Over 60,000 Schalke 04 fans were roaring in approval.
They knew Wang Shuo was Mainz’s biggest threat.
"Be careful, he’s clearly targeting you!" Foyelner warned.
Wang Shuo grabbed his teammate’s hand and pulled himself up from the grass, his eyes fixing on Jermaine Jones.
The Arican midfielder, with his ssy dreadlocks, looked like a lone wolf from the forest. His eyes, fierce and ruthless, were locked onto Wang Shuo.
But Wang Shuo wasn’t the type to be intimidated.
Play resud.
Wang Shuo stuck to his own rhythm and style of play.
He took possession, made his runs, received the ball, and passed it, completely unfazed by Jermaine Jones.
Gradually, he began to see the picture.
Jermaine Jones had been specifically assigned to mark him.
No matter where he ran, even if he stood perfectly still, the Arican midfielder stuck to him like glue.
What made it so difficult was that Jones played dirty, constantly teetering on the edge of a foul.
He was full of little tricks, too.
Sotis, long after Wang Shuo had already passed the ball, Jones would pretend he couldn’t stop his montum and slam right into him.
Like what happened in the 28th minute.
As Wang Shuo received the ball and turned, he used a series of quick touches to evade the pressing Jermaine Jones before passing to Hainauer.
But Jones followed through, kicking Wang Shuo directly on the shin guard. The impact sent Wang Shuo tumbling to the ground, where he clutched his leg, crying out in pain.
And the call?
The referee, Pell, only called a foul and didn’t issue a card.
Wang Shuo was speechless. He got to his feet, walked over to Pell, and pointed at his shin guard. The studs had torn several holes in his sock.
"Look at this! Are you kidding ?"
"If I hadn’t been wearing a shin guard, my leg would be broken."
Wang Shuo pleaded with the referee.
On the sidelines, Klopp was also furious in front of the visitors’ dugout, protesting to the fourth official.
"He’s letting that butcher injure my player!"
"Ask him if he’s blind!"
Furious, Klopp jabbed two fingers of his right hand toward his own eyes, gesturing at the referee, Pell.
This earned him a yellow card.
The gesture was deed too aggressive.
However, Pell did call Jermaine Jones over and, in front of Wang Shuo, gave the Arican midfielder a warning.
"You need to control your challenges. One more ti, and I’m definitely showing you a card!"
Jermaine Jones nodded sullenly.
But he still glared viciously at Wang Shuo.
Wang Shuo knew it was psychological warfare.
’If you back down or lose your nerve, you fall right into their trap.’
Klopp tried to make an adjustnt, gesturing for Schürrle to co over and support Wang Shuo, but Wang Shuo waved him back.
"Listen, I need you to stay pinned to the right wing. Wait for my signal, understand?"
"But..."
"Don’t worry, I’ll deal with the boss. I will get the ball out of here!" Wang Shuo said, gritting his teeth.
Karlsruhe had used a similar tactic against Wang Shuo once before.
They had assigned a player to man-mark him.
It had been quite effective that ti.
But Wang Shuo wasn’t about to fall into the sa trap twice.
His physicality might not be up to par yet, but he had stamina.
Jermaine Jones’s work rate was renowned in the Bundesliga, but Wang Shuo still wanted to test his own endurance against him.
’If I can just get him a yellow card, his hands will be tied.’
’Then I’ll have much more space to operate.’
...
Play resud.
The match remained a tense stalemate.
Schalke 04’s conservative tactics made it difficult for them to mount any effective attacks.
Even Raphinha on the right flank was making fewer forward runs.
As a result, Mainz actually began to seize a bit of the initiative.
Every ti Wang Shuo got the ball, he chose to take Jermaine Jones on directly.
He avoided physical confrontation as much as possible, trying to draw a foul by dribbling and taking him on.
Jermaine Jones understood his opponent’s intent. He knew that getting a card would put him on a tight leash, but he still chose to go in hard.
Because he wasn’t fighting alone!
Then, in the 45th minute, just before the end of the first half and as the match was about to head into stoppage ti, Wang Shuo dropped back to receive a pass. With his back to the goal, he let the ball run through his legs with his right foot.
As the ball passed between his own legs, it also went straight through the legs of Jermaine Jones—a nutg.
Wang Shuo spun around and sprinted after it.
The Arican midfielder turned instantly and, just as Wang Shuo reached the ball, charged over and shoulder-barged him to the ground.
The referee’s whistle blew imdiately.
Foul!
Yellow card!
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