The second half began with the same ferocious intensity. But now, the game was beginning to stretch. A misplaced pass here, a heavy touch there, small cracks were appearing in the tactical facades of both teams.
In the 62nd minute, Klopp turned to him. There was no long speech. Just a look, a glint in his eye that said, Now. "It's time to be the chaos, Mateo," he said, his voice a low growl above the din. "Go be the player they haven't prepared for."
As Mateo ran onto the pitch, the Yellow Wall erupted, a roar of anticipation greeting their young hero. The Bayern players saw him, and a flicker of recognition, of memory, passed through their eyes. They remembered the Supercup. They set themselves, expecting the quick feet, the mazy dribbles.
His first touch was a declaration of intent, a statement that the past was the past. A pass was fizzed into him near the halfway line.
