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Oh, wow!
Lance's ominous premonition became a reality.
Before the match, seeing his teammates' nervous state, he knew they might be in trouble.
And indeed, they encountered a difficult start.
Arsenal truly played well enough; peak Mesut Özil, peak Olivier Giroud, peak Mikel Arteta, plus an in-form Santi Cazorla and Theo Walcott…
Even the 'Cosmic Team' FC Barcelona would feel some pressure facing this midfield combination,
Let alone an out-of-form Bayer Leverkusen?
Down 0-1, Arsenal's morale soared, and Bayer Leverkusen was completely on the back foot.
It was like being hit by a solid right hook from Mike Tyson in a boxing match—barely staying on their feet but completely dazed.
Huddled in the corner of the ring, getting relentlessly battered by a barrage of punches.
Forget counter-attacking; at most, they could only protect their head and face to avoid a knockout.
Zhan Jun and Zhang Zhidao watched with bated breath.
"Oh, wow! That goal! Mesut Özil's pass was so cunning!"
"Mesut Özil's through ball into the box! Santi Cazorla!! A tight-angle attempt!!"
"Bernd Leno barely parries the ball out for a corner!"
"Less than 30 minutes into the first half, this is already Arsenal's sixth corner!"
"Mikel Arteta takes the corner, Olivier Giroud!"
"Header just over the bar… Zhang Zhidao, with Bayer Leverkusen in this state, how can they break the deadlock? It feels like they can hardly get past the halfway line."
"Exactly. Don't let Arsenal's attacking prowess fool you; today, they're executing their high-press defense very clearly. Bayer Leverkusen's ability to play out from the back is relatively weak, so they can't provide support to Lance and Son Heung-min. Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, and even the two wingers are pressing immediately. I think Bayer Leverkusen shouldn't stick to conventional build-up play. They should be bolder and play balls in behind, exploiting the space behind the two full-backs. At this point, they can only rely on the individual ability of their attacking players."
"Yes, Son Heung-min and Lance are both still in good form, and they might be key to Bayer Leverkusen's counter-attacks. They've found it difficult to get on the ball recently; Arsène Wenger's defensive tactics are quite effective, He's identified who the most dangerous players on this team are…"
…
The issues Zhan Jun and Zhang Lu were discussing were precisely what Sascha and Hyypiä were agonizing over.
Before the match, they knew that Lance might be contained, and Son Heung-min's left flank could easily be frozen out.
Arsène Wenger deliberately kept Bacary Sagna back, telling him not to assist.
Kieran Gibbs on the left side was frequently coming forward, Santi Cazorla playing as an attacking midfielder, effectively a left winger, was meant for this purpose.
He could tuck inside and form a dual attacking midfield with Mesut Özil, creating a double-pivot attacking system, leaving the left flank entirely for Kieran Gibbs to exploit.
Anyway, Bayer Leverkusen's right midfielder, Robbie Kruse, was a waste of space.
The Australian international had previously played for Fortuna Düsseldorf in the 2. Bundesliga.
These two seasons, he'd managed to get into Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, and by luck, he'd secured a starting spot as the right winger.
Later, due to his mediocre performance, he was traded, going to Liaoning Hongyun in the Chinese Super League to cash in, and then moving to VfL Bochum in the 2. Bundesliga and Melbourne in the A-League…
It could be said that this period at Bayer Leverkusen was Robbie Kruse's career highlight.
Against Bundesliga teams, he could barely assist with defense.
But in the Champions League against Arsenal, his lack of quality was glaringly obvious.
"Arsène Wenger, that old fox, damn him!"
Sascha was helpless; he could only curse under his breath.
There weren't many better players available in the squad either.
Andrés Guardado was in very poor form recently, and Julian Brandt was a wild card…
Bayer Leverkusen was essentially fighting Arsenal with one leg tied behind its back.
"How about Son goes to the right wing?"
"Then who plays on the left?"
"True…"
"It just depends on who can step up. As long as we get one goal back, at least the team can play a bit more normally…"
Before Sascha finished speaking,
In the 37th minute of the first half, Arsenal executed another classic Arsenal-style combination.
"Mikel Arteta to the left side!! Kieran Gibbs, Santi Cazorla, Kieran Gibbs a cut-back pass!!"
"Aaron Ramsey's late run… No shot! He let it go through!"
"Mesut Özil receives the ball, will he shoot himself? No shot, it's a pass!"
"Theo Walcott!! Receives the ball in the box, a horizontal pass!"
"Olivier Giroud — GOAL!!!"
"Olivier Giroud scores his second! Bayer Leverkusen is down 0-2 at halftime!"
From the perspective of a Premier League supporter, Zhan Jun was delighted to see Arsenal's excellent performance.
But from the perspective of a Lance fan, this kind of defensive collapse was not what he wanted to see.
If Bayer Leverkusen lost big, Lance wouldn't even have room to perform.
After finally defeating Manchester United and finishing top of their group to enter the knockout stage, it would be too much of a loss to be eliminated by Arsenal in the Round of 16, a one-and-done in the knockout stage.
Zhan Jun still wanted to see Lance encounter more European giants.
"There's really nothing you can do about that goal; Arsenal practically passed the ball into the net."
Zhang Lu was speechless.
One goal conceded might be due to Bayer Leverkusen's poor form,
But conceding two goals in the first half clearly showed that Bayer Leverkusen's midfield and defense were outclassed by Arsenal.
