Finally Replaced His Godson

On the home team's coaching bench, Guardiola, the newly appointed manager, held his bald head in both hands, a trace of confusion in his eyes.

"Is this fucking kid really seventeen?"

"No, wait! This is the rhythm of him handing me two straight losses!"

Guardiola snapped back to himself and hurriedly shouted at the players on the pitch, waving his arms and legs as if he were dancing ballet.

Why say two straight losses?

Because Bayern Munich had only lost 4–2 to Borussia Dortmund in the German Super Cup three days ago.

It was also because of that match that Borussia Dortmund's midfield core, Gotze, had accelerated his transfer.

If they lost to Sao Paulo again in this match, what else would it be but two straight defeats?

Last season, before he arrived, Bayern Munich had been treble winners!

He had only just taken over, and if he kept losing, there was simply no way to explain it to the fans or Bayern Munich's higher-ups.

The match resumed. Although Bayern Munich wanted to win back their pride as quickly as possible, there was not much time left.

In the end, with the referee's whistle, they could only head into the locker room with the score at 0–2.

In the stands, one of the men in a baseball cap stood up.

"Peter, let's go. We're heading back."

"Huh? But the match isn't over yet..."

"Doesn't matter! The result of this match doesn't matter to us at all. We have to act quickly, or we won't have any chance."

As they spoke, the two quickly disappeared into the crowd.

Inside the VIP box.

"Matthias, contact his agent again and talk about the possibility of Anno transferring to Bayern Munich." Hoeness looked at Sammer beside him.

Sammer nodded. "All right, I'll arrange it right away. But... I have to remind you, Ribery and Robben's positions are unshakable, and Muller and Gotze also need enough playing time."

Hoeness pondered for a moment. "I know. But we can't miss out on a player with this kind of talent. Sign him first. Even if we put him in the second team or loan him out for experience, that's still better than letting our competitors snatch him away."

Soon, the second half began.

No one knew whether Guardiola had lost his temper in the locker room, but once the second half started, the Bayern Munich players no longer had the playful smiles they had worn in the first half.

Their attitude toward the match had clearly become much more serious as well.

Especially the two wings, Robben and Ribery—their number of cuts inside grew more and more frequent.

In the 52nd minute.

Kroos slipped a through ball down the middle. Robben received it in the right half-space and quickly cut inside to the edge of the box, then curled a shot that skimmed past the post and flew over the byline.

Three minutes later.

Ribery broke through down the left, cut inside, and unleashed a fierce shot. The ball struck Lucio, and then Mandzukic followed up with a shot that hit the side netting.

During this spell, Sao Paulo were practically being ground into the turf by Bayern Munich, their back line under enormous pressure.

Veteran Lucio had already started panting a little.

Until the 62nd minute.

Thomas Muller suddenly drove forward with the ball through the middle, then, after drawing Sao Paulo's defensive attention, sent a through ball in.

Mandzukic charged into the box and slotted it home!

Bayern Munich changed the score to 1–2!

"Whoa... Bayern Munich got serious after the break, brothers. Sao Paulo probably won't be able to hold on!"

"No helping it. Even with a two-goal lead, the gap between the two teams is just too big."

"But brothers, it's fine. Our Chen Anno has already proven himself. Even if they lose this match, Chen Anno can still walk out of Allianz Arena with his head held high. I said what I said!"

"Hey... brothers, don't be sarcastic. Just look at Bayern Munich's lineup, will you? They're all in their prime, with both wings flying! And what kind of lineup does Sao Paulo have? Either retired old uncles or a bunch of misfits. Only our Chen Anno can still put up a fight, but how old is Chen Anno? Right? Playing it to this point is already really good."

After Bayern Munich scored, Ramalho began making substitutions.

He brought on the defensive midfielder Jadson for Ganso, strengthening the defensive depth in midfield.

Having pulled one goal back, Bayern Munich's attack became even fiercer.

But Chen Anno, who had been hovering around the midfield area the whole time, still made Kroos and Schweinsteiger afraid to fully push up and join the attack.

Sure enough, in the 73rd minute, Sao Paulo found another chance to counterattack.

Ceni caught Robben's shot, then immediately launched an attack with a throw.

After receiving the ball, Chen Anno used his speed to shake off Kroos outright, then, at full pace, beat Schweinsteiger with an elastico.

"Beautiful! Chen Anno is coming again!"

"Chen Anno, Anno, quick, get running!"

"This is a golden chance!"

"Chen Anno... Dante steps up to block him, lays it off to Aloisio..."

"Alo, go forward, take it yourself, don't pass to—holy shit!"

"Fabiano has to score that!"

"Fabiano!! That dumbass!! I knew it, eh... there's still a chance..."

"Chen Anno with the follow-up!!"

"Oh, man... Boateng reacted too fast and stuck out a leg to block the ball out over the byline!"

"Aloisio! I told you not to pass to that cripple Fabiano!"

"That guy's legs are crooked!"

"With such a good chance, Chen Anno might as well have taken it himself from the start and dribbled past every Bayern Munich defender!"

"Heh heh... don't curse me, boys. I just believe in our Chen Anno's ability..."

As the match neared its end, Bayern Munich's formation had almost pressed all the way up.

On Sao Paulo's side, even Chen Anno had begun dropping back into his own half to help defend.

Ramalho clearly wanted to protect the 1–2 scoreline.

The 77th minute.

Bayern Munich made another substitution, bringing on Shaqiri for Thomas Muller to keep strengthening the attack.

The 80th minute.

Shaqiri, who had just come on, was brought down by Jadson while dribbling in front of the penalty area, giving Bayern Munich a free-kick chance.

Unfortunately, Ribery's shot went just over the crossbar, wasting an opportunity to equalize.

Time slipped away second by second, and Sao Paulo seemed to have already glimpsed the dawn of victory.

But reality soon slapped them in the face!

The 85th minute.

After breaking through down the right, Robben cut inside. He carried the ball all the way to the top of the arc, then unleashed a thunderous shot. The ball threaded through every defender in the box and darted into the bottom-right corner of the goal.

There were simply too many people in the penalty area, blocking Ceni's line of sight. For that shot, he couldn't even make a save and could only watch helplessly as the ball hit the net.

After Robben scored, the entire Allianz Arena erupted in earth-shaking cheers.

Robben was extremely emotional as well. At this point in the match, they had truly gotten serious.

Many Bayern Munich players had never expected Sao Paulo to push them this far.

So after equalizing, all the Bayern Munich players celebrated excitedly.

The Sao Paulo players looked a little dejected. After all, they had held on for so long, and with the match about to end, their opponents had actually equalized.

"Hey...! Guys, don't give up! It's only a draw right now. We haven't lost yet!" Chen Anno shouted, reminding his teammates.

The old captain looked at the energetic Chen Anno and smiled too. He stood up and clapped his hands. "Anno is right, guys. We haven't lost yet! Lift your heads. Let's keep fighting with him!"

Ramalho made another substitution, replacing Fabiano with Osvaldo.

"Damn! Sao Paulo's head coach finally figured it out and took off his godson Fabiano!"

Through the substitution, Sao Paulo's front line became somewhat more active.

The 88th minute.

Chen Anno received the ball in midfield, facing a double-team from Schweinsteiger and Toni Kroos.

"Damn! Anno, get past him!"

Perhaps he heard Li Batian's prayer. Chen Anno's feet moved lightning-fast, changing direction in succession before he suddenly burst through between the two of them.

"Beautiful! Chen Anno!"