On the evening of March 17, Liverpool released the official promotional photos for next season's new kit across all platforms.
Leo Lin shot a total of nine different sets of close-up promotional photos wearing the new kit, and they were all posted online.
In the pictures, Leo Lin's smile looked especially bright. The reason was simple—just thinking about the more than four million pounds that had been deposited into his account made him genuinely happy.
It was the kind of happiness that came straight from the heart. Impossible to fake.
Leo Lin transferred another £1 million to Charles Lin and then made a video call to his parents, chatting about the interesting things that had happened recently.
The two of them had already visited several famous scenic spots around China. Lin's mother planned to travel across the entire country within a year before heading abroad—to France, Italy, Turkey, and other destinations.
...
On March 18, the Premier League returned.
Matchday 28 saw Liverpool face West Ham United, a team that had been in terrible form recently.
Whenever people talked about West Ham, the same topic always came up—their five-at-the-back system and their two aging full-backs. These had become the main weak points opponents kept exploiting.
"West Ham may often set up in a 5-4-1 defensive block, but their full-backs are still their biggest weakness."
"And Liverpool just happen to have extremely strong wingers. I don't think West Ham will escape unscathed today—they're very likely to be torn apart."
The two full-backs mentioned in Jim Beglin's pre-match analysis were Patrice Evra on the left and Pablo Zabaleta on the right.
One was the famous veteran who once dominated at Manchester United—capable in both attack and defense, incredibly well-rounded.
The other was Manchester City's former starting right-back, the tough Argentine Pablo Zabaleta.
"If these two players were ten years younger, they would be perfect full-backs for West Ham."
"But right now both are clearly declining—slower pace, slower turning, weaker stamina, and their defending is nowhere near what it used to be."
"Against Mané and Salah, I don't think they'll stand much of a chance."
"And West Ham's attacking style is fairly simple—long balls constantly aimed at their striker Arnautović."
"This tall center forward actually resembles a simplified version of Giroud. There are even reports that some clubs are interested in signing him."
Pre-match fan polls heavily favored Liverpool. Most supporters believed Liverpool would win by a large margin.
There's a saying—favorites often lose.
But it didn't apply to Liverpool tonight.
Liverpool fielded their strongest lineup, and their tactics were immediately clear.
No dynamic triangles.
Just wing breakthroughs.
Leo Lin and Wijnaldum operated left and right in midfield, constantly linking up with the wingers.
Wall passes.
Two-man combinations.
Overlapping runs.
Constant movement through the channels.
Zabaleta and Evra were completely overwhelmed.
They were already gasping for breath just 30 minutes into the first half.
It looked like they were climbing the mountains of Tibet.
37th minute.
Leo Lin received the ball in the middle and, after taking Salah's pass, delivered a surgical through ball.
Salah spun away, lost Evra with a clever off-the-ball run, received the pass, cut inside, and fired from a tight angle to score.
52nd minute of the second half.
Firmino flicked on a header. Mané burst forward from deep into the box and smashed a volley into the net.
2–0.
Soon after, Emre Can came on as a substitute while Leo Lin was taken off for a rest.
As a young player, Klopp wanted to give him as much breathing room as possible during the congested schedule.
70th minute.
Wijnaldum controlled the ball beautifully near the edge of the box, opened space with a fake shot and a quick cut.
His through pass was perfectly weighted.
Salah chipped the goalkeeper delicately.
3–0.
The Egyptian King scored his second of the match.
Brilliant.
82nd minute.
Mané beat Zabaleta one-on-one with pure strength before cutting the ball back across the box.
Firmino finished with a low shot.
The MLSF quartet all made contributions.
Gerrard roared from the commentary position:
"A perfect scoreline!"
"A perfect performance!"
"A perfect three points!"
"I LOVE LIVERPOOL!!!"
As Gerrard's roar echoed, time moved forward two and a half days.
Just sixty hours later, Liverpool faced Newcastle United in Premier League Matchday 29.
Newcastle were currently struggling near the bottom of the table.
"Although there have been recent reports that wealthy investors are interested in buying Newcastle United, the team is still having a very difficult season under Rafa Benítez."
Newcastle were quite similar to West Ham.
Both teams liked to park the bus with a 5-4-1 system.
Both relied on long balls and aerial attacks, hoping their tall striker and attacking midfielders could create something out of chaos.
Liverpool stuck to their wing-breakthrough strategy.
Both full-backs pushed high up the pitch.
But instead of hugging the touchline, they attacked through the half-spaces, stabbing directly into Newcastle's defensive ribs.
This movement quickly tore Newcastle's defense apart.
27th minute.
Leo Lin made a brilliant central run, creating space for Arnold to receive the ball.
Arnold surged forward into the box and flicked the ball back with his heel.
The pass found Leo Lin in the center.
Leo Lin struck a low shot into the net.
Liverpool's midfield and defense combined inside the penalty area in a clever overlapping move to score.
Second half, 60th minute.
Salah received Arnold's through pass, dribbled past two defenders along the wing, cut inside, and finished.
2–0.
Liverpool secured victory in Matchday 29 and continued to lead the Premier League table.
When the final whistle blew, the entire football world seemed to ask the same question:
Who can stop Liverpool?
The outside praise for Liverpool had reached its peak.
But Klopp ignored all the noise. His only focus was protecting his players—both physically and mentally.
March 22.
Liverpool training ground.
Inside the massage room, Leo Lin was completely pinned down by the club's chief masseuse, Lena Bell.
"I already told you!"
"Today you must complete a full three-hour session—no cutting corners!"
"We have to provide a full 720-degree all-around service with zero blind spots!"
"That's the boss's order. If you don't like it, go talk to Klopp!"
Leo Lin lay there helplessly, continuing to enjoy the massage.
He had originally planned to go out for dinner with Firmino and Mané.
Just then he turned his head and saw Firmino—who had tried to sneak away—being dragged back by Krawietz.
"Hahahaha!"
Leo Lin pointed at Firmino and burst out laughing. Then he suddenly remembered something.
"Firmino, where's Mané?"
Firmino shrugged.
"He said his grandparents were about to break up, so he went back to help reconcile them."
Leo Lin froze.
That kind of excuse actually works for getting time off?!
Damn it.
Next time I'm using that one too.
...
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