Like Hoffenheim, for example.
And Bayer Leverkusen.
Conversely, against teams that liked to hold possession and played at a slower tempo, like Bayern, Mainz always perford well.
Of course, this "well" was relative, and it was always predicated on burning through their stamina and going all out.
Their technique was inferior to their opponents; if they didn’t outrun them, they might as well not play at all.
After the 20-minute mark, as Bayer Leverkusen’s high press began to ease up slightly, Mainz was gradually able to push forward.
They started making more forays into Bayer Leverkusen’s half.
And around this ti, Mainz began to show signs of life.
For instance, they started sending more balls in from the wings.
These were all low, driven balls or waist-high long passes aid at the center of the pitch upfield.
The results weren’t great.
They were mostly intercepted by the opposing midfielders or full-backs tracking back in ti.
At first glance, these passes looked a bit like rushed clearances.
Only Wang Shuo knew that these balls were all intended for him.
But for various reasons—the timing of the pass and his run being off, an inaccurate pass, or a poor drop zone—none of them ever reached him.
Mainz never lingered on the attack.
After a misplaced pass, they would imdiately retreat and resu their defensive formation.
Klopp had coached this team for years. From the 2nd Bundesliga last season until now, Mainz had always been known for its defensive prowess.
Even after their promotion to the Bundesliga this season, Mainz’s defense was still solid.
It was only in the second half of the season, after selling Subotic, that their backline had loosened up a bit.
But breaking through Mainz’s goal was still no easy task.
The two sides remained locked in a stalemate.
Bayer Leverkusen wasn’t afraid to commit players forward, both in attack and in their counter-press.
This created a lot of trouble for Mainz.
But it also gave Mainz opportunities to counter-attack.
It was just that their counter-attacks lacked punch.
The ball simply couldn’t get to Wang Shuo’s feet.
Most absurdly, as the match went on, everyone was surprised to find that Klopp’s team had yet to even manage a single shot.
Their most threatening attack occurred in the 32nd minute.
This ti, the ball finally reached Wang Shuo’s feet.
And it was during a frontal assault.
As Wang Shuo dribbled forward and faced Sinkywitz, he perford a knock-and-run, using his speed to force his way past him on the side. But as he collected the ball and was about to burst into the penalty area, he had no teammates in support, and Friedrich quickly moved to cover, managing to block the ball out for a corner.
Corner kick!
Hainauer’s corner was once again cleared out of the penalty area.
They still couldn’t create a shot.
As if in retaliation, Bayer Leverkusen imdiately struck back.
After receiving the ball on the left, Tony Kroos sent a diagonal pass with his right foot toward the far post.
Center-forward Kiesling out-jumped Nowitzki for a close-range header.
But it skimd just wide of the goal.
The more than 50,000 Bayer Leverkusen fans in the stadium were roaring.
Anyone could see that Bayer Leverkusen had the complete upper hand.
Right now, against the mighty Pharmacy, Mainz could only sit back and take the beating.
Starting from the 35th minute, Bayer Leverkusen launched another wave of attacks, continuing to pin Mainz down in their own half.
But this ti, the intensity was clearly much less than it had been at the start of the match.
Mainz barely managed to hold on.
Although they faced a few dangerous situations, their goal remained safe.
It was clear that Kiesling and Hels were still not in top form.
Having been unable to create a shooting opportunity, Mainz struggled on until the 39th minute, when they were awarded a throw-in on the left side of their own half.
Lővér ran over and threw it back forcefully with both hands to Pekovic.
At this mont, the players from both teams were concentrated on the left side of the pitch.
Wang Shuo had originally wanted to receive the throw-in, but after seeing it thrown back to Pekovic, he glanced over, saw the right side of the pitch was wide open, and imdiately guessed his teammate’s intention.
He imdiately turned and sprinted forward.
Bayer Leverkusen also quickly realized Mainz’s intent, and their entire defensive line began to shift.
Friedrich and Sinkywitz flanked Wang Shuo, running back with him.
By the ti Wang Shuo reached the edge of Bayer Leverkusen’s 30-ter zone, the ball had already been moved from Pekovic to Kalhan, and then passed to an unmarked Helle on the right flank.
At that sa mont, Helle was racing up the right wing. After crossing the halfway line and receiving Kalhan’s pass, he took another touch forward to steady himself.
