Chapter 21 Before the First League Game

FC United's first league game was away to Grantham, Lincolnshire, more than 200 kilometres east of Manchester, on 18 August. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

FC United have been preparing for their first league game of the season since the start of the week. And so it was very fast to August 17th.

After finishing this day's training, Li Qingshan returned to the apartment, took a shower, changed his clothes, cooled his body, turned off all the lights in the room, threw his body on the bed, and looked at the gray ceiling in distraction.

It's half past ten o'clock in the evening, and he's gone to bed a little more than usual today, because he usually goes to bed early, and then the world of football camp continues to sweat like rain.

But today he couldn't sleep.

Turning over, he saw the night sky outside the window through the window. The sky in England is clear in August, and the stars are twinkling in the clear night sky, and the bright stars are gradually dimming.

I didn't expect to be able to play in a regular football league in the UK.....

When he decided to say goodbye to football three years ago, he threw everything he had in the house into a cardboard box and buried it under a loquat tree in his backyard.

I personally tore off a football magazine, the newspaper of the Chinese team rushing into the World Cup, the jerseys, pants and shoes worn, the football that was peeled off, the medals and certificates won by participating in football matches, and the posters of the stars pasted on the wall. Put it in a cardboard box and bury it with your own hands.

It's like burying a meaningless life in front of me.

As for her choice to play football, her mother disagreed. Ever since he was kicked once and injured his ankle for playing football, his mother has been playing football against him. She hopes that she can study hard, go to a university, and find a good job. For this reason, she insisted that she could not give up her studies, and at her insistence, there was a student in the football school who only came to train after three or four o'clock in the afternoon and on weekends, and she usually needed to go to school to study cultural classes.

Unexpectedly, the situation of the football school gradually became worse and worse with the general environment of Chinese football, and finally it closed down due to insufficient students. The young students of other football schools either evaluated their family relationship and transferred to other football schools, or they quit the football school to work hard in the society, only Li Qingshan was admitted to high school because he had not pulled down his homework for nine years of compulsory education since he was a child.

When I first played football, some people in the neighborhood called me "the stupid big man of Lao Li's family" behind his back

Later, when I went to high school, no one could be optimistic that this stupid big man who hadn't studied well since he was a child would be able to keep up with the progress. What I didn't expect was that I was also very talented in reading.

Three years ago, he gave up football and chose to go to school, because he came to the UK to study, and because he played football in the UK since he was a child..... Li Qingshan felt that he had come full circle and returned to the original point.

For the past three years, he has been immersed in hard study, forcing himself to stop paying attention to football. Unexpectedly, when he raised his head again, the football was at his feet.

What if Dad knew he was playing football again, and he didn't know if he was happy or angry?

One thing is for sure, if Mom found out, she would be angry......

The weather in August was a little hot, and Li Qingshan lay on the bed covered with a mat and turned over again.

But it's a really good feeling to play football, I'm always chasing goals, and I feel good with my teammates, and I really like football.

Li Qingshan remembered how he used to practice shooting secretly behind his coach's back.

"Do you want to run before you even learn to walk? Do you think you're a great header now? Coach He was foaming at himself, and he was almost losing sight.

Li Qingshan now understands that the reason why Coach He only lets him practice heading is because he is a half-ass, and the football school is a hero based on the victory or defeat of the game, and in order to win a few more games, the coach used such an extreme method.

But here, Coach Marginson has developed a special improvement plan for himself. He even has his own fans, which would have been unimaginable in a former football school. At that time, when I went out to play, there was no one else on the sidelines except the coach, and the coach scolded on the sidelines when the performance was not good. Li Qingshan has even seen teams that have been collectively punished by their coaches for losing games.

Li Qingshan remembered Irma, a girl who held a sign cheering for herself in every game. The school-going girl is now the leader of a group of FC United fans. She will only look like the fans are rhythmically shouting various slogans and singing various cheering songs, just like a big general.

There is also Yang Bao and a group of Chinese students, who will also come to cheer for themselves tomorrow. This kind of treatment is the first time for me.

The moon outside the window had climbed to the top of the mountain, and the moonlight was pouring into the room, and the room with the lights off was also bright.

………………………

Irma ran upstairs and downstairs, packing up the things she was going to see tomorrow - the red FC United jersey, which was a must, and the red FC United scarf, which was in her hand when the time came, held high and cheering on the team with her teammates.

On the other side, Dad Roy is really sorting out the things for tomorrow's game, and there are only three people on the coaching staff of the entire team, in addition to head coach Maternson, there is also a physical trainer and goalkeeper coach, and the rest of the work has to be prepared by Roy, one of them wears many hats - assistant coach, video analyst, tactical analyst, training management, and even part-time team doctor, fortunately he is a dentist, and he barely gets along with the doctor. He sat down at his desk and wrote down the preparations for tomorrow's game in a booklet to prevent omissions.

The mother, who was wearing a nightdress and had her hair coiled, watched her husband and daughter busy and did not speak. In fact, she doesn't have any feelings for football, so it's always hard to understand her husband and daughter's obsession with football.

Especially her daughter, she was very opposed to her daughter going to the stadium to show her head, you must know that England's football hooligans are world-famous. In her mind, football is a masculine sport, and when she thinks of her daughter being exposed to the scorching sun every day and yelling like a madman, like those crazy fans on TV, she hoped that her daughter could become a lady, but now she hopes that a few glasses are shattered.

But she can't help it, her daughter supports everything on her own, but football doesn't listen.

Put a bottle of water in the backpack, as well as throat lozenges, watch the game and cheer on the spot, the best is to use your throat, so water and throat lozenges are the standard equipment that every die-hard fan must prepare. Also bring an umbrella in case it rains tomorrow? It is difficult to know the weather in England to predict in the weather forecast.

What else?

"Sunscreen." Mom's voice rang out.

"Got it." Irma said, pointing to her backpack.

After saying that, she stood in front of the table and glanced at the things on the table, then she patted her forehead, took out a piece of paper and pen, and leaned over to write a line.

Mom casually glanced at it and noticed that there was a line of Chinese on it, and there was a word written under the Chinese: Li

"Lee? Is this the Chinese boy you're talking about? ”

Irma folded the paper. "Yes, Mom."

Mom frowned and said, "Elma, I'm not against you dating a Chinese boy, but ......"

Irma interrupted her: "Mom, my relationship with him is not what you think, I'm just a fan of him. ”

Mom shrugged: "Okay, go to bed early, don't stay up late." ”

"Okay, Mom."

When my mother's figure disappeared at the entrance of the building. Irma also put away her gear for tomorrow's game.

She sat in her chair and looked at the things on the table in distraction.

"That's right, I'm just a fan of him......."