
He had planned this in advance. After hooking the ball, he quickly completed a gorgeous turn, bypassing Lotton in front of his face and arriving in front of the ball.
"Fa..." Lotton didn't have time to exclaim before he wanted to reach out and grab Maël's jersey.
This single touch was too fast! It was an extremely perfect first touch, followed by an explosive turn. If nothing unexpected happened, the opponent would shoot directly with the ball.
"Bang!!"
He guessed right. After Maël brushed past him, he took the opportunity to use his right foot to unleash a powerful curved shot, directly curving the ball towards the far corner.
At the moment of turning and breaking free, his brain's excitement had reached its peak. At this time, if he didn't use a shot to perform a farewell show and strive for a goal, he would feel somewhat sorry for himself! "Swish!"
The football drew a beautiful arc in the air, passing through the goalkeeper's hands and smashing into the net under the horrified gaze of all the Sheffield People! "A stunning goal!"
In the broadcast booth, Zhan Jun shouted immediately, "Four to zero! Maël uses a gorgeous turn and a gorgeous shot to send a great gift to the old fans and old coaches! "Haha... we guessed wrong, he has no intention of holding back! He's going all out! "The 21st Premier League goal, with Van Persie also having 18 goals, it can be said that the two of them have jointly scored 39 goals for Arsenal in the first half of the season! What an amazing pair of forwards!"
"…"
"Yeah!" In the Arsenal fan zone, thousands of arms waved together, and everyone fell into a frenzy.
Wenger clapped his hands and smiled contentedly. Seeing his beloved disciple complete his goal in the home game and the first-half summary game, he also felt a sense of satisfaction.
"Amazing goal!"
Ramsey behind him came up and said with bright eyes, "And he also let Arshavin complete an assist! It's too perfect!"
Ramsey had always had a good relationship with Arshavin. He felt reluctant in his heart when he saw his old teammate about to leave... Fortunately, the hope of a championship brought by Maël could offset some of the reluctance.
So when he saw Maël score from Arshavin's pass, which wasn't a threatening ball, he felt a very complete feeling in his heart.
In the final battle, the two once again joined hands to complete a goal, with no regrets!
On the touchline, Maël ran towards the corner flag area, smiling and suppressing his excitement, raising his hands in an apologetic gesture.
Re-shaking the net at Bramall Lane Stadium would once again awaken many of his past memories, making him want to slide out along the grass here at this moment.
But he couldn't do that, it would hurt the Sheffield United fans who had complex expressions at the moment.
The tens of thousands of Sheffield United fans in the stands hesitated for a moment, but still clapped their hands to express their respect for the goal, "Clap clap clap!"
Many people came specifically to see Maël today, but they could no longer cheer for his goal, and could only express their appreciation in a euphemistic way.
A fan took out a plastic Ballon d'Or trophy, held it in his hands and raised a banner - "Hope you can win the Ballon d'Or in the future and become the first player who has played for Sheffield United and won the highest honor!"
Maël waved to him, took a few deep breaths, and dispersed some of the heat in his chest.
"Yeah!"
A shout rang out, and Arshavin, who had assisted him, rushed over excitedly, opening his mouth wide and tugging at his jersey, as if to complete the celebration for him.
Maël smiled as he watched him. Arshavin lifted his jersey, revealing two lines of text that he had prepared long ago: "Goodbye Arsenal, I will always love you!"
He was worried that these two lines wouldn't have a chance to be revealed. After the second half started, Arsenal slowed down their attacking rhythm, but thankfully, Maël's incredible World Wave created the opportunity for him!
"Thank you!" Arshavin blew a kiss towards Maël as he ran, expressing his gratitude, and then came to the advertising board, displaying the characters in front of the camera.
Maël looked at him and couldn't help but feel a little moved. This veteran was about to end his journey with Arsenal and retire from the mainstream stage to enjoy his retirement.
It could be considered a perfect farewell, right? Then let's join hands and leave this beautiful moment before the halfway point, and then have a perfect farewell!
ps: My parents came from afar today, and I may have to have dinner with them in the afternoon, so I may only be able to update 2 chapters of 6k-7k words, but the number of words updated this month will not be less.
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