Hehe, hehehe.
Pep Guardiola smiled. He himself couldn't tell whether it was a bitter smile or admiration for the enemy's indomitable spirit.
"What do you say?"
"I think there's really nothing wrong with what we did."
Barça's assistant coach, Tito Vilanova, scratched his head.
"But I always felt they were too resilient, and it was very difficult to completelykill them."
"Really."
From a tactical perspective, Guardiola's arrangement was flawless.
Was Barça's tactics not good enough?
They dominated the game almost the entire time, with over 79% possession, creating nearly 21 shots and 12 corner kicks. They were leading their opponents 5-2 at one point, with 5 goals scored away from home. Barça completely outclassed Borussia Dortmund in every aspect, and the finals were already beckoning. Unfortunately, Borussia Dortmund was simply the most formidable and unbelievable opponent Guardiola had ever encountered.
This gave Guardiola the feeling—like in a boxing ring, after repeatedly knocking down your opponent, each time the referee was almost counting down to announce a knockout, the opponent stood up again, shakily, still choosing to fight to the death. He was even hit in the chin twice by the other party due to his own carelessness.
In the final five minutes of the match, both sides were almost completely exhausted, and the Barça players were barely able to run anymore. Lionel Messi had started walking around the field, trying to regain some strength. The elderly Thierry Henry simply collapsed to the ground with cramps, and Barça was also dragged into an awkward situation by Borussia Dortmund.
Only one goal was needed to tie the game. If Barça continued its relentless attack, it was highly likely that they would seize the opportunity to launch a counter-attack. It would be better to play it safe and abandon the idea of attacking, and try to maintain the score as much as possible. In the end, they were tied by a stolen goal, and Barça still won. Five away goals—even God couldn't save them.
"Let's make adjustments and try to hold on."
"Understood."
Tito Vilanova stood up and beckoned to the substitutes' bench. The three players, who were already prepared, stood up together and excitedly went to the sidelines.
"With five minutes left, and less than ten minutes including stoppage time, Borussia Dortmund is still at a disadvantage despite pulling one back."
He Wei couldn't bear to watch; the passion and fighting spirit displayed by the young men of Borussia Dortmund were truly moving. But Barcelona clearly wasn't going to give them a chance, and ruthlessly initiated their final substitutions. That's Guardiola for you; they're reluctant to use their substitution slots, so much so that they ended up with three full squads.
"Yaya Touré, Seydou Keita, and Éric Abidal will all take the stage at the same time."
"Replace Henry, Samuel Eto'o, and young left-back Jordi Alba—"
T/N: I'm aware that Jordi Alba was released by Barca in 2005, went to Valencia and was loaned out then made his laliga debut with Real Valladolid in 2009. So yeah, this is likely the butterfly effect or the author decided to make this deliberate error. That's why I used Abidal earlier where it should have been Alba.
"It looks like Barça is going to hold out to the death."
He Wei sighed softly. The young coach Guardiola's move was more like a seasoned veteran's decisive action, sealing off Borussia Dortmund's last chance to equalise.
Director Zhang analysed the positioning and formation on the field.
"A relatively conservative substitution." With the two forwards removed, it still looked like a 4-3-3 formation, but it was actually a 4-3-2-1 formation. Busquets, Keita, and Yaya Touré were the three defensive midfielders. Xavi and Andrés Iniesta were positioned slightly forward, while Messi stayed behind to launch counter-attacks. They were also using Éric Abidal, their starting left-back this season, whose defensive work was even more solid.
Upon seeing Barça's adjustment, Borussia Dortmund fans couldn't hold back any longer.
"So that's why Barça's starting defensive midfielders Yaya Touré and Keita, and starting left-back Éric Abidal aren't playing!"
"That's too cunning, you bald fraud! Let's fight with bayonets!"
"If you're a man, fight head-on! What's the point of hiding like a coward?"
Unfortunately, no matter how much Dortmund fans raged on the Kicker Forum, Guardiola inside the stadium couldn't hear anything. Even if Guardiola heard it, he would probably just laugh it off. Losing face didn't matter, as long as they won and made it to the finals. Given the choice between winning on your knees and dying standing, Guardiola would definitely choose to win on his knees.
