The post-match press conference for Borussia Dortmund was held in the media hall.
Head coach Thomas Doll sat in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Hey, Thomas! Pzzzzz! Thomas?"
"What?"
Dick Fuhren was on the verge of going crazy!
So many reporters were watching, waiting for you to speak!
Are you the head coach or am I the head coach?
Did losing one match to Duisburg make you absent-minded?
"Oh, oh, what was the question again?"
Dick Fuhren, feeling helpless, motioned for the reporter who had just asked the question to repeat it.
The blonde female reporter rolled her eyes:
"Mr. Doll, when the team was equalized, why did you choose to substitute a defensive midfielder instead of Chen Tao to fight for victory?"
Chen Tao, it was Chen Tao again!
These days, whenever Thomas Doll opened the news, he would see the name "Chen Tao," which almost made him instinctively resistant.
The seven consecutive unbeaten rounds before the winter break were his achievement as head coach, leading the team to gain points.
It was Thomas Doll's credit for climbing from 13th place, so why praise a 15-year-old kid?
"Because we were playing away, we needed to secure one point as steadily as possible. The opponent's defense was solid, and their counter-attacks were excellent; bringing on an offensive player would not be conducive to holding onto a draw."
"But Chen Tao can score goals, he can win."
This statement from the blonde female reporter from "Rheinische Post" instantly made Thomas Doll furious.
"Yes, he did create goals every time he played before the winter break, but he can't be useful every single game!"
"At that time, stabilizing the midfield was the most important thing! The wing players' performance was no worse than Chen Tao's!"
"As the head coach, I know the team better and understand tactics more than all of you!"
Dick Fuhren quickly restrained the agitated head coach.
Thomas Doll had always been relatively calm, even taciturn, and usually very composed when facing the media.
For some reason, he suddenly erupted this time.
"Excuse me…"
Other reporters were still planning to ask questions, but Thomas Doll seemed to realize his impropriety.
"I apologize, I'm not in the right state today. Let's end the press conference here."
"Mr. Doll!"
"Have you and Chen Tao had a conflict?"
"Mr. Doll, are there internal problems in the Borussia Dortmund locker room?"
Thomas Doll walked away with a dark expression, leaving only Dick Fuhren and the press officer exchanging bitter smiles.
"Strange, we used to get substitute opportunities, but today we didn't even get one minute?"
Nuri Şahin was very depressed.
As a Borussia Dortmund youth product, a true BVB loyalist, he genuinely wanted to play for Borussia Dortmund.
Last season, he made 29 appearances for the first team, mostly during garbage time or in cup matches.
He was basically a fringe player for Borussia Dortmund.
Furthermore, at that time, Borussia Dortmund was busy fighting relegation, making it difficult to let a youngster like Nuri Şahin control the midfield.
At his agent's suggestion, Nuri Şahin contacted Feyenoord in the Eredivisie, and Borussia Dortmund agreed to Feyenoord's loan request.
Nuri Şahin was originally heading towards another timeline, to train for a year in the Eredivisie before returning.
Before leaving, he even had a long chat with head coach Thomas Doll.
Thomas Doll promised that in the new season, Nuri Şahin would have the chance to start and secure a main position, getting more opportunities.
After much thought, Nuri Şahin gritted his teeth and rejected Feyenoord, staying at Borussia Dortmund.
As a result, he did start, and his multiple substitute appearances were effective, creating a good chemical reaction with the loaned Chen Tao.
During the period before the winter break, Nuri Şahin thought he would be a regular starter.
But then…
"Chen Tao, what do you think?"
"What can I do?"
Chen Tao spread his hands.
He had come to realize that as long as Thomas Doll was there, it would be difficult for him to be a regular starter.
Thomas Doll was an extreme conservative and a stickler for rules.
Once the tactics were set, he wouldn't adjust them flexibly.
His experience of successfully avoiding relegation last season made him trust the concept of solid defense even more.
Chen Tao himself was an anomaly; he could dribble the ball in the attacking third to create threats, and preferred cutting inside to find opportunities, rather than following tactical instructions to cross from the byline.
One move affects the whole situation.
If he cut inside and narrowed the play, should the full-backs push up?
How should the original striker position himself, and how should others cooperate?
All of these required a new set of detailed tactics to be formulated and practiced for a period of time before they could form true combat effectiveness.
The victories in the previous period were more due to individual performances.
From a tactical perspective, it was undoubtedly a failure; Thomas Doll simply didn't know how the team won, or how they defeated Bayern Munich.
If he simply brought Chen Tao on and let the players play freely, it would be simple.
But Thomas Doll was someone who preferred control, who liked the team to play according to his tactics, and couldn't accept chaos.
Thus, today's scene unfolded: even though the conservative midfield possession and progression weren't working, he still chose to strengthen the midfield, thinking he could hold onto a draw.
As a result of the opponent's players' burst of form, Borussia Dortmund didn't even get one point.
So, if the head coach wouldn't use the players, what could Chen Tao do?
…
The entire team returned to Borussia Dortmund from Duisburg, and when they dispersed at the training ground, the team's morale was visibly low.
Losing to a bottom-ranked team was hard for anyone to bear.
