Chapter 167: Chapter 54: Major Upgrade! Secret Weapon! Winter Transfers and the War of Words! Klopp Syndrome! The Championship Dream is Shattered

It seemed the effect of [Eagle Eye] was quite significant.

…

During their training camp in Spain, Mainz played a friendly match.

Their opponent was Fiat, from the 2nd Bundesliga.

This was the team with the best offense in the 2nd Bundesliga this season.

Mainz lost the friendly match 3-2.

But that wasn’t the main point.

After the disastrous defeat to Fiat, Klopp flew into a rage. He was furious and dissatisfied with the lack of ambition and fighting spirit displayed by many of the players.

“All the praise from the media and fans over the past few months has completely gone to your heads!”

“Do you all think you’re superstars now?”

“Do you think buying new handbags for your girlfriends is more important than the game?”

“Have you already forgotten how we were relegated from Bundesliga in the ’06-’07 season?”

Klopp’s barrage of questions left everyone in the locker room speechless.

As everyone was getting chewed out, Wang Shuo was, of course, among them.

This was despite his own outstanding performance in the friendly, where he had scored one goal and provided one assist.

But his efforts couldn’t make up for the team’s abysmal performance as a whole.

In Klopp’s system, if just two players were off their game, the resulting chain reaction could cause the entire team to fall apart.

And in this case, the entire Mainz squad had performed poorly.

’This was exactly what Wang Shuo had been worried about.’

’Selling Subotic was more than just losing a starting center-back.’

’Whether the club was forced into it or sold him willingly, the end result sent a clear message to everyone: We, Mainz, are giving up on the second half of the season!’

’Their 38 points from the first half of the season had already secured their survival, guaranteeing they wouldn’t be relegated.’

’To put it bluntly, even if they lost all 17 matches in the second half of the season, the team still couldn’t be relegated.’

’They had already accomplished the objective set by the management at the start of the season.’

’So, if the management itself had no ambition, how could they expect the players to have any?’

’Besides, everyone on the team had fought so hard during the first half of the season. It was only natural for their form to dip after reaching such a peak.’

’Moreover, Wang Shuo had a feeling that the club’s failure to offer any bonuses after they became the “winter champions” definitely had something to do with it.’

’Everyone had fought tooth and nail to become the winter champions and create a so-called miracle. To end up with nothing but a title and no tangible reward was simply unjustifiable.’

At that moment, Wang Shuo couldn’t help but recall something Thomas Essien had once told him.

“Sometimes, when a club suddenly achieves unexpectedly good results, it’s actually even more dangerous!”

Still, from the looks of it, Klopp could probably keep things under control.

After his outburst, the team’s morale during training improved slightly.

But the real test would be an actual match.

…

「At the end of January」

After returning to Germany from Spain, Mainz immediately faced the third round of the DFB-Pokal.

They had good luck with the draw, pulling 2nd Bundesliga team Freiburg.

Freiburg was currently ranked third in the 2nd Bundesliga.

It was the first match of the second half of the season, a single-elimination cup tie. Considering the team’s current state, they desperately needed a victory to boost morale.

So, before the match, Klopp specifically pulled Wang Shuo aside to talk. He told him he would be in the starting lineup.

“The team is in a really dangerous situation right now.”

“Mainz and I both need you to step up and take on more responsibility.”

“Both on the pitch and in terms of morale.”

And as it turned out, Klopp’s worries were justified.

Playing away, Mainz was a complete mess for the entire first half.

The players weren’t on the same page, their rhythm was off, and both their morale and fighting spirit were lower than Freiburg’s.

On several occasions, Freiburg even came close to breaking through their defensive line.

It had to be said, though, that Bungert’s performance was quite good.

But the first half ended in a 0-0 stalemate.

During the halftime break, the atmosphere in the locker room was heavy and oppressive.

The top team in the Bundesliga playing like this against a 2nd Bundesliga team, even away from home, was an ugly sight.

The look in Klopp’s eyes was murderous!

As play resumed for the second half, Wang Shuo immediately began pressuring Freiburg’s defensive midfielder and center-backs right from the start.

He did so with a series of continuous, high-speed shuttle runs.

Just two minutes in, as he and Hainauer pressed together, a hasty back pass from defensive midfielder Froome caused center-back Keremas to fumble his first touch.

Wang Shuo suddenly burst forward at incredible speed. From just outside the box, he got to the ball a step ahead of the defender, cutting in between Keremas and the ball. With two quick touches in rapid succession, he brought the ball under control and carried it into the penalty area.

Facing the goalkeeper, Langer, Wang Shuo calmly toe-poked the ball into Freiburg’s net.

1-0!

“GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!”

“It’s a goal!”

“Wang Shuo! It’s another goal from Wang Shuo!”

“After a terrible first half, Wang Shuo opens the scoring for Mainz just two minutes into the second half!”

“This is a fantastic start to the half for Mainz.”

“Hopefully, the winter champions can now shake off the pressure and play more freely!”

With the first goal on the board, the game began to open up.

In the 65th minute, it was Wang Shuo again. He pulled out to the right wing to receive the ball and went on a dribbling run. His continuous attack drew the attention of several defenders before he won a corner kick on the right side of the box.

Hainauer coolly took the corner, and Bungert connected with a header to score, putting Mainz another goal ahead.

2-0!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep