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Chapter 221 - 221. Hat Trick!

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"Bundesliga Post-Match Ratings: Lance Scores a Perfect 1.0, Highest on the Pitch, Hat-trick Secures Victory Against Bayern."

"Away Hat-trick, Coming Back From 2-0 Down to Win 3-2, Displaying the True Colours of the Bundesliga's New King!"

"Epic Comeback! I've Seen This Scene Before! Lance Continues to Be Bayern's Bane, Maintaining a 100% Win Rate Against Bayern Over Two Seasons!"

When the head referee blew the final whistle three times, social media had already exploded.

Fans seemed to have seen this episode before!

During the 2013-2014 season, Lance's first Bundesliga season, the little-known player led the dark horse Bayer Leverkusen, who had been on a northern expedition, against the "Southern King" Bayern Munich.

The situation at the time was dire, with Bayern holding a clear advantage.

But relying on Lance's miraculous performance, Bayer Leverkusen ultimately achieved a 4-3 comeback at the Allianz Arena.

This time, Bayer Leverkusen also fell behind by two goals early in the match, and were even on the verge of collapse.

It was Lance again!

A hat-trick to complete a comeback victory against Bayern!

"This is a great victory, proving that Bayer Leverkusen is not a temporary challenger; they have the ability to fundamentally change the Bundesliga landscape."

"Did Bayern Munich not perform well enough?"

"No, they pushed themselves to the limit. They fully utilised possession-based football and their dominance as a powerhouse."

"Theoretically, Bayer Leverkusen had no chance."

"It was in the cracks of these opportunities that Lance seized them, completing three impossible shots, a hat-trick to defeat Bayern, successfully narrowing the 6-point deficit to just 3 points!"

"Only one match separated them from the top of the Bundesliga!"

The 2014/15 Bundesliga title race regained its suspense.

As for the top scorer list, the suspense was gradually fading.

Lewandowski scored twice, narrowing the goal difference to three goals, but Lance's hat-trick widened the gap again!

Currently, Lance leads the top scorer list with 21 league goals, hoping to defend his Bundesliga Golden Boot.

Last season, he broke Gerd Müller's record with 42 goals, and this season, Lance is also firing on all cylinders!

21 goals in 14 rounds; all of Germany trembled.

Bild's front-page headline featured Lance's airborne volley.

Who would have thought that in the final seconds of the match, Lance could control the ball in the air and shoot from that position outside the box?

He had several chances in both halves that he couldn't convert, yet the three goals he scored were all highly difficult.

Before the match, Bayern fans were incredibly boisterous, but afterwards, they completely quieted down.

It was finally Bayer Leverkusen fans' turn to dominate the internet, appearing in comment sections and forums.

"Who's still saying Lance can't shoot?"

"Excuse me, the championship this season still belongs to my Bayer Leverkusen."

"Lance has a 100% win rate against Bayern, completely dominating them."

"That last goal was simply divine! Bundesliga Top 1 this week!"

"Is that a goal a human can score?"

"Every time we beat Bayern, their former second team coach Erik ten Hag gets dragged through the mud."

"Where is that bloke now?"

"Who knows? Probably slunk back to the Eredivisie after last season."

"Laughable, someone with such poor judgement shouldn't be a head coach and ruin other teams in the future."

Whilst Bayer Leverkusen fans cheered and celebrated, Bayern fans had no energy to retort; all their efforts were focused on criticising Guardiola.

"What's the point of Guardiola's possession? Just circling outside the box and never shooting."

"Both chances were created by Robben and Ribéry, not much to do with tactics."

"Not using a super striker like Lewandowski, I don't know what he's thinking."

"Götze and Müller not playing is the most outrageous thing. Why be conservative after being equalised? Why not continue to press?"

From tactical design to on-pitch command, Guardiola was thoroughly lambasted by angry Bayern fans.

Last year, they were joyfully welcoming the "Six-Time Champion Coach," but now their 'sweetheart' had turned into a 'harridan,' and Guardiola was despised by Bayern fans from top to bottom.

The tactically intricate and soft Bayern was not the iron-blooded Bayern that fans envisioned.

