On the evening of November 24th, the entire Borussia Mönchengladbach team arrived at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester.

They were eager to win this match, not only out of a desire to beat a strong team, nor just to prove their reputation as giant killers and away game specialists.

More importantly, it was a crucial Champions League group stage battle.

They were only one point behind Real Madrid. Real Madrid was playing Celtic in this match and would likely win easily. Therefore, if they lost this game, they would fall four points behind Real Madrid. Manchester City and Real Madrid would then be confirmed to advance from the group in first and second place.

If they drew, they would not only need to beat Real Madrid in the final match but also win by at least two goals to advance.

Of course, if they won, they would still need to beat Real Madrid in the final match to advance.

The probability seemed low, but was the probability of beating Bayern Munich high?

They not only won against the Southern Star (Bayern Munich) on their home turf but also won by two goals!

The ball is round; what if Real Madrid suffered a surprise loss in this match? If they won, their chances of advancing would be bright!

All the media outlets favored Manchester City and Real Madrid advancing together, as if Borussia Mönchengladbach was just a pathetic foil. This time, they were determined to fight!

Defeat Manchester City and scare Real Madrid to death!

Manchester City's starting lineup saw a change. Silva was temporarily out due to a problem during training.

Sterling entered the starting lineup.

At the forefront was still Agüero, the top scorer in the league, who still held the top spot in goals scored, even with his recent subpar performances.

The second-highest scorer in the league was Zhao Gang, who was also the top scorer in the Champions League. In the previous Champions League group stage match, he broke Cristiano Ronaldo's single-season group stage goal record. His current goal count was far ahead, with Cristiano Ronaldo in second place with only seven goals.

As the top scorer in the Champions League, he also led the league in assists, with 16 assists in twelve matches.

Adding in 14 goals, this terrifying ability to create opportunities made him the envy of the top clubs, which was only natural.

Especially his efficiency in the Champions League was simply godlike.

Thirteen goals in four matches. The report in *Marca* wasn't exaggerating; in the Champions League, Zhao Gang was practically carrying Manchester City forward single-handedly.

Manchester City fans were enthusiastic, singing the team song and applauding.

When the players walked out of the tunnel, the atmosphere reached a small peak.

Borussia Mönchengladbach players were eager to try. They had beaten Celtic to a pulp and overthrown the Bundesliga giants. They were full of confidence in this match.

If they could really defeat Manchester City, then Real Madrid would be the ones worried and scared in the final Champions League match!

Imagine, successively slaying Bayern Munich and Manchester City, and sending Real Madrid home with the greatest confidence. What an exciting honor that would be!

In the Dragon Country broadcast, He Shiren began his introduction.

"There's a slight adjustment in Manchester City's lineup. Silva is absent from this match due to discomfort in his ankle. Therefore, in this match, Zhao Gang is once again appearing in a new position. This position will take on more organizational tasks. Let's see if Zhao Gang can deliver a very dazzling performance.

In the Manchester City team, he is more of an explosive point, or a highly penetrating pass, tearing apart the opponent's defense.

Of course, because of his excellent dribbling and passing, he has also served as an organizer on the field, but he has never played in this position as a complete organizing core, becoming a midfield metronome, controlling the team's offensive rhythm.

Alright, the whole match begins!

Viewers who frequently watch football know that Guardiola's teams mostly focus on ball control, often passing the ball into the opponent's half.

One of Manchester City's characteristics is their strong midfield control, but this Manchester City, this season's Manchester City, has undergone a very big change compared to before.

This Manchester City team not only likes to control possession, but this season, they have a very strong desire to attack at the start, even throughout the first half.

More than two-thirds of their goals occur in the first half, which is a very unconventional thing.

Manchester City is the team that likes and is best at taking the initiative. In the first half, they rarely exhibit the kind of sleepy back passes and ineffective passes that they used to have.

And Borussia Mönchengladbach is a team that is based on defense, with swift and effective counterattacks. In the first leg between the two teams, Borussia Mönchengladbach's defense was impressive. In that match, Borussia Mönchengladbach's counterattacks were extremely unreliable, and they were almost completely suppressed by Manchester City.

