Dominating Football with Perfect Ball Control

Chapter 73: 73. What the hell? Shaolin Soccer

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So far, Lance’s tough battles have included a comeback and last-minute winner against Bayern Munich at Allianz Arena, and a last-second equalizer against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Today, at BayArena, after a dream start with a goal in 22 seconds, Manchester United equalized.

Lance finally understood what ’elite club heritage’ meant, and what ’Red Devils’ resilience’ truly was.

Even though their coach had changed, their results were incomparable to before, and the entire team was on an irreversible decline.

They still retained that last shred of Red Devils’ fighting spirit, refusing to surrender to Bayer Leverkusen.

The score was tied 1-1, meaning the points difference and head-to-head record would not change, and Bayer Leverkusen remained top of the group.

Therefore, Bayer Leverkusen was not in a hurry for now; instead, Manchester United needed one more goal to take the lead and create their only chance in the fight for first place in the group.

”Steady! Steady!”

”Get back! Don’t rush! Don’t push up!”

Sami Hyypi? stood on the sidelines, shouting at his players, specifically warning the two fullbacks not to take unnecessary risks.

Bayer Leverkusen still prioritized solid defense and counter-attacks.

Especially on the wings, they couldn’t give Antonio Valencia opportunities to dribble and break through.

During halftime, he had repeatedly reminded the players, ”The advantage is ours!”

But on the field, the players inevitably got anxious and needed constant reminders from the coach.

The second half was a stalemate for about 10 minutes, then Bayer Leverkusen gradually stabilized the situation.

Lance was very active in the front field.

Every time there was a counter-attack opportunity, as long as the ball reached Lance’s feet, he was bound to create some excitement.

The cameras frequently cut to him.

As a ”Lance fan,” Mehmet Scholl, the commentator for German TV Sport1, was incredibly excited.

”Manchester United’s attack this time is a bit rough, cleared out! Good... Lance! A pass from Lars Bender...”

”OMG! Lance!”

Lance’s signature back-to-goal flick, controlling and dribbling past Michael Carrick to break through midfield, was simply a joy to behold!

”To Son! A link-up between two Asian players!”

”Son! Getting ready to shoot! No! Cross –”

”Lance!”

Brother Son gave up his chance to shoot, setting up a cannon for Lance?

Then Lance wouldn’t be polite!

[Rage Value: 62%]

Marouane Fellaini received a yellow card in the first half for defending Lance, so in the second half, he didn’t dare to make any dirty little moves.

David Moyes was also afraid that Fellaini would lose his temper again, commit a foul, and get a red card, so in the second half, he simply assigned Carrick to specifically mark Lance.

Carrick’s defense relied more on awareness and positioning, with not much physical confrontation.

This also meant Lance’s rage value didn’t increase as quickly as it did against Fellaini.

Moreover, Son Heung-min’s cross was very comfortable.

Lance didn’t need a fancy first touch; he could shoot directly.

So ”Skill 2: Hardcore Shot” couldn’t be triggered for now.

The success rate of the shot was unpredictable, but in a moment of urgency, Lance struck the ball as he had countless times in training, hitting it on the first touch!

I’m not just relying on cheats!

After all, I came from Bayern Munich’s youth academy and have been training as a professional player at Bayer Leverkusen for so long!

At 16, Lance’s shooting power was comparable to that of an adult player.

With excellent angle and ball speed, it flew straight into the top corner!

”Lance—he’s shooting!”

Seeing this high-quality shot about to go in, the BayArena stands were already on their feet, hands raised in anticipation of a goal.

A glove suddenly appeared in the ball’s path, pushing it out for a corner with a single hand!

”Wow!!! David de Gea!!! A world-class save!”

Even German commentator Scholl couldn’t help but praise this excellent Spanish goalkeeper.

German legend, 2002 World Cup runner-up goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, also showered him with praise:

”This young man is truly outstanding; he’s practically one of the best goalkeepers in Manchester United’s history.”

”No matter how Manchester United’s personnel changes in the future, please, please don’t let him go.”

How could Kahn know that 10 years later, Manchester United would not only let de Gea go but also bring in the unpredictable André Onana.

Add to that the unpredictable Paul Pogba, Fred, and Captain Bruno Fernandes, and future Manchester United teams would leave fans speechless.

Even now, in the David Moyes era, with their Premier League ranking constantly slipping, this Manchester United team still looked much more appealing.

Lance became increasingly active, and Manchester United was gradually held back by Bayer Leverkusen.

David Moyes couldn’t stand it anymore and started making substitutions.

He successively replaced left-back Patrice Evra, who had a slight injury, the underperforming Shinji Kagawa, and Robin van Persie.

???

”Robin van Persie is being substituted?”

Scholl didn’t understand why Manchester United was weakening itself.

The combination of Rooney and van Persie was one of the few things Manchester United could rely on.

Yet David Moyes substituted the more threatening van Persie?

Let’s see who’s coming on!

Danny Welbeck!

Ashley Young playing as a makeshift left-back, Nani coming on as a substitute left-winger, Welbeck leading the line, plus right-winger Valencia...

”Whoa!”

Lance was stunned when he saw this lineup.

Nani (the one who doesn’t pass), Valencia (the one who doesn’t shoot), Young (the one who doesn’t get past), Welbeck (the one who doesn’t score)...

Was David Moyes trying to assemble the ”Dark Four Heavenly Kings” synergy?

Predictably, Manchester United’s attack showed no improvement afterward; instead, they became disorganized.

