[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills":3,"chapter-the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-chapter-220":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The God of Football Starts With Passive Skills",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},483956,734,"Chapter 220 - 62: Hat-trick! Cruyff Turn! The Future Fourth Superstar! As the Team Anthem Plays, Mainz Are the Champions","the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-chapter-220",220,"\u003Cp>’So this is what a superstar is like.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuo sat on his seat in the locker room, a thick bath towel draped over his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rain outside was coming down harder and harder, and everyone was soaked to the bone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in the locker room, the first order of business was to quickly dry off, change into dry clothes, and get warm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, there was still the second half to play.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wang Shuo was lost in thought, replaying that display of individual brilliance from Ribery just before the end of the first half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuo had seen similar clips online.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even lots of highlight reels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just of Ribery, but also of Messi, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Kaka, and others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But none of those could compare to the breathtaking impact of seeing it live with his own eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’This is what a superstar is!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in the locker room, Bungert immediately apologized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He really hadn’t meant to commit the foul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Ribery was just too fast. By the time he committed to the tackle, Ribery had already shifted, and he ended up kicking him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuo understood Bungert’s experience all too well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he often did the same things Ribery did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone moving at 1.2 times the speed versus someone at normal speed—it was like they were playing in a different dimension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Demichelis probably felt a similar frustration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, players like that were often on the shorter side and at a disadvantage in physical confrontations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like Ribery and Messi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuo also possessed that kind of quickness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’If Ribery can do it, so can I!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They’ve completely figured out our game plan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bayern is tougher than we imagined. They’re more difficult to handle than any opponent we’ve faced before.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So, we have to adjust our strategy for the second half.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Klopp took the blame himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt the team’s first-half tactics hadn’t been successful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though we scored two goals, we also conceded one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Furthermore, his opening tactics hadn’t panned out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suspected that in the second half, Bayern would turn up the pressure and stop giving Mainz so much time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bayern’s attacking system was very well-rounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luca Tony was extremely dominant in the box; he was tall, strong, and great with headers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Klose wasn’t a tall target man, he was also exceptionally good with headers, and his shooting ability was top-notch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Ribery on the left and Altıntop on the right, Bayern excelled at both breaking through on the wings and cutting inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then there were the late runs from deep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On set pieces, they also had a terrifying presence like Lucio.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You could say that Bayern’s lineup was incredibly strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, they weren’t without their weaknesses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In their 4-4-2 formation, Bayern had revealed issues more than once during the first half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both Klose and Luca Tony were getting older, and their range of movement was limited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren’t doing a good enough job of pressing the area occupied by Mainz’s deep-lying midfielder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In that area, Van Bommel and Schweinsteiger’s responsibilities still aren’t well-defined. They make frequent mistakes, sometimes even leaving a man completely free.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Miroslav, you can exploit this. Pull their two holding midfielders out of position!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, Mainz’s second goal was created when Kalhan got the ball in open space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once one of their two holding midfielders is pulled out, we have to figure out how to best use the resulting space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Give me the ball!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuo reached up, yanked the bath towel off his head, and looked straight at his coach, Klopp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The locker room instantly fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone stared at Wang Shuo in surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As far as they could remember, this was the first time Wang Shuo had ever so directly shown his ambition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Give the ball to me. I’ll do what Ribery did and put it in Bayern’s net!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone in the locker room was even more stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Klopp, Buvac, and Kramny exchanged glances, all taken aback.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they were also pleased and gratified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ever since Wang Shuo had arrived in Germany and joined Mainz, he had always kept a low profile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every step he took was measured and stable. Every choice he made was impeccable. He always followed the rules, as if terrified of putting a foot wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, Klopp understood Wang Shuo very well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because deep down, they were cut from the same cloth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Klopp also knew that this version of Wang Shuo wasn’t enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To become a better player, you absolutely have to have a fiercely competitive spirit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the soccer pitch, nice guys don’t get very far.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Wang Shuo had been growing all along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the moment he joined the Mainz first team, he started shouldering more responsibility, gradually daring to voice his thoughts and show his ambition. He was constantly changing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the first time he had proactively stepped forward to make his intentions clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would be like Ribery!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was an excellent start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Next time, he’ll want to do even better than Ribery!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay, that’s the plan!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Klopp made the decision on the spot, without a moment’s hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Wang Shuo looked up and gave his coach a grateful glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Klopp simply smiled and nodded back at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Neither of them said a word, but they both knew what the other was thinking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a form of tacit understanding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More than that, it was trust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the players from both teams returned to the pitch, they found the rain was coming down even harder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The drainage system at the Olympic Stadium Berlin was excellent, so there was no standing water, but the pitch was still extremely slick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second half kicked off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Klopp had predicted, Bayern changed their first-half strategy and went on the offensive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Mainz kicked off, Luca Tony and Klose immediately charged into Mainz’s half to press them.\u003C\u002Fp>",981,"2026-05-30T11:12:32.829Z","2026-06-01T04:31:05.348Z",1,"novelbin.me","e12343c93e6e2c39a20eda99ca732d136eaa4320a879a6ab3b9f74f69b1d2dc4","the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-chapter-221","the-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-chapter-219",400,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-god-of-football-starts-with-passive-skills-cover.jpg"]