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Stepping into the Volkswagen Arena, Kevin De Bruyne couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
Half a year ago, he was still here with his team, trying to make it into the top 4 to play in the Champions League.
Ultimately, even with all his strength, De Bruyne couldn't lead Wolfsburg into the Champions League, only the Europa League.
He had thought the new season would start with the Europa League.
Unexpectedly, Bayer Leverkusen extended an olive branch!
Fighting alongside Lance, and still playing in the Champions League?
De Bruyne's hesitation for even one second would have been disrespect to the Champions League.
Returning to this stadium after half a year, he felt a certain sense of emotion.
After all, the Wolfsburg fans genuinely liked and supported De Bruyne at the time.
"Kevin, why do you look like you're about to cry?"
"Nonsense!"
De Bruyne's face flushed red.
Lance didn't tease him anymore; this guy was really sensitive to teasing, and a few more words might make him lose his temper.
The only concern was whether he would go easy on his old club.
"Will you show mercy today?"
"Don't worry, my basic professionalism is still there; I'll definitely give it my all."
With his words, Lance felt much more at ease.
Whether Bayer Leverkusen could truly turn the tide depended on this match.
During warm-ups, looking up at the stands, many Wolfsburg fans still missed De Bruyne.
"De Bruyne, welcome home!"
"Can you come back, Kevin!"
"Thank you for everything you did for Wolfsburg!"
In the 2012-2013 season, Wolfsburg ranked 11th;
In the 2013-2014 season, Wolfsburg ranked 5th, with De Bruyne saving Wolfsburg multiple times in crucial matches and winning the Bundesliga assist king last season, setting a new Bundesliga record with 21 assists in a single season.
It was normal for fans to remember him fondly.
Lance found it a little amusing.
The assist king you can't forget is mine now.
With the Bundesliga Golden Boot and Assist King from last season now at Bayer Leverkusen, Wolfsburg were quite scared.
In the locker room after warm-ups, Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking was sweating profusely, constantly emphasising the threat of De Bruyne and Lance to his players.
On the other side, the away team's locker room was relatively relaxed.
After a simple pre-match tactical meeting, the Bayer Leverkusen players all relaxed, preparing for this tough battle.
Before entering the field, Lance specifically took out his phone to check it.
He found an unread message.
Chloe: "Lance, I almost forgot, you asked me something yesterday, right? Sorry, I was interrupted by the draw results."
Lance: "Nothing, getting ready for the game."
Chloe: "Go for it! I've already turned on the TV and am ready to watch! Always supporting you, go for it!"
Lance didn't reply, silently putting down his phone.
Sitting on the large sofa, the commentators and guests on the TV screen were intensely discussing today's match, predicting its outcome.
The young girl, Chloe, couldn't hear a word.
Her small feet, size 35, with bright red nail polish, were now tensed and digging into the sofa, holding her phone, her heart clenching, and a bad thought popped into her head.
"He's not mad, is he? What should I do? Will he hate me?"
Ever since that near-car accident, when she discovered Lance, this treasure of a player.
Chloe didn't know what was wrong with her; she always wanted to stick to Lance, wishing she could talk to him forever, wishing she could go to every match to watch him.
At first, she thought it was like being a fan in a fan club, that she was just a passionate fan of Lance.
Later, Chloe seemed to realise something was off.
She was no longer satisfied with just being a fan, just an ordinary friend.
With no dating experience, her heart pounded, she was flustered, and gradually tried not to bother Lance.
Coincidentally, during the World Cup, Lance was far away in Brazil preparing and had no time to contact her, so their communication was temporarily interrupted.
This did not make the feeling in Chloe's heart dissipate; instead, it grew stronger and stronger.
So much so that two days ago, she mustered up the courage to try calling Lance.
The moment the call connected, Chloe was so happy she almost jumped, and everything seemed normal.
Chloe's heart raced; she was afraid Lance wouldn't be interested if she talked about other things, so she could only talk about the Champions League draw.
Suddenly, the draw results surprised her, and she overlooked Lance's question.