”Nani (the one who doesn’t pass)” performed ”I Level Up Alone,” frantically dribbling and looking for opportunities on the left wing, then ending the attacking sequence with a wild shot.

Left-back ”Young (the one who doesn’t get past)” had questionable defensive ability and wasn’t very effective in attack either.

Several of his crosses were too high and floated to the other side.

”Valencia (the one who doesn’t shoot),” apart from his equalizing goal in the first half, spent the rest of the time only trying to break through on the right.

But after Bayer Leverkusen strengthened their defense, with the fullbacks locked in their defensive zone, Valencia couldn’t find many opportunities either.

Welbeck (the one who doesn’t score) doesn’t even need mentioning.

Rooney was practically spoon-feeding him, practically breaking the chances into pieces for him.

Welbeck’s close-range shot went high over the bar.

”Danny Welbeck!!! That shot—oh dear! A golden opportunity wasted!”

In the 82nd minute of the second half, Rooney made a diagonal run into the box and chipped the ball back, but Welbeck, facing a semi-open goal, couldn’t score!

If it weren’t for Bayer Leverkusen’s tight defense on Rooney’s shots, with Simon Rolfes marking him closely, where would Welbeck have gotten a shot?

Manchester United fans at this moment desperately missed van Persie, who had just been substituted. Why was he taken off?

No one knew, except David Moyes.

”Chance!”

Lance knew that Manchester United was growing more and more impatient, and Bayer Leverkusen’s big opportunity was about to come!

Theoretically, a 1-1 draw would still secure first place in the group.

But why settle for a draw when you can win?

The previous 2-2 draw left Lance full of regret, and he didn’t want to regret it this time!

Lance wanted to defeat Manchester United!

Therefore, Lance deliberately shook off Carrick’s marking and moved in front of Fellaini.

The bushy-haired Fellaini looked scared when he saw Lance.

”Buddy?”

”?”

”Nothing.”

Fellaini was a bit speechless; there was no rule limiting which side Lance had to attack, and he couldn’t do anything about Lance deliberately running into his defensive zone. Fellaini could only pay full attention to defending Lance.

After several consecutive duels, Lance watched his rage value soar, reaching 95%!

”As expected, it has to be Fellaini! If he didn’t play so dirty, it wouldn’t rise this fast!”

The match had already reached the 85th minute, and the 1-1 score was deadlocked.

Welbeck’s shot was once again caught by the opposing goalkeeper.

The goalkeeper launched a counter-attack with a throw, and Rolfes immediately sent a through ball directly to Lance.

As Lance was about to receive the ball, Fellaini instinctively clung to him, using small actions to pull Lance’s jersey and attempting a sweep kick to trip him.

Normally, Fellaini would use his tall stature and long legs to win the ball or disrupt the player in possession.

But he didn’t expect Lance not to take a conventional first touch; instead, he subtly flicked the ball with his heel, nutmegging him!

”Damn it!”

Fellaini was so humiliated that he became enraged and instinctively tried to pull Lance’s jersey to drag him down.

But halfway through, Fellaini realized he still had a yellow card and quickly let go.

Lance’s balance was already broken, and he stumbled forward a few steps, on the verge of falling!

”That’s a foul!”

Commentator Scholl spoke up for Lance.

The referee’s whistle was also in his mouth, ready to blow at any moment.

Carrick rushed up at this moment, intending to slide tackle the ball.

It seemed that whether a foul was called or he lost his balance and was dispossessed by Carrick, this quick counter-attack opportunity would end.

Lance was not willing to give up!

[Rage Value 100%!]

At the moment just before falling, his rage value was full!

Physical attributes, awareness, and reactions were all comprehensively enhanced!

The abnormal talent of S-rank Nagi Seishiro was perfectly loaded!

Lance instinctively put one hand on the ground.

The ”Street Dance Breaking style” move he had performed once before reappeared on the field!

Everyone in the stadium watched in amazement as Lance used a flashy ground move.

First, he used a standard ”Sweep” to move the ball away and avoid Carrick’s slide tackle.

Then, he used a ”Back spin” move to rotate and stand up, dribbling the ball towards the attacking third!

Whether it was Twitter and Kicker forums abroad, or Weibo and Lance’s fan page domestically, all the fans watching the match completely erupted!

”Holy crap!”

”He can do that?”

”Huh?!”

”Lance God!”

”Holy crap! Shaolin Soccer? Cyclone Ground Kick?”

In street freestyle football, similar ground moves do exist.

But only Lance has combined freestyle football and street dance Breaking on the field!

Manchester United defender Phil Jones once again had his classic expression of horror, watching this monster perform a Marseille turn and break past him!

”Lance!! He’s incredible!! Past Fellaini, past Carrick!! And past Phil Jones!!!”

”He’s in!!! Facing de Gea’s charge!!!”

”My God!!! A wonderfully inspired chip shot!!”

The charging de Gea was also stunned.

Usually, young players instinctively go for a powerful shot, which is easier to block.

Lance, however, calmly chipped the ball over de Gea’s head, precisely and elegantly!

All Manchester United players could only watch in despair as the ball arced in a beautiful parabola and dropped into the goal!!

”Gooooooal!!! Laaaaaance!!!”

”What a fantastic strike!!! Sensational performance!”

Even the English commentary for Sky Sports, which supported Manchester United, couldn’t help but cheer for the 16-year-old teenager, Lance!

This was simply the most spectacular goal veteran commentator Martin Tyler had seen in over 20 years!

This year’s Puskas Award would likely be claimed by Lance!

”Teenager Lance’s last-minute winner!! Manchester United’s dreams shattered at BayArena!”