Chapter 140: Winning the New Season Opener
"Xia Qi!"
"Headed twice at the near post — a brace with two headers."
"Arsenal have equalized."
Villa Park.
Aston Villa fans were still tirelessly letting Xia Qi have it with boos and curses.
But none of that stopped Xia Qi, after his goal, from sliding on his knees toward the corner flag and posing for photographers.
Many of his teammates slid in on both knees behind him. Kevin De Bruyne pressed up against his back; comparing their slide marks, he leaned into Xia Qi and whispered:
"Why do we have two slide-marks and you've got three?"
"You're small and soft, and I'm genetically gifted. Give a brilliant smile, Kevin — don't let the cameras see your little— "
Xia Qi put his hands behind his chest, tilted his head slightly against De Bruyne's shoulder, reminding De Bruyne to smile, and the two of them let the photographers shoot.
De Bruyne felt like ten thousand crows had flown over his head — screw the photos,
"Boys, give him a beating!"
The Arsenal men pushed Xia Qi jokingly up against the corner flag, the shutters clicking nonstop.
After the celebration,
Aston Villa's manager grew even more determined to defend.
He withdrew both of his forwards and brought on a defender and a defensive midfielder.
For that precious point, the Aston Villa manager was gambling his career.
With Villa abandoning attack completely, it became even harder for Arsenal to score.
Being held to a draw by Aston Villa away is unacceptable for Arsenal.
This season Arsenal were going for a treble; to be slapped in the opening match of the new season was intolerable!
After several fruitless attacks, Arsenal pressed forward again.
Xia Qi felt Villa's defensive resolve just outside the box.
But he also showed the opponent what a genuine box-to-box forward is.
Seeing him stationed at the edge of the penalty area, Kevin De Bruyne played the ball to him.
Ron Vlaar immediately lunged at his right foot.
It was a foul.
Vlaar's intent was clear: either commit the foul himself or force Xia Qi to retreat — either way, he would have stopped an Arsenal attack.
What he didn't expect was that he was facing not a human but Al.
Al of course wouldn't be intimidated — not only that, he would strike back quickly!
On the pitch, Xia Qi swiftly flicked the ball up with the outside of his right foot — a folk-style flick.
The ball popped in a small arc to the left.
At the same time his left leg pushed off and he sprang into the air.
"Ding dong — host [Airborne Flyer] trait activated..."
In mid-air, Xia Qi neatly avoided the opponent's harsh chop!
But the brilliance wasn't over.
While airborne he held a noticeable hang time; his right foot reached behind and out from the left leg.
There's a football term for this move: an "inserted foot" flick.
The tip of his extended right foot met the descending ball and lifted it gently.
The ball flew over the heads of two Aston Villa defenders.
"Holy—!"
Zhan Jun couldn't help swearing!
In his view of Xia Qi's lofted pass there was a yellow figure sprinting forward.
Arsenal's little tiger Theo Walcott had cut suddenly behind Luna along the byline.
This combination not only took Villa's defenders by surprise but left commentators like Zhan Jun and Zhang Lu speechless.
Who could have imagined Xia Qi could deliver an "eastern wind courier" while jumping???
An inserted-foot flick is already a high-difficulty move on the ground,
and Xia Qi produced an aerial inserted-foot pass!
And it was a lethal "eastern wind" delivery!
Walcott, chasing the ball, glanced at the linesman and saw him standing level and not flagging — he wasn't offside.
The little tiger's spirits soared!
He couldn't let Xia Qi's missile become a dud!
Xia Qi's passing talent could not be wasted.
Who's best at box-to-box forwards? Look for Xia Qi in Arsenal…
The weight and landing point of Xia Qi's pass — calculated by Al — were perfect.
Walcott found that at his stride he didn't even need to adjust; he could "shoot on contact."
Holy—!
Xia Qi, you're awesome! (voice cracks)
Walcott slowed slightly, leaned back for balance, and met the ball with a driven shot!
The ball, a torrent of admiration from passer Xia Qi, cut through Brad Guzan's outstretched fingers like a meteor and thudded into the net.
