July 31, 2010.
After waiting for Arsenal to Fly back to the United Kingdom from Australia in London, Li Yufei immediately began first-team training.
Because an exhibition match against visiting AC Milan was scheduled for this afternoon at Arsenal's home ground, Emirates Stadium.
Wenger instructed Li Yufei to prepare to play.
After all, it was an exhibition match, so winning or losing didn't matter. Many starters would be on the bench, making it the perfect time for Li Yufei to perform.
The opponent was a powerhouse team like AC Milan. Even if AC Milan, like Arsenal, didn't necessarily field their full starting lineup.
Some starters would definitely play, and AC Milan's substitutes would certainly be stronger than the starters of many lesser-known teams.
It was the perfect touchstone for Li Yufei.
Wenger had found a very good opponent for Li Yufei's debut, one with renown that could also serve to test Li Yufei's true strength – truly a massive gain.
Li Yufei had been getting along quite well with the players in the Arsenal first team these past few days.
Unlike typical rookies, Li Yufei had a father who was a major shareholder of Arsenal.
Just based on this point, even if it was a 'black brother', they wouldn't be stupid enough to bully Li Yufei. At most, they would just not interact.
Furthermore, Li Yufei wasn't a complete newcomer. Having played in the Arsenal youth academy for three years, Arsenal's main players had all heard of Li Yufei, this super genius who had dominated every level of the youth system.
Among them, Wilshere, the Arsenal youth academy genius before Li Yufei, had the best relationship with him.
Especially since Wilshere's date of birth was January 1, 1992, which perfectly complemented Li Yufei's December 31.
One of them was born on the first day of 1992, and the other was born on the last day of 1992.
This kind of serendipitous event was also the reason they initially became friends.
Besides this, Fabregas, the Espanyol player on whom Wenger placed high hopes but who later betrayed Arsenal, also had a good relationship with Li Yufei.
Li Yufei did not hold any prejudice against Fabregas because of his 'loyal and righteous' act of paying out of pocket to return to Barcelona in his previous life.
Firstly, because in 2010, this matter had not yet occurred.
At present, Xiao Fa was still the child beloved by Arsenal fans.
Secondly, because Fabregas had actively cultivated a relationship with Li Yufei during his time in the youth academy.
Li Yufei's personality was also a very typical 'repay enmity with revenge, repay kindness with gratitude' type.
Therefore, towards Xiao Fa, he also interacted with the attitude of treating him as a friend, although this friend's relationship was slightly less close compared to Wilshere.
As for the other players within Arsenal, only Little Tiger Walcott had a good relationship with Li Yufei.
Van Persie, the genuine 'General Van', was not particularly fond of Li Yufei, this rich second generation.
The fiery and unruly Van Persie always believed that on the pitch, only football could speak.
Even if Li Yufei's father was a major shareholder of Arsenal, he wouldn't give him a good look. At worst, he would just switch clubs to play. What's the big deal?
However, Van Persie wasn't stupid. He wouldn't deliberately provoke Li Yufei like the villains in face-slapping novels.
At most, he would just not associate with him, unlike Fabregas who deliberately befriended him. That's all.
Li Yufei also wouldn't be so petty as to think he was some big shot and need to retaliate against Van Persie just because he didn't come to lick his ass.
This kind of thinking was purely childish. Li Yufei had lived two lives after all, and he wouldn't do such childish things no matter what.
Wenger saw that Li Yufei was getting along reasonably well with his Arsenal first-team teammates and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
His biggest worry was that Van Persie, this unruly fellow, would clash with Li Yufei, who came from a privileged background and was arrogant.
Fortunately, none of this happened, otherwise Wenger really wouldn't know how to handle it.
'Fly, you'll start this afternoon. It's just an exhibition match, so just play freely.' Wenger directly named Li Yufei to start.
'Understood, BOSS!' Li Yufei couldn't help but be a little surprised by Wenger's decision to let him start directly.
However, he quickly calmed down because he had always felt that his ability was completely sufficient to fill a starting position for Arsenal.
The other Arsenal players didn't take this to heart, after all, it was just an insignificant exhibition match and didn't threaten their positions.
Wilshere, also a talented player from the Arsenal youth academy, felt a pang of jealousy, comparing it to his own humble struggles for playing time when he first debuted.
Fly, this favored son of heaven, was simply too fortunate!
One can only say that between people, joys and sorrows are completely not shared.
However, Wilshere didn't have too much of an issue with it, after all, he had played with Li Yufei in the youth academy for nearly two years.
He knew Fly's strength better than anyone.
In his opinion, Fly already possessed the ability to play for the Arsenal first team a year ago.
Now, having refined his skills for another year, his strength would only be greater.
It might even be possible for him to directly claim a starting position.
..........
Soon.
The time arrived at 3 PM.
Arsenal, as the home team, was the first to arrive at the stadium to warm up.
From the moment Li Yufei stepped onto the pitch, his heart couldn't help but pound.
His entire body temperature rose significantly.
Fabregas, who entered the pitch with him, noticed this and comforted him, 'Fly, don't be nervous. It's just an exhibition match. Even if you don't play well, no one will blame you.'
Li Yufei nodded, indicating that he understood.
But in reality, while Li Yufei appeared calm on the surface, his heart was anything but peaceful.
Glancing around, tens of thousands of Arsenal fans wearing red and white jerseys were singing, dancing, and cheering wildly.
The red tide surged wave after wave, creating a tremendous impact.
One must know, this wasn't even a formal match, just an exhibition game.
If an exhibition match had such momentum, what would a formal match be like?
Shaking his head, Li Yufei reminded himself that this would be his daily work from now on and he needed to get used to it.
Taylor had also arrived at the box at this moment to cheer on her boyfriend's first-team debut in his professional career.