Chapter 1 Zhou Yi Was Right

Zhou Yi was right. Yan Min's matter wasn't really a big deal. Once the words were spoken, it was over. The game had been played, the defeat was set, so what was the point of discussing it now? It was better to be more positive and look ahead.

Besides, there was an even more important match waiting for everyone. If they were still fixated on the past game, they would miss the hot topic of the Revierderby.

This season, due to Borussia Dortmund's fluctuating performance, which could even be described as poor recent form, this Revierderby was also highly anticipated.

Schalke 04 was playing at home. Could they defeat Borussia Dortmund at home and end their embarrassing record of not winning a Revierderby in recent seasons?

And could Borussia Dortmund use the Revierderby to make a crucial turning point? Or would this Revierderby be the last straw that broke Borussia Dortmund's back, plunging them into the mire, making it difficult for them to extricate themselves and accelerating their downfall?

In such an important game, the absence or presence of a key player could certainly determine the outcome of the match.

Zhou Yi had been absent from four league games, one German Cup match, and two Champions League group stage matches since he was injured in the Champions League group stage match against Napoli.

This was the most number of games he had missed since he started playing for Borussia Dortmund's first team.

It was no exaggeration to say that this was the most serious injury Zhou Yi had suffered in his career.

So, could Zhou Yi return in the match against Schalke 04?

There was much debate among the media and fans.

"...Zhou Yi has been training with the team for more than a week, and his physical fitness should have reached the requirements for playing. Why can't he play? If he didn't play against Arsenal to be conservative, he has had an extra half week of rest now. Why can't he still play?"

"...That's hard to say. An extra three days of rest doesn't make much difference. Leaving aside his physical condition, he's only been training with the team for a week after being injured for a month. How good can his form be? The Revierderby isn't just any ordinary match. If he is forced to play in such a crucial game without his best form, what if he doesn't perform well? Is Zhou Yi going to take the blame for the team's failure?"

"Actually, the most worrying thing is Zhou Yi's injury. Borussia Dortmund has been too unlucky this season, with multiple injuries in a row. Gundogan's minor injury eventually dragged on like this. Will Zhou Yi become the second Gundogan?"

"Spit! Spit! Spit! Jinx!"

"I don't want to either, but it's really worrying. Cervical spine problems can be big or small. The official Dortmund statement isn't clear, the more they are like this, the more worried I am..."

※※※

It wasn't just the media and fans who were concerned about whether Zhou Yi could play. In the "Exclude Old Guo" group, everyone was also very concerned about Zhou Yi's recovery.

Yang Muge asked in the group: "Zhou Yi, can you play in the league game this weekend?"

His question immediately attracted the attention of others.

"Yeah, yeah. You didn't play in the game against Arsenal, and Dortmund lost. If you don't play against Schalke 04, you're going to lose to Old Yang!" Sun Pan didn't mind adding fuel to the fire.

Zhou Yi thought of what Klopp had said to him alone after training today.

Klopp announced his plan and hoped that Zhou Yi would cooperate.

"...I know you and Schalke 04's Yang Muge are good friends, and you must have contact in private. I also know that deceiving good friends is not a good thing, but this time, I hope you can keep it a secret from him, Zhou Yi. We can't afford to lose the next game, and we don't want any surprises. Do you understand?" Klopp said, staring into Zhou Yi's eyes.

Of course, Zhou Yi understood. He wasn't blind or stupid. How could he not be aware of the team's recent situation?

So he nodded and said, "Sir, you misunderstood me. I don't mind 'deceiving' good friends at all."

He spread his hands.

Faced with such a "shameless" Zhou Yi, Klopp didn't know what expression to make...

Zhou Yi said in the group: "I don't know, the coaching staff and team doctor haven't given me a definite answer yet. Dr. Braun said today that I should be able to play, but the coaching staff didn't put me in the main team when arranging training... So I don't know what's going on..."

Zhou Yi didn't say directly: "Of course, I won't play!"

Answering so decisively would easily make people think there was something fishy.

Zhou Yi, who plays in midfield, is good at tactics. How could he not understand such a simple problem?