The fourth official raised a light sign indicating that there were only 4 minutes of stoppage time remaining. This was based on the fact that the game was intense and the match was even stopped at one point. Otherwise, the stoppage time could be even shorter, leaving Borussia Dortmund with virtually no chance of survival.
Jin Hayes looked at the two burly, dark-skinned men opposite him, constantly following him and pressing him closely, and he also felt a little tense.
Yaya Touré and Keita practically became his bodyguards. Jin Hayes spent most of his time in physical battles and frantic tug-of-war for the ball. Keita even followed Jin Hayes closely in his off-the-ball runs, as if afraid that the Asian player would gain possession of the ball and create some kind of miracle.
A 16-year-old player scoring a hat-trick against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals—no one dared to underestimate him anymore. Barça's entire staff almost universally viewed him as a monstrous threat. In the team's practice matches, Keita did the same to Jin Hayes as he did to Messi.
"Damn it, I need to find a way to get rid of this guy."
The scoreboard showed the relentless ticking of time, and Barça was already dragging out the final 5 minutes of the game, as well as the 1 minute and 30 seconds of injury time. Borussia Dortmund had only 2 and a half minutes left.
The bad news was that Barça's defensive intensity had increased significantly in the third defensive midfield position. Good news: with the loss of Henry and Eto'o's potential, the offensive pressure had been greatly reduced. Borussia Dortmund had three players entangled with Messi, but Mats Hummels finally managed to intercept the ball. They won the final possession for the team.
"It's finally our turn!"
While Barça was making a substitution, Jin Hayes quickly pulled his teammates aside to discuss tactics. Their secret weapon, which they'd trained for so long, regardless of whether it was useful or not, had to be taken out now. Perfect timing—today's opponent was Barcelona. It was like using Barça's most effective methods against Barça.
As Hummels passed the ball to Nuri Şahin, Borussia Dortmund launched an attack, and Jin Hayes had already started his forward run. Seeing this, Keita, who was following beside him, quickly started his car and followed.
Before going on stage, Keita was caught by Guardiola. Keita remembered Guardiola staring intently into his eyes, emphasising each word: "Make sure he's within your reach. If the kid goes East, I shouldn't see you go West, you have to follow him, understand?"
Guardiola appeared to be a refined and wise general, but those who actually got to know him realised he was a demanding taskmaster. Guardiola was almost obsessive about tactical discipline.
If he had given you instructions, and you did not follow them on the field, well, for a long time to come, the dressing room would feel like hell. Keita didn't want to be targeted by Guardiola. So no matter what happened, he would follow Jin Hayes around like a shadow, acting as his bodyguard and completely freezing him out.
"Huh?"
Before Seydou Keita could react, Jin Hayes, who was sprinting, suddenly stopped and turned around. He nimbly ran to the backcourt to receive the pass. Keita couldn't stop and was immediately overtaken by Jin Hayes. When Keita followed up to press the ball again, Jin Hayes received the ball, turned, and passed it to the wing. He continued his forward run.
"Mats Hummels, Nuri Şahin — Jin Hayes is back to support! Beautiful!! Turn and get past Xavi, pass to the left wing!"
"Wall-bumping combo!" He Wei slapped his thigh.
At the last minute, the entire Borussia Dortmund squad was at their peak. The fluid passing and movement from the backfield was reminiscent of the teamwork in the Champions League match against Manchester United. It was that crucial positional shift in that desperate situation that led to a decisive, fluid attack. Borussia Dortmund eventually equalized away from home, but won by one goal on aggregate against Manchester United.
Could it be that…?
He Wei was secretly looking forward to it.
...
After Barcelona made several substitutions, the defensive coordination and teamwork were temporarily inferior to that of the starting lineup, with more gaps appearing in each player's movement. This was exactly what the Dortmund players could take advantage of. All they needed was for each of them to unleash their best.
Left-back Marcel Schmelzer spent the entire match defending Lionel Messi, which nearly exhausted him. But at the crucial moment when the team was in dire straits and needed to turn the tide, even with a broken leg, Schmelzer would still drag his crippled leg to assist in the attack.
