Chapter 1 Since Sun Pan Couldn't Get a Game at Offenbacher Kickers

... Zhou Yi didn't have much to pay attention to regarding this match and this opponent.

Anyway, Sun Pan would be sitting on the bench...

He didn't quite understand why Chelsea had loaned him to this godforsaken place.

Did they value him?

Then weren't there better options?

Moreover, it didn't really matter where he played, what mattered was being able to play.

This was a principle Zhou Yi had always adhered to. Regardless of the team's fame, strength, or league level, as a newcomer, the primary consideration when choosing a team was always whether he could play for that team.

If you can't play, even being at Real Madrid or Barcelona is useless. It's just vanity.

Some might say that sitting on the bench at a top club still means training at a top club, receiving high-level training, and improving.

At first glance, that might seem right.

But for young players in their late teens, the improvements they can make in training at this stage are extremely limited. What's more important is improvement in matches. Therefore, consistently playing regular games is the most effective.

Zhou Yi always stuck to this view. If he were only eight or nine years old, then of course training would be more important.

※※※

As Zhou Yi had told Sun Pan, when Klopp announced the match squad list, Sun Pan wasn't on it.

It seemed Klopp wanted Zhou Yi to get plenty of rest to prepare for the upcoming match against Mainz.

Because it was the German Cup, and the opponent wasn't a famous team, coupled with the fact that Zhou Yi wasn't even on the squad list, the match only attracted the attention of local German media. The Chinese media almost completely ignored it.

In fact, Offenbacher Kickers had a little bit of fame in China, at least more than other 3. Liga teams.

Because many years ago, Chinese international Li Bin had played for this team...

But now, so many years had passed, Li Bin had long since retired, and this team with its mediocre record had gradually been forgotten.

This match was only discussed in the "Excluding Lao Guo" group, because Zhou Yi had told them that Sun Pan had gone to Offenbacher Kickers.

"He actually went to Germany?" Guo Nu was surprised.

"Yeah, didn't you guys know?" Zhou Yi asked.

"No..." Even Yang Muge, who had the best relationship with Sun Pan, said he didn't know.

"I see..." Zhou Yi thought of Sun Pan's words. It seemed like it wasn't just about giving him a surprise, or rather, he hadn't told everyone from the beginning not because he wanted to give him a surprise. Because he had been at this team for almost three months, but he hadn't said anything about it in the group.

Zhou Yi guessed that the reason Sun Pan didn't say anything was because he thought it was too embarrassing...

Everyone was doing pretty well. Guo Nu was in Inter Milan's youth team, Yang Muge was in Schalke 04's youth team, and He Ying had also joined La Masia's U19 team. Only he had been loaned to a 3. Liga team.

As the one who was doing the worst, how could Sun Pan be embarrassed to publicize it?

So he had been keeping quiet all along, pretending he was still in London...

Otherwise, he might have kept it a secret until Offenbacher Kickers faced Dortmund.

This kid... so cunning!

"It's such a pity you're not playing, Zhou Yi. You could have met in the match," He Ying said.

"Hey, that kid hasn't even gotten to play for Offenbach yet, so it's not certain they'll meet," Zhou Yi said. "But I'm going to watch this match."

"I'll watch too," Yang Muge said.

"Uh, we can't watch..." Guo Nu said. He was in Italy, and it seemed like Italy didn't have broadcasts of the German Cup.

Zhou Yi: "It's okay, we'll give you guys a live stream in the group!"

※※※

To Zhou Yi's surprise, when the match broadcast started, he saw Sun Pan's name in the broadcast. Not on the bench, but... in the starting lineup!

"Yo, Panpan's starting!" He immediately started streaming in the group.

Guo Nu: "Ah, it's such a pity you're not playing, Zhou Yi!"

The German commentators were introducing the starting lineups of both sides.

Dortmund's side was basically all substitutes and second-team players, even Marc was on the bench.

Offenbacher Kickers' side was also full of players Zhou Yi didn't recognize, except for... Sun Pan.

"... Offenbacher Kickers' starting goalkeeper for this match is a young player from China... Pan Sun?"

"It's Sun Pan!" Zhou Yi corrected at the TV.

At the same time, Yang Muge also said in the group: "What's Pan Sun?"

"It's a good thing Panpan's name isn't Sun Gui, otherwise the commentator would have pronounced it 'turtle grandson'," Zhou Yi joked in the group. "And in Henan dialect!"

"Haha!" He Ying couldn't help but laugh.

"23333333!" Guo Nu even sent an emoji of laughing and pounding the ground.

