Chapter 51: He's Just Too Fast!
You eat your meal one bite at a time—but the league won't wait for you.
During the early October international break, Yang Cheng gathered with his coaching staff and players once more to analyze the current state of the team.
After 12 rounds in the Championship, Bayswater Chinese had recorded 6 wins, 2 draws, and 4 losses.
They had scored 18 goals and conceded just 7.
Compared to last season, that was a significant change.
At this point last season, Bayswater Chinese had scored 27 goals and conceded 12.
Looking vertically, their attacking power had clearly dropped—but defensively, they had improved dramatically.
Looking across the league, Bayswater Chinese ranked fourth in attack this season.
Only Ipswich (23 goals), Wigan (22), and QPR (20) had more.
But in defense? Just 7 goals conceded—the best in the Championship.
Even unbeaten Wigan had let in 8.
This made Bayswater Chinese's strengths and weaknesses crystal clear.
On one hand, Yang Cheng's decision to bring in José Fonte and restructure the backline had paid off—defensive solidity was real.
On the other hand, the attack had dipped.
The departures of Martin Devaney and Martin Rowlands had hurt the team's creativity.
But the biggest reason was simply that the Championship was a massive step up from League Two.
Still, the numbers didn't lie—4th in attack, 1st in defense, 1st in possession, 1st in passing accuracy.
That proved the team was strong.
So where was the problem?
The players.
Too young, too inexperienced. Many were from abroad, and for some, this was their first taste of such high-level competition.
They needed time.
"We're in a bit of an awkward bottleneck right now," Yang Cheng told the squad in a team meeting.
Their current results were excellent for a newly promoted side.
But still not enough.
"Inconsistent performance, ups and downs in form, frustration when we can't score—these are all surface symptoms of a deeper issue."
"But that's normal."
"Every team in the world goes through this. So what do we do?"
All eyes were on Yang Cheng.
"It's simple. We keep training. We keep playing."
"We stay 100% focused in every session and every game. We do everything to the best of our ability."
"We push everything forward. Pour in all our effort. No holding back."
"It's just like Sisyphus pushing the boulder up the mountain."
"If it rolls back down, no problem—we push it up again. We keep gathering momentum."
"One day, sooner than you think, we'll explode. The world will be stunned."
"And when that day comes, you'll realize—it's not just the team that's changed. You will have changed too."
…
October 16, Championship Round 13, away against Crewe.
Just 9 minutes in, Modrić scored after slicing into the box.
In the 34th minute, Kitson doubled the lead.
Crewe pulled one back in the 69th minute, but in the 79th, substitute Lambert made it 3–1.
Three points secured.
Bayswater Chinese jumped to third place, just behind Wigan and Ipswich.
…
Three days later, Round 14.
At home, with goals from Kitson and Lass Diarra—his first league goal for the club—they defeated Cardiff 2–0.
Both assists came from Ribéry on the left.
Diarra was absolutely ecstatic. The French midfielder went wild in celebration.
Then, in Round 15, Leeds United came to town.
Leeds fought tooth and nail, picking up five yellow cards in the first half alone.
In the 58th minute, Aaron Lennon drew a foul on the right flank.
Ribéry's free kick caused chaos in the box, and Leeds' Clark Carlisle scored an own goal.
Leeds picked up three more yellows and one red, but couldn't claw their way back.
Bayswater Chinese won 1–0.
Thanks to a four-match win streak, they climbed to second place, ahead of Ipswich and just behind Wigan.
…
Midweek, League Cup Round 3. Away to Sheffield United.
Despite a heavily rotated squad, Bayswater Chinese dominated the game.
United's center-back Phil Jagielka had an outstanding performance, heroically stopping wave after wave of attacks.
But in the dying minutes, Leon Andreasen smashed in a long-range strike.
1–0. Into the fourth round they went.
…
After so many hard-fought games, the cracks started to show in Round 16, away against Sunderland.
