After rejecting Florentino, Gao Shen poured all his attention into Manchester City.
To be honest, there wasn't much to say. It was the seventh round of the Premier League, and Manchester City were playing away to Blackburn.
Given Manchester City's current tactical system and overall strength, it was genuinely difficult for other teams to even stand a chance.
For example, Blackburn manager Steve Kean had set up a defensive strategy, hoping to drag Manchester City into a war of attrition.
How determined?
Simmer slowly. Simmer steadily. Simmer patiently.
The first half ended in a 0-0 draw, which made it look like a tough match. But what was the reality?
The match was under Manchester City's complete control from the start. Blackburn's defense was weak, relying solely on numbers to make up the difference.
But no matter how hard they tried, by the second half their energy began to drain, and the result was inevitable.
After all, the difference in overall strength was too great.
In the 61st minute, Robben opened the scoring.
Three minutes later, in the 64th, Van Persie found the net again, this time assisted by Hazard.
Then in the 73rd minute, Hazard received a superb through ball from De Bruyne and scored Manchester City's third goal.
This was a result of De Bruyne's string of excellent passes. The Belgian midfielder's performance was outstanding.
In the final stages, substitute Gary Cahill capitalized on a corner kick and scored.
In the end, Manchester City defeated Blackburn 4-0 away from home.
All four goals came after the 60-minute mark.
That's Manchester City's strategy.
Or more accurately, that's the way of a true king!
In this seventh round of the Premier League, most of the teams that were expected to win got the job done.
Liverpool defeated city rivals Everton 2-0 away. Manchester United beat Norwich 2-0 at home.
But Mark Hughes, who had big ambitions and little luck, suffered a humiliating 6-0 loss to Fulham in the West London derby.
That was truly unexpected.
And poor Wenger lost 2-1 to Tottenham in the North London derby.
Even Chelsea, in the middle of internal chaos, beat Bolton 3-1 away.
But the real story wasn't the win. It was Lampard.
Yes, Lampard, who had reportedly fallen out with Villas-Boas last round, played the full 90 minutes and scored a hat trick.
Everyone was delighted.
Chelsea-friendly media rushed to applaud the performance. Many pundits now claimed, in hindsight, that their predictions had been right all along—once the veterans were back, Chelsea would bounce back.
When Carlo, Brian Kidd, and the others teased Gao Shen with the news of Chelsea's win over Bolton, Gao Shen not only stood by his previous view, he became even more convinced that Villas-Boas was done.
"Boas is more my type tactically than Mourinho, but when it comes to managing the locker room, especially dealing with players, he's still green. He's not even close to Mourinho's level."
Gao Shen sighed. He was truly disappointed.
Is winning a game always a good thing?
Not necessarily.
Especially for Chelsea at this moment. The better Lampard, Terry, Drogba, and the others performed, the more awkward Villas-Boas's position became. The less authority he held in the dressing room.
What the media and fans saw was Lampard's hat trick and Chelsea's three points. What the head coach saw was three hard slaps to the face.
Lampard had openly clashed with his coach last round, but now he played the full game and scored three.
What does that say? That Drogba, Terry, Malouda, and the rest can do the same?
Boas had previously declared that the veterans had no place in his plans. Now, he was relying on those same veterans to survive and win. How was he going to explain that?
If he had no conflict with the veterans, no one would care whether he stuck to his previous stance.
But now, the tension was already public.
And clearly, Chelsea couldn't win without the veterans. So what could Boas do?
On the other hand, Mourinho had been ruthless with Casillas.
The Portuguese manager's stance was crystal clear: unless Casillas apologized and backed down, he would not lift the suspension.
So what if the team's results suffered?
If Mourinho could still improve Real Madrid's form without Casillas, then he'd have proven his point.
If he failed, then fine, he'd be sacked.
But what about Boas?
If he didn't improve results, he'd be sacked. Even if he did, he'd still be sacked.
Why?
Because he had lost his authority. No one in the dressing room respected him anymore.
Gao Shen still remembered when he first started coaching, from Sacchi to Valdano, from Ancelotti to Capello, everyone told him: you must be the boss in the dressing room.
But now, it was obvious that Boas was no boss. He was being stepped on and walked over repeatedly.
How could a team like that not have problems?
"Let's bet a meal. Villas-Boas will be fired by the end of the winter break at the latest. And at the earliest? Before Christmas."
