Following the Main Referee's call, players from both sides, holding the hands of the mascots, stepped onto the Emirates Stadium.
As soon as they exited the player tunnel, the surge of shouts hitting them made Fly's ears suddenly go blank.
Feeling a scene that had happened many times this season, Fly felt slightly that this time the scene was a little different.
'Maybe it's psychological... After all, the opponent is Barcelona!'
Looking at the stands, which were much livelier than usual, Fly knew very well the reason why the fans were exceptionally excited.
It was simply because this match was too important...
Although it wasn't the Champions League, it felt more important than the Champions League!
Because their opponent in this match was the universally recognized strongest team in today's football world - Dream Three Barça.
In addition, Arsenal had repeatedly failed against Barcelona in the Champions League in recent seasons, which also made Arsenal fans hold in a breath, wanting to vent.
And the prerequisite for venting was for Arsenal to defeat Barcelona head-on on the field!
To achieve this goal, they had to rely on the players on the field.
Taking a deep breath, Fly felt the surrounding noise, yet his heart was unusually calm, as if he had been completely isolated from the outside world...
Looking at the light screen that only he could see in front of him, Fly browsed through his personal attributes, as a way to psych himself up before the match.
[Physical Stats: Speed 99, Acceleration 99, Burst 99, Strength 78, Jumping 95, Hang Time 76, Stamina 85, Balance 80, Agility 78, Injury Resistance 99]
[Technical Stats: Shooting 91, Dribbling 90, Ball Control 89, Short Passing 86, Long Passing 58, Crossing 70, Long Shots 80, Heading 63, Shot Power 80, Set Pieces 70]
[Other Stats: Mentality 80, Football IQ 75, Poaching 78, Vision 67, Anticipation 70, Creativity 72, Aggression 75, Off-Ball Movement 70, Tackling 42, Interceptions 28, Sliding Tackle 20, Goalkeeping 10]
[Overall Rating: 88]
...
Fly glanced at his attributes, which had improved somewhat, and then quietly let out a sigh of relief.
He had become stronger again. Now, compared to the match against AC Milan before, he had improved slightly.
Undeniably, this improvement wasn't significant, but sometimes just that little bit of improvement might change the final outcome.
Fly thought his luck was pretty good... Maybe he would just happen to hit it?
Then Fly glanced at the system mission that appeared before his eyes—
[Mission Name: First Time Facing Messi in Career]
[Mission Content: 1. Help the team defeat Barcelona]
[2. Score a goal or provide an assist personally]
[3. Post-match rating exceeds Messi]
[Mission Reward: Each mission completed grants 100 Intermediate Soft Rice Points. If all three missions are completed, an additional reward of 100 Advanced Soft Rice Points is given]
....
How to put it, this mission wasn't particularly great, after all, there were no side missions.
Originally, Fly thought the system would give a side mission for the match against Barcelona, after all, the opponent was Barcelona, and among their players was Messi!
But unfortunately... the system was still so cold and ruthless.
It wouldn't care who the opponent was in this match or which team it was.
It only cared whether this match had reached the predetermined node.
For example, the last time facing AC Milan, because it was Fly's Champions League knockout stage debut in his career.
So the system generously gave a side mission, and Fly also obtained a very awesome skill and a decent item from it.
But this time, although the opponent was Barcelona, although the opponent's lineup included the King of Football from his previous life, Messi.
But the fact remained that this match itself was only a quarter-final.
At best, the team that won this knockout round would only make it to the Champions League semi-finals, and whether they could even reach the final was a question...
Let alone the Champions League champion?
Precisely because the Arsenal VS Barcelona node wasn't that symbolic, the system didn't issue any side missions.
Fly even guessed that if the opponent in this match hadn't been Barcelona with Messi, the system might not have even issued the most basic mission.
In other words, Fly's current situation could still be considered getting a bargain...
Thinking this, even if Fly was unhappy, he couldn't really say anything.
Who could blame Arsenal and Barcelona for meeting in the quarter-finals? If they had met in the final, Fly couldn't even imagine how generous the rewards the system would issue then would be.
If there was anyone to blame, it could only be the damned UEFA...
They just had to trip up Arsenal. If they didn't make Arsenal feel sick, they felt as uncomfortable as if their parents had died.
'Sigh... It's tough, the Gunners' fate is really bitter...'
After the Champions League anthem finished playing before the match, the captains of both teams, Fabregas and Xavi, came to the center circle respectively for the pre-match coin toss.
Ultimately, Fabregas guessed the coin toss correctly and chose the kick-off.
Arsenal and Barcelona players then walked to their respective halves, preparing for the Main Referee to blow the whistle for the start of the match.
...
'hanger TV Station, hanger TV Station, hello everyone in front of the television! Welcome to the first leg of the 2010-2011 Champions League quarter-finals. The teams competing in this match are the home team, the Gunners Arsenal, and the super giant from Spain, Barcelona!'
'I'm your old friend Peter.'
'Hello everyone, I'm han!'
'Alright, before the match is about to start, let's announce the starting lineups for both teams in this match.'
'The home team, Arsenal, has fielded their familiar 442 formation for this match.'
'Goalkeeper: Szczęsny.'
'Defenders: Sagna, Varane, Koscielny, Clichy.'
'Midfielders: Alexandre Song, Wilshere, Nasri, Fabregas.'
'Forwards: Fly, Van Persie.'
'It seems the Professor has still fielded his most familiar and also the strongest formation on paper in this highly anticipated match.'
'On the other hand, the visiting team, Barcelona, Guardiola has also fielded their familiar 433 formation for this match.'
'Goalkeeper: Valdés.'
'Defenders: Alves, Piqué, Abidal, Maxwell.'
'Midfielders: Busquets, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta.'
'Forwards: Pedro, Villa, Messi.'
'Alright, the Main Referee has blown the whistle for the start of the match, let's get into the game...'
...
When the Main Referee blew the opening whistle, Van Persie kicked off the ball, and then quickly pushed forward into Barcelona's backfield with Fly.
Fabregas did not choose an aggressive opening tactic, but instead passed the ball to Wilshere, preparing to first control the ball before planning anything else...
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