Dominating Football with Perfect Ball Control

Chapter 26: 26. De Bruyne is here!

”Welcome to the focus match of Bundesliga Round 5! Bayer Leverkusen, who dramatically overturned a deficit and secured a last-minute victory in their last away game, faces a strong opponent in VfL Wolfsburg this round!”

”In the past two seasons, VfL Wolfsburg’s performance has been unsatisfactory. Last season, they finished only 11th in the Bundesliga...”

”Of course, against Bayer Leverkusen, VfL Wolfsburg still holds a certain advantage. They have remained undefeated in the last two seasons with 3 wins and 1 draw, truly a bane for the Werkself!”

”This summer transfer window, Bayer Leverkusen acquired South Korean international Son Heung-min from Hamburger SV. VfL Wolfsburg also brought in midfielder Luiz Gustavo from Bayern München, and just before the transfer window closed, they secured a last-minute loan for the creative midfielder—Kevin De Bruyne from Chelsea.

With the reinforcement of these two midfielders, VfL Wolfsburg might have enough competitiveness in the new season to try to challenge for a top-four finish in the Bundesliga...”

At ZDF German Television Channel 2, the studio was conducting a pre-match analysis for the match day.

Commentator Berenberg and the guest were deep in discussion.

Meanwhile, inside the BayArena.

Lance was dumbfounded.

Wait!

De Bruyne?!

Standing on the pre-match warm-up field, Lance spotted a familiar face and thought he had seen wrong.

It wasn’t until the other party walked over with a smile to greet him that Lance realized.

It really was him!

”You rascal!”

Lance punched him on the shoulder.

When they were kids, he was taller than Lance, and Lance was often dominated by him.

Now that Lance’s height had caught up, he was no longer afraid of him.

Anyway, in terms of physical strength, both were similar, and Kevin De Bruyne wasn’t a power-type midfielder.

”You didn’t even say you were coming back to the Bundesliga?”

”Didn’t you read the news yourself?”

The introverted De Bruyne, whose expression had always been tense, only smiled more naturally when he saw Lance.

”I wanted to give you a surprise on the field, but I didn’t make the starting lineup today.”

”Noob.”

”You too!”

De Bruyne was flustered.

Due to not being valued at Chelsea, Kevin De Bruyne was almost excluded from the first-team squad.

After repeated negotiations, he finally secured a loan to VfL Wolfsburg on September 1st.

He rushed back to Germany and then hastily began the registration process.

During this period, he couldn’t play, and his mindset was already a bit broken.

Moreover, Lance’s performance in the previous round had caused a stir throughout Germany, and De Bruyne’s shock was no less than anyone else’s.

He remembered when he was a child, Lance couldn’t even juggle the ball properly.

At KRC Genk, De Bruyne often stayed behind to coach him in extra training, naturally feeling superior to his younger brother.

Having been in the first team for many years, De Bruyne was already 22 years old but had yet to establish himself in a top league.

While Kevin De Bruyne was happy for him, deep down, he also felt a strong sense of crisis!

He worried for his brother’s struggles, but also worried about his brother’s success.

Seeing Lance again, De Bruyne’s feelings were complex.

”Alright, let’s see who gets to come on as a substitute first today.”

”Okay, see you on the field.”

”See you on the field.”

Long-lost friends, who hadn’t even had time to catch up, immediately found themselves as opponents.

Lance just felt that fate truly had a wicked sense of humor.

It was fine if he didn’t play, but if he had a chance to come on as a substitute today... then sorry, Kevin, I’m going to win this game.

”The arrival of former Bayern München midfielder Luiz Gustavo has elevated VfL Wolfsburg’s midfield intensity by a notch.”

”It was Luiz Gustavo’s pressing at the start that forced Bayer Leverkusen into a mistake, and VfL Wolfsburg immediately launched a quick counter-attack.”

”Ivan Peri?i?’s cross from the left, Bas Dost couldn’t get to the ball, that was quite dangerous!”

