57: One Man Defends a Whole Team!

Etihad Stadium!

A piercing scream erupted from the stands!

The fans stared in disbelief, eyes wide open — they were witnessing something unimaginable!

Serving as Crystal Palace's undisputed central playmaker…

Wearing the No. 10 jersey, Kai —

launched a ferocious sliding tackle from the side…

and forcefully cleared Balotelli's threatening shot out of the danger zone!

The entire stadium erupted!

These were the two central figures of this year's Golden Boy Award battle, once again facing off head-to-head!

A forward versus a playmaking midfielder.

In a match, they rarely get such close-range direct encounters.

But at this very moment!

Kai shattered the audience's expectations once again!

He dropped all the way from the No. 10 position to the defensive line around the No. 4 zone…

and decisively neutralized a lethal shot from Manchester City's striker!

Balotelli froze in place.

Before he could react—

Kai's figure flashed past him, charging toward the ball's drop point!

The cleared ball flew in the direction of the Manchester City players.

Yaya Touré brought it under control and tried to turn it back…

But SKai was already upon him!

With the God-Level Interception Card activated, all his defense-related stats — tackling, duels, stamina — were maxed out during this 20-minute window!

Amid a chorus of gasps from the crowd—

Kai clashed with Yaya Touré!

And snatched the ball away with ease.

He ripped the ball from under the feet of Manchester City's midfield giant!

The entire Etihad exploded!

Near Crystal Palace's penalty area, Balotelli looked completely lost.

His eyes were filled with self-doubt, questioning his entire existence.

This was supposed to be the half where Manchester City's prodigious forward came back to life…

But instead, he was stunned all over again.

Up in the stands—

Crystal Palace fans were roaring with all their might.

Kai's performance had driven them to the brink of madness!

What were they witnessing?

Crystal Palace's playmaker — had turned into a defensive enforcer?!

His tackles, interceptions…

His positional awareness and physical duels in every challenge—

They were on the level of a seasoned world-class defensive midfielder!

This scene defied all logic!

Even the Manchester City players were frozen.

Even Crystal Palace's own squad was shocked!

But at that moment, they felt as though they had been filled with an unshakable energy!

They united, tightened their defensive line — determined to fight alongside their captain no matter what!

In stark contrast—

Manchester City fans were getting restless.

Manager Mancini stood dumbfounded on the sidelines.

His expression darkened as he turned to his analytics expert.

That man was drenched in sweat, flipping wildly through the data:

> "We're in the dark here… this just doesn't make sense!"

> "His sweeping ability on defense is like that of an experienced destroyer — and combined with that insane dribbling from the first half — none of this was in our scouting report!"

> "This is all unknown data... unless he's been specifically training in these areas recently. But how could someone master all this in such a short time?!"

> "This guy isn't human! 'Genius' isn't enough to describe him — he's a monster!"

The Manchester City coaching bench was in total disarray.

Despite throwing nearly everything into attack in the second half — City still had nothing to show for it.

And the match continued.

City's expensive superstars couldn't sit still any longer.

They started pressing with full force.

Yaya Touré and David Silva pushed all the way to the front line.

Tevez kept crashing into Crystal Palace's defensive wall.

With regular time running out, the superstars of the Blue Moon were on the verge of public embarrassment!

Despite their overwhelming superiority on paper, Manchester City couldn't break through Crystal Palace's structure!

And as they pushed even harder…

They fell into deeper despair.

Because in their own half—

An all-seeing, omnipresent "tackling machine" had appeared!

With God's-eye vision and the God-Level Interception Card…

Kai popped up precisely wherever he was needed on the pitch.

And choked off every one of City's attacking waves!

With miraculous tackles and thunderous sliding interceptions—

he completely shut down Manchester City's billion-pound lineup!

The Manchester press box was in chaos!

> "What's going on?!"

> "Since when did Crystal Palace have a defensive iron wall?!"

> "His form — he looks exactly like a world-class defensive midfielder!"

> "But isn't he supposed to be a No. 10?!"

They couldn't fathom how the game had turned in this direction.

> "Is this kind of genius even real?"

> "He dominates both attack and defense, commands the No. 10 and the false 9, and now he's even dropping to the No. 4 to play holding mid?!"

In the stands, Wenger couldn't stay still.

His aging eyes were now glowing with rare intensity.

> "If a player like this exists in your team, he's a god.

But let him fall into another club's hands, and it's like unleashing the devil!"

Wenger made up his mind — he would no longer sit on the sidelines.

Faced with this jaw-dropping Crystal Palace super talent, Wenger could no longer pretend "the strongest is already in our squad" — what utter nonsense!

He had to act!

Arsenal had been saddled with debt for years.

Their fans had grown restless and bitter.

Since Henry's departure, they had only managed top-four finishes in the Premier League—

And in the Champions League? Not a single trophy.

A century-old club, yet never once had they lifted the UCL title.

Wenger wanted to change all of that!

He would persuade Arsenal's majority owner, Stan Kroenke, that in the upcoming summer transfer window—

This otherworldly genius must wear the Arsenal red at the Emirates!

On the other side of the stadium…

Manchester United staff were already making phone calls.

The long-brewing "Golden Boy Award Battle" had drawn the full attention of the Premier League's elite clubs.

In this FA Cup knockout match—

Kai delivered a performance nothing short of madness, completely conquering English football!

A player who could seamlessly switch between the No. 9 and No. 10 roles—

Serve as both playmaker and finisher—

And now even drop back to No. 4, becoming a midfield destroyer.

This level of talent—

Is nearly unmatched in football history!

On the pitch—

The match neared its end!

Balotelli was completely lost in Kai's whirlwind defense.

Every time he touched the ball—

That black-haired shadow would come rushing in like a gust of wind.

It was becoming Balotelli's worst nightmare.

He couldn't even take more than three steps—

Before the ball was precisely stolen from him again!

There was nothing he could do!

Balotelli's eyes were filled with confusion.

This was nowhere near the kind of match he had expected.

The Manchester City prodigy wandered helplessly across the pitch.

He just couldn't get the ball anymore.

Every time he did, Kai would steal it away.

Even his teammates lost their patience.

To win the match, they began choosing more reasonable passing options.

And what did Balotelli get in return?

A chorus of boos echoing through the Etihad.

Even Manchester City fans couldn't take it anymore!

The Italian prodigy they had pinned their hopes on—

This was the result?!

He had been utterly and thoroughly crushed by a 16-year-old from Crystal Palace!

The situation was spiraling out of control!

And those boos… were only growing louder.