"Welcome back to the second half of the Ruhr Derby! We're delighted you're still tuned into Sport1! I'm Mehmet Scholl, your commentator for this match, and sitting beside me is our old friend, Oliver Kahn!"
"Hey there, viewers! Let's watch the second half of the Bundesliga's opening match—the Ruhr Derby!"
Germany national team legend and Bayern Munich icon, the "Lion King" Oliver Kahn, was in the commentary box fresh off his retirement that summer. This year, German TV channel Sport1 had signed Scholl and Kahn as a commentary duo.
Based on their performance in the first 45 minutes, the "Bayern Legends Duo" were working quite well together. Sport1's viewership had steadily risen, completely surpassing other matches in the same time slot. Of course, the popularity of the Ruhr Derby also contributed significantly, as did the many viewers—including a growing number of Chinese fans—who enjoy watching Borussia Dortmund's matches.
"Speaking of Borussia Dortmund, their performance in the first half was actually not ideal," Scholl began. "Klopp deployed a 4-3-3 formation in his first match, fixing Jin Hayes in the attacking midfield position—somewhat reminiscent of how Ancelotti used Kaká at Milan—hoping Jin's dribbling and passing could create greater damage.
At the same time, all three lines maintained high pressure, planning to use aggressive pressing to disrupt Schalke 04's attacks. Before the 30th minute, Dortmund indeed didn't give their opponents any clear chances. Jin Hayes frequently used his individual technical advantages to create threats around the box. It was just a pity that Delron Buckley on the left wing and Jakub Błaszczykowski on the right couldn't quite link up with him.
Lone striker Alexander Frei was tightly marked. Schalke 04 allowed Jin Hayes space for long shots but tightly defended against his dribbling into the box for passes or solo runs. Dortmund didn't create many chances in the first half, and Frei failed to convert the only threatening shot.
Conversely, Schalke 04, capitalising on their opponent's fatigue in the final stages, scored two goals with two consecutive counter-attacks. It remains to be seen how Klopp's team will adjust in the second half."
"Yes," Kahn added after Scholl's lengthy summary. "How to get the best out of Jin Hayes is the key for Dortmund. Clearly, he needs to quickly adapt to the attacking midfield position—"
To be fair, Jin Hayes felt he had already adapted to playing as an attacking midfielder. Compared to the narrow space on the wings, there were undoubtedly more options for movement in the middle. He could break through from any direction, making him harder for opponents to defend. Assuming his finishing was on point, even his long-range shots from outside the box would be enough to trouble the opposition.
It was just a pity that Jin Hayes's two long shots in the first half had flown high and wide—so far, in fact, that the home fans joked they might land near the Olympic stadium in Beijing. Whenever Jin Hayes produced an outrageous shot, the Westfalenstadion would put on its regular show: a collective burst of good-natured laughter and playful whistles. At first, Jin Hayes would feel embarrassed, wishing he could bury his head in the turf. Later, he simply waved back shamelessly, enjoying the reaction from the entire stadium like a rock star.
Of course, Jin Hayes didn't just shoot mindlessly. He mostly used his technical advantages to break through, draw defenders, and then transfer the ball into open space. Unfortunately, his teammates never quite linked up with him. Buckley on the left was completely out of sync with Jin Hayes; Błaszczykowski on the right was a bit better, actively making runs to receive Jin Hayes's passes. Dortmund's right-wing attacks were relatively more threatening as a result.
"…Sebastian Kehl, Nuri Şahin, Dedê, Kehl, back to Nuri Şahin—a beautiful through ball!"
Right at the start of the second half, Nuri Şahin threaded a pass between two defenders, directly finding Jin Hayes in front of the box. The fiercely defending Jermaine Jones charged forward, intending to use his physicality to knock Jin Hayes off balance. Unexpectedly, Jin Hayes seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. He stepped forward to meet the incoming ball, making a move to turn right, forcing Jermaine Jones to change direction.
A gasp erupted from the stands at the Westfalenstadion. Fans were afraid Jin Hayes would be knocked down again by this beastly midfielder.
The next second, the two players passed each other. Jin Hayes cleverly flicked the ball with his heel, executing a precise nutmeg, while deftly dodging his opponent's charge, turning and accelerating past him in one smooth motion. The effortless piece of skill drew thunderous applause from the entire stadium. Borussia Dortmund fans absolutely loved this player.
"Wow!! How did he do that?! Jin, keep pushing forward!"
In a flash, Jin Hayes had already reached the edge of the penalty area. Ivan Rakitić's sliding tackle was easily avoided by Jin Hayes's toe-poke. As left-back Christian Pander frantically rushed forward to defend, Jin Hayes's pass caught everyone off guard.
"Beautiful!! A deliberate pause to create a time delay! Jin's through ball into the half-space!"
"Jakub Błaszczykowski arrives at full speed, dribbles into the box—a cross!!"
"Oh no!! Alexander Frei!! The header was just centimetres from going in!!"
"Borussia Dortmund's most threatening attack of the entire match! What a pity the final touch went wide—what a pity."
Jin Hayes could still recall Klopp's roar in the dressing room during halftime. A string of colourful German expletives had greatly expanded Jin Hayes's vocabulary. After being thoroughly reprimanded, the Dortmund players showed much more active running in the second half. Jin Hayes noticed that Schalke 04's marking on Alexander Frei was still very tight, but their attention on Błaszczykowski was relatively lax.
This might be a good breakthrough point.
"Hey! Błaszczykowski!"
