After Paris Saint-Germain was removed from the list, I led England to victory!

At 6:50 a.m., the grass at Hoffenheim's training ground was still wet with dew.

Yan Yuan arrived ten minutes early today and stood on the sidelines doing warm-up exercises.

He kept recalling the "one-man dragon on the wing" skill tips that the system had given him last night, as well as Gnabry's amazing breakthroughs in the game.

"You're here pretty early." A familiar voice came from behind. Yan Yuan turned around and saw Gnabry walking over in training clothes, holding two bottles of sports drinks. Gnabry was here pretty early today too.

"I didn't want to keep you waiting." Yan Yuan took the drink, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip.

Gnabry grinned: "By the way, Yan, does the coach know about this?"

Yan Yuan nodded: "I'll go find him and explain the situation in a bit." He glanced at his watch, "Now is the perfect time to go."

The lights in Nagelsmann's office were already on.

When Yan Yuan knocked on the door and entered, the young commander was writing and drawing on the tactics board. After hearing the purpose of his visit, he put down his marker and crossed his hands on the table.

"You're planning to learn how to break through on the wings from Gnabry?" Nagelsmann raised an eyebrow.

"Hmm... good idea, but..." He stood up and walked to the window, looking at the sky that was beginning to lighten, "This ability cannot be mastered simply by technique; it requires a corresponding explosive power and speed foundation. Gnabry's breakthrough relied on his physical attributes, and you may not be able to adapt to it in the short term."

Yan Yuan stood ramrod straight: "Coach, I know this is difficult, but I want to try."

Nagelsmann turned around, his gaze lingering on Yan Yuan for a few seconds before he suddenly smiled: "Alright, I approve. But..."

He held up one finger. "If you don't see significant progress within a week, you need to adjust your training focus. Don't get stuck on this one point, okay?"

"No problem, Coach!"

When Yan Yuan returned to the training field, Gnabry had already set up the training marker discs and obstacles, and assistant coach Kramer also came to help, carrying a tablet computer and a speed measuring device.

"Did the coach agree?" Gnabry tossed a soccer ball over.

Yan Yuan calmly accepted the answer: "Yes, but I've given you a week."

Gnabry clapped his hands and said, "That's enough, Yan. Let's start with the basics and get started with the burst."

For the next half hour, Yan Yuan practiced his starting posture repeatedly under Gnabry's guidance.

The knee bend angle, the center of gravity, the stride of the first step... every detail was repeatedly adjusted.

Gnabry suddenly called a halt, "No, Yan, you're too focused on the correct form, which is causing you to lose your explosive power."

He walked over to Yan Yuan and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Relax, imagine there's a vicious dog chasing you."

Yan Yuan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to find that sense of urgency. When he opened his eyes again, his body had automatically adjusted to its optimal state.

"That's more like it!" Gnabry stepped back a few paces. "Now, sprint all the way to the third marker disc!"

Yan Yuan shot off like an arrow, but this time the feeling was completely different. His first step was nearly 0.3 seconds faster than usual, and assistant coach Kramer looked at the numbers on the speedometer in surprise.

"My God..." Kramer murmured, "His explosive power just now was 12% higher than the previous times."

Gnabry whistled to let Yan Yuan rest for a while, and said to him, "It seems it's not that my teaching is so good, it's that your student is too abnormal."

Yan Yuan walked back, panting, but with an excited smile on his face: "You're right. I was referring to the trick you told me. It felt like I suddenly had an epiphany."

[System Notification: Gnabry's skill compatibility increased by 2%]

The training has entered its second phase, focusing on dribbling and breaking through defenses.

Gnabry demonstrated this himself, with each change of direction accompanied by explosive acceleration, and the ball seemed glued to his feet in most situations.

"The key to this move is the change of rhythm," Gnabry paused to explain. "When dribbling at high speed, the key is to start slowly and then speed up, making it unpredictable for the defender to guess your next move."

Yan Yuan tried to imitate him, but failed in his first few attempts. Either the ball was too far from his body, or he lost his balance when changing direction. His ball control style was one-on-one dribbling breakthrough, so learning high-speed dribbling was still quite difficult.