"My brothers need me!"
Schmelzer remained remarkably calm when Jin Hayes passed the ball to him. Marco Reus was entangled by Dani Alves ahead. Yaya Touré was pressing hard, Keita was defending Jin Hayes, and Xavi was marking Şahin. The ball's passing routes were temporarily blocked.
If Schmelzer had been even slightly less daring, he would have passed the ball back to the centre-back to reorganise the play; otherwise, Yaya Touré would have intercepted it. But Schmelzer knew his responsibility and boldly dribbled forward. He feigned a pass to Jin Hayes with his left foot, tricking Yaya Touré into hesitating for a moment. Schmelzer dribbled the ball and accelerated through the halfway line.
"Beautiful!! Advance down the wing, Schmelzer!" Yaya Touré caught up from behind, and Jin Hayes accelerated to get past Keita's defence, at which point Schmelzer passed the ball across to Jin Hayes.
"Nice pass!" Jin Hayes gave a silent thumbs-up and quickly cut in to receive the pass.
However, Yaya Touré and Keita flanked him, intending to cut in front of Jin Hayes and block his inside cut. These two were fresh and had plenty of energy; their speed was about to surpass Jin Hayes's.
Jin Hayes made the first touch with his toe, then suddenly stopped and pulled the ball back.
In physics class, he learned that the greater the mass, the greater the inertia. Two burly men, unable to stop at high speed, were outmaneuvered by the nimble Jin Hayes. Jin Hayes followed up with a flick of his right instep, nutmegging Keita to cut inside. Before Xavi could pounce, he passed across to the middle lane.
"Jin Hayes breaks free!! Draws three defenders to double-team him—hands him to Şahin!!! Borussia Dortmund is still pushing forward!"
Xavi's lungs were about to burst from running. At his peak, Xavi was like an inexhaustible Barcelona engine; stamina was never an issue. Jin Hayes's stunt nearly left him breathless. Şahin received the ball, got past Andrés Iniesta, and faced Sergio Busquets. Before Busquets could intercept, he passed the ball across to the left again.
T/N: Xavi was 28 at this time, on the decline from his physical peak. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Jin Hayes had moved closer, ready to execute a standard mid-lane two-on-one manoeuvre. Şahin's intention in passing the ball was obvious. Busquets didn't intercept Şahin; instead, he turned and pounced on Jin Hayes. Keita caught up at the same time and once again double-teamed Jin Hayes.
"This ball!! Jin Hayes is in danger!" Borussia Dortmund fans couldn't bear to watch anymore; as time ticked away, this might be the team's last hope. If Jin Hayes was dispossessed, the team was doomed. The more critical the moment, the more composed Jin Hayes remained, and the better he could perform. Jin Hayes believed that this may be his truly valuable talent.
As Jin Hayes received the ball sideways, Busquets had already moved in front of him to intercept the pass. Jin Hayes took the lead, using his long legs to block Busquets and protect the ball with half his body. Judging from his posture, Busquets thought Jin Hayes was preparing to stop the ball and break through to the left. Busquets had already squeezed the young player's back forcefully, blocking Jin Hayes's left side.
Instead of stopping the ball immediately, Jin Hayes boldly let the ball pass and then suddenly turned to the right. His right foot was practically dancing; he pulled the ball back and spun it in a half-circle, breaking through from the right side. The unexpected move caught the Barcelona players off guard. As Keita pressed forward to intercept, Jin Hayes calmly executed a "La Croqueta," hooking his right foot around his left and then springing it back to his right.
"Beautiful!!!"
"Nice!!"
"Bravo!!"
Jin Hayes's play drew gasps of surprise from the Westfalen stands. From a higher vantage point, it was even clearer to see Jin Hayes gracefully turn around on the pitch, drawing a sharp change of direction within one second. Like a bolt of lightning, he broke through the two in an instant. He had broken through Barcelona's midfield barrier.
"No way?"
Pep Guardiola was completely numb. He knew Jin Hayes was technically very good and capable of making breakthroughs, perhaps as agile as Messi. He didn't expect Jin Hayes to create such an unstoppable solo burst during injury time. The two defensive midfielders brought on with great effort were completely ineffective, as Jin Hayes continued to dribble towards Barcelona's defensive line.