So he spoke ambiguously, so that people wouldn't easily guess his purpose, which would make it seem more realistic. This answer fully reflected Zhou Yi's tangled state of mind, wanting to play but most likely not being able to play.

Even Yang Muge felt sorry for Zhou Yi after seeing this answer.

"Damn, you still can't play? Zhou Yi, are you going to be like Gundogan?" Sun Pan was also surprised.

"Don't be silly, how is that possible! I feel like there's nothing wrong with my body, but I don't know what the coaching staff is thinking..." At this time, Zhou Yi's firm answer strengthened the authenticity of his previous statement.

A player's normal thought is of course not to hope that his injury will get worse, so if Zhou Yi admitted that his injury was serious, it would be a bit pretentious and false, which would arouse suspicion.

If Zhou Yi wanted to confuse Yang Muge, of course he couldn't change his style drastically.

※※※

"Yang, what did Zhou Yi say?"

The next day, Yang Muge was stopped by head coach Jens Keller on the sidelines of Schalke 04's training ground.

"He said he doesn't know either. He feels that his body has recovered almost to the point where he can play, but the coaching staff doesn't seem to have made up their minds whether to let him play or not," Yang Muge answered honestly.

Just as Zhou Yi had no psychological burden about "deceiving" friends, Yang Muge was not resistant to helping the coach find out about Zhou Yi's situation.

Each for his own master, for the victory of the team, there is nothing wrong with it. Moreover, he didn't do anything to let Zhou Yi down, he just asked about Zhou Yi's situation.

On the contrary, Zhou Yi is actually more scheming than Yang Muge...

After hearing Yang Muge's answer, Keller fell into deep thought.

What does Zhou Yi's answer mean?

He feels that his body has recovered almost to the point where he can play? What does almost mean? Can he play?

But the coaching staff doesn't seem to have made up their minds? What does Dortmund's coaching staff mean?

Play or not play?

Regarding whether Zhou Yi will play or not, this has indeed been the focus of everyone's attention recently.

Keller also has his own judgment on this.

He thinks...

"Coach?" Yang Muge's voice interrupted his thoughts. He realized that Yang Muge was still standing in front of him. He didn't want to waste each other's time after getting the information he wanted, so he waved his hand to Yang Muge: "Thank you, Yang. Go train!"

"Okay." Yang Muge didn't talk nonsense with Keller and ran back to the training ground.

Watching Yang Muge return to the training ground decisively, without a word of complaint, Keller thought that Yang Muge was really an honest man, who had never caused trouble for the coach in the team, and was very low-key.

Therefore, Keller didn't believe that Yang Muge would lie to him. What he said must be Zhou Yi's original words to him. The intelligence is not fake.

Perhaps because Yang Muge is honest, Zhou Yi probably didn't expect that Yang Muge would be arranged to find out about him, right?

He can't lie to his friends, can he?

After confirming that the source of information was correct, Keller continued to analyze the possible results.

He believed that Zhou Yi's words should be true. His body may have reached the requirements for playing, but whether he can play depends on the arrangement of the coaching staff.

What would Dortmund's coaching staff be thinking?

Keller analyzed by combining the previous information. He felt that Klopp would not risk it in this game.

They value a long-term healthy Zhou Yi more.

In terms of the importance of the game, Keller doesn't think that the Revierderby is necessarily more important than the Champions League game against Arsenal.

After all, one win or loss in the Revierderby cannot affect too much, but if Dortmund loses the Champions League game, resulting in the failure to qualify from the group stage, how much money will Dortmund lose in terms of money alone?

There were previous reports that Klopp deliberately gave up the game against Arsenal in order to allow Zhou Yi to play in the Revierderby against Schalke 04.

Keller didn't believe it.

Now that he has information from Zhou Yi himself, Keller is even more convinced of his judgment. That is, Klopp does not intend to let Zhou Yi play in the Revierderby.

In this way, the training he arranged for the team in the absence of Zhou Yi was not in vain...

Preparations for the Revierderby were underway even before Dortmund's game against Arsenal began.

Now he just needs to confirm it.

Confirmed, the result reassured him.