Chapter 56: Tang Ye's Quick Free Kick!

[At 37 years old, you lead your team against the formidable opponents PSV Eindhoven. Your brace in the 78th minute narrows the deficit to just a single goal!]

[Reward: Comeback Point * 10]

[Extra Reward: Comeback Point * 10]

3:2!

Tang Ye's goal rekindled the tension in a match that had seemingly lost all suspense.

Cocu never expected Utrecht to be this tenacious.

Not just Cocu, even Ten Hag himself hadn't foreseen it.

Tang Ye could still score!

After executing a step-over to toy with the opposing defender, the veteran still looked remarkably sharp when he actually put his mind to playing seriously!

"Let's go! Keep pushing!"

Ramelaar continuously applauded.

Right after a goal was precisely when Utrecht's morale was at its peak, and the ideal moment to press the attack!

"PSV!"

Boom, boom!

"PSV!"

Boom, boom!

The fans in the home stands began to apply pressure, and Ten Hag now deeply regretted that this wasn't a home fixture.

Because had it been played at Utrecht's home ground, the momentum of the goal combined with the roaring chants of the supporters might have genuinely given them a chance to equalize!

What a pity!

As the match ticked into the 84th minute, Utrecht were in possession in their own half, and all three of Eindhoven's forwards surged forward simultaneously.

Utrecht found themselves facing a severe crisis in playing the ball out!

"I'm here, I'm here."

Scanning the pitch, Tang Ye sprinted backward, his nimble movement deceiving Maher and Guardado to successfully carve out a pocket of space between himself and Kleibeuker.

Kleibeuker swiftly delivered the pass, successfully breaking through Eindhoven's high press in the opposing half!

"Perfect!"

Ten Hag raised one arm into the air: "Play it out, get it out quickly!"

Tang Ye didn't hear Ten Hag shouting; he only knew he needed to seize this opportunity right now, and immediately accelerated forward with the ball.

"Pass it to me!"

Ramelaar called for the ball from Tang Ye, and Tang Ye laid it off instantly.

However, Locadia played dirty, directly using his body to slam into Ramelaar and causing the Utrecht captain to lose his balance.

The referee decisively blew the whistle!

"A tactical foul during defense, though not overly blatant. Ramelaar avoids a yellow card..."

"Nothing controversial there, the Eindhoven players are very smart."

"Wait!"

Just as the players on the pitch were still watching Ramelaar pick himself up from the turf, Tang Ye quietly scurried to the side of the ball.

Placing one hand on the ball, he hoofed it straight into the opponent's half with a single kick!

This is a rule in football: if a foul occurs and the referee does not blow for a ceremonial restart, and no card is brandished, the team in possession may restart play by touching the ball with their upper limbs.

And that was precisely what Tang Ye had just done!

"Tang Ye takes the free-kick quickly!"

"He's put a lot of power on it, Haller!"

"Holy crap, Haller actually brought it down!"

"Don't choke this, holy crap!"

With the clock now past the 85th minute, seeing Haller inexplicably through on goal, the viewers in the livestream nearly had their souls leave their bodies.

"Aaahhhhhh!!!!!!"

"Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep!"

Screams and jeers erupted from the stands as Haller, having killed the ball stone dead, sprinted rapidly toward the goal.

Defenders could arrive at any second; he needed to get his shot away immediately!

The goalkeeper rushed out!

Haller decelerated!

He shoots!

"It's... it's in..."

The livestream chat fell dead silent; every single fan in the stadium had risen to their feet.

[Holy mother of...]

[This quick-restart free-kick literally left Eindhoven brain-dead, holy crap.]

[Absolute madness!]

[The streamer doubted King Tang, this is the price of doubting King Tang!]

[A narrow 1-goal win, and there was even a chance to win by 2? Streamer, why is the score 3:3 now?]

[Good thing I didn't bet on this match today.]

[I'm in tears, Bro Meng is in god-mode, literally carrying Utrecht forward.]

[Tang Ye: I made you guys so much money, and yet you didn't believe in me? Cough it all back up!]

"Tom!!!"

Haller's face was flushed crimson as he sprinted at full speed toward Tang Ye.

An 86th-minute goal!

An equalizer, a dramatic, textbook late equalizer!

The players had initially intended to sprint toward the corner flag to celebrate, but Tang Ye didn't want to run that far and remained in the center circle.

Haller, the goalscorer, ran straight to Tang Ye.

And soon, every single Utrecht player came swarming toward the center circle.

"Tang, brilliant! This is a late equalizer!"

Amrabat grabbed the back of Tang Ye's head, pressing his own forehead directly against Tang Ye's.

This was just too damn exciting!

"Kill the time, kill the time! There are only a few minutes left!"

Ramelaar seized the moment to remind his teammates to drag out the celebration as long as possible.

He could tell Tang Ye was running on fumes; he genuinely couldn't handle much more running!

The Utrecht players erupted into wild celebrations, and by the time the ensuing kickoff was taken, the clock had already ticked to the 89th minute.

Three minutes of stoppage time elapsed.

"Beep, beep—peep!"

As the final whistle blew, Wang Chuo didn't emphasize the scoreline to his livestream fans as he usually did.

His face was ashen!

[This is the price one must pay for doubting Brother Meng!]

...

After the match, courtesy of his two goals and the assist for the equalizer, Tang Ye was named Man of the Match.

It was that same crystal-shaped trophy once again.

This was Tang Ye's second crystal trophy!

Meanwhile, in the press room of the Philips Stadion, Ten Hag sat at the podium facing nearly 15 journalists from various Dutch football publications.

"Congratulations on securing a dramatic late draw in this match. Because of this equalizer, you've managed to hold onto first place in the league table after the game, which is truly no small feat. Erik, as the team's manager, what are your thoughts on today's match?"

Ten Hag took a gentle breath through his lips, adjusting his posture in his seat. "Well, taking 1 point is indeed not easy, but I feel there are still things we didn't do well enough today."

"Oh?"

Ten Hag's words immediately captured the attention of the reporters below. "3:3 against PSV Eindhoven, and you still consider that not good enough?"

"Yes."

Ten Hag nodded. "The opponents played very well in the first half, but I felt that after the break, the protagonists of the match became us. We had a plethora of chances; we created opportunities right at the start of the second half. Had those chances been converted, the scoreline should have been 3:4, or even 3:5."

"Clearly, we were actually the side with higher hopes of winning, but our opponents got lucky."

A reporter widened his eyes. "Then may I ask why you managed to launch a comeback in the second half?"

"I formulated the tactical adjustments. During halftime, and continuing into the second half, I had the substitute Sofyan carry a tactical note out to the players on the pitch, and I emphasized offensive play to Tang."

Ten Hag shrugged. "And in the end, he truly delivered that offense."

The reporter looked somewhat surprised.

He hadn't expected Ten Hag to play such a pivotal role in today's fixture.

Right!

"Before the match, you declined to answer any questions regarding winning Manager of the Month. Now that the match is over, could you answer that question? This is your first individual award since coaching in the Eredivisie."

Ten Hag nodded. "Coaches who contribute more to their team often receive more votes, but I would simply say that these are all things I ought to have done."