Chương 3: Friendly Match vs Senior Team pt2
The U-21 players entered the dressing room looking uncomfortable, with Patrick Vieira already waiting, his intense gaze fixed on them. As they settled down, Vieira began to speak:
"I know this is a friendly match. I know their quality is way above ours. But I don't care if we lose—I care about your effort, which I didn't see in the first half. Losing 3-0, 4-0, or 5-0 doesn't matter as long as we give it everything we've got."
He paused, letting his words sink in as he surveyed the players.
"Where's your stamina? Where's your energy? Right now, you're showing Pellegrini that none of you deserve a shot at the first team!"
Turning his attention to specific players, he continued, "Iheanacho, press more aggressively—don't just watch them play. Evans, Kenneth, Celina, step it up; at least make Yaya Toure feel some discomfort. He's their anchor, connecting their attack and defense. And full-backs, get physical! Silva and Nasri aren't tough guys; you can challenge them."
With his message delivered, Vieira left to allow the players a short rest before the second half.
The second half soon began, with the main team making four substitutions but keeping players like Nasri, Silva, Aguero, and Toure on the pitch. Kenneth, determined to redeem himself after a poor first half, shared a quick strategy with Iheanacho and the others before kickoff.
As the whistle blew, Iheanacho passed to Evans, who relayed it to Kean Bryan. Kenneth received a quick pass and launched it forward to Barker. Barker sprinted past Kolarov, crossing low to Iheanacho, who avoided the offside trap and scored past Joe Hart, catching the first team off-guard.
The score now 3-1, the main team initially dismissed the goal, confident of their lead. However, the dynamics of the game began to shift. The U-21s took control of possession, employing short, quick passes with Kenneth at the center of play. Without intense pressure from the first team, they dominated the ball.
In the 53rd minute, Kenneth provided a through ball to Iheanacho, who found himself one-on-one with Hart but was blocked. The rebound fell to Kenneth, who volleyed it into the net, making it 3-2.
Watching his team's sudden loss of control, Pellegrini urged his players to refocus, aware that losing to the U-21s, especially after a 3-0 lead, would be humiliating. The main team then resumed an intense, serious approach, quickly reclaiming control.
However, the U-21 team's revived spirit was not easily defeated. They defended very well, patiently waiting for counter-attack opportunities.
Sure enough, after holding off the first team's attacks until the 64th minute, the U-21s finally got another chance for a counter-attack. Kenneth intercepted a pass from Silva intended for Kolarov. He quickly passed the ball to Bersant Celina.
Celina fell after Yaya Toure tackled him, but Kelechi Iheanacho got the ball. Kelechi passed it to Brandon Barker. Barker, blocked by Kolarov, turned around and passed the ball to Kenneth.
Kenneth dribbled forward to the edge of the penalty box and then struck the ball powerfully. The ball soared into the corner of the goal. Joe Hart couldn't do anything to stop it.
This goal was a true wake-up call for the first-team players. Their expressions turned serious. They couldn't afford to lose this match.
Inspired by the U-21 team's performance, the Manchester City main team played better after the third goal. They completely dominated the U-21s.
The Manchester City first team finally scored the fourth goal through Nasri in the 77th minute. Silva sealed the victory with a goal in the 84th minute. The match ended with a score of 5-3.
Despite giving it their all, the quality gap between the two teams was clear. When playing seriously, the Manchester City first team was nearly impossible for the U-21s to beat.
Nonetheless, Vieira appreciated his team's performance, and Pellegrini also showed respect for the young players' efforts, especially for those who performed well, such as Kenneth, Kelechi Iheanacho, Bersant Celina, and Brandon Barker.
After the match, Kenneth approached Yaya Toure.
"Can we swap shirts?"
"Of course."
Yaya Toure took off his shirt and handed it to Kenneth, who gave him his own.
Yaya patted Kenneth on the shoulder and said, "Hey kid, I'll be waiting for you on the first team."
Then he walked away.
Kenneth was also interested in playing alongside Yaya Toure, but unfortunately, he knew that with Guardiola's arrival, Yaya Toure would be sidelined. He wasn't sure if he'd make it to the first team before that happened; it seemed unlikely.
Kenneth felt he'd probably be loaned out. The first team couldn't provide him with regular playing time.
Being loaned to another team wasn't a bad idea, though. It would give him regular playing time and allow him to improve his skills.
The ideal team in Kenneth's mind would be Leicester City. If he could be loaned to Leicester next season, that would be ideal.
---
The match has ended.
[Calculating your rating...]
[Rating: 7.9]
[You were very helpful in the team's attack, scoring two goals, but your defensive involvement was lacking.]
[Congratulations! You've earned 1 attribute point.]
In FIFA Football VR 4, there are two ways to increase a player's attributes:
First, through training. Second, by achieving a high rating in a match. The more important the match, the more attribute points you can earn.
Since this was just a friendly match and not very important, the reward was only 1 attribute point.
Regarding the use of attribute points, if you train passing, your passing attribute will increase. But with attribute points gained after a match, how do you allocate them?
