Chapter 320: World Cup Victory, We Are the Champions!
As the goal was scored, in a Belgian household, a man resembling a cartoon character smiled knowingly.
"I thought you'd forgotten this trick after mastering the art of free-kicks!" De Bruyne reminisced about the days at Werder Bremen when Lin Quan taught him the elevator shot. At that time, Lin Quan was a fringe player Barcelona eagerly wanted to offload. Just two years later, he stood as the core player on the World Cup final stage, even pulling off a hat trick sealed for nearly fifty years. His rapid growth was astonishing!
Thomas Schaaf, Werder Bremen's coach, was equally amazed. When he first took Lin Quan on loan, he saw him as a highly talented player destined to become a star. But he never expected Lin Quan to reach such heights. He wondered if Barcelona now regretted letting him go. With Messi and Lin Quan, Barcelona could have been unbeatable.
Inside an apartment in Spain, Enrique held an invitation while watching the Spanish players celebrate wildly on TV. He pondered over Rosell, who had pushed out Guardiola and then made him purge Lin Quan from the team. Both Guardiola and Lin Quan thrived after leaving Barcelona, especially Lin Quan, who was now showing signs of surpassing Messi. Post their departure, Barcelona's fortunes declined drastically. They were humiliated 7-0 by Bayern in the Champions League semifinals two seasons ago and were defeated by Manchester City last season, not even making the semifinals. After empty seasons, Barcelona's board lost patience, and Martino was dismissed. In two years, they had changed three coaches, and their performance only worsened. Now, facing turbulent times, they turned to Enrique, hoping he would return to take over. Previously, Enrique would have accepted without hesitation, but now, his confidence in Barcelona had diminished.
As Lin Quan scored, commentators worldwide were ecstatic, explaining the historical significance of his goal.
"This is the first hat-trick in a World Cup final in 48 years since Hurst, and the player who achieved it is only 18 years old!"
"We are witnessing the birth of a superstar with billions of fans worldwide. Remember his name!"
"Lin Quan, an 18-year-old genius from Spain, has likely set an unbreakable record as the youngest player to perform a hat-trick in a World Cup final!"
Not just commentators, but fans worldwide were in awe of Lin Quan's goal.
"A hat-trick in the World Cup final!!"
"Lin King is amazing!"
"I never thought I'd witness history!"
"Poor Neuer, who only conceded four goals in six matches, let in three in the final, turning into a sieve!"
"Spain's championship trophy is now secure!"
"Congratulations to Spain for defending their title!"
"Congratulations to Lin King for being the top scorer of this World Cup!"
"Considering the three goals in the final, Lin King has scored a total of 12 goals in this World Cup, just one short of Fontaine's record!"
"12 goals in seven matches, this figure is staggering. It's hard to imagine how Fontaine managed to score 13 goals in a World Cup!"
"Who knows, maybe it was easier in ancient times, but Lin King is still young. He almost broke the record this time; maybe he will next time!"
"If Lin King wasn't so selfless and was a bit more selfish, he might have broken the record already!"
"Yes, he's too much of a team player!"
"He's truly amazing, I'm crying!"
In Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo turned off his TV after watching Lin Quan's third goal in the World Cup final. For the first time, he felt a huge threat to his status in football. On the other hand, Messi, upon seeing Lin Quan's goal, felt even more motivated. If Lin Quan could lead Spain to defend the World Cup title and single-handedly defeat Germany in the final, why couldn't he do the same? Messi didn't think he was inferior to Lin Quan, who had shown that such feats were possible. This gave Messi a new direction and motivation, believing he could achieve the same.
Lin Quan's third goal completely ended the suspense of the match. As the ball hit the net, Lin Quan repeated his iconic celebration - raising his collar like a king surveying his domain. The Spanish players rushed to celebrate with him, and the Spanish fans in the stands erupted in cheers, their voices so loud they seemed to tear the sky apart. At that moment, no words could describe their exhilaration.
Meanwhile, German fans shed tears of sorrow. Lin Quan's three goals had shattered their dreams of championship. With just over ten minutes left in the match, even though theoretically possible, the Germans themselves felt a comeback was improbable. To score two goals against a strong Spain was no easy task. Each time they gained momentum or scored, Lin Quan's goals crushed their spirit, preventing them from finding their rhythm. This was the main reason for their defeat, making them both fear and resent Lin Quan.
On the sidelines, Löw was silent. The substituted Klose's expression turned somber. He sighed internally, wishing he were ten years younger with more stamina, which might have changed the outcome. But in football, there are no 'ifs.'
For four to five minutes after Lin Quan's goal, the German players were like lost souls, playing chaotically without a plan. Spain took control, launching fierce attacks on the German goal. After enduring several Spanish shots, Germany finally regained composure and tried to press forward to create shooting opportunities. This strategy was somewhat effective; in the 87th minute, Germany successfully intercepted the ball in the frontcourt, and Kroos sent a through ball. Schürrle broke down the left and sent a low cross, but an exhausted Özil, slow to start, missed the ball. The German fans sighed in despair. Other than setting up Klose's goal, Özil's performance was disappointing.
In the 88th minute, Lahm sent a long pass from the right, and Müller reached it but couldn't adjust his angle, missing the far post. Disbelieving, Müller held his head, deeply regretting the missed opportunity. If he had scored, the game would still have had suspense. Unfortunately, Müller couldn't emerge as the hero for his team.
