Compared to Jürgen Klinsmann's Bayern, how much stronger is Jupp Heynckes' Bayern? Answer: at least three or four levels higher.
Jin Hayes was puzzled; clearly Borussia Dortmund had the possession and were pressing forward, while Bayern Munich was playing on the counter‑attack. Why did Bayern exert such a strong sense of pressure?
In just half an hour, the Borussia Dortmund fans went through three stages of change.
"A weak team is a weak team; there's a reason they're ranked 7th. Today is definitely in the bag."
"Wait? Luck, maybe?"
"Holy crap?! Today might be a disaster!"
In the 27th minute of the match, with Borussia Dortmund unable to break through after a long period of attacking, Bayern Munich launched their most threatening counter‑attack.
Arjen Robben took the ball past the midfield, suddenly cut back, and tapped it with his left foot to Bastian Schweinsteiger, who was following up in the centre. Schweinsteiger didn't hesitate, sending a diagonal long pass directly to find Franck Ribéry.
Ribéry cut the ball past the full‑back and sent a cutback pass to Thomas Müller. Müller cut diagonally into the penalty area and flicked it with his heel to Luca Toni. Toni raised his foot and unleashed a powerful shot inside the box.
Roman Weidenfeller was helpless.
0‑1.
Bayern Munich took the lead away from home, scoring with their first shot of the match.
"It's in!! A change of manager for Bayern is like getting a new edge!" Duan Xuan couldn't help but remark that the fluidity of Bayern's counter‑attack just now was absolutely top‑tier—a feast for the eyes.
"This is Heynckes' specialty; he's very good at exploiting the width and space of the pitch. Robben didn't just mindlessly dribble and cut inside; instead, he chose to cooperate with his teammates.
Ribéry's side, where the defence was weaker, was exploited. Both wings drew the defence, stretching the formation apart, giving the two young players in the centre a lot of room to operate."
Whether it was Schweinsteiger's long pass or Müller's off‑the‑ball movement, both were full of ingenuity, catching the Dortmund players off guard. Director Tao, the guest commentator for CCTV5, couldn't help but feel worried for Borussia Dortmund.
...
A studio in downtown Dortmund.
Several fashionably dressed young models were posing for a photographer, wearing world‑famous luxury brands.
"Alright, five‑minute break."
The person in charge called for the models to take a rest.
Anna immediately rushed to a nearby television and turned it on. The Bundesliga broadcast signal soon appeared on the screen. It was currently showing the Bayern Munich players hugging and celebrating; Borussia Dortmund was temporarily trailing 1‑0.
A supermodel nearby glanced over and casually complained. "Dortmund's form hasn't been great lately; they definitely won't beat Bayern."
"No, let's keep watching."
Being one goal down is nothing.
Just then, the director cut to a close‑up of Jin Hayes. Seeing the boy she liked with a determined look on the pitch, and seeing him wearing the gloves she had given him, Anna's nervous heart settled quite a bit. With Jin Hayes on the field, everything would surely be fine.
Compared to Bayern's fluid offence, Borussia Dortmund's siege in the final third seemed relatively unrefined, with everyone playing for themselves.
"Compared to positional attacks, Dortmund is better at counter‑attacking or engaging in open play. Bayern's proactive retreat has clearly made it very uncomfortable for these Dortmund youngsters to play."
Originally, with Marco Reus there, their ability to break through defences would have been even stronger. The current Mario Götze is only 16 years old; his physical strength hasn't fully developed yet, making it hard for him to hold onto the ball in Bayern's dense defensive zone.
"Götze is trying to break through with the ball in the front… Lahm and Robben are closing in at the same time—"
"Oh! Götze was pushed out of position and the ball was stolen!"
"Beautiful!! Luckily Götze poked the ball to a teammate in time. Borussia Dortmund is reorganising—"
"Bayern's defence is really solid. Dortmund has handed it over to Jin Hayes to handle again. Every time they face difficulty, his teammates choose to trust Jin Hayes."
Trailing by one goal, Bayern Munich became even more committed to their counter‑attacking strategy. Ribéry on the left and Robben on the right practically became full‑backs.
