From Arsenal to the Ball God

You can tell that there is still a certain level of fighting capability, and playing a defensive counter-attack against Udinese isn’t too difficult.

”Vinci per noi...!” At 7:30 in the evening, this match kicked off at the Friuli Stadium, with the home team fully unleashed, beginning a desperate counter-attack.

Ma’el sat on the bench, observing the performance of the new recruits alongside Van Persie.

Very soon, Mertesacker caught their attention in a very noticeable way; the German defender’s defensive prowess was incredibly strong.

Whether it was positioning, man-marking, tackling, clearing the ball, or aerial duels, he showcased extremely strong abilities!

Except for once being outpaced and bypassed by Midfielder Ping Qi, he made almost no mistakes.

”Very strong.”

Van Persie thought of Koscielny and exclaimed with a smile, ”Now, the defensive line of the team is competitive, and everyone must play at their best to have a chance on the field.

”Moreover, we have the assurance of rotation during a tight schedule.”

”That’s right.” Ma’el nodded, thinking more about... if Mertesacker had been on the field during the infamous 82 incident, could he have prevented one or two goals?

Or maybe more?

Or would Manchester United, in their fiery form, have ripped them apart, conceding even more goals?

”Bang!”

Just as he was thinking, Di Natale, the opponent’s forward, pierced Arsenal’s goal with a powerful long shot, taking the lead at home.

Ma’el glanced at the time and noticed it was the 39th minute of the first half. This wasn’t a big problem, as Arsenal still had ample room for adjustments.

In the second half, Wenger substituted Gervinho for an average-performing Chamberlain and then brought on Walcott in the 60th minute to strengthen the attacking thrust.

This quickly bore fruit, with Arteta, who had been threading passes in central midfield, delivering a brilliant over-the-top long pass in the 65th minute.

”Bang!”

Walcott controlled the ball, charged into the penalty area, and shot into the bottom left corner, helping the team equalize!

The aggregate score was four to one!

And there was one crucial away goal!

You could say there’s nothing to worry about anymore.

”Yeah...!” After securing his first assist for Arsenal, Arteta went to Wenger’s side, jumping into his arms to celebrate together.

It seemed as if he was thanking the professor for bringing him to Arsenal, giving him the opportunity to play in the Champions League and earn statistics.

For him, it was a novel experience and a moment worth remembering.

Wenger smiled happily, patted Arteta on the head, and gave him a hug to celebrate.

”He’s not bad either.”

Ma’el had been focusing on Arteta’s characteristics. He hadn’t seen much of Brother Ta’s play in his previous life, ”His passing ability is strong, and in the first half, he had the most ball receptions and distributions for Arsenal.

”Moreover, he has a great attitude, runs well, and excels in tackling and interceptions.”

”A versatile midfielder.” Van Persie gave his assessment, looking at Arteta’s back. ”I hope he can become the versatile midfielder core and carry Arsenal’s midfield banner.”

”I hope so.”

Ma’el saw Wenger placing Tazi in the left midfield position, realizing this could be his future partner.

Time continued to pass, and in the 71st minute, Di Natale made his way into the penalty area to win a penalty, but unfortunately, the ensuing kick was missed.

This deflated Udinese’s spirits; after all, they were not Liverpool and didn’t have the ’great comeback’ DNA in their bones.

With Walterk scoring another goal in the 89th minute, helping the team reverse the score to two to one, the match skipped straight past injury time to the final whistle.

In the end, Arsenal, with a five-to-one aggregate, defeated Udinese and advanced to this season’s Champions League!

”The pressure is much lighter now.” After the post-match press conference, Wenger left a brief but profoundly meaningful statement, amusing the reporters into laughter.

...

In the following two days, Ma’el dedicated all his time to upgrading his Reverse Foot, aiming to do so before the away match against Manchester United.

On August 27th, an hour before the club’s bus departure for Manchester City.

