Chapter 36 The much-talked-about showdown

The third round of the FA Cup is not until 7 January 2013, so it's still early to go. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info but FC United drew Liverpool in the draw, and the media found out that they were the lowest-ranked team in the third round of the FA Cup.

Especially as the opponent of the third round of the Manchester FA Cup of FC United, Liverpool is a big team that has attracted the attention of the whole England. Moreover, such a set of matchups with disparities in strength also has a special significance that distinguishes it from other competitions.

A split "Manchester United" and Liverpool matchup?

"Lianman? You might think the name of this team is funny, and you may also think of another team - "Manchester United". Looking at the English names of these two teams, the English name of Manchester United is UnitedofManchester United, while Manchester United is upside down - Manchester United. However, you must not think that Manchester United is a "copycat Manchester United", because this team really has a lot of roots with Manchester United. "Taking advantage of the fact that FC United has once again entered the attention of the media (the first time was of course the day the club was founded), some media once again gave the audience the history of FC United.

In fact, it was widely reported from the very beginning of the club's inception that angry fans broke with the club and established another 'Manchester United', and it seems that United's relationship with Manchester United is somewhat similar to that of AC Milan and Inter Milan. As we all know, it was precisely because the Italian and Swiss players in the AC Milan club were extremely dissatisfied with the team's excessive anglicization and some snobbish behavior, and left the team in anger and formed the Inter Milan club on their own, which led to the current Milan duo. For Manchester United, some people even jokingly refer to this "protest team" as "International Manchester United". Unexpectedly, a few years later, the team was promoted to the seventh tier and reached the third round of the FA Cup. ”

The media praised FC United's progress to the third round, but they also felt that the team's journey in the FA Cup had come to a halt.

"I don't think anyone would think that FC United could knock out Liverpool and that the difference in quality between the teams in the first tier and the teams in the seventh tier is unreasonable. But what does it matter? They have made their own history, and maybe one day, there will be a "Manchester United derby" in Manchester, just like the Milan derby........."

Finally, some media outlets concluded.

Of course, there are also media outlets who have taken the news to interview Liverpool's new manager this season, Brendan Brown. Rogers. Brendan Rodgers replied as usual: "We're not playing against Manchester United, it's an amateur team in the seventh tier, and of course I'm not disrespecting my opponent in any way, I'm just emphasising that this game is just a normal FA Cup game. ”

The modest answer was, of course, a disappointment to reporters who were bent on making a big news.

However, the reporters soon found a new target, that is, Manchester United's godfather Ferguson, as early as the beginning of the establishment of FC United, Ferguson called Ferguson "a group of people who do everything possible to show their heads", when a reporter asked Ferguson to talk about United, the Manchester United manager was furious: "Not interested! Then he walked away. Ferguson has long regarded the group as "rebels."

This time, when Sir Alex Ferguson was asked by reporters about FC United's draw from Liverpool, he replied: "They say they are 'Manchester United'? Perhaps the happiest are Liverpool, because they can finally beat "Manchester United". ”

The animosity between Manchester United and Liverpool has caused both sides to keep their taunts at each other.

Of course, there are also media outlets that come to interview FC United. Li Qingshan, who came to train after class, found that the Gig Lane Stadium was different from usual, because there were many media cars parked in the parking lot. It's rare to have so many cars in the parking lot except on race days.

"It looks like we've got Liverpool and it's big news." Li Qingshan said to David Butch, who met outside the court.

'Of course, in England, teams like Liverpool are the ones that attract the most media attention, and we made it to the third round. David Butch smiled and looked confident.

When they walked into the stadium, they saw the media gathered around the sidelines to shoot and interview. Although they do occasionally have some media interviews, they have not enjoyed such multimedia attention at the same time. There were more than 20 reporters gathered on the sidelines.

"It's a big sideline!" David Butch whistled excitedly and ran to his teammates, intending to get an interview as well.

Before her, many teammates had been pulled by reporters for one-on-one interviews.

Of course, Coach Marginson was surrounded by the most reporters.

"May I ask Mr. Marginson, what are your plans for this game by leading a team from the seventh tier to the third round of the FA Cup against Liverpool?"

'I don't think anybody thinks we have what it takes to knock Liverpool out of it, but Liverpool are our bitter enemies and we're going to give it our all in this game.'

"Speaking of which, Sir Alex Ferguson thinks you are traitors to Manchester United."

'My team is not a rebel, a lot of us have loved Manchester United and are United fans. But I'm not a money worshipper, and sometimes, if you fall in love with something, you can't see the bad side of it. Football is more than just 90 minutes of play, football is a responsibility to the fans and the soul of Old Trafford is being drained. ”

Mr. Marginson spoke eloquently to reporters, and he seemed to have a lot of experience dealing with reporters.