While Jin Hayes was taking on multiple opponents, the Dortmund players were not idle. Dortmund had learned a thing or two from Barcelona's own tactical concepts. To increase the success rate of passing, you need to close the distance.
Reus, Alexander Frei, Jakub Błaszczykowski, Şahin, Schmelzer, Sebastian Kehl—several players in the midfield and forward line almost simultaneously moved towards Jin Hayes, the key player. Borussia Dortmund had gained a local numerical advantage.
As Yaya Touré and Alves pressed forward, Jin Hayes had already handed the ball to Reus.
"Jin Hayes — Reus!! Great run, Borussia Dortmund advances to the edge of the penalty area!"
Marco Reus was now completely exhausted. All he wanted to do was lie on the grass and get a good night's sleep. Everything before his eyes seemed somewhat dazed, and his whole body was almost out of his control. But this was his last chance. Reus bit his tongue hard, forcing himself to stay awake, and tried to break through Gerard Piqué's defence with the ball. Charge into the restricted area.
"Good timing!"
Piqué had long disliked Borussia Dortmund and their style, and even if Barcelona won today, he wouldn't feel satisfied with the victory. He had to stop that ball no matter what.
"Hateful!"
Reus's legs went weak, and his movements, which he usually performed with ease, became incredibly clumsy. He probably didn't have enough explosive power to forcefully break through Piqué's defence; he was very likely to be dispossessed. In that case, that guy must be behind him.
Just as Dani Alves were about to arrive and join Gerard Piqué in flanking Marco Reus, Reus made a clever stop, turned and passed back to Jin Hayes, while simultaneously making a diagonal run into the penalty area.
Alves had no choice but to follow, and Piqué dared not try to seize the opportunity.
Jin Hayes received the ball, flicked it with his heel to change direction and cut inside, then dribbled past Yaya Touré in front of him, before making a short through pass and running diagonally forward.
Nuri Şahin arrived in a flash. He made a through pass to Jin Hayes without stopping the ball. Piqué's hesitation just now allowed Jin Hayes to slip past him. Borussia Dortmund advanced into the Barcelona penalty area. The time was exactly 93:45. One minute left.
"Ahhhhhh—"
Piqué had gone mad; he turned and charged at Jin Hayes, intending to grab him by the back of the collar. If the movement was concealed, a penalty might not be awarded. Jin Hayes gave him no chance, breaking into the penalty area to receive a through pass from Şahin and passing it directly to Reus. He had already led Alves into the penalty area. The Barcelona players were completely stunned by Borussia Dortmund's attacking play. Borussia Dortmund threatened Barcelona's goal in a Barcelona-style manner.
Pep Guardiola stared blankly at the pitch. Most importantly, Reus had a shooting opportunity from a tight angle, but he didn't choose to shoot. He actually acted like a wooden stake, constantly setting up Jin Hayes with the ball. Jin Hayes never stopped running, charging from outside the penalty area all the way into the six-yard box.
"A series of wall-hitting plays!!! Jin Hayes is in!!!"
However, the ball was a little too close to the goalkeeper, Víctor Valdés, who had already started his run and rushed out to pounce. The goalkeeper's hand is slower to make a save than his foot, and Alves was ready to slide tackle to clear the ball. In this crucial goal that determined the fate of both teams and the outcome of this year's Champions League final, Jin Hayes stood up more than once.
[Limit Overload]! With limited physical strength, Jin Hayes could unleash a burst of speed in just 0.1 seconds, enough time to get a foothold and touch the ball with his toes. The ball was about to be stopped by goalkeeper Valdés's boots.
Time seemed to stand still at that moment; Jin Hayes was in a critical situation. His elite ball sense gave him absolute control over the football. A slight wiggle of the toes successfully altered the trajectory of the football. Nutmegging Valdés.
From an observer's perspective, the tense offensive and defensive battle at the edge of the penalty area was incredible. Goalkeeper Valdés's sliding tackle clearance failed. He sat on the ground like he'd just laid an egg, letting the soccer ball slip through his fingers.
