Soccer: Maxed-out ball control, the skill is too overpowered.

Oh open!

Lu Xiao's ominous premonition came true.

Judging from my teammates' nervous demeanor before the match, I knew we might be in trouble.

As it turned out, we really did have a tough start.

Arsenal certainly played well enough, with peak-era Özil, peak-era Giroud, and peak-era Arteta, plus in-form Cazorla and Walcott...

Even the mighty Barcelona team would find this midfield and attacking combination somewhat challenging.

What's more, Leverkusen is out of form?

0-1 conceded a goal

Arsenal's morale was higher, while Leverkusen were completely on the back foot.

It was like being hit hard by Tyson's right hook in a boxing match; he barely managed to stay upright, but was completely dizzy.

He cowered in the corner of the ring and was brutally beaten by his opponent's torrential pear blossom fist.

Forget about counterattacking; at most, they can only protect their head and face to avoid being knocked out.

Zhan Jun and Coach Zhang were on tenterhooks watching.

"Wow! That was a really clever pass from Özil!"

"Özil through ball into the box! Cazorla!! An attempt from a tight angle!!"

"Bernder Leno barely managed to deflect the ball out of bounds!"

"Arsenal have already taken their sixth corner kick in less than 30 minutes of the first half!"

"Arteta kicks off, Giroud!"

"The header went just over the crossbar... Coach Zhang, how do you break the deadlock in Leverkusen's current form?"

It seems like they'll have a hard time getting past the other half.

"That's right. Don't be fooled by Arsenal's attacking prowess; they executed their high-block defense very well today."

Bayer Leverkusen's ability to distribute the ball out from their midfield and defense is relatively weak, failing to provide adequate support for Lu Xiao and Son Heung-min.

Ramsey, Arteta, and both wingers immediately counter-pressed.

I think Leverkusen shouldn't bother with their usual passing combinations anymore.

Why not just go for it and attack behind the defense, exploiting the gaps behind the two full-backs?

At this point, we can only rely on the individual abilities of our attacking players.

"Yes, Son Heung-min and Lu Xiao are both in good form, and they may become the key to Leverkusen's counterattack."

During this period, both players struggled to get the ball; Wenger's defensive tactics were quite effective.

I've figured out who's the most dangerous player on this team...

……

The issue that Zhan Jun and Zhang Lu were discussing was exactly what Sasha and Hypia were struggling with.

Before the match, they knew that Lu Xiao might be limited, and that Son Heung-min's left flank was likely to be neutralized.

Wenger deliberately left Sagna behind to avoid attacking.

Gibbs on the left frequently came up to the frontcourt.

Cazorla, playing as an attacking midfielder, is essentially playing as a left winger.

He can tuck inside and form a dual attacking midfield partnership with Özil, creating a two-man playmaking system in the attacking third.

The left corridor was left entirely to Gibbs to manage.

Anyway, Bayer Leverkusen's right winger Robbie Kruse is a complete waste.

The Australian international previously played for Fortuna Düsseldorf in the German second division.

He managed to get into Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga for the past two seasons and was lucky enough to secure the starting right winger position.

Later, due to mediocre performance, he was traded to the Chinese Super League's Liaoning Hongyun to earn money, and then played in the German Second Division's Bochum and the Australian A-League's Melbourne Victory...

It can be said that this period at Bayer Leverkusen was the most glorious period of Robbie Kruse's career.

Against Bundesliga teams, he can barely help with the defense.

When they faced Arsenal in the Champions League, their lack of skill became exceptionally apparent.

"That old fox Wenger, he's despicable!"

Sasha had no choice but to mutter a curse under her breath.

The squad doesn't have any particularly good players to offer.

Guardado has also been in poor form lately, and Julian Brandt is a volatile player...

Bayer Leverkusen are now essentially fighting Arsenal with one leg limping.

"How about we send Sun to the right flank?"

"Who's coming on the left?"

"Too……"

"It all depends on who can step up. If they can pull one goal back, at least the team can play a bit more normally..."

Before Sasha could finish speaking,

In the 37th minute of the first half, Arsenal executed another classic Arsenal-style combination.

"Arteta passes to the left wing!! Gibbs, Cazorla, Gibbs cuts the ball back in a triangular pattern!!"

"Ramsey made a run forward... but no shot! He let it through!"

"Özil receives the ball, takes a shot himself? No shot, he passes!"

"Walcott!! Receives the ball in the penalty area, crosses it!"

"Giru—I've got the thief ball!!"

"Giroud scores twice! Leverkusen trail 0-2 at halftime!"

From the perspective of a Premier League supporter, Zhan Jun is happy to see Arsenal put on an excellent performance.

But from Lu Xiao's fans' perspective, this kind of backcourt being breached is not a scene he wants to see.

If Leverkusen suffers a heavy defeat, Lu Xiao won't have any room to perform.

After finally defeating Manchester United and advancing to the knockout stage as group winners, being thrashed by Arsenal in the round of 16 would be a huge loss.

Zhan Jun also wants to see Lu Xiao run into some more European powerhouses.

"There was really nothing we could do about that goal; Arsenal almost got the ball into the net."

Zhang Lu was speechless.

Scoring one goal might be due to Leverkusen's poor form.

Having conceded two goals in the first half, Leverkusen's midfield and defense were indeed outmatched by Arsenal.

The German commentator, Sauer, sounded dejected, and his expression must have been very frustrated.