Whispers of "Guardiola Out" had already begun to appear sporadically in the community...

It was the second day after the match when the team bus arrived back at the Bayer Leverkusen training base.

Unexpectedly, a group of fans was still waiting to greet them at the base entrance.

"Bayer Leverkusen Allez!!"

"Bayer Leverkusen Allez!!"

"Bayer Leverkusen Allez!!"

There were nearly a hundred people, and their collective shouts were powerful, waking up many of the sleeping players on the bus.

"Are there any pretty girls? Keep an eye out for me; if there are, I'll go sign autographs."

At the mention of pretty girls, Julian Brandt became very excited.

"There are indeed some."

De Bruyne chuckled:

"But they're all here for Lance."

He pointed to the support signs outside; the beautiful female fans held banners supporting Lance.

"Damn it! Why is someone both handsome and so good at football! It's not fair!"

Julian Brandt always prided himself on the belief that those who were good at football weren't as handsome as him, and those who were more handsome weren't as good at football.

Until he met Lance, Julian was completely overshadowed.

Son Heung-min was a bit groggy from sleep.

He was the first to get off the bus, intending to pick up his car from the car park and go back to his apartment to continue sleeping.

Seeing a fan with an East Asian face, he subconsciously assumed it was a South Korean, went up, took the sign from the fan's hand, and swiftly signed it.

This left the Chinese female student looking quite awkward.

"No, buddy?"

After signing, Son Heung-min realised his mistake and smiled apologetically:

"Mianhae, mianhae... I'm really sorry."

The female fan completely ignored Son Heung-min, and upon seeing Lance get off the bus, she started screaming frantically again.

The future "Asia's Number One" and "Great Korean Star" was completely reduced to a mere extra, silently shedding tears as he left.

"International students?"

"Yes, Lance, we are all your fans! So excited! Your Chinese is really good!"

"Thank you for your support."

Lance didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He grew up in a Chinese family, and Mandarin was his native language, yet he was being praised for it.

Over these two seasons, more and more international students, and even fans who flew thousands of miles from the East specifically to see him, had appeared.

Many Chinese faces could be seen on the streets of Leverkusen, a "small village."

Coupled with the economic upturn in East Asia, the once tranquil town was energised by tourists, adding much vitality.

Apart from some lesser-known natural landscapes, there wasn't much to do around Leverkusen.

The only must-see attraction was BayArena.

The influx of eager tourists prompted special attention from the Leverkusen authorities.

In addition to building many tourist-friendly facilities, increasing bus routes and taxis, they even planned to apply for more lenient visa policies for Chinese citizens, hoping to invite more tourists to Germany.

The spending power of East Asian tourists was not to be underestimated.

Lance himself hadn't expected that because of him, the tourism industries of both Germany and China had seen a certain degree of growth and improvement.

Even the small Belgian town of Genk, with only 60,000 residents, benefited, with more and more Chinese tourists visiting the "Lance's Former Residence."

Years later, the Genk authorities actually renovated the two-storey house where Lance once lived into a "Lance Museum," transforming it into one of the popular attractions in Belgium's official travel guide...

Time returned to December 7, 2014.

The day after Bayer Leverkusen's 3-2 away comeback victory against Bayern Munich, the club had a day off.

After a major battle, the entire team needed to relax.

Lance was no exception.

However, his way of relaxing still involved his unvarying morning routine of going to the gym for a workout, followed by some simple ball training, seeking to find his touch without using his 'cheat' abilities.

Hyypiä, busy in the base office, had long been accustomed to this sight.

On the empty training ground, only Lance was practising.

Initially, he would advise Lance to go back and rest, but later he realised that being on the pitch itself was Lance's way of relaxing.

"If this lad doesn't win the Ballon d'Or in the future, it's truly an injustice!"

Hyypiä said.

On the quiet training ground, after juggling the ball, Lance sat on the grass to rest for a moment.

He calmed down and opened his system panel.

"Fusion: 98%!"

The big match against Bayern brought an additional 4% reward after the game!

Only 2 points remained until 100%!

This meant that, at the earliest, before the winter break, Lance was about to unlock a new template!

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