"The match is over! It is all over!"
"Manchester United, with a defense made of absolute steel, have kept Bayern's furious attacks out of their net!"
"The aggregate score is Bayern Munich 2, Manchester United 3!"
"Let us congratulate Manchester United on advancing to the Champions League semi-finals!"
"Manchester United last reached the Champions League semi-finals back in the 2010-2011 season, a campaign where they defeated Marseille, Chelsea, and Schalke 04, only to fall to the mighty Barcelona at the very end."
"A full seven years—I imagine Manchester United fans have been waiting for this day, counting every single moment."
"Probably no one predicted this outcome before the match, including myself."
"Whether on paper or in tactical approach, Bayern seemed to hold the advantage, but that doesn't mean they deserved to win by default."
"As the former West German national team coach Sepp Herberger once famously said: 'The ball is round, and anything is possible.'"
"That is the charm of football—the ones who truly laugh last are often not those who start the fastest, but those who persevere, endure, and never give up."
"In fact, the world has always been this way, not just in football."
"But there is no eternal victory, nor is there eternal defeat. Both the losers and the winners will continue to move forward."
"Finally, let's congratulate Manchester United once again and wish Bayern Munich all the best for the future!"
Martin Tyler sat in the broadcast commentary box, gazing at the constantly shifting images on the monitor.
Muller, Vidal, Kimmich, Ibrahimović, Pogba, De Gea...
Each face bore a strictly different expression.
Old Trafford seemed transformed into a dreamlike theater of dreams, with hundreds of spotlights casting brilliant rays, illuminating the entire stadium in a glorious glow.
Manchester United fans in the stands pulled out concealed smoke bombs, excitedly climbed onto their seats, and amidst the crowd's wild jostling, pulled the pins.
Hiss!
A thick crimson smoke billowed out, gradually engulfing the entire stand, with the dancing silhouettes of the Manchester United supporters faintly visible within the red mist.
Everyone wore bright smiles, hugging each other, high-fiving strangers, and jumping up and down while singing chants at the top of their lungs.
Originally, they hadn't held much hope for Manchester United's advancement against such a giant, but reality had given them an unimaginable surprise.
Up on the scoreboard stand, the massive screen glowed.
This LED scoreboard had witnessed hundreds of Manchester United matches over the years, and tonight it once again recorded history.
Below it, over ten thousand Bayern Munich fans still sat on their plastic benches, their eyes vacant as they stared blankly at the pitch, looking as if the match hadn't actually ended yet.
But this was merely wishful thinking in their hearts.
They knew better than anyone that the match was truly over—Bayern had once again fallen before the Champions League semifinals, and to make matters worse, they were defeated by the very team that had snatched the Champions League trophy from them so dramatically in 1999.
The accumulation of these painful emotions made the moment unbearably poignant for them.
Watching the jubilant Manchester United fans celebrating nearby, they felt that human joys and sorrows are never truly shared; the happiness of one side highlights the despair of the other.
...
Meanwhile, down on the field.
Jupp Heynckes smoothed the wrinkles on his suit and walked with heavy steps toward Jose Mourinho, then extended his already wrinkled hand.
"Congratulations! Your performance deserved the victory! Keep pushing forward—we hope we lost to the eventual champions."
Mourinho nodded with a rare, genuine smile. "You played well too."
Victory brings joy, so he was magnanimous, praising the Bayern players for their effort.
Substitute players rushed past the managers, sprinting wildly toward the Manchester United teammates who were still celebrating on the field.
Their efforts and sweat had finally paid off with victory—a joy beyond words, as each person savored the thrill of triumph.
Ling rubbed his sore thighs and simply lay back on the grass.
With his hands resting behind his head, the dazzling floodlights above felt like warm sunlight, spreading comfort throughout his exhausted body and even making him forget his fatigue and hardships.
"Interview time—what are your thoughts on reaching the Champions League semifinals?"
McTominay flopped down beside Ling.
"Amazing!" Ling suddenly threw a punch into the empty air above him.
"Who do you think our semifinal opponents will be? Barca, Real Madrid, or Liverpool?" McTominay asked with a laugh.
"Are you sure those three teams will advance?"
A playful, knowing smile curled at the corner of Ling's lips.
If his memory served him right, Barca would suffer a total collapse tomorrow, turning into a tragedy as they suffered a stunning comeback by Roma.
But he couldn't be one hundred percent sure if things would change, as the world's timeline had already shifted slightly since his arrival.
"Definitely."
McTominay was still puzzled—wasn't it obvious they were the favorites?
Ling didn't respond further, instead closing his eyes to carefully listen to the roar of cheers around him.
...
Not far away.
Bayern players collapsed onto the grass one after another, as if reverting to their tragic 2012 "treble runners-up" selves.
Kimmich buried his head in the turf, covering his face with his hands to hide the tears.
Robben pulled his jersey over his head in frustration.
Muller didn't fall; he stood silently among his teammates.
He wondered what legendary captain Philipp Lahm would have done in this situation.
So he began pulling his teammates up one by one—he had to uphold Bayern's century-old legacy and dignity.
Losing was acceptable, but losing their composure was not.
Bayern could fall on the path to victory—there was no shame in that.
But hanging their heads and stagnating after defeat was absolutely forbidden.
"Let's keep fighting next season. At least compared to the treble runner-up era, we still won the league title this time."
Jerome Boateng, never one for eloquent words, hesitated before offering this attempt at consolation.
The Bayern players' expressions froze upon hearing this, thinking that if you don't know how to speak properly then don't speak at all—though admittedly, thinking that way did make them feel slightly better by distracting them.
Half an hour later.
In the cramped press conference room at Old Trafford, dozens of cameras were trained on Mourinho and Ling on the stage, with flashbulbs going off incessantly.
"Mr. Mourinho, congratulations to Manchester United for advancing to the Champions League semifinals once again. What are your goals for this season's Champions League?"
Mourinho chuckled lightly, leaning into the microphone.
"I've said this many times before the media—my goal, the team's goal, is and can only be the championship!"
"This has been my philosophy since the day I arrived at Manchester United."
A reporter from The Guardian raised their hand to ask, "Could you evaluate the performances of both sides in today's match?"
Mourinho rubbed his chin, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "I won't say much about Manchester United—the lads played brilliantly, fighting until the very last second."
"As for Bayern, they are undoubtedly a strong club. Even when trailing, they maintained high-intensity attacks and caused us a lot of trouble in defense."
The journalists below feverishly typed out Mourinho's words on their laptops before shifting their focus.
Today, Ling was attending the post-match press conference and they were determined to seize the opportunity to question him.
"Ling, how does it feel to wear the iconic Manchester United number 7 jersey?"
One reporter asked a rather friendly opening question.
"Everyone knows the significance of the Manchester United number 7 jersey. If your performance on the pitch is mediocre while wearing it, that proves you don't deserve it."
"So, I feel immense pressure every single moment."
"But I really enjoy that feeling, because pressure is also motivation," Ling answered earnestly.
"And what are your goals for this season's Champions League?" another reporter asked.
"Having come this far, there is no one who doesn't want to win the championship."
Ling looked somewhat helplessly at the reporter, as such a question hardly needed answering.
Soon, the post-match interviews concluded.
---------
Read 30 chapters ahead and support me on patreon.
patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator