At Old Trafford, the second half of the match between Manchester United and West Ham United grew increasingly intense.
Manchester United's inconsistent performance caused some home fans to lose their composure. In the second half, every time Gao Nuo touched the ball, the home fans would boo him, which greatly annoyed Bruno Fernandes, the captain. During breaks in play, he repeatedly made a calming gesture towards the stands.
However, the radical fans were not swayed. As Manchester United Football Club, a club with a glorious history, the team had not won the Premier League title in 10 years. It could be said that at this stage, any mistake by a player would be infinitely magnified, even making them an 'enemy' of Manchester United's loyal supporters.
Gao Nuo, who had finally made a breakthrough, had 18 points of willpower (out of a maximum of 20), which was no pretense. He completely disregarded the distractions of the match, his eyes fixed only on the ball and the goal.
In the 54th minute, Antony attacked with the ball on the right wing, skillfully dribbling back and forth to probe. Seeing that the defender was unmoved, he didn't force it and passed the ball back to the center.
Casemiro had excellent positional sense. Receiving the back pass, he quickly shifted the ball horizontally. Rashford, making a run from the inside-right channel, received the pass and, without hesitation, sent it back to the center.
Bruno made a feint shot, drawing the opponent's defensive attention, and then subtly passed the ball to Gao Nuo.
Gao Nuo, in front of the goal, had no time to adjust. He shot with his right foot, and the ball went through Harry Maguire's legs, seemingly destined for the net. But West Ham United's Areola, being a spoilsport, made a superb save. He got down incredibly fast, batting the ball out for a corner on the goal line.
"Woo—!" Boos erupted throughout the stadium. This close-range shot being blocked completely ignited the emotions of the home fans.
The close-up shot showed Bruno, who had delivered the brilliant pass, with a face full of helplessness and regret. Then it panned to Gao Nuo, who, as if nothing had happened, had a calm expression, gave his captain a thumbs-up, and then ran back to his position.
Gao Nuo's calmness made the fans even more dissatisfied. They temporarily forgot their previous affection for Gao Nuo, and also forgot Gao Nuo's contributions to Manchester United. The boos from the sidelines grew even louder.
In the 67th minute, West Ham United's Scamacca's shot went wide of the goal line. Manchester United took a goal kick, waving for his teammates to push up, and Nübel kicked the ball long to the front of the field.
Gao Nuo gained the upper hand in his contest with Soucek, successfully winning the first header and flicking the ball to the left. Rashford received the ball and passed it back to Rice, then quickly sprinted towards the left byline. It was a simple yet effective pass-and-run, and Rice sent a through ball behind him.
West Ham United's defensive focus was on the inside channels. Based on their pre-match preparations, West Ham United's analysis report indicated that Manchester United had three tall center-forwards: Dzeko lacked mobility, Wout Weghorst lacked good positioning, and Gao Nuo had consistently performed poorly in the center-forward position. Instead, Rashford and Antony's inverted runs were more threatening.
Therefore, West Ham United blocked the inside channels, limiting Manchester United's two wingers from cutting inside, while also effectively preventing central penetration.
Rashford caught up to Rice's through ball, easily dribbled to the byline. Two defenders came forward, merely blocking his path towards the penalty area without attempting to tackle. Rashford's experience told him that a high cross was the best option. He glanced at Gao Nuo, who was running from the top of the box towards the goal, and crossed the ball to the near post.
After Harry Maguire left Manchester United, he seemed to have shed the pressure on his mind. This season, West Ham United's defense, under his leadership, performed exceptionally well, with the team currently ranked 5th, having already secured a Europa League spot for next season.
Throughout the first half, Wout Weghorst's performance was mediocre due to Harry Maguire's constant pulling and tugging.
When he saw the ball heading towards the near post, Harry Maguire, at a disadvantage in terms of speed, immediately resorted to his old tricks, reaching out to grab Gao Nuo as he rushed past.