"Pan Sun was loaned to Offenbacher Kickers from Chelsea's youth team this season. He hasn't had the opportunity to play in the league yet, this match is his first appearance this season, and also his first start."

Although the name was wrong, this German commentator at least got the information right.

The TV broadcast even gave Sun Pan a close-up shot. It was indeed the Sun Pan that Zhou Yi knew.

He looked a little stronger than before.

Sun Pan in the shot was standing in front of the goal, looking ahead, with no special expression.

※※※

After the match started, Dortmund, despite playing away, relied on their strong strength to launch wave after wave of attacks on Offenbacher Kickers.

They seemed to be planning to end the match in the first fifteen minutes.

Offenbacher Kickers seemed to have guessed Dortmund's tactics, so even though they were playing at home, they chose to shrink their defense and play a defensive counterattack... no, not a defensive counterattack.

"Offenbacher Kickers are just parking the bus," Zhou Yi said in the group.

"With their poor strength, they can only play like this," Yang Muge said. "But this also increases Sun Pan's chances of showing his face."

"Of course, but there's also the risk of being beaten into a sieve," Zhou Yi said.

"Think of the good things..." Yang Muge was speechless.

Zhou Yi thought about the match he had played against Offenbacher Kickers in the virtual space. Although it was only one match, it could still explain the problem to some extent.

Even if Sun Pan performed well, the overall difference in strength was still difficult to make up for. So in the end, they still lost the match.

"Whether I think of the good things or not doesn't matter, right?" Zhou Yi sent a picture of a hand gesture.

"Well, that's true, watch the match, watch the match."

※※※

Six minutes into the match, Offenbacher Kickers' defender Lamprecht received a yellow card. Getting a yellow card so early showed that they were struggling in defense and had to resort to fouls.

But as the match progressed, Zhou Yi's expression in front of the TV also changed.

From not taking it seriously at the beginning to now looking solemn.

Because the match had been going on for thirty minutes, and Dortmund hadn't scored a goal!

In the simulated match, although Dortmund only won by three goals in the end, they had at least scored within the first fifteen minutes...

But now? There were many shots, but not one could get into the goal!

The reason for not scoring, of course, was... Sun Pan!

"Sun Pan made a beautiful save!" Yang Muge exclaimed in the group.

And he had already repeated these words in the group five times. Including this time, it was the sixth time.

In other words, Sun Pan had already made at least six key saves in the match...

"What? The score is still 0:0?" Guo Nu, who couldn't see the match live and could only learn about the progress of the match through group chat, was a little anxious, "Has that kid gone on a cheat?"

"It's almost like he's gone on a cheat..." Zhou Yi said in the group.

He was watching the live broadcast. Sun Pan's saves, in his opinion, were all remarkable and incredible. It was indeed like he had gone on a cheat.

Although Offenbacher Kickers were shrinking their defense, the difference in strength between the two sides meant that they could still be broken through by Dortmund players in one-on-one situations, creating scoring opportunities. And at this time, it was Sun Pan's time to perform.

The commentator kept exclaiming: "Unbelievable! Pan Sun has once again saved a shot from a Dortmund player! He has kept the goal intact!"

※※※

As a result, thanks to Sun Pan's outstanding performance, Dortmund was unable to score until the end of the first half.

This really surprised many Dortmund fans.

The TV broadcast even gave Klopp a close-up shot, wanting to see his expression at this time.

Klopp frowned.

At the beginning of the match, when his players' shots were saved, he would rush to the sidelines, hold his head in his hands, and exaggeratedly express his regret.

But by the end of the first half, he no longer did so, because... he couldn't keep up.

The Chinese goalkeeper on the other side had saved his side's shots again and again. If he rushed out every time, he wouldn't have to go back to the coaching bench for this half of the match...

※※※

"Halftime, summary - Sun Pan is cheating, I'm going to call the police!" Zhou Yi said in the group.

"Haha!" Yang Muge laughed, and then said to Zhou Yi, "Zhou Yi, don't let Dortmund get eliminated by a 3. Liga team in the end."

"How is that possible?" Zhou Yi snorted.

"Lao Yang's words are indeed too exaggerated." Guo Nu also felt it was impossible. "No matter what, it's still a 3. Liga team, the third level. Dortmund is one of the best in the Bundesliga. As long as the players take it seriously, how can they be so easily eliminated? I think Dortmund was a bit careless in the first half and didn't take the opponent seriously enough, which led to this situation..."

Guo Nu mentioned carelessness, but Zhou Yi suddenly frowned.

Because he thought of something bad - why did Inter Milan get equalized by Dortmund after leading by four goals in that Champions League group stage match before? Wasn't it because of carelessness?