Chen Tao originally thought that with a goal in the 16th minute of the first half, the team would be able to press on and continue to apply pressure.
He observed very clearly on the field that the Schalke 04 players had been completely bewildered by him.
Every time he got the ball, the opponents would become extremely tense.
Schalke 04 deployed heavy forces to defend the left flank, not only making it difficult to steal the ball from Chen Tao, but also easily exposing their weak side.
Chen Tao immediately had an idea: why not give it a try!
A hasty attack by Schalke 04 failed to materialize, with Farfán shooting high over the bar.
Goalkeeper Weidenfeller took a goal kick, and Hummels then passed it to the midfield commander Nuri Şahin.
Nuri Şahin's starting performance today was quite outstanding.
The coaching staff was still worried that he was too young and not as steady as the Brazilian veteran Tinga.
In fact, Nuri Şahin was much steadier than Tinga, playing for almost 20 minutes without ever losing possession.
The midfield was organized perfectly, and he formed a link with Chen Tao on the right flank.
Dick Fuhren was full of praise when he saw his performance:
"Our youth academy is still strong."
"Hmm, so far, so good."
Venturing to start two newcomers, Thomas Doll was still nervously pacing on the sidelines.
Tinga, after all, was an experienced veteran; occasional mistakes were not a big problem, as long as he could stay steady.
As for the young players on the field, who knew what kind of situations they would get into.
Like now!
Thomas Doll's heart immediately leaped into his throat!
His tactical arrangement was clearly to advance slowly, trying to control possession and pass the ball around in the midfield and defense.
A 1-0 lead was enough for Borussia Dortmund to slow down the pace of the game.
But Chen Tao clearly disagreed!
He actually chose to risk speeding up!
"Hey, pass it here!!"
With the lead, Nuri Şahin, as per the head coach's instructions, tried to slow down and casually observe the field from the back.
On the right, Chen Tao suddenly dropped back into his own half to demand the ball.
"This guy!"
Nuri Şahin immediately passed to Chen Tao without hesitation; he must have his own ideas for asking for the ball.
As soon as he passed it, Nuri Şahin regretted it.
Schalke 04 was defending very tightly!
Left winger Levan Kobiashvili quickly moved forward to intercept, while left-back Pandèr simultaneously advanced to challenge Chen Tao.
All Schalke 04 players were on high alert for Chen Tao's every move, as if facing a formidable enemy!
"Not good!"
Just as Chen Tao was about to be dispossessed, he suddenly retreated a few steps, and just before Levan could touch the ball, he preemptively positioned himself to receive it.
"Don't even think about getting past!"
Levan turned and came behind Chen Tao, pushing against Chen Tao's back to prevent him from receiving the ball and turning.
But the next second, the damned Asian kid feigned a move to the left shoulder before suddenly accelerating to the right!
Levan hadn't even managed to touch him, and he had already transformed into a blur, sweeping past him!
Where's the ball?
Levan searched on the ground for a long time, and when he looked back, Chen Tao had already dribbled the ball and charged towards the front field!
"Beautiful!! Chen Tao cleverly completed a nutmeg with a deliberate dummy! Full of imagination!"
The commentator Sauer was utterly amazed!
Chen Tao didn't even touch the ball throughout the process, simply using a feint to fool the defender, then turning and receiving the ball in one smooth motion!
But this did not help Borussia Dortmund gain an advantage.
Chen Tao on the right flank still had to face heavy encirclement; Levan was tracking back, left-back Pandèr was coming forward to challenge, and defensive midfielder Fabian Ernst was simultaneously closing in.
He faced a three-man chase and block!
"Pass it back! Reorganize!"
Thomas Doll was breaking out in a sweat!
Every time Chen Tao was heavily surrounded, it made him incredibly nervous, fearing that the ball would be stolen and lead to a counter-attack.
"This kid!!"
But Chen Tao, facing the heavy encirclement, was not conservative; he chose a more aggressive approach!
Get past all of them!
Fabian Ernst rushed in from the side-rear, like an American football player, attempting a shoulder charge to knock Chen Tao off the ball.
All the fans in the stadium held their breath for Chen Tao; at that critical moment,
Chen Tao seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, suddenly stopping short and pulling the ball back, perfectly evading the fatal collision!
Fabian Ernst directly ran out of bounds.
Levan, who was tracking back, now caught up, grabbed Chen Tao's shoulder, and overtook him to get in front.
Chen Tao crouched down and changed direction, breaking through towards the inside.
Levan quickly stepped forward to block his path, while teammate Pandèr simultaneously came from the sideline to form a double-team!
Any ordinary person would have lost the ball by now.
