Chapter 80: Peak showdown

Busquets' time seemed to stand still.

He accurately judged Lewokusen's attacking direction.

His explosive speed wasn't fast enough, but his steady pace and stamina were terrifying.

His brain instantly carried out an analysis.

Barcelona's top defensive midfielder had been trained by La Masia from childhood as a 'number four'!

"Mascherano is very cautious; he first cut off the link between Kiessling and Son Heung-min, and Lewokusen's other attacking points still need time to make their runs!"

"I have already seen through Li Kang's orchestrated offensive; next, I will simplify the complex!"

Time resumed.

The ball had just skimmed past Barcelona's half-field forty-meter zone.

Busquets did not choose to intercept the ball, but ran to the right side of the arc at the top of the penalty area.

There, he would end Leverkusen's attack.

Everything is already under my control.

In God's perspective.

Li Kang observed Mascherano and Busquets' positioning.

He decisively gave up making a forward run.

He turned and ran toward the right flank of his own half.

The spectators' gazes gathered on Kiessling.

Hardly anyone noticed his movement.

Except for Messi.

Barcelona's half-field forty-meter zone.

Kiessling received a pass from Boeresi on the right flank.

He realized his link with Son Heung-min had been cut off by Barcelona's tiny defender!

In the top five leagues, any short player who can play for a powerhouse is not to be trifled with.

He quickly dribbled sideways!

A tall figure loomed ahead.

Barcelona's number four jersey.

Busquets.

"There is no suspense; the defensive positioning is excellent."

"This ball is going to be lost..."

Duan Xuan hadn't finished speaking.

The away stands at Camp Nou erupted with waves of cheers!

Only Kiessling lowered his center of gravity and made a dazzling leg shake!

His feet alternated moving over the ball!

He quickly circled!

He used a step-over to dribble past!

Barcelona fans were dumbfounded!

How could a clumsy, tall heading monster produced by the Bundesliga youth academy have such delicate footwork?

What on earth has happened to this world?

"I almost forgot!"

"Kiessling's footwork had been called \"Little Ibrahimović\" since his youth!"

Busquets is very experienced.

He did not let Kiessling wait for the defensive teammates' support.

He seized the moment when Lewokusen's center forward shifted his weight.

He extended his foot and pulled.

He cleanly won the ball!

"Beautiful!"

"Busquets has always been a world-class defensive midfielder!"

"See how Barcelona's back line will distribute the ball."

Kiessling quickly launched a counter-press.

Busquets turned and flicked the ball.

He passed it to Mascherano!

Dino let out a breath and said, "Boss, Barcelona can't form a quick counterattack; according to Mascherano's data from last season, his tendency when handling the ball in the back is..."

Tuopu Laotou furrowed his brows: "Damn! Danger!"

The final stage of the first decade of the 21st century.

"Haibubu" overwhelmed Liverpool's three top midfielders, regarded as the world's best combination.

Then the question arose.

Who are Liverpool's three players?

Alonso.

Gerrard.

Mascherano.

That's right.

Before Mascherano joined Barcelona and switched to center back, he was already a top-tier holding midfielder.

Every short player among the powerhouses of the five major leagues is not to be trifled with.

Thud!

Mascherano sent out a long pass!

Over the Camp Nou.

As if a meteor streaked across!

"Top-tier defensive long-pass transfer!"

"No need to find a pivot in midfield to transition!"

"The terrifying pass quality can directly find Messi on the right flank!"

"This is a common sight for the Argentine national team!"

"Lewokusen's right flank is in danger!"

Dragon Kingdom livestream.

The netizens were dumbfounded.

-【Holy shit! Who can explain, this bald little shorty... what's his background?】

-【A gem from the youth academy of South American powerhouse River Plate! As a kid he played as a classic attacking midfielder! He broke multiple records in the South American youth league!】

-【Later he switched to a holding midfielder, moved to the Premier League, becoming a top-tier distributor and interception machine!】

-【Such a badass holding midfielder! Came to Barcelona to play defender?】

-【No way, the Barcelona coaching staff means: he doesn't understand La Masia's football philosophy, can't replace Busquets' position!】

-【By the way, Mascherano is our Dragon Kingdom's simp; after visiting the Great Wall, he constantly posts pictures on his social media saying how great our Dragon Kingdom is!】

-【Lewokusen is about to lose the ball again; look, the pass is so accurate! Messi moved again.】

Busquets gazed at the perfect arc in the air.

He turned and gave Mascherano a thumbs-up.

【Everything is already under my control.】

【The La Masia number 4 who controls everything.】

In his thoughts.

He confidently looked toward Lewokusen's half.

His expression froze:

Li Kang actually led three Lewokusen defenders to surround and crush Messi at the landing spot!

How did this kid guess that?

He kept raising his hand to direct teammates?

That's our La Masia hand signal!

A prison cage trap?

VIP box.

Krulyin's pen fell onto the street stall.

His seat offers an excellent view of the match.

An analysis habit formed over many years.

It let him almost imprint the details of both teams' attack-defense transitions into his mind.

"La Masia's number 4?"

Robert smiled and nodded, answering: "Exactly, Busquets isn't the orthodox La Masia number 4, because Guardiola a few years ago split the number 4's duties into three..."

"I'm fucking referring to that Lewokusen kid!"

Outside the right side of Lewokusen's penalty area.

Messi moved again.

He has mastered the landing point and speed of long passes to an extreme degree.

The moment of receiving the ball.

He lightly lifted his left foot.

Thus ridding the ball of all its frantic instability.

It lay quietly at his feet.

He lifted his head.

He noticed four Lewokusen defenders gathered around him.

"What a great stop!"

"Whoa, Lewokusen's defensive anticipation this time is damn impressive!"

"This isn't something achievable at the tactical level!"

"The three defenders' runs formed a rectangle!"

Papadopoulos extended his leg from the left.

Jonathan T. slid in from the right.

Hilbert positioned himself head-on.

Can they stop Messi?

They can't.

Messi moved yet again.

Nuokanpu, fans from both sides simultaneously burst out in waves of exclamations.

An unbelievable classic scene.

They have arrived!

Peerless top-tier step frequency.

The golden left foot touched the ground three times in a row.

Accelerated.

Decelerated.

Accelerated.

An unchanging rhythm.

Successive slight directional changes.

The naked eye could barely see what was happening.

The visual feedback was very simple:

Meixi broke through.

「Meixi！」

」！

「Meixi！」

」！

「Meixi！」

」！

Duanxuan and He Wei could never imagine what words could describe this classic scene.

Nuokanpu's aura surged to its peak!

Meixi entered the penalty area.

This moment.

Lewokusen fans fell into despair.

Tuopu Laotou fell into despair.

Goalkeeper Lai Nuo fell into despair.

In a flash.

A black-haired figure stepped in front of Meixi.

Lewokusen No. 10 vs. Basa No. 10!

The breeze from the Riera Blanca Riverbank lifted their garments.