"Can you do it? I haven't watched you for a few days, and your progress has been incredibly fast."
"Of course, I have a good teacher."
"Seeing you work so hard, your teacher will give you a reward."
"Don't even think about it!"
At Scholl Sisters' Middle School, on the football field. The evening field was deserted, becoming Jin Hayes and Anna's exclusive dating spot. As the big battle approached, the pressure on the entire Borussia Dortmund team was immense. After a grueling day of training, Jin Hayes and Anna came to the school field, savoring the last moments of calm before the storm.
Since her last lesson with Jin Hayes, Anna had been diligently practicing football these past few days. Jin Hayes's increasing brilliance made Anna look up to him, but also made her lose her sense of security. He was already a well-known star in Europe; she was just an ordinary high school student, an ordinary signed model. The gap between them might grow wider and wider until some kind of barrier formed.
What if a hotter, more alluring, more beautiful supermodel, film star, or pop diva appeared by Jin Hayes's side? Would he be attracted to those even more dazzling women?
Anna didn't want that to happen. She could only try her best to find common ground with Jin Hayes, and attempt to form a bond in the football field he loved most. Although Anna skillfully dodged, Jin Hayes was, after all, an athlete. He took a step forward, easily caught Anna, and pulled her into his arms. After a brief struggle, the young girl still surrendered, wrapping her arms around Jin Hayes's waist, her pretty face pressed against his chest, carefully listening to his heartbeat.
"Sir, your heart rate is speeding up."
"Of course, it's all because of you." Jin Hayes originally meant that his heart rate increased due to chasing Anna earlier. But Anna misunderstood it as a love confession and hugged him even tighter.
"Hey, tell me, if you win the Champions League and the Ballon d'Or in the future, and become a true world superstar, will you stop liking me?"
"What silly talk." Jin Hayes dotingly cupped the young girl's delicate face and gently pinched her nose. "Even if I become a Football GOAT in the future, I'll still like you. You'll be the Football GOAT's wife then—"
"Dream on, who said I'm marrying you?"
Anna shyly buried her head in Jin Hayes's chest, sighing softly from an angle Jin Hayes couldn't see. Even with Jin Hayes's promise, her insecurity remained un-alleviated. Jin Hayes held Anna, enjoying the rare moment of peace. He had been constantly thinking about Manchester United's threat recently, and coupled with his intense focus on training, he didn't immediately realize Anna's sensitive inner world.
...
"Jin! Ah ah ah ah! I Love U!!!"
"Can we take a photo?!"
"Jin!! Autograph, please!!"
Outside Westfalenstadion, the bustling Borussia Dortmund fans almost completely surrounded the Borussia Dortmund yellow team bus. Thanks to the combined efforts of the on-site security and the Borussia Dortmund police, the traffic pressure around the stadium was finally eased, and an entry lane was cleared for the team bus.
"Oh my goodness, this is truly insane. When did we get so many fans?" Among the crowd, one chubby police officer on duty couldn't help but exclaim. The older police officer next to him looked solemn. "The entire city is about to burst, filled with fans who have come from all over the world. Jin's fans probably make up a large portion of the crowd. We need to work harder these two days and remain vigilant at all times. Especially that group from England, there might be quite a few football hooligans among them."
The Champions League quarter-final match between Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United was probably one of the most important events for Borussia Dortmund recently. Borussia Dortmund fans were like celebrating a festival, wearing jerseys, waving banners, converging on Westfalenstadion from all directions.
Cars simply couldn't get through; the surrounding streets were completely gridlocked. Many fans had to park their cars two kilometers away and walk to the stadium. A mighty yellow and black army gathered, forming a spectacular sight.
Meanwhile, around the stadium, the number of Manchester United fans wearing red jerseys was also considerable. In Greater Manchester, the number of Manchester City fans is slightly higher. However, globally, Manchester United fans dominate in numbers. The only team that can rival Manchester United's fan base is La Liga giants Real Madrid.
Fans from all over the world flocked to the small city of Dortmund, the vast majority supporting Manchester United, with some overseas supporters coming to cheer for Jin Hayes. There were even people who traveled long distances from the distant East, journeying thousands of miles to Dortmund to support Jin Hayes.
CCTV5 Sports Channel, "Champions Europe" special program.
After Europe returned to daylight saving time, the match time was changed to 2:45 AM. From 00:00, CCTV5 had not broadcast any other sports, focusing entirely on today's Champions League main event. Who knew how far Borussia Dortmund could go in the future? It was very possible that the quarter-final would be their final destination. CCTV simply sent a frontline interview team in advance to report on the grand occasion in Dortmund.
Originally, "Tiantianzuqiu" was also going to do a special interview with Jin Hayes, but the project had not been approved. This time, they set off together. After reporting on this Champions League match, they would also conduct a special interview with Jin Hayes. Combining previous video footage, CCTV5 planned to produce a documentary about Jin Hayes, chronicling his soaring season in the Bundesliga.
"...Having discussed so much about the lineups and tactics of both sides, let's first hand the screen over to our frontline reporter to see the situation live in Dortmund. Hello, Wang Nan."
In the studio, Zhang Bin, a bespectacled presenter, was communicating with the reporter. On screen, the frontline female reporter Wang Nan appeared with a slight delay.
"Okay—As everyone can see, the stadium behind me is today's match venue, Borussia Dortmund's home ground, Westfalenstadion, or as everyone might know it better, the Westfalen. Today, Dortmund is exceptionally crowded compared to usual, with fans from all over the world coming to watch this season's Champions League quarter-final crucial match. Next to me are Manchester United fans who have traveled from Manchester—..."
After female reporter Wang Nan briefly introduced the situation around the stadium, she switched to English to interview the group of singing and dancing fans. The match hadn't even started, but they had already drunk quite a bit of beer, were ecstatic, and excitedly gathered in front of the camera.
"How do you predict today's match?"
"3-0!"
One red-faced white strong man made a gesture of 3 and 0.
"Manchester! Invincible!"
"1-2, perhaps. Jin of Borussia Dortmund is very threatening and might score. But we have Cristiano Ronaldo—..."
"Manchester United will score at least 2 goals. As long as we get an away goal, that's enough."
The predictions of other Manchester United fans were relatively rational, but without exception, they had no doubt about Manchester United winning away. Are you kidding? As the defending champions, and the most formidable force in European football for the past two years, playing against a team that only entered the Champions League after many years, why would they worry about losing? Even if their opponent was hyped by European media as the "Bumblebees' Youth Storm," Manchester United fans weren't afraid at all.
Due to the excessive frenzy of the fans from England, considering the reporter's safety, the CCTV interview team quickly relocated. Coincidentally, not far away was a group of Borussia Dortmund fans wearing yellow jerseys. They all had typical Chinese faces, and reporter Wang Nan felt a sense of familiarity when she saw them.
"Hello everyone, we are from CCTV Sports Channel. Can we do a brief interview? Where are you all from?"
"Berlin."
"We came from Paris."
"We are from London."
"I flew over from China, specifically to support Jin Hayes. Lord Jin is awesome! Go Lord Jin!"
In the camera, the bespectacled uncle appeared overly excited. He wasn't wearing a yellow and black Borussia Dortmund jersey; he was wearing the red National Football Team uniform. He was clearly a long-time loyal fan of the national team. At a time when the national team was in darkness, offering no hope, Jin Hayes's appearance became a source of inspiration for these fans.
"Then, how do you view today's match? Can you briefly predict the score?"
"I'm not sure, but Borussia Dortmund will win."
"Today will be tough. Manchester United is a very strong team, but I believe Lord Jin can create a miracle."
"3-2, Borussia Dortmund wins narrowly, with Jin Hayes scoring the winning goal."
"Be bolder! 5-0!"
The bespectacled Chinese fan had intelligent eyes, clearly a university student.
Subsequently, frontline reporter Wang Nan interviewed some local German fans, most of whom were quite optimistic about Borussia Dortmund. Seeing the Asian CCTV team, these German fans seemed very enthusiastic.
"Jin Hayes, awesome! China, awesome!"
"I love China!! Yeah!!"
Reporter Wang Nan had never witnessed such a scene before. In her previous interviews abroad, she had encountered coldness, harassment from football hooligans, chaos, and even blatant discriminatory behavior. It was rare to witness such affection from local Borussia Dortmund fans towards a Chinese player here. Out of love for the player, they also harbored great affection for the distant nation. For some reason, the emotional Wang Nan suddenly felt tears welling up, and her voice became shaky.
"This is the situation live at Westfalen. Fans from both sides are welcoming today's Champions League main event with the greatest enthusiasm. We hope both teams will deliver a spectacular match... Go Jin Hayes!"
"Alright, thank you, Wang Nan, and thank you for the live report from the front. There are still 15 minutes until the match begins, and our commentary booth is ready. Next, we'll go to a commercial break. After the break, let's all enter the long-awaited Champions League highlight match!"
...
"I know you all have been through a lot this week."
In the home team dressing room, Jin Hayes and the Borussia Dortmund players had finished their warm-up. Jürgen Klopp stood in the centre of the dressing room, looking around at the players, observing each one. Including Marco Reus and Neven Subotić, who couldn't play today, and Patrick Owomoyela, the substitute full-back who had just recovered from injury. Of course, there were also today's key players: Nuri Şahin, Jakub Błaszczykowski, Mario Götze, Sebastian Kehl, and the team's tactical core, Jin Hayes.
"We have prepared for this battle for too long. Perhaps the fluid coordination we hoped for is not yet very mature."
"From the lineups of both sides, there is indeed a gap between us and Manchester United."
"Pre-match media predictions mostly don't favor us. It seems the whole world is waiting for us to lose to Manchester United."
"Are you—willing to accept that?"
Of course not. Why should Borussia Dortmund necessarily lose?
Under Klopp's inflammatory rhetoric, the Borussia Dortmund players' eyes revealed unwillingness and anger.
"That's right! That's the spirit!"
"Find that feeling, that might be the source of your motivation!"
"To hell with Manchester United, to hell with European giants!"
In his excitement, Klopp slammed his hands hard on the table in front of him, making the entire dressing room hum. He overdid it—that really hurt. Klopp almost jumped up in pain, his hands numb from the impact. But as the head coach, he had to maintain his composure at this critical moment. His expression had become distorted due to the pain.
"Today, this familiar stadium, and the 80,000 spectators in the stands—they will be entrusted to your protection!"
"Hell yeah!!"
"Victory!"
"Victory!!"
One by one, the Borussia Dortmund players, nostrils flaring and morale high, walked out of the dressing room.
Jin Hayes also took a deep breath and looked back at his number 10 jersey hanging behind him. He bent down to tie his laces, adjusted his socks and shin guards. Looking at the shin guard, where Anna had secretly hand-drawn a heart at some point, Jin Hayes smiled, running his hand over the heart doodle, feeling a continuous surge of motivation throughout his body.
Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo—I admit you are very strong, but I'm sorry, this is Westfalen.