A long-range shot from Newcastle United struck Maguire and bounced near Matić at the edge of the penalty area.
"Nemanja! Behind you!" De Gea roared.
Even without a clear line of sight, Matić decisively flicked the ball blind with his heel.
The ball grazed Diamé's toes and landed perfectly at the feet of Jeremy Ling, who had made a sudden run deep into his own half to receive it.
Facing Isaac Hayden's fierce tackle from the side, Ling simply nudged the ball to the left with finesse, easily bypassing the defender.
Then, he exploded into a full sprint!
Peter Drury: "Ling is away! He resembles a flame skimming the ground as he charges toward Newcastle United's defensive line! The sheer pace of the man!"
In the wide-angle camera shot displayed on the screen, the advertising boards on either side seemed to blur as he hit top speed.
In the blink of an eye, Ling arrived at the edge of the Newcastle penalty area.
The two center-backs, Lascelles and Paul Dummett, closed in like rapidly shutting iron gates, aiming to sandwich Ling and block him outside the penalty area.
But what happened next left everyone's jaws agape.
Ling didn't slow his charging speed in the slightest.
Lowering his center of gravity, he forcefully squeezed his way right through the narrow, closing gap between the two massive defenders.
Just before losing his balance and falling from the heavy contact, he managed to sweep a desperate, poked shot toward the left side of the goal!
The ball stumbled past goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka's outstretched fingertips and crossed the goal line!
0-3!
Peter Drury: "A MAGNIFICENT SOLO RUN! He ran the length of the pitch and simply overpowered two defenders at the very end! That powerful physique combined with terrifying speed is a nightmare for every defender in this league. I bet Lascelles might have nightmares about Jeremy Ling tonight! The outcome is emphatically settled!"
At St. James' Park, even the proud Newcastle United fans stood and applauded.
For even as opponents today, they couldn't deny the sheer individual brilliance of that goal.
Ling celebrated passionately before being substituted off to rest.
Manchester United naturally sailed to victory, though the remainder of the match felt rather dull, especially since only Lakaka remained in the attack.
Despite having shed some weight recently, the Belgian's speed was no match for Ling's.
Whenever he was double-teamed on the counterattack, he struggled to safely distribute the ball or break away.
This starkly highlighted the gap in quality between the two players.
Lukaku didn't seem bothered when interviewed after the match, however.
He simply laughed and said, "Jeremy is the player who broke the Premier League scoring record. If I were as fast and as good as him, wouldn't that be something else?"
...
Two days after returning to Manchester with the victory, in the FA Cup third round, Manchester United fielded a heavily rotated lineup against Reading at Old Trafford.
The substitute players demonstrated exactly why they were substitutes, delivering a series of cringe-worthy, disjointed performances in the first half.
This infuriated Mourinho so much that he lashed out on the touchline and in the dressing room at halftime.
However, Reading, a Championship relegation-battling team, still failed to breach Manchester United's goal, largely due to their overall inferior quality.
In the end, it was Riyad Mahrez who stepped up.
He scored two exquisite curling shots between the 67th and 73rd minutes of the second half.
Manchester United ultimately defeated Reading 2-0, advancing safely to the FA Cup round of 32!
...
After this match, Manchester United's next game wasn't until January 14th against Tottenham, meaning there was a rare nine-day break in the schedule.
Mourinho generously gave the players a full day off.
Ling took Maria to London to attend a massive commercial event hosted by Puma.
When the two walked the red carpet, they stunned everyone in attendance.
The phrase "a perfect golden couple" couldn't have been more fitting.
That evening alone, Maria's social media account gained four thousand new followers.
After returning to Manchester from London, Jeremy resumed his monotonous, disciplined routine, shuttling between training at Carrington, his university classes, and home day after day.
However, compared to his peaceful life, the Premier League was stirring up a massive transfer storm!
Manchester United's veteran captain, Antonio Valencia, received concrete offers from Fulham and Newcastle United.
Although both were relegation-battling Premier League teams, they could offer him guaranteed playing time in the twilight of his career.
Valencia decisively rejected these offers and stated in a media interview.
"Due to knee injuries and declining fitness, I know my level no longer meets Manchester United's requirements for a starting full-back. However, since Manchester United hasn't found a suitable replacement in the market yet, I am currently the best backup option they have. Of course, leaving is only a matter of time—perhaps after this season ends. But until then, Manchester United is still my home, and I will continue to fight for it!"