"Goal!"
"In the 72nd minute, Xia Qi with an airborne inserted-foot pass; Walcott timed his run to beat the offside trap and lashed a drilled finish — Arsenal take the lead and complete a remarkable comeback from 1–2 to 3–2."
"Walcott's finish was brilliant, but Xia Qi's pass was even more spectacular. Just when everyone thought he'd been dodging the interception, he sent a mid-air inserted-foot flick through the defenders to kick off the transition from defense to attack."
"Many people ask what a B2B forward is. Xia Qi is it! A B2B forward isn't only someone who can attack and defend; he can pass, organize, link play, defend—and of course score."
"Clearly, Xia Qi is an absolute B2B forward."
Zhan Jun gave all the praise he could think of to Xia Qi, hoping viewers could forgive his earlier cuss.
But the internet has a memory; fans combined Zhan Jun's last outburst when commentating Xia Qi with this one.
"Same Xia Qi, same Zhan commentator — familiar flavor is back."
"Ever since I started commentating Xia Qi's matches my emotions have stayed stable; my manners have been right at the 'f—' level..."
"Xia Qi's flick and pass were not only technically superb but timed to perfection. I've rewound it at least ten times."
"..."
Villa Park.
After the goal, Walcott strode to the home supporters and made a "shush" gesture toward the Aston Villa fans in the stands.
He had heard them cursing Xia Qi, and in their disappointment the words from Villa fans were never polite.
Those obscenities were unfit for ears…
Xia Qi and the others ran to the brave Walcott and endured the storm of jeers together.
…
When play restarted,
the Arsenal side who had overturned the score were full of energy and did not let Villa off the hook.
Especially Kevin De Bruyne and Santi Cazorla — both wanted to show Arsène Wenger from the touchline that they could coexist.
If they could coexist, both would be starters; if not, one would inevitably be demoted to the bench.
Xia Qi and the rest were playing for one match, but De Bruyne and Cazorla were fighting for many matches ahead...
They had to give their all!
Led by those two, Villa hopelessly realized that having removed their attackers left them unable to resist.
De Bruyne grew more comfortable and began to step up the tempo.
Wenger and Pat Rice's faces grew serious; Wenger pulled out his notebook and began to sketch and write...
In the 78th minute, after Cazorla and Mikel Arteta exchanged runs, they pulled De Bruyne into space. Without taking a touch, De Bruyne threaded a through ball straight to the frontline for Mario Balotelli.
Balotelli controlled amid a crowded area but couldn't find a shooting angle; he checked to the wing and delivered a cross.
Xia Qi, arriving from midfield, leapt above the pack but was shoved by Luna — the ball flew into the stands.
Such an obvious foul — the referee did not call it. That opened Pandora's box...
Aston Villa's players realized the referee was "one of theirs" and, lacking technical quality, resorted to fouling.
The play grew increasingly rough.
In the 82nd minute Xia Qi was wrestled down by Vlaar; in the 85th minute De Bruyne was fouled hard by Westwood.
"Kevin De Bruyne is injured."
"Westwood's tackle was really crude."
After permission from the referee, Arsenal's medical staff rushed on for an assessment.
Soon the verdict came, and the club doctor signaled Wenger to make a substitution.
Wenger's disappointment was plain.
De Bruyne was the core of his new tactical plan; if something happened to him, Arsenal would have to redesign their approach.
In the 85th minute, former prince Jack Wilshere began warming up for a potential appearance.
At that time Arsenal had ten men on the pitch. Villa's manager stood on the sideline; his eyes rolled and, after a few beats, he finally urged his players to press forward.
At that moment Villa had no striker on the field; the charge would have to come from their attacking midfielders.
A strikerless formation!
A more balanced attacking-defensive setup — but Villa were forced into it because they had no margin for error.
Losing by one or losing by two was the same; with Arsenal down a man, why not gamble and try to turn a train into a motorcycle?
