Chapter 141: All Eyes on Lin Quan, Can He Break the 40-Year-Old Record?
In the 33rd round of the league, Werder Bremen defeated Frankfurt 2-1 away, extending their winning streak in the league to 10 matches.
This achievement also broke their own record for the longest winning streak in the club's history.
Lin Quan, who scored a goal in this match, has now reached a total of 40 goals, equaling Gerd Müller's record for most goals scored in a single season of the Bundesliga in the 1971-1972 season.
If he scores again in the final showdown against Nuremberg in the next match, he will break this record and etch his name in the Bundesliga's record books!
During this period, Lin Quan has been intentionally suppressing his desire for goals.
He wants to maintain his hunger for goals so that he can be in better form for the final of the German Cup and help the team win the championship.
Moreover, after Werder Bremen takes the lead in the game, the coach usually substitutes early, allowing substitutes like Filckrug and Petersen to come on and gain experience.
Affected by this, Lin Quan's goal tally in the second half of the season is not high, only 12 goals.
If he had maintained the strong firepower of the first half of the season, he would probably have already broken the Bundesliga's goal-scoring record.
But what must come will come. In Werder Bremen's last home game, if he can break this record, it will be a farewell gift to the home fans.
Perhaps this will be the best farewell gift!
Before the final round of the league, the dust of the Bundesliga has basically settled.
Bayern Munich has already won the championship two rounds in advance, and Fürth has been relegated in advance.
The last relegation spot will be decided between Hoffenheim and Düsseldorf.
Considering that Hoffenheim is two points behind Düsseldorf and they will face Dortmund in the final round, their relegation probability is higher.
However, surprisingly, Hoffenheim actually reversed Dortmund 2-1 away, while Düsseldorf was beaten 3-0 away by Hannover.
Düsseldorf, who originally had a huge advantage, could secure their survival with just a draw in this match.
Unexpectedly, they messed up and Hoffenheim, with their resilience, overturned Dortmund and created a miracle.
This is truly dramatic. Although the championship of this season ended early, the suspense of relegation has always existed, making the Bundesliga less boring.
However, Hoffenheim has not completely secured their survival yet. They still have to compete with the third-placed team in the Bundesliga 2 for a spot in the Bundesliga next season.
If they lose to the third-placed team in the promotion playoffs, they will still be relegated.
May 18th, 7:30 p.m.
The lights at the Weser Stadium were on.
This is the final match of the Bundesliga season, and also the last match of Lin Quan and De Bruyne at the Weser Stadium.
For the fans of the Parrot Legion, after this match, they will no longer see Lin Quan and De Bruyne wearing Werder Bremen's green jerseys and fighting for the team.
In order to witness the last home game of the two and their farewell ceremony, almost all the tickets were sold out before the game.
Even those high-priced tickets controlled by scalpers were sold out.
In addition to Werder Bremen's fans, some journalists and scouts also flocked to the Weser Stadium.
The Bundesliga's record, which has been dusted off for forty years, is very likely to be broken in this match.
Journalists were waiting to witness this historic moment.
As for those scouts, they naturally came to scout their favorite players and see if they could bring them to their own teams during the summer transfer window.
And Lin Quan's contract with Barcelona is about to expire. Currently, the two sides have not reached an agreement on renewal, indicating that Lin Quan may become a free agent in the summer.
A player who is currently one of the hottest in the football world becoming a free agent is extremely attractive to major clubs.
Considering Lin Quan's age, if they can sign him, their own team won't have to worry about the core of the team for at least the next ten years.
So, no major club wants to miss this feast; almost everyone with a little bit of intention has come.
"Hehe, your son seems to be very popular!"
In a box at the Weser Stadium, Matthias Sammer, Bayern's sporting director, said ambiguously.
"Yes, there are really a lot of fans supporting him at the stadium!"
Guardiola seemed to not understand Sammer's implied meaning. He looked around the packed Weser Stadium and said with some emotion.
Back when he was playing at Camp Nou, it seemed like he had never received such treatment.
The popularity of this kid among the fans really makes people envious!
Sammer was speechless for a moment. I was talking about many people from other clubs who came, who told you about the fans at the stadium?
Lin Quan scored so many goals in one season at Werder Bremen and won so many matches.
Isn't it normal to have such high popularity?
What's so strange about it!
When he gets to Bayern, if he can achieve the same results, the fans at the Allianz Arena won't hesitate to give him their applause and cheers either.
As it turned out, Guardiola underestimated Lin Quan's status in the hearts of Werder Bremen fans.
During the segment where the host introduced the players from both sides, after introducing the other players, the stadium host passionately said:
"There's one person, he just joined the team and put on Werder Bremen's green jersey, and in an away match, he pulled off an unbelievable hat-trick, humiliating the giants of the Bundesliga!"
Upon hearing this, Sammer's expression became somewhat ugly.
But the fans around the box burst into laughter. The match where they won against Bayern in the Telekom Cup away game was definitely a victory that made them feel exhilarated.
"There's one person, multiple times when the team was in danger, he stepped up and helped the team out of crisis!"
The big screen began to play footage of Werder Bremen this season when they were behind, and the young man wearing the number 10 jersey repeatedly single-handedly rescued the team, scoring goals to turn the tide.
"The same person, in his first season at Werder Bremen, scored 47 goals for the team in various competitions!"
The big screen showed Lin Quan's goals in the Telekom Cup, German Cup, and league.
Unknowingly, he had appeared 39 times for Werder Bremen in various competitions, scoring 47 goals.
Whether it's the number of goals in a single season or the high efficiency of averaging 1.2 goals per game, it significantly refreshed Werder Bremen's historical records.
If he could play for the team for more than one season, he would definitely break Werder Bremen's top scorer record and become the team's goal king.
"Tell me loudly, what's his name?"
The host suddenly raised his voice, asking the audience.
"Lin—Quan!"
More than fifty thousand spectators shouted out his name loudly.
After hearing his name, Lin Quan waved to the fans in the stadium and walked onto the pitch.
To be honest, he was a bit surprised that he was arranged to be the last one to come out and receive the cheers and applause from the entire stadium.
This touched him deeply, and he became even more determined to use a victory and a record as a gift to the lovely fans of Werder Bremen!
Seeing Lin Quan coming onto the pitch, the fans in the stadium erupted into even more enthusiastic cheers, with over fifty thousand fans standing up and applauding him.
The fans sincerely thanked him for his contributions to the team this season and wished him smooth sailing on his future journey.
Nuremberg's players looked at Lin Quan with some envy. This guy is only 17 years old and has achieved what most of them can't achieve in their lifetime.
It's even possible that in this match, he will set a new record for goals scored in a single season in the Bundesliga.
How difficult it is to break this record can be seen from the fact that it has remained untouched for forty years.
When Gerd Müller set this record, it happened to be the year when he was in top form, creating the 85 goals in a calendar year.
Since then, no one has been able to break this record, let alone come close to it.
But now, in this game, a 17-year-old teenager is about to challenge this record.
While others may be eagerly anticipating the historic moment of him breaking the record, for the players of Nuremberg, they don't want to be the backdrop for his ascent!
So, while the game can be lost, Lin Quan absolutely cannot be allowed to score.
From the very beginning of the match, they have been steadfast in adhering to this principle.
When other players from Werder Bremen have the ball, they don't send anyone to defend, or maybe just one person.
But as soon as the ball reaches Lin Quan's feet, in the blink of an eye, at least two or three defensive players from Nuremberg rush up.
Their intention of not letting Lin Quan score is already written on their foreheads.
Seeing the opposition's defensive posture, Lin Quan doesn't rush into it.
He takes advantage of the fact that he's being closely marked to increase his running, passing, and movement off the ball, while decreasing the time he spends dribbling, to create scoring opportunities for his teammates.
Although breaking the record is important, winning the final match of the season should be the priority.
If he breaks the record but the team loses at home, then the record won't feel perfect.
With Lin Quan's help, in the 36th minute of the first half, De Bruyne scored the opening goal with a fantastic opportunity, helping the team take a 1-0 lead.
They had expected Nuremberg to try to equalize after falling behind, which might lead to them committing more players forward, potentially easing up on their defense against Lin Quan.
But what they hadn't expected was that the opposition completely underestimated the importance of winning this match.
For them, losing was no big deal.
As long as there was no disaster, it didn't matter.
