After receiving the ball, Pogba paid no heed.
He directly imitated Kai's style—
suddenly lofting a long pass toward the front line!
Rooney, the little tank, surged forward at great speed!
Hernández also lurked deep in Arsenal's defensive line.
In the stands, the eyes of Manchester United fans lit up.
Had Pogba figured it out?
United's rising midfield star—
a French prodigy hailed as Zidane's successor!
He had been showered with praise during his youth academy days.
Yet with the crowd's fervent roar,
the hope that rose in the eyes of United fans was quickly extinguished.
Pogba's long pass was still far from accurate.
Rooney tried hard to hold off Koscielny,
constantly glancing back at the ball.
But this pass went straight into the arms of Arsenal's other defender, Van Dijk.
Van Dijk rose for the header—
sending the ball firmly back toward midfield!
The Red Devils in the stands looked disappointed.
But soon, they came to their senses.
Passes like these, spanning nearly half the pitch,
were essentially lottery balls!
After all, the distance was too great.
Even the best midfielders couldn't guarantee pinpoint accuracy every time.
It was purely Kai!
With his flawless, dazzling passes again and again,
he had raised the expectations in fans' minds!
Unknowingly, fans had come to see this kind of ball
as the standard for a world-class midfielder.
But how could that be possible?
Across the entire world of football—
apart from Kai, no one else could deliver
such calm, precise long passes and orchestration!
At midfield—
Arteta controlled Van Dijk's clearance beautifully.
He shielded the ball,
and at the right moment, passed it back to Kai.
Rooney and Hernández hurriedly turned back from their forward positions,
retreating toward midfield.
From the 20th to the 30th minute,
Arsenal and United both crowded the midfield.
Two long-time Premier League giants, with years of enmity,
now waged fierce battles in the center of the pitch!
The tackles and clashes escalated sharply...
The referee blew the whistle repeatedly to stop play.
But since this was a final,
the referee allowed a slightly looser standard.
So far, not a single yellow card had been shown.
But as United trailed two goals from the start,
unable to find a way back, their players grew increasingly agitated.
Finally, in the 32nd minute—
Rooney, almost hysterical, brought down Rosický on the wing in midfield.
Amid deafening boos from Arsenal fans,
the referee ran forward decisively—
and showed the first yellow card of the match!
Players from both sides tangled in dispute.
Kai rushed over,
shoving Rooney aside,
and together with Arteta, pulled Rosický up from the ground.
Rooney spread his arms, muttering as he walked away.
"Watch his quick restart!"
United's assistant coach warned nervously from the sideline.
But the reminder came a step too late.
Kai pressed down on the ball with one hand,
then suddenly played it forward with a quick free kick!
United's defense scrambled frantically to retreat and re-form!
Arteta received the ball, exchanged a simple one-two with Kai,
and after bypassing Pogba,
Kai swept the ball forcefully toward the left midfield!
Gibbs surged forward decisively from his fullback position,
sliding a diagonal pass back into Kai's feet.
Arsenal's formation surged forward!
Media at the scene were stunned—
every pass Kai made carried astonishing clarity and purpose!
Receiving the ball again,
Kai switched to full "god's-eye view."
As Pogba came charging with a fierce press,
Kai struck the ball sharply with the inside of his foot!
A thunderous, ground-skimming through pass!
The ball curved dramatically across the turf,
like a crescent-bladed strike,
cutting sharply toward Arsenal's right wing!
Wembley erupted with terrified screams from United fans!
A crescent-moon ground pass!
Too outrageous!
The trajectory was simply unbelievable!
United's right-back Jones was instantly beaten behind his line!
Gervinho collected the ball and burst forward at high speed!
Arsenal's attacking players all advanced in sync,
slotting into their positions and charging forward!
On the sideline, Ferguson fidgeted anxiously.
Once again, it was Arsenal's terrifyingly fluid midfield and attacking play!
Kai's pass instantly opened up Arsenal's attacking play in the final third!
Inside United's penalty area—
as Gervinho charged down the flank,
Vidic, just like Ferdinand earlier,
was forced to grit his teeth and shift wide to cover.
For a center-back, covering when your fullback is out of position
is always a tough decision.
Fortunately this time,
Carrick had retreated in time into the box,
filling the gap left behind by Vidic's movement.
On Arsenal's right wing up front—
Vidic pressed forward with ferocity!
Under the suffocating pressure of United's center-back,
Gervinho, just before Vidic's sliding tackle,
summoned all his strength to whip in a powerful cross!
But the cross, disrupted by Vidic's challenge,
was slightly off target.
Too much power!
In the box, both Van Persie and Giroud failed to meet it.
The ball bounced toward the far side of the area,
springing upward to mid-height!
And at that very moment—
Wembley erupted in a frenzy!
At the ball's drop point—
Kai had arrived like a galloping steed!
With his god's-eye view in full force,
his anticipation of the ball's path
bordered on terrifying instinct!
This mistimed cross had smashed into the turf,
leaping up with vicious topspin and a wicked, swirling spin!
Kai shifted his body slightly,
planting his supporting leg firmly!
On the touchline, Ferguson and Wenger wore starkly different expressions.
In the vast Wembley, the crowd's roar surged to its peak!
Just before Pogba, who was desperately tracking back, could reach him—
Kai swung his left foot,
striking the rising ball cleanly with the top of his boot!
This was a ball that carried brutal topspin after bouncing!
Controlling such a shot in midair was nearly impossible!
Yet the scene the media had expected—
the ball being wildly blasted over—never came.
Instead, before the horrified eyes of the crowd,
the ball was perfectly controlled!
Under Kai's strike,
it flipped into an almost impossible backspin trajectory,
hurtling straight toward United's goal!
In front of the box, De Gea's body jolted!
He instinctively leapt from his line!
But this blistering, backspinning volley flew like a cannonball!
Though the ball spun violently,
its path was straight and true—
thundering into United's goal!
Boom!
The ball smashed mercilessly into the top right corner!
In an instant—
the nearly 100,000 packed into Wembley
erupted with a cataclysmic roar!
Fans clutched their heads in disbelief,
screaming hysterically in shock!
A peach-blossom shadow falling like a divine sword!
An epic, world-class volley!
Arsenal fans surged wildly toward the barriers!
In the League Cup Final—
Kai had scored his third goal before halftime!
A hat-trick!
Completely igniting the vast Wembley!
The mountain-shaking roar of the crowd
spiraled furiously into the night sky!!
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