Jin Hayes was as light as a swallow, and jumped very high, clearing over Valdés's face. His cleats almost grazed Valdés's nose.
In the Champions League, the world's highest level of professional football, few people dare to pull off such an extreme maneuver in front of the opponent's goal. Almost everyone in the audience was stunned, staring wide-eyed at Jin Hayes's performance. Watching Jin Hayes get past the goalkeeper, reach the goal line, and steadily tap the rolling ball in—push the ball into the goal.
A draw.
At this moment, even the well-trained professional commentator He Wei was temporarily speechless, only able to say "Hey, hey, hey!"
His co-commentator was simultaneously saying
"Wrong!"
"This ball!!! Goal!! It's in!"
"Jin Hayes—Incredible!!"
"He has broken multiple records today! He has created countless impossibilities!"
"He is the youngest hat-trick scorer in Champions League history! And he is the first Chinese player to score a hat-trick in the Champions League, and the first to score four goals in a single match!"
"Borussia Dortmund were down 2-5, a score that most people consider impossible to equalise!"
"But! 16-year-old Jin Hayes led a youthful storm in the yellow and black, scoring 2 goals in the second half! 5-5! They did it!"
"This last goal in stoppage time was a perfect combination between Jin Hayes and his team; he almost passed the ball into the net! He broke through Barcelona's defence in a Barcelona style!"
"Jin Hayes charged 80 metres, carving through the enemy's defence amidst a sea of players!"
"Though there be millions against me, I will go!"
At this point, He Wei's voice choked with emotion.
Regardless of the performance of the Borussia Dortmund players on the field, or Jin Hayes's desperate attack from the backfield into the penalty area, all of these are enough to deeply touch every football fan watching the game.
Especially given the overall lackluster level of Chinese football on the global stage, it's amazing that a player could give their all in Europe and become the brightest star on the field. At least in this Champions League, neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo could rival his brilliance.
"Regardless of the outcome of the next round, Borussia Dortmund fought to the very end! They successfully defended Westfalen!"
"Jin Hayes truly deserves to be called the pride of his nation and the pride of Asia!"
The fans in the Westfalen stands were clapping, cheering, hugging, and crying tears of joy. Bars of all sizes across Germany were buzzing with excitement and shouting wildly. Thousands of miles away, fans were also cheering wildly for Jin Hayes's four goals. On countless university campuses, the sound of "Jin Hayes is awesome" echoed through the night sky, lighting up countless lights.
However, the young man who was the focus of the world's attention didn't celebrate after scoring the equaliser; he just wanted to use his last bit of strength to rush into the goal and retrieve the ball.
"It's not over yet, it's not over yet—there's still time, we can still fight!"
Jin Hayes felt a sharp pain in his head; overuse of his skills had left him feeling weak all over. Despite his physical discomfort, he picked up the soccer ball and tried to run towards the centre circle.
The entire Barcelona team was stunned by Jin Hayes's goal, staring blankly at his actions as he took the ball away. When passing by Captain Carles Puyol, Puyol could even tell that the child was exhausted and almost fainted.
"Huh? Why? Why are you so persistent?"
Puyol never admired anyone, not even Ronaldinho, Messi, or Ronaldo; he merely appreciated them. But seeing Jin Hayes's continued performance today showed that he hadn't given up. Puyol admired him from the bottom of his heart and was completely in awe of him.
"Jin, you are a true fighter."
As he drew ever closer to the centre circle, Jin Hayes was still preparing to place the ball and wait for the referee's whistle to continue the game, which had almost drained him of his last bit of strength.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh! "+!!!"
Jin Hayes wasn't excited about the equaliser; he was only disappointed at not winning the game. Unfortunately, the match had come to an end. Any regrets could only be left for the next round of life-or-death struggle.
Jin Hayes's vision went black again, and he was about to collapse. A pair of hands supported Jin Hayes from behind, and Captain Sebastian Kehl quickly helped Jin Hayes up as well. Jin Hayes's teammates supported him and prevented him from falling to the ground.
"Child, it's over. You're already perfect."
"Yeah! Jin, we haven't lost yet!"
"Next time, let's go to Camp Nou and show them what we're made of!!"