"We have to admit that Arsenal's impression on us in recent years has been poor in the Champions League... just look at the teams they've faced!"

Barcelona and Bayern Munich!

Theoretically, it's quite normal for Arsenal to win so easily against Leverkusen.

Good news: Leverkusen didn't concede another goal and held on until halftime.

Arsenal went into the locker room trailing 0-2, holding a two-goal advantage from away goals.

The players on both sides had completely different expressions.

"Don't blame yourselves, you've done your best. We were just unlucky... We'll try to play well in the second half and show our Bundesliga style!"

Show the same resilience we showed against Manchester United!

Head coach Sasha wanted to turn on the hairdryer and give these guys a piece of his mind.

However, judging from their expressions, no one wanted to lose, so scolding them wouldn't do any good and would only affect their morale.

Sasha, contrary to his usual behavior, offered words of comfort.

"Don't overthink it. Let's just pretend the two balls don't exist and start from scratch."

Boldly pass the ball to the frontcourt, boldly trust your teammates, and no matter what, the whole team will shoulder the burden together.

Believe that your teammates can create miracles.

The head coach has already begun to hint that in the second half, more passes should be made to Lu Xiao and Son Heung-min, the two Asians.

He could see that there were some opportunities where the team could have trusted them.

But hesitating at the crucial moment still caused him to miss the opportunity to pass the ball.

Don't underestimate Lu Xiao just because he's only 16; he might just become the key player in the entire game!

……

At the start of the second half, Arsenal didn't even bother marking Lu Xiao anymore.

They further restricted Leverkusen's passing, preventing Lu Xiao from receiving the ball.

Lu Xiao had to continue retreating, even back to the center circle, to receive the ball.

"Alright, Lu Xiao has reached the center circle... controlled the ball, turned, and got past Arteta, beautiful!!"

"Pass it to Son Heung-min... Ramsey and Sanjaya are double-teaming him, it won't be easy for Son Heung-min to break through. Pass it back to Lu Xiao... Danger!"

In the 55th minute of the second half, Leverkusen faced another close call!

Son Heung-min's passing intention was too obvious, causing Arteta and Özil to double-team Lu Xiao.

Seeing that Arsenal was about to intercept the ball in the center circle and launch a counter-attack, Lu Xiao gritted his teeth and sprinted forward, intercepting the ball with his foot before Arteta could make a move!

He was barely managing to extend his leg forward; he had already lost his balance and could easily fall to the ground with the slightest mishap.

Moreover, without committing a foul, Arsenal can immediately switch from defense to attack and put pressure on Leverkusen's defense.

All the fans at the Bayer Arena, including those watching on TV who supported Lu Xiao and Bayer Leverkusen, were worried for him.

Did the 16-year-old player have no performance at all today?

Do not!

At the crucial moment, Lu Xiao's composure came in handy!

Fusion Value: 100%!

The moment he stepped onto the Champions League knockout stage today, his fusion value jumped to 100%!

I thought something might change, but nothing has happened so far.

[System upgrade in progress... Please wait!]

There was only one vague and unclear prompt.

This is also why Lu Xiao didn't cheat in the first half; during the system upgrade process, even his [rage value] remained at 0%!

But Lu Xiao wouldn't be discouraged by a temporary bug in the system upgrade!

The 100% integration also allowed Lu Xiao to remain absolutely calm throughout!

"Watch my performance!"

Lu Xiao stretched out his leg to intercept, putting Arteta in a desperate situation. He controlled the ball at the last possible distance and pulled back, avoiding Arteta's outstretched leg interception.

At the same time, taking advantage of the moment he extends his leg, I lightly poke him through the groin with my toe!

"A one-two pass between the player and the ball!!! Lu Xiao—"

Hearing Zhan Jun's excited tone, Lu Xiao moved!

He nutmegged Arteta from behind, then dribbled past Özil to avoid a challenge! He charged into the Arsenal penalty area!

"Stop him!!"

Arsenal's defense panicked as their midfield was easily breached by a 16-year-old!

Mertesacker immediately pressed forward!

"Sun!!"

Lu Xiao passed the ball diagonally to Son Heung-min, who then made an aggressive forward run!

Son Heung-min dribbled past Ramsey, but Sagna was still marking him closely.

With no other option, Son Heung-min had to sweep through the middle lane...

Lu Xiao has already moved forward and is in position!

At the edge of the penalty area, a perfect control with his left foot, a deft dribble past the defender! A turn past Koscielny! A one-on-one chance into the penalty area!!

"Lu Xiao!!! A tribute to Bergkamp!!"

How could Zhan Jun not recognize this extraordinary person?!

Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp scored his iconic goal in the same way.

Fifteen years later, Chinese-American prodigy Lu Xiao pays homage to a classic against Arsenal!

The whole world was stunned.

Lu Xiao entered the penalty area with elegant dance steps, past Koscielny behind her and Szczesny who came out to challenge her.

Calmly slot the ball into the bottom corner!

"Lu Xiao—"

Zhan Jun was almost suffocating; his heart was in his throat. The instant Lu Xiao's shot hit the inside of the goalpost and bounced in…

Finally, it turned into surging passion!

"Goal!!"

"The second half has just begun, and we're down 0-2!"

"Young Chinese-American player Lu Xiao has stepped up once again! He's pulled one back!"

"1-2!! Leverkusen has brought the game back into suspense!"