They were already in 6th place in the league table, with hopes of playing in the Europa League next season, but now they had dropped back to 7th, only 2 points behind Hannover in 8th place.
Everyone else drove away, but Chen Tao walked back to the Heinrich home with his bag.
Around 7 PM, the two-story house would usually have lights on, looking very warm from a distance.
But this time, the lights were off.
"Did you go out?"
Chen Tao, puzzled, pulled out his phone to ask Anna.
She replied instantly:
"Yes, we're out. You go back first."
Maybe they went to visit relatives with Grandpa Fritz…
Big brother Frank didn't go with them to the away match this time, so they should all be together.
He probably would be alone when he went back.
Borussia Dortmund at night, the entire residential area was eerily quiet, with no pedestrians visible.
Walking on the unlit path, Chen Tao wasn't afraid; he just felt incredibly lonely.
He missed home a bit.
He found the spare key under the flowerpot by the porch, and with a heavy heart, Chen Tao opened the door and entered the house.
He changed into slippers in the entryway and walked into the living room, just as he was about to turn on the light…
Bang—
The sudden sound instinctively made Chen Tao want to dodge!
"Gunshot? A burglar?"
Before he could react, the living room suddenly lit up.
"Surprise!!"
In Chen Tao's surprise, he saw the entire Heinrich in the living room, greeting him with smiles.
The sound just now was actually Frank's party popper.
Chen Tao was confused; his birthday was in June, not February.
"Chen Tao! Welcome back!"
"Happy Chinese New Year, Chen Tao!"
"Gong Xi Fa Cai!"
Hans and Maria, dressed intentionally in red coats, congratulated him with festive cheer.
Frank pulled out a pair of couplets from somewhere and showed them off to him:
"Look, I wrote these myself, aren't they good!"
Chen Tao looked closely, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry, seeing a few crooked Chinese characters written with a brush.
[When the wind comes, the sail is full; when spring arrives, blessings enter the home]
The calligraphy wasn't good enough to comment on, but the sentiment was quite nice. Chen Tao gave Frank a thumbs up, almost making his friend beam with joy.
"What is all this?"
"Next year is your Chinese New Year, so we wanted to help you celebrate."
Uncle Hans said with a chuckle, opening a can of beer.
"Yes, you spent Christmas alone outside, and now you'll spend your traditional Chinese New Year outside too. The child is too pitiful. We must celebrate with you."
The emotional Maria couldn't help but be moved, almost coming over to embrace Chen Tao tightly again.
Chen Tao quickly subtly stepped back half a pace.
He had just been feeling depressed about losing the match and not getting to play, and suddenly he was overwhelmingly touched by the warm Heinrich.
Aunt Maria had already prepared a table of Chinese New Year's Eve dinner.
Although it was ordered from a nearby Chinese restaurant, their thoughtfulness was still evident.
At this moment, the feeling of loneliness from earlier had long vanished. Chen Tao was not alone in Borussia Dortmund; he also had family accompanying him.
After finishing the German-style Chinese meal amidst laughter and joy,
Chen Tao went to the outer porch, intending to wish his parents a happy new year, but considering it was 4 AM there, he decided against it, leaning on the railing and gazing at the starry sky.
"Please forgive them."
Anna quietly came to his side at some point, leaning her back against the railing.
"They don't know how to celebrate Chinese New Year, so they made it seem like a birthday."
"It's quite lively, a big surprise, but truly very touching."
"That's good."
Their gazes naturally met, and Anna, like a startled deer, shifted hers away, changing the subject awkwardly:
"By the way, Thomas Doll is an idiot, don't take it to heart."
"The fans all support you, you'll definitely get your chance."
"Thank you, I didn't expect you to care about me so much."
"Who, who cares about you?!"
For some reason, Anna lowered her head again and hurried away from the porch, pausing at the door.
"Go to bed early, you idiot… Goodnight."
…
Bundesliga Round 19, Borussia Dortmund vs. Rostock at home.
1-2
Borussia Dortmund, who had been unbeaten for 7 rounds before the winter break and had come from behind to defeat Bayern Munich, actually suffered two consecutive losses!
And both opponents were near the relegation zone, teams they should have been gaining points from!
Nuri Şahin and Chen Tao, the two youngsters, sat on the bench for another 90 minutes, not getting a single minute of playing time.
In Round 20, Borussia Dortmund played away against Cottbus.
1-0
Home team first, away team second.
14th-ranked Cottbus defeated Borussia Dortmund.
The more Thomas Doll was questioned by the media and fans, the more stubborn he became, refusing to make changes.
This time, Chen Tao wasn't even included in the squad list and watched the entire match at the Heinrich home.
Three consecutive losses!
Germany's most authoritative football media, "Bild," was the first to attack:
"Thomas Doll has clearly forgotten who was truly leading the team to victory in the first half of the season. Even if young players are inconsistent and might pose risks, they are Borussia Dortmund's valuable assets!
Look at the veterans in the squad; do their attitudes suggest they want to win?
Tinga made so many mistakes in midfield, repeatedly leading to crucial goals conceded, so why is he still on the field?
Thomas Doll, the head coach, bears the primary responsibility for Borussia Dortmund's three consecutive losses!
The next match is the most important Ruhr Derby!
If he continues to be stubborn, he might not be far from being sacked."