Ling could already sense how intense the upcoming Manchester derby would be in April.
With the outcome of this Champions League match no longer in doubt, Ling picked up the remote and switched to another game.
Ian Darke: "Cristiano Ronaldo! A 1.5-second hang time in the air, scoring the decisive header!"
Stewart Robson: "Paris Saint-Germain's counterattack tonight was fiercer than expected, Ian. Kylian Mbappe truly lives up to his nickname 'French Supercar,' showcasing his absolute dominance on the wing with his pace!"
Ian Darke: "But it's still far from enough for PSG. Against Juventus' ironclad, classic Italian defense, the power of a single superstar is limited. The referee's whistle blows, signaling the end of the match!"
Stewart Robson: "Juventus defeats Paris Saint-Germain, tying the aggregate score at 3-3, and advancing to the quarter-finals on away goals! What a night in Turin!"
Ian Darke: "From the current perspective, Cristiano Ronaldo's shocking departure from Real Madrid hasn't been beneficial for the Spanish club, as they've fallen at the threshold of the quarter-finals to Ajax! But Ronaldo has advanced emphatically with his new club!"
Stewart Robson: "Now, as for Paris Saint-Germain, although Mbappe performed well, Neymar was simply not in top form, and their Champions League journey has come to another premature end. Personally, I feel that PSG always seems to inexplicably falter mentally when facing Europe's traditional elite."
Ian Darke: "Perhaps this is what they call 'European pedigree,' Stewart! Hopefully, they can regain their confidence and keep pushing forward next season."
....
On the evening of March 14th.
Allianz Arena.
Darren Fletcher: "Just three days after their grueling North West Derby match against Manchester United, Liverpool now face Niko Kovac's Bayern Munich in Germany!"
Steve McManaman: "The first leg at Anfield ended in a tense 0-0 draw, and today they will determine the final spot in the quarter-finals!"
Darren Fletcher: "Wow, within the first seven minutes, Liverpool takes the lead with a goal! The scorer who changed the tie is Sadio Mane!!!"
Steve McManaman: "Two incredibly tough matches in a week, and Liverpool hasn't held back—instead, they've become even more aggressive! This is Klopp's heavy metal football at its finest!"
Darren Fletcher: "In the 34th minute, Mane scores again! Completely breaking through Bayern's high defensive line! Bayern seems far too accustomed to the slower pace of the Bundesliga, where a lack of domestic competitiveness makes it hard to stand out in Europe."
Steve McManaman: "Finally... congratulations to Liverpool for advancing to the Champions League quarter-finals with a famous win in Munich!"
...
Camp Nou.
Clive Tyldesley: "Messi dribbles past one, two, shoots... and scores! Beautiful!"
Ally McCoist: "In this match, the little genius contributed two goals and two assists, helping Barcelona thrash Lyon 5-1!"
Clive Tyldesley: "Bruno Genesio's youthful Lyon storm failed to take off tonight, but Barcelona's new attacking trio has shown its sharp, ruthless edge!"
Ally McCoist: "From Ernesto Valverde's pre-match declaration, we can clearly see Barcelona's ultimate goals this year: to easily defend their La Liga title and challenge for the absolute pinnacle of Europe!"
Clive Tyldesley: "After last season's dramatic, humiliating comeback defeat to Roma, I believe Barcelona's players will approach these knockout matches with even greater focus!"
....
With that, the prestigious list of Champions League quarter-finalists was officially complete.
Manchester City, Manchester United, Juventus, Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, FC Porto, Liverpool, Ajax!
Across various social media platforms, related news articles sprung up like mushrooms after rain.
"Among this season's Champions League quarter-finalists, Premier League teams aggressively occupy four spots, while La Liga, Serie A, Primeira Liga, and the Eredivisie each have one team. Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga are completely absent from the final eight." — Goal.com
"Looking at the squad strength of the eight teams, Porto and Ajax appear slightly weaker on paper and are seen as 'favorable draws.' Barcelona, Juventus, Manchester United, and Manchester City are considered the main, heavyweight contenders for the title." — Evening Standard
"Currently topping the Champions League scoring charts is Manchester United's Jeremy Ling, who expressed in a recent interview that he would prefer to face Barcelona or Real Madrid. Last season, Manchester United won the Champions League title by luck, which somewhat blurred their self-awareness of their actual level. We await you at Camp Nou." — Daily Sport (Catalonia)
"This Champions League season is different; the quarter-final draw has eliminated the country protection principle, with teams divided into upper and lower halves before the draw. This means that once the draw results are announced, the exact path to the semi-final and final matchups can be predicted!" — Sky Sports News
Comments beneath the reports surged wildly.
