Chapter 705: Not the Same as Before (Second Perspective)
Even though they were held to a draw by Paderborn, everyone in Werder Bremen was still relatively pleased because they had basically secured their position as the runners-up of the first half of the season.
They made it through to the Europa League, their performance in the league steadily progressed towards the Champions League spots, and they even reached the third round of the DFB-Pokal. These were results that were difficult to imagine before the start of the season, and both the players, coaching staff, and club executives were very satisfied.
Next up was the 16th round of the Bundesliga, where they faced another strong opponent, Borussia Dortmund, at home.
"The Yellow and Blacks are not the same as they were in the past two seasons," said head coach Schaaf during the pre-match tactical briefing.
Although it was called a tactical arrangement, Werder Bremen didn't have many complicated tactics. All the players knew what they should do on the field like the back of their hand, so the goal of this meeting was to boost morale for the game.
"We've played 15 rounds in the league, where are they? In the relegation zone! They lost 9 out of 15 matches, drew 2, and only won 4."
"And we've won 9 matches, drawn 3, and only lost 3. Guys, what does this mean? They're facing the same opponents as us."
"Their main striker, Lewandowski, suddenly leaving dealt a huge blow to Dortmund. Perhaps now, whenever they find themselves in a disadvantageous situation, this painful event will come to mind, which is a heavy burden for all the players on the field."
"But we won't have any burdens. Forget about the once invincible Yellow and Blacks. Find their weaknesses, show strong determination at our home ground, and we will surely defeat them!"
"Yes, perhaps Dortmund will face relegation for the first time in forty years this season. We are making history!" Captain Fritz exclaimed loudly.
Everyone smiled at his words. To be honest, many people in the team did have some lingering fear of the youthful storm, but after this tactical briefing, those fears dissipated. What are we afraid of? We are the ones with the advantage now!
On the sidelines, Klopp was excitedly waving his arms, something he hadn't done in a long time, all because of a simple opening goal.
In the 19th minute of the game, the away team took the lead with a shot from Immobile.
The German coach desperately needed this goal, this victory, to declare that Dortmund still had hope, that they could turn the tables and return to the European competition zone.
Yes, they didn't dare to think about surpassing Bayern Munich and winning the title anymore. In fact, many media outlets and even people within the team believed they might get relegated.
But if they could defeat the second-placed, high-spirited Werder Bremen, they believed they could rebuild their team spirit and confidence.
The consequences of Lewandowski leaving for free were deeper than the outside world had judged. It almost destroyed what the team had always upheld and believed in, unity and love, the club as a home.
Imagine, even the most relied-upon core tore up verbal agreements mercilessly for their own benefit, transferring to their arch-rivals without leaving anything for the club. Such nakedly commercial behavior was placed in front of everyone. Who would still have the heart to talk about loyalty?
Fortunately, there was still Reus, who firmly stepped forward to support the team, refusing all attempts to poach him. This to some extent reassured the fluctuating hearts.
Coupled with their decent performance in the Champions League, the Yellow and Blacks managed to avoid a complete collapse in multiple competitions.
On paper, Dortmund undoubtedly outclassed Werder Bremen by more than a mile, with their players' market value being more than five times higher.
The home team started somewhat aggressively, continuously threatening with several good attacking moves, so they felt they could go toe-to-toe with their opponents. Little did they know, the away team seized the chance of a counterattack and broke into the penalty area to score.
Fortunately, there was still plenty of time left in the game. The Werder Bremen players, now fully awake, concentrated more, firmly defending while waiting for their chance.
The fans at the Weserstadion weren't like the cold-hearted fans of the big clubs, who would start booing as soon as the situation turned unfavorable. Instead, they kept cheering, waving their team flags, creating a warm atmosphere of support.
"Werder Bremen launches a counterattack! Fritz dribbles forward, he needs support. De Bruyne is coming over."
In the 36th minute, Dortmund made a passing mistake in the midfield, and Aubameyang directly gave the ball to Vestergaard. Although they tried to organize a counterpress on the spot, they still gave the home team a chance to pass to Fritz.
The German player faced pressure as he dribbled past the halfway line, so he passed sideways to De Bruyne. At this moment, the three attacking players, Huang Huo,Selke, and Hayrovic, were all sprinting forward at high speed, shaping up for a counterattack by Werder Bremen.
Dortmund's defense was visibly slow in getting back, perhaps affected by their early lead and the complacency from their opponents' previous unsuccessful attacks.
The home fans suddenly erupted into loud cheers, as if beating the drums of war to encourage their team.
"De Bruyne continues to dribble forward! Passes to the flank, Hayrovic, their speed is very fast!"
"Damn it!" Schmelzer gritted his teeth and tried hard to chase down the Werder Bremen winger, but the opponent was one step faster in getting rid of the ball, passing it to Selke in the middle.
Despite being a tall and strong German striker, Selke had some dribbling skills. Seeing only Hummels and Hornschuh in front of him, he decided to move laterally to pull the defensive line.
Seeing this scene, Huang Hu quickly moved to the other side of the flank, not only advancing towards the space but also lowering his own threat level. As expected, Hornschuh, who was caught between Huang Huo and Selke, gave up following the Chinese youngster and stepped forward to join his teammate in blocking the German striker.
At this moment, Selke cleverly turned and sent a diagonal pass, although he couldn't see Huang Hu's exact position, he knew he would definitely run in that direction!
The ball slipped past Hornschuh's side, landing perfectly at the feet of the unmarked Chinese youngster.
"No offside! At this moment, Huang Hu is like an open field in front of him, no obstacles, he slants into the penalty area and shoots!!"
"Goooooooooooooal! The ball's in! Langlak's save didn't touch the ball, it went straight into the net from the far end!"
"Huang Hu shoots from a small angle without any marking and equalizes the score for Werder Bremen. He wouldn't miss this opportunity without any marking!"
The Dortmund players obviously hadn't recovered from the blow yet. Many of them were still in the midfield and hadn't completely fallen back into position. Hornschuh, who was behind the Chinese youngster by almost two body lengths, made a dash to the linesman, indicating that Huang Hu might have been offside when receiving the ball.
But the linesman just shook his head, indicating that he saw it very clearly. This was even more evident under the live broadcast camera, so the commentator spontaneously said there was no offside.
Whether it was Selke's sudden lateral dribble or Huang Hu's unmarked run, it showed their understanding and imaginative cooperation.
After scoring, the Chinese youngster ran towards the German striker and jumped on his back. "Mate, you're amazing, that pass was brilliant! I thought you would pass to Hayrovic."
The Bosnian winger nodded beside them. "Yeah, I was ready to race to the bottom against the opponent, but you suddenly turned and made a blind pass. How did you see Huang there?"
"Haha, how could I see? But I just felt that Huang would run in that direction. Otherwise, why do we train together every day?"
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