Panenka Penalty and the Invitation from the German Football Association

On July 29th, Werder Bremen traveled to face their last pre-season opponent of the month, Paderborn from the German second division.

In this match, Coach Schaaf didn't make any changes to the attacking lineup but focused on adjusting the defense.

Paderborn finished fifth in the Bundesliga 2 last season, not far from the promotion zone.

Their club president was ambitious, dreaming of promoting to the higher league.

To achieve this dream, they made significant reinforcements this season by bringing in many strong players.

Overall, they were stronger than the previous pre-season opponent, Cottbus, in terms of total strength.

Both Werder Bremen and Paderborn were strong in attack but weak in defense, resulting in an intense match.

In the 13th minute of the first half, Paderborn, playing at home, scored first.

Just five minutes later, Werder Bremen counterattacked and equalized.

In the 28th minute, Werder Bremen scored from a set-piece in the frontcourt, making it 2-1.

During injury time in the first half, Werder Bremen had a great chance, but De Bruyne's shot hit the post and went out.

After halftime, both teams resumed.

In the 53rd minute, substitute Lin dribbled into the opponent's penalty area, was fouled, and the referee awarded a penalty.

Since the team captain, Fritz, the regular penalty taker, was resting, Schaaf allowed Lin to take the penalty himself.

Taking a penalty tests a player's mental strength, and Schaaf wanted to observe Lin's ability to handle pressure.

With eight years of professional experience like Messi, Lin was accustomed to taking penalties.

He stood at the penalty spot, observed the goalkeeper's position, and started his run-up.

As he approached the ball, he suddenly changed his rhythm to trick the goalkeeper, and when the goalkeeper moved to save the ball instinctively, he kicked the ball.

Seeing Lin using the panenka to take the penalty, Schaaf couldn't help but stand up.

"This kid is so daring, to dare take a penalty like that!"

The ball went high, not too fast, with a high arc.

Passing over the diving goalkeeper's head, who almost reached it, the ball flew into the goal steadily.

Lin scored a spoon penalty, changing the score to 3-1.

"This kid's mental strength is amazing, isn't it too good? Most players should take the penalty safely, but he used a panenka!"

Seeing the ball scored, Schaaf breathed a sigh of relief.

After sitting back down, he couldn't help but comment to his colleagues next to him.

"Yeah, I say, is it possible that a panenka penalty is the safest method in this kid's mind?"

Henebach's words left everyone speechless...

In the following minutes, neither side could change the score again.

The final score remained 3-1, giving Werder Bremen three wins in the pre-season.

In all three games, Lin earned three valuable points for the team.

It was a shame that there were no more warm-up matches before the end of the second phase of training.

This meant that there would be no matches to play for the next half month, leaving him feeling a bit disappointed. 

The days of acquiring top talent were still far away!

While Lin was worrying about the lack of games, at the headquarters of the German Football Association, officials were discussing the invitation slots for the German Telekom Cup with sponsor, T-Home.

Founded in 2009, the Telekom Cup was previously known as the German League Cup.

This competition was sponsored by the renowned telecommunications company T-Home and held annually.

Four teams participated, with the previous season's Bundesliga champions and runners-up automatically invited.

Additionally, one mid-table team and one relegation team were invited. 

Due to the limited number of participating teams, the competition rules were simple.

Teams were randomly drawn to play two semifinals, with the winners advancing to the final and the losers playing for third and fourth place.

As a result, the prize money was not high, with only 300,000 Euros for the champions.

However, this high-level competition before the season helped teams assess the success of their transfers, making it an attractive event for the invited teams.

To ensure the team's preparation wasn't disrupted, the Telekom Cup matches were short, with all four games scheduled to be played within two days.

Additionally, there were time restrictions on each match, with both halves lasting only 30 minutes.

If it ended in a draw after 60 minutes, a penalty shootout would directly determine the winner.

This unique format often led to surprise outcomes in the Telekom Cup.

Even powerhouses like Bayern Munich frequently faced upsets, as they had yet to win the Cup since its inception.

This season, the German Telekom Cup has already invited the top three teams, last season's Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund, and the runners-up, Bayern Munich.

The team selected from the relegation zone from last season, narrowly avoiding relegation by only one point, was Hamburg.

The three chosen teams are good options, but the question is, which mid-table team to select?

The German Football Association and the sponsor couldn't agree on this matter.

According to the German Football Association, out of the 18 Bundesliga teams, the mid-table team should be the ninth or tenth-placed team.

The two teams in those positions are Werder Bremen in ninth place and Nuremberg in tenth place.

However the sponsor didn't favor these teams due to their city size, not being advantageous for publicity. They wanted to pick Stuttgart from the big city.

Stuttgart is the sixth-largest city in Germany, with a larger population and greater commercial value.

Hosting the Telekom Cup matches there would enhance the sponsor's advertising impact.

With both sides unable to settle the dispute, the German Football Association insisted on maintaining the rules.

Soccer in Germany is a popular sport with immense commercial value, so there are always sponsors available.

The collaboration with T-Home was due to them being a local company and having a pleasant past partnership.

If they became too arrogant and interfered with the Football Association's work, the German Football Association wouldn't mind switching sponsors, like Volkswagen as an alternative.

Upon hearing this, T-Home quickly acquiesced, showing respect for the Football Association's decision.

Seeing the compromise, the German Football Association compromised and selected Bremen, slightly larger than Nuremberg, from Werder Bremen and Nuremberg.

Soon, the invitation from the German Football Association was presented to the club's head coach, Schaaf.

Seeing this invitation, Schaaf was a bit hesitant:

Should he accept it or not?

Accepting the invitation could provide an opportunity to win the 300,000 Euros prize money and a share of ticket sales.

However, it would disrupt the team's training plan.

Additionally, playing two matches within two days would be a test for the players.

While senior players might manage, it would be a significant challenge for young players, especially those who haven't played in the Bundesliga before.

Moreover, they might face powerhouse teams like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.

If they were thrashed by these teams, the confidence built from three consecutive wins would be shattered.

Therefore, instead of making the decision himself, Schaaf gathered the coaching staff and also consulted the two standout young players, Lin and De Bruyne, for their opinions.

Hearing that there were more games to play, and against the Bundesliga champions and runners-up no less, Lin was excited.

This was a match worth two points! 

So, they must go!