Green Dragon

Chapter 3 The Merseyside derby
3 month 11 day.

This weekend is the day of the FA Cup quarter-finals. Everton was eliminated by Manchester United 0-2 in the last round, so the team did not have an official game.

As a part-time ball boy, Long Shute could have had a rare rest time, but he was called over by the coach of the first team to provide services for a friendly match with several other ball boys.

Obviously it was just an insignificant friendly match, but whether it was the head coach Moyes on the sidelines or the main players of the first team on the field, everyone seemed very positive. The forwards spared no effort to run in the penalty area, and the defenders He showed the soles of his shoes to the opponent with a grim face, and the referee whistled one after another.

Long Shute was baffled. He couldn't help asking another little caddy next to him: "Ross, do we have any grudges against each other? Why are we playing so fiercely?"

The little boy named Ross Barkley is three and a half years younger than him and is the captain of the Everton U13 echelon. After hearing this question, the young captain rolled his eyes disapprovingly, as if he was looking at a Idiot: "Come on, we're going to play Liverpool in the next league round!"

"Liverpool?" Long Shute seemed to have heard the name somewhere, "So what?"

"This is the Merseyside Derby!" Barkley couldn't stand his ignorance and stupidity, and ran to pick up the ball with his legs wide open.

Long Shute silently looked at the players on the field with excessive hormone secretion, still bewildered.

Merseyside... derby?
What is that? !
-
A week later, he deeply realized what a derby is.

It doesn't even need to be him on the match day, a week in advance, the whole city of Liverpool is filled with a strong atmosphere.

The confrontation between red and blue has become the main color of the city. The red Liverpool team flag and the blue Everton team flag protrude from the windows of every family to mark the family's color affiliation.

Everton was established 14 years earlier than Liverpool, but the latter's worldwide popularity and influence surpassed that of the former. The century-long history and grievances have long since sparked fierce confrontation between the two groups. The derby is on the verge of breaking out.

During this week, there seemed to be countless more patrolling policemen in the streets and alleys of Liverpool. They hovered around the entrances of those pubs as if they were facing a big enemy, to prevent drunken fans from fighting with each other. Raise a torch and set the opponent or yourself on fire...

When the game day came, the atmosphere of tension and excitement also reached its highest point.

Countless people flocked to Liverpool's Anfield Stadium singing and dancing. The red and blue crowds met unexpectedly on the street. They waved the red and blue flags rationally and calmly at first. When they found that such civilized behavior was not smooth enough , These people unanimously stretched out their middle fingers, humiliating each other's eighteen generations of ancestors with foul language that would make men silent and women cry...

In order to support the home team and cultivate the young players' sense of belonging to the team, the Everton club organized all echelons to go to Anfield to watch the game, even a few Chinese players were no exception.

When they had just walked through the narrow passage and entered the interior of the Anfield stadium, a powerful and fiery noise and pressure rushed to their faces, and the young players with poor psychological quality even felt unable to breathe.

Long Shute, who was sitting in the stands, couldn't help opening his mouth, his ears seemed to be ringing slightly all the time, and this feeling was like flying in the clouds.

When the red and blue players slowly walked out of the tunnel, this feeling reached its peak!
The loudspeakers above the Anfield stadium cheered their players on at their maximum decibels, and incited a wave of red to sweep through the stands.

As the players walked out one by one, the names of those Megatron Europe resounded throughout the stadium.

Dudek, Riise, Carragher, Finnan, Pellegrino, Smicer, Hamann, Baros, Garcia, Morientes...

Of course, there is only the captain of the Red Army, 25-year-old Steven Gerrard.

When Gerald was the last to walk out of the aisle, Long Shute's tinnitus reached the most severe level. He felt the seat under his buttocks shaking violently, and the ceiling above his head seemed to be shaken off by the sound at any moment.

He wasn't one of those ignorant kids, but his legs were still shaking uncontrollably.

He couldn't help but take a big gulp of air to relieve the discomfort in his heart. The faces of the young players who trained with him were also pale, and their cheering sounds were drowned out by the huge red sound waves, as if they were withered. The fallen leaves fell in the huge waves.

"When you walk through the storm,
hold your head high,

Don't be afraid of the dark,
At the end of that storm,
is a golden sky,

And the sweet song of the lark.

Through the wind, through the rain,
Maybe your dreams will be shattered,
go ahead!

Go forward with the hope in your heart!

But you'll never walk alone,
you'll never Walk Alone……"

The deep but penetrating singing resounded throughout the stadium, and those Everton players in blue jerseys were like lambs to be slaughtered in front of the red army on the opposite side.

Obviously Everton is ranked fourth in the league, but Liverpool is only sixth...

Obviously Everton players get more rest time...

Obviously Liverpool also participated in the previous Champions League games, and their physical condition does not have any advantage...

Obviously, Liverpool's head coach Benitez has not been in charge of the team for less than a year, and his tactics have not yet fully integrated into the team, and the relationship between the large number of Spanish players he introduced and the local English players is not very harmonious. ...

Obviously that Red Army captain, Gerrard, looks so hard, Ming Ming is young, but his face looks bad...

Obviously Everton's players look younger and more dynamic...

Obviously...Liverpool striker Baros was sent off with less than 70 minutes to go...

Obviously Liverpool played one less player...

But when the whistle blew over Anfield 90 minutes later, Everton, who looked like they should have won, left the stadium of their arch-rivals in dismay.

Long Shute followed the team down the stands. Before leaving, he turned around and looked at the jumping red crowd in the stadium.

Liverpool are celebrating like crazy!
After nearly three hours of the game, the Liverpool fans were still able to roar so that everyone turned pale!
The ceiling of Anfield seemed to be rustling, and the white clouds in the sky seemed to be dispersed by the sound waves!
Send one off?
Intensive schedule?

Two fronts?

Out of stamina?

Tactical run-in?

No hope of winning the league?

Want to focus on the Champions League?

Captain too young?
Sorry, none of these are questions!
It's the Merseyside derby!

This is Anfield!
This is their place!
This Red Army never surrenders!

This is Derby!

This is football!

(End of this chapter)