An Epic Debut

"Jurgen, did you tell Marco to do that?" On the touchline, Zeljko Buvac looked over at Klopp.

Klopp shrugged when he heard him. "I'm not that bored. That was Marco's own decision."

Buvac smiled. "Anno really has given us a huge surprise. I never thought the little guy would grow this quickly."

Klopp looked out onto the pitch, his gaze deep. "Anno has talent. He's young, highly malleable. He's like a blank sheet of paper. If we want to turn him into a peerless work of art, we and his teammates have to help him finish it together."

On the pitch, Chen Anno had already placed the ball on the spot for the free kick.

He took a few steps back and glanced toward the goal and the wall.

This position was roughly twenty-three meters from goal, on the right side of the penalty area. It was an excellent spot.

"We can see that Chen Anno has actually stepped up to the ball. Is this free kick really going to be taken by Chen Anno?" Duan Xuan sounded somewhat incredulous.

After all, Borussia Dortmund's free kicks were basically handled by Marco Reus. Besides, this position was so good, yet they were giving it to a newcomer who had only just joined the team—and a seventeen-year-old kid at that.

It was not just Duan Xuan who was confused. Even the fans in the South Stand behind the goal were a little baffled.

"I admit Anno's performance just now was very good, but why would Marco let him take this?"

"Hey... Mats, all you know how to do is complain. Marco must have his reasons for doing this. Besides, Anno has already scored two goals. If he can put this free kick in, he'll have a hat trick. We should support Anno."

"That's right, we should support Anno! Jurgen's eye is as sharp as ever. I heard Anno was signed because he pushed for it. Only seventeen years old—my God, Anno is simply a gift from God to Borussia Dortmund."

"Come on, guys. This is a free kick, not a penalty. You think he can just score because he wants to?"

No sooner had the words fallen than the referee's whistle sounded.

Chen Anno took a deep breath, and Ceni's teachings flashed through his mind.

Run-up, swing the leg, plant the left foot twenty centimeters from the ball, raise the left arm, lean the body left as if about to lose balance.

Bang...!

The arch of his right foot struck the side of the ball hard.

The ball shot out like a cannonball, flew over the wall, and, carrying fierce spin, traced a C-shaped arc through the air straight toward the upper left corner of the goal.

In front of goal, Daniel Davari had already used every ounce of strength he had, launching himself into the air, his right hand stretched out straight, yet he did not even brush a hair of the ball.

Swish...!

That was the sound of the ball hitting the net!

"Look at Chen Anno's free kick—he shoots...!!!"

"It's in!!!!"

"A hat trick!!"

"This is simply magical!!"

"Chen Anno, unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable!!"

"Chen Anno has completed his hat trick!"

"A hat trick on his debut!!"

In the stands, the instant Chen Anno sent the free kick into the net, everyone rose to their feet and roared wildly.

Looking down over the entire stadium, it was like waves of yellow and black surging and rolling!

Even the fan who had just questioned Chen Anno completely forgot that, a second earlier, he had been saying a free kick was not a penalty.

He shouted even louder than the companions beside him, his neck turning red, clearly flushed from excitement.

"Anno...!!"

"Anno...!!"

When Chen Anno sprinted beneath the stands, the whole stadium was chanting his name.

Famous with one goal?

This was becoming famous in one battle!

On the touchline, Klopp had completely lost himself. He slapped his own chest excitedly, gritting his teeth and baring them in a grin.

It was as if he were declaring to everyone that Chen Anno was the one he had brought to Borussia Dortmund, the genius he had set his sights on!

In the Sports Channel studio, Duan Xuan looked at the young man on the screen. Tonight, that boy had left an impression on him that was far too deep.

He remembered the reports he had seen about Chen Anno back in China before. The boy had not even been able to get games in the U17 Youth Team and had been buried by his club all along.

At this moment, his eyes could not help reddening a little, and his voice carried a trace of choking emotion. "Why?"

This was the Sports Channel. He could not say more, and could only utter those three words.

Some people could understand them, while others had no idea what he meant.

But what could be done?

The match on the pitch was still continuing.

At this point, the match had only reached the 70th minute.

Seventeen-year-old Chen Anno needed less than twenty minutes in his Borussia Dortmund debut to complete a hat trick—and conquer the Dortmund fans!

Eintracht Braunschweig were stunned. They had no idea why the difference between the first half and the second half was so huge. Was it really just because one kid had come on?

No one gave them an answer, and no one gave them time to think, because Dortmund's attack was still going, and Chen Anno's show was not over yet.

In the 78th minute, Dortmund launched another surge.

Nuri Sahin found Chen Anno on the right wing with a precise long pass.

This time, Eintracht Braunschweig had learned their lesson. Before the ball even arrived, two players were already moving up to double-team him.

But Chen Anno had no intention of stopping the ball this time. Meeting the flying football, he knocked it straight with his shoulder to Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the middle.

"Oh my... Chen Anno's pass was completely unexpected. Look at Mkhitaryan—eh... it's a one-two."

"Mkhitaryan didn't stop the ball either. He used the inside of his foot to scoop it back!"

"Chen Anno... chested it forward... into the penalty area!"

"Swept across the face of goal... Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang shoots!"

"Saved by the goalkeeper again... the danger still isn't cleared!"

"Marco Reus!!!"

"It's in again!!"

"4–0!"

"Dortmund's attack this time was simply brilliant. A string of one-touch passes—the ball didn't even hit the ground before entering the box!"

"Sahin's long pass, Chen Anno's flashy shoulder pass, Mkhitaryan's deft touch with the inside of his foot, and then Chen Anno's chest control—beautiful!"

"Absolutely wonderful!"

"At this moment, Chen Anno even makes me think of Ronaldinho, the elf who once roamed the pitch. Every part of his body could be used to play football!"

The home fans at the Westfalenstadion today were simply too lucky!

There was nothing more joyful than welcoming a big win at home.

Before the start of the season, everyone had thought Dortmund would suffer a major blow after losing several attacking cores.

But they had scored eight goals across two consecutive league rounds, and this match was not even over yet.

Klopp and his young Dortmund side had once again slapped everyone in the face with their actions!

Amid the surging yellow-and-black tide, Eintracht Braunschweig's players were already numb.

When the first half ended, they had still been imagining taking one point from this place and earning their first point after promotion.

Now, reality had hammered them with a vicious combination!

With a four-goal lead, Dortmund finally slowed the tempo of their attack and began patiently controlling the ball in the middle and back lines.

The match time also ticked away, second by second.

Just when everyone thought the match would end like this, Henrikh Mkhitaryan suddenly drove forward through the middle with the ball, charging straight into Eintracht Braunschweig's heartland.

The defenders had already lowered their guard, and Mkhitaryan's sudden run caught them completely off guard.

"Look at this. Mkhitaryan is still carrying it..."

"This attacking player who transferred from Shakhtar Donetsk this summer seems to want a goal of his own too."

"He's at the edge of the box... shifts it to open the angle, and shoots!!"

"That shot hit the post!!"

"Eh... it's gone in!!!"

"Chen Anno!! Chen Anno again! He's completed a four-goal haul!!"

"At this moment, he is god! This is absolutely an epic debut!!"