Chapter 183: Qualification, Ballon d'Or, Award
Serge Gnabry, after being reminded by Xia Qi, passed the ball to Kevin De Bruyne.
Xia Qi's role was very clear to him: he would mainly be the "holder behind," while De Bruyne would be "in front." De Bruyne would organize the attack; Xia Qi would marshal the defense.
He stayed in the back, his gaze constantly flicking between Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry.
That made him a "hurdle" Bayern's attack had to face!
Up front, De Bruyne couldn't get an attack going and Bayern intercepted instead.
Bayern broke on the right and tried a counter, but Robben's run was again ruined by Xia Qi. Needing a goal desperately to stay alive, Bayern had to reorganize their attack, yet Xia Qi stood like an impenetrable barrier.
"Xia Qi is back to form, B2B all-round. He's put a shadow over Ribéry; they're avoiding him. Bayern can only try Robben's side now, but Robben can't get past either…"
Defending, Xia Qi shifted his eyes to Mario Götze — he noticed Bayern's attacks almost always originated from that player's feet.
Cut that source off, and Bayern's offense would sputter out.
Sure enough, in stoppage time of the half, Götze passed to Robben and immediately made a run toward Arsenal's penalty area, simultaneously asking Robben for the ball.
Xia Qi was delighted — if Götze didn't push forward and stayed in the back, Xia Qi would be hard-pressed to handle him. Now Götze pushed forward to link with Robben, so…
On the pitch, Götze reached for Robben's pass. De Bruyne had failed to intercept Robben's ball.
Götze, seeing the ball roll toward him, glanced at Ribéry's movement on the other side to confirm his next passing lane, then bent his head to receive.
But… where was the ball?
"999, I'm calling the police!"
Götze was stunned — the ball had disappeared.
At that moment, loud cheers erupted over the Emirates.
Götze scrambled to find an explanation. In his field of vision, the missing ball had landed behind right-back Aaron Ramsey. There, turning back to chase, Ramsey and the sprinting Serge Gnabry were both racing toward the ball…
A rush of air, a huge "9" flashed in the corner of his eye.
Götze's heart jumped — No. 9 Xia Qi!!!
He'd pushed forward to attack!!!
"Defend!"
"Defend!"
Götze shouted and at the same time chased after Xia Qi.
Arsenal, who had been defending and defending, suddenly awoke like a pack of beasts as Xia Qi surged into the advanced zone; the whole team launched forward in three lines, swift as rabbits, pressing up the field.
Gnabry, unaware of what had happened in the back, felt the increasing cheers and his adrenaline spiked.
He kept trying to shake Ramsey, but the experienced Ramsey gave him no opening.
The two wrestled on the flank; Gnabry had the advantage of initiating first, giving him half a step on the inside.
That wasn't enough to beat a man and cut inside, but it was fine for a pass.
Gnabry glanced toward the center and saw an unusually strong band of teammates — Mario Balotelli, Xia Qi, and Kevin De Bruyne forming an irregular triangle.
His first choice was to pass to Xia Qi — not because Xia Qi was captain, but out of trust. Although De Bruyne was the attacking commander, Gnabry still felt Xia Qi was more reliable.
By now Xia Qi had already pushed up into Bayern's defensive-mid position.
Javi Martínez thought De Bruyne would be the recipient; after seeing the pass, he reacted and spun to go for Xia Qi.
Meanwhile Jérôme Boateng also ran out of the penalty area, intending to squeeze Xia Qi from the other side.
Javi Martínez thought he could block Xia Qi's route, but Xia Qi, facing him, suddenly used the outside of his right foot to flick the ball inward,
then turned and changed direction, narrowly avoiding Javi Martínez's challenge.
Martínez, propelled by his momentum, couldn't stop and crashed past.
Looking back at Boateng's surge, you'd realize it wasn't superfluous but sheer genius.
Boateng sprinted forward; he wanted to bind Xia Qi so Javi Martínez could have time to recover. Then Xia Qi would be trapped!
As he charged, something white flashed across near his feet…
He looked down — the ball was no longer at Xia Qi's feet.
