The Union Berlin players celebrated wildly, their red jerseys forming a wave as they flooded the bottom of the North Stand to gather around Su Luo. They shouted out to the diehard fans in the stands.
Uncle Hans and others rushed to the billboard and hugged the players. The overhead camera footage made it look like the players in red were one with the sea of red in the stands. This scene perfectly illustrated why fans are considered the twelfth player on the team. At this moment, everyone's hearts were connected.
Not far away, Jack Grealish watched them enviously. He had almost joined the celebration but held back just in time to avoid being featured on the "Crazy Football" funny compilation like Ramos.
"As expected of him," Grealish thought. He knew this must be Su Luo's plan again. Su Luo always came up with crazy ideas. When they were teammates, Grealish didn't think much of it. But now, as an opponent, he felt Su Luo's dominance on the field.
"Two goals in a row within one minute!!" the commentator Sauer shouted. "Su Luo has also scored his second hat-trick in the Champions League! In his first Champions League appearance, with two consecutive hat-tricks, he now has six goals!"
"He's currently ahead of Messi, Ronaldo, and many other superstars on the top scorer list!"
The Germans and the English have disliked each other for decades, so deflating these haughty Englishmen felt like sweet revenge to Sauer. If possible, Sauer wished Su Luo could join the German team. With him, maybe they could achieve another World Cup glory!
National team coach Joachim Loew once mentioned in an interview that their coaching team intended to recruit Su Luo. As he wasn't playing for the Chinese national team, he was fully qualified to join Germany. All it would take was changing his nationality, and everything could be greenlit. However, Su Luo had no intention of changing his nationality so far.
Kahn, beside him, smiled and shook his head. "He pulled this trick against Bayern last season, but who would've thought he'd repeat it, causing Manchester City to suffer a big loss?"
"This Union Berlin team is really good. They always surprise you."
For Manchester City, it was a shock. City boss Manuel Pellegrini couldn't believe it. Leading 3-1 and thinking victory was assured, he hoped to end their losing streak. But in a blink, the opponent scored two goals in a row! Damn it!
Now, with stoppage time, there were still 10 minutes left. Should they continue to defend or press out and attack? This was a tough decision. According to Pellegrini's usual style, he would press out to attack. But the opponent excelled in counterattacks. In terms of speed and efficiency, Union Berlin was top-tier in Europe in the last two seasons.
If they stuck to defense, they might get 1 point, but it would feel like a defeat. After much deliberation, Pellegrini gritted his teeth and made a substitution adjustment. Grealish was replaced by Sterling, and the exhausted David Silva was replaced by defensive midfielder and left-back Delph. His intention was clear: delay the game to the end for victory.
Seeing this substitution, Director Zhang was a bit helpless. "Pellegrini's adjustment is conservative. With Delph, Manchester City becomes a three-midfielder defense, protecting the space in front of the penalty area and limiting Su Luo's long-range shooting opportunities. Sterling will help defend Maher Reiss."
"Manchester City intends to settle for a draw. An away draw is barely acceptable for them."
As expected, after Manchester City's substitutions, their defensive intensity increased. Union Berlin, having exerted much energy, now showed signs of fatigue. Mach Reiss, in particular, couldn't run as effectively. Su Luo, facing this increased defense, was reaching his limits of energy and physical strength. The "playing FIFA" series of kicks from God's perspective seemed unlikely to repeat.
Manchester City's defense turned into a swamp, trapping Su Luo. The more he struggled, the deeper he sank. In the last 5 minutes of regular time, Union Berlin's offense was helpless, their possession fleeting. Su Luo glanced at the sidelines as the fourth official raised his card: 3 minutes extra!
"The stoppage time is only 3 minutes. Both sides' players are exhausted. It looks like this tie will be maintained until the end," Zhan Jun sighed. Despite Su Luo's hat-trick, Union Berlin struggled to win at home. Going to Etihad for the next round would be challenging. Coupled with two matches against Juventus, their qualification was uncertain. Juventus' defense was even stronger than Manchester City's. Could Su Luo lead his team to beat Juventus?
With only 3 minutes left, head coach Neuhaus substituted young Chris Topher Quinn for the exhausted Mach Reiss, hoping Quinn's impact would create more opportunities. With all substitutions exhausted, Neuhaus could only sit and watch.
"Is it only a draw?" Hofstadter asked, unwilling.
Neuhaus looked intently at the field. "Let's resign ourselves to fate."
Hofstadter knew "fate" referred to Su Luo. If anyone could create a miracle, it was him.
In front of the TV, Anya clasped her hands, her heart racing. "He must be alright. We must win!"
Quinn, though active, lacked Mach Reiss' technique. Fearful of losing the ball, he didn't break through and only passed it to his teammates, having little impact. BBC's ace commentator John Chaplin commented sarcastically, "This young man is too low-level. A winger like Maher Reiss of Leicester City can easily crush Quinn. He's barely capable of playing in the Bundesliga, let alone the Champions League."
Indeed, in the final minutes, Union Berlin's right-side attacks were ineffective and even led to counterattacks. Sterling and Kolarov stole the ball and transferred it to De Bruyne, whose deadly pass reached Aguero. If Richards hadn't stopped Aguero, Manchester City would have sealed the victory!
"Sergio Aguero!!!" Chaplin exclaimed. "Manchester City's stoppage-time counterattack almost ended the match! What a pity!"
