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"What's up, buddy? Is Bayer Leverkusen that tough?"
Inside BayArena, Mesut Özil was panting heavily, on the verge of collapse.
A few years ago, when he was at SV Werder Bremen, they used to easily dominate Bayer Leverkusen.
Bayer Leverkusen looked like a strong team, but they were actually quite soft; they would crush weaker teams but easily falter in tough matches.
So, after a brief peak in the 2001-02 season, when they earned the nickname "Triple Runner-Up," Bayer Leverkusen quickly fell into a slump again.
Their standing in the Bundesliga these past few years was incomparable to Arsenal's.
Arsenal, at least, had to compete with Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Manchester City.
In the Bundesliga, apart from Bayern Munich, all the other teams were just pecking at each other.
If Bayer Leverkusen were in the Premier League, they'd at most be on par with Everton.
After several years, Mesut Özil felt that the opponent was no longer the Bayer Leverkusen he knew.
Although there were many familiar faces, the change in their overall demeanor was astonishing.
From being 0-2 down to equalizing at 2-2, their resilience made Arsenal feel a bit desperate, like they couldn't be beaten no matter what.
Especially that Asian player, Lance,
Mesut Özil felt his starting point in the Bundesliga was much higher than his own back then!
"Scheiße!"
Mesut Özil couldn't help but curse.
…
After scoring two consecutive goals, Lance felt it wouldn't be as easy moving forward.
Under Arsène Wenger's direction, Arsenal withdrew the exhausted Mesut Özil and left winger Santi Cazorla.
He brought on veteran French player Mathieu Flamini and the more energetic Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
The intention was clear: strengthen the defense and try to counter-attack using the speed advantage of the two flanks.
A crazy three-man defensive midfield!
You really are something, Arsène Wenger!
With Mathieu Flamini on the field, Lance felt his operating space was further compressed, at most needing to simultaneously deal with the double-teaming of Laurent Koscielny, Mathieu Flamini, Aaron Ramsey, and Mikel Arteta.
Since the equalizer, the match had fallen into a stalemate.
Bayer Leverkusen's coaching staff, Sascha and Hyypiä, made no moves for the time being.
"During this period, Arsenal primarily adopted a 4-5-1 setup, with Mikel Arteta, Aaron Ramsey, and that other one…"
Zhang Zhidao pondered for a long time, unable to recall the name, until Zhan Jun reminded him, and Zhang Lu finally remembered.
"Mathieu Flamini, yes, the three of them formed a three-man defensive midfield, creating a wall in the middle."
"And the two full-backs, Bacary Sagna and Kieran Gibbs, hardly ventured forward; you see their range of activity is limited to the 30-meter zone. Arsenal are playing quite conservatively…"
"Their attacking upfront relies solely on Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, just charge forward, with Olivier Giroud poaching in front. Their playstyle has become much simpler and more direct."
"Bayer Leverkusen is also wary of this tactic and doesn't dare to push too far forward for now."
Although Zhang Zhidao had many verbal slips, he was a professional, and his analysis of tactics was very clear.
Bayer Leverkusen found themselves in an awkward situation.
Just when they most wanted to attack and take the lead, Arsenal started playing defensive counter-attack.
But Arsenal's two flanks were very sharp, and Olivier Giroud was also in good form, so Bayer Leverkusen didn't dare to push too high.
With both sides focusing on defense, it was naturally difficult to create many chances.
As time gradually passed, a 2-2 score was a gain for Arsenal.
Bayer Leverkusen should be the one feeling anxious.
As time entered the 85th minute, Sascha indeed became anxious.
He substituted off the right winger Robbie Kruse and defensive midfielder Lars Bender, bringing on Julian Brandt and Emre Can. It still looked like he wanted to attack, attempting to launch a fierce assault on Arsenal's heartland.
But the teammates' impatience was also reflected on the field.
Captain Simon Rolfes' powerful shot went high into the stands, and he repeatedly apologized to his teammates.
"It's okay, Captain."
"But, Lance, it seems very difficult for us to win."
"There's still time, trust me."
There was no other way; Simon Rolfes could only trust Lance, this boy who often created miracles. Perhaps this time he could too!
Lance habitually glanced at the system.
He used to rely on the system.
100% rage value was definitely the key to victory in critical moments.
But currently, the system was [UPDATING…], and he didn't know when the update would be completed.
During this period, no rage value had accumulated.
Lance could only rely on other abilities to try and break the deadlock.
Ordinary trapping and shooting were tightly defended by Arsenal; they basically didn't give Lance a chance to trap the ball.
Even a slight touch would result in a physical challenge.
While Lance was pondering a solution, Arsenal launched another heart-stopping counter-attack!
Zhan Jun was startled.
"The regular 90 minutes of the match have ended, the fourth official has raised the board, four minutes of injury time… First, let's see Arsenal's counter-attack!"
"Wojciech Szczęsny holds the ball!! Arsenal's counter-attack, beautiful, Mikel Arteta!!"
Mikel Arteta launched a direct long pass from the back, finding the recently introduced Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain!
