Football: I can see player entries.

Chapter 32 A Terrible Start

In their first match of the new season, Burton Athletic will face their old rivals Aston Villa away from home.

As one of the top teams in the Championship, they unexpectedly lost to Burton Albion last season, which ultimately prevented them from gaining promotion to the Premier League.

Head coach Di Matteo was dismissed as a result.

This left their players and fans seething with anger.

Li Yanqing fielded a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Bradford and Turner leading the defense, while the defensive midfielders and full-backs were all youth academy graduates.

Quinn is in the center, with Miller and Sun Yan on his left and right respectively, and Murphy as the lone striker.

Jami and Ogradi remained on the bench.

All the young players are on the field, and these lads will be his absolute mainstays for the next six months.

As for Nasri, he has not yet completed his mission, and it will be quite difficult for him to overcome the negative effects of the terms through sheer willpower.

Li Yanqing has already given up on this match; it will be very difficult to win, so it's better to use it as training ground.

Taking even one point home would be a pleasant surprise.

Right from the start, Burton, focused on defense, were pushed back to the vicinity of the penalty area by the opposing team.

But they performed quite well, and Bradford, as captain, set a good example.

Their defense was quite solid, and they have already averted several crises.

Turner defended very well in this situation, his height of 1.93 meters was enough to protect the low-altitude areas in the penalty area.

But Aston Villa are clearly not so easy to deal with.

In the 40th minute, they unleashed a long-range shot that breached Burton's goal.

After conceding a goal, Burton seemed to completely lose their spirit, and their form plummeted.

Murphy was looking for an opportunity to catch up.

But as soon as he receives the ball, he is immediately double-teamed by the opposing center-backs.

Quinn couldn't provide enough support in the mid lane, making the attack extremely difficult.

After this dismal performance continued for some time, Burton conceded two more goals in the second half.

In the end, Aston Villa defeated Burton Albion 3-0, successfully avenging their loss.

Li Yanqing remained calm about the situation and praised the opponent's performance at the post-match press conference.

It's normal to lose a game when you use such young players so boldly.

The only surprise was Sun Yan, who had just joined the club. Although he was positioned as a winger, he had good speed and an unexpectedly wide coverage in both defense and attack.

If his ability to break through defenses improves further, he can be entrusted with the flanks for the next few years.

In the second round of the league, Burton Athletic will face Stoke City.

The opponent is a team that was just relegated from the Premier League last season. Although most of the team's elite players have been poached, their strength should not be underestimated.

Burton held on until the 70th minute before the opponent broke through their goal, but unfortunately they couldn't find any good counter-attack opportunities.

The final score was 0-1, and they lost the game again.

In the third round, they will face West Bromwich Albion, who were also relegated from the Premier League...

It has to be said that Burton Albion's luck was really bad; they ran into several strong teams right from the start.

Only one relegated team, Swansea City, remains to be faced.

They still lost to their opponent in this match.

They could have taken a point, but the players held on until the 80th minute, when the score was still tied.

Jamie, who came on as a substitute, found a counter-attack opportunity and, with the help of Murphy and Sun Yan, almost scored a goal.

Unfortunately, the shot was blocked by the opposing goalkeeper, which gave the opponent a chance to counterattack.

Ultimately, they suffered their first three consecutive losses.

Burton Albion have had a poor start to the season, suffering three consecutive defeats; the young manager's magic is fading.

Burton Albion's weakness is obvious, and they may face relegation again...

Burton Albion's first team is overwhelmed by a lack of young academy players, failing to meet expectations.

Recently, the media has been filled with news of this kind.

This was a blow to Burton's players; they were all sighing and complaining, and it was difficult for them to maintain a level above average.

However, Li Yanqing has been in a pretty good mood lately.

Although they lost all three games, they performed better in each one.

Under the high-pressure competition environment, the young players are making rapid progress, and they have basically faced all the toughest opponents.

The most encouraging thing is that Nasri has finally managed to control his weight, and his injury probability is now close to normal levels.

Although it's almost half a month late, I can play in the next game as scheduled!

This is the time when we need to pull ourselves together; the team can't afford to falter at this moment!

"Hey guys, cheer up!"

"How old are you? You look like a bunch of listless old men!"

"I...we lost the game, boss," Quinn, with his more outgoing personality, answered first.

In the last game, he took the final shot, but it didn't go in, and it led to the team's loss.

This wasn't the first time; he kept missing opportunities, which made him feel extremely guilty.

"Okay, it's my fault." Li Yanqing shrugged and took the blame.

"I should have told you earlier that I gave up on these matches; it was a tactical problem on my part."

"Look at Chris, someone who's so prone to anxiety, yet he's still all smiles every day after three consecutive losses..."

Chris, who was some distance away, didn't hear this, otherwise he would definitely have cursed out loud.

He really didn't want to smile, but at Li Yanqing's insistence, he had no choice but to pretend to be happy every day.

It's not easy, okay?

“Chris knows all this, so he’s not worried. Now I’m telling you.”

"So don't worry, I won't make you run laps as punishment."

Hearing this, the atmosphere became slightly more harmonious.

Many players laughed. The head coach had already said it was their own problem, so what else could they think about?

“Nasri is ready to play, and you guys are working together very well.”

"There are hardly any strong teams left. Who are we afraid of in the remaining matches?"

"You should be happy!"

"Are you planning to continue making fools of yourselves in the next match against Queens Park Rangers?"

The players looked at each other in confusion at first, but then they realized that what he said made sense.

With all the strong teams gone, there's no reason to keep backing down!

"Then tell me! What will we do?"

"We have to win! Boss!" the players shouted in unison.

"We must win! We must score! We must score lots of goals!"