He was still on the training ground, drenched in sweat, practicing his Reverse Foot—the task was just a tiny bit shy of completion.

”I’ll go back and get your gear for you.”

Jose glanced at his watch beside him. He didn’t expect this training session to last so long... so long that it might interfere with the following day’s big six battle against Manchester United.

He didn’t persuade much, understanding that once Ma’el decided on something, he would never change.

Especially when it came to training duration—he had his standards and would sometimes stay for an extra session out of the blue.

Jose sped back to Ma’el’s house in his BMW and confirmed that he was still on the field when he returned.

A bunch of Arsenal players had gathered around, watching curiously why Ma’el was still practicing at this time.

”Bang... bang... bang...!”

Ma’el didn’t care about their gazes, curving shot after shot with his left foot.

This single-skill training wasn’t tiring and wouldn’t affect his state the next day.

The most it would do was make others talk about him... which was a small matter he had gotten used to along the way.

At 4:20 PM, with just ten minutes left before departure.

Ma’el’s body started to feel a burning sensation in multiple areas, including his cerebellum, right hip, and lower back.

He could feel his previously awkward left foot and leg blending into his body, increasing his compatibility!

Reverse Foot, leveled up!

[Skills: Strong Side Foot Lv4]

[Skill Level: (1/5000)]

[Utility: Having gained power, you’re now chasing the accuracy of the reverse foot... After relentless effort, you’ve finally felt your reverse foot approaching your dominant one, though still a bit short of perfect!]

Strong Side Foot!

Ma’el moved his left ankle, noticing a significant increase in control over his Reverse Foot; his legs felt extraordinarily nimble, as if reborn.

”Arteta.”

He saw Brother Ta standing with Mertesacker, getting the urge to tease him, ”Crossbar challenge with the left foot, hit four out of ten times, 1000 pounds, how about it?”

Arteta, unexpectedly called out, hesitated before winking and saying, ”With the left foot... how about three out of ten?”

”No, four out of ten.”

Ma’el ran towards the field to pick up the balls, soon gathering ten, ”You in?”

”Alright then.”

Arteta nodded, agreeing to the game with Ma’el, ”But you’ll really pay up, right? No jokes.”

”Sure!” Ma’el excitedly agreed, using a curved passing technique for the most controlled crossbar challenge.

The first ball missed.

”Ding dong!” But the second ball immediately hit the crossbar accurately.

Arteta remained unmoved, with Mertesacker, observing Ma’el’s actions.

Then the fifth shot hit... and the sixth... bringing the total hits to three times.

”Not bad.” Mertesacker’s eyes twinkled with praise. As a defender, he admired such technique.

”Why do I feel like I’ve been conned?” Arteta laughed wryly, watching Ma’el’s back with slight anxiety.

”Bang!”

At this time, Ma’el’s eighth shot flew with a curve towards the crossbar, naturally dipping in the air before successfully connecting with it, emitting a crisp sound, ”Ding dong!”

”Oh...!” Arteta leaned back, shaking his head as he clapped, ”Alright... I’ll pay you after the away game.”

Mertesacker also offered a round of applause, thankful he held back from wagering more.

”Make sure you remember.”

Ma’el waved at him, handing the balls over to Jose before taking his own game gear from him, ”No time, help me take it to the equipment room, I have to go now.”

”Good luck...” Jose’s expression held some trembling, recalling Ma’el’s recently demonstrated left-foot stability, he couldn’t help but ask, ”Is this the result of insisting on more practice?”

He wondered if he should return to Klon Sports University for two more years to study whether increasing training duration could effectively improve one’s abilities.

”How could it be.”

Ma’el burst into laughter, waving at him, ”It’s because you usually teach so well, Mr. Jose, you do your best too!”

”Me?” Jose looked down at his feet, holding the heavy ball bag.

Could it be... his long-held belief... that he has a knack for training?

....

ps: Today’s update is 25,000 words, totaling 371,000 words, aiming for 400,000 this month.

Seeking monthly votes!