Chapter 1 After the Game

After the game, Zhou Yi was besieged by reporters, both German and Chinese.

Everyone could see who the best player in this match was.

His jersey still damp with sweat, Zhou Yi stood in front of the backdrop plastered with sponsor logos, enduring the barrage of questions.

"Did you expect to play in this game? No, not at all. It was a surprise," Zhou Yi said, shaking his head. "But isn't it a substitute player's job to be ready to play at any time?"

"What did Klopp say to me before I went on? He didn't say anything, just told me the stage was set and it was time to go on. Yes, the assistant coach told me about the tactical arrangements."

"How did it feel to make my debut? Uh, it didn't feel much different from a friendly, except there were more spectators. It's just a game, one of dozens in a season. I don't think it's anything special. Of course, I played pretty well, and I'm happy about that."

"What do I think of my teammates? They're all great, they take good care of me, and they cooperate well with me. I know I'm just a rookie, and I'm glad to have their support. Without their support and cooperation, I couldn't have performed like this. Football is a team sport, after all. One person shining isn't as important as the team winning..."

"That shot for the goal? Of course! Of course it was intentional, definitely not a fluke!"

"What do I think about being booed for passing the ball in the backfield? It's their (Hoffenheim fans) freedom to boo, but it's our freedom to pass the ball. Of course they can boo anything they don't like, that's fine. But we can continue to pass the ball, after all, we're not playing to please them."

…

Zhou Yi answered everyone's questions one by one, unhurriedly, neither arrogant nor humble, handling it all with ease. The Chinese reporters who weren't asking questions watched him from the sidelines, surprised and impressed by his performance.

Professional players, especially Chinese professional players, often give the impression that they are all brawn and no brains, with plenty of fodder for jokes and easily attracting hatred and dissatisfaction.

Even those who are almost thirty years old are still like that.

But Zhou Yi, as an eighteen-year-old, had such poise, which couldn't help but amaze and delight people.

Finally, a reporter suddenly threw out a tricky question.

"What do you think about Sahin's injury? As I understand it, your technical characteristics are the same as Sahin's, so is Sahin's injury a windfall for you, since you can be sure of getting a starting opportunity in the next game?"

As soon as this question was asked, everyone around fell silent.

First, some people looked at the questioner, a German reporter, and then they turned their attention to Zhou Yi.

Especially the Chinese reporters, they were waiting for Zhou Yi's answer.

How was Zhou Yi going to handle this question? If he didn't handle it well, the good image he had built up in his previous answers might be ruined…

Zhou Yi looked at the German reporter who asked the question and said, "First of all, my position and technical characteristics are not the same as Nuri's. He is a defensive midfielder, and I am an attacking midfielder. I hope you understand the different requirements for players in these two positions. I believe you do, because you are a professional football reporter."

As soon as Zhou Yi finished saying this, someone among the Chinese reporters couldn't help but cheer.

His answer was reasonable, well-founded, and neither arrogant nor humble. And he also subtly satirized the other person.

Someone glanced at the Chinese reporter who cheered, but that reporter didn't feel embarrassed at all. He clapped his hands hard and shouted "Good!" again.

Zhou Yi continued to look at the German reporter who asked the question and said, "Secondly, whether I can start is up to the coach. If you want to know if I can start in the next game, you should ask Klopp, not me. Third, I know what you mean by this question."

After saying that, Zhou Yi smiled slightly at the German reporter, then left the mixed zone without looking back.

"Fame invites jealousy. After Zhou Yi becomes famous, things like this are inevitable. Fortunately, he handled it pretty well..." Watching Zhou Yi's back, the Chinese reporters discussed.

"Yes, yes, his performance just now was pretty good. He wasn't angered by that bastard..." Someone said this while glancing at the German reporter who asked the question.

"That guy did it on purpose, damn it! Just when we're finally happy, some idiot comes out to ruin the mood!"

Someone spat at the back of the German reporter.

※※※

That night, Zhou Yi's performance against Hoffenheim was already featured on the sports news on television, and his goal was replayed over and over again.

The name "Zhou Yi" also began to be mentioned frequently, even if some announcers and hosts still couldn't pronounce his name correctly.

Although Barrios had previously helped him promote the nickname "Wizard," that matter was still relatively niche, and not many people knew or cared about it.

This belongs to the sidelines of football, not everyone who pays attention to football will know.

But now it's different, Zhou Yi has once again made a splash in football.

And in China, the media went crazy for it.

