That was indeed the case; after the referee diligently brought an end to the Ajax players' wild celebrations, the Red Bull players did not immediately calm down.
Their subsequent attacks were chaotic and posed no threat to Ajax.
By the time they regained their composure, there wasn't much time left to do anything.
The 4:1 scoreline held until the end.
Thus, Ajax successfully eliminated Salzburg Red Bull with an aggregate score of 6:4, advancing to the Europa League quarter-finals.
Sean experienced the charm of a knockout match for the first time.
He was very calm while playing, but once the match ended and their team's advancement was confirmed, he was still excitedly dazed.
He hadn't fully sobered up during the post-match thank-you lap or the interviews with reporters.
Fortunately, after dinner at home, he managed to fall asleep in time...
The next day, according to custom, should have been a day off.
However, due to the insertion of international match days, the 26th round of the Eredivisie was brought forward.
The schedule was too dense, so the holiday was cancelled.
When Sean arrived at the training base, all the staff he encountered enthusiastically greeted him.
"Hi, Sean, good morning."
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Sean, that was brilliant!"
"Thank you."
"Sean, good morning, I heard many scouts from top clubs were at Cruyff Arena yesterday?"
"Perhaps."
"..."
Staff members would specifically approach Sean to greet him, and Sean, of course, could only respond to each one...
After all, he was one of Ajax's own, and it was normal for him to receive some favoritism as long as he performed well.
What's more, Sean's performance had long since exceeded the 'good' category.
Another superstar had emerged from their ranks.
Every Ajax person would feel honored from the response of the staffs, and the enthusiasm Sean received was naturally even more special.
Sean first headed to the restaurant.
It was usually a buffet, and Sean would just pick some food himself, but Chef Allen walked over with his hands behind his back.
"Hi, Sean, you were amazing last night, wow ~ three goals and one assist, those Red Bull guys were scared silly by you.
I heard those Feyenoord guys were also scared silly; they're burning the midnight oil researching countermeasures to limit you in the match the day after tomorrow."
Aside from Ajax and Feyenoord being century-old rivals, the current situation alone was enough for a fierce contest between the two sides.
Currently, Ajax leads the League with 56 points.
Feyenoord and Eindhoven are tied for second place with 53 points.
If Ajax wins, they can extend their point difference to six points.
More importantly, Eindhoven and Feyenoord have already played; in the upcoming Eredivisie matches, Ajax no longer faces overly strong opponents.
While it cannot yet be said to be a smooth path directly to the championship, the pressure has certainly been greatly reduced.
They can even focus most of their energy on the Europa League and the Dutch Cup, significantly increasing their hopes of achieving a treble.
For Feyenoord, the situation is quite different.
If Feyenoord wants to keep their championship hopes alive, their best chance is naturally to defeat Ajax.
As long as they defeat Ajax, the two teams will be tied in points.
Although they would still rank second due to an inferior goal difference and would still need to rely on other teams to stop Ajax, they would at least be less passive.
Moreover, the morale of the two teams would be completely reversed, and Feyenoord might even seize the initiative in the title race.
Therefore, this is destined to be a clash of titans.
However, Ajax had just fought hard against Salzburg Red Bull and would have to challenge Feyenoord in Rotterdam two days later, without sufficient time to fully recover to their best condition.
It was understandable that Ajax fans felt a bit uneasy after recovering from their excitement, and it was only natural for them to seek some confidence from Sean.
"Thank you for the reminder; I'm curious to know what they've come up with."
Sean replied while continuing to select his food.
He was becoming the team's core, so it would be a low-probability event for opponents not to specifically study him.
However, Allen had always been boisterous and seemed not to care about anything, yet now he was actively investigating Feyenoord's intelligence—this was truly... unexpected!
Allen leaned closer to Sean and said mysteriously, "If you're in a good mood, can you perform even better and just blow Feyenoord away?"
Huh?
Do you hate Feyenoord that much?
Indeed, Ajax represents Amsterdam, the largest city in the Netherlands, while Feyenoord represents Rotterdam, the second largest city in the Netherlands.
Since ancient times, if the first and second places are not vastly different, they are bound to be at odds with each other.
Competition in all aspects is inevitable.
In the Netherlands and throughout Europe, the most representative means of competition is, of course, football.
When a team wins, they don't just earn three points; they also earn the glory of everyone in their city!
Upon realizing this, Sean's expression became a little more serious. "Perhaps, but I'm already in a pretty good mood now. Can you make me even happier?"
"Oh ~" Allen raised an eyebrow, twisted his mouth, and suddenly brought his hands to his front, "Look what this is, mantou!"
Ah?
Looking at the small, yellow dough in Allen's hand, Sean's expression was inevitably a bit blank: You call this mantou?
Allen didn't notice Sean's odd expression and continued to babble, "I checked a lot of information and went to many supermarkets to buy yeast..."
"What is this?"
Bojan appeared out of nowhere, looking curiously at the item in Allen's hand.
Allen became even more excited and quickly said, "Mantou! Sean said this is a traditional China delicacy. Do you want to try it?"
"Oh," Bojan raised an eyebrow, "Give me one."
"NONONO NO NO ~" Sean quickly stopped him, "This is not mantou at all, it's not!"
Hmm?
Both Allen and Bojan had question marks on their faces.
Allen was the first to react, "Is there something wrong with it?"
Sean patted his forehead, "How did I describe the finished product to you?"
"You said mantou is much softer than bread, though not as good as China-style bread... Soft?"
As Allen spoke, he looked at the item in his hand, pinched it with his fingers, but it didn't budge!
Hmm?
He squeezed it hard again, and it still didn't move!
Allen looked up at Sean, "Is something wrong?"
Sean shook his head helplessly, "I don't know exactly what went wrong, but this is definitely a defect no it's definitely a waste (waste product). You can call it whatever you want, just don't call it mantou!"
"Okay," Allen reluctantly looked at his hand. Judging from Sean's reaction, there seemed to be no need to taste it.
Allen, still not quite giving up, took a bite, but ultimately threw them into the trash can.
"Alright, Allen, I appreciate your effort." Sean quickly comforted him, "Don't worry, I'll teach Feyenoord a good lesson!"
"Okay, thank you, Sean. Don't worry, I will study hard and definitely make mantou!"
There's no need to be so persistent!
Sean wanted to persuade him, but Allen had already turned around boldly and entered the kitchen.
Having seen everything, Bojan thankfully patted his chest, 'Good, good,' but ~
Bojan leaned closer to Sean, "I remember you said you'd treat us. When?"
Huh?
Sean didn't remember saying that, but ~
It's just a brothers' dinner, no big deal. Anyway, last month's bonus had been deposited, nearly thirty thousand Euros, which wouldn't be spent even if the whole team of brothers came along!
"The night after we play Feyenoord." Sean waved his hand, "I'll go report it to the coach. Not just you, everyone on the team who has time should come!"
...
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