The German commentator Mehmet Scholl's voice was low, and his expression must have been very dejected:
"We have to admit, Arsenal's impression on us these past few years has been poor Champions League results… But look at the teams they've faced! FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich! Theoretically, it's quite normal for Arsenal to win so easily against Bayer Leverkusen."
Good news: Bayer Leverkusen didn't concede any more goals and held on until halftime.
Returning to the locker room with a 0-2 score, Arsenal held two away goals.
The players from both sides had completely different demeanors.
"Don't blame yourselves; you've all done your best. We, mainly, just had bad luck… Let's try to play well in the second half and show the style we have in the Bundesliga! Let's show the resilience we had against Manchester United!"
Sascha originally wanted to give them the hairdryer treatment and scold them.
But looking at their expressions, no one wanted to lose, so scolding them wouldn't do any good; it would only affect morale.
Sascha uncharacteristically offered comforting words.
"Don't overthink it. Let's just pretend the two goals don't exist and start from 0 against them. Be bold in passing to the front, trust your teammates boldly, no matter what, the whole team will shoulder it together. You have to believe that your teammates can create miracles."
The coach was already hinting that in the second half, they should pass more to Lance and Son Heung-min, the two Asian players.
He could tell that there were some opportunities where the team could have trusted them, but at crucial moments, they hesitated and missed the passing window.
Don't think Lance is only 16 years old; he might become the key to the entire match!
…
As the second half began, Arsenal didn't even pay much attention to marking Lance anymore.
They focused more strictly on restricting Bayer Leverkusen's build-up play, preventing Lance from receiving the ball.
Lance had no choice but to drop deeper, even retreating to the center circle to get the ball.
"Okay, Lance comes to the center circle… First touch, turn past Mikel Arteta, beautiful!!"
"Passes to Son Heung-min… Aaron Ramsey and Bacary Sagna double-team him, Son Heung-min finds it difficult to break through, passes back to Lance… Dangerous!"
In the 55th minute of the second half, Bayer Leverkusen was in danger again!
Son Heung-min's passing intention was too obvious, leading to Mikel Arteta and Mesut Özil double-teaming Lance.
Seeing Arsenal about to win the ball in the center circle and launch a counter-attack, Lance gritted his teeth and sprinted forward, intercepting the ball with his foot just before Mikel Arteta could clear it!
But he had to stretch his foot forward awkwardly, and he had already lost his balance; a slight disruption would send him to the ground,
And it wouldn't even be a foul, allowing Arsenal to transition from defense to offense on the spot and put pressure on Bayer Leverkusen's defense.
All the fans at BayArena, including the fans supporting Lance and Bayer Leverkusen in front of their televisions, held their breath for him.
Will the 16-year-old player have no impact today?
No!
At the crucial moment, Lance's big heart played its part!
[Fusion Value: 100%]!
The moment he stepped onto the Champions League knockout stage today, his Fusion Value had already jumped to 100%!
He had expected some change, but for now, there was none.
[System Upgrading… Please wait!]
Only a vague prompt appeared.
This was also why Lance didn't use any 'cheats' in the first half; during the system upgrade, even his [Rage Value] remained at 0%!
But Lance wouldn't be discouraged by a temporary system upgrade bug!
100% fusion also allowed Lance to maintain absolute calm!
"Watch me perform!"
Intercepting with his foot, forced into a desperate situation by Mikel Arteta, Lance made an extreme-distance pull-back stop, evading Mikel Arteta's outstretched leg,
At the same time, as Mikel Arteta stretched, he lightly poked the ball with his toe, completing a nutmeg!
"Nutmeg!!! Lance —"
Amidst Zhan Jun's excited tone, Lance moved!
He nutmegged Mikel Arteta and went around him from behind, then performed a 'roulette' to evade Mesut Özil's challenge! Charging towards Arsenal's penalty area!
"Stop him!!"
Arsenal's defense panicked; their midfield was easily breached by a 16-year-old!
Per Mertesacker immediately pressed forward!
"Son!!"
Lance angled a pass to Son Heung-min and made an aggressive forward run!
Son Heung-min dribbled past Aaron Ramsey, but Bacary Sagna was still tightly marking him in front.
Helpless, Son Heung-min had no choice but to sweep the ball across the middle…
Lance had already made his run into position!
On the edge of the box, a perfect first touch with his left foot, a nutmeg, and a turn to get past Laurent Koscielny! He was through on goal, entering the box!!
"Lance!!! A tribute to Dennis Bergkamp!!"
How could Zhan Jun not recognize this dribble?!
Years ago, Arsenal legend 'Ice Prince' Dennis Bergkamp scored a signature goal using the exact same move.
15 years later, Chinese-descent prodigy Lance, facing Arsenal, pays tribute to a classic!
While the whole world watched in awe,
Lance danced elegantly into the box, with Laurent Koscielny on his back and Wojciech Szczęsny rushing out,
He calmly slotted it into the bottom corner!
"Lance —"
Zhan Jun was almost suffocating; his heart, which had been in his throat, finally burst into surging passion the moment Lance's shot hit the inside of the post and went in!
"GOAL!!!"
"Right at the start of the second half, facing a 0-2 deficit!"
"Lance steps up once again! Pulling one back!"
"1-2!! Bayer Leverkusen brings the suspense back to the match!"