Chapter 121: Chapter 35: Belief in the Supremacy of Strength

“What? Is this for real?”

“A fine?” Schuster looked at Francisco in astonishment, standing at the airport, just off the plane, and suddenly received a notification from the local “government” stating that in Lower Saxony, where Bremen is located, all competitive activities must not feature advertisements related to gambling.

Real Madrid’s current sponsor displayed on their jerseys, Bwin, is an Austrian betting company.

The jerseys could not be reprocessed, so according to local regulations, Real Madrid needed to pay a certain amount of fine to the local “government.”

Schuster wasn’t particularly concerned about the fine itself, but being informed about this issue at the airport did somewhat affect the players’ rest and mood.

“According to our contract with the sponsor, if such a thing happens, they will cover the cost.”

“The important thing now is to calm the players’ emotions.”

Werder Bremen has to win all their upcoming matches to have a chance to advance from the group stage, and Real Madrid has not created an absolute gap with other teams as Olympiacos and Lazio are close behind them.

This small incident didn’t overly affect the players’ mentality; soon, the match day arrived.

Weser Stadium

The pre-match entertainment had ended, and the Werder Bremen fans in the stands expressed their support for the team with shouts, still believing in a miracle at this moment.

Shaf stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed. This meritorious coach of Werder Bremen led the team to a crushing defeat in the first leg against Real Madrid.

“This is the site of the Champions League Group C match.”

“Werder Bremen is at home against Real Madrid.”

“Wearing green shirts and white shorts is the Werder Bremen team, and in black jerseys with white stripes is the Real Madrid team.”

“Real Madrid currently tops the group in points, but this doesn’t mean their match with Werder Bremen will be any easier.”

“Werder Bremen is at the bottom of the group now, and their desire for a win is intense, dreaming of a miracle in the last two rounds of advancing or at least fighting for a UEFA Cup spot.”

“In a pre-match interview, Schuster also stated that an injured beast is even more frightening.”

“Furthermore, Real Madrid’s away performance, and Spanish teams facing German teams, always fall into a terrible curse.”

“Last season, Werder Bremen posed great challenges for Barcelona, and Real Madrid was also eliminated by Bayern Munich.”

“Carlos’s serious mistake led to Makaay’s record-breaking 11-second goal.”

“This record is also a shame for Real Madrid, with Carlos leaving the team for Turkey after being unable to withstand the club’s criticisms at the end of the season.”

“We can clearly feel the enthusiasm of the fans present.”

“In the Bundesliga, Werder Bremen’s home performance is very strong.”

“After 14 rounds, Werder Bremen is ranked 2nd with 30 points, only 1 point behind the top-ranked Bayern Munich, and their home record is 6 wins and 1 loss, scoring an intimidating 22 goals in 7 home games, averaging 3.14 per match.”

“This makes Werder Bremen the strongest team in Europe in terms of scoring ability at home.”

“The players from both teams are entering the field, let’s take a look at the line-ups: Werder Bremen…, Real Madrid…”

“Both teams are known for their attacking capabilities. Werder Bremen’s midfield core Diego is suspended due to a red card, and for Real Madrid, Cannavaro has a slight muscle strain due to the cold weather, and Guti is suspended for reckless behavior in the last match, so Schuster has put Metzelder in Cannavaro’s starting position, and replaced Guti with Chen Zhong.”

“The last time these two teams faced off, Chen Zhong was the core of the defense, but in this match, Chen Zhong has become the midfield core.”

“Let’s hope Chen Zhong can break the curse!”

“As a ceiling-pushing young player in China playing abroad, I believe the domestic audience is eagerly anticipating Chen Zhong’s outstanding performance.”

“Dear viewers, with the whistle sounding, the match officially begins, let us all enjoy this spectacular match together.”

…

The cold German weather makes it a bit difficult to unwind, and this is not only affecting Chen Zhong but most of the team as well.

Schuster obviously noticed this too, so at the start of the match, he hoped the team could remain stable, allowing the players to find their rhythm and adapt.

Of course, if Schuster could notice it, Shaf would not ignore it either.

From the first minute after the whistle, Werder Bremen launched a fierce attack against the “rigid” Real Madrid.

However, their attack was evidently a bit too rushed. When attempting to pass through the midfield, Chen Zhong extended his long leg and intercepted the ball.

“Chen Zhong!”

“A beautiful interception.”

“That long leg in the midfield.”

“When stretched out, it covers a huge range.”

“Real Madrid’s quick counterattack, a very sharp counterattack.”

“Van Nistelrooy takes the ball, directly strikes!”

After Chen Zhong took possession, Werder Bremen dispersed, some pressing forward and others falling back. It was clear they had studied Chen Zhong’s ball-handling traits, but this time, Chen didn’t play by the book.

Instead, he made a direct pass to Raul at the front, catching Werder Bremen completely off guard with his quick advance.

Raul, after receiving the ball, passed it to Van Nistelrooy. Perhaps Van Nistelrooy wasn’t fully warmed up, as the shot he made when faced with this one-on-one chance was too direct, allowing the Werder Bremen goalkeeper to smack it away with both hands.

“Ahhhh!” Schuster shouted in frustration, “What’s up with him? How could he miss such a chance?”

A top-level center forward can’t afford to miss such opportunities. In a clash between strong teams, victory often hinges on one or two fleeting chances. If you seize them, all goes well; if not, you’ll be punished.

Van Nistelrooy was clearly not pleased with his strike. He exhaled a puff of white air, muttered about the damned weather, and prepared for the corner kick.

“This Chen,” Shaf murmured, a hint of unease flashing in his eyes, “he seems a bit different from the reports.”

In recent matches, Chen Zhong had been like a stable relay in the midfield, constantly delivering balls and coordinating Real Madrid’s midfield operations.

Although he enhanced Real Madrid’s ball control rate, it inevitably slowed down their advance and counter-attack speed.

However, that recent pass made Shaf sharply sense a tinge of threat.

Previously, Chen Zhong mostly executed horizontal passes to both sides, but these direct, gut-punching passes were a rare sight.

If Shaf could sense it, Schuster naturally did as well.

After his frustration, he recalled Chen Zhong’s recent pinpoint pass.

“This boy is improving fast!”

“That recent direct pass, the power, speed, accuracy, all seem enhanced.”

“I don’t know if it’s just my imagination, but if he continues like this, he might surpass Guti by quite a lot.”

Guti had top-tier vision and pass ability, but his only issues were a volatile temper and poor body contact. However, on the field, Chen Zhong was as calm as a robot, possessing top-tier bodily strength and ball guarding ability.

If he also acquires top-tier passing skills…

Thinking of this, Schuster shivered. He’s only 16! This monster!

On the field, Sneijder raised his right arm and then executed the corner. Inside Werder Bremen’s penalty area was chaos. Ramos found an opportunity near the penalty spot and executed a left-footed volley, but it was unfortunately blocked by Werder Bremen’s defender.

Just as everyone scrambled for the ball, Chen Zhong forced his way out of the crowd, causing the first response from the Werder Bremen players on either side to be, “Holy cow, what a monster!”

Their second instinct was to try and disrupt Chen Zhong as he moved towards the ball.

“Boom!”

Even amidst interference from Werder Bremen players, Chen Zhong managed a powerful shot. He tried to curl the ball towards the upper right corner of the goal, but it narrowly grazed the post and went out.

“A very good opportunity.”

“Chen Zhong secured the second touch.”

“Amidst interference from the Werder Bremen players, he completed a shot of decent quality.”

“But unfortunately, it went just over the crossbar.”

Chen Zhong bit his lip. His sense and physique were fine, but his technical skills in those split-second decisions in front of the goal, especially his ability to curve the arc, were still too lacking.

In the stands, Werder Bremen fans breathed a sigh of relief, nervously discussing Chen Zhong.

“The media reports must be lying!”

“Aren’t they saying he’s just a player hyped up for safe passes?”

“How did he get to that position? How did he break free? We nearly conceded a goal to him!”

Real Madrid’s fans also felt regretful. They believed Chen Zhong was merely unlucky, but unknowingly, Chen Zhong never believed in luck. He believed in strength, and if strength was insufficient, he committed to working hard to improve, plain and simple.

Missing opportunities invites punishment, as Werder Bremen quickly proved the correctness of this saying.

In the 6th minute of the match, having learned their lesson, Werder Bremen advanced down the flank. Fritz, from the right, beat Marcelo and delivered a cross before him.

Sanogo, who was essentially neutralized by Chen Zhong in the last match, executed a chest control followed by a flick assist in front of Metzelder.

Rosenberg made contact at the far post, sending the ball straight into the net.

Werder Bremen struck first on their home ground to take the lead.

This excited Shaf immensely. Last time, due to Chen Zhong in the back line, Werder Bremen’s offenses were continually thwarted, resulting in two first-half goals against, but this game…

It appears the tables are turning!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep