Shi Dongpeng was standing nearby, getting ready, so he heard every single word Alan Johnson said with perfect clarity.
First came shock. Shi Dongpeng couldn’t believe that a senior figure in the world of hurdling, a legendary athlete, would say something like that in public.
Then came the anger.
Anyone would be furious when faced with such ridicule and discrimination.
"Liu Xiang, you’re just going to let him walk away like that?" Shi Dongpeng rushed over and asked angrily.
"What else could I do?"
Liu Xiang clenched his fists. ’Start a fight with him in a foreign country? Get suspended, arrested by the police, and bring shame to all Chinese athletes?’
He couldn’t afford those consequences.
"If you won’t, I will." Shi Dongpeng stomped his foot, about to charge forward.
Liu Xiang quickly grabbed him and said through gritted teeth, "Calm down."
Shi Dongpeng couldn’t break free. His face was pale with rage as he said in a low voice, "That guy is infuriating. I swear I’ll beat him in the race."
’Win?’
Liu Xiang gave a bitter, helpless smile. After being mocked like that, didn’t he feel wronged? Didn’t he want to win on the track and make Alan Johnson eat every last one of his words? But it was too difficult. The man was a world champion and the world record holder. How could he possibly win?
"Let’s just train for now," Liu Xiang said in a low voice.
Alan Johnson was already far away. Shi Dongpeng slapped his thigh in frustration and said through gritted teeth, "I think he’s just scared of us."
Colin Jackson was about to retire, and while Alan Johnson was getting older, he could still run.
Looking across the entire globe, Liu Xiang was definitely one of the few who could potentially challenge his records.
Shi Dongpeng believed that Alan Johnson was scared of Liu Xiang, and that was why he had deliberately come over to provoke him.
Liu Xiang just shook his head with a bitter smile.
’Thinking like that is just pure self-deception,’ he thought.
Chen Yu, who had been chatting with Dragila, saw the entire exchange.
Soon after, Chen Yu received a call from Alan Johnson.
"Chen, why did you have me do that? I feel like what I said just now was a bit over the top. I was actually afraid he was going to hit me," Alan Johnson said over the phone, sounding puzzled.
When he had first received Chen Yu’s call telling him to deliberately provoke and mock Liu Xiang, he couldn’t tell if Chen Yu was trying to train the kid or if he held some sort of grudge against him.
"If it was over the top, so be it," Chen Yu said with a chuckle. "His confidence is a little lacking. This should serve as a kind of motivation for him."
Alan Johnson understood that, of course, but he asked worriedly, "But Chen, aren’t you afraid that if he loses the race, it’ll be a blow to his confidence?"
If he won, it would be a successful motivational tactic. But if he lost, the blow to his confidence would be magnified.
Chen Yu just laughed and didn’t respond.
But Alan Johnson seemed to read between the lines. His tone was surprised as he said, "Chen, you don’t actually think he can beat me, do you?"
"I’ve been keeping an eye on him. He’s very young, and his times are great. Maybe in a few years, when I’m old and gray, he might really be able to beat me. But right now, he definitely can’t."
Alan Johnson was quite clear about Liu Xiang’s current capabilities.
Chen Yu chuckled. "That’s not a given, Alan. I, for one, have a lot of confidence in him."
’The training period has been short, but the direction is absolutely correct,’ Chen Yu thought. ’At this point, as long as he’s in good form and has a flash of inspiration, he can reach his peak performance. Using the adjusted technique, he absolutely has a chance to defeat Alan Johnson—and to overcome himself.’
"Alright then. I can only hope he runs a good time," Alan Johnson said before hanging up.
Chen Yu looked over at Liu Xiang, who had already begun his training.
He hadn’t even completed two runs before he knocked over a hurdle.
And it didn’t just happen once; it happened several more times after that.
Sun Haiping’s face turned pale with anxiety. In his current state, how could he even think about contending for a medal? It wasn’t even certain he could make it into the finals.
Chen Yu watched the entire session and could sense that Liu Xiang’s mental state had been affected.
The mockery from a senior and personal idol, combined with his uncertainty about the adjusted technique... In the world of competitive sports, where every little detail is painstakingly honed, the slightest mental fluctuation could affect one’s performance.
However, Chen Yu didn’t intervene. The incident had just occurred, and Liu Xiang was still reeling from the shock. He hadn’t had time to calm down and think things through.
The competition started on the 14th; there was still time for him to process it.
If he could sort it out on his own, that would be for the best.
If he couldn’t, it wouldn’t be too late for Chen Yu to step in and help.
Even if it ultimately affected his performance in the preliminary heats, it wouldn’t be a major issue.
He just needed to get through the prelims.
With Liu Xiang’s level of talent, even in his worst form, he wouldn’t fail to qualify.
After training, Chen Yu and the other two returned by car, while Feng Shuyong and his group went back to their original hotel.
On the way back, Liu Xiang didn’t say a word. Sun Haiping saw this and grew anxious, but there was nothing he could do.
Chen Yu wasn’t worried either. He hadn’t treated many athletes using psychology, but he understood one principle: psychological issues weren’t like physical ones. You couldn’t solve them instantly with a single surgery. They truly required a process, and they required time.
When they returned to the hotel, reporters were already gathered outside.
The news that Chen Yu had come to the United Kingdom had completely leaked.
