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Chapter 40 Wang Lie's Advice

Sonny Dean was awakened early in the morning by the screams and laughter of children coming from the yard next door.

He originally wanted to sleep a little longer, but under the sonic attack, he couldn't even last five minutes.

He threw back the quilt, ran to the window in a rage and opened the curtains. It was still a typical cloudy day in winter outside. The sun had risen, but was blocked by thick clouds.

It looks like it will rain today.

Dean's mood at this moment was as gloomy as the weather.

Last night he decided to return to Northumberland.

Because he was never willing to give in - why should I avoid him?
Unexpectedly, I was woken up by my neighbors after only one day of living here.

This is one of the most luxurious residential areas in Northumberland. The houses here are basically single-family villas with large front and back gardens.

His and Wang Lie's houses are at the innermost part of the community, where there are few cars and people, so it is relatively quiet.

In this open environment, the high-frequency voice of the child appears particularly clear and harsh.

Even if he closed the windows, even if his window glass was double-layered hollow soundproof glass, it could only block low-frequency noise and had no ability to defend against high-frequency sound wave attacks.

After drawing open the curtains, he looked toward the backyard next door and saw Wang Lie playing with two children on the lawn.

Wang Lie tried to shake off the two children with a football.

The sound mainly came from the younger child. I couldn't see clearly from a distance, but I could tell from the voice that it was a little girl. She didn't really try to grab the ball, she just turned around in circles and screamed excitedly from time to time.

The older child, on the other hand, was trying very hard to snatch the football from Wang Lie's feet.

It seemed like he had a good chance, but as soon as he stretched out his leg, Wang Lie pulled the ball back under his feet and knocked it out, making a V-shaped pass.

The kid missed his kick, lost his balance, and fell on his butt.

But he quickly got up from the ground and continued to chase and entangle Wang Lie.

After shaking off the child, Wang Lie did not speed up, but instead retreated while pulling the ball. Each time, the child thought he could kick the ball, but every time he stretched out his foot, he would kick in the air.

The little girl suddenly rushed over from the side, hugged Wang Lie, and then shouted something...

The distance was too far for Dean to hear clearly. Even if he could hear clearly, he couldn't understand because the other party was obviously not shouting in English.

Even though his legs were hugged by the little girl, Wang Lie still did not let the football be snatched away by another child.

He was seen using the foot that was hanging on the little girl to support his body, and using the other foot that could still move normally to continue controlling the ball, pulling the ball around in place, still making it difficult for the child to snatch the ball away for a while - there were several times when the child was about to snatch the ball away, but Wang Lie was able to quickly hook the ball back and continue to control it under his feet.

The little girl holding Wang Lie kept shouting and laughing like crazy. Even though Dean couldn't see her expression clearly, he could tell that she was very happy.

Further away, there was a woman standing gracefully, watching this scene.

Although Dean couldn't see clearly, he guessed that she must have a smile on her face.

I guess this is what Wang Lie talked about in the locker room yesterday, the family who came all the way from China to reunite with him.

Dean closed the curtains again, not wanting to see this tender scene again.

Especially since this kind of warmth was something he had never enjoyed before...

But he could draw the curtains and not see, but he couldn't not hear.

The children's laughter and joy sounded like magic to Dean.

He lay back on the bed and covered his head with the quilt.

It was no use, he could still hear the noise outside.

He buried his head under the pillow.

It's no use, you can still hear the children's laughter and screams.

Finally Dean jumped out of bed, rushed to the bathroom, and decided to take a shower.

After he turned on the shower in the bathroom, the sound of running water finally completely covered up the sound coming from the yard next door.

Dean's restless heart finally calmed down.

He let out a long breath.

He regretted coming back to live in Northumberland...

※※※

Wang Zilin seized the opportunity and pounced on her father again. This time she did not just hug his legs. Instead, after hugging his legs, she lifted his legs up and pushed them down with force.

Finally I succeeded in making Dad lose his balance and fall backwards.

As a result, Wang Lie lost control of the ball, allowing Wang Ziqi to snatch it away.

"Yeah! We won! We won! We won!" Wang Zilin happily let go of his father and ran to hug his brother to celebrate.

Wang Lie sat on the lawn, supporting his upper body with his hands, looking at the two noisy children with a doting smile on his face.

His wife Tang Xingmei walked behind him and asked worriedly, "Isn't this a bad idea? It's so noisy so early in the morning. What if we disturb the neighbors?"