In addition to the reporters surrounding the manager, others went to cover FC United's players. It seems that journalists never ask any new questions, and their questions are as if carved out of a mold - what do you think of FC United's third-round match against Liverpool?

'We are very excited to qualify for the third round of the FA Cup in a historic way. Now I'm really looking forward to this game........" Lee Neville's answer was decent.

"I'm not surprised by the results, we're a cohesive team and my team-mates are very good. I think we're going to have a big hard time against Liverpool but we're not going to give up. Dean Stott, the team's captain, said.

"I was hoping to draw Chelsea, but it was good to draw Liverpool, but unfortunately I didn't get away. I wish I had the opportunity to play at Anfield. "David Butch finally got an interview.

Reporters were busy interviewing FC United before training began, but there was one guy who stood on the sidelines and didn't get involved, and he stood on the sidelines and watched from the sidelines.

He didn't have much interest in listening to the players brag. In his opinion, this is a game that is already a foregone conclusion, and the only suspense is how many goals FC United lose. What's the point of asking questions like FC United?

In his opinion, he only needs to come to this stadium to deal with the interview work, anyway, other reporters have already interviewed, and when the time comes, polish the content of other reporters' interviews, and a press release will come out like this, anyway, everyone's news reports are similar.

It's been more than 140 years since the FA Cup, which year has there been no dark horse? The English have long been accustomed to it.

He pursed his lips and stood bored on the sidelines looking around. It was at this moment that a distinctly East Asian face appeared in front of his eyes.

"An Asian?"

As a journalist, he instinctively felt that there was newsworthiness to be tapped.

He straightened his clothes and walked over to the Asian interviewee he had his eye on.

Li Qingshan didn't expect that just sitting aside and resting could also attract reporters. He didn't have the cheekiness of David Butch to lean in front of a reporter and dangle until the reporter noticed him.

As he sat on the edge of the pitch watching his teammates being interviewed by reporters, a reporter walked up to him and sat cross-legged in front of him.

"Hello." The reporter greeted him in English.

"Hello." Li Qingshan also responded in English.

"My name is Smith Defoe and I'm a sports reporter for the Manchester Evening News, can I know your name?"

"Okay, my name is Li Qingshan, you can call me Li."

"You don't look British?"

"Yes, I'm just an international student from China studying at the University of Manchester."

"So how did you play on this team?"

Defoe seemed to be chatting with the Chinese boy rather than interviewing, which was his preferred way of working.

"That's a long story. Anyway, I love to play, so that's why I came. Li Qingshan said simply. Across the street was a stranger, still a journalist.

But after chatting casually for a while, Defoe had already figured out the basic situation. Although Li Qingshan is cautious, there is still a lot of information leaked out between words, and compared with experienced reporters, he is too tender.

"What do you think of FC United?"

"It's great, I love it, it's free, my teammates and coaches are so nice. I feel very happy to play here," Li Qingshan smiled.

Defoe nodded. Years of interviewing allowed him to discern the sincerity of the smile on the face of the tall boy in front of him. Looks like he's really happy here.

"You said you were a student. So after graduation, will you leave the team? ”

When Li Qingshan heard this question, he felt a little in a trance, although he had only been in the team for a few months, he felt as if a long time had passed. The feeling of playing here has allowed him to rediscover the joy of football.

Coach Marginson said he could play professional football, and he didn't believe it at the time. However, Nick played in the second division after half a season with the team, which made him feel that the professional league didn't seem very far away from him.

However, not in the UK, where the labor certification makes it impossible for him to play professional football here. However, playing Liverpool seems to have a live TV broadcast, and if he is famous on TV, maybe other teams will pay attention to him.....

"Ugh. I'm sorry. I was distracted. Li Qingshan came back to his senses and found that the other party was still waiting for his answer. Quickly apologized. "To be honest, I haven't figured it out yet." Li Qingshan didn't tell a stranger what he was thinking.

Just as Defoe was about to continue asking, he and Li Qingshan both heard Marginson's whistle.

"Looks like you're about to start training, sorry to bother you for so long." Defoe got up from the ground and patted the grass clippings and dirt on his butt.

Li Qingshan also stood up. "Is this an interview?" He asked.

Defoe was amused by his question, and although the boy had always maintained a kind of old-fashioned steadiness during the conversation, he was still a student after all.

"Well, really, I prefer to call it 'chat.'" Defoe laughed.

"So do I have a chance to see those things we said in the newspapers?" Li Qingshan asked again. He doesn't refuse to be famous, and if he can be famous, it's not a bad thing for him.

Defoe hesitated for a moment before he smiled and said, "I don't know, I'm not the one who decides what manuscript to put on and what not to do." ”

After Li Qingshan heard him say this, he let out an "oh" in some disappointment, and he didn't forget to say goodbye to this reporter: "Goodbye, Mr. Defoe, I have to go to training." ”

"Go ahead, nice to meet you."

"I'm glad to meet you, too, Mr. Defoe."