Chapter 66: Unstoppable Schweinsteiger

Chapter 66: Unstoppable Schweinsteiger

The referee for this match was Florian Meyer, a well-known Bundesliga referee who was voted the most popular Bundesliga referee by thousands of fans in Kicker magazine's poll.

Meyer's officiating was moderate, but his judgment was very accurate, with few missed calls or wrong decisions.

The fact that such a respected referee was appointed to officiate this match showed the seriousness with which the German Football Association regarded it.

It's unclear whether Bayern was afraid of biased officiating, so they used their influence in German football to invite him. Werder Bremen hadn't received this treatment before.

Both teams announced their starting lineups before kickoff. Werder Bremen's lineup was as follows:

Goalkeeper Milic; Center-backs Papastathopoulos and Pledl; Left-back Fritz; Right-back Selassi; Defensive midfielder Junuzovic; Central midfielders Hunt and De Bruyne; Wingers Lin Quan and Elia; Striker Arnautovic.

Their formation was 4-1-4-1, shifting to 5-4-1 defensively and 4-3-3 in attack, demonstrating versatility.

However, their weaknesses were apparent, with vulnerabilities on the flanks that could be exploited by the opponents.

Bayern Munich's starting lineup was:

Goalkeeper Neuer; Center-backs Dante and Boateng; Left-back Badstuber; Right-back Lahm; Defensive midfielders Schweinsteiger and Gustavo; Wingers Ribery and Muller; Attacking midfielder Kroos; Striker Pizarro.

On the bench sat stars like Robben, Martinez, Gomez, Mandzukic, Alaba, and Van Buyten.

In the 2012-2013 season, Bayern's strength didn't just lie in their starting lineup, but also in their bench.

As the saying goes, "Fear not Bayern's starting XI, fear Bayern's substitutes!"

Their bench depth not only surpassed the entire Bundesliga but also the entire European football scene.

Such a wealth of player resources made Bayern's tactics flexible and difficult to defend against.

Bayern's formation for this match was 4-2-3-1, with two sweeping defensive midfielders, four attacking players in midfield, and full-backs like Lahm who excelled in providing assists.

Moreover, learning from the previous match's lesson, Heynckes didn't deploy Lahm at left-back but instead had Badstuber mark Lin Quan.

Clearly, he hoped to use the latter's strong defensive ability to limit Lin Quan's attacks on the right flank.

Seeing the opponent's formation, Shauf frowned.

Bayern had an absolute advantage in terms of sheer strength, yet they still adopted such a balanced offensive and defensive formation.

This left him speechless; the opponent's formation and deployment were too cautious, their defense too solid. It wouldn't be easy for Werder Bremen to counterattack.

He glanced at Bayern's coaching bench; dealing with the old fox Heynckes was truly challenging.

This season, Heynckes' coaching ability had been fully demonstrated.

He not only perfected Bayern's offense and defense but also greatly improved the atmosphere in the dressing room.

Even with so many stars at Bayern, he had them all obediently following his instructions. Even troublemakers like Robben dared not utter a word of complaint while sitting on the bench.

It's worth noting that Bayern used to be known as "Bundesliga Hollywood," where big-name stars in the team were not easy to manage.

At this moment, the players from both sides were standing at the player tunnel, waiting to enter the field.

At 15:25, the main referee led both teams onto the field.

During the entrance, Pizarro, who had played for Werder Bremen for many years and was still their all-time leading scorer, kissed the grass as he stepped onto the Weser Stadium.

This gesture won him applause from the fans at the scene. Although fans were unhappy with his transfer to a league rival, they understood his desire for more honors.

Moreover, they now had players they loved more in the team, so they had forgiven Pizarro.

When the camera focused on the Werder Bremen players entering the field, the audience erupted in enthusiastic applause and cheers.

And when Lin Quan appeared on screen, the audience, led by the host, chanted his name even louder!

Seeing the high popularity of the young player on the Weser Stadium, Pizarro, who wasn't having the best time at Bayern, felt a bit jealous.

If he hadn't chosen to leave back then, perhaps he would be enjoying this kind of cheering and applause himself.

...

During the coin toss before the match, Bayern won and chose the side of the field instead of the kickoff.

Werder Bremen kicked off, De Bruyne passed the ball to Arnautovic, who immediately passed it back to Hunt and made a forward run.

However, Hunt didn't pass to Arnautovic because he was quickly surrounded by Bayern players and had no chance to receive the ball.