"Early? It's almost nine o'clock. Is it still early?" Wang Lie said without turning his head. "Besides, it would be a good thing if we can really wake up the 'neighbors'..."

After saying that, he patted his butt and stood up from the ground.

"I will take Wang Ziqi to practice basketball every morning. If the neighbors find it noisy, they can talk to me face to face. Anyway, we can meet every day in the team."

"Ah? Your neighbor is your teammate?" Tang Xingmei asked.

Wang Lie nodded: "Yes, Sonny Dean is our neighbor."

"This..." Tang Xingmei was very surprised by this name. Her husband had told her that their relationship was not very good, but she didn't expect it to be such a coincidence. It was really "enemies will always meet"...

※※※

After taking a shower, Dean no longer heard the noise of play coming from the backyard next door.

He was only wearing a pair of pants with his upper body naked. He walked to the window, opened the curtains, and found that there was indeed no one there.

But Dean, who had refreshed himself after taking a shower, now found it completely impossible for him to go back to sleep. He couldn't fall asleep even if he wanted to.

Besides… he should go make breakfast.

There is training at ten o'clock this morning.

But Dean didn't leave immediately. Instead, he stood by the window, staring at the empty neighbor's backyard in a daze.

※※※

Sonny Dean hesitated for a long time, and finally went to find Wang Lie.

He lowered his voice and asked, "Can you have a little sense of public morality?"

Wang Lie looked at him with a half-smile: "What's wrong?"

Seeing Wang Lie's expression, Dean became even more angry: "You are yelling in the yard so early in the morning. Can't you let me sleep?"

"By 'early in the morning' do you mean 8:43 to 8:56 Greenwich time? You were still up at almost 9am. Did you go clubbing again yesterday?"

Dean found himself always at a disadvantage in front of this man, and he didn't know why.

In the past, he was always the one who was sarcastic to others, especially Vitini. He only needed a few words to make that idiot break down and then become helpless and furious.

But whenever I faced Wang Lie, he would always be sarcastic to me, and it was hard for me to win an argument with him...

"What's wrong with not getting up at almost nine? I'm not late for training!" Dean argued weakly.

"That's right, I just come at the right time every time." Wang Lie nodded, "How about this, Dean. During this period, I will practice basketball with my son every morning. Do you want to come too?"

Dean was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Wang Lie to change the subject so smoothly. He also suspected that Wang Lie was taking advantage of him...

So he decided to give up negotiating with Wang Lie.

"FUCK OFF!" he cursed and turned away.

Behind him, Wang Lie, who was scolded, was not angry at all, and even shouted with a smile: "Think about it, I'm here anytime!"

All the teammates looked at them.

Dean, however, walked faster with his head down.

I shouldn't have come to see this old scoundrel!
※※※

During the breaks in training, the players sat on the sidelines to drink water, get massages and chat.

Wang Lie walked straight to the coaching staff and said to head coach McNeill, "I have an idea, boss, can I talk to you alone?"

McNeil looked at his coaching colleagues around him and nodded: "Okay."

Then the two of them walked aside to have a "private chat" in full view of everyone.

"Sam, when you replaced Dean in the last game, were you planning to let him come up to increase the number of passers and connecting points in the midfield and frontcourt to break through the dense defense of Helinghan?" Wang Lie asked straight to the point.

When there is a third person present, Wang Lie will call McNeil "Boss", just like other players in the locker room. After all, he and McNeil are player and coach, so they still have to respect their coach.

But in private, Wang Lie would just call McNeill's name, as if they were still teammates at Sofo United.

Sam McNeill did not force Wang Lie to address him respectfully in private. Facing Wang Lie's question, McNeill gave a positive answer: "Yes. But he didn't play well after he went up there, and basically didn't complete the task I assigned him."

The only highlight of Sonny Dean's performance after he came on in that game was his V-shaped pull to get rid of Hurlingham FC's midfielder Daniel White.

But that was not the task assigned to him by the head coach.

"I watched the video of the last game yesterday, and then I had an idea." Wang Lie said, "Can Dean retreat to play in the midfield? He can play as a winger or an attacking midfielder."

"Ah?" McNeill was surprised.

Wang Lie continued, "I think if we keep Dean away from the penalty area and avoid him getting tangled up in battles with tall defenders, and give full play to his good skills and excellent passing, maybe he will perform better than he is now."

