The two little ones didn't even finish their meal, excitedly clattering up the stairs.
Soon, their delighted voices echoed down. "Cool! A Manchester United team-signed jersey, and unreleased Puma football boots!"
"Disney series dolls!"
Listening to the children's joy, Maria pretended not to care and playfully asked, "What about my gift?"
"Here." Ling handed over a velvet box.
Seeing the beautiful earrings inside, Maria couldn't help but smile, her eyes narrowing into happy crescents.
She pulled a box from her own pocket. "I got you a gift too—a watch I specially asked a friend to buy for me."
"Oh, a TAG Heuer watch?" Ling asked in surprise, admiring the timepiece.
"It wasn't bought with my dad's money," Maria proudly lifted her chin. "Recently, some of my fashion designs were acquired by a brand."
"Impressive!" Ling gave her a massive thumbs-up.
Guardiola, meanwhile, spoke up in a resentful tone, "Maria, don't I get a gift?"
"Well... I ran out of money," Maria chuckled awkwardly. "But I did buy you a tie—it's one of my own designs."
Guardiola shot Ling an annoyed yet helpless fatherly glance before settling onto the sofa to review match footage on his tablet.
...
Manchester United's final match of 2018 took place away at Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium.
Facing the grueling Christmas fixture schedule, most Premier League teams rotated their squads to minimize player injuries as much as possible.
Manchester United and Bournemouth were no exception.
Today, Ling was benched by Mourinho—both to give him a break and to conserve his energy for upcoming matches.
In fact, Manchester United's schedule for the first month of 2019 was no easier than December's.
They faced four Premier League matches, with Tottenham Hotspur being the strongest opponent among them.
Although Tottenham currently sat fourth in the standings, it was worth noting that Manchester United's only defeat this entire season had come against them early in the campaign.
Thus, Mourinho had to prepare thoroughly.
Additionally, there were two FA Cup matches and two English League Cup fixtures—the former against Reading and Arsenal, and the latter a grueling two-legged tie against Chelsea.
Simply put, Manchester United had to play eight matches in 31 days—an average of one match every four days.
Not just Mourinho, but all Premier League managers were privately cursing the Football Association's ancestors, wishing they could band together and report the FA.
However, there were rumors that FIFA President Gianni Infantino was pushing for reforms, planning to increase the number of substitutions from three to five to reduce the risk of injuries caused by congested schedules.
But that was a matter for the future.
For now, managers could only make frugal adjustments to their lineups.
When both teams fielded rotated squads, Manchester United's veterans played a crucial role.
Their experience and guidance helped the younger players quickly settle into the game.
Not long after the match began, Jesse Lingard scored a goal, giving United a dream start.
Ashley Young and Valencia also made rare attacking contributions, making decisive forward runs to create numerical advantages and helping Manchester United extend their lead to 3-0.
In the second half, Mourinho followed his usual approach, opting for the most energy-efficient way to play out the game: Park the Bus.
Although most football purists look down on this tactic, no one could deny its effectiveness.
However, in the 77th minute of the match, a scene unfolded that drove Mourinho into a frenzy on the touchline.
Bournemouth midfielder Ryan Fraser received the ball and attempted to break through, only to be recklessly tackled by an overly excited Eric Bailly.
The key issue was that Bailly didn't even touch the ball. The referee immediately showed a straight red card and sent Bailly off!
This guy usually spent his time lying on the hospital bed, and on the rare occasion he actually got to play, he pulled a stunt like this—not only earning a red card but also receiving a guaranteed three-match suspension from the FA.
Mourinho even suspected that Bailly might have done it on purpose to get more time off.
"Eric really earns his money easily!" Victor Lindelof couldn't help but complain from the bench. "I remember that in his two and a half years at Manchester United, he's had nine separate injuries, missed a total of 216 days, and his league start rate is only 25%!"
"How do you remember his stats so clearly?" Ling asked curiously.
"Because I rarely get injured!" Lindelof's tone was full of immense pride.
