Affirmation from the Team's Big Shot

After scoring this goal, De Bruyne ran toward the sideline while pointing at Lin Quan, motioning for him to come over and celebrate together.

He could score this goal—aside from the high quality of his shot itself—half the credit had to go to Lin Quan's pass. If Lin Quan hadn't drawn so many defenders and found the gap to deliver the ball, De Bruyne wouldn't have gotten such a comfortable shooting opportunity.

Lin Quan jogged over with a smile, reaching out to ruffle De Bruyne's hair as he praised him: "Kevin, that shot was really beautiful!"

"Thanks, your pass was great too!"

Their teammates also ran over to join the celebration, high-fiving the goal-scoring De Bruyne and the assisting Lin Quan. Captain Fritz even gave them both a warm hug. Lin Quan and De Bruyne's outstanding performance in this match had earned recognition from the veteran players.

"Good job, lads! Keep up this form—score more goals and win more games for the team in the new season!"

"Thanks, Captain. We'll work hard. Just wait and see!" Lin Quan said confidently and generously, while De Bruyne nodded along beside him: "Me too!"

The captain was very satisfied with their responses. After the celebration ended, he loudly called his teammates back to their positions, reminding them not to let their guard down just because they were leading 2-0. History was full of tragedies where teams relaxed their defense after taking the lead and ended up being overturned—the most famous example being the halftime champagne at the Istanbul Night.

Neither Lin Quan nor De Bruyne were the type to get carried away after scoring. They quickly returned to their positions.

The match resumed.

Cottbus, now two goals down, didn't resign themselves to defeat. Instead, they shed the psychological burden of fearing a loss and committed more players to their attacks.

However, Werder Bremen's 4-1-4-1 formation gave them five midfielders in defense, heavily restricting Cottbus's offense. The midfield battle was fierce, and Cottbus's players struggled to hold onto the ball, let alone organize attacks.

Forced into a corner, Cottbus abandoned their short-passing through the middle and resorted to traditional Long Ball Tactics against Werder Bremen.

This exposed the weakness of Werder Bremen's single defensive midfielder. Lacking protection on both flanks, they conceded two opportunities to the opponent within five minutes. Fortunately, the visitors' ability to capitalize on chances was poor, and neither attempt resulted in a shot.

Realizing the defensive issues, Head Coach Schaaf called Captain Fritz over for a quick word. After returning to the pitch, Fritz dropped back a step, becoming a center-back. Meanwhile, the midfield line shifted backward, and Werder Bremen's formation changed to 5-4-1!

This shift made the visiting team's head coach want to curse. A Bundesliga team like you, against a second-division side like us, actually resorts to a five-man defensive shell? Have you no shame?

Facing the visiting coach's glare, Schaaf remained calm and composed, showing no sign of embarrassment. Such friendly matches were meant for teams to practice various tactics and formations. If he held back out of concern for reputation or face, then playing this game would be meaningless.

Moreover, the 5-4-1 formation wasn't purely defensive—it was another attacking approach. When they played this formation, the opponent would inevitably push forward into their half, giving their wingers plenty of space to sprint into, making their counterattacks more threatening. And coincidentally, their lineup included a winger with exceptional individual ability.

So for Schaaf, stepping back was actually a way to attack better.

The counterattack Schaaf hoped for soon materialized.

In the 78th minute, Werder Bremen launched a quick counter from the back. Fritz, playing as a makeshift center-back, spotted a huge gap in the opponent's half and sent a diagonal long ball over to their side.

Lin Quan had already started sprinting the moment possession shifted. By the time Fritz released the pass, he was already level with the opposing defender. The defender, a step slower in his start, couldn't catch up and could only raise his hand to signal offside while chasing futilely from behind.

The linesman ignored the defender's offside claim. He saw clearly that Lin Quan wasn't offside at the moment of the pass—he just started so fast that it created the illusion of being offside.

The goalkeeper chose to rush out immediately. For a one-on-one chance like this, staying in the six-yard box was almost certain death. The ball was about the same distance from both players, but Lin Quan was already at full speed while the goalkeeper had just started moving.

So, before the goalkeeper could reach the ball, Lin Quan got there first. He poked the ball with his toe, and it slipped through the goalkeeper's legs like a mischievous spirit.

Thud. The goalkeeper plopped onto the ground. He had guessed Lin Quan's intention the moment he saw the poke, but his reaction was a beat too slow to stop the ball from going through his legs.

Lin Quan rounded the fallen goalkeeper and caught up to the ball just before the goal line. Since the defenders were still a distance away, he stopped the ball, glanced at them, and then calmly kicked it into the net.

The score was rewritten to 3-0, and Werder Bremen had completely sealed the victory.

"Lin, you're so fast!"

Captain Fritz ran over happily to hug Lin Quan. This goal counted as his assist, but if he'd passed to someone else, they might not have been able to finish it.

"It's because you passed it well, Captain!"

Lin Quan replied with a grin. Nils, standing nearby, felt quite annoyed hearing the captain praise Lin Quan.

He'd actually found an open space just now, but Lin Quan was already through on goal and had even rounded the keeper—there was no way he'd pass it back.

Lin Quan wasn't selfless to that degree, especially since he'd noticed that when he and De Bruyne scored earlier, Nils hadn't joined in the celebration. He had no good feelings toward Nils.

Nils was irritated. After all, he was the team's starting striker, and he'd been loaned from a Giant Club like Bayern.

For Werder Bremen, this was a step down for him, an act of charity—they should be treating him like royalty.

So when the match started, he threw his weight around, loudly demanding the ball, especially when Lin Quan and De Bruyne had it.

Both of those loaned players had scored. Lin Quan had even bagged a brace off the bench.

If he, the starting striker who'd played the full game, didn't score, where would his pride be?

And if he took the ball from them, they couldn't keep scoring.

Lin Quan had no fondness for Nils and pretended not to see his demands.

De Bruyne, though, was an honest kid. When he saw Nils asking for the ball, he passed it to him.

Unfortunately, the Cottbus players, having been beaten 3-0, were already simmering with frustration.

Nils didn't have De Bruyne's brilliant passing ability or Lin Quan's freakish dribbling skills.

When he got the ball, he'd dribble a bit and then get swarmed and tackled. He lost possession quickly and got knocked flat in the process.

His slender frame was no match for the opposing center-backs in physical battles. Where he got the confidence to keep dribbling was anyone's guess.

Schaaf, watching from the sideline, saw Nils getting taken down repeatedly and, worried he might get injured, subbed him off early.

De Bruyne, who'd played most of the match, was also substituted.

Both were taken off, but when Nils left the field, the home fans showed no reaction.

When De Bruyne walked off, though, the fans gave him a warm round of applause.

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