Chapter 114: Miracle at the Allianz Arena, Eliminating Bayern Munich!
The fans of Werder Bremen saw Lin Quan block this shot, and each of them breathed a sigh of relief.
Lin Quan himself was also quite startled. He was short in stature and couldn't compete for headers in the penalty area, so he simply ran to the goal line to help the goalkeeper defend.
Unexpectedly, he hit the jackpot and happened to encounter Mandžukić's header.
If Mandžukić had aimed for the top left corner, with Lin Quan's height, he would surely have been powerless.
But the opponent aimed for the bottom left corner, coincidentally hitting Lin Quan.
After blocking the opponent's shot, Lin Quan himself also broke out in a cold sweat.
If he had been half a second slower, he might not have made it in time.
Mandžukić truly lived up to his title as the "Air Dominator." His header not only had power but also a tricky angle.
If it weren't for Lin Quan's timely intervention, that ball would have definitely gone in.
"Lin, how did you do that? You're amazing!"
Goalkeeper Mielitz, after getting up from the ground, hugged Lin Quan tightly, speaking incoherently with excitement.
The other teammates also rushed over, patting Lin Quan's head and praising his quick thinking.
Everyone had a look of relief on their faces, it was too thrilling, really too thrilling!
His interception just now truly saved the entire team; otherwise, they would have seen Bayern players celebrating wildly on the pitch right now!
"Don't get too excited, let's rest for a bit first, we're about to play extra time!"
Captain Fritz reminded them.
On the sidelines, Schaaf and the coaching staff were also excited.
But they didn't forget their responsibilities; they had the players sit down to conserve energy while quickly briefing them on the strategy for extra time.
Because there is no break in extra time.
For the players of Werder Bremen, this extra time would be very challenging.
After a whole game of intense play, the physical exertion of all the players on the field was significant.
Their fitness might not necessarily sustain them through the entire extra time; the players had to grit their teeth and persevere.
As long as Bayern scored a goal, with their current form, it would be almost impossible to equalize, which would mean they would be eliminated.
So, under no circumstances could Bayern score.
The five-minute break quickly ended, and both teams' players returned to the field to continue the match.
As Schaaf suspected, Bayern's players launched a fierce attack as soon as they came on.
They were clearly aware that the players of Werder Bremen had reached their limit in terms of fitness, so they wanted to completely break them down in one go.
As long as they scored one goal, they could break the will of the Werder Bremen players.
With the opponent exhausted and demoralized, they would have a strong chance of winning and might even widen the scoreline.
After facing Werder Bremen's stubborn resistance continuously, Bayern's players obviously harbored great resentment towards them!
If they had the chance to deliver a crushing defeat to the opponents at their home stadium, they would definitely not miss it.
Because Bayern had always controlled the game, the physical exertion of their players was somewhat less compared to their opponents.
If not for this, they might not have the energy to continue besieging Werder Bremen at this point.
Bayern's attack was very fierce, with one wave after another.
In the 7th minute of extra time, Ribéry once again cut inside, dodging Werder Bremen's fullbacks and forcefully shot.
This shot didn't pose much threat, but the ball was deflected by a defending player in mid-air.
Mielitz was caught off guard. Although he adjusted quickly, he still couldn't reach the ball.
This time, Lin Quan wasn't in front of the goal to help him out.
Just when everyone thought this shot was surely going in, the ball hit the goalpost.
Bang! The ball rebounded out of the goal.
A sigh swept across the Allianz Arena. Countless Bayern fans grabbed their heads in frustration, incredulously watching the ball fly out of bounds.
Such a good opportunity, and it was ruined by the goalpost!
The players of Werder Bremen were startled, especially Lukić, who almost scored an own goal. He repeatedly apologized to his teammates, indicating that it was not intentional.
He was too nervous and subconsciously kicked the ball when he saw it coming, without considering the consequences.
If it weren't for luck, if the ball had gone in, he, the scorer of the own goal, would have become the villain of the team.