…
Vlaar shot forward at pace and met little resistance, quickly reaching Arsenal's penalty edge.
It wasn't that his dribbling was special but that Cazorla had lured Villa's players out.
Vlaar saw Westwood surge into Arsenal's box.
He cut the ball back.
Arsenal had set up a defensive web waiting for such a moment — Gustavo leaned on Westwood to stop his jump, and Arteta rose high to head the ball out of the area.
Cazorla chested the clearance down and hammered his right foot into the ball.
Instantly,
the ball arced like a rainbow toward Villa's left.
There, Xia Qi streaked forward.
"Villa's attack was too simple and was cut out; Arsenal hit them on the break."
"Xia Qi has the ball — see how he handles it."
Balotelli made a beeline into the box, while Walcott ran on the right flank.
On the touchline Wenger was composed; he had already seen this phase a mile away.
Villa's manager was panicking and shouting: "Defend!"
On the pitch,
Clark saw Xia Qi charging at him and called Luna over to double up.
But Xia Qi didn't get tangled with them. Just before contact, he clipped the ball to Balotelli at the near post.
Balotelli was delighted!
Clark had followed Xia Qi, leaving Balotelli free; the cover defender Bacuna was still on the run.
There was a timing difference — Xia Qi's pass was perfect!
Balotelli met the ball in the air but his jump was a little too high and he couldn't chest it down.
Fans were puzzled: how would he bring the ball under control?
Some even cruelly thought: how about a deflection?
Then,
Balotelli opened his legs in the air like a scissors move; the ball dropped between his thighs.
"Whoa! Did he miss it?"
Even the commentators were baffled, and Bacuna, coming in to cover Balotelli, had no reaction and watched the ball roll to the right-front.
"What an exquisite allowance — the ball rolls to Walcott."
At this point Zhang Lu would have to buy a block of tofu and bash his head in if he couldn't see Balotelli's intention!
Gasps rose around Villa Park. Aston Villa supporters felt a pang of sourness.
Look at your own attacking combinations, and then look at theirs — it's like comparing a cheap hatchback to an Audi.
On the right of Villa's box, Walcott once again glanced at the linesman and saw he was not flagged offside.
Composed, he slotted the ball into the near corner.
Guzan threw everything at it but couldn't stop the ball from nestling in the net.
"2–4!"
"In the 87th minute Arsenal lead by two — they have completed the turnaround and avoided an upset."
"Both sides played well in halves. Arsenal's 3-6-1 formation was compressed under high pressure; the players re-positioned and combined skillfully to return to their championship form..."
"This kind of team spirit will take Arsenal further..."
Walcott, who'd scored the brace, ran toward Balotelli — Balotelli sprinted across the pitch with him on his back.
Xia Qi turned to the touchline to look at the impatient Wilshere warming up…
When Wilshere came on, Villa reverted to full defensive shell.
Two goals down, they only wanted to avoid a rout.
Arsenal's collective energy and scoring hunger diminished slightly; Wilshere couldn't add to the score.
When the referee's whistle blew the final time,
the scoreboard still read 2–4!
Arsenal, down by two goals, had woken up and scored four unanswered to open the new league season with a win.
In this match Xia Qi, with a brace and an assist, earned the team's highest rating of 9.0 and was named man of the match.
Walcott's 8.7 was the team's second-best rating...
After the match, the English media focused on Arsenal's comeback.
The London Daily: "It's well known that the Professor's teams historically struggle in adverse situations. It's pleasing to see change in this squad — really, signs of it were visible last season..."
442 magazine: "Arsenal's victory came from temperament and confidence..."
Xia Qi's two goals and one assist drew widespread praise; the media labeled him Arsenal's perpetual motion machine of progress...
The opening-day win brought no joy to Colney training ground: Kevin De Bruyne was confirmed out for a month.
That was good news for Wilshere, but not for Arsenal — and what made it worse was that Wilshere was also somewhat injury-prone, even more fragile than De Bruyne.
If Wilshere also got injured...
Wenger's mood turned sour as hell!
(END CHAPTER)
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