Capítulo 23: Another Goal
After De Bruyne scored the goal, he ran towards the sidelines and pointed at Lucas, urging him to join in the celebration.
The goal was a result of De Bruyne's exceptional shooting skills, but credit must also be given to Lucas for his excellent pass.
If Lucas hadn't attracted multiple defensive players and made the open pass, De Bruyne wouldn't have had such an easy opportunity to score.
With a smile on his face, Lucas ran over and playfully rubbed De Bruyne's hair, praising him, "Kevin, that was a truly beautiful shot!"
De Bruyne replied gratefully, "Thank you! You made a fantastic pass!"
Teammates joined the celebration, acknowledging De Bruyne's goal and crediting Lucas with the assist. Captain Fritz even embraced them warmly.
Their exceptional performance in the game received praise from their teammates.
"Great job, guys!"
"Let's maintain this form, score more goals for the team in the upcoming season, and win more games!"
"Thank you, captain! We'll give it our all. Just wait and see!" Lucas responded generously and confidently, with De Bruyne nodding in agreement.
The captain was pleased with their responses.
After the celebration, he called the team back to their positions and reminded them not to become complacent just because they were leading 2-0.
In history, there have been numerous tragedies where teams were overturned due to lax defense while in the lead. The most famous example is perhaps the halftime champagne celebration in Istanbul.
However, Lucas and De Bruyne were not the type to get carried away after scoring a goal. They quickly returned to their positions.
The game resumed.
Despite being two goals down, Cottbus refused to accept their fate. They released the psychological burden of fearing defeat and pushed more players forward in their attacks.
Yet, Werder Bremen's 4-1-4-1 tactics, with five midfielders in defense, greatly hindered Cottbus' offensive efforts.
Both sides fiercely battled in midfield, making it challenging for Cottbus players to retain possession and create an attack.
As a last resort, Cottbus abandoned short-pass penetration in the middle and resorted to traditional long-ball tactics against Werder Bremen.
This exposed the vulnerability of Werder Bremen's lone defenaive midfielder.
With a lack of support on the flanks, they conceded two scoring opportunities to the opponents within five minutes.
Fortunately, the opponent's ability to capitalize on opportunities was poor, and neither of these two chances resulted in a shot on goal.
Realizing the team's defensive vulnerability, Coach Schaff summoned Captain Fritz and instructed him on help defend.
When Fritz returned to the field, he took a step back and assumed the role of a central defender.
Simultaneously, the forward line dropped back, transforming Werder Bremen's formation into a 541 setup!
This change provoked the visiting team's head coach, who wanted to berate them. "You're a respected Bundesliga team, and you've opted for a defensive approach with five defenders against my Bundesliga 2 team? Do you have any sense of pride?"
In the face of the visiting coach's scathing gaze, Coach Scharf remained calm and composed, devoid of any embarrassment.
Friendly matches like these are designed for teams to practice various tactics.
If we shy away from experimentation due to concerns over reputation and pride, the purpose of such matches becomes meaningless.
Moreover, the 541 formation isn't solely defensive; it serves as another offensive strategy.
When deploying a 541 formation, the opposition is likely to dominate their half of the field.
This grants more space for the wingers to sprint and poses a greater threat during counter-attacks.
Coincidentally, we have a winger with exceptional individual abilities in our lineup.
Thus, for Schaff, taking a step back is actually a means to enhance our offense.
The anticipated counter-attack scenario quickly unfolded.
In the 78th minute of the game, Werder Bremen initiated a swift counter-attack from the backcourt.
Fritz, playing as a central defender, spotted a significant gap in the opponent's defensive line. Immediately, he sent a long pass, lobbing the ball into the opponent's half.
Lucas had already begun his run as soon as the ball was delivered, and he found himself level with the opponent's defender the moment Fritz made the pass.
The defender reacted a step too late and failed to catch up with Lucas, resorting to futilely raising his hand to signal an offside position.
The linesman disregarded the defender's offside appeal. He had a clear view that Lucas was onside at the moment of the pass.
It was only his rapid acceleration that created the illusion of him almost being offside.
The goalkeeper chose to charge forward immediately. Remaining within the small penalty area would have been akin to awaiting defeat.
The ball was between the two players, but Lucas had already reached his maximum speed, where as the goalkeeper had just started his movement.
..
.
Before the goalkeeper could touch the ball, Lucas made the first move and poked it with his foot, the ball slipped through the goalkeeper's legs.
With a plop, the goalkeeper found himself sitting on the ground. He had anticipated Lucas's poke, but his reaction was half a beat too slow to prevent the opponent from breaching his defense.
Lucas skillfully dribble past the fallen goalkeeper and swiftly caught up with the ball near the goal line.
With the defenders still at a distance, he paused for a moment to glance at them before confidently striking the ball into the net.
The score was now 3-0, solidifying Werder Bremen's victory.
"Lucas, you're incredibly fast!" Captain Fritz exclaimed as he rushed over to embrace Lucas.
While the goal would count as an assist for him, passing to someone else might not have yielded the same outcome.
"It's all thanks to your excellent pass, Captain!" Lucas responded with a smile.
Meanwhile, Nils, who was standing nearby, felt a little bit of jealousy upon hearing the captain's praise for Lucas.
Nils had been expecting the pass himself, but Lucas had gone solo and even managed to get past the goalkeeper.
Naturally, there was no chance for a pass back to him.
Lucas wasn't particularly fond of Nils, especially since he had noticed that Nils hadn't celebrated with him and De Bruyne during their previous goals. This lack of communication had soured their relationship.
Nils was frustrated. After all, he was the team's primary striker, and he was loaned from a prestigious club like Bayern Munich. In his mind, the team should be supporting him.
Consequently, when the game started, Nils, using his status, demanded the ball loudly, particularly when Lucas and De Bruyne had possession.
Both Lucas and De Bruyne, who were also on loan like Nils, had scored goals. In fact, Lucas had even scored twice as a substitute.
As a full-time striker, Nils felt his pride was at stake if he didn't score.
Moreover, if Lucas and De Bruyne lost the ball, they wouldn't be able to continue their goal-scoring spree.
Disinterested in Nils' pleas, Lucas deliberately ignored him. On the other hand, De Bruyne, an honest player, passed the ball to Nils upon seeing his request.
Unfortunately, the Cottbus players, already seething with frustration from being down 3-0, were quick to react.
Nils lacked De Bruyne's exceptional passing skills and Lucas's remarkable dribbling ability.
He was swiftly double-teamed and tackled upon receiving the ball, resulting in a hasty loss of possession and being knocked off balance by the opponents' tackle.
With his body, Nils struggled in physical battles against the tall and robust central defenders. It was unclear where he found the confidence to attempt dribbling.
Watching Nils repeatedly brought down by the opponents, Coach Schaaf became worried that he would be injured, So he decided to substitute him early.
De Bruyne, having played the majority of the game, was also replaced.
As Nils left the field, the fans in attendance remained indifferent.
However, when De Bruyne made his exit, the crowd gave him with warm applause.
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