In a sense, Son Heung-min and Zhou Yi are quite similar, and a comparison can indeed be made.

Both arrived in Germany in 2008.

Seventeen-year-old Zhou Yi went to Dortmund, while sixteen-year-old Son Heung-min went to Hamburg.

At that time, both were unknown quantities in German football and did not attract much attention.

Son Heung-min benefited from the Korea Football Association's open policy. As part of the cooperation project between the Korean and German Football Associations, he was selected by Hamburger SV to go to Germany for football training. A total of six Korean players were given the opportunity. Son Heung-min and two others joined Hamburger SV, while the other three joined FC Nuremberg.

Zhou Yi was selected by Borussia Dortmund through a football reality show and joined Dortmund's youth training camp. At the same time, the other partners who participated in the reality show with him also joined different clubs and began their different football lives.

After entering Hamburg, Son Heung-min received youth training in Hamburg while participating in the reserve team matches. He accumulated a lot of game experience. From 2008 to 2010, he grew up in Hamburg's youth training camp for two years.

Compared with him, Zhou Yi's path was much wilder. Not long after arriving at the Dortmund youth team, he was promoted directly from U17 to U19, and represented the U19 in the youth league and the German Youth Cup matches. With his outstanding performance, he was transferred from the youth team to the first team in less than a season.

It can be said that, from this point of view, Zhou Yi did show greater talent than Son Heung-min, and the development trajectories of the two were completely different here.

Zhou Yi, who was promoted to the first team, only lurked for less than half a season before seizing the opportunity in Dortmund's match against Hoffenheim, becoming famous in one battle, and then gradually secured the main position of Dortmund's first team. By the end of the season, Dortmund even simply let go of their original midfield core, Şahin, for him. Facts have proved that their decision was correct.

Although they lost Şahin, Dortmund went on to create an era that belonged to them.

Winning the league title for three consecutive seasons and winning the Champions League was the most glorious period in the history of Borussia Dortmund, even surpassing the Champions League victory in the 1990s.

At this time, Zhou Yi not only quickly grew into the core of Dortmund, but also became a popular football star in the world—it was not right to say "rising star"—every summer his name was always linked to other big clubs.

It is also a coincidence that Zhou Yi officially established his core position in Dortmund starting from the 2010-2011 season, which is now three seasons.

Son Heung-min also obtained his first professional contract and played in the Bundesliga for the first time on behalf of Hamburger SV's first team in the 2010-2011 season.

In three years, Zhou Yi has become a popular star, and Son Heung-min has also grown little by little in Hamburg.

Now, Son Heung-min has joined Bayer Leverkusen. The transfer fee of ten million shows his strength.

These two young men have now rapidly grown into leading figures in their respective national teams. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that the clash between the two is a contest between the top levels of football in China and South Korea.

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Before the match, the two were also asked by reporters about their impressions of each other.

"Son Heung-min? He is an excellent and threatening striker. Klopp has reminded us to pay special attention to him in the game. He scored three goals against us when he was in Hamburg last season. He is a very powerful opponent." Zhou Yi said to the Korean reporters, which made the Korean reporters feel as sweet as honey. Being able to get such an evaluation from Zhou Yi greatly satisfied their vanity.

Zhou Yi didn't say this to save face for the Koreans. He was telling the truth.

Klopp did remind them to pay attention to several players in Bayer Leverkusen, and Son Heung-min was one of them.

Zhou Yi is also no stranger to Son Heung-min. When he was still in Hamburg, he played against Dortmund three times, starting twice and coming on as a substitute once. Son Heung-min scored three goals in these three games, all of which were scored last season.

Among them, in the fourth round of the league last season, Dortmund lost 2:3 to Hamburg, and the culprit was Son Heung-min. He scored twice in the game to help Hamburg win, giving Dortmund their first and only defeat of that season.

It is precisely because of such a history of confrontation that Klopp will remind everyone to pay attention to Son Heung-min.

