Accompanied by the referee's long whistle, this passionate attacking battle came to an end.
The score was set at 4-3!
"Full-time!"
"Thanks to Volland's stoppage-time winner, Hoffenheim narrowly defeated Wolfsburg 4-3 at home!"
"What an exhilarating attacking battle, truly spectacular!"
"[Ding]"
"[Mission Content: Score a goal or assist]"
"[Completion Status: Achieved]"
"[Reward: One Potential Point]"
"[Ding]"
"[Mission Content: Successfully dribble past opponents five times in a single match!]"
"[Completion Status: Achieved]"
"[Reward: One Potential Point]"
"[Ding]"
"[Mission Content: Be selected as Man of the Match]"
"[Completion Status: Not Achieved]"
"[Ding]"
"[Mission Content: Successfully dribble past a single player five times in a match!]"
"[Completion Status: Not Achieved]"
...The series of pleasant female voices echoing in his mind did not lift Marc's spirits.
Because he was still regretting that the team couldn't secure a win away from home.
When he was substituted, the team was still leading by one goal.
But after he left the field, the team's defense became even more fragile.
What was going on?!
Of course, although he felt very unwilling.
However, Marc also knew very well that he was just a person, not a god.
He couldn't control the entire team's players like playing a football game with a controller.
All he could do was play well every minute he was on the field!
However, watching the team concede two consecutive goals in the final moments and lose in stoppage time still brought a ripple of thoughts to Marc's mind:
If he had still been on the field, what would the outcome have been?
The only thing that was certain was that if he could have played the full match, not to mention scoring to extend the lead, just by holding the ball on the wing to control the pace of the game, drawing fouls from opponents, he could have slowed down their fierce offensive.
It was even very likely that he could have run down the remaining time, thereby securing the victory!
Instead of like now, despite starting and playing sixty-seven minutes, contributing a goal and an assist, achieving a goal and an assist in two consecutive Bundesliga matches.
He still couldn't change the cruel fact that Wolfsburg suffered a defeat at Rhein-Neckar-Arena!
A goal and an assist really couldn't save the team, huh?!
It was his first start, yet he couldn't play the full match and lost the game.
This feeling of frustration from working for nothing made him incredibly upset.
Thinking of this, Marc also felt disappointed in his poor stamina.
He was like Ultraman now, his red light would start flashing after playing sixty-something minutes.
His stamina was truly terrible!
He had to train!
He absolutely had to train hard!
Although Marc contributed a goal and an assist, and at one point led Wolfsburg to suppress Hoffenheim.
However, the Man of the Match for this game was still awarded to Firmino, who created a penalty at a crucial moment and scored a brace.
After the match, the Wolfsburg players returned to the locker room in low spirits.
From leading twice, to being equalized by the opponent, and finally being defeated by a stoppage-time goal... The whole process was like a rollercoaster ride, ultimately plummeting from a high point to a low!
They had thought they could secure three points away from home, but unexpectedly, in the final short fifteen minutes, they conceded two goals and lost the match.
Being defeated by a stoppage-time goal is a huge blow for any team.
Returning to the locker room, Hecking felt the heavy atmosphere.
He knew that the result of this match did not align with the process.
He first looked around, then said in a deep voice:
"Everyone played well in this match."
"Not getting the win in this match is my problem. Tactically, I made a wrong judgment..."
What surprised everyone was that head coach Hecking actually took the blame for the loss directly!
Indeed, if he hadn't made the team retreat completely after substituting Marc, but continued to attack... If he had seized a counter-attacking opportunity during transitions... And if Marc hadn't been substituted and had stayed on the field until the last minute... But how many 'what ifs' are there in life?!
A loss is a loss.
The key is to be able to accept defeat and understand why you lost!
Only then can you avoid making the same mistakes when you encounter such a situation next time!
Hecking's attitude also surprised the Wolfsburg players.
They had expected the coach to scold and blame them for not holding onto the victory, but unexpectedly, the coach actually took the blame himself?!
It's worth noting that after a team loses, it's standard practice for the coach to scold the players in the locker room.
However, very few coaches would take responsibility for a loss so proactively.
This move directly earned him many points in the hearts of all the players.
Marc, too, silently gave a thumbs up to Hecking in his heart:
A true man!
"Alright, it's just one loss, we've lost before, don't be down, raise your heads!"
"Take a shower, you have a day off tomorrow, get some good rest."
"There are still a dozen games left in the season, don't slack off, we need to fight for every single match!"
The next match was a crucial home game against League hegemon Bayern Munich, and Hecking didn't want the team's morale to suffer a huge blow from this stoppage-time defeat, thereby affecting the next match against Bayern.
It's important to know that Bayern is not a team that shows mercy...
Under the hazy night sky, the green Wolfsburg team bus slowly drove out of Hoffenheim.
Watching the Hoffenheim fans celebrating on the streets, Marc, sitting by the window, also felt a ripple in his heart.
Last time, they had taken victory from this small town.
This time, they could only leave this small town with regret.
That's how football is.
There are wins and losses, joy and regret.
All he could do was give his all, pursue the joy of football, and leave no regrets!
On the way back, Marc also received a text message from Raiola.
Although the agent was not present at the match.
However, he had watched the entire game via live broadcast.
"Marc, congratulations on your first Bundesliga start! I watched the live broadcast, you played very well."
"I can only say that after you left the field, the team's defense was terrible..."
"However, your stamina really needs to be improved..."
After congratulating him, Raiola also reminded Marc to update his social media and interact with fans to increase fan engagement.
So, Marc posted a selfie he took before the match and a photo of the team lining up on his various social media accounts:
"Thank you to the coach for giving me my first Bundesliga start, and also thanks to my teammates and fans for their support and encouragement. My teammates and I are very disappointed that we couldn't help the team win."
"We will focus on the next match and continue to fight for victory with all our might!"
"Hope to get a good result at the end of this season..."