Gao Nuo could not possibly reveal the system's secret; he didn't want to be sliced and studied.
Perhaps even if he told them, no one would believe him, and they would just think he was crazy.
In any case, Gao Nuo's first exclusive interview in his life went very smoothly, and he gradually got used to being in front of the camera.
The heat from the four-goal haul lasted for a few days, but Gao Nuo had long since put those things behind him as the team prepared for the next match.
On the Manchester United training ground, Gao Nuo and Neymar were playing a crossbar challenge with Bruno Fernandes.
There were five balls in total, and whoever hit the crossbar the fewest times would get their butt kicked by the other two.
This was a little game they often used to relax, and Gao Nuo was always the one punished.
This time was no exception; Neymar hit 3 out of 5, Bruno hit 2 out of 5, while Gao Nuo didn't hit the crossbar once.
Just as he was about to stick out his butt, Erik ten Hag's voice came from the sidelines: “Gao, come here!”
Before Neymar and Bruno could react, Gao Nuo scurried over.
“What's up, Boss?”
Erik ten Hag seemed to be in a good mood.
“Your recent performance has been excellent.
I'm planning to let you play in the Champions League.”
“No problem, I've been waiting for a long time, thank you, Boss!” Gao Nuo said calmly, a little stiffly.
“Are you still angry? I'll tell you a secret: there's been a personnel change in management; those two guys were fired,” Erik ten Hag said mysteriously.
Gao Nuo's expression softened considerably.
“No, Boss, I know it wasn't your fault.
Don't worry, I'll deliver a performance.”
“Go on, kid, train hard.” Erik ten Hag left after saying that, and the training session ended.
Gao Nuo returned to the locker room a bit dejected.
Casemiro sat next to Gao Nuo.
“What's wrong, kid, did you argue with the Boss?”
Gao Nuo forced a smile.
“No, the Boss told me I could play in the next Champions League match.”
Antony, who was nearby, interjected: “Did you offend someone, kid? Why didn't they let you play in the Champions League?”
Varane also chimed in, “Didn't the Boss say he wanted Gao to conserve his energy? Look how well he's been performing in the League, a four-goal haul!”
Neymar gave Varane a somewhat disdainful look.
“Have you ever seen someone conserving energy who doesn't even come on as a substitute? They'd rather have Bruno play striker than Gao?”
Bruno Fernandes, who was caught in the crossfire, couldn't remain silent.
“I discussed it with the Boss; it's normal personnel rotation.”
Gao Nuo still took the initiative to end the conversation.
“It's not the Boss's problem; didn't we discuss it? I wasn't ready before.”
His teammates also stopped discussing it and started chatting about unrelated topics.
In fact, Antony replacing Gao Nuo in the Champions League starting lineup was considered normal by everyone.
After all, there are more than 11 people in a team, and there will always be opportunities for rotation.
Being a regular starter doesn't mean starting every match; appearing in the starting lineup for most games fully aligns with the promise Erik ten Hag made.
At 19 years old, at a club like Manchester United, it was already very rare for Gao Nuo to get the playing time he had.
His teammates were only curious why he didn't even get a chance to come on as a substitute.
The Champions League had already completed three group stage matches, and Manchester United had drawn a very favorable group, being placed in Group 5 with Porto, Rangers, and Club Brugge.
For Manchester United this season, as long as they didn't self-destruct, advancing to the knockout stage was a foregone conclusion.
For Gao Nuo, this should have been a happy occasion, but then something discordant happened.
Two management leaders, hired during the Glazer family's tenure, had been instrumental in Antony's transfer.
They were very dissatisfied with Gao Nuo occupying a starting position and only refrained from openly opposing it due to pressure from the new owner.
These two arrogant white men, as Gao Nuo's performance got better and better, not only didn't change their minds but disliked this yellow-skinned kid even more.
Finally, at the start of the Champions League, the two of them secretly put direct pressure on Erik ten Hag, forcibly depriving Gao Nuo of his playing opportunities.
Antony naturally took his place.
Erik ten Hag was very helpless.
Although the new owner valued Gao Nuo, it was from a capital perspective.
Except for participating in setting the team's season goals before the start of the new season, everything was handed over to the professional management team.
They were more concerned with the team's interests, and even though the Champions League had already played three rounds, no one had asked Erik ten Hag why Gao Nuo hadn't played.
On one side was his direct superior, and on the other was his favorite disciple.
Erik ten Hag was in a difficult position in the middle.
After weighing the pros and cons, he found Gao Nuo, conveyed the management's decision, but promised Gao Nuo that he would need some time to handle the matter.
Gao Nuo was unhappy.
Even coming on as a substitute would have been acceptable to him; there was no reason to completely deny him playing time.
Li Qiang exploded, directly confronting these two leaders in management.
As a result, their attitude was very firm; they seized on the point that Gao Nuo had already gotten a lot of playing time in the League and simply would not let him play, giving Li Qiang no face at all.
The media?
These two executives were very resourceful; they directly contacted the media, publicly stating that Gao Nuo needed to better maintain his performance in the League and didn't have the extra energy to compete in the Champions League.
They even grandiosely claimed that this decision was very difficult and was made out of protection for Gao Nuo.
As for some dissenting voices, after leveraging some connections, they no longer appeared.
Simply put, Gao Nuo was sabotaged.
With the support he currently had in the locker room, if his teammates stood up for him, it would only increase conflict between the players and the coach, making it difficult to cause changes in management.
Out of respect and trust for Erik ten Hag, Gao Nuo endured it.
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Li Qiang was speechless about this matter.
Although he had Erik ten Hag's assurance, he still couldn't swallow this insult and immediately began contacting some big clubs, hinting that Gao Nuo was interested in finding a new club during the winter transfer window.
Not only that, but Li Qiang also took Gao Nuo to the seaside to relax at the start of the Champions League, though the three of them tacitly avoided mentioning the matter at the time.
Things took a turn for the better after Gao Nuo's four-goal haul.
At the very beginning of the Champions League, when Gao Nuo had gone two consecutive games without scoring, Erik ten Hag was powerless and could only wait silently.
With Gao Nuo's explosion in form, his popularity soared once again.
Erik ten Hag seized the opportunity and directly contacted the owner by name, expressing his strong dissatisfaction with the management's decision to not allow a scorer who had netted four goals in a single match to appear in the Champions League.
He stated that such a foolish decision needed to be thoroughly investigated.
These two management leaders, with an inexplicable sense of superiority, were self-righteous when faced with an internal investigation, distrusting Chinese players and believing that Gao Nuo was just a flash in the pan.
Even after being fired, neither of them changed their narrative.
Gao Nuo learned the full story from Li Qiang.
While grateful to Erik ten Hag, his desire to become stronger grew even firmer.
Since coming to Manchester United, he had experienced injustices, first with the white coaches at the tryout camp, then his hair-thin offside call, and now this blatant discrimination.
Gao Nuo had suffered many injustices because of his identity as a Chinese player.
He deeply understood that all of this was because he wasn't strong enough; strength was the only way to earn respect.
If he had been able to put on a four-goal show earlier, perhaps his path to playing in the Champions League wouldn't have been so bumpy.
In any case, the matter was over, and Gao Nuo was the winning party.