Ling casually brushed off the conversation and turned his attention back to the green pitch.
Manchester United, now playing with 10 men, struggled to adapt and were pinned back by Bournemouth.
If not for Harry Maguire's outstanding performance, repeatedly blocking several threatening shots, Manchester United's goal would likely have been breached much earlier.
Mourinho quickly substituted Romelu Lukaku off the pitch and brought on David Luiz to shore up the defense.
Only then did Manchester United stabilize their defensive rhythm.
However, the one who suffered most was Lukaku.
Having spent too much time on the bench recently, he had finally gotten a chance to start.
But to be substituted off for a defender without scoring a goal... no striker would be happy about that.
Lukaku had already made up his mind to leave Manchester United in the upcoming summer transfer window.
As for why he wouldn't push for a move in the winter window? Because he believed Ling could help him win a few more trophies before he left.
In this regard, Lukaku remained very level-headed.
Throughout football history, there have been many exceptionally talented players who never won a single trophy in their entire careers.
As the saying goes: "Football is fucking cruel."
Take Harry Kane of Tottenham, for example.
He had ranked in the top three on the scoring charts for three consecutive seasons, yet his trophy cabinet remained completely empty.
Lukaku decided he would cling to this opportunity for another half-season before venturing out.
Believing his decision to be wise, Lukaku took a bottle of water from the cooler and handed it over to the captain eagerly.
"Jeremy, don't overexert yourself on the bench. Have some water!"
Ling looked at Lukaku as if he were an idiot.
'I haven't even played a single minute today, why would I need to hydrate like I'm exhausted?' he thought.
Ling picked up his own thermos instead. "I prefer drinking hot water. And honestly, Romelu, I suggest you drink more hot water too."
In the end, the match concluded with a 3-1 scoreline.
Manchester United couldn't completely hold onto their clean sheet, as Bournemouth pulled a consolation goal back from a late corner kick.
...
In the concurrently held match, Manchester City faced Southampton.
Sergio Aguero and David Silva each scored a goal, while a Southampton player unfortunately scored an own goal, ending the match with a 3-1 victory for City.
With this, the 2018 portion of the Premier League season came to a close.
Manchester City and Manchester United were deadlocked at 55 points, ranking first and second respectively due to goal difference.
In third place was Liverpool, who had fiercely thrashed Arsenal 5-1 in their round.
Fourth was Tottenham, fifth was Chelsea, sixth was Arsenal, and seventh was Wolves.
...
@CityZenHQ: Top of the league at the end of the year! Let the fireworks begin! 🎇🔵
@UtdDaily: We are level on points with City. The title race in 2019 is going to be an absolute bloodbath.
@CarefreeChelsea: Sarri has completely worn out Kante and Hazard. 13 points off the top. Season is basically over for us.
...
After rushing back to Manchester late at night, Ling didn't go out for wild New Year's Eve celebrations, instead getting a full night's sleep at his apartment.
The next day—New Year's Day—after waking up and casually watching a Tottenham match on TV, he drove to the airport to pick up his parents, Ling Changzheng and Yan Lanxia.
He took them directly to Uncle Wen's restaurant for a massive welcome dinner.
The meeting between the two families' elders wasn't nearly as awkward as Ling had imagined.
Ling Changzheng finally put his specially studied English to use.
Holding a wine glass, he animatedly discussed the nuances of the 3-4-3 formation with Pep Guardiola—specifically debating the pros and cons of Johan Cruyff's Total Football.
Meanwhile, Yan Lanxia warmly discussed the future plans and daily lives of their two children with Cristina.
Leaving the parents to bond, Ling and Maria took the two little ones to a nearby Catholic church courtyard to watch the beautiful New Year's fireworks display light up the Manchester sky.
Warm moments, however, are always fleeting—who could blame the Premier League for having no winter break?
Just two days later, Ling arrived in Newcastle, fully prepared to face the 21st round of the Premier League.
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