I changed football.

Chapter 84 Best Young Player of the Year

"The French Professional Footballers' Union awards ceremony is now officially beginning!"

"This live broadcast is brought to you by Leshi Sports. Today, I, Zhan Jun, will be bringing you a live talk show – it can't be called commentary anymore, it's a live broadcast."

"A day earlier, after the final round of Ligue 1 matches, Monaco officially announced the winners of two major awards voted on by fans: the club's best player and the best young player. Both awards went to Li Yuan!"

"It should be noted that only Monaco fans residing in Monaco are eligible to vote for these two major awards!"

"According to various news reports, Li Yuan is most likely to compete for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award at today's French Professional Footballers Association awards ceremony."

"As for the Ligue 1 Player of the Year award, it will definitely come from the champion team. This season, the most likely winner of this award is Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris Saint-Germain, the Ligue 1 champion this year."

"There are two players competing with Li Yuan for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award: his teammate Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé, who recently joined Borussia Dortmund from Rennes. The three of them will compete for this Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award."

"It's worth mentioning that although this award is called the Ligue 1 Player of the Year Award, it's actually similar to the Premier League's Player of the Year Award, which is selected by the players' union. However, unlike the three awards in the Premier League, Ligue 1 only has this one Player of the Year award."

"Alright—the awards ceremony is beginning!"

The awards ceremony began, and Li Yuan, Mbappe, and Dembele sat at a table.

This awards ceremony was somewhat like a gala, with a bunch of people sitting around a round table.

The host is speaking now.

The history of this award is introduced, and so on.

Next, some footage from this season and various anniversary clips were shown.

There are four awards tonight.

They are the best lineup, which is not really an award anymore.

Best Goal, Best Young Player, and Best Player.

The first award presented was for the best lineup.

The French Footballers' Union has gone to great lengths to ensure that more star and well-known players are selected for the All-Star Team.

First of all, the formation itself is quite abstract; it's a 3-3-4 formation.

Because several talented players have emerged in Ligue 1 this season, and these players are all offensive players.

"The best XI of the Ligue 1 season is a 3-3-4 formation – which is quite rare, but in the selection of such a best XI, the focus is usually on the forward line."

"Okay, we see that the presenter has come up on stage. It is Thierry Henry, the legend of French football, who will present the Ligue 1 Team of the Season."

"The first award goes to the goalkeepers, and the best goalkeeper in the best XI is Enyeama from Lille. Although he doesn't have the fewest clean sheets and the fewest goals conceded this season, his performance has been truly outstanding, and his selection as the best goalkeeper in the best XI is well-deserved!"

"The next award is for the right-hand position in the three-man defense, which is Sidibé from Lille. It is worth mentioning that there are already news reports that Sidibé is very likely to transfer to Monaco this summer. Next season, Sidibé is very likely to partner with Li Yuan to guard Monaco's right flank."

"Next up is David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain for the center position of the three-man defense, and Thiago Silva, also from Paris Saint-Germain, for the left position. The two have formed a very strong partnership in Ligue 1 this season and have also performed very well in the Champions League, making their inclusion in the best XI well-deserved."

"Next up is the midfield. In the center of the three midfielders is Matuidi from Paris Saint-Germain, on the left is Ben Arfa from Nice, and on the right is Di Maria from Paris Saint-Germain."

"There are four forwards in total. The left winger is Ousmane Dembélé from Rennes—oh, that's unexpected. It's not Mbappé. Could it be that Mbappé has been counted as a center forward?"

"As expected! Next up is the left-sided center forward position, and the chosen player is Kylian Mbappé from Monaco."

"The center position on the right is occupied by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is the most likely candidate for Player of the Year this season. He has had an outstanding season."

"And the right winger position is occupied by Li Yuan, a Chinese player from Monaco! He has already won the club's Player of the Season and Young Player of the Season awards, so his inclusion in the Ligue 1 Team of the Season is well-deserved."

Next, 11 people went on stage and each received a trophy.

Then they were interviewed one by one.

When it was Li Yuan's turn, he gave a brief explanation and that was it.

During these group betting sessions, you can just say a few words and ask for the prize.

Next up is the Best Goal award.

"The Goal of the Year award goes to Kylian Mbappé from Monaco, whose spectacular bicycle kick in the 31st round of Ligue 1 was truly unforgettable!"

Next, Mbappe took the stage to give a speech.

After giving his speech, he stepped down from the stage.

"Killian, you've been training, haven't you? You explained it so well."

"There will be many more occasions like this in the future, so start practicing early. You'll be going on stage soon, and you're not unprepared, are you?"

"You really think I have a good chance of winning the young player award?"

"This year is definitely yours, no doubt about it. My performance this year wasn't as good as yours, but next year might be a different story!" Mbappe said confidently.

Li Yuan smiled and said, "It's hard to say next year, but I believe you will definitely be the best player after next year."

Isn't that obvious?

After Mbappe transferred to Paris, he won the Player of the Year award for many consecutive years.

Mbappe looked at Li Yuan with a blank expression, not understanding what Li Yuan meant.

Just as I was about to ask further questions, the Best Young Player award was already presented on stage.

"The winner of the 2015-16 Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award is—Li Yuan!"

Then Li Yuan walked onto the stage.

He had a confident smile on his face.

"I feel very honored to be on this stage at the age of 17. I thank the players who voted for me; you have truly seen my achievements and performance."

"This is my first professional season. Although I haven't played many games, I've already fully experienced the harshness of the professional arena. This season is just the beginning, and I hope that I can become a true professional player next season."

"Finally, Monaco's season isn't over yet. We'll have our final match of the season in Basel in a few days, and I believe Monaco will be the winner!"

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