Madrid, Spain.
Ling adjusted his baseball cap and looked up ahead.
A dilapidated stadium surrounded by construction crews sat quietly, with a rusted signboard beside it faintly displaying the words "Estadio Vicente Calderón."
If Ling hadn't minored in Spanish earlier, he probably wouldn't have recognized those words so quickly.
"Atlético Madrid's historic stadium, used for 51 years, is just being torn down like this?" Harry Maguire asked incredulously, looking at the cranes.
He felt that a stadium full of history like this would be more suitable for renovation.
"A stadium with sufficient capacity and modern facilities is too important for a club's revenue. Otherwise, why would Arsenal sell their captain every year to pay for the Emirates?" Ling said with a knowing smile.
In recent years, Tottenham Hotspur has also been planning a massive new stadium, but such massive projects place too heavy a financial burden on clubs.
Back then, Arsene Wenger managed to miraculously lead Arsenal to consecutive top-four finishes in the league and occasionally win an FA Cup under such immense financial pressure—it truly wasn't easy.
"I heard Atlético's new stadium is sponsored by a company from your hometown?" Marcus Rashford said, glancing at his phone.
"Yeah, Wanda Group. They're in real estate—extremely wealthy!" Ling clicked his tongue.
In 2017, Wanda and Atlético signed a five-year naming rights contract worth 50 million euros.
If he had made a name for himself a few years earlier, perhaps Old Trafford could have been renamed Wanda Stadium.
That would have been quite strange, but thrilling to play in.
But Ling was just daydreaming.
After all, from 1908 to 2019, Manchester United had used the name "Old Trafford" for over a hundred years.
For Manchester United, it was the club's most important symbol.
Although the naming rights for Old Trafford could theoretically be worth as much as 26 million pounds annually, to be honest, Manchester United really doesn't need that corporate money.
"Let's go, the boss is calling us back to the hotel."
After receiving Mourinho's text, Ling urged his teammates to wrap up their pre-match walking tour of the city.
"But there's still so much time before the match tonight…" Jesse Lingard grumbled unhappily.
Despite his seemingly honest, boyish appearance, Lingard was only slightly better than Kyle Walker when it came to nightlife.
Before the match against Arsenal, Ling couldn't sleep and went out for a walk in the hotel hallway, only to see a woman—even burlier than Romelu Lukaku—sneak into Lingard's room.
And that woman was clearly not Lingard's girlfriend.
Ling didn't feel it was his place to say anything, as it was someone else's private life.
Compared to Lingard, Paul Pogba, who usually attracted a lot of media attention, didn't smoke, drink, or go to nightclubs.
Apart from constantly perming his hair and doing awkward dances on social media, he didn't seem to have any other hobbies.
"We're here to play a Champions League match, Jesse, not to go sightseeing!" Ling said sternly, cutting off the winger's complaints.
"Right, right, let's focus on the match first. There'll be plenty of chances to have fun later," Scott McTominay quickly pulled Lingard aside.
Having been Ling's roommate for five years in the academy, McTominay was arguably the person at Manchester United who knew Ling best.
Although Ling was usually gentle and relaxed, that didn't mean he never got angry.
And he took European matches very seriously. Mistakes on the field could be forgiven, but if fun and games affected match preparation, Ling absolutely wouldn't stand for it.
Lingard hesitated, wanting to say more, but ultimately kept quiet and followed the group as they headed to the team bus.
Back in the youth academy, he had personally witnessed Ling brutally beat up Demetri Mitchell in the dressing room.
The scene still sent chills down his spine!
Moreover, if he were to have a public conflict with Ling... there was absolutely no doubt that his teammates would side with the captain, whether it was the veterans like Antonio Valencia or the young players like McTominay.
Even the newly transferred Maguire and Nemanja Matic would do the same.
Oh, right, and Mourinho—he was Ling's biggest backer.
Their relationship was far from just an ordinary coach-player bond.
....
Time flew by, and it was now the evening of February 13th.
The last time Manchester United and Atlético Madrid faced each other was in the UEFA Super Cup final, a match marred by violence and drama.
But if we're talking solely about European cup competitions, the last time the two teams met was 28 years ago, in the 1991–92 season, during the European Cup Winners' Cup Round of 16.
Back then, Atlético Madrid defeated Manchester United 3–0 at home and drew 1–1 away.
Since then, they hadn't met in a two-legged tie for decades.
The Wanda Metropolitano Stadium was surrounded by tens of thousands of fans clad in red-and-white checkered shirts.
From the sky, it looked like countless red-and-white petals floating on aggressive waves.
In the city of Madrid, the fanbase was largely divided between Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid supporters.
The former's fanbase leaned more toward the wealthy elite, while the latter's was strictly more working-class. But both sets of fans were equally passionate.
"Atleeeti, Atleeeti! (Oh Atlético, oh Atlético!)"
"Atlético de Madrid!"
The stirring, intimidating melody filled the Madrid air, setting the stage for a fiery atmosphere even before the match began.
In contrast, Manchester United fans numbered only a few thousand in the away sector, like small boats adrift in a hostile sea.
During the pre-match press conferences earlier, the two managers were already going head-to-head.
"We fear no opponent. Even against Manchester United, we are confident of victory," Diego Simeone said fiercely to the cameras.
"The last match in the Super Cup? Although Manchester United won on the scoreboard, the way they wasted time and played dirty disgusted and shamed me! Today, we are fully prepared and won't give Manchester United any chances!"
The UEFA Super Cup final was, in his eyes, a great humiliation.
Losing the match was one thing, but even losing the physical fight was unbearable!
For Simeone, who prided himself on being a tough, gritty leader who instilled resilience and dark arts into Atlético, this was unacceptable.
He wanted revenge.
"What's your take on Jeremy Ling, Diego? In the last match—" The reporter's question was cut off before it was finished.
Simeone flashed a dangerous, cold smile. "Atlético Madrid is not Manchester City or Liverpool. We play real men's football. I think that 'kid' should understand that Atlético is much stronger physically than he imagines. Of course, if he still wants to solve things with violence today, we'll show him what we're really made of."
In the neighboring conference room, Mourinho's rhetoric was just as intense.
"Atlético Madrid? If I say they are the most detestable team in Europe, never playing their own football but always trying to disrupt their opponents, I think many would agree," Mourinho's gaze toward the cameras was sharp and unyielding.
"This is an unhealthy attitude coming directly from their manager. Remember? Simeone infamously got David Beckham sent off in 1998 by playing acting games. He wants to use any means to give his team an advantage—whether it's getting opponents sent off or actively trying to injure them. And then he uses that to push you to the brink."
Mourinho's tone grew increasingly icy as he firmly believed Atlético Madrid were the destroyers of modern football. Finally, he left two sentences before turning to leave the press room.
"We play football not just to inflict bruises on our opponents. We want to win, but not by physically preventing the other team from playing. Since Simeone is so confident, I hope I can still see him smiling after the match."
@AtletiEnglish: Simeone is going to make Ling cry tonight. Welcome to the Metropolitano. 🔴⚪
@UtdFaithful: Mourinho cooking Simeone in the press conference. Our manager knows exactly how to get into their heads.
@TacticsNerd: This is going to be a bloodbath. Both managers hate each other, both teams play physical football. Expect red cards.