@EPLFanatic: The competitiveness of the Premier League is still ridiculously strong, though the chances of boring domestic clashes in the quarters are high.
@Tactico: Please, no more talk of 'easy draws'—last season's Champions League quarter-finals saw those exact 'easy draws' blow up in everyone's faces (looking at you, Barca and Roma)!
@CR7Goat: I'd really love to see another Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo showdown in the final. Just draw Manchester United against Porto and let Mourinho reminisce about the old days.
@PortoUltra: Ever since Mourinho was first sent to the stands at Porto, it's been non-stop drama!
@BarcaBoy: Daily Sport truly lives up to its reputation as Barcelona's shameless mouthpiece, subtly implying that Manchester United's championship was tainted by luck.
@RedDevilsDaily: Pfft, as if Barca fans have forgotten what they themselves did to Chelsea back in the day with Ovrebo. Shameless bastard!
....
On the day after the Champions League quarter-finalists were decided, Ling and Mourinho arrived in Nyon, Switzerland, at UEFA headquarters.
Ling glanced around the modern auditorium and noticed the crowd was much smaller and more intimate than before.
As he followed the UEFA staff to the VIP front row, he found his assigned seat positioned directly between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo—whether intentionally arranged by the organizers for the cameras or not, he couldn't tell.
Unsure of what to say to the two absolute titans of the modern game, he simply nodded politely in greeting.
Both Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo nodded back, though the latter seemed slightly colder.
After all, Ling had single-handedly shattered Ronaldo's dream of a Champions League three-peat in Kyiv, so it was only natural the Portuguese star wouldn't be overly friendly.
Sitting between them, Ling suddenly remembered that both had famously boycotted the group stage draw ceremony last time because they hadn't won any individual UEFA awards.
Why were they here today?
He guessed they must have come with the burning determination to publicly challenge for the Champions League title and scout the opposition.
Soon, the tedious pre-draw formalities and UEFA speeches passed slowly as time wore on.
Once the iconic glass cylinder containing the draw balls was brought out to the stage, a chubby, familiar man slowly walked up to the podium, even sticking his tongue out jokingly toward the coaches' seating area.
Júlio César, the Brazilian goalkeeping hero of Inter Milan's historic treble-winning season under Mourinho!
Ling's first impression of him was the infamous, bizarre "tongue incident" with Zlatan Ibrahimovic years ago.
César seemed to have brought his meticulous goalkeeper habits onto the stage, his chubby hands thoroughly stirring the plastic balls inside the glass cylinder for what must have been at least twenty rounds.
He only pulled out a ball once the audience was nearly bored to tears, cracking it open to reveal the contents to the waiting cameras.
"Juventus vs. Ajax!"
Erik ten Hag's polite smile vanished instantly in the crowd.
The Ajax manager had desperately hoped to draw Porto, given his lifelong streak of good luck.
But... he quickly composed himself, realizing that among the remaining heavyweight teams, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Tottenham were all incredibly tough opponents.
Juventus wasn't a terrible draw after all.
'So what if they just mindlessly cross the ball to Cristiano Ronaldo? Watch how I use targeted tactics to shut him down for ninety minutes!'
Ling glanced sideways at the figure beside him.
Cristiano Ronaldo remained expressionless and cold, seemingly completely indifferent to the draw result.
About three minutes later.
"Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester City!"
Mauricio Pochettino's face instantly darkened in the row ahead.
If there was one team the Spurs manager feared most stylistically, it was undoubtedly Manchester City.
Guardiola appeared perfectly calm on the surface, adjusting his suit, but inwardly, he breathed a massive sigh of relief.
He had been terrified of facing Mourinho and Manchester United too early in a two-legged European tie!
On the other side of the room, Ling already had the answer in his mind.
It seemed the fluttering of the butterfly's wings hadn't changed history too much after all.
The results of the upper half of the bracket were officially announced, meaning that if both Manchester United and Liverpool successfully advanced from their respective ties, they would inevitably face each other in an explosive all-English semi-final clash!
Regarding this potential matchup, Ling was quite confident.
After all, having played Liverpool many times in the league, he had gained plenty of experience dealing with Van Dijk and Klopp's tactics.
But he didn't want to think that far ahead—first, they had to make it to the semi-finals.
Júlio César took a deep breath, seemingly praying to the football gods.
He had jokingly promised his former manager Mourinho backstage that he would draw a favorable matchup for Manchester United!
And then he cracked the ball...
"Liverpool vs. FC Porto!" The host's voice echoed through the tense venue.
The entire hall seemed to fall dead silent for a second.
Because the final result was already self-evident by process of elimination.
Manchester United vs. Barcelona!