75: Chapter 75 Dribbling to Clear the Enemy's Situation + Playing Tricks on the Gunner: Creating a Point? Yu Bai Forcefully Changes the Script!

In the latter half of the first half, the match seemed to have fallen completely under Arsenal's control.

The intensity of the Gunners' High Pressing left the Leicester City players in a panic; Passing errors were frequent, and the ball could barely even make it past the halfway line.

Extending the lead seemed to be just a matter of time.

Just as the Blue Foxes were trapped in a passive state, almost suffocating, that blue figure wearing number 52 became the only X-factor on the pitch.

Yu Bai was not obsessed with staying in the frontcourt waiting for the ball.

He actively and significantly dropped back, retreating to the edge of his own penalty area, or even deeper.

This was no longer a comfortable attacking area, but a meat-grinder of a midfield heartland, the "minefield" where Arsenal's High Pressing was most ferocious and the physical confrontation most intense.

He voluntarily shouldered the heavy responsibility of receiving the ball, shaking off markers, and distributing play.

This was a thankless, high-risk "dirty job."

Receiving the ball here meant instantly facing a siege by at least two Arsenal players; a mistake would be equivalent to handing the opponent a direct frontcourt counterattack opportunity.

But Yu Bai insisted on "dancing" right here.

What he was exploiting was precisely Arsenal's mentality of "never letting the ball easily pass through this area."

Every time he received the ball in the backcourt, he used the top-tier ball control skills granted by "Demon of Dribbling (Legend)" to shield the ball, turn, and change direction in tight spaces.

Arsenal players were forced to use fouls to stop him. Once there was physical contact, Yu Bai would "reasonably utilize the rules," and under the implicit buff of "Superstar Treatment," he would consciously exaggerate the actions of being fouled to make them obvious.

The whistle of referee Craig Pawson sounded again and again.

He might hesitate when it came to calling a penalty inside Arsenal's box, but in his own half, facing these relatively clear pulls, shoves, and kicks to the heels, he couldn't help but blow the whistle.

"Beep—!" Foul, Free kick for Leicester City in the backcourt.

"Beep—!" Foul, match interrupted.

"Beep—!" Still a foul.

With his "unreasonable" Dribbling and "clever" drawing of fouls, Yu Bai forcibly cut Arsenal's fluid attacking rhythm into pieces.

The Gunners' momentum, just beginning to rise, was forcibly interrupted again and again by these frequent whistles, much like a speeding sports car constantly having its emergency brakes slammed on.

Arsenal's offensive was forcibly "choked off" by a 17-year-old in this manner.

Until... Arsenal players began to realize that they could no longer easily foul this "porcelain doll."

[Holy crap! Xiao Bai is putting on a show in the backcourt!]

[This ball control, this drawing of fouls, master-level football IQ!]

[Arsenal: Damn it, can't touch him, right?]

[Craig Pawson: My mouth is numb from blowing this whistle today!]

37th minute.

The horn of counterattack!

Yu Bai received the ball again in his own half, facing a double-team from Santi Cazorla and Flamini, and escaped with a nimble Marseille turn! He looked up, observing the huge gap left by Arsenal's defense due to their high press, as well as Vardy's ghostly sprint.

A precise long pass spanning half the field!

The ball, like a precision-guided missile, found the surging Vardy!

Arsenal center-back Per Mertesacker chased back frantically, but still fell half a step behind when Vardy broke into the penalty area!

One-on-one! Excellent opportunity!

Vardy adjusted for a step and fired a shot at the near post! However, Arsenal's goalkeeping god Čech, as if possessed by a deity, miraculously blocked the ball with his right foot and out past the end line!

"Godly save! Čech!"

"Vardy! Missed opportunity!"

"Yu Bai's long pass, absolutely brilliant!"

39th minute.

The Blue Foxes gain momentum!

Having their rhythm interrupted repeatedly, Arsenal's high-intensity High Pressing from the start had consumed a huge amount of Stamina, and at this moment, their rhythm and Stamina were showing a subtle decline.

Leicester City keenly seized upon this!

Yu Bai launched an attack again on the left flank. After cutting inside repeatedly to shake off the defense, he didn't get greedy, instead delivering a low, diagonal cross-field pass that precisely found Mahrez on the right!

The Algerian magician went one-on-one against Héctor Bellerín! A realistic shoulder-drop feint, followed by a swift cut inside, created a sliver of space, and he pushed the ball with his left foot toward the far corner of the goal!

It was Čech again! He reacted with lightning speed, diving to the side, his right fingertips barely grazing the ball, causing it to deflect slightly and slide out past the far post!

"Ah—!"

King Power Stadium erupted with a huge groan of regret!

Mahrez clutched his head in disbelief, but didn't forget to give a forceful thumbs-up to Yu Bai on the left! This pass—the timing, the technique, the imagination—was top-tier!

[Is Čech hacking?! He can save that?!]

[Xiao Bai's Vision and technique, he's got the makings of a midfield master!]

[Arsenal's defense is starting to crumble!]

Corner kick on the left.

Yu Bai took the initiative to run to the corner flag. He didn't choose a conventional high cross, but instead quickly played a short corner to the nearby Kante.

Kante understood immediately and knocked it back.

Tactical corner!

Yu Bai received the ball again near the sideline, forming a one-on-one situation!

"Leicester City has given up on the corner attack? They want Yu Bai to take him on one-on-one?!" the commentator exclaimed.

Arsenal's defensive rotation fell into chaos, and in the haste, Mesut Özil went to defend Yu Bai.

Attacking artist vs. defensive black hole, the result was without suspense—with two simple rhythm changes from Yu Bai, Mesut Özil was beaten clean!

Yu Bai dribbled along the byline and cut into the penalty area! Per Mertesacker's massive frame came over to cover like a moving fortress, blocking the angle.

In a flash, Yu Bai poked the ball with the tip of his right foot in an extremely concealed manner! Nutmeg! The ball went through Per Mertesacker's legs!

The shame and anger of being nutmegged instantly clouded Per Mertesacker's mind; he subconsciously and obviously reached out his right hand, blocking in front of Yu Bai, obstructing his path forward.

Yu Bai fell to the ground in response.

For this ball, he could actually have gritted his teeth and pushed through, forcing his way past. But this block by Per Mertesacker would inevitably slow him down, and with the penalty area already crowded, this momentary hesitation would be enough for the opportunity to vanish.

If the team were leading, Yu Bai might have chosen a more "heroic" way.

But with the team trailing at this moment, what he needed was the most practical, most efficient way—to reverse the score.

Drawing a penalty was clearly more likely to succeed than forcing a shot.

Thus, he chose to go down.

From referee Craig Pawson's perspective: Per Mertesacker was nutmegged and did indeed reach out to block Yu Bai's path, which was a clear foul inside the penalty area. As for whether Yu Bai fell "cleanly," in the face of the fact of the foul, it was no longer important.

Hesitating for less than 0.5 seconds, Craig Pawson's finger pointed firmly to the penalty spot!

"Beep—!!!"

"Penalty!"

Yu Bai lay on the turf of Arsenal's penalty area, his chest heaving violently, the somewhat blinding afternoon sun making him slightly squint his eyes.

He looked up at that expanse of open blue sky above King Power Stadium, segmented by the stadium structure...

That whistle signaling the penalty cut through all the noise and clearly drilled into his ears—

Like music to his ears.