When Ling saw this news quote, he felt deeply moved.
Valencia was born in a poor city in Ecuador, where his family of eight struggled to survive.
He started collecting bottles as a child just to help support his family.
It wasn't until he discovered football that his life underwent a dramatic change. Despite earning countless banknotes, luxurious supercars, and extravagant luxuries, Valencia never lost his original intentions.
Many in the football world, after being exposed to such wealth, inevitably succumbed to corruption or laziness.
Not Valencia.
He even fired his own agent to force a move to Manchester United years ago and had literally broken a leg for the club.
People often said Jeremy Ling was the inheritor of the Manchester United spirit, but Ling firmly believed the true inheritor was the veteran captain, Antonio Valencia.
Not long after, Manchester United's official website announced another piece of massive news: the long-term contract renewal of Spanish goalkeeper David De Gea, tying him to the club until 2024.
This delighted Manchester United fans.
De Gea's world-class performances in recent seasons had been evident to all, and absolutely no one wanted to let go of their savior between the sticks.
As for recruitment efforts?
Rumors swirled that Manchester United was actively negotiating with Chelsea to exchange Mateo Kovačić for N'Golo Kanté.
It was said Maurizio Sarri was actually tempted by the offer.
After all, in the specific 4-3-3 formation Sarri employed, there could only be one deep-lying playmaker, and he naturally favored his former Napoli disciple, Jorginho.
Moreover, Kanté was a player whose defensive contributions vastly outweighed his offensive ones, which hindered Sarri's preferred style of quick wing progression and possession.
However, there were still significant disagreements between the two clubs over the final transfer fee and valuation of the swap.
Other teams also began strengthening their squads in the January window.
Manchester City had their eyes firmly on Ajax's rising star Frenkie de Jong, hoping to use him as a long-term replacement for the aging Fernandinho.
However, there were also issues with City's wage structure, leaving it up to Guardiola to convince the board.
Chelsea's biggest problem remained their severe lack of firepower up front.
Neither Alvaro Morata nor Olivier Giroud performed well consistently, and Eden Hazard's form as a false-nine was unsatisfactory.
Thus, Chelsea spent £57.6 million to sign Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund, though the American would only officially join in the summer.
Additionally, to solve their immediate striker crisis, they loaned Gonzalo Higuaín from Juventus.
It was clear that Roman Abramovich was no longer as financially extravagant as before.
In the past, Chelsea would never have resorted to "try before you buy" loan deals.
Arsenal also tightened their purse strings, only managing to loan Spanish midfielder Denis Suárez.
Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur were even more extreme, adopting a "save wherever possible" strategy and spending not a single penny in January.
The former, having splurged massively in two consecutive transfer windows to sign Alisson and Van Dijk, now had a complete squad and didn't need major changes.
The latter was in the midst of rebuilding their new stadium, costing a staggering £1 billion, leaving their pockets emptier than their trophy cabinet.
Pochettino desperately wanted to buy players but simply couldn't afford to.
...
Meanwhile, in the Chinese football scene, strict spending caps were finally implemented following a massive corruption scandal, heavily controlling the financial flows of the major Super League clubs.
However, there was also some very good news for Chinese fans: star forward Wu Lei officially joined La Liga side Espanyol for 2 million euros.
After many years of a severe downturn, the trend of Chinese players going abroad to play in Europe was showing early signs of a resurgence.
Several European clubs were beginning to pay close attention to outstanding young Chinese players, inspired by Ling's success.
This became a new opportunity for Chinese football to revive.
Although this opportunity might not necessarily lead to immediate success, it at least offered a glimmer of hope.
...
@TransferNewsLive: BREAKING: Chelsea and Manchester United are in advanced talks over a sensational swap deal involving Mateo Kovačić and N'Golo Kanté. 🚨
@CarefreeChelsea: Sarri is actually going to sell Kanté just so Jorginho can pass sideways 100 times a game. I'm sick.
@UtdFaithful: KANTÉ AND POGBA IN THE SAME MIDFIELD?! GET IT DONE ED WOODWARD!
On January 10th, exactly four days before Manchester United's massive clash against Tottenham Hotspur, the Premier League was rocked by the official announcement.
The rumors were true.
Chelsea's tireless engine, N'Golo Kanté, had officially joined Manchester United!
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