His arm was suddenly grabbed. Gao Nuo had no time to think, pushing off the ground even harder with his feet. His forward momentum not only didn't decrease but increased. The pulling force made Gao Nuo spin 360 degrees, his long legs tapping the ground twice, much like a spin-jump in a dance move. He used the momentum to shake off Harry Maguire's large hand, and Gao Nuo was already in front of the goal.
Meeting the incoming ball, Gao Nuo leaped high, stretching his body in the air like a fully drawn bow. Then, his core muscles tightened, and Gao Nuo folded in mid-air, powerfully heading the ball towards the goal.
Unstoppable. Goal. Manchester United equalized.
The home fans cheered as if the boos from moments ago hadn't come from them, their change of face comparable to a Shudu opera trick.
Gao Nuo didn't celebrate after scoring. He picked up the ball from the net and quickly ran towards the center circle; the match wasn't over yet.
Erik ten Hag's eyes lit up on the sidelines. He immediately called over Wan-Bissaka, rapidly gave him some tactical instructions, and then substituted him onto the field.
In the 79th minute, Wan-Bissaka, having received instructions from his coach, advanced from the right wing and played a one-two with Antony. West Ham United's attention was still on the center of the field, allowing Wan-Bissaka, whose crossing ability was average, to break through to the byline.
Unlike Rashford's on-the-spot judgment, Wan-Bissaka's cross from the byline was Erik ten Hag's tactical requirement. He glanced at the goal, and the Manchester United full-back, with somewhat rough footwork, lofted the ball high into the middle.
Harry Maguire, having been caught out once, positioned himself more conservatively. This time, facing the cross, he firmly held his ground in front of Gao Nuo, with both elbows raised, giving Gao Nuo no chance to get in front.
What Harry Maguire didn't expect was that Wan-Bissaka's cross was too high. Even though he had a clear positional advantage and jumped with all his might, the ball still flew over his head.
"Wow—! Oh—!" Harry Maguire, who had just landed, heard a gasp, and then Old Trafford erupted in a huge cheer.
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Harry Maguire, confused, turned to look at the goal. West Ham United's goalkeeper was sitting dejectedly on the ground, his face full of disbelief, as the ball rested quietly in the net.
The big screen at the stadium played a replay of the recent goal. After the ball flew over Harry Maguire, a red figure seemed to soar into the sky. Gao Nuo, without a run-up, jumped from a standstill and scored with a header.
In the freeze-frame from the director, of the two players who jumped, Harry Maguire's head only reached Gao Nuo's waist. A rough height estimate was made on site: Gao Nuo's header height reached 3.3 meters, meaning his jumping height was nearly 1.4 meters.
Viewers in the Huaguo live broadcast room, like the fans in the stadium, went wild. The visual impact of Gao Nuo flying through the air was too strong. It wasn't until Zhan Jun's insightful analysis that everyone gradually calmed down.
"Actually, through the replay, we can see that after Gao Nuo jumped, there was a secondary upward movement. He used Harry Maguire's shoulder, with a downward pressing motion. Strictly speaking, this goal had a suspicion of a foul, but we saw the referee made no call, and the goal stands."
Zhang quickly interjected: "Hey, this kind of ball could be called or not called. Because it was contact in the air, we couldn't see it very clearly either. Zhan Jun, look, hey, Harry Maguire himself didn't even protest. This goal should be fine."
Amidst countless 'Manchester United's favorite son!' comments flooding the live stream, Gao Nuo was shown standing on the GG billboard by the sideline, raising his hands towards the stands, then cupping his hands behind his ears, signaling the fans to make their cheers as loud as possible.
Gao Nuo didn't care about the fans' boos, but he had his own attitude. He wanted to tell all Manchester United fans that they should only welcome him with cheers!
The celebration didn't last too long. There were still ten minutes left in the match. Manchester United had just equalized, and their momentum was strong. The players repositioned themselves, and Erik ten Hag brought on Garnacho and Ward-Prowse, hoping to complete a comeback and take the initiative in the title race.