Xia Qi, when Martínez closed in, had pushed the ball forward with a through pass.
The ball flew past Boateng, cut through the space behind him and beyond Dante's position six meters behind, landing just out of Dante's reach.
Dante hadn't imagined he'd be watching the drama from that six-meter zone;
Xia Qi's sudden through ball turned the bystander into the lead actor.
Was this "a fire at the city gate that harms fish in the moat"???
There was no time for complaint — he had to rush Balotelli and take responsibility: stop the ball if the man gets it.
That thought was correct!
But Mario Balotelli is one of the most dangerous finishers around. Since befriending Xia Qi he'd kept his competitive edge.
Xia Qi changed direction with the ball; Balotelli sensed the chance, accelerated.
Dante tried a lateral intercept but only met emptiness.
Balotelli sprinted and glanced at the assistant referee, seeing no flag, then accelerated again. He received the ball behind everyone, faced the onrushing Manuel Neuer, and coolly chose a low shot with his left foot.
The ball skimmed the turf in an arc toward the far corner.
Neuer was in trouble: having rushed out, he couldn't get his hands on the shot and could only attempt a desperate leg block.
But he was a moment too slow.
The ball rolled past his toe and into the net.
Neuer wondered at the match of life.
Tonight his repeated rushes out had turned sour.
Should he learn from the elder king Oliver Kahn? Roar like a lion before charging? (a rhetorical jab)
At the instant the ball hit the net, the Emirates erupted in thunderous cheering.
"5–2! It's over! With just over a minute left, Bayern can't score twice."
Mario Balotelli, having scored a brace, ran to the south stand, jumped onto the advertising hoardings, ripped off his shirt and revealed his muscular torso.
It was the end of the match; Balotelli's shirtless celebration was not criticized as thoughtless.
Teammates joined him up on the hoardings — poor advertising boards could not bear the weight.
Crash — they collapsed. One wonders if the organizers would seek compensation from Xia Qi and co.
After the celebrations, Bayern had lost all morale. A few passes later,
the referee blew the full-time whistle.
"The match is over. Xia Qi with two goals and two assists, Balotelli with a brace, De Bruyne with a goal — a 5–2 victory tonight and an 8–6 aggregate heading into the quarter-finals."
On the sideline,
Pep Guardiola touched his bald head and checked the final tally on the LED board.
First he shook his head in helplessness, then walked over to Arsène Wenger with a smile.
"Congratulations!"
"Thank you!"
"That trip that Xia Qi made should have been a yellow card; if it had been, everything would have been different."
"Xia Qi's shirtless celebration was too impulsive."
Wenger's subtext: had Xia Qi not taken off his shirt, whether the trip got a card or not would have been less decisive.
Of course, life has no ifs.
Although Guardiola felt aggrieved, he still gave Wenger a big hug…
After the match,
the whole Emirates sank into a sea of jubilation — Bayern knocked out two seasons in a row.
Once the underdog, now the tormentor!!!
Arsenal fans continuously jumped and sang the club anthem loudly;
substitutes stormed the pitch the moment the whistle blew to help stretch players' hamstrings or help them off.
Exhausted!
At the whistle,
Xia Qi and others collapsed like mud on the turf. Assistant coach Pat Rice ran onto the pitch shouting at them: "If you can stand, don't lie down."
Those who still had strength struggled to their feet and walked off with help from the subs…
Exhausted,
Xia Qi refused interviews.
Mario Balotelli, scorer of a brace, spoke to reporters…
…When asked which opponent he most hoped to face next, Balotelli the goof blurted: "Manchester United."
This season Manchester United had been a bit shaky, but the Red Devils' might was still respected — considered the toughest bone to chew after the likes of Real Madrid.
The reporter pressed: Is it because you like challenging strong opponents?
"No, because they're the worst…"
"?????"
Huge news broke…
…
The next day, the other Champions League round-of-16 matches finished.
Manchester United indeed won and advanced to the last eight.
The English and Spanish leagues were neck and neck with three teams each advancing to the quarter-finals:
Premier League: Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea
La Liga: Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid, Barcelona
Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund
Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain
The Champions League quarter-final draw was to be held. Because same-league teams did not have to be kept apart, Manchester United became Arsenal's most-wanted draw.
