After defeating Cardiff City away, Leeds United returned home, made some adjustments, and immediately set off again for Liverpool.
During his stay in London, Gao Shen visited old friends such as Norman Foster, Wenger, and Mourinho. After heading north to Cheshire, he also had dinner with Manchester City staff and the retired Ferguson.
When the team went west to Liverpool, Gao Shen accompanied them as well.
This match was very difficult.
The Christmas fixture schedule was brutal, with matches crammed together and many strong opponents, so Pochettino had to rotate.
For example, in midfield, the trio of Rabiot, Fabinho, and Bruno Fernandes was dropped.
In attack, he adjusted to Zaha, Mané, and Mahrez.
Although the squad had two traditional center forwards, Vardy and Martial, Pochettino still chose Mané.
This was clearly meant to disrupt the opponent's rhythm.
In defense, Stones replaced De Vrij and partnered José Fonte.
Even though they were away, Pochettino's rotation still worked to a certain extent.
In particular, the team's relentless pressing from front to back caused Everton a lot of problems.
Lukaku and his attacking partners could not find any advantage against Leeds United.
When both sides were nearly exhausted, Pochettino made two substitutions.
First, in the 71st minute, Coutinho replaced Fabinho to strengthen organization and ball distribution in midfield.
Then in the 79th minute, Sterling came on for Mahrez.
Two minutes later, Sterling broke through on the right, forcing the issue. Coutinho followed with a long-range shot from the edge of the box that flew past Everton's goalkeeper.
In the end, Leeds United won 1-0 away at Everton.
…
Three days later, in the 20th round of the Premier League, Leeds United returned home to face Mourinho's Chelsea.
The league table was tense. Mourinho's Chelsea were right behind Pellegrini's Manchester City, with the title race fierce.
Chelsea were 2 points behind City, so Mourinho was determined to win.
He fielded his strongest lineup and played aggressively at Elland Road.
Leeds United still relied on high pressing, pinning Chelsea back throughout the match.
Kanté in midfield, Fonte and De Vrij in central defense all put in outstanding performances, repeatedly shutting down Chelsea's attacks. With Navas in goal having a brilliant game, Leeds managed to keep their clean sheet intact.
The match was tense and dangerous, keeping fans on edge.
But just when everyone thought it would end in a draw, Pochettino once again sent on Sterling.
This time, he did not place him on the wing but let him drift inside, targeting Chelsea's double pivot of Mikel and Ramires.
In the 79th minute, Kanté intercepted in midfield and Fabinho quickly sent a pass through to Sterling. He controlled the ball, turned between the two defensive midfielders, and burst forward at pace.
He drove the ball straight through Chelsea's defensive lines. As he reached the edge of the box and faced Terry, he noticed Cech slightly advanced. Sterling fired quickly.
The ball flew straight into the bottom right corner. 1-0!
Elland Road erupted!
…
From the stands, Gao Shen watched Sterling and his teammates celebrate, smiling with satisfaction.
"Pochettino has now grasped the essence." Gao Shen said with a laugh.
Whether against Everton or Chelsea, when the team rotated heavily and form dipped, Pochettino chose to keep things steady, defend first, and then counter.
The key was Sterling coming off the bench in both games. That was no coincidence.
Sterling had pace, skill, and impact. Against Everton he attacked the wing, while against Chelsea he struck at their midfield pairing. Both times, his use was brilliant.
The idea was simple: fight an attritional battle, let the opponent attack first, wait until their energy ran low, then unleash fresh players for the decisive blow.
This approach was clear, but not easy. It placed huge demands on the squad.
First, the team had to remain solid.
If they collapsed before reaching that decisive phase, it would be useless.
Second, you needed players capable of changing the match immediately after coming on.
That was a high requirement.
"Our current squad gives him the flexibility to do this," Borrell said with a smile.
Leeds had a strong squad. Though young, the players were highly talented.
As The Times had said, their talent was undeniable.
Take Sterling, who had come on as a substitute in two straight games and turned both matches.
How could such a young player not draw attention?
"Now, we should be back to eighth, right?" Gao Shen asked.
Lucas nodded. "Newcastle have lost their last two league games."
They first lost to Arsenal at home, then lost away this round. That allowed Leeds to catch up on points, and with a better goal difference, move ahead.
Some might be surprised, but Leeds had only conceded 20 goals so far this season, averaging one per game.
What did that mean?
In the Premier League, only three teams had a better defensive record: Arsenal, Manchester City, and Chelsea, who had conceded 18 and 19 goals respectively.
Leeds had scored 36 goals, averaging 1.8 per match, ranking fifth in the league behind Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool.
Moyes' Manchester United had scored 33 and conceded 24, sitting in 7th.
Clearly, Pochettino's team still had plenty of potential to unlock.
That was the nature of a young squad, full of energy.
And Gao Shen had chosen players with outstanding potential. Giving them more playing time and drawing out their strengths would help them grow quickly.
Individually, they might not seem exceptional, but together, their collective power was not to be underestimated.
And sometimes, individual brilliance shone through, as Sterling had shown in the last two matches.
…
Off the pitch, Leeds United had also made progress in management.
The Premier League season was past halfway. Based on projections, if Leeds held their position, they would receive £80 million in broadcasting revenue.
That figure would make most of Europe envious.
Adding match-day income, Leeds' revenue from those two areas alone would surpass £100 million.
Commercially, thanks to the AXA naming deal and other partnerships, Leeds would bring in over £60 million this season.
What did that mean?
Roma and Atletico Madrid earned around £30 million, Tottenham and Hamburg about £50 million. Leeds' commercial revenue was comparable to Fenerbahce, Juventus, and Inter Milan, though still below Arsenal, Galatasaray, and Schalke 04, who were at £70-80 million.
This was due both to the Premier League's global reach and Leeds United's rapid growth over the past two years, especially with their sports internet celebrity branding, which had become very popular.
According to Lucas's estimates, total revenue for the season could reach £170 million.
This was far beyond what Leeds had previously projected.
All of this was thanks to the Premier League's booming TV deals.
In terms of match-day income, Leeds were far behind other clubs.
It was also worth noting that the Europa League brought Leeds very little money.
So far, including prize money and match-day income, qualifying from the group stage had brought in less than €5 million, while the costs of traveling for away games were high.
That was why many Premier League clubs disliked playing in the Europa League.
It was a lot of work for little reward.
Instead of wasting energy there, it was better to focus on climbing one more place in the Premier League.
Looking at the league overall, Leeds' wage bill was actually reasonable.
For example, Manchester United's salaries had risen 20 percent after Ferguson left due to contract renewals.
Across the league, wages were generally high.
As many had said, the broadcasting revenue ultimately went to players and agents, while clubs earned little.
But Leeds were different.
After their heavy spending in the summer, their wage bill had not risen, but fallen.
This was unique in the Premier League.
And even though they were two places lower than last year's sixth, revenue had grown while wage costs dropped.
That meant profits would rise significantly.
Most believed this was because Leeds planned to build a new training base and stadium.
That was a huge project requiring ambition.
But Gao Shen felt their profits were mainly due to broadcasting revenue. Eventually, player wages would rise again.
This season's strong performances meant that to keep players, salaries would have to go up with contract renewals.
In European football today, salaries were not as secret as they seemed. Agents ensured they were transparent.
If one player earned a high wage at Newcastle while another earned half of that at Leeds, who would be happy?
Running on passion alone was not sustainable.
More importantly, it was not conducive to Leeds United's long-term development.
(To be continued.)