"Aguero's last shot before falling was blocked by Richards!" Chaplin continued. "Richards was a world-class defender despite his injuries! He knows Aguero's habits well! This former Manchester City player completed his revenge, stopping their victory!"
Over 20,000 fans applauded Richards, who had overcome injuries to save the game. Aguero, lying on the grass, regretted missing the goal by millimeters.
"Hey, are you still alive?" Richards asked, looking down at him.
"I'm fine," Aguero replied, reaching out.
"Don't pretend if you're fine," Richards said, pulling him up.
"You're ruthless," Aguero smiled helplessly, his time-wasting tactic thwarted.
After this episode, one and a half minutes of stoppage time passed, leaving just over a minute!
Union Berlin had one last chance to attack.
The goalkeeper Fabianski, who had just secured the ball, took a long breath and grounded it to Richards. Richards passed to Naby Keita, but Aguero quickly pressured him. Keita swiftly crossed to Kimmich. With David Silva off the field, no one was marking Kimmich, allowing him to receive the ball in the middle and look up.
Unfortunately, everyone in red jerseys was almost submerged in the sea of blue. Forsberg was tightly marked by De Bruyne and Sagna, Quinine was covered by Sterling and Kolarov, and Paredes was under pressure from Fernandinho. Su Luo was deeply surrounded by Yaya Touré, Kompany, and Otamendi.
Kimmich had no clear options but to pass back to the full-backs, who hesitated to press too high due to Aguero's counterattack earlier. At the critical moment, Su Luo gritted his teeth, summoned his last bit of strength, and accelerated out of the encirclement to respond. Kimmich passed the ball to Su Luo and moved forward.
Su Luo caught the ball, and Yaya Touré quickly marked him to prevent a turn. Remaining calm, Su Luo endured the pain, used his passive God's perspective, and predicted Kimmich's run. With a clever heel pass, he sent the ball through Touré's legs to Kimmich. Su Luo then switched to Ronaldo's style, turning and accelerating past Touré.
This caught Manchester City by surprise.
"Su Luo! Fantastic pass! He's handed it over to Kimmich!"
"Kimmich passes back to Su Luo!"
Between Yaya Touré and the center-backs, Su Luo found a short gap. Kimmich returned the ball, and without hesitation, Su Luo took a powerful shot, guided by Modric's precision and Haaland's strength.
"Su Luo's shot!!!"
Zhan Jun roared as a powerful long-range shot headed straight for the top corner.
"OMG! Joe Hart with a one-handed save!!"
Zhan Jun was stunned. "Joe Hart saves it?!"
"Fantastic save! Saint Hart stops Su Luo's bombardment!" shouted BBC commentator John Chaplin.
Joe Hart had redeemed himself, blocking Su Luo's killing blow.
"The quality of this shot was high, but the goalkeeper made an unbelievable save," commentator Sauer noted.
The fans sighed in disappointment. Su Luo had done everything right, but it wasn't enough.
"Could it be that this game will end in a draw?"
"A draw isn't bad," Uncle Hans consoled the fans. "We were down 3-1, and coming back to tie it is an achievement."
Indeed, drawing against a team like Manchester City was no small feat. They were a first-class European team, and Union Berlin had their own weaknesses. This was their first encounter, and they were unfamiliar with Manchester City, much like their initial 4-4 draw with Bayern. Hans believed they would improve in the next match.
Manchester City players celebrated wildly with Joe Hart. Kompany even kissed Hart on the head. They had been scared witless, but Hart saved them.
Union Berlin players were feeling desperate. Was this the end?
"What are you doing? There's still a corner kick!" Su Luo clapped his hands, rallying his teammates. Joe Hart had saved the ball over the baseline, giving them one last chance.
Forsberg ran to the corner with the ball, ready to take the penalty. The players came to their senses, preparing for the final effort. Manchester City players, high on morale, united to defend this last attack.
With about 30 seconds left, the referee checked his watch. Su Luo whispered some instructions in German to Chris Topher Quinn.
"Eh?" Quinn looked at Su Luo in disbelief.
"Don't worry, just be ready and leave the rest to me."
"Okay, I get it," Quinn nodded and positioned himself near the penalty spot.
Everyone else was focused on the corner flag area, unaware of their conversation. Su Luo signaled to Forsberg to use the No. 2 tactic and drive to the front point. Forsberg nodded, took a deep breath, and signaled to his teammates.
He ran up and took the corner kick.
"Union Berlin takes the corner!"
Everyone watching the game held their breath, watching this last attack. Kompany, defending Su Luo, was nervous. He turned his head to confirm Su Luo's position, but Su Luo had disappeared. Kompany turned again to see Su Luo zigzagging around him to the front point. Terrified, Kompany rushed over, joined by Yaya Touré.
As Su Luo prepared to leap, he activated his last bit of energy and used Dajirou's jumping ability to complete a kite turn in the air.
"Su Luo with a small angle bicycle kick!"
Zhan Jun exclaimed, surprised that Su Luo didn't aim for the goal. The Manchester City players were also caught off guard.
Who was he kicking it to?
In the next second, the answer was revealed.
"Ooh! Quinn!! He relays Su Luo's kick with another bicycle kick!"
Joe Hart, at the near post, watched in despair as Quinn's bicycle kick sent the ball into the empty goal.
"Lore!!"
"Union Berlin completes the lore with a stunning bicycle kick relay!"
The entire world erupted in excitement.
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