While tracking back to defend, Jin Hayes quickly called out to his teammate. Jakub Błaszczykowski looked at Jin Hayes with complicated emotions. Last season, this young player had kept him on the bench for most of the campaign.
With Klopp's arrival, Jin Hayes had moved to the central attacking role, and Jakub Błaszczykowski finally got a starting opportunity. But whether he could secure that spot depended in part on whether Jin Hayes would pass to him. For Jin Hayes, Jakub Błaszczykowski felt both envy and admiration.
"Jakubi, you can try more shots. Next time, let's do a crossing run."
"Huh? Will it work?"
"Don't worry about it—just shoot!"
"Alright."
Jakub Błaszczykowski was already used to Jin Hayes's bold ideas. Countless facts had proven that Jin Hayes was often right.
"…Borussia Dortmund are still pressing high, with all three lines almost in the opponent's half. Schalke 04's ball simply can't get past the midfield line."
"Good play!! Captain Kehl wins the ball! Directly to Jin Hayes!"
"Jin!! Oh, wow—a beautiful step-over and change of direction, easily shaking off Jermaine Jones!"
"Oh, he's dribbling towards the right wing, exchanging positions with Jakub Błaszczykowski!"
"Beautiful!!! A sudden stop followed by a Cruyff turn!! He's past him! He's in the box!"
Every Schalke 04 player was on high alert. This young player was like a force of nature, entering the penalty area as if it were uninhabited land. As the 16-year-old drew everyone's attention, he suddenly back-heeled the ball, passing it to the edge of the box.
"Oh oh oh oh—a brilliant pass! Jakub Błaszczykowski—"
Just shoot!
Jakub Błaszczykowski only had Jin Hayes's words echoing in his mind.
Bang!
With a taut instep, a powerful shot rocketed towards the goal.
"Fuck!!"
Manuel Neuer's attention had been entirely on Jin Hayes. By the time he reacted and lunged across his line, it was too late. Jakub Błaszczykowski's powerful long-range strike had already ripped through the net.
"Gooooooal!!! Jakub Błaszczykowski!!!"
"Borussia Dortmund's brilliant teamwork in the attacking third! Jin toyed with everyone in a Schalke shirt, and Jakub Błaszczykowski was completely unmarked when he shot!"
"The home team, Borussia Dortmund, have pulled one back!"
"Compared to Jin Hayes as a right winger, Jin Hayes as an attacking midfielder is even more terrifying!"
In the 2008-09 season, the fans in the Westfalenstadion stands could finally cheer and celebrate their first goal of the new campaign. The goalscorer, Jakub Błaszczykowski, with a look of fierce joy, excitedly rushed towards Jin Hayes and high-fived him hard.
"Shit!! You hit too hard!" Jin Hayes's right hand went numb.
"Ah ah ah! Jin! What a beautiful pass!"
Jakub Błaszczykowski was now completely won over by Jin Hayes, squatting down to perform a shoe-shining celebration for him. The Borussia Dortmund players excitedly rushed over to join the celebration, but Jin Hayes quickly reminded them.
"Guys! There's still enough time. Let's get two more goals and turn this around!"
"Roar!!!"
The Yellow and Blacks' morale soared. Captain Sebastian Kehl had originally intended to boost the team's spirit, but Jin Hayes had already done his job for him.
"This kid," Kehl smiled to himself. "He's even better at being captain than I am."
In Jin Hayes, Kehl saw an innate leadership quality. This kind of player, he thought, was destined to write an extraordinary chapter in football history.
"Borussia Dortmund's goal was brilliant, but unfortunately, the same trick can only be used once," commented Mehmet Scholl. "Schalke 04 are clearly guarding against Dortmund's right-wing attacks, so it will be difficult for Jakub Błaszczykowski to find shooting space again. Relatively speaking, Dortmund's left wing has been rather quiet."
Scholl had pinpointed Borussia Dortmund's weak spot with accuracy. The lack of activity on the left flank made it easy for Schalke 04 to focus their defence. Delron Buckley, born in 1977, was already 31 years old that year.
In his youth, he had been a famous speedster in the Bundesliga, but now he had long lost his former sharpness and relied solely on his experience. Under Borussia Dortmund's high-pressing tactics, the veteran could no longer keep up with the team's pace.
On the bench, Marco Reus looked anxious. The team's attack had stalled, and time was ticking away. Sitting there and worrying was useless.
"Hey, Marco!"
Suddenly hearing Klopp call him, Reus excitedly went to the coach's side.
"Go get changed quickly. Once you're on, remember to link up more with Jin. Be active in your runs, make more runs into the half-spaces, try to get in behind. Go."
After a brief tactical instruction, Klopp requested a substitution from the fourth official. With 20 minutes left in the match, they still needed two goals to secure an opening victory. Now, they could only trust the chemistry between Reus and Jin Hayes. These two, along with Nuri Şahin, were perhaps Borussia Dortmund's most technically gifted trio.
When Reus replaced Delron Buckley and stepped onto the pitch, he immediately ran to Jin Hayes's side.
"Oh, you're on." Seeing his good brother come on, Jin Hayes was delighted. With him on the field, there was a high probability they could complete the comeback and win the match today.
"Piss off! Why wouldn't I be on?!"
"Alright, just like in training. Let's give them a yellow and black shock."
"Good!"
Reus didn't say much more. He lightly high-fived Jin Hayes, his eyes fixed on Neuer's goal, a fierce fighting spirit burning within them.
In front of the goal, Manuel Neuer's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly had a strong premonition: he was still going to be "embarassed" by Borussia Dortmund in the new season.