For the first hour, Bayswater Chinese played brilliantly, pressing high and bossing the game.
But Mick McCarthy's Black Cats were defensively solid, giving nothing away.
Then, in the 64th minute, Sunderland hit on the break.
Bridges shot, Joe Hart spilled it, and Arca pounced on the rebound.
Yang Cheng responded with aggressive substitutions—but in the 72nd minute, disaster struck.
Joe Hart came out for a high ball, but dropped it under pressure.
Elliott seized the loose ball and made it 2–0.
One mistake? You could recover.
Two from your goalkeeper in the same match?
It crushed team morale.
Final score: 0–2.
Their fifth loss of the season.
Sunderland closed the gap to one point behind third-placed Bayswater Chinese.
Ipswich overtook them to take second.
…
No rest. No pause.
Back in London, a quick reset, then Round 17, away to Derby County.
This time, they played well.
Ribéry scored in the 9th minute, and Kitson added two more in the second half.
3–0.
17 rounds in, Kitson had 11 league goals and was starting to draw national attention.
But in Round 18, they were held 1–1 at home by Crewe.
They'd beaten them away just 20 days earlier.
Now, at home, they couldn't close it out.
Not just fatigue and rotation—it came down to execution on the day.
After 18 rounds, Bayswater Chinese sat third, six points behind Wigan, three behind Ipswich.
Sunderland, Reading, and West Ham were all just two points behind.
QPR, once promising, had slipped to seventh.
…
Midweek. League Cup Round 4.
Bayswater Chinese hosted Southampton.
The Saints were a Premier League team, based in southwest London, with plenty of local support.
18,000+ fans packed Loftus Road—sold out.
Southampton were mired in debt and struggling badly in the Premier League.
They'd already changed managers once this season and were stuck at the bottom of the table.
Just 1 win in 12 matches, 5 draws, 6 losses.
They were desperate to find a spark in the cup.
So they went all in—Péter Crouch didn't start, but Kevin Phillips, Svensson, and others did.
From the first whistle, they tried to dominate.
But Bayswater Chinese were composed and steady.
Yang Cheng's passing system and his players' technical skills allowed them to match Southampton toe-to-toe.
The deadlock held until the 41st minute.
On the left side of the box, Ribéry and Modrić executed a perfect one-two.
Ribéry flicked it over the onrushing keeper and scored.
1–0.
Halftime: Southampton made changes and threw everyone forward.
But in the 52nd minute, a turnover in midfield.
Huddlestone launched a long ball to the right.
Aaron Lennon sprinted like a missile, beat his man, and scored!
The English winger's speed was unreal.
Southampton didn't learn.
In the 62nd minute—another counterattack, another right-wing sprint, another Lennon goal.
3–0.
A brace for Lennon!
Just four minutes later—same flank, same man.
Lennon crossed, and Lambert headed it in.
4–0.
Three goals in 15 minutes. All from Lennon's side.
Southampton collapsed.
The rest of the match was garbage time.
Final score: 4–0, in front of a roaring Loftus Road.
…
Yang Cheng stood on the sideline, watching his players celebrate.
The stadium thundered with applause.
He was both thrilled—and surprised.
He had expected a tough battle.
But Southampton fell apart in the second half.
Their manager made poor decisions—subbing off the right-back Nielsen at halftime for another striker.
That weakened the right side, and Lennon exploited it mercilessly.
The result?
What you saw.
"We're in the quarterfinals of the League Cup!" said Brian Kidd, walking over with a wide grin.
"We're the only Championship team left. The other seven? Chelsea, Arsenal, Man United, Liverpool, Spurs, Portsmouth, Fulham."
If Southampton had won, the quarterfinals would've been an all-Premier League affair.
But now?
Bayswater Chinese were the anomaly.
Yang Cheng's eyes lit up.
This was it.
The moment he'd been waiting for.
"Brian," he said, "I'll handle tonight's post-match press conference myself!"
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