After all, this was the last match of the season, and their points were enough to secure their survival. What harm would losing one match do?
Werder Bremen soon realized this too.
After taking the lead, they had already started intentionally creating chances for Lin Quan to help him break the record.
But with the opposition's relentless focus on defending Lin Quan, all their efforts were in vain.
Lin Quan could still dribble past opponents, but with two to three players constantly marking him, he couldn't even receive the ball, let alone showcase his dribbling skills!
"Why can't Lin Quan score today?"
"Yeah, it's almost halftime, and he hasn't even had a shot!"
The Werder Bremen fans at the stadium were getting anxious. They cared about the outcome of the match, but they were more concerned about whether Lin Quan could break Gerd Müller's record.
But from the looks of it, there was simply no chance of breaking the record.
"Nuremberg's defense is too targeted. Wherever Lin Quan goes, there are two to three defenders around him, and he can't get the ball."
"Hehe, it seems like Nuremberg is not willing to be the backdrop for Lin Quan breaking the record!"
On the TV commentator's desk, the German TV commentator joked about the situation on the field:
"If it were me, I might do the same.
If Lin Quan really breaks the record against my team, then Nuremberg will become famous along with him, but that fame may not be good."
The commentators understood the tactical choice of the opposing team, but the fans at the stadium and the journalists waiting for big news couldn't accept it.
"Score one!"
"Score one!"
They started shouting.
At first, it was just a small group of people shouting, but more and more joined in.
In the end, the whole stadium was filled with the sound of "score one".
The fans' chants put some pressure on Lin Quan, but with the opposition defending him shamelessly, he couldn't find a chance to score.
Just as he was feeling troubled, De Bruyne's earlier goal gave him inspiration.
So he shouted to his teammates on the field:
"Don't mind me, later I'll lure their players to the backcourt, and you guys take advantage of the outnumbered situation to attack them!
Even if I can't score today, we have to create a disaster for them!"
The Werder Bremen players nodded in agreement. The opposition's headstrong defense against Lin Quan clearly showed that they didn't respect them! We may not have Lin Quan's strength, but we're not pushovers. Who do they think they are, defending us like this?
So, they adjusted their attacking strategy, no longer deliberately passing the ball to Lin Quan, but shooting whenever they had a chance.
This change quickly paid off.
In the 43rd minute, Werder Bremen launched an attack on the left side, and after De Bruyne moved to the wing, he sent a quick pass, and Petersen, who had followed up, cleverly shot the ball into the net.
The score became 2-0!
In this goal, as Lin Quan had shouted, he deliberately led the defenders marking him back to his own half.
Although the Nuremberg players hesitated a bit, they still followed.
When Lin Quan shouted earlier, he deliberately spoke loudly so they could hear.
So, they knew the opponent's intention very well, but even so, they dared not let up on defending against Lin Quan.
But the cost of doing so was conceding another goal.
In the second half, as the two teams returned to the field, Lin Quan repeated his tactics, retreating when Werder Bremen attacked, continuing to run towards his own half.
This time, the Nuremberg players were clearly more hesitant.
But they didn't hesitate for long, and soon caught up, continuing their focused defense against Lin Quan, leaving him with no chance.
De Bruyne had been observing with the ball, ready to pass to Lin Quan if the opposition's defense against him eased up, but unfortunately, their defense remained tight, so he had to pass to other teammates.
In the 55th minute, Werder Bremen further extended their lead.
With no one marking him, De Bruyne made an extremely high-quality long shot from outside the penalty area, scoring for the third time.
This goal shook the psychological defense of the Nuremberg players.
If someone had gone to disturb the shot just now, not allowing the opposition such a comfortable shot, they might not have conceded.
But the problem was, where were their defenders?
Three players had followed the opposition's number 10 to the opposition's half, leaving their remaining seven players to defend against the opposition's ten. How could they defend against that?
And with the opposition attacking right at their doorstep, they still sent three players to the opposition's half, which felt quite foolish.
So, when Werder Bremen launched another attack and planned to repeat their tactics, they didn't fall for it.
The defender closely marking Lin Quan became one, and the remaining two stayed near the center circle.
Seeing this, De Bruyne and Lin Quan exchanged a glance, knowing that the opportunity to break the record had come!