"But Wang... Dean's current poor performance has little to do with his position." McNeill frowned and reminded Wang Lie, "His highest historical value was achieved when he played in the forward position. And you also saw his performance after he came on as a substitute... To be honest, his poor performance after coming on was also due to me. It was just a temporary workaround I came up with. But he himself is indeed not used to playing in the midfield. Besides, we all know what Dean's real problem is now, right?"

Wang Lie nodded: "I know, Sam. But this does not conflict with what I want to say. His problem is that he performs poorly on the court, gets criticized, and then his mentality becomes unbalanced, he continues to perform poorly, gets criticized even more... It becomes a vicious cycle. What if he can perform well in a new position? He can gain confidence and love."

McNeill pondered: "So you think he should play in midfield instead?"

"I'm not saying that he will always play in midfield in the future. I'm just saying that for now, he should try to reduce the difficulty of playing, gain confidence and positive feedback, instead of having to fight with the defenders. In addition, from the current overall tactics of the team, it will definitely be more beneficial for us if he plays as a midfielder than as a striker."

Regardless of what was said before, at least McNeill agreed with Wang Lie’s last sentence.

In the tactics he has designed now, Wang Lie not only has to be a scorer, but also has to create opportunities for his teammates.

Dean uses his forward ability to retreat and play as a midfielder. In addition to connecting the midfield and frontcourt, he can also make full use of the opportunities created by Wang Lie to shoot and score.

This adjustment is definitely beneficial to the team as a whole.

I have to say that Wang Lie’s suggestion is very tempting.

But McNeill still had a question: "I have a question too, Wang."

"You said."

"I'm sure you can sense that Dean has some... uh, hostility toward you. Right?"

Wang Lie nodded: "I don't know why, but it is true."

"Then why do you still think about him?"

"I'm not thinking about him, I'm just thinking about the team, Sam. It's very simple. With the team's current points and ranking, it's very difficult to go to a bigger stage. So in order to achieve this goal, we must maximize the strength of this team and squeeze out all the potential. And Sonny Dean has not fully lived up to his ability, and his contribution to the team is far from enough. Everyone has to work hard for that goal, so why can he stay out of it?"

After Wang Lie finished speaking, McNeill seemed to be distracted. He was stunned for a while before he smiled and said, "When you said this just now, I had the illusion that you were the head coach of the team and I was the assistant coach."

Wang Lie also joked: "Maybe when I retire and decide to be a head coach, you can come and be my assistant coach, Sam."

"You're dreaming. Working with you will drive me crazy." McNeill politely declined Wang Lie.

"What do you think of my suggestion?"

"It's theoretically possible. But the actual situation is much more complicated than you said, Wang. Have you ever thought about this question... What if Sonny Dean doesn't cooperate?"

Wang Lie frowned and said nothing.

This is really a... very crucial question.

Seeing that he was silent, McNeill continued, "You can do anything to win. But not everyone is like you, at least not Dean."

Wang Lie then said, "I know he is not that determined. He retreats when faced with difficulties and lies down when faced with setbacks. He is used to finding reasons and excuses for himself. That's why I have to push him."

※※※

The two people walked to the side of the training ground and whispered to each other. This scene not only aroused the curiosity of the coaches, but also attracted the attention of the players in the distance.

"Are they arguing?"

"It seems like there is some disagreement..."

"What do you think Wang Zhaotou would say?"

"I wonder if Wang is dissatisfied with the role assigned to him by the boss?"

"Dissatisfied? Why?"

"Everyone knows what the boss wants Wang to do in the team's offensive system, using his experience and skills to pass the ball to others... But think about it, when has Wang ever been willing to serve as a foil for others?"

After everyone thought about it carefully, it seemed to be true.

When he was in Sofia United, Wang Lie was the team's main attacker and he had the freedom to fire freely.

He can shoot anywhere and in any situation, and neither the head coach nor his teammates can criticize him.

"So I guess Wang is probably going to ask the leader for the right to open fire."

"Wow, that's terrible. Everyone knows where the nickname 'Wandering Shooter' came from..."

As a loyal fan of Wang Lie, Vitini will protect his idol no matter what the situation is. He can say things that are difficult or inconvenient for his idol to say.

Now he is going to stand up and defend his idol:
"How did it come about? It's just a rumor made up by the media. In fact, Wang's shot conversion rate is not low. I remember someone calculated his average shot conversion rate in nine and a half seasons at Sofia United some time ago, which is 19.2%. As the team's main attacker, this data is not bad? If he is really the 'King of Wasteful Shots', can he become the best scorer in Sofia United's history with his 18th appearance in the team's history?"