"Don't rush," Gnabry patiently pointed out the problem. "Yan, I know your footwork is great, but your problem right now is that you rely too much on your footwork. A real breakthrough on the wing requires full-body movement. You need to use shoulder feints and deceive your opponents with your eyes."

This hint made Yan Yuan suddenly realize the truth.

When he tried again, he first looked to his right while slightly lowering his left shoulder. The moment Gnabry shifted his weight, he suddenly flicked the ball to the left with the outside of his right foot, and his whole body broke through from the other side like a spring.

"Beautiful!" Assistant coach Kramer couldn't help but applaud. "Perfect this time!"

Gnabry put his hands on his hips and pretended to be angry, saying, "No way, buddy, it took me a long time to learn this move, and you've already mastered it? That's so discouraging."

Yan Yuan wiped his sweat sheepishly: "Not at all, I'm still far from perfect, there are many details to refine..."

"Don't give me that," Gnabry laughed and tossed him a bottle of water. "Next, we'll practice real-world applications."

In the final stage of training, Kramer played the role of the defensive player, and Yan Yuan needed to break through within 30 meters.

On his first attempt, Kramer easily intercepted the ball; on his second attempt, he hesitated too much and almost crashed into the obstacle.

But on the third time, Yan Yuan first approached Kramer at a moderate speed, then suddenly stopped two meters away, and at the same time stepped on the ball with his right foot and pulled it back.

Just as Kramer shifted his weight forward, he poked the ball forward with his left foot, overtaking from the outside like a cheetah.

"A perfect one-man fast break!" Gnabry yelled from the sidelines. "That's awesome! That's the feeling!"

Yan Yuan stopped, panting heavily, but his eyes shone with an astonishing light.

He could sense that the skill matching accuracy of "Side Lane Dragon" on the system panel had improved again.

"Mr. Kramer, one more time!" he volunteered.

When the training ended, the clock struck nine, just over two hours later.

Gnabry looked at Yan Yuan, who was drenched in sweat, and shook his head: "My God, I prepared a whole day's training plan today... and you mastered the essentials in just two hours."

Coach Kramer, who was organizing the data, looked up and added, "Yan, your data just showed that the success rate of breakthroughs on the right flank has increased from 30% to 71%. That's a rapid improvement..."

"It's almost inhuman," Gnabry remarked, walking up to Yan Yuan and speaking earnestly.

"Listen, Yan, what you need to do now is turn these technical movements into muscle memory. You learn very quickly. After that, you just need to memorize them, memorize them thoroughly, and then make them instinctive."

Yan Yuan nodded, then suddenly remembered something: "By the way, Sergi, what were the details of that sudden stop and change of direction just now..."

Gnabry smiled and pulled out his phone. "I knew you'd ask. I just sent you five video clips of my old matches. Focus on my footwork and touch. These are recordings from when I first started out, they're very precious."

Yan Yuan and Gnabry bumped fists and hugged.

After the morning training session ended, on his way back to the locker room, Yan Yuan kept replaying every detail of the training in his mind.

Frankly speaking, having the players teach directly is indeed faster than figuring things out on their own in a systematic training space.

The training in this area only took a little over two hours this morning, and the system notified Yan Yuan that the skill matching rate had reached 89%. You should know that Paris Saint-Germain's three skill matching rate took several weeks of hard training and matches to reach 100%.

"From now on, I need to get along well with every teammate. Yes, I have to get along well with them."

Yan Yuan is ready to become a "football succubus." His goal is not only to learn the skills of those star players, but also to receive their personal guidance.

……

When Yan Yuan pushed open the door to classroom 203 of the Hoffenheim Youth Training Academy's teaching building at 1:30 p.m., there were already seven or eight young players sitting inside.

Most of them were looking down at their phones or chatting in twos and threes until Yan Yuan walked in, and the classroom suddenly fell silent for a moment.

"Hey, Asian kid picked up by the coach," whistled Max Hoffmann, a German blond midfielder for the U19 team. "You're really here for class? I thought you were just here to sign in and leave."

Yan Yuan smiled and placed his backpack on the seat by the window: "Why not?"

"Because most players choose the easiest courses to get credits," another player interjected, "and you chose math, physics, chemistry, and biology? Are you crazy?"

Yan Yuan shrugged: "Actually, no, I find it quite interesting."