Fortunately, his teammates didn't blame him. Who wasn't nervous at this moment?
Realizing the gap in defense on the right side, Werder Bremen further tightened their formation, protecting their penalty area more tightly, and not giving the opponent a chance to shoot inside the penalty area.
Seeing no way to break through into the penalty area, Robben, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, and others could only take turns trying long shots from outside the penalty area.
Mielitz, who was in a good state, made high saves, managing to block all of their long shots.
Seeing that all their attacking methods were ineffective, Bayern's players began to feel anxious.
As time passed, they were unable to breach the opponent's goal.
The tactics designed by the coach seemed ineffective, which made them feel frustrated.
The first half of extra time quickly passed, and the second half began.
On the sidelines, Heynckes saw his players, especially the forwards who had been involved in the attack, were exhausted.
He decisively made a personnel adjustment: Shaqiri came on for Robben, and Gómez came on for Mandžukić.
Mandžukić had given his all in this match. Seeing the substitution card raised on the sidelines, he didn't even have the strength to walk off the field. He just left the pitch from behind Werder Bremen's goal and collapsed on the ground.
He wanted to see his teammates kill the game and win!
Bayern's siege continued, with Shaqiri, full of energy, darting around the Werder Bremen penalty area like an eel.
And Gómez, in the battle with the defenders inside the penalty area, gained the upper hand with his ample energy.
For a moment, Werder Bremen's goal once again became precarious.
In the 23rd minute of extra time, Kroos saw Shaqiri's clever run and skillfully sent a lofted pass.
This pass wasn't aimed towards Shaqiri's run, but in the opposite direction.
This caused the defenders marking Shaqiri to not realize the danger immediately. It wasn't until Shaqiri quickly turned around to prepare to receive the ball that they realized the pass was actually meant for him.
Shaqiri was only 169 cm tall, very short, and lightweight.
It was very difficult for him to control the ball in front of the tall defenders.
But Kroos took advantage of his teammates' runs to create an opportunity for him to shake off the defenders and comfortably receive the ball.
A good pass!
Shaqiri exclaimed in his heart. After receiving the ball, he half-turned to glance at the direction of the goal and, without hesitation, chose to shoot.
Mielitz saw Kroos' pass and realized the danger. He quickly moved to the near post, leaped high, and saved the opponent's shot.
Seeing his teammate miss this opportunity, Kroos sighed helplessly.
This shot wasted his wonderful pass. If he had assisted Robben instead of Shaqiri, this shot might have gone in.
Thinking of this, he looked towards Lin Quan, not far away.
It was said that this guy's shooting skills were also excellent. If he were his teammate, he might be able to get a few more assists every season.
Bayern missed consecutive opportunities, making Heynckes on the sidelines a bit unable to hold back.
The effect of the tactical design was there, but the players couldn't score, and there was nothing he could do.
He remembered the match against Chelsea in the Champions League final seven months ago. In that match, Bayern's players also missed several scoring opportunities in a row and were eventually dragged into a penalty shootout by Chelsea, then eliminated in the penalty shootout.
Could it be that the scene from the Champions League final would be replayed on the stage of the German Cup?
But just as he was thinking this, the Allianz Arena erupted into a huge cheer.
"What's going on?"
Heynckes asked the people around him while looking at the pitch.
In the moment he was stunned, it seemed like Bayern had scored.
Heynckes didn't see who scored, he only saw the Bayern players celebrating frantically on the field.
"It's Gómez, Neuer saved Ribéry's long shot, and he scored on the rebound in the penalty area!"
Assistant coach Hermann's face turned red with excitement. After saying this, he couldn't help but rush onto the field, joining the players in celebrating.
There were only 7 minutes left in extra time, scoring a goal at this time almost meant the end of the match.
With no energy left, Werder Bremen, who could barely run, how could they turn the game around?
Heynckes understood this principle, so he couldn't help but feel excited too.
A regular match in the third round of the German Cup turned out to be unexpectedly difficult.