When it comes to the records set by his idol, Vitini knows them all and talks endlessly.

"And when Wang was at his best, it wasn't uncommon for him to score goals. By comparison, it was of course his wasted scoring opportunities that were more worthy of being reported in the news. You know, he scored more than 50 goals for four consecutive seasons, and at least 20 goals for 16 consecutive seasons. No one has been able to achieve this record yet!"

"This record is indeed amazing, but it's a pity that this season is about to end..." Someone shook his head and sighed.

So far this season, Wang Lie has only scored three goals in all competitions - one for Sofia United and two for Tyne - it is indeed difficult to continue this record, almost an "impossible task".

"No one denies Wang's past achievements, but Vitini, Wang is now about to turn 38 years old. Can he really continue to score goals like before?" Some teammates also questioned Vitini.

Vitini curled his lips: "Who scored twice in the last game?"

"Uh..." The teammate who raised the question was speechless.

As a teammate, he certainly couldn't say something like "Who knows if this was just a last-gasp performance in a game?" This was what Hurlingham FC manager Rossiter said, and it would be "politically incorrect" for Tyne players to say it - is this your attitude towards a player who just helped the team win?

Sonny Dean did not join their discussion about Wang Lie, but looked over there.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that the two people would look at him when they were talking...

※※※

After the training, Wang Lie did not rush home to be with his family, but stayed to practice more. Vitini also stayed with him to practice more.

Head coach McNeill told Sonny Dean to go back to the locker room to change his clothes and come to his office later.

As soon as the players dispersed, on the way back, assistant coach Cesar Valo couldn't wait to ask McNeill: "What did Wang say to you?"

"He gave me a suggestion..." McNeill roughly told Varro about the conversation between himself and Wang Lie.

Varro was surprised after hearing this: "I thought he would ask you for the right to open fire freely..."

McNeill was equally surprised: "Why would you think that?"

Varo spread his hands and said, "Wasn't he like that when he was at Sofo United? Besides, he just scored twice in the game and helped us win the game. Isn't now a good time to make this request?"

McNeill laughed and said, "Now it seems that you have a narrow mind, Cesar."

Varro reluctantly admitted: "Okay... But I think Wang is a little bit fanciful. Just because it's feasible in theory doesn't mean it's actually feasible. How do you plan to convince Dean?"

McNeill sighed: "I don't know. I don't know how to convince a person who has already signed a contract with another team and is waiting for the contract to expire to make changes for the goal of someone he doesn't like and try his best... After all, whether Tyne can participate in the European war next season has nothing to do with him who is already in Kensington next season?"

※※※

Sonny Dean, who had already showered and changed his clothes, appeared in head coach McNeil's office.

On the way here, he had speculated why Tou wanted to talk to him alone.

The last time Dean was called in for a private talk by the head coach was because he performed poorly in the game. After the game, he was scolded by the local media and Tyne fans. Then he went to a nightclub to get drunk and was photographed by paparazzi. The next day, he was late for training with a drunken stink...

McNeill warned him very sternly that time, and then said that he would temporarily remove him from the team's starting lineup, and as a punishment, he would not be included in the roster for the next first game.

Since then, Dean has never returned to the team's starting lineup, but he will still be sent on the field as a substitute when the team needs him.

Only a few substitute appearances were mediocre.

Perhaps this time he was being criticized for not being able to complete the task assigned by the coaching staff after coming on as a substitute in the match against Hurlingham FC?
Then why not criticize it on the first day of resuming training, but wait until now?
It can't be that the boss has just come to his senses and discovered his own problem after watching the game video again, right?

Looking at Dean in front of him, McNeill asked, "Do you still want to return to the starting lineup, Sonny?"

Dean was unsure of what his boss meant by asking this, so he answered honestly, "Of course I do. But I don't think I can do anything to impress you, boss."

"So would you like to try a new position? What do you think if you move back a little bit on the field, between the forward line and the midfield line, Sonny?"

As McNeill spoke, he pulled out his tablet, opened the tactical board software, and demonstrated his ideas on the tactical board on the spot.

Dean was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Like in the last game?"

McNeil nodded: "Yes, in terms of position and tactical requirements, it's just like the last game."

Dean finally knew what Wang Lie had said to the boss. He could guess with his butt that this must be Wang Lie's suggestion to the boss, asking him to play in the midfield and serve him...

So Dean shook his head and said, "Sorry, boss, I don't think I'm good at playing in midfield - you saw my performance in the last game."

He refused very simply.

(End of this chapter)