Schweinsteiger and Mark van Bommel also stayed in front of the penalty area, the four of them forming a defensive chain. Thomas Müller and Luca Toni also retreated to the halfway line to support. This way, no matter where the ball went, the two forwards would swarm in to create a numerical advantage.
....
Even though it was Borussia Dortmund's home ground, Bayern Munich divided every area into different blocks. Dortmund's attacking formation was completely sliced up by Bayern, making it naturally difficult to advance even an inch.
Through tacit cooperation and movement, Bayern Munich built a system like a moving city wall. Every time Jin Hayes dribbled past someone, he encountered multiplied pressure.
But so what?
The team needed him now. The fans needed him too. Facing over 80,000 fans at home, could they lose this match?
Absolutely not.
Dribbling slowly toward Schweinsteiger, Jin Hayes adjusted his small steps to apply pressure. He lowered his centre of gravity, his shoulders swaying naturally, making Schweinsteiger afraid to commit his foot.
An ordinary player's breakthrough: movements are slightly stiff, relying entirely on instinct to make random moves.
A first‑class player's breakthrough: pre‑sets the way to beat the opponent in their mind, implementing their plan with confidence.
A top‑tier player's breakthrough: forces the defender to move first, then strikes second but arrives first.
Jin Hayes was exactly like this; the constant pressure he applied forced Schweinsteiger to step up and interfere; otherwise, he would have dribbled right to the edge of the box.
The moment Schweinsteiger moved his foot, Jin Hayes moved instantly. He flicked the ball to the right with his right instep, dropped his shoulder, and suddenly accelerated to the right. Schweinsteiger fell for it and quickly moved over to block the path.
If he ignored him, he would surely be overtaken.
...
Seeing Schweinsteiger's body coming across, Jin Hayes calmly flicked the ball back with his right toe. In a flash, he nudged the ball with his heel through Schweinsteiger's legs and spun around him from the left.
"Again?!!"
Over the past two seasons, Schweinsteiger had been dribbled past by Jin Hayes so many times he was practically numb to it. He thought he could defend him this time, but he was easily toyed with again.
Schweinsteiger, chasing closely behind, wasn't panicked; van Bommel was already blocking Jin Hayes's path, and Ribéry was closing in as well. A triple‑team would be enough to stop this attack. Even if that failed, Lúcio was still behind them.
Seeing Jin Hayes about to be trapped in an inescapable net, he ignored everything and forcefully charged straight into van Bommel.
"Bring it on!!"
The veteran Mark van Bommel, Bayern Munich's captain, let out a shout and braced himself for the collision. Don't think he's old—his body is still very strong. This kid actually chose a head‑on collision? That made no sense.
"Jin Hayes is forcing a breakthrough!!" Duan Xuan exclaimed. He watched as Jin Hayes didn't make a move but collided directly with van Bommel. Everyone thought the strong van Bommel would stop Jin Hayes and send the thin lad flying. But everyone overlooked one fact: Jin Hayes's physical attributes had developed significantly. He was no longer at the same level he was half a year ago.
Bang!
Just as van Bommel was about to reach out to intercept, using his upper body like a rugby player to absorb the impact, he collided head‑on with Jin Hayes. He didn't even need to knock Jin Hayes down; he just needed to disrupt his centre of gravity.
Little did he know, the moment their bodies touched, van Bommel felt as if he'd been hit by a heavy truck. He uncontrollably stumbled back several steps, nearly falling over. Jin Hayes, on the other hand, acted as if nothing had happened and charged toward the penalty area.
"WTF?!"
Van Bommel was stunned. You're a technical player who doesn't use technique to dribble past people, but starts playing physical instead, right?
Everything happened too fast; Bayern's centre‑back Lúcio didn't see clearly how he was bypassed. All he knew was that he had to stop this guy—even if it meant fouling. The 1.88‑metre powerhouse Lúcio rushed to the edge of the box and stepped forward; the two of them slammed into each other again.
At the moment of impact, Lúcio felt as if he had hit a wall. His whole body was rattled.