No matter how good their skills, they could only shield the ball, turn, and pass back to a teammate.
Facing this situation, Chen Tao had only one thought in his mind!
Get past them!
Completely trusting the talent gained by sacrificing shooting skills, he completely surrendered his body to instinct!
In a state of self-forgetfulness, everything around him seemed to slow down.
From Levan and Pandèr's normal time perception, the Asian player's next moves were simply bizarre!
The moment he dodged to break through to the left, Levan quickly stepped over,
But the Asian player's elastico was completely unexpected!
The yellow-and-black figure flashed, already breaking through from the right!
"Luckily Pandèr can… What?!!"
Pandèr, who came up to close the trap, was nutmegged almost simultaneously, watching helplessly as the agile Asian player slipped through their gap!
From being triple-teamed to breaking through each one individually, the entire process took only 3 seconds!
The Schalke 04 players turned back with extreme shock,
The yellow-and-black number 24 had already charged into the penalty area!
"Chen!! Chen!! Chen!!!"
Nothing ignites the passion of the entire stadium more than a solo run!
Chen Tao's continuous dribbling caused the roar of Westfalen to pierce the sky!
The Schalke 04 defenders could no longer stay calm; center-back Westermann quickly moved forward to cover.
Bodén also moved over, marking the opponent's poaching striker Alexander Frei.
Just when everyone thought Chen Tao would continue to break through, he suddenly passed the ball!
With his right foot strengthened by continuous dribbling, Chen Tao briefly glanced into the penalty area and sent a cross without hesitation!
The ball traced an artistic arc in the air, perfectly bypassing the two center-backs and heading straight for the far post!
"Diego!! Klimowicz—"
As the 33-year-old Argentine tall striker leaped into the air, goalkeeper Neuer saw only despair in his eyes.
Bang!
Swish—
The football cleanly struck the back of the net!
"Just 5 minutes after the first goal, in the 21st minute of the first half, Borussia Dortmund extended their lead! 2-0!"
"Our Eastern Magician is moving through the right flank as if there's no one there!"
"Both goals are a perfect embodiment of his individual heroism! He single-handedly broke through Schalke 04's left-flank defense!"
"Such a terrifying young player, he didn't even get a chance to play in the previous games, can you believe it?"
Commentator Sauer also subtly mocked Borussia Dortmund's head coach Thomas Doll.
In the previous games, Chen Tao didn't play, and Dortmund suffered three consecutive losses.
With Chen Tao starting, they were leading 2-0 in the 21st minute of the first half, and against a strong opponent, third-placed Schalke 04!
He seemingly always liked to take risks, making the team's tactics ineffective.
Frequently dribbling alone could very likely lead to losing possession and the opponent launching a counter-attack.
The impulsiveness and recklessness of youth are a double-edged sword,
For the conservative head coach Thomas Doll, it was indeed not very likable.
But did they score or not!
Can they win or not!
"This Chinese youngster has brought us too many surprises! The performance of the Eastern Magician is truly a work of art!"
Commentator Sauer grew more and more appreciative.
The director also appropriately showed a slow-motion replay.
When Chen Tao was surrounded earlier, facing an impossible breakthrough situation, he almost seized a fleeting window!
Then Chen Tao calmly used an elastico to fool Levan and send him to the ground.
In slow motion, the expression of the opposing left-back Pandèr gradually turned frantic, his movements blocking Chen Tao's path.
Just as he spread his legs, Chen Tao actually used a light tap with his right heel, completing a nutmeg by a hair's breadth!
The elastico followed by a heel-tap nutmeg was a flowing, seamless move; he was purely showing off his skills, purely toying with the opponent!
The gentleman in the yellow-and-black jersey moved with graceful steps among the rough men in blue jerseys.
Even after the director cut back to the live footage, fans in front of their televisions were still relishing the continuous dribbling from earlier, they couldn't get enough!
"It still has to be Chen!"
Assistant coach Dick Fuhren vigorously pumped his fist in celebration.
Next to him, Thomas Doll breathed a sigh of relief; his heart had almost jumped out of his chest watching that.
"This kid is really too reckless!"
But he had to admit.
When Chen Tao promised to lead the team to victory, he indeed had enough confidence and ability!
He had underestimated him.
"Today is stable! 3 points in the bag!"
Thomas Doll apparently didn't realize what a jinx he was.
Just one minute after he finished celebrating, he was stunned to see a sudden turn of events on the field.
"OHHHH—Farfán! An incredibly unscientific world-class shot blasted through the Borussia Dortmund goal!"
"Weidenfeller had no reaction!"
"Schalke 04, trailing by two goals, pulled one back!"
"Truly worthy of being the fiery Ruhr Derby!"