Coach, I Want to Compete!

The system's points rule let Lin Quan breathe a little easier.

He'd only earned one point from this match, which seemed tied to the low level of the competition.

Since the opponent was a 2. Bundesliga team and Werder Bremen hadn't performed well last season either, the system judged this match's caliber as equivalent to a secondary league among the Top Five Leagues—like the 2. Bundesliga, the Championship, or La Liga 2.

Rewards from such leagues were a tier below the Top Five Leagues, and if the league level dropped further, the rewards would keep shrinking.

For example, in a league like the Chinese Super League, winning a match would probably net only 0.5 points or even less.

But Lin Quan barely considered those leagues, so he just glanced at it and moved on.

The Bundesliga only had 18 teams, with just 34 matches per season.

That was fewer than La Liga or the Premier League.

On top of that, the German cup competitions were also fewer, with only the German Cup.

And since Werder Bremen's ranking last season didn't land them in European competition, they weren't qualified for the Champions League or the Europa League.

So this season, their main fixtures were the Bundesliga and the German Cup.

The Bundesliga had 34 rounds, and as long as he stayed injury-free and performed steadily, regular playing time shouldn't be a problem.

As for the German Cup, that depended on the team's strength and luck—if the draw was favorable, they might even fight their way to the final.

If the draw was bad, they could run into a strong opponent right away and get knocked out in the first round.

So for Lin Quan, every match demanded his full effort to secure a win.

Otherwise, he might not accumulate enough points even in two seasons!

Thinking this, Lin Quan silently warned himself not to get carried away or slack off in any way.

He had to work even harder to improve his own strength, which would boost the team's chances of winning—even against strong opponents, there'd be a possibility of taking them down.

So the next morning, Lin Quan arrived early at the training ground and started solo practice before the team's official training began.

Half an hour later, De Bruyne also reached the Training Base.

Seeing Lin Quan training, he quickly changed clothes and joined in.

"Come on, same as usual—I defend, you attack!"

Was this guy addicted to getting schooled?

Lin Quan grumbled inwardly, but having someone willing to train with him was something he'd gladly take.

So they started their familiar sparring session again.

Their training attitude infected the rest of the team. When the later arrivals saw the two of them training, they didn't hang around chatting or messing about like usual—they joined in and started training too.

This scene delighted the coaching staff.

"Who would've thought these two's arrival would bring such a change to the team!"

"Yeah, at their age, many young players who achieve fame quickly get arrogant, lose focus, slack off in training, and then gradually fade into obscurity, disappearing without a trace.

Football's full of talents ruined by praise and flattery from the outside world!

But these two can stay grounded, neither cocky nor impatient—that mentality is rare!"

With the players so dedicated, the coaching staff couldn't fall behind.

So they began seriously arranging tactical drills to prepare for the next friendly match.

On July 26, Werder Bremen hosted another home game, facing the Scottish Premiership's veteran side, Aberdeen.

This time, Werder Bremen made some adjustments to the starting lineup. Due to his poor performance in the last match, Nils Petersen, the forward loaned from Bayern, was benched.

Replacing him in the starting eleven was the club's own youth product, 19-year-old Niclas Füllkrug, born in 1993.

This future German international was still raw at this point, not as strong as he'd later become.

Unlike the arrogant Nils, Füllkrug had been playing in the youth team before, so he treasured this rare chance to play in the first team.

He knew he was young and limited in ability—the coach put him on the field to use his height and strength as a forward pivot, not as the team's finisher.

So his self-positioning was clear: be a supporting role, not the star, and don't steal the spotlight from the team's main players.

In this match, Füllkrug performed excellently up front.

When he received the ball in the attacking third, he could withstand the opponent's defensive pressure and lay it off to teammates in better positions.

This was completely different from Nils. In the last game, once the ball reached Nils's feet, unless he was completely surrounded with no shot opportunity, he wouldn't pass easily.

And since he wouldn't pass and couldn't create threatening shots, the result was that Werder Bremen's attack suffered—plenty of chances, but no breakthrough.

But Füllkrug didn't hog the ball, didn't force plays, could pass, coordinated well with teammates, and even tracked back actively on defense.

This made the team's offense much smoother and significantly boosted the midfield and forward defensive intensity!

So in the first half, Werder Bremen took an early lead.

De Bruyne scored two goals in the 23rd and 38th minutes, essentially killing the match's suspense.

Notably, De Bruyne's second goal came from Füllkrug's assist.

The latter actually had a good chance to shoot, but he chose to pass selflessly, sending the ball to De Bruyne, who was in a better position.

This earned him De Bruyne's appreciation, and after scoring, he specifically ran over to embrace him.

On the sidelines, watching De Bruyne score the second goal, Lin Quan felt both happy and worried.

His friend's outstanding performance genuinely delighted him.

But with such a big lead in the first half, if the coach thought the advantage was too large and didn't let him play, then he'd have to say goodbye to those Points.

Dindin, oh Dindin, please rein in your powers!

Scoring two goals is enough—leave some face for the away team, don't score anymore!

Let me help you score the rest!

While Lin Quan worried about whether he'd get to play in the second half, the coaching staff was also discussing the same issue.

"Aberdeen is supposed to be a veteran Scottish Premier League team—how come they seem so fragile?"

"Or is it that we're just too strong?"

"Aberdeen is a friendly opponent we invited from afar. If we hand them a crushing defeat at home, it'd be a bit embarrassing!"

"Yeah, let the players hold back a little. This isn't an official match—no need to humiliate the opponent. If a massacre really happens, we might not be able to find friendly opponents in the future!"

"Then should we still arrange for Lin Quan to play in the second half? With his attacking ability, I'm worried it really could turn into a massacre..."

Schaaf scratched his head and glanced at Lin Quan sitting on the bench.

Given his excellent performance in training and the last match, Lin Quan was already an absolute starter in his tactical system for the new season.

He had originally planned to let Lin Quan play in this match to continue his development, while also building chemistry with the rest of the team.

But the overly smooth flow of the game had thrown his plans into disarray.

Lin Quan caught the coach's gaze and looked back at him with utmost sincerity.

The message in his eyes was:

Coach, I want to play!

Recommendation tickets, are there any recommendation tickets?