Especially the online media, making full use of their rapid response capabilities, already had the first news feature appearing on the portal website five minutes after the end of the game.

This late night, no one knows how many portal websites and traditional media office buildings were brightly lit, with reporters and editors working overtime.

And the excited Chinese fans couldn't wait to see the news reports, they were swiping and posting on some professional forums, expressing their excitement.

In the Dog Child Football Forum, the Bundesliga section, the Dortmund section, and the Chinese football section were all "dominated" by Zhou Yi's name.

Various enthusiastic speeches filled people's eyes.

"...I'm really impressed, Zhou Yi's first appearance was so amazing! To be honest, I feel like I've experienced a beautiful dream!"

"Can someone translate how foreign forums and media are evaluating Zhou Yi's performance in this game? I really want to see it!"

"Latest news, the German media has already given the score for this game, Zhou Yi, who came off the bench, got a high score of one! He is the best player in the game! He only played for twenty-five minutes, but he won the best player in the game! It's really amazing! Also, let me popularize it for everyone. The German scoring system is a five-point system. The highest is one point, and five points is the worst. So being able to get one point, Zhou Yi's debut is perfect!"

"Awesome awesome awesome! Zhou Yi is awesome!"

"How did the German media specifically evaluate it?"

"It is said that the German commentators who were responsible for commentating on this game were all conquered by Zhou Yi!"

"That's really amazing!"

"Zhou Yi! The new hope of Chinese football!"

"Without being polite, I haven't paid attention to Chinese football for a long time. But Zhou Yi has rekindled my hope for Chinese football!"

"This game is enough for me to brag about for a year!"

…

Fang Shuai was also constantly refreshing the forum and post bar pages, and the QQ group was swiping the screen non-stop.

He stared with slightly red eyes. It was already late at night, but he didn't feel tired at all. He had already decided to spend this night in the Internet cafe. Now he couldn't bear to leave the computer at all. His fingers kept clicking on one post after another, watching greedily.

Tonight, many people may be like Fang Shuai, unable to fall asleep for a long time in excitement…

※※※

Because the game was played in the afternoon, after the game, the entire Dortmund team did not stay in Hoffenheim, but took a bus directly to the nearby airport and flew back to Dortmund.

For the next day, all eighteen players who went on the expedition with the team can rest at home without having to go to training.

On the plane, the winning players were still very excited, joking and making noise.

Zhou Yi, who performed well in this game, naturally became the focus of everyone's teasing.

"To be honest, Zhou Yi, was that goal you scored a fluke?" Großkreutz asked Zhou Yi with a serious face.

Zhou Yi shook his head: "What are you thinking, old man? I've been planning that goal for a long time!"

"What? Did you say it was a fluke?" Großkreutz nodded and said, "Well, that's what I thought, that's more scientific!"

"Hey!"

The others laughed.

Then Großkreutz rolled up a magazine into a microphone and went to "interview" Subotić: "Neven, when Zhou Yi and you were passing the ball back and forth in the backfield, didn't you want to kick the ball out with a long pass?"

And Barrios imitated a cameraman, pretending to carry a camera and filming Großkreutz.

Subotić also cooperated and answered Großkreutz in the state of accepting an interview. He looked at Barrios's "camera" and said: "I was really sweating at the time, you know, every time Zhou Yi passed the ball to me, I wanted to shout at him: 'Why do you always pass it to me? You can pass it to Mats!'"

Everyone laughed again.

Großkreutz turned his face and said to Barrios: "So we can be sure that Hummels had the same idea at the time - why pass it back to me! You can pass it to Neven!"

He imitated Hummels's emphasis and exclaimed.

Everyone laughed even harder.

Even Zhou Yi was laughing. The team's atmosphere was really good after winning the game. He liked this feeling.

At this moment, Großkreutz handed the "microphone" to Zhou Yi's mouth: "So Zhou Yi, do you have anything to say about this debut?"

The laughter in the cabin gradually subsided, and everyone looked at him, wanting to hear what he had to say.

Zhou Yi looked at his teammates' faces and said: "Actually, I just want to officially thank everyone, thank you for your support and help. Without you, I couldn't have performed so well, thank you!"

After speaking, he stood in the aisle of the cabin and bowed to everyone.

Everyone was stunned, they didn't expect Zhou Yi to be so serious today.

Großkreutz was also very surprised. He rubbed his nose: "Zhou Yi, you don't play by the rules..."

Zhou Yi made a face at Großkreutz: "How can I be led by the nose by you? I want to have my own style!"

Everyone laughed again.