In that brief moment of daze, Jin Hayes was quick with his eyes and feet, poking the ball with his left toe through Lúcio's legs. Using the force of Lúcio's impact to bounce off, he circled around from the right and accelerated into the penalty area.
Three players beaten in a row.
"Impossible!"
The veteran manager Jupp Heynckes began to doubt reality. He knew Jin Hayes was strong; this 16‑year‑old player was exceptional. Before the match, he had arranged a series of defensive tactics, referencing the Italian Catenaccio, and told the Bayern players to use more physical challenges to wear him down.
The defensive positioning didn't leave any room for Jin Hayes to break through, unless he could beat multiple people in just two or three seconds. Even Lionel Messi would find that difficult. How could a 16‑year‑old actually break through? Even Lúcio's collision couldn't stop this player.
Jin Hayes broke into the box; Alexander Frei quickly made a diagonal run to pull Daniel Van Buyten away, while on the right, Jakub Błaszczykowski pinned down the left‑back Christian Lell. Jin Hayes could completely take on the goalkeeper Michael Rensing one‑on‑one.
"Don't think you can trick me into coming out!"
Rensing had completely lost his nerve; in previous matches, he had been dribbled past by Jin Hayes, leading to goals into an empty net. This time, he absolutely would not take a single step off his goal line. Shoot if you have the guts. Rensing was certain that Jin Hayes would never shoot. At that moment, he suddenly saw Jin Hayes raise his right foot and take aim at the goal.
"Holy crap? You're actually shooting!" Did this kid really learn how to shoot? Rensing completely panicked and hurriedly moved to dive toward the far post.
"No! He's definitely passing!" Van Buyten rushed toward Frei to prevent Jin Hayes's pass.
"No!! It's the far post!!"
Lúcio's heart tightened. Based on his knowledge of Jin Hayes, he sprinted toward the far post of the goal. Having been tricked by Jin Hayes too many times, at this moment, the Bayern defence simultaneously came up with three different solutions. But they overlooked the playful smile on Jin Hayes's face.
"All according to keikaku!"
Jin Hayes's raised right leg came down, but it turned into a toe‑poke chip.
The entire Bayern Munich team was faked out by Jin Hayes; for a moment, no one stepped forward to intercept him. They watched helplessly as the ball was chipped up by him, flying into the air. Jin Hayes stepped forward and jumped, activating man of steel throughout his entire being, and headed the ball toward the goal with the momentum of a locomotive.
"This ball!!!" Duan Xuan suddenly had a sense of déjà vu, as if Jin Hayes was throwing the ball off the backboard to himself for a dunk on a basketball court.
"A thumping header!!"
The ball, boosted by man of steel, carried a powerful aura and almost tore through the net. A crisp swish echoed over the Westfalen.
"Goal!! It's a goal! It's another one‑man show from Jin Hayes! In Borussia Dortmund's toughest moment, Jin Hayes stepped up to help the home team equalise!"
1‑1.
Borussia Dortmund strongly equalises.
An earth‑shattering cheer erupted from the Westfalen. The pressure Bayern applied in the first 30 minutes had practically suffocated the fans, but finally, the moment Jin Hayes's header hit the back of the net, everything exploded.
After scoring, Jin Hayes had a smile on his face as he sprinted toward the pitch‑side camera, lifting his jersey to reveal a T‑shirt he had prepared beforehand.
[This goal is for you, Anna, Happy Birthday!]
Inside the studio, the supermodels present were about to start work. Suddenly seeing the scene of Borussia Dortmund equalising, Jin Hayes's goal caused the staff and photographers on site to burst into applause.
"So cool!"
"He really is our Borussia Dortmund's saviour!"
"That goal was truly beautiful!"
Meanwhile, several slender and beautifully dressed supermodels had all their attention on Jin Hayes.
"Awwww—"
"He's so romantic, dedicating the goal to his girlfriend. I'm so jealous of this Anna—"
"Yeah, he's really handsome."
"Wait, don't we have an Anna here too?"
The supermodels all looked toward Anna; the young girl's eyes were now brimming with tears, and her makeup was smudged. Everyone looked at each other.
No way, could it really be her?