A murmur arose in the classroom, and soon after, the German teacher, Ms. Schmidt, walked in, and everyone immediately quieted down.

She pushed up her glasses, her gaze sweeping across the classroom before finally settling on Yan Yuan.

"Ah, the new Asian player," she nodded with a smile, "I heard your German is quite good?"

Yan Yuan replied in fluent German, "It's alright, ma'am. I hope I can keep up with the lessons."

Ms. Schmidt raised an eyebrow. "A very standard accent, young man, better than some of the locals." She gave Max a meaningful glance, who curled his lip.

The first lesson was German literature, and Ms. Schmidt had them analyze excerpts from Goethe's Faust.

While the other players were still frowning and flipping through dictionaries, Yan Yuan had already raised his hand and spoken, offering a precise analysis of the metaphors and symbolism in the text in German. Ms. Schmidt looked at him in surprise: "You've read this before?"

"No, ma'am," Yan Yuan shook his head, "but the logic is quite clear. My father taught me Chinese literature, so I know how to dissect the logic of an article."

Max muttered to himself, "Is this guy a genius?"

The second lesson was math, and Yan Yuan's performance was even more outrageous.

The teacher had just written a calculus problem on the blackboard when Yan Yuan had already written the answer on his scratch paper.

Mr. Kruger, the math teacher, a serious middle-aged man, walked up to him, stared at his calculations for a few seconds, and then nodded: "Correct, and the solution is very concise."

"You've studied this before?" Kruger asked.

"Sir, I studied it when I was in England," Yan Yuan replied.

Kruger gave him a thoughtful look: "If you're interested, of course, I don't mean to force you. I know professional players are very busy. If you're not busy, you can participate in next month's math competition. Our youth academy hasn't had a student who won an award in a long time."

Yan Yuan nodded: "Hmm... I'll consider it, sir."

At lunchtime, Yan Yuan sat down in a corner with his tray. Several teammates hesitated for a moment, but Max eventually took the lead and came over to sit down opposite him.

Max took a bite of bread. "Seriously, Yan, how did you do that? Training is so tiring, how could you still learn so much?"

Yan Yuan took a sip of juice: "I'm used to it. Back in England and France, the youth academy required us to complete our studies."

It wasn't just in Britain and France; Yan Yuan was born into a traditional Asian family. Although his parents supported his football career, they didn't neglect his academic studies at all.

“But nobody’s like you,” another player chimed in. “Most of the people on our team don’t even understand German grammar, let alone the much more difficult math.”

Yan Yuan smiled and said, "Actually, I think math is easier to learn than German."

Max stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed: "Alright, Asian genius, I can copy your homework from now on."

Yan Yuan shook his head: "No, but if there's anything you don't understand, I can teach you."

Max exaggeratedly clutched his chest: "Oh my god, you actually rejected me!"

Yan Yuan's performance in the afternoon physics and chemistry classes was equally astonishing.

In physics lab, he quickly assembled the circuit, with minimal error in his measurements; in chemistry class, he even added a reaction equation not in the textbook when the teacher asked a question. His chemistry teacher, a young female PhD, asked in surprise, "Where did you learn this?"

"England," Yan Yuan replied without changing his expression.

After school, Max put his arm around Yan Yuan's shoulder and said half-jokingly, "Tell me, Yan, did you secretly use cheat codes?"

Yan Yuan smiled and shook his head: "No, I just learn faster. You know, I'm Asian."

Max was relieved. He sighed and said, "Alright, geniuses are different. See you another day."

Yan Yuan nodded and walked towards the players' dormitory. Actually, he really wanted to get into a prestigious university. Although he had been involved in football since he was a child, his academic performance was not weak, and even better than most people, thanks to his parents' influence and genetics.

To put it another way, if he hadn't chosen to play football, he could have already applied for offers from top British universities based on his grades.

The curriculum for young German football players is abitur (the German high school graduation exam).

The exam results here are highly recognized in European countries. If Yan Yuan can achieve a high score in this exam within a year, he will be eligible to apply to many prestigious universities in Europe.

The academic advantage of Asian players is a stereotype in the eyes of many.

But for Yan Yuan, this is just his habitual way of life. Whether on the court or in the classroom, he always wants to do his best.