By the time she realised it, Lance had already hung up due to something urgent.
Chloe barely slept all night, her mind a mess.
It wasn't until match day that she mustered the courage to text Lance again.
Oh no!
Lance's coldness was already quite obvious.
In the past, no matter how busy Lance was, he would respond with more enthusiasm.
"It's over, it's over, what should I do?"
Filled with annoyance and anxiety, the match was about to begin, and the figures of both teams' players had already appeared on screen.
Close-up shots focused on the key figures of today's match.
Lance's dazzlingly handsome face made Chloe momentarily lost in thought.
No clues could be read from his expression.
Lance was always like this before a match, his eyes firm, looking at the distant pitch.
Every match was a war!
Chloe just hugged her pillow tightly, curled up on the sofa.
"Lance, go for it!"
...
..."Oh!! De Bruyne's pass!!"
"Firmino—"
"The shot just grazed the post and flew out!"
"30 minutes into the first half, both sides still haven't scored."
"But the intensity of the match hasn't been affected at all!"
"Both teams have had good chances to score!"
"Returning to the Volkswagen Arena, Kevin De Bruyne, facing his old club, is exceptionally active today, constantly creating excellent opportunities on the right wing!"
"He and Lance, this Belgian duo, are truly Bayer Leverkusen's greatest treasures!"
Firmino gave a thumbs up with an apologetic look.
De Bruyne had practically spoon-fed him, but he couldn't convert the chance.
Lance also helped with his movement, drawing away several Wolfsburg defenders.
Firmino's shooting skills were still slightly lacking, wasting a sure-goal opportunity.
"It's alright, Roberto, your movement was perfect just now; we'll definitely succeed if we attack a few more times."
It had to be Lance who comforted his teammates.
Lance was like the lubricant for Bayer Leverkusen, providing emotional support to everyone perfectly.
In reality, Lance didn't care if they were sad or not.
His only goal was to win!
Next, he needed to consider how to break through Wolfsburg's defensive wall.
To counter Bayer Leverkusen's attacking front, Wolfsburg employed a 4-defender + 3-defensive midfielder formation.
Luiz Gustavo, Guilavogui, and Maximilian Arnold formed a barrier in front of the penalty area.
Coupled with the solid central defensive pairing of Timo Klose and Naldo, Bayer Leverkusen couldn't find many good opportunities.
Template equipped: Nagi Seishiro (Fusion value 100%)
--Skill: Perfect Ball Control
--Skill: Hardcore Shot
--Skill: Mirror Learning
Rage value: 75%
Assisting character: Bachira Meguru - S (Fusion value 79%)
Assisting status: On
To deal with Wolfsburg's compact defence, Lance equipped the Nagi Seishiro template.
But now he needed a template with stronger finishing ability.
Neither Bachira Meguru nor Nagi Seishiro could be more lethal within the limited shooting windows.
With goalkeeper Diego Benaglio playing exceptionally well, he had blocked 5 of Lance's shots within 30 minutes.
"It seems I'll temporarily need to rely on the full rage state."
Just as Lance was working to accumulate rage and trying to find opportunities by moving in the penalty area, he noticed an open space at the back post and instinctively made a diagonal run towards it.
Before he could reach it, De Bruyne, dribbling on the right, suddenly delivered a bizarre curved pass!
The ball drew an exaggerated arc, precisely bypassing the defensive areas of two defenders, and arrived in front of Lance!
"Holy crap? That's insane?!"
Lance almost forgot!
Winning the game didn't require him to carry everything!
He also had a group of world-class teammates!
De Bruyne's divine pass was perfectly timed! Absolutely brilliant!
Using Nagi Seishiro's God-tier Ball Control, Lance calmly flicked the ball with his left toe, controlling and dribbling past Naldo!
A tight-angle volley with his right foot!
"Laaaaaance—"
"Gooooooooal!!"
"In the 36th minute of the first half, the Belgian duo connected to break the deadlock!"
"Bayer Leverkusen lead Wolfsburg 1-0!"