This young player was incredibly fast, a junior of Theo Walcott and Gareth Bale, from the "Southampton Sprint Team."
He didn't know how they trained, but each one was faster than the last.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain received the ball, with Julian Brandt and Giulio Donati previously defending him.
But Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain accelerated and dribbled past Julian Brandt on the outside, then changed direction and flicked the ball to burst past Giulio Donati!
Straight into the box!
"Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain!! So fast!! Olivier Giroud is already rushing over! Cross—"
When Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain crossed to the Olivier Giroud, Lance, who was desperately tracking back, was almost in despair.
"Olivier Giroud!!"
Zhan Jun's heart skipped a beat. Was Arsenal going to score a last-minute winner?
The next second!
Olivier Giroud's powerful header slammed precisely against the crossbar!
Clang—
It wasn't until the metallic sound of the crossbar echoed through the stadium that goalkeeper Bernd Leno rushed out in time to gather the ball, then audaciously threw it out with his hand.
He saw that Lance had already started to position himself. This kid had many tricks up his sleeve; maybe there was a chance!
Emre Can, who came on as a substitute, still had plenty of energy.
He temporarily held off Aaron Ramsey's pressing, dribbled and sprinted 15 meters, intending to find Son Heung-min's position.
Unfortunately, Son Heung-min was tightly marked by Bacary Sagna, so he could only find Julian Brandt on the right wing.
From Arsenal's perspective, Julian Brandt seemed not to pose much threat.
What threat could a silly, blond, brainless handsome guy be?
Julian Brandt received the ball, looking quite foolish.
He put his head down, accelerated, and dribbled towards the byline, not even considering cutting inside or combining with teammates.
On the sidelines, Arsène Wenger couldn't help but smile.
"Indeed, there aren't many reliable people on the other side."
"Shit!! This guy!"
Sascha and Hyypiä also scratched their heads.
It was well known that Lance's heading ability was average, so the team tried to cut inside and play through balls with him as much as possible.
Stefan Kiessling, who had excellent heading ability, was constantly followed by Per Mertesacker.
The 198 cm tall German center-back was there precisely to defend aerial balls, so Stefan Kiessling couldn't gain any advantage.
A cross from the byline was exactly what they wanted!
Even Stefan Kiessling himself couldn't help but tense up.
Buddy?
Find Lance!! Why rely on me? I'm just a decoy!
But Julian Brandt still had his head down, determined to go to the byline.
Kieran Gibbs didn't even bother defending him, just stayed inside, in case he cut in or delivered a low cross.
"Tsk… nothing special."
Kieran Gibbs disdainfully glanced at his opponent. This blond German was too straightforward.
He dribbled to the byline and lofted a high ball into the box.
Laurent Koscielny, Per Mertesacker, Wojciech Szczęsny, their attention was all on Stefan Kiessling for the moment, and no one was paying attention to Lance.
As a result, Lance could easily sprint towards the near post!
Run-up!
Jump!
"Brother, it really has to be you!"
A mischievous smile played on Lance's lips, his scheme having succeeded.
Five minutes earlier, at the 85th minute of the match.
Before this counter-attack, he saw that time was running out and couldn't hesitate, so he quickly found Julian Brandt.
"Brother, later you just go decisively to the byline and try to send a high ball to the near post."
"Huh? That's not according to the tactics."
"Don't worry about that, I have a plan."
"Alright!"
Although Julian Brandt was usually a bit of a slacker and liked to cut corners, his good trait was that he was obedient.
He never asked why, just mindlessly followed instructions.
Even though it didn't align with the coaching staff's pre-match tactical requirements, he still chose to trust Lance.
Indeed, after getting the ball, he remembered Lance's words and, disregarding everything else, crossed from the byline to the near post.
"Brother, it's up to you!"
Match time, 91:22!
Amidst the cheers from BayArena and the astonished gazes of the entire Arsenal team!
Lance actually completed a jump at the near post!
Laurent Koscielny realized something was wrong and rushed over to try and contest the header.
But he was horrified to discover that this kid jumped incredibly high!
Are you dunking?
[Skill 3: Mirror Learning]!
Lance's target was none other than Arsenal's aerial ace, Olivier Giroud!
At this moment, even though Lance rarely contested headers, his confidence was incredibly strong!
In mid-air, facing the incoming ball, he performed a lion's head!
"Lance!!! Header goal!!"
In injury time, Lance's final header made everyone hold their breath!
Bang—
Completely mimicking Olivier Giroud, Lance's header carried the force of a mountain pressing down, piercing the goal!
Wojciech Szczęsny was powerless to stop it!
"The goal is in!!! Lance—"
"Last-minute winner!"
Zhan Jun pumped his fist, Lance's goal was full of the raw power of football!
It was so incredibly cool!
BayArena was completely ignited!
"Can you believe it?! Lance's header goal!"
"In injury time, he once again created a miracle! A brace!"
"Bayer Leverkusen 3 to 2!"
"Under Lance's leadership, in the second half, despite being at a severe disadvantage, they scored three consecutive goals to complete a major comeback!"
"This is football!"