"Does anyone still think Lin is just an ordinary young man? Look at how much Barnett trusts him."
"Making him Honorary Minister of the new supervision department in his agency empire is no ordinary appointment."
"That is basically giving Leo Lin a share of the power inside his agency empire."
"Barnett really loves him. He trusts him far too much."
On the morning of January 1, in the pre-match discussion room for the Premier League North-West derby, Scholes and Ashley Cole were both present.
"Scholes, let's not talk about things unrelated to football. That is Barnett's choice. A man capable of building an agency empire will not have poor judgment."
Ashley Cole was worried that Scholes might say something dangerous and anger Barnett. After all, Barnett was not someone you wanted to provoke in England.
Scholes understood what Cole meant, and immediately changed the subject.
"Alright, let's turn our attention back to the huge match kicking off tonight."
"The match countless fans have been waiting for."
"Manchester United, who have been in poor form recently, against a Liverpool side playing brilliantly. These two old enemies are clashing again."
"In Premier League Matchday 16, Liverpool will not lose top spot whether they win or lose."
"But for Manchester United, this is a match they absolutely have to win. Recently, though, United's form has dropped sharply, and their league performances have been getting worse with every game."
"Mourinho's position is now under increasing threat, and the calls from Manchester United fans for Mourinho to be sacked are growing louder and louder."
"After fifteen rounds, Manchester United have only seven wins, six draws, and two defeats. They are currently seventh in the Premier League."
"Fans are already questioning Mourinho's tactics. In the last match against Southampton, there was a huge gap in strength between the two sides, yet Mourinho still played defensively. In the end, they drew 0 to 0 with Southampton."
"The best way to silence those doubts is to beat their bitter rivals Liverpool. That means this derby may be Mourinho's last lifeline."
"The gap between them and Liverpool is getting wider and wider."
Of course Scholes wanted Manchester United to win, but he knew exactly how difficult that would be.
Especially since some players in this Manchester United squad had already begun to show their limits.
"Lukaku. You say he isn't strong, but he is actually quite strong."
"You say he is strong, but somehow he doesn't feel that strong either."
It was the first time Scholes had ever seen a player like that.
"And then there is Pogba. His conflict with Mourinho is basically out in the open now."
"Manchester United's rebuild still feels a long way off. There is no end in sight."
Scholes and Ashley Cole's comments quickly set Mourinho off. He questioned their claim that Manchester United's rebuild had no end in sight. At the same time, Klopp knew that Mourinho's special pre-match routine had arrived.
"Liverpool became five-time champions last season. Who cares?"
"I have led different teams to success in different leagues. I have won many titles, so I respect Klopp's achievements, but you must respect me too."
"I don't care how strong this Liverpool team is. In my view, we are evenly matched."
"And I want to say this to the fans who keep deliberately mocking Lukaku. Just wait. In this match, Lukaku will slap you in the face."
Mourinho was very confident in the pre-match press conference. He was not only confident in himself, but also expressed confidence in Lukaku. That trust from the manager made the Belgian striker feel deeply warmed.
The French midfielder Pogba, however, had never felt that warmth. At least, not from Mourinho.
Mourinho did not like Pogba, and the conflict between the two was gradually intensifying. Even so, Mourinho still put Pogba in the starting lineup for this match.
Although Pogba had issues with Mourinho, his excellent performances since returning to Manchester United had still won over United fans, and Premier League fans had often praised him as brilliant. His clash with Leo Lin in this match had also become one of the biggest talking points.
"I always thought Pogba was the absolute peak of midfield talent, until Leo Lin appeared."
"If Pogba is world class from the neck down, then Leo Lin is world class from the neck down and cosmic level from the neck up."
"What's wrong with Pogba? Pogba has very high football intelligence. Stop blindly hating, and stop putting one player down just to praise another. Be rational."
"I prefer Pogba. He has football intelligence and physicality, and even better, he has those sudden flashes of inspiration on the pitch."
"Flashes of inspiration? Does Lin not have enough of those? He flashes every day and shows up every match."
The fans of both players also began the comparison game online, the part most fans loved the most. But this kind of comparison was meaningless.
Leo Lin admired every talented player. He trained actively, preparing for the derby that was about to arrive.
Although Manchester United were far behind Liverpool in the table, Leo Lin understood that things would not be that simple. He hoped every one of his teammates understood that too.
This was a derby.
And derbies would always be one of the most special things in the football world.
No derby was ever simple.
Any team involved in a derby could explode with unprecedented form and performance.
So Liverpool had to give everything.
Beat Manchester United.