The God of Football Starts With Passive Skills-Chapter 217 - 61: Solo Run! Wang Shuo the Hunter! Klopp’s Gambit Fails! Bayern’s Most Dreaded Opponent
She once asked her father, "Dad, why do you love soccer so much?"
"It’s simple. Because in soccer, I see one of humanity’s most primitive instincts."
"Instincts?"
"Don’t you think the way players fight for the ball on the field is just like our ancestors hunting prey in the primeval jungle?"
"The whole process is fraught with danger. It’s not just the ultimate test of the human body, but also a showcase for the hunter’s intellect, pushed to its absolute limit. Only when you’ve perfected all of this do you have a chance to capture your prey—to score a goal!"
"So, the world of soccer is, in essence, a wild hunt for a goal!"
At the time, Shen Qinghe couldn’t fully understand what her father meant.
She just thought it was her father’s own interpretation of soccer, colored by his love for hunting in the capital markets.
But now, she was beginning to understand more and more what her father meant by "instincts."
Because she could see that Wang Shuo was also becoming more and more enthralled by the wild thrill that came with such instincts!
...
If Mainz had felt a bit discouraged after their all-out opening attack failed to produce a goal, then Wang Shuo’s score completely reignited their hunger to conquer more ground.
After taking a 1-0 lead, Klopp’s team quickly launched another wave of attacks.
Bayern was once again pinned in their own half.
Although Mainz’s players were individually less skilled than Bayern’s, their relentless, high-energy running was proving difficult for Bayern to handle.
The fire in every player’s heart burned even brighter.
Not even the night rain over Berlin could quench it.
Most importantly, this pressing from Mainz wasn’t coming from just one or two players, but from the entire team. Everyone was committed to it at the same time.
This made it difficult for the Bayern Munich players to adapt.
Take the 31st minute, for example.
Wang Shuo first closed in on Demichelis.
The Argentine had made a mistake on the previous goal, and now he flinched at the sight of Wang Shuo, quickly passing the ball to Lahm.
Without hesitation, Wang Shuo turned and charged toward Lahm, rapidly closing in on the Bayern full-back.
Lahm was a bit far from Ribery and didn’t want to pass back to the goalkeeper, Butt, so he made a slightly longer pass to Lucio.
After the Brazilian center-back dropped back to receive the ball, he found himself with no defenders nearby and immediately started to dribble forward.
Hainauer quickly rushed over.
Lucio passed it off to Oddo.
In response, Hainauer spun around and pressed Oddo.
The Mainz players were truly playing like their lives depended on it.
As Oddo controlled the ball to move forward, he was quickly closed down by Hainauer.
But the Italian managed to take a touch and dribble forward first.
However, up ahead of Oddo, near the center line, Foyelner had already moved to cut off his path.
Oddo cut into the half-space, dribbling diagonally toward the center before sending a through ball, trying to find Klose, who was dropping back.
But unexpectedly, Pekovic went in with a slide tackle, getting to the ball just before Klose and knocking it away.
The ball landed near the bottom of the center circle in Mainz’s half, where Kalhan quickly moved up and controlled it with one touch.
Bayern’s 4-4-2 formation left them without enough players to cover the area occupied by Mainz’s deep-lying center-back, which was often left open.
As a result, no one could immediately mark Kalhan tightly.
At that exact moment, Wang Shuo was at the bottom of the center circle in Bayern’s half.
He was positioned right between Demichelis and Lucio.
He had been running back, but the instant he saw Pekovic win the ball and Kalhan control it, he stopped on a dime, turned, and sprinted forward, raising his right hand.
Kalhan, understanding immediately, launched a long ball over the top and shouted, "Wang!"
As Wang Shuo sprinted, he glanced behind him without losing a bit of speed, bursting forward between Bayern’s two center-backs.
Both Demichelis and Lucio turned to chase him down.
The three of them sprinted forward, almost shoulder to shoulder.
Demichelis even had a hand on Wang Shuo’s jersey, pulling at it and preventing him from breaking away at full speed.
The three of them reached the ball at nearly the same time, just outside the left of the penalty arc, as it came down from Kalhan’s pass.
Lucio was on Wang Shuo’s left, Demichelis on his right.
One of Demichelis’s hands was still gripping the hem of Wang Shuo’s jersey.
’What should I do?’
The moment the ball arrived, inspiration struck Wang Shuo. He planted his left foot firmly and quickly swung his right.
Intercontinental Level [Swift] allowed Wang Shuo’s move to be a split-second faster, letting him get to the ball just before Demichelis.
The instant his instep touched the ball, Wang Shuo locked his ankle and changed his technique. Instead of trapping or controlling it, he used his instep to flick the ball lightly over to the other side of Demichelis.
Meanwhile, Demichelis’s attempted clearance kick struck Wang Shuo’s boot.
As he flicked the ball, Wang Shuo came to a sudden stop.
After taking the kick, his body was thrown slightly off balance.
Wang Shuo stumbled, taking a series of tiny, rapid steps in a split second to barely regain his balance.
To better halt his forward momentum, he reached out and braced himself against Demichelis’s back.
’You’ve been pulling my jersey this whole time, keeping me from sprinting at top speed. It’s only fair I use your back to change direction, right?’
This was a move Kramny had taught him.
And he had learned it well, pushing off with both hands and releasing immediately.
Demichelis, who had already been slightly off balance from kicking Wang Shuo, was pushed by Wang Shuo’s hands. Though he didn’t fall, he was sent lurching forward.
