Ever since he joined Stokes Bridge Park's Steel Team, Xuan felt that he had become fulfilled again.
In the past, when he did not have a soccer ball in China, he was dejected.
They would either play games at home or wander around the streets.
Sometimes, he would unknowingly walk to a nearby stadium and stand on the sidelines to watch others play.
After everyone else left in the afternoon, Xuan silently walked home and went to work at the bar at night.
Xuan would only be more energetic when there was an amateur competition.
He prepared early and rushed to the field.
Even if he had to play with a bunch of crooks in the vegetable field.
At least Xuan felt alive on the court.
Chu Xuan felt that he was filled with energy at any time.
He was really glad that joining this amateur team was the best decision he had ever made in his life!
Training and playing football with his teammates here, he had found the happiness he once had.
Most importantly, he had a very clear goal.
Go on in the FA Cup! A head-on confrontation with a powerhouse in the Premier League!
In the first round of the FA Cup qualifiers, Stokes Bridge defeated the fifth-tier Cambridge United 4:1 at home.
They could be called the strongest dark horse in the 2008-2009 English FA Cup!
From the qualifiers, to the qualifiers, and now to the main competition, they had defeated powerful opponents in a row, and they had been in the cold!
It was now the end of November, and the next opponent for Stokes Bridge was also new!
…
Stokes Bridge Training Ground.
Steve Adams stood in front of the line with a serious expression.
"You all know who our opponent in the next round of the FA Cup is.”
"I know!"
"Are you confident? This test was even more difficult than the previous ones!”
"I'm confident!"
"Louder, I can't hear you!”
"I'm confident!"
“F**k-yeah!!!”
"Kill them!"
Steve Adams nodded as he looked at the excited players.
"Good! You're very energetic!"
With the consecutive victories, everyone was now very united and had the initial momentum of a professional team.
Only by fighting like an army could they defeat stronger enemies!
A week later, they would face the strongest team in the city, the club that was the face of Sheffield City.
Sheffield United!
Steve Adams believed that this would be their biggest test to the third round.
The soldiers below seemed to be ready!
Speaking
of Sheffield United, the domestic fans might not be too unfamiliar.
The club was one of the founding members of the English Football Association, founded in 1889.
They had won the top league title for decades and the FA Cup four times.
As for the second division champions, there were countless of them.
In 1992, the Premier League was established, and Sheffield United was also one of the participating members.
In 2006, Sheffield United won the championship and the runner-up, once again successfully advancing into the Premier League.
In the same year, Sheffield United even sponsored the Tianfu Chengdu Wuniu Football Club and renamed it Chengdu Sheffield United.
Unfortunately, after a season, they were relegated to the English Football League Championship.
This time, Sheffield United was a little injured. They were relegated all the way and sank in the lower leagues.
It wasn't until the 10th year and the 2018(19 season that Sheffield United finally returned to the Premier League.
In the eyes of most Premier League fans, Sheffield United was just an insignificant "lift." Any team could press them to the ground.
However, after being in the EFL Championship for many years, no matter how weak he was, he was still a giant compared to Stokes Bridge.
Sheffield's media was also very excited about the FA Cup's civil war and began to promote the "Sheffield City Derby."
However, most of the citizens did not agree with this title.
Generally, derbies were always explosive, or were matches where the players were evenly matched or had historical grudges.
Manchester United vs Liverpool was a derby, Dortmund vs Schalke 04 was a derby, AC Milan vs Inter Milan was a derby, Real Madrid vs Barcelona was a derby...
Even if it was a Sheffield derby, it should be Sheffield United vs Sheffield Wednesday.
Sheffield United VS Stokes Bridge?
What kind of derby was this?
Regardless of whether the others recognized the derby or not, Sheffield United's manager, Blackwell, did not care about the FA Cup at all.
In the 08(09 season, Sheffield United was temporarily at the top of the league.
Only the top two teams would be able to reach the Super League. The third to sixth teams would have to play in the playoffs.
And behind Sheffield United, Wolves and Nottingham Forest were biting very tightly. Sheffield United had to do their best to stabilize their position at the top of the list.
No matter what, he had to be in the top two.
Moreover, Sheffield United's schedule was packed in the following period of time. They really could not spare any time to take care of the FA Cup.
Blackwell had already made a decision within the team.
"Our focus is still on the league tournament, so for the next FA Cup, I will consider the players from the reserve team and youth team.
Focus on the league tournament and try to defeat Wolves in the next match!”
The Sheffield United players had no objections, and they did not care about the FA Cup.
Everyone's goal was the Premier League!
Only if they succeeded could they get a bigger contract and go to a stronger team.
Among the many players, the Welshman, Garry Speed, quietly elbowed an Eastern player next to him.
"Sun, it is said that there is an Asian on the other side of the FA Cup.”
"Eh? Was that so? I don't know yet."
As the two were talking, the manager had already announced the starting list for the FA Cup in advance and named the Eastern player.
"…Right wing guard, Sun Jihai, you start!”
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。