Spain.
Barcelona.
Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper.
The favorable Mediterranean climate makes Barcelona one of the most suitable places for human life in all of Europe.
And the strongest football team and the best player in the world today are based here.
Barcelona had just completed an incredible comeback against Sevilla in the Spanish Super Cup at the start of this season.
After losing the first leg 1-3, Barcelona returned to their home ground, Camp Nou, and directly beat Sevilla 4-0, ultimately coming back to win the championship.
It can be said that this kind of comeback has become the norm for this current 'Cosmic Team'.
During the Dream Three era, Barcelona often lost or drew away games, then returned home to completely dominate their opponents.
In the Champions League quarter-finals against Arsenal last season, Barcelona drew the first leg 2-2.
Returning to Camp Nou, they swept Arsenal 4-1, with Messi scoring all four goals.
Messi at this time, paired with the strongest team on Earth, Dream Three Barça, was absolutely every team's nightmare.
Real Madrid under José Mourinho would have to wait until 'Mourinho's Second Year' to truly have the ability to challenge Barcelona.
As for the current Premier League Champions, Red Devils Manchester United, they had no chance against Barcelona.
This was the case in both the 2009 Champions League Final and the later 2011 Champions League Final.
Sir Alex Ferguson's trembling hands, caught by the camera during the final, were the best symbol of Barcelona's dominance during this period.
When the news from England reached Barcelona, Messi and Andrés Iniesta, among others, were playing a rondo game.
When everyone learned that such an explosive genius player had emerged in England, they couldn't help but look at each other.
Although the current Barcelona is invincible worldwide, the Barcelona players are not fools.
They understand exactly what it means for a young player under 18 to score eight goals in four Premier League games.
"Tsk tsk, there are really a lot of prodigies emerging these years. A few years ago, there was Léo, in recent years there's the Italian genius Mario Balotelli, and now there's another super rich second generation. It's getting harder and harder to understand today's football world..."
Xavi, the first core and greatest mind of the Dream Three, known as "Big Mouth Xavi," couldn't help but unconsciously start complaining.
Andrés Iniesta nodded, indicating he felt the same way.
"By the way, Léo, what do you think of this Fly? If nothing unexpected happens, he is very likely to be your competitor in the future."
Andrés Iniesta looked at Messi, who was silent with his head down, and asked his question.
The entire Barcelona team knew one thing clearly: in this team, Messi was the strongest one!
Individual honors like the Ballon dOr basically had nothing to do with them.
Because even if Barcelona won every trophy in a season, the Ballon dOr would only go to Messi.
And the players with the biggest competitiveness for the Ballon dOr right now were undoubtedly Messi of Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid.
As for the former Ballon dOr favorite Kaka, due to long-term injuries at Real Madrid, he basically had a tendency to withdraw from the competition.
As for the former European king Ronaldinho, from the moment Guardiola took charge of Barcelona, he was already eliminated.
His extremely undisciplined lifestyle ruined him.
Ibrahimović did have enough fame, but it still came down to that saying: insufficient hard honors. He hadn't even been in a Champions League Final, so what qualifications did he have?
And now, Fly, who has emerged out of nowhere, whether from the perspective of media opinion or the strength he has currently shown...
He has the opportunity to become a hot candidate to challenge for the Ballon dOr in the future!
Such a person naturally created a competitive relationship with Messi.
Upon hearing Andrés Iniesta's question, Messi didn't reply directly but spoke about something else:
"I don't know, I just hope I can face Arsenal again in this year's Champions League knockout stage!"
As soon as Messi said this, everyone present basically understood what he meant.
Didn't he just want to defeat Fly head-on through a direct confrontation?
"Don't worry, we will definitely help you. Arsenal is no match for us," Xavi, as the team's brain, was the first to express his stance.
Then captain Puyol also stepped forward to express his support for Messi.
Seeing his teammates supporting him one after another, and no longer having that arrogant guy defying him, Messi's mood also improved a lot.
"Fly, you will become the next Cristiano, becoming another one of my defeated opponents!"
...
The results of the fourth round of the Premier League were in.
Premier League Champions Red Devils Manchester United were held to a 3-3 draw away by Everton, currently sitting on 8 points after four League games (two wins, two draws).
Defending champions Chelsea defeated West Ham United 3-1, currently on a four-game winning streak in the League with 12 points, tied with Arsenal.
Arsenal's North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur were held to a 1-1 draw at home by West Brom, fully displaying their 'pseudo-strong team' style.
As for the fallen giants Liverpool, they were again held to a 0-0 draw away by Birmingham, with a record of one win, one draw, and two losses in four League games, accumulating only 4 points.
It can be said that Liverpool's goal this season has once again become competing for fourth place.
As for the Blue Moon Manchester City, who are still known as the 'noisy neighbors', they were also held to a 1-1 draw by Blackburn Rovers.
Their record in four League games is one win, two draws, and one loss, with 5 points.
It can be said that without the foresight of a transmigrator, no one would ever have thought that this Manchester City team could win the Premier League title in two years.
Arsenal had another perfect start to the season, but how long they could maintain this record was unclear to both professionals and the media.
According to Arsenal's track record over the past few seasons, they would basically reveal their true form instantly around the Christmas 'devil's schedule'.
So many people currently believe this, thinking that Arsenal's advantage won't last until January next year.
Whenever Fly heard such comments, he felt a sense of being underestimated.
Let's be honest, what did Arsenal's mid-season collapses in the past have to do with me? I wasn't in the first team back then!
If they can still collapse with me in the team, then what's the point of my existence?
Fly really wanted to have a good debate with those who didn't understand football.
But after thinking about it carefully, he felt there was nothing to say.
Verbal arguments were too pale; when he kicks them into submission, this group of people who only know how to talk will quiet down.
....
September 16th.
Arsenal hosted Portuguese team Braga.
Fly would also have his first Champions League match in his life.
Perhaps because the Champions League was so important, the system, which had always been very stingy, gave a big reward this time:
[Ding dong! Mission issued!]
[Mission Name: Champions League Debut]
[Mission Content: 1. Help the team defeat Braga]
[2. Personally score a goal or provide an assist]
[3. Become the highest-rated player of the match]
[Mission Reward: Each task completed earns 100 Intermediate Soft Rice Points. If all three tasks are completed, an additional 100 Advanced Soft Rice Points will be rewarded]
[Additional Mission Rewards: On top of completing the system tasks, if the post-match rating reaches 9 points or above, receive a Champions League-related item; if the post-match rating reaches 10 points, receive an additional skill (evolvable version)]