”The away team VfL Wolfsburg attacked first less than 30 seconds into the game!!”

”Many friends may have just turned on their TVs. While the pace has slowed down, let’s review the starting lineups of both teams...”

As Bayer Leverkusen fans in front of their televisions nearly suffered heart attacks from fright,

Lance sat on the bench, frowning at his phone.

During the last tactical analysis class, Lance had been a bit distracted and hadn’t heard the coaching staff’s analysis of the opposing lineup.

Fortunately, he had screenshots of the tactical arrangements backed up on his phone,

Lance quickly cross-referenced them with the field to analyze the starting lineups of both teams.

Bayer Leverkusen 4-4-2

Goalkeeper: Bernd Leno

Defenders: Giulio Donati, Emir Spahi?, ?mer Toprak, Sebastian Boenisch

Midfielders: Robbie Kruse, Simon Rolfes, Lars Bender, Andrés Guardado

Forwards: Son Heung-min, Stefan Kie?ling

Substitutes: Ga?l Kakuta, Marcell Jansen, Emre Can, Julian Brandt, Lance

VfL Wolfsburg 4-2-3-1

Goalkeeper: Diego Benaglio

Defenders: Vieirinha, Robin Knoche, Naldo, Ricardo Rodríguez

Midfielders: Daniel Caligiuri, Luiz Gustavo, Maximilian Arnold, Jan Polák, Ivan Peri?i?

Forward: Bas Dost

The away team VfL Wolfsburg immediately pressed Bayer Leverkusen hard from the start, making Lance frown.

Logically, Bayer Leverkusen’s three lines of strength were not inferior to their opponent, but the opponent’s aggressive away-game momentum was extremely fierce.

Luiz Gustavo, who debuted in Brazil, was originally an unknown player.

He then followed TSG Hoffenheim, rising from the 2. Bundesliga to the Bundesliga, and almost helped TSG Hoffenheim overturn Bayern München.

In 2008, the sudden rise of promoted team TSG Hoffenheim made the entire world aware of this small village of 3,000 people.

Any team that performed well in the Bundesliga inevitably had its key players coveted by Bayern München.

The team’s core strength, starting midfielder Luiz Gustavo, transferred to Bayern München,

This move incidentally angered head coach Ralf Rangnick, leading to his furious departure, and TSG Hoffenheim’s magical aura quickly faded.

After playing two seasons at Bayern München, Luiz Gustavo, as a starter, followed Bayern München to win the treble.

After all, he was a player who had seen the big stage, transferring to VfL Wolfsburg in the new season, Luiz Gustavo made VfL Wolfsburg’s midfield much tougher.

Bayer Leverkusen’s midfield was surprisingly unable to contend with him, and the situation immediately became quite passive.

”No way, another uphill battle?”

Lance certainly wanted to play; the more disadvantaged the team, the more likely he was to come on and find an opportunity.

But he wanted Bayer Leverkusen to win even more.

Fortunately, Bayer Leverkusen withstood the pressure of the first half.

Son Heung-min burst down the wing to create an opportunity, his cut-in and long-range shot causing goalkeeper Diego Benaglio to fumble.

Stefan Kie?ling arrived in time!

”Stefan Kie?ling!! A clean and decisive poke shot!”

”Home team Bayer Leverkusen scores first!”

The BayArena erupted in applause.

The home DJ was still announcing the goal with an excited voice.

”Let’s call out his name with the most enthusiastic voices!”

”Goalscorer, number 9! Stefan—”

”Kie?ling—”

What’s it like to have 30,000 people in the stadium shout your name?

It’s awesome, that’s what.

Ask Lance why he knows, because in DFB-Pokal Round 1, Lance personally experienced it twice.

The 1-0 score held until the 68th minute of the second half.

VfL Wolfsburg requested a substitution!

Kevin De Bruyne, wearing VfL Wolfsburg’s jersey, stood on the edge of the field.

Hiss—

Lance suddenly had a bad feeling!

This guy isn’t going to carry, is he?