But after that match, Borussia Mönchengladbach seemed to have suddenly opened up the Ren and Du Meridians (a concept in traditional Chinese medicine), winning consecutive victories in the league. In the Champions League, they only lost by one goal against Real Madrid's BBC (Bale, Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo) trio. Next, they double-killed Celtic both at home and away. Furthermore, in the last league match, they overthrew the Bundesliga giant, Bayern Munich.

Before the match, Borussia Mönchengladbach's coach, Virkus, mentioned that they were eager to face even stronger opponents.

They already understand Manchester City's style of play, and this match will definitely bring surprises to Borussia Mönchengladbach fans and bring enough trouble to Manchester City!

And Dahoud specially thanked Zhao Gang in an interview, believing that Zhao Gang is an extremely gentlemanly player. In the first leg between the two sides, Zhao Gang gave up a very good shooting opportunity in order to protect Dahoud.

Subsequently, Dahoud also mentioned that after one encounter, they have now grown up and will definitely limit Manchester City's attacking group!

And Sommer is also eager to try, saying that Zhao Gang is a player who is very good at long shots, and he will definitely be careful and work with his teammates to limit Zhao Gang's performance!"

"Let's see today, can Borussia Mönchengladbach, who just defeated Bayern and are full of confidence... The ball is in! The ball is in!!!"

He Shiren, who was introducing the situation on both sides, suddenly roared.

He startled the audience watching the game.

In fact, he didn't realize that this attack could score so quickly.

Usually, a goal can only happen when they enter the danger zone and everyone is nervous.

At this moment, Manchester City players were still passing the ball in the frontcourt, looking for attacking opportunities. It didn't look like a goal could be scored at all. He Shiren was not prepared at all.

"Let's take a look at this goal! It's really too unexpected!!!"

After two back passes of Manchester City's possession, Zhao Gang firmly occupied the center. When the attacking line slowly moved up, Gündoğan did what he does best, handing the ball to Zhao Gang to organize.

Zhao Gang took two steps forward but did not accelerate to try to break through, and Borussia Mönchengladbach's zonal defense was always very focused.

This time, Zhao Gang's task was to organize, to control the team's attack, and his position was not in the front.

Borussia Mönchengladbach players limited Agüero. De Bruyne and Sterling wanted to break forward and pull away, but the passing routes were cut off.

De Bruyne could only retreat to meet, while Sterling's position also shifted back, leaving only one Agüero at the front.

It seemed that Manchester City was going to be patient and slowly look for opportunities.

Borussia Mönchengladbach players symbolically pressed Zhao Gang, and Zhao Gang passed the ball to De Bruyne.

Then, De Bruyne observed the situation. Without a breakthrough passing route, he passed the ball back to Zhao Gang. Zhao Gang found Gündoğan with one pass, and Gündoğan passed it back to Zhao Gang again.

Zhao Gang almost didn't stop the ball and chipped it to Sterling with one kick. Sterling started instantly, but he didn't get rid of the defense and could only dribble the ball back. Helplessly, he handed it back to Zhao Gang to organize again.

Zhao Gang looked back at Gündoğan and then glanced at De Bruyne.

The previous few passes made Borussia Mönchengladbach's defenders subconsciously predict that Zhao Gang was going to pass back or pass to De Bruyne to find an opportunity.

Zhao Gang looked at De Bruyne, De Bruyne ran forward, and Sterling also suddenly went forward, reaching out for the ball to attract attention.

The previous rhythm, coupled with this instant run, distracted the Borussia Mönchengladbach players in the center.

Zhao Gang raised his leg and kicked.

Out of nowhere!

Sommer reacted quickly, but it was too late!

"This ball, and the first leg between the two teams, is almost the same position! The difference is that in the previous round, Sommer contributed a divine save, and he pushed this world-class shot away!

This time, Sommer's reaction was still quick enough, but his arms were a bit short. He guessed the right direction, but he didn't hit the ball!

A world-class goal, a real world-class goal!!

Sommer ah! Before the start of the game, he also said that Zhao Gang's long-range shooting ability is quite good, and he will definitely deal with it carefully, and his teammates will also help him block the route, unless it is a penalty, otherwise Zhao Gang will definitely not score! As a result... tsk..." He Shiren almost laughed, "As a result, he kicked it in with one kick. He could still save it in the first encounter, but this time it went straight in!"