Wang Shuo instantly recognized the opportunity, decisively accelerated, and broke into a full-speed sprint.
"Stay with him!"
Friedrich and Sinkywitz also sped up their retreat.
Left-back Kadlec, anwhile, stayed on the left edge of the penalty area, preparing to intercept Helle.
But just then, after steadying himself, Helle hit a low, driven, diagonal long pass with his right foot.
The ball flew on a low trajectory at incredible speed, quickly bypassing Bayer Leverkusen’s midfield and dropping toward the penalty area.
As Wang Shuo sprinted, he was constantly sandwiched between Friedrich and Sinkywitz.
Normally, Helle would have tried to pass as close to the goal as possible, allowing Wang Shuo to rush in for a header or a tap-in.
Bayer Leverkusen’s two center-backs were anticipating exactly that.
But they never expected that Helle’s pass wasn’t aid at the goalmouth or the six-yard box, but toward the penalty spot.
While sprinting, Wang Shuo kept looking back to track the ball’s flight path.
As he burst into the penalty area, he saw the pass coming and imdiately chose to stop abruptly near the penalty spot.
They had practiced this exact play many tis over the past few days.
Just as the ball arrived, Wang Shuo finished turning his body.
Friedrich was no pushover. He imdiately tried to get tight to Wang Shuo and engage him physically.
Based on their encounter two weeks ago, Wang Shuo was at a significant disadvantage in physical confrontations.
This ti, however, Wang Shuo extended his left arm to block Friedrich.
This was a piece of advice from Tuchel.
Generally speaking, the more experienced a defender is, the more cautious they are about making rash moves inside the penalty area.
With Wang Shuo’s arm blocking him, Friedrich couldn’t imdiately press him tightly.
This naturally created a sliver of space for him to turn.
The rest was up to Wang Shuo’s own skill.
As the ball ca, he planted his left foot, swung his right foot up, and used the inside of his boot to cushion the incoming ball from the right.
His ankle was very relaxed. The mont he made contact, he pulled his foot back, his entire body swiveling with the motion.
When his right foot landed, the ball had been perfectly brought down, settling to his right.
This first touch required an imnse amount of skill.
Especially with Friedrich and Sinkywitz looming nacingly behind him.
Not only was Wang Shuo pushing all his Passive Skills to their limits, but this was also the result of two long weeks of arduous, repetitive practice.
After planting his right foot, he turned again to face the goal, quickly swinging his left leg back as if to shoot imdiately.
From the sprint to the abrupt stop, the turn and trap, and then the turn and "shot," Wang Shuo spun like a top within a tiny space.
And incredibly, he had managed to bring the ball under control.
The sudden change happened in an instant.
The Bayer Leverkusen fans hadn’t even had ti to cry out in alarm before Friedrich reacted, launching himself into a sliding tackle and throwing his entire body on the line to block Wang Shuo’s shot.
The other center-back, Sinkywitz, also went to ground with a tackle to block the shot.
But Wang Shuo’s left-footed shot was just a feint. He hadn’t actually struck the ball. Instead, he changed his technique, turning what looked like a strike with his instep into a deft touch with the inside of his left foot, cutting the ball across.
The ball imdiately rolled toward Wang Shuo’s right foot, completely nullifying the blocks from both Friedrich and Sinkywitz.
Bayer Leverkusen’s two center-backs nearly crashed into each other.
The secret weapon had worked!
A clear path to the goal opened up in front of Wang Shuo.
He quickly took a step forward, planted his left foot, and kicked with all his might with his right.
He put so much force into it that his body involuntarily leaped into the air.
Everything happened in an incredibly short span of ti.
It was only when the dull THUMP of Wang Shuo’s shot rang out that the 50,000-plus Bayer Leverkusen fans finally let out a collective gasp.
But the ball shot off Wang Shuo’s foot like a bolt of lightning. No matter how fast Adler’s reflexes were, he was just a step too slow.
The ball drilled straight into the back of the Bayer Leverkusen net.
Mainz’s first shot of the entire match was a goal!
In that instant, whether it was Klopp and Labbadia on the sidelines, the fourth official and staff, or the more than 50,000 Bayer Leverkusen fans in the stands, everyone was utterly stunned.
’He... How did he do that?’
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