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After the goal, the expressions of the fans in the Volkswagen Arena were complicated.
They wanted to boo their opponents loudly, but their opponent was Kevin De Bruyne after all!
He was an absolute hero for the club last season and a player deeply loved by the fans.
After last season ended, De Bruyne's loan contract expired, and he publicly stated at a press conference:
If Wolfsburg needed him, he would be willing to stay for the fans.
This made the Wolfsburg fans extremely excited, wishing they could write a petition with ten thousand signatures for the club to quickly buy out De Bruyne.
If the club couldn't afford it, the fans almost crowdfunded the transfer fee.
Wolfsburg were not short of money; they were backed by the Volkswagen Group, and the club's financial situation was good.
A transfer fee of over 20 million was not too heavy a burden.
And Wolfsburg definitely had the advantage of being close to home; they had plenty of lead time to operate this transfer.
If nothing unexpected happened, De Bruyne would inevitably belong to Wolfsburg.
It was like an ambitious but unappreciated newcomer in the workplace, encountering unfair treatment from a new leader in a company that started as a parvenu, feeling his talents were unrecognised.
He got an opportunity to be seconded to a partner company as a temporary worker, where he did an excellent job, receiving widespread praise from leaders and clients.
The partner company offered him a formal employee's offer more than once, with him solely responsible for projects, and a promotion and salary increase were just around the corner.
However, poaching someone required a certain breach of contract fee, and the partner company only wanted to make empty promises, being stingy and unwilling to pay.
Why spend more money when you can get high-quality labour for free at a low cost?
At this time, another competing company came up with a more sincere offer, willing to provide resources, development space, the best benefits, a salary increase of at least 50% compared to before, and most importantly, sufficient respect…
Faced with a leader who made empty promises and a practical and decisive leader, any normal person would know how to choose.
De Bruyne had already done his utmost for Wolfsburg, and there was nothing to criticise about his job change.
Wolfsburg fans also understood this point; De Bruyne was not to blame for this.
After De Bruyne assisted Lance's goal, they couldn't bring themselves to boo.
There was only silence in the home team stands.
What was most heartbreaking was seeing De Bruyne and Lance smile and high-five to celebrate the goal.
Wolfsburg fans suddenly had a sense of déjà vu, like an ex-girlfriend and her new partner showing affection in front of them.
The bitterness in their hearts grew even stronger.
A surge of resentment had nowhere to vent and ultimately could only be directed at the Wolfsburg club.
Coincidentally, the live big screen showed close-up shots of three high-ranking members: Wolfsburg Club CEO Gunnar Kilian, Sporting Director Klaus Allofs, and Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn.
The entire stadium immediately erupted in a wave of overwhelming boos, leaving the three looking at each other.
…
Push harder!! The game isn't over, we still need to focus!
That's right! Come on!! Let's try to win!!
Bayer Leverkusen —
Allez!!!
Bayer Leverkusen, leading by one goal, played with increasing morale as the away team.
They deployed their familiar defensive counter-attacking formation, holding their defence steady and waiting for Wolfsburg's counter-attack.
Midfielders Rolfes, Lars Bender, cooperating with the defensive line of Arnold, Harry Maguire, Virgil van Dijk, Boenisch.
These players formed an iron defence, their defensive coordination becoming increasingly tacit.
Wolfsburg's offence is very fierce… Schürrle and Perišić on both wings are still quite threatening…
Commentator Zhan Jun's contract with Sina recently ended.
Starting from this round, he officially joined LeTV Sports, becoming a commentator for LeTV Sports' Premier League, Bundesliga, and Champions League matches, continuing their cooperation from the World Cup.
Many fans, due to Zhan Jun, migrated from Sina to LeTV.
For Zhan Jun's debut, the number of viewers in the live broadcast room approached 7 million!
This was just an ordinary Bundesliga match, with viewership comparable to a World Cup game. It showed that the football fever from the 2014 World Cup was still ongoing.
Many casual viewers, after watching Lance's matches, continued to follow the Bundesliga.
