Christmas Eve, 2007.
During team training, Chen Tao distinctly felt everyone's nerves were taut.
Even Nicolas Bendtner, usually the most confident and loudest in the locker room, dared not crack jokes at this moment.
Two days later, on the 19th round of the Premier League, which was the Boxing Day highlight match,
Arsenal vs. Tottenham.
The importance of this match was self-evident.
Arsenal could lose this season's championship; they could lose to Manchester United or Chelsea.
But they absolutely had to win against Tottenham!
The North London Derby had transcended ordinary sports competition; this was a damn war!
On Christmas Eve, the Arsenal first team even had an extra hour of training at the facility.
It wasn't until 4 PM that Wenger let everyone go home for the holiday.
"Chen, how are you spending Christmas Eve?"
"Me? I don't celebrate holidays."
"Oh, mon Dieu! (My God)"
Chen Tao was confused. It wasn't a big deal, so why were they looking at him with pity?
"Do you want to come to my place for the holiday? My girlfriend made smoked salmon, oysters, and roasted venison..."
Facing Wenger's sincere invitation, Chen Tao had nowhere else to go in London, so he went with the Professor to celebrate.
Speaking of which, this was Chen Tao's first time celebrating Christmas abroad, and it was full of novelty.
Besides, his family was all French, so the cooking should be better.
The only thing that had caused Chen Tao discomfort during his time in London was the food; the Arsenal cafeteria even made the nutritious meals unpalatable.
To strictly control the team's body fat, Wenger specifically adopted a low-fat, high-protein diet inspired by Japan.
Eating those dry, tasteless fish and rice every day, Chen Tao intensely missed the German roasted pork knuckle Aunt Maria made.
Of course, he missed his dad's potato stew with beef brisket the most; it was incredibly appetizing.
Wenger's car was an old Jaguar XJ, as understated and steady as the Professor himself. Along the way, the two didn't have the teacher-student relationship of a coach and player, but rather chatted like friends about Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund.
To the Professor's surprise, Chen Tao, at such a young age, had extraordinary insights into the development of football tactics!
"Indeed, Arsenal's current tiki-taka is relatively advanced in the Premier League, but it hasn't reached its peak."
"In the coming years, a more dominant approach might be short-passing penetration combined with high pressing, constantly keeping the battle in the opponent's half..."
Chen Tao's seemingly casual chat made Wenger's eyes widen.
He had brought Fabregas over from La Masia precisely because he saw the potential of tiki-taka football.
He hoped to transform the Arsenal of 2003-2004, centered around Vieira and Henry, into a team with stronger midfield penetration.
Fabregas's role was equivalent to Barcelona's midfield maestro, Xavi.
Unfortunately, the overall technical level of Premier League players was relatively rough, unable to support Wenger's complete overhaul.
This could only lead to the current style of play, based on low-block defense and quick short passes in counter-attacks.
It relied more on the two-winged attacks of Rosicky, Hleb, or Walcott, forming inverted triangle passes in the box.
"Are you talking about Barcelona?" Wenger asked curiously.
"Yes, but not Rijkaard's current Barça. They have the foundation of total football, and they should undergo an evolution in the next two years."
Chen Tao pondered seriously for a moment:
"If someone can truly implement Barcelona's football philosophy, they might form a team that will be difficult for all of Europe to contend with."
"Of course, it's just a personal feeling, not necessarily accurate."
Chen Tao chuckled, trying to cover it up.
In that instant, he suddenly had a premonition for some reason: the future Barça would be very strong, becoming the great demon king of all Europe.
Wenger, at this moment, also felt that this was perhaps just a casual chat from a young boy, with some truth but not necessarily destined to come true.
Currently, the football world was still dominated by the power and speed of the Premier League; a technical style would struggle to win the Premier League title, let alone dominate Europe.
It wasn't until two years later, when Wenger recalled that casual conversation with Chen Tao in the car, that he couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine!
...
Wenger had bought a two-story house in the Barnet district, where middle-class and wealthy businessmen gathered in North London.
As soon as he entered, he received a warm welcome.
"Welcome! Chen!"
"Arsène talks about you all the time at home, saying you're the most talented and hardworking child he's ever met."
Wenger's girlfriend, Annie, was a French basketball player, even a bit taller than Chen Tao, and she was quite enthusiastic.
This made it hard for Chen Tao to refuse her hospitality.
They had been together since the mid-90s but had never married.
Their 10-year-old daughter, Léa, stood shyly behind her mother, her big eyes curiously staring at the handsome older brother with the Eastern face.
"Chen, please take Léa to play for a bit while I prepare dinner. Thank you."
Annie hurried back to the kitchen to continue preparing.
As soon as Professor Wenger returned home, he went upstairs to his study to have a tactical meeting with the coaching staff, discussing the key tactical points for the match against Tottenham.
In the spacious living room, only Chen Tao and the little girl Léa were left, looking at each other.
"Do you want to have a party for Barbie with me?"
"Okay."
Léa's native language was French, but her English was also very fluent, so there was no problem communicating.
Chen Tao, bored, had no choice but to bite the bullet and play with Barbie dolls with the 10-year-old girl.
During the winter break without matches, Chen Tao felt a bit unaccustomed.
He would rather fight Bayern Munich for three hundred rounds on the field.
Ding—
His phone rang; it was Anna.
"Was ist los? (What's up?)"
Chen Tao said nothing, just took a picture of himself playing with Barbie dolls with Léa and sent it via MMS.
He felt that a more convenient mobile chat software should be invented, one that could send voice messages, pictures, and even direct video calls.
Currently, text messaging was charged, and its efficiency was still a bit low.
"?"
"??"
"She looks so young, how could you?"
Chen Tao could imagine Anna's slightly furrowed brow and feigned anger just from the text message.
"What are you thinking? She's Wenger's daughter. I'm just here as a guest for Christmas Eve."
"Hmm."
"You're not jealous, are you?"
It was just a 10-year-old kid; how could that be? He didn't know what Anna was thinking.
Chen Tao was speechless and deliberately used the word "Eifersucht," meaning jealousy, to tease her.
But Anna's chat bubble kept showing "typing..." but never sent anything.
Soon, there was no more response from her side.
Chen Tao didn't take it seriously and continued to play house with Wenger's daughter. Soon, the Christmas Eve dinner arrived.
Wenger's girlfriend's cooking was excellent; both the roasted venison and smoked salmon were outstanding.
Especially the French foie gras; if he weren't concerned about his body fat percentage, Chen Tao would have loved to devour more.
His first Christmas Eve experience in a foreign land was quite good. Chatting and eating with Wenger's family, both host and guest thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
While waiting for dessert, his phone rang again.
He opened it, and after a moment of loading, it was an MMS.
Anna took a selfie with her phone, with a Christmas tree in the background and Heinrich's family sitting around the dining table, chatting and laughing.
Anna's eyes in the front camera were still clear, as if she was looking at Chen Tao across the English Channel.
"Everyone misses you, Chen."
Before Chen Tao could reply, Anna added another message.
"Me too."