After transferring to Bayer Leverkusen this season, Son Heung-min has started ten times and came on as a substitute once, scoring six goals, ranking third in the team in goals scored, second only to his strike partner Kiessling, who has nine goals, and midfielder Sidney Sam, who has seven goals.

Some Chinese reporters also ran to interview Son Heung-min, wanting to hear his opinion of Zhou Yi.

In South Korea, Son Heung-min is an idol and superstar, but when he mentioned Zhou Yi, his attitude was still very respectful: "For me, he is not only a powerful opponent, but also the pride of our Asian players, especially East Asian players. I also dream of one day being able to achieve great success in the club like him."

This also made the Chinese reporters feel extremely happy.

And no one would think that Son Heung-min said this to please them. Zhou Yi's achievements and status are there, and Son Heung-min was just telling the truth.

Although Zhou Yi is only one year older than Son Heung-min, and only one season earlier to play in the Bundesliga, he can be regarded as Son Heung-min's senior. So it is not an insult for Son Heung-min to speak in such an attitude.

And no matter what opinions Korean fans have about China, they have no right to express dissatisfaction on this matter.

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In addition to the contest between Zhou Yi and Son Heung-min, this game is also a "brothers derby" between the Bender brothers—Sven Bender, a defensive midfielder who plays for Dortmund, has a twin brother, Lars Bender, who also plays in midfield for Bayer Leverkusen.

Although both are midfielders, their positions and characteristics are different.

Sven Bender is a pure defensive midfielder, fierce in defense, but lacking in offense, with nothing to show off.

Lars Bender is a "Box_to_Box" player, that is, a midfielder who goes from box to box, good at both offense and defense, with a tenacious style and a large coverage area, and a strong ability to go back and forth.

The contest between the two brothers will also be one of the highlights of this game.

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Originally, the focus of everyone's attention was on these things. But an accident happened just one day before the start of the game.

Reus was injured in training!

Although it is not a very serious injury, it is not known whether he will be able to make it in time for the game against Bayer Leverkusen.

Doctor Braun, the team doctor, suggested that Reus not participate in the game and take a rest.

But this game is very important for Dortmund. If they lose to Bayer Leverkusen at home, they will be widened the gap with them and Bayern Munich, and the league title may become a pipe dream.

But if they insist on letting Reus play with an injury, they have to consider the Champions League group match against Galatasaray next Wednesday, which is equally important and critical for Dortmund. If letting Reus play with an injury in the match against Bayer Leverkusen leads to his injury worsening, and he misses the next match against Galatasaray, or misses more matches, who will be responsible for the loss?

After thinking about it, Klopp finally put Reus on the roster. But he also promised Dr. Braun that he would not let Reus start. As for whether to let Reus come on as a substitute, it depends on the specific situation.

This can be regarded as a compromise. Considering the pressure borne by the head coach, Dr. Braun did not strongly insist on his suggestion, but acquiesced to Klopp's approach. Of course, he still didn't forget to say one more sentence: "If possible, try not to let him play."

Reus, who was originally scheduled to start, was unable to start, and his position was vacated. So who can replace Reus in this vacant position?

In the last away game against Mainz, Mkhitaryan started, but his performance was not satisfactory. Of course, although Mkhitaryan is an attacking midfielder, he can also play as a winger, so it is not impossible for him to replace Reus. If there is no better choice, Klopp might do this.

But now, there is actually a better choice. Klopp turned his attention to Yan Min.

Yan Min has been playing well recently, and he has been working hard in training as always. In the limited playing time, he has shown convincing performances. And he was originally a winger, so he is more suitable to replace Reus. The only problem is that he is better at playing on the left wing, even though he is a right-footed player.

Of course, in Klopp's view, this is not a big problem. Because Yan Min has changed positions in the game before, and he has also played on the right. His right foot can cut inside and shoot when he is on the left wing, and he can send out accurate crosses when he switches to the right wing.

Is there anyone better than him?