Super Wingstorm

”The Feyenoord players are furious. They’re chasing after the referee demanding an explanation.”

”It’s clear they agree with the red card, but they feel the penalty is unjust.”

”Fan Wendelun’s foul just now looked to be outside the box. It should have been a free kick, not a penalty.”

”But the referee is standing firm, pointing to his eyes to indicate he saw it clearly.”

”Indeed, he was right behind Yang Yang and Fan Wendelun the whole way. You can only say that Yang Yang is just too fast.”

”Let’s look at the slow-motion replay. Yang Yang shook off Van Haren right from the start. Speed really isn’t the Feyenoord left-back’s strong suit.”

”That was a beautiful over-the-top ball from Sneijder. He and Yang Yang have a fantastic understanding.”

”Yang Yang didn’t slow down after catching up to the ball. When facing Fan Wendelun, he even had a very distinct burst of acceleration...”

”Looking at the foul again, Fan Wendelun pulled Yang Yang’s jersey twice. The first time, Yang Yang broke free, but the second time he pulled, Yang Yang had already stepped into the penalty area. That is definitely a penalty, no doubt about it.”

”This Ajax right winger’s speed is truly incredible. To be able to charge at the opponent’s defense with such pace, especially in the final stages of the game, puts immense pressure on the defenders.”

”A red card and a penalty. Ajax now has a chance to further extend their lead.”

”Let’s see who will take this penalty.”

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As Fan Wendelun walked off the pitch without hesitation, Van Marwijk went up to meet him, embracing the center-back and consoling him. After all, in that situation, committing the foul was a last resort.

If he hadn’t fouled, Yang Yang would have been through on goal with a one-on-one. A goal would have been almost certain.

After seeing the player off, Van Marwijk looked at the pitch with a glum expression, his eyes fixed on the Chinese kid who was laughing and joking with his teammates. A mix of complicated feelings churned within him.

He had been full of confidence, but he never expected this kid to come in and spoil his plans.

Comparing Yang Yang to his own team’s left winger, Van Persie, made Van Marwijk feel even more dejected.

During his time coaching Feyenoord, his relationship with Van Persie had always been terrible. Van Persie preferred to play as a center-forward, but Van Marwijk felt he should play left wing, letting the new signing Kuyt play as center-forward. He believed the latter’s diligence and effort in matches could put more pressure on the opponent’s defense.

This led to a very tense relationship between Van Marwijk and Van Persie.

At this moment, watching the brilliant Yang Yang and then looking at Van Persie on the field, who seemed completely unconcerned with winning or losing, Van Marwijk couldn’t help but feel a sense of imbalance.

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The stadium’s big screen endlessly replayed the slow-motion footage of Fan Wendelun’s foul. The announcer kept cheering for Yang Yang’s outstanding performance, while in the stands, the Ajax fans had already burst into celebration.

A red card and a penalty—this basically sealed Ajax’s victory.

In fact, Ajax had already won from the moment Yang Yang assisted Vermaelen’s goal from the corner kick.

”Are you feeling the sting in your wallet right now?” Van Gaal asked Van Pragg with a hearty laugh.

The Ajax chairman shook his head with a wry smile. ”Right now, all I want to say is that you’ve been seriously neglecting your duties as technical director.”

Van Gaal was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing.

The team was winning, so both of them were in a good mood. But the trouble that followed was the issue of Yang Yang’s contract renewal.

Back during the winter training camp, Yang Yang’s agent, Andrew, had privately met with Twente’s senior management and later mentioned Yang Yang in a media interview. Although Ajax promptly did damage control, and Yang Yang fired his agent immediately upon returning to the Netherlands, it couldn’t stop the media hype and fervent fan discussion.

After the winter break, Yang Yang’s performance was as outstanding as ever. You could clearly see his improvement in every single match. The contract renewal issue was now laid squarely before Ajax.

Never mind anyone else, even Van Gaal, who knew Yang Yang very well, was deeply shocked by the speed of his progress.

’It’s too fast!’

Forget the league. In the final round of the Champions League group stage against Bruges, he helped Ajax advance to the knockout stage—that single match was worth over ten million Euros. In the Dutch Cup, he helped the team advance through two consecutive rounds. Ajax was now the biggest favorite to win the Dutch Cup, and if they really lifted the trophy, Yang Yang would be the number one hero.

In just a few short matches, he had delivered a weighty list of accomplishments that anyone would find hard to believe.

Van Gaal was very clear about Yang Yang’s current situation. He still had very obvious weaknesses and shortcomings. For example, his first touch wasn’t good enough, his one-touch passing wasn’t skilled enough, and his scoring ability was on the weaker side for a winger…

But he had just turned seventeen.

If he were twenty-seven, these weaknesses and shortcomings would certainly hold him back. But for a seventeen-year-old player, they all represented untapped potential.

Van Gaal found it incredible just to think about it. ’With Yang Yang’s current rate of improvement and his dedication to football, if he really shores up these weaknesses and shortcomings, what kind of player will he become?’