Zhan Jun was still very nervous at this time. Wolfsburg, after losing De Bruyne, were not weak in strength.
Right winger Schürrle was a key player for the World Champions, the sharpest blade in Germany's attack.
Perišić was the core of Croatia, with a status second only to Modrić within the team.
The two, one on the left and one on the right, posed a huge threat to the Bayer Leverkusen defence!
Plus the 197cm Dutch aerial threat, Bas Dost, leading the attack, Wolfsburg indeed launched several very threatening attacks!
"Schürrle! His breakthrough on the right is very incisive! He's gotten past Boenisch!! He lifts his foot and crosses!"
"Dost!!! A header on goal!"
"Goalkeeper Leno reacted very quickly, tipping the ball over, a corner for Wolfsburg…"
"The corner kick is swung into the box! Dost!!"
"Harry Maguire's clearance didn't go far… Perišić's long-range shot—"
"That shot almost went in!! So close!"
Perišić's shot grazed the post and flew out, missing by mere centimetres. The entire Wolfsburg crowd rekindled hope, applauding Perišić.
For a time, Wolfsburg's offensive combination punch made it difficult for Bayer Leverkusen to cope.
As the first half neared its end, Wolfsburg's offence grew stronger and stronger.
Including Son Heung-min, Lance, De Bruyne, and Firmino, the attacking group all retreated to defend near the penalty area.
Lance was about to complete a tackle when Schürrle took the ball, cutting inside and breaking through from the half-space.
Damn it!
The moment Lance was bypassed, his heart almost stopped.
He was just a forward; defence was not his specialty!
Could it be that…
Just as Schürrle looked ready to shoot, a towering figure appeared in front of him, anticipating Schürrle's move and poking the ball away with his foot.
"Virgil van Dijk!! Beautiful defence!! Bayer Leverkusen counter-attack!!"
"Lance, good! His first touch is always a pleasure to watch!!"
"He gets past Luiz Gustavo, a through ball to the left! A brilliant pass finds Son Heung-min!"
"Son Heung-min… Can he get past him? He's gotten past him!! Son Heung-min breaks into the box—"
"A cross to the other side! De Bruyne—"
"The shot from outside the box is slightly off target!!"
"Bayer Leverkusen also produced a beautiful attacking combination…"
Only then did Lance's breathing even out.
Passing Virgil van Dijk, the Dutch tower's expression was as serious as ever.
"Lance, you can trust us. Create opportunities in the front, I'll take care of the back!"
Virgil van Dijk's strongest future skill, his unsolvable 1v1 defensive anticipation ability, was already showing its first signs!
After a sluggish and uncomfortable start to the season, Virgil van Dijk seemed to have found his rhythm, making several crucial clearances today.
Even Harry Maguire had become much steadier; his tall and strong physique allowed him to mark the opponent's 197cm tall centre-forward without being at a disadvantage!
As a result, Wolfsburg found no way to deal with their opponents until the end of the first half.
In the second half, Wolfsburg continued their fierce attacks, with Schürrle and Perišić constantly assaulting the flanks.
But how could Bayer Leverkusen surrender so easily?
In the 70th minute, their desperate defence finally found an opportunity!
"Schürrle… a dribbling error!! Lars Bender poked the ball away with his foot!"
"Bayer Leverkusen counter-attack!"
"Good, straight to Lance…"
Bachira Meguru template activated — On!
Lance activated his full power mode at the critical moment, charging forward under the influence of the 'monster'!
"Lance!! He gets past another player! A strong breakthrough through the middle!!"
"Naldo couldn't defend him, he was fooled by the fake move!!"
Under the effect of beastly intuition, Lance's danger perception was maxed out! He continuously made extreme dodges in the penalty area to avoid pushes and tackles from opponents.
A powerful shot thundered into the top corner!
"That goal is in!! Away team Bayer Leverkusen lead by 2 goals!"
"Lance scores his second goal!!"
Zhan Jun cheered with raised arms! His apprehension vanished!
Bayer Leverkusen were secure today!
Two consecutive wins!