The Dortmund Airport arrivals hall had never seen anything quite like it. As the automatic doors slid open and the Borussia Dortmund squad emerged from their China tour, they were greeted by a wall of sound that seemed to shake the very foundations of the building.
Hundreds of supporters had gathered despite the late hour, their voices united in songs that had echoed through the Westfalenstadion for generations. Yellow and black scarves waved like a sea of belonging, cameras flashed in rapid succession, and the energy was electric with genuine football passion.
At the center of the attention, though he tried his best to remain inconspicuous, was Mateo. The sixteen-year-old who had left Germany as a promising prospect had returned as the talk of international football.