He passed the ball to Lin Quan on the wing instead. Seeing Bayern's defense quickly shifting, with several players blocking his path, Lin Quan had several Bayern players marking his position on his breakthrough route.

If he rashly attempted to dribble through, the chances of being intercepted by the opponents were high.

With no good opportunities, Lin Quan passed the ball back to Junuzovic to draw out the Bayern players and create space behind them defensively.

However, Bayern seemed well-prepared for this. Their three defensive lines maintained a reasonable distance, coordinated seamlessly, and never showed any vulnerabilities.

Indeed, this season's Bayern Munich had become even stronger defensively. It was incredibly difficult to find flaws in their defense and break through their goal in positional play.

After a few passes in their own half, Werder Bremen players immediately faced pressure from the opponents.

With no other choice, they had to take the risk and pass forward.

Bayern's players defended Werder Bremen's forwards well, pressing and intercepting to limit their passing.

However, Werder Bremen's players weren't as technically refined and quickly lost possession in intense physical battles.

Fortunately, they had no intention of engaging in positional play with Bayern. After conceding possession, they obediently retreated to their own half and began to defend deeply.

Seeing the opponents parking the bus at their home stadium, Shauf's expression twitched slightly.

If Werder Bremen weren't playing against Bayern Munich, wouldn't their actions be heavily booed by the home fans?

If the opponent was resorting to parking the bus, then Bayern couldn't just stand by.

So, he gestured for the team to press forward and launch an attack.

Here it comes!

Shauf immediately sat up straight, eyes fixed on the field.

He had anticipated Bayern's attacking response to his defensive setup, but he wondered how exactly they would attack.

Bayern had too many attacking options up front. Before their tactics unfolded, you could never predict where their main focus of attack would be!

In the fifth minute, Bayern's winger Muller dribbled the ball, making his way to the goal line. Then, just as the defenders thought he would cross, he suddenly passed the ball back.

Bayern's midfielder Schweinsteiger had started his run before Muller passed the ball, swiftly positioning himself in the passing lane.

His late-arriving run caught the defenders off guard, leaving them unable to immediately close him down.

After receiving the ball outside the penalty area, Schweinsteiger took a shot from distance, a powerful strike aimed at the goal.

Fortunately, the shot lacked precision, sailing just over the crossbar.

Schweinsteiger's long-range attempt made Werder Bremen players break out in a cold sweat.

The opponent's sudden attacking move caught Werder Bremen players off guard, leading to a gap in their defensive line.

Shauf quickly stood up, instructing his players to strengthen protection outside the penalty area, not allowing the opponents to feel comfortable shooting.

However, Schweinsteiger wasn't that easy to defend against.

In the 13th minute, Kroos dribbled the ball, drawing defenders before passing diagonally to Ribery.

Ribery cut inside directly into the penalty area, immediately attracting defensive pressure from Werder Bremen players, blocking his shooting angle.

But Ribery had no intention of shooting; instead, he dribbled diagonally, drawing away defenders and creating space, then suddenly passed the ball out of the penalty area.

Once again, it was Schweinsteiger who found himself in position after timing his run into the edge of the penalty area.

Junuzovic quickly moved up to block, not allowing him to take a long shot.

But this time, Schweinsteiger didn't opt for a long shot; he chose to dribble forward.

Junuzovic rushed in too fast, easily bypassed by Schweinsteiger, who had already entered the penalty area.

Due to Ribery's cut inside, Werder Bremen's defensive line was slightly tilted to the right.

This kind of vulnerability was hard for ordinary players to spot, but who was Schweinsteiger?

He was the top midfielder in the Bundesliga, and he immediately seized upon this flaw!

As soon as he saw Junuzovic rushing in, he had already planned how to complete this attack.

Werder Bremen's left-back Fritz immediately abandoned marking Thomas Muller and charged towards Schweinsteiger.

With his movement, Schweinsteiger immediately passed the ball to Muller, who was in space.

Upon receiving the ball, Muller passed it back, intending to play a one-two and bypass Werder Bremen's captain.

Schweinsteiger had already shaken off Fritz's marking by this time and ran into space. As long as he received Muller's pass, he would have a clear chance on goal.

Fortunately, Muller's pass was intercepted by Werder Bremen's Eliasson, defending the backline, and disrupted the opponent's attack.

Although this time Bayern's attack failed to produce a shot, it posed a greater threat than before.

Shauf clenched his fists; he could see that Schweinsteiger was the key to Bayern's attack in this match!

(End of this chapter)