The God of Football Starts With Passive Skills-Chapter 204 - 59: Mr. Clutch! A Historic Final! Mainz’s Big Trouble! What a Bountiful Season
This dropped Mainz out of the top three.
...
The 32nd round of the Bundesliga took place midweek.
Bayern hosted Bayer Leverkusen.
Thanks to goals from Luca Tony, Ribery, and Podolski, the home team defeated the Pharmacy 3-0.
All three goals were scored early in the second half.
VfL Wolfsburg, meanwhile, defeated Dortmund 3-0 thanks to a brace from Dzeko and a goal from Griffith.
Dom’s early announcement of his departure had severely damaged Dortmund’s morale.
Combined with the midweek match, the Bumblebees were also struggling.
In this round, Mainz hosted Hertha Berlin.
The two teams, currently third and fourth in the standings, were both fighting for a top-three finish.
In the 42nd minute of the first half, Wang Shuo assisted Hainauer, who scored against Hertha Berlin.
Even when tightly marked by the opposition, Wang Shuo could still help his team with his movement and passing.
Or by assisting teammates in scoring.
But in the 53rd minute of the second half, Hertha Berlin managed to equalize.
The score remained 1-1.
This was especially true after the 70-minute mark.
Despite playing at home, the midweek match combined with Mainz’s usual shortcomings left Klopp’s team on the back foot.
Only Wang Shuo was still running tirelessly up front.
He was constantly creating chances.
But neither side could score again.
"The match is about to end."
"The fourth official on the sideline has raised the board. Two minutes of stoppage time will be added to the second half."
"I have to say, while this match has been intense, it’s flowed relatively smoothly."
"Frankly, at this point, both teams have pretty much run out of steam."
"A draw would be an acceptable result for both teams."
"Neither Mainz nor Hertha Berlin are big clubs."
"Playing three league matches in one week, with this midweek game, is a major test for them."
As the match entered stoppage time, Hertha Berlin tried to launch an attack.
But as they entered the center circle, Kirschhoff successfully won the ball back with a tackle.
Though the young midfielder could be inconsistent and lacked experience, Kirschhoff’s defensive abilities were still quite strong.
After winning the ball, he immediately sent a diagonal pass to Foyelner on the left wing.
Foyelner received the ball with his back to the goal. Unable to turn, he was forced to pass it back to Van der Heyden.
As the aging Van der Heyden received the ball to the left of the halfway line, Wang Shuo happened to be dropping back from upfield to receive a pass.
"Wang Shuo can really run."
"Just a moment ago he was on the right flank available for a pass, and now we see he’s run over to the left side to receive the ball."
"Mainz has found an outlet."
"Van der Heyden passes to Wang Shuo."
"Wang Shuo turns, dribbles laterally, and lays it off to Hainauer."
"But Hainauer passes it right back to Wang Shuo as he turns!"
"He’s charging forward now!"
"Let’s see if Mainz can make something of this attack!"
"Wang Shuo dribbles past a defender, but he’s still going forward!"
"He gets past another one!"
"My God, Wang Shuo is still dribbling!"
"Wang Shuo has carried the ball to the edge of the D!"
"Hertha Berlin doesn’t dare commit a foul in this area."
"Wang Shuo is moving so quickly!"
"A through ball into space!"
"He’s finally passed it!"
"Balik!!!"
"IT’S A GOAL!!!"
"Balik, who came on for Schürrle in the second half, seized the opportunity and scored against Hertha Berlin!"
"A brilliant assist from Wang Shuo helps Mainz take the lead!"
"2-1!"
"Many Bundesliga fans might not be familiar with Balik!"
"The forward hasn’t had a standout season for Mainz, and he’s received even less attention than the youngster Schürrle."
"However, any fan who’s familiar with Mainz will surely remember."
"In last season’s Second Bundesliga, it was the brilliant combination play and consecutive goals between Wang Shuo and Balik that helped Mainz complete a comeback in the final stages of the league, successfully securing their promotion to the Bundesliga!"
"In this moment, it’s as if we’re seeing that same chemistry and performance from the two players last season."
"Let’s take another look at the slow-motion replay."
"After receiving the ball while facing the goal, Wang Shuo decisively burst forward on a dribble, getting past two defenders. Then, amidst the chaos, he threaded a through ball, and Balik, showing perfect chemistry, ran right into position."
"At the critical moment, this old partnership really came through!"
"2-1!"
"At a critical moment, Wang Shuo assists Balik to score for Mainz!"
...
「Weekend. Bundesliga, Round 33. Hamburg People’s Park Stadium.」
The moment referee Rafati blew the whistle to start the match, the Mainz players, led by Wang Shuo, launched a furious assault on the Hamburg team.
This was Klopp’s starting tactic for the match.
It was also Mainz’s signature playstyle: an all-out opening attack!
And it was a whirlwind-style blitz.
Although Martin Jol is Dutch, his team’s style was primarily defensive, relying on counter-attacks.
Faced with such a playstyle, Hamburg was not only on the back foot but also looked disorganized on the field.
They were immediately pinned in their own half by Mainz.
The situation was identical to the DFB-Pokal semi-final, where Bayer Leverkusen had pinned down Mainz.
The only difference was that Bayer Leverkusen had strikers like Kiesling and Helmes, so when they pressed Mainz, they were desperate to pin their opponents inside the penalty area to best utilize their center-forwards.
