Capítulo 27: Winger's Inside Cut, Isn't It All About Having Feet?
Aberdeen couldn't be a strong team in the Scottish Premiership if they were pushovers.
In the first half, they struggled to adapt to the pace of the German Bundesliga, and being unfamiliar with the field, they were clearly off their game.
After the start of the second half, Aberdeen picked up the pace, using long passes and direct attacking tactics similar to the English Premier League to counter Werder Bremen.
Aberdeen's players were rough in skill, not able to match Werder Bremen in finesse.
But their physical strength and strong attacking prowess, especially the header ability of their center-forward, stood out.
Switching to long passes actually made their offense more effective.
In the 56th minute, Werder Bremen's defender missed a header, and Aberdeen's center-forward caught the ball and laid it off.
Forward Niall McGinn, newly transferred from Celtic in the Scottish Premiership, took a shot, piercing Werder Bremen's goal.
The score became 2-1.
On the sidelines, Coach Shaf had stood up from his seat.
His brows began to furrow, although Werder Bremen was temporarily in the lead.
But the situation on the field was somewhat disadvantageous for Werder Bremen; Aberdeen's direct tactics had disrupted their defense.
They were passive in defense, and if they continued this way, they could likely concede another goal.
Just as they feared, in the 63rd minute, Aberdeen sent a super long pass from the back.
Aberdeen's center-forward leaped high, outjumped two Werder Bremen defenders under pressure, and with a powerful headed shot, scored, rattling Werder Bremen's net.
This goal caused a stir among the over 30,000 fans in the stadium.
Fans held their heads in disbelief at their own goal.
Coach Shaf's expression turned grim; he kicked away a water bottle in front of him, clearly unhappy with the team's poor defense.
At that moment, he made up his mind to buy a strong defender from the market before the transfer window closed.
He couldn't tolerate the team's porous defense.
So, as long as it didn't exceed the team's budget, he could accept a price below five million.
On the bench, Lin Quan looked stunned.
Messi wasn't good at headers, so he rarely used header shots in training or matches.
The less one knew about headers, the more amazed they felt.
Seeing the opponent score with a header, Lin Quan imagined he'd probably get knocked out if a ball hit his head directly.
Are their heads made of iron?
Wouldn't a header like that cause a concussion?
These thoughts were from someone inexperienced with headers. In most teams, midfield or forward players often contested header balls against defenders or goalkeepers' long balls, ferrying the ball to teammates.
For someone unfamiliar with headers, getting hit by the ball indeed hurt a lot.
But those skilled in headers knew how to control the power and release, making it less painful.
Lin Quan hesitated; in some situations, heading was quite useful.
Especially when there is no space to control the ball on the ground, and teammates play lofted or mid-air passes.
Trying to control and shoot with the foot would give defenders time to react and intercept.
But with his height, even if he practiced headers, could he win aerial duels?
Just as Lin Quan was lost in thought, Coach Shaf called out his name.
"Lin, warm up, get ready to go on!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Quan immediately stood up and went to warm up without hesitation.
When the team conceded the first goal, he felt the opportunity to play was coming.
After conceding the second goal, he was now 100% sure that he would get to play.
Although the outcome of the warm-up match wasn't crucial facing a not so very strong opponent at home.
If they still lost the match, especially being ahead by such a large margin and then being overturned how bad it would be for the player's mindset.
Werder Bremen's lineup was too young, and young players are prone to psychological fluctuations.
If they couldn't stabilize and win this match quickly, this defeat might pose a huge problem in their upcoming matches.
Five minutes later, Lin Quan was subbed in.
Once on the field, he didn't rush into an attack but observed first.
Aberdeen's players didn't give much significance to him, an unknown young player, not marking him closely like Cottbus did earlier.
This reassured Lin Quan; with Messi-like abilities, if given enough space, once he started moving, aside from fouls, no one could stop him.
Aberdeen's players didn't know Lin Quan's strength, but Werder Bremen's teammates were well aware.
In the 76th minute, after gaining possession in their own half, Werder Bremen swiftly passed the ball a few times between their midfield and defenders, and then quickly sent it to Lin Quan.
Like the winger in the first half, Lin Quan, after receiving the ball, sprinted towards the opponent's half along the sideline.
Aberdeen's players thought he was going to cross from the end line, so only their own winger went to defend him.
Other players were conscious of cutting off the passing line between Lin Quan and Füllkrug.
Lin Quan was not allowed to pass the ball to the striker. Also, because of De Bruyne's excellent performance in the first half, he also became the target of the opponent's attention, and their defensive midfielder marked De Bruyne closely, not giving him a chance to receive the ball.
Seeing the opponent's defensive position, Lin Quan was secretly pleased when he saw the gaps in their defense.
He made a move as if to accelerate towards the end line, and the defender guarding him immediately accelerated to retreat towards the end line upon seeing this.
However, once he took a step back, he was astonished to find that the opponent had actually cut inside.
Aberdeen's defender immediately tried to grab and pull Lin Quan to stop him.
But Lin Quan was too fast; he evaded the defender's grasp cleanly.
Seeing Lin Quan skillfully bypass Aberdeen's winger, the people on Werder Bremen's coaching bench couldn't help but stand up.
Is it coming?
Aberdeen's full-back witnessed their teammate being bypassed by the opponent and immediately moved to block Lin Quan, not giving him a chance to take a shot.
In recent years, it has been popular for wingers to cut inside and shoot.
Speedy, able to break through, and able to cut inside and shoot, such wingers are very sought after in today's football.
Players like Messi from Barcelona, Ronaldo from Real Madrid, and Robben and Ribery from Bayern Munich, their market values often reach millions or even tens of millions of euros, and they are of a kind that money can't buy.
Because of this, there have been rumors that Gareth Bale, a winger from Tottenham Hotspur linked to Real Madrid, is worth over 80 million euros.
It's quite evident how valuable a good winger is!
However, when wingers cut inside, they are often on their weaker foot, so it's easy to intercept their play and disrupt their attack by seizing the right moment.
Aberdeen's full-back did not believe that Lin Quan, a young player, had such good ball control; his left foot was definitely not as strong as his right.
So, when the ball came to Lin Quan's left foot, he lunged.
And then he was bypassed!
Huh?
The full-back was baffled!
Where did the little guy in front of him go?
Such a big player?
How did he disappear?
Turning around, oh, turns out he is in our penalty area!
Wait, how did the ball end up in our net?
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