It felt like playing in the final of the German Cup!
This victory came so hard-fought!
He glanced at assistant coach Grande. Being older, Grande lacked the youthful enthusiasm and simply stood on the sidelines applauding the players, not rushing onto the field to join the celebration.
They exchanged a smile, hugged each other, and patted each other's backs.
"Not easy!"
"Yeah, incredibly tough!"
"Our opponents played so stubbornly in this match!"
"Yes, with their lineup, pushing us to this extent is really not easy!"
On the field, Lin Quan returned to his own goal, scooped up the ball, and placed it back at the center circle.
He didn't rush the opponents; he just waited quietly for their celebration to end.
Before visiting the Allianz Arena, the team had mentally prepared for the possibility of losing.
Facing such a powerful team like Bayern, no team in Europe dared to say they were confident of beating them.
Even those football giants worth hundreds of millions of euros couldn't do it, so what confidence did Werder Bremen have to say they could win?
Playing like this was already an outstanding performance for them.
Given the gap in strength between the two teams, it would be normal for Werder Bremen to lose by two or even three goals in this match.
But were they really willing?
The team had fought to this point, to this extent.
Were they really willing to accept defeat like this on away ground?
No, he wasn't willing!
He decisively opened the system store and checked his points.
After the match against Nuremberg, his points returned to 18, and winning one more match would earn him enough to accumulate 20 points to upgrade his injury-related talent by one level.
But he couldn't wait at this moment; he spent 10 points to upgrade his physical talent by one level!
By the time extra time started, he had no more energy left.
If he hadn't relied on the physical talent he exchanged for earlier, he wouldn't have lasted this long.
But the effect of the 10-point basic talent was limited; he failed several times to dribble past opponents due to insufficient energy.
Without his threat on the counterattack, Bayern could freely press past the halfway line and bombard their goal!
Lin Quan knew he would leave Werder Bremen next year, so he always wanted to leave something for the fans of Werder Bremen.
Their bench depth was not enough to compete with Bayern for the league title.
But in the cup competitions, they still had a chance.
As long as they eliminated Bayern Munich in this match, among the remaining opponents, only Borussia Dortmund could threaten them!
If Dortmund were distracted by the league and the Champions League and were eliminated early by other opponents.
Their chances of winning the cup would be even greater!
After upgrading the physical talent, he directly used it with the help of the system.
Suddenly, Lin Quan felt a continuous stream of strength returning to his body!
He looked up at the scoreboard and saw that there were still 6 minutes left in the match, enough time!
At the urging of the referee, Bayern's players finally ended their celebration and returned to the field.
The match resumed, and De Bruyne passed the ball to Lin Quan. Instead of passing it back, Lin Quan immediately dribbled towards the opponent's half.
"Is he crazy?"
The audience saw Lin Quan challenging the entire Bayern Munich team alone, each showing a surprised expression.
Has this guy been hit by conceding a goal and become irrational?
Kroos was in front of Lin Quan, so he was the first to charge up.
Dribble, change direction, after three touches, Kroos, who had weak defensive abilities, was cleanly passed.
Martínez and Schweinsteiger also charged up, but Lin Quan still didn't pass the ball. With a burst of speed, he passed between the two of them, receiving his own pass at high speed.
How could this guy still have such a powerful burst of speed at this moment? Didn't he run out of energy earlier?
After being passed, Martínez had ten thousand question marks flashing in his mind, completely puzzled.
Bayern's defenders wanted to curse!
Less than five seconds after the kickoff, the opponent's forward rushed to them. This development completely exceeded their expectations.
"Stop him!"
On the sidelines, Heynckes, who had remained calm throughout the match, finally couldn't remain calm.
The opponent's relentless momentum brought him great shock, making him feel a huge danger.
If they couldn't stop him early, they might not be able to defend this goal!
Without Heynckes's reminder, when Lin Quan reached the edge of the penalty area, almost all four Bayern defenders rushed up.