But such things are better left unsaid — especially since Manchester United sat far from the Champions League places in the Premier League this season; winning the Champions League was their last route to next season's European qualification.
At this time, to have it leak that Arsenal wanted them because they were "shit" — imagine how Sir Alex Ferguson's fragile ego would take that!
Ferguson retorted strongly: Manchester United most want to draw Arsenal!!!
And the proud Sir Alex even boasted: "Two wins over the Gunners in the Champions League!!!"
Wenger, bemused, replied: "There's only a one-in-eight chance of drawing United; I'd prefer opponents from other leagues."
Wenger's backing down didn't quell the chatter — domestic ties are never ideal, but at least one side is guaranteed a semi-final spot; some British media still backed an Arsenal vs. Manchester United tie.
Amid the fuss, France Football's official site published:
"…We are honored to announce the result of the 2013 Ballon d'Or.
"Congratulations to Arsenal's English player Xia Qi for winning this year's Ballon d'Or.
"His performances over the past year were near perfect, bringing Arsenal to the pinnacle of Europe…"
When this news came out, British and Chinese media went crazy, sharing and commenting…
Xia Qi's phone blew up immediately.
The first to call was, of course, his agent Joanna — she was tonight with Cristiano Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes and Lionel Messi's father at France Football's headquarters.
Although Xia Qi had prepared mentally, his brain still blanked for a moment when it happened…
A moment later he hurried to phone his parents with the good news…
That evening his phone never stopped — calls from Wenger, Pat Rice and the fitness coach… club teammates… national team Steven Gerrard, Joe Hart… Xia Qi was stunned when even Ribéry and Manuel Neuer called to congratulate him.
The next morning.
Xia Qi went downstairs; the Mc family were waiting early for him.
"Mr. Ballon d'Or, good morning!"
"Thank you!"
This season would end and Xia Qi would move out. Frankly, Xia Qi felt a little reluctant.
After the morning jog, at Colney training ground Wenger called him into his office.
"Congratulations to you, and congratulations to me. I've coached a Ballon d'Or winner — you're the first."
"Thanks, Boss. Without your guidance…"
They chatted briefly, then Wenger opened a drawer and took out a gift box.
"This is for you. I thought you might need it."
Back in the locker room Xia Qi opened it and found a tie — exactly what he needed.
Three days later Xia Qi, his family, his management team and Wenger traveled to Paris.
Getting off the plane, they were immediately swarmed by reporters, many from China.
Before the ceremony Xia Qi had to do an interview — all set pieces; his management had prepared the script.
Questions and answers were scripted; Xia Qi just read his lines.
After the interview he couldn't rest.
He was taken to the makeup room; TV makeup is different from everyday life — you must consider lighting and camera.
Makeup and grooming took two full hours.
Xia Qi felt it was more tiring than playing a match and really admired girls who did makeup every day.
Two hours later,
in a crisp black suit, white shirt and the dark red tie Wenger had given him,
a sophisticated young gentleman appeared before everyone.
Once ready, Xia Qi and his family climbed into the organizers' chauffeured car to the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.
They arrived around seven. Xia Qi's family walked the staff entrance with the organizers; Xia Qi and Wenger would walk the red carpet.
When Xia Qi stepped onto the carpet, flashes blinked like stars and the crowd cheered…
Xia Qi smiled and waved to fans. At the FIFA autograph wall the host joked that he looked like he was in a hurry to collect the award.
Xia Qi replied with a smile: "Mainly because I wanted to meet the beautiful lady here sooner…"
Inside the theater, after greeting his parents, Xia Qi began mingling — football elders, coaches, CEOs, media bosses…
After the formalities he sat down near Cristiano Ronaldo: "This is exhausting. I'd rather just play a match."
"You'll get used to it. Football isn't just about the battle on the pitch…"
An hour later the lights dimmed and the hall fell silent.
The LED screen on stage began showing highlight reels of the three Ballon d'Or nominees, with stirring commentary… (END CHAPTER)
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(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Bankai10