”We still need to negotiate the renewal quickly, to stop all the unease and speculation,” Van Pragg suggested.

”He hasn’t found a suitable agent yet,” Van Gaal said with a helpless, wry smile.

Van Gaal knew his young friend well. He was completely focused on playing football and didn’t pay much attention to anything else.

If he found a reliable agent, he could of course focus on playing without any worries. But if he was unlucky enough to find an unreliable one, he could really be led astray.

Just like that Andrew, who was clearly a total liability.

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The referee finally managed to deal with the Feyenoord players, making them all understand that the decision could not be changed.

Both teams gathered around the edge of Feyenoord’s penalty area, waiting for the upcoming penalty kick.

Who from Ajax would take the penalty?

Captain Van der Vaart was the designated penalty taker. Ibrahimovic and Wesley Sonck were also capable…

Just as everyone, both inside and outside the stadium, was guessing, Van der Vaart suddenly walked over to Yang Yang, who was standing on the right side of the arc, and pushed the ball into his arms. ”You should be the one to take this shot.”

Yang Yang was stunned. He had never taken a penalty kick before.

It wasn’t just him; even his surrounding teammates were a bit surprised. Even letting Ibrahimovic take it would have made sense, but why Yang Yang?

But soon, everyone came to terms with it. After all, Yang Yang had earned this penalty opportunity with his individual skill. It no longer affected the overall outcome of the match. Whether it went in or not, Ajax had already won.

”Rafael, I…” Yang Yang was completely surprised.

”I believe in you. No pressure. Go on,” Van der Vaart said encouragingly, patting Yang Yang on the shoulder.

The two were actually not far apart in age; Van der Vaart would only turn twenty-one in a few days. But he had been famous for years and was the captain of Ajax, so he naturally saw Yang Yang as a younger brother who had just come up.

Yang Yang looked at the ball in his arms, then at his teammates around him. Every one of them nodded at him. He felt he had no choice but to bite the bullet. He walked straight to the penalty spot, placed the ball gently on the white dot, and, just as he did when taking a corner kick, stomped the turf to get a firm footing before slowly backing away.

Behind him, players from both teams had retreated outside the penalty area, but every single one was poised to rush into the box.

In front of Yang Yang, there was only the Feyenoord goalkeeper and the goal, which seemed spacious but actually felt very narrow to him.

Especially when the goalkeeper spread his arms, Yang Yang felt as if there was nowhere to shoot. It was as if no matter which direction he aimed, the ball would be saved.

At this moment, with the eyes of tens of thousands of fans in the stadium and countless viewers in front of their TVs all fixed on him, it was hard for Yang Yang not to feel the pressure, even though his rational mind kept telling him that missing the penalty didn’t matter.

’I want to win. I want to score this penalty.’

’Old Ice, how should I take this kick?’

In Yang Yang’s mind, all the intelligence and information provided by the coaching staff before the match surfaced, including this Feyenoord goalkeeper’s saving habits. Although there was no data on his penalty saves, it was still something to refer to.

But he still felt uncertain.

’A penalty kick is a war between you and the goalkeeper. Inside the penalty area, it’s just the two of you. What you have to do is take him down.’

At a time like this, there wasn’t much advice Old Ice could give. He couldn’t even tell Yang Yang which area of the goal was best to shoot for, because data only represents the past; it has nothing to do with this specific kick.

Yang Yang understood this as well. At this moment, he couldn’t rely on anyone but himself.

He looked up, staring directly at the goalkeeper opposite him, who was also staring right back.

Their eyes met, both trying to guess the other’s intentions.

The referee finally blew the whistle. A sudden flash of inspiration struck Yang Yang. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he visualized the goal and the goalkeeper in front of him as the graffiti wall in the skate park in downtown Almere City. He remembered every single pit and hollow on that wall clearly; when he practiced, he would deliberately aim for them or avoid them.

It was just like this goal now, and the goalkeeper standing in front of it.

He took a light breath, calming his nerves. He shot forward quickly, deliberately stuttering his run-up, then suddenly struck the ball with the inside of his foot. The ball flew towards the goal at high speed.

The Feyenoord goalkeeper was deceived by Yang Yang’s sudden hesitation in his run-up and dived to his left, but Yang Yang’s penalty kick went straight down the middle.

If he had just stayed put, Yang Yang’s shot would have flown right into his arms. But now, it was too late for regrets.

After scoring the penalty, Yang Yang bit his lower lip hard, raised his clenched fists above his head, and turned to accept the congratulations of all his teammates.

”A straight shot down the middle with the inside of his foot. Yang Yang’s mental fortitude is truly strong. Skillful and bold.”

”It’s hard to believe he’s a young player of only seventeen. To face the pressure of a penalty kick and choose such a method.”

”After the goal, Yang Yang also looks very calm, but the entire Amsterdam Arena has erupted into a frenzy.”

”Three to one. Ajax has basically locked up the victory.”