Kenneth is free to add this point to any attribute. However, there are a few rules to keep in mind.
First, you can't add more than one point to a single attribute at once. So, if you have two points, you can't allocate both to acceleration; instead, you could add one point to acceleration and another to pace.
Secondly, there is a limit for attributes, especially physical ones. The limit is related to the physical body of the individual. For instance, Kenneth, who is only 16 years old, cannot have a strength attribute close to 80. Even if he has many points, he cannot increase an attribute beyond its limit.
Third, attributes can decrease, especially physical ones. If you don't train regularly, it's normal for your physical ability to decline.
Lastly, you can only change attributes within four hours after a match. So, if you have a point you haven't used, you can't use that point to adjust your attributes during the match.
"Stamina is a crucial attribute at this stage." Without stamina, even the best physical and technical attributes become useless.
***
Manchester City Academy provides accommodation for their young players, especially those coming from out of town or even from other countries. However, Kenneth's home isn't too far from the academy complex, so he gets picked up by his mother each day.
Today, after the match against Manchester City's first team, the U-21 team had a recovery session and match review, finishing at 3:00 PM. Kenneth waited 15 minutes before his mother arrived in the car to pick him up.
"How was the match?"
Kenneth got into the car, sat down, and closed the door. "We lost, but our performance wasn't bad."
"That's good. Since you've decided to become a professional footballer, you have to take it seriously," said the 36-year-old woman, then started the car and pressed the gas pedal.
His mother, Jessica Lim, is a woman of Chinese descent and works as a financial consultant. With her salary, she raised Kenneth on her own from a young age until now. Don't ask where Kenneth's father is; he ran off from the start and had no intention of taking responsibility.
It took about 20 minutes before they finally arrived home.
After arriving, Kenneth spent his time relaxing, watching TV, and playing games.
As time passed and evening approached, Jessica came out of the kitchen with dinner, which included dumplings, Kung Pao Chicken, plain steamed rice, hot and sour soup, and sesame balls for dessert. She placed the food on the dining table.
Kenneth and his mother said a quick prayer, then began their meal. As he enjoyed the food, Kenneth started a conversation with his mom.
"Mom, remember when we talked about Bitcoin? I really think you should consider buying some," Kenneth remarked. In 2014, aside from the opportunity to start his football career, Kenneth could also use his knowledge of the future to invest.
"Bitcoin? Kenneth, I've only heard stories about its volatility. Why should I take a risk on something that could disappear anytime? You know there's no regulation around it. There's no protection if something goes wrong," Jessica replied skeptically.
"Bitcoin is a new type of asset, a digital currency independent of banks. It's practically the internet's version of gold. People are drawn to the idea of something free from traditional banks. Imagine if people start using it worldwide."
Jessica shook her head. "That won't happen; how many people even know about this Bitcoin?"
Kenneth tried to convince his mother, "Yes, but look at the trend; some big companies are already starting to adopt it. Overstock, Expedia, and Dell started accepting Bitcoin this year, and I heard Microsoft will do it by late 2014. Even if Bitcoin does fail at some point, its value will definitely increase drastically over the next few years. It could go up ten or even twenty times what it's worth today. At that point, we could sell it again."
Jessica paused briefly. "You're right; I'll think about it some more and look into it."
When people talk about a city as the future center of the world, property prices there rise. In the early days of the internet boom, people talked about the internet being the future, and internet companies' stock prices skyrocketed, creating a bubble that finally burst in 2000. Likewise, when a football player is predicted to have a bright future, the player's value also rises dramatically.
Whatever it is, as long as it's linked to the future, its price will likely go up.
Jessica didn't know if Bitcoin would truly become a currency, but she started to agree with her son that its price could increase dramatically.
After dinner and convincing his mother, Kenneth returned to his room.
He opened his laptop and prepared a notebook for an online class he was taking. He studied for a few hours, then went to bed at 10:00 PM.
***
Meanwhile, the first week of the 2014-2015 Premier League season had begun.
Defending champions Manchester City claimed a 2-0 win over Newcastle United, with Aguero and David Silva scoring to help the Citizens start the season strong.
In London, Arsenal won 2-1 against Crystal Palace with a last-minute goal from Aaron Ramsey. Although he didn't score, Alexis Sanchez's performance gave Gunners fans a reason to be optimistic. Year two of Mourinho's second stint at Chelsea also got off to a smooth start, as Chelsea won 3-1 against Burnley, with Diego Costa scoring and Fabregas providing assists. Tottenham won narrowly, 1-0, against West Ham, with debutant Eric Dier scoring and kicking off Pochettino's first year on a high note.
Liverpool claimed a 2-1 win over Southampton. This match gave fans hope that they could maintain their performance despite Luis Suarez's departure.
Meanwhile, Manchester United was the only team from the Big Six that failed to secure a win, losing 2-1 to Swansea at Old Trafford. This was a bad sign, considering the significant spending they had done in this transfer window.
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