You might not believe this.
Before the match between Mainz U19 and Bayern Munich U19, the usually deserted Engelborn Stadium was suddenly packed with fans.
Yes.
There were no stands, no seats. Fans simply stood around the perimeter of the pitch on their own.
The massive pitch was swarmed by fans, packed several layers deep, making it completely impassable.
There had to be at least two thousand people.
When Wang Shuo saw this, he truly couldn't believe it.
The Southwest Division only had 14 teams, and the total attendance for all of Mainz's other 12 home games combined couldn't compare to this single match against Bayern.
Even the parking lot outside was full.
Word was that the roads outside were backed up with traffic, and more fans were still constantly arriving.
This was the drawing power of Bayern Munich.
Even their U19 team alone could attract so many fans.
"A lot of them are here for Thomas Müller," Andre Schürrle said with a smile.
"Thomas Müller?"
"Yep. Everyone says he's going to be the future top scorer for German football. Plus, he's got a legendary last name."
Of course, Wang Shuo knew the significance of the Müller name to German football.
But he didn't feel any particular way about Bayern.
'That was all too far away!'
Right now, the most important thing for him was to improve as quickly as possible.
He'd already earned 16 Passive Value from three matches.
'If I push a little harder, I might actually be able to scrape together 50 Passive Value before the season ends and trade it for another Skill Card.'
...
The Bayern Munich U19 team had traveled from Munich.
The match was still scheduled for 10:00 AM sharp.
Like peerless martial arts masters from a novel, this group of young prodigies from Germany's number one club always saved their entrance for last.
The first thing to appear was their luxury bus, a top-of-the-line model sponsored by the world-class brand Mann.
A single one cost several hundred thousand euros.
Even the Mainz first team couldn't afford such an expensive bus.
The U19s used an old hand-me-down from the first team that was not only dated but also broke down frequently.
Forget everything else—just arriving in a bus like that gave them an air of superiority that completely eclipsed Mainz U19.
Naturally, this drew immense praise from the surrounding fans.
"So grand!"
"Pure class!"
"Now that's what a top-tier club looks like!"
With a HISS, the automatic doors slid open. The Bayern Munich U19 players who stepped off were all in uniform, wearing Adidas tracksuits, carrying Adidas duffel bags, and sporting Adidas shoes...
And get this—even the Bayern players' hairstyles were exceptionally neat.
In a word: sharp!
The moment they appeared, the Bayern Munich U19 squad radiated an aristocratic air from head to toe, a stark contrast to a have-not team like Mainz.
Schürrle explained to Wang Shuo on the side, "Bayern has dedicated stylists who serve both the first team and the youth team players."
"What about us?"
They had to find a barber on their own.
Their perfectly matching kits made the Bayern players' entrance seem particularly special.
But what really caught Wang Shuo's attention was the sheer spirit emanating from the Bayern players.
Anyone who played for Bayern was one of the best young talents in Germany, if not the entire European football scene.
Don't be fooled by Bayern Munich U19's third-place ranking in the Southwest Division; that was only because they didn't take the competition seriously.
For example, the German midfield prodigy Tony Kroos had been promoted to the first team at just 18 years old.
Rumor had it that Thomas Müller would also be joining the first team after this season.
For other clubs, their youth teams couldn't simply focus on developing young players as their sole objective; they also had to worry about relegation, just as Mainz had been in the past.
But Bayern?
They truly felt no pressure to perform.
No matter how poorly they played, they would still finish in the top three!
It was just like the top students from elite schools Wang Shuo had seen back home. They'd show up in their school uniforms, chins up and chests out, eyes glinting with light, their stride practically crackling with sparks and lightning.
He had to admit, looking at the image and gear of the Bayern players, then looking back at Mainz...
They really looked shabby in comparison.
And the most awkward part was that when the Bayern players got off the bus, walked onto the pitch, and began preparing for their pre-match warm-up, the local fans erupted in thunderous applause.
The sound of nearly two thousand people applauding at once, even in an open venue, was incredibly intense.
The Bayern players, all accustomed to this, simply smiled and waved to the fans.
To Wang Shuo, it felt less like they were here to play a match and more like they were on a promotional tour for the prestigious Bayern brand.
He glanced at his Mainz teammates.
Almost everyone, Schürrle included, had eyes filled with envy. They all dreamed of wearing that Bayern jersey and playing in the spotlight like them.
This left Wang Shuo a little puzzled.
'Don't they realize,' he wondered, 'that having this Bayern squad cause such a stir on our own home turf is a massive slap in our face?'
Even though the fans were acting on their own accord, Wang Shuo still felt deeply uncomfortable.
...
After warming up and changing into their kits, the players from both sides followed protocol and shook hands before the match.
Wang Shuo, meanwhile, got a close-up look at Bayern's lineup of stars.
Thomas Müller, Badstuber, Konstantin, Bjorn Köplin, Victor Bopp, Mario Elbu, and Muhammad Ekić—all of them were the most highly-touted prospects in the German football scene.
Roberto Soriano was a player for the Italian youth national team who had grown up in Germany.
Shaking hands down the line, Wang Shuo realized that almost the entire Bayern team was composed of international players.
If not for Germany, then for Italy or Turkey.