Seeing Germany still not giving up and continuing to attack fiercely, Spain countered immediately. In the 89th minute, Lin Quan and Martínez intercepted Kroos in midfield. Lin Quan assessed Diego Costa's position and sent a long pass. This time, Costa didn't fall for the German offside trap. Neuer saw Costa receive the ball and chose to challenge him immediately. Costa, unable to dribble past Neuer, decided to shoot before Neuer could completely block the angle. Neuer's challenge was meant to psychologically pressure the opponent and block the shot angle. Prepared for Costa's shot, Neuer swiftly dove to deflect the ball with his hand, sending it out for a corner. Spain gained a corner kick as regular time ended.
The fourth official indicated four minutes of stoppage time, which was not good news for Germany, eager to score. After Spain executed this corner, the time left would be even shorter, and Spain might even score again.
Lin Quan moved to the corner area, ready to take the kick. The intense match had drained the players' energy, and everyone in the penalty area was struggling to move. However, Martínez, who had come on as a substitute in the second half, was an exception. As Spain's second-best aerial threat at 1.94 meters, he was the ideal target for the corner. Before launching the corner, Lin Quan specifically looked at Martínez and made a gesture, seemingly communicating a plan.
Seeing this, the German players consciously intensified their marking on Martínez, not giving him a chance to head the ball. Martínez, recognizing Lin Quan's gesture, subtly moved with his teammates toward the back post. The German defenders followed him closely, not allowing him any space to break free.
However, at that moment, a 1.84-meter-tall defender suddenly cut back from his run toward the back post and charged to the front post. Just then, Lin Quan launched the corner.
Seeing the trajectory of the ball in the air, Neuer felt a sinking feeling, realizing too late that the ball was not headed for the back post but the front. They had been fooled by Lin Quan's feint!
Ramos, having been initially deceived by Lin Quan, chose to trust him this time. His trust was rewarded, and this time, Lin Quan did not deceive him. Seeing the ball headed straight for him, Ramos was moved to tears by the opportunity.
It wasn't easy, but Ramos had finally gotten his chance to score in a World Cup final. Determined not to let Lin Quan down, Ramos exerted all his strength, leaping high to outjump the defender and firmly headed the ball towards the goal.
Neuer, realizing the ball was headed for the near post, quickly moved in that direction. However, such close-range headers are particularly challenging for goalkeepers to save. The lack of a leg swing in headers makes it difficult for goalkeepers to anticipate the direction—often, even the players heading the ball don't know where it will end up.
Facing such a header, goalkeepers rely solely on their reaction speed and predictive abilities. Neuer was fast, but the ball was faster than he anticipated. His attempt to block it was complete, but the ball had already crossed him.
With a crisp sound, the ball flew into the net. In the first minute of stoppage time, Ramos scored with his signature header, his third goal of this World Cup. This goal eliminated even the theoretical hope for the Germans. With about three minutes left after the celebration, only about a minute would remain—scoring three goals in that time was impossible, even if Germany's players were all Ronaldos.
After the goal, an ecstatic Ramos ripped off his shirt and proudly displayed his muscular torso to the cameras. Lin Quan gave him a thumbs-up, praising his excellent header. Ramos, seeing Lin Quan's gesture, ran over, knelt down, and playfully began to polish Lin Quan's shoes with his knee. While Ramos had executed a beautiful header, he truly owed it to Lin Quan. The quality of Lin Quan's corner—its speed, angle, and height—was perfect. Ramos had headed many balls, but only a few passes made heading as satisfying as those from Lin Quan, which is why he chose to thank Lin Quan in such a manner.
Having fulfilled his promise to Ramos and even earned an assist, Lin Quan was quite relaxed. He graciously accepted Ramos's gesture, and when other teammates arrived, he embraced Ramos and celebrated together.
"Now, our championship is secure, right?" someone asked with a laugh.
"Heh, if they're still not convinced, we'll just keep scoring until they are," said Ramos, brimming with confidence, wishing he could seize the moment to score even more goals.
Unfortunately, the German team was truly beaten. After Ramos's goal further extended the lead, the entire German squad lost their fighting spirit. And seeing this, Spain did not press their advantage.
Both teams peacefully ran down the clock. When the four minutes of stoppage time were up, the referee blew the whistle, ending the game immediately. The German players, relieved to end their nightmare, were heartbroken at losing the World Cup final. Many young players, including Müller and Götze, cried openly.
Germany hadn't touched the World Cup trophy since 1990, 24 years ago. They had thought this was their best chance, yet they had fallen short again. They were deeply unsatisfied but had to accept the outcome and look to the next World Cup for revenge.
Löw, accepting the loss, congratulated Spain's coach Del Bosque and comforted his players. The World Cup final defeat was tough, but it wasn't the end of the world. Their team was young and could fight another day. However, Löw and his players couldn't help but feel a phobia of Spain, having lost to them in crucial matches repeatedly.
Now, learning Spanish football hadn't narrowed the gap but made their defeat even more emphatic. Defeating mighty Spain would likely be a key focus of German football research for years to come.
In contrast, the Spanish fans at the stadium were living their happiest moments. Tears of joy and cheers of victory celebrated Spain's second World Cup win. On the field, the Spanish players and staff, bursting with joy, rushed out, chanting, "We are the champions!"
(End of Chapter)