They knew too well the threat this guy posed inside the penalty area; they absolutely couldn't let him easily break into the penalty area.
Facing the pressure from all four players rushing up, even Lin Quan couldn't hold on.
He dribbled past Dante, but before he could get past the second player, he was brought down by Alaba.
The referee blew the whistle in time, showed Alaba a yellow card, and gave Werder Bremen a free kick.
When showing the card, he glanced at Lin Quan with some surprise.
This guy is really bold, challenging the entire opponent's team alone, and almost succeeding!
On the sidelines, Schaaf, who was already prepared to surrender, saw Lin Quan's crazy attack this time and couldn't remain calm anymore.
"Peterson, quick, you're up, replace Junuzović!"
He turned back and locked his gaze on Nils Petersen, who was loaned from Bayern, and didn't even give him time to warm up before sending him onto the field.
Peterson was stunned. He thought he wouldn't have a chance to play in this match.
But unexpectedly, just before the end of the match, the head coach actually called his name.
Quickly taking off his clothes, after running onto the field, Peterson ran to De Bruyne and Lin Quan, who were preparing to take the free kick, and whispered to them for a while.
Lin Quan looked in the direction of the coaching bench and saw Schaaf nodding at him.
De Bruyne took the free kick, retreated a long distance, and Neuer judged that he might take a direct long shot.
So he quickly moved his footsteps, preparing for a save.
The free kick was taken, unexpectedly, it wasn't a direct shot at the goal.
The ball flew into the penalty area and landed near the left side of the penalty area close to the goal line.
It was actually a pass!
And Lin Quan appeared here, received the ball, and wasn't offside!
Bayern's players were too afraid of Lin Quan. Without hesitation, they swarmed towards Lin Quan, wanting to stop him from shooting.
But Lin Quan didn't shoot himself; instead, he passed the ball back to a teammate who was in space due to the Bayern players leaving.
Nils Petersen received his pass.
He remembered the last match, after missing Lin Quan's wonderful pass, he asked Lin Quan a question.
And Lin Quan used his pass to give him the answer!
The boss actually passed the ball to me!
Peterson desperately suppressed his excitement, glanced at Neuer's position, and then pushed the ball with one foot, sending it out.
Under the gaze of sixty-five thousand fans in the stadium, the ball skimmed the ground, brushed Neuer's fingertips, and rolled into the net!
The score became 2-2. In the 26th minute of extra time, Werder Bremen stubbornly equalized the score.
After scoring, Peterson excitedly rushed towards Lin Quan and gave him an enthusiastic hug.
"Boss, I scored, I scored! I didn't let you down, did I?"
Lin Quan smiled and patted his head:
"Well done, Peterson, you're Werder Bremen's hero!"
Petersen was praised by Lin Quan like this and suddenly grinned silly.
Suddenly, he seemed to realize something.
Oops, I seem to be a Bayern player. I just scored against Bayern's goal and celebrated so excitedly...
Damn, it feels like Bayern's door has permanently closed to me...
This goal by Petersen dealt a huge blow to Bayern's morale, and the victory slipped away from their hands!
How could they not be angry?
What's even more infuriating is that the Werder Bremen players had no self-awareness. They celebrated for a full two minutes under the booing of over sixty thousand fans before ending it.
Now, Bayern's time for attacking was even shorter.
After the kickoff, Bayern wanted to launch a quick attack, attempting to kill off Werder Bremen.
But Werder Bremen's morale had completely recovered. The players seemed to forget their physical exhaustion and gave their all to defend against the opponent's attacks.
Five minutes later, after playing three minutes of injury time, the referee finally blew the whistle to end extra time.
Both sides entered into the cruel penalty shootout!
Although Neuer performed bravely in the penalty shootout, saving a penalty from Werder Bremen.
But the morale-affected Bayern players missed two penalties when taking their shots.
In the end, Werder Bremen won the penalty shootout and miraculously defeated Bayern Munich away, advancing to the next round of the German Cup.
(End of this chapter)