That evening, Chen Yu saw news reports about himself on television. The media was speculating about why he was in the United Kingdom and which big-name star was injured and in need of his treatment.
And that speculation reached its peak the next day when Ferguson rushed to the hotel.
"Alex, your timing is terrible," Chen Yu joked.
His arrival had all but confirmed the media’s speculation.
Ferguson pursed his lips, a look of complete indifference on his face.
"Rio, we meet again." Chen Yu smiled and hugged the player with the buzz cut standing beside him.
Rio Ferdinand.
The day before, when reporters had been shouting "Ferdinand," Chen Yu hadn’t realized who they were talking about.
Only today did he realize who they meant.
Chen Yu knew that Rio Ferdinand had been a starting center-back for the national team during last year’s World Cup.
However, since he was a defender, Chen Yu’s knowledge of him was limited. Besides, he remembered him playing for Leeds United, so when Manchester United was mentioned, he hadn’t made the connection.
"Hello, Doctor Chen," Ferdinand greeted him, a little reserved.
Chen Yu invited the two to sit down. After a few sentences of small talk, he got down to business.
Although Manchester was close to Birmingham—just over 100 kilometers away—the fact that Ferguson had made the trip meant it was for more than just a friendly chat. He was here for Ferdinand’s thigh.
A muscle strain.
To be precise, a hamstring strain.
The front of the thigh is the quadriceps; that was the area Carter had injured.
The hamstrings, on the other hand, are at the back of the thigh. The two muscle groups are antagonistic. When the quadriceps contract too forcefully—for example, during a powerful kick—it can cause the hamstrings to overstretch, resulting in an injury.
Ferguson already had the scans ready.
Chen Yu barely glanced at them, instead having Ferdinand lie face down for a physical examination.
"Alex, to be honest, the intensity of the Premier League is a little extreme," Chen Yu said as he conducted the examination.
People always talk about the high intensity of Serie A, the ’Little World Cup,’ but the Premier League is every bit as demanding.
The pace is fast, the defending is intense, and the schedule is packed. Add to that a top team like Manchester United competing on multiple fronts, and it’s practically inevitable that players will suffer from cumulative fatigue injuries.
Ferguson sighed and said helplessly, "Chen, that’s a problem I can’t solve."
Chen Yu patted Ferdinand, signaling for him to get up, then said, "He just needs to rest more."
Ferdinand’s problem was clearly caused by excessive fatigue.
"And then there’s daily maintenance. Alex, you all really need to start taking that more seriously," Chen Yu added.
Resting up is one thing, but routine maintenance is even more critical.
"Manchester United isn’t short on cash, is it?" Chen Yu added.
Compared to that penny-pincher Wenger, Manchester United should be much wealthier. Ferguson had told him long ago that he planned to increase investment in medical and training facilities, such as purchasing all sorts of high-tech equipment.
Ferguson gave a wry smile. "We’ve already bought the things you use, like the Ultra-Low Temperature Freezing Chamber and all that."
Compared to spending huge sums on players, that kind of investment was nothing. It was all implemented this season.
"But even though the equipment is great, you still need people who know how to use it, and use it well," Ferguson added.
The equipment was definitely helpful. Ferguson had clearly noticed that fewer players were getting injured this season.
But it was only a slight reduction, far from meeting his expectations.
And it wasn’t just about the equipment. The advanced methods he had learned from Chen Yu during his trip to the United States were good, but he lacked qualified personnel to execute them properly.
Take physical therapy and massage, for instance. There was a world of difference between Chen Yu’s techniques and those of his own team’s medical staff.
"Chen, what do you think of this? We’ll cover the costs to send some of our people to the United States for you to train. How about during the off-season?" Ferguson asked.
He wouldn’t even dare to think about poaching Chen Yu’s staff.
Besides, the team’s medical staff and Trainers already had their own professional development plans for the off-season, so why not just send them to the United States and have Chen Yu run a training program for some advanced studies?
"In the summer?" Chen Yu frowned slightly.
It was a good idea, of course.
In fact, Chen Yu had been wanting to do something like this for a long time.
The System’s effects were important, but practical experience was equally crucial and worth sharing.
Furthermore, now that he had established his sports laboratory, Chen Yu wanted to thoroughly pass on his experience in sports medicine. He wanted to reach a point where his students were everywhere, making him the undisputed number one authority in the field.
But he was supposed to get married and go on his honeymoon this summer. If he took this on, he probably wouldn’t have time for that.
"Let me think about it," Chen Yu said.
Ferguson nodded quickly in thanks.
The conversation returned to Ferdinand.
"He needs to improve his glute strength," Chen Yu added.
Last summer, Ferdinand had transferred to Manchester United for another record-breaking Premier League fee, but he had been plagued by injuries since December.
It had become a constant cycle of returning to play only to get injured again. If his hamstring strain continued like this, it could easily become a chronic issue. He was still young—only twenty-five this year. If it turned into a recurring old injury, the impact on his career would be enormous.
Therefore, maintenance and treatment alone weren’t enough; he also needed targeted training for improvement.
Constant muscle strains due to fatigue and other factors were one side of the coin. But fundamentally, the problem was insufficient training and a lack of muscle strength.
If you could train your muscles to be indestructible, it would be difficult to strain them at all.
The hamstrings are located on the back of the thigh and are relatively difficult to strengthen directly. To improve the strength of that muscle group, one actually needs to train the glutes.

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