Gao Shen made the challenge with full confidence.
Based on the current situation, Boas was definitely going to be dismissed even earlier than in his previous life.
Carlo and Brian Kidd looked at each other, then turned around and left without saying anything.
"Tsk! You just want a free meal and now you're pulling this 'confident bet' routine?"
"Right? I've never seen a boss so stingy."
The two old men walked off, chatting and complaining, leaving Gao Shen standing there speechless.
Damn, do I look that obvious?
After the seventh round of the Premier League, there was a two-week international break.
But this time, Gao Shen requested extended leave from Manchester City.
The reason was simple—he had returned to China to get married in September, but never had a proper honeymoon.
As a man, Gao Shen admitted he wasn't big on ceremony, and his wife wasn't the type to insist on it either. The two had gotten married without even taking wedding photos.
You know, a luxury bridal brand had even wanted to sponsor their wedding, but it all fell through.
Still, now that he was married, he couldn't treat his wife too casually. So Gao Shen applied for another long vacation, leaving all club affairs to Carlo and Brian Kidd.
The two old guys also blackmailed him into treating them to a meal.
No bet needed. They won anyway.
Once everything was arranged, the players returned to their national teams, and Gao Shen took Su Qing on their honeymoon to Northern Europe.
Su Qing was full of excitement for the trip and had done her research in advance.
Their first stop was Iceland.
Not only for the Northern Lights, but also the unique glaciers, waterfalls, and stunning natural landscapes.
Gao Shen loved sci-fi and fantasy films in his previous life. Movies like Interstellar, Prometheus, and series like Game of Thrones had all been filmed in Iceland. He had long dreamed of visiting, but never had the chance.
They also visited the Blue Lagoon for a relaxing soak.
After several days in Iceland, they flew to Norway, landing in the southwestern city of Stavanger.
Gao Shen and Su Qing soon realized their ten-day travel plan was far too optimistic.
At their pace, slowly exploring and enjoying everything, how could ten days possibly be enough?
For example, after arriving in Stavanger, they rested briefly and then spent an entire day exploring the old town.
Next, they headed to Lysefjord and climbed Pulpit Rock to take in the breathtaking view.
Mission Impossible 6 had been filmed there. Tom Cruise even dangled off the cliff barehanded.
Funnily enough, Tom Cruise had also climbed the Burj Khalifa in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. Gao Shen had visited the tower himself—just looking at it made his legs shake, let alone climbing it.
Of course, it was all movie magic.
After several days in the Stavanger area, Gao Shen suddenly remembered someone. He became excited and rented a car to drive south along the E39 to the coastal city of Sandnes.
From Sandnes, he turned west onto Route 444 and continued southwest for a while.
The Norwegian countryside along the way was truly charming.
But Su Qing was curious and kept asking why they were making this sudden detour.
"That's a secret I can't tell you yet," Gao Shen replied with a mysterious smile.
The driver said the destination was a place called Bryne, a small town with a population of just over 13,000.
Gao Shen used his phone map to locate a large football field in town.
It stood out because the other fields in town were either too small or isolated. Here, two fields sat side by side, making them easily identifiable on the map.
There was a football club here called Bryne FK.
When they arrived, they discovered it wasn't just two football fields.
There were also indoor pitches, small football courts, a bowling alley, and a gym. This was Bryne's sports center, though it looked a bit dated.
Gao Shen had deliberately chosen a weekend afternoon to visit. As expected, both main pitches were bustling.
One field was for adults, the other for youth teams. Nearby, there were smaller pitches for kids.
Some of them were only four or five years old, running around and kicking oversized footballs. Their clumsy moves drew laughter and applause from onlookers.
You had to admit, the football culture in this part of Europe was deeply rooted.
Gao Shen looked around and estimated there were at least a thousand people here—not counting the other venues like the rugby field and bowling alley.
Then again, they didn't need to work overtime.
With money, time, and no academic pressure, families could easily bring their kids here every weekend.
Gao Shen checked around the smaller fields but didn't find what he was looking for.
"That's strange. He should be here," he muttered, puzzled.
Then he walked over to the youth team pitch and immediately spotted him.
There was no mistaking it. This boy stood out instantly.
"Do you see that blond boy?" Gao Shen pointed to a tall, lean figure on the pitch and said to Su Qing.
"What about him?"
"That kid will become the best center forward in the world!"
(To be continued.)