"Chen Tao was not seen in today's starting lineup."
"Head coach Thomas Doll's formation is still relatively chaotic."
"Tinga and captain Sebastian Kehl form a double pivot, with Jakub Błaszczykowski and Delron Buckley flying on both wings."
"Borussia Dortmund's main striker Alexander Frei was diagnosed with a muscle strain in his leg in the last League match and will be out for at least 4 weeks."
"Losing the team's only goal-scoring machine, Borussia Dortmund's away trip today will likely be quite difficult."
Commentator Sauer was not optimistic about Borussia Dortmund.
Originally, only Nuri Şahin, Chen Tao, and Alexander Frei posed the greatest threat in attack.
One of them was injured, and the other two were still benched.
No one knew what head coach Thomas Doll was thinking.
From the course of the match,
Thomas Doll's possession-based style of play seemed to dominate with 69% possession, but it did not threaten Frankfurt's goal.
The home team Frankfurt's counter-attacks repeatedly threatened goalkeeper Weidenfeller.
Chen Tao and Nuri Şahin, sitting on the bench, watched with bated breath.
"Amanatidis — a header!"
"Saved by Weidenfeller! Borussia Dortmund escaped a scare!"
"...Frankfurt's counter-attack is coming again!!!"
"It's still Ioannis Amanatidis!! A shot hit the post!"
"Frankfurt's continuous counter-attacks are giving Borussia Dortmund a huge headache!"
"Half an hour into the first half, Borussia Dortmund only had 1 shot on target! Their offense has problems!"
Before commentator Sauer finished speaking,
The close-up shot cut to Borussia Dortmund's twin stars on the bench, Nuri Şahin and Chen Tao, sitting on the bench.
The director's camera language was already very clear.
Even an amateur knows who Borussia Dortmund should send on to strengthen their offense.
Only the head coach didn't know.
Borussia Dortmund's offense could not pose a substantial threat to Frankfurt,
Frankfurt, playing at home, grew bolder and bolder.
Finally, before the end of the first half, Frankfurt still took the lead.
"Amanatidis — his 3rd attempt, finally scored! A textbook-perfect quick counter-attack!"
"The shot inside the box, goalkeeper Weidenfeller had no chance, he tried his best!"
The camera once again showed Borussia Dortmund CEO Watzke in the stands, his face ashen, sitting in his chair with his arms crossed.
Borussia Dortmund's 11 players on the field were like headless chickens, not knowing what they were playing.
Half-time, in the locker room.
Thomas Doll, who used to like to explain on the tactics board, uncharacteristically said nothing.
The players looked at him sitting silently in the corner and didn't know what to say,
The atmosphere in the entire locker room became very heavy.
"Is the coach really going to be sacked?"
Nuri Şahin whispered.
"I don't know, probably soon."
Chen Tao didn't dislike this 41-year-old German young coach.
Even though he was stubborn, talked big, managed the locker room terribly, and had no understanding of tactics.
His coaching style was conservative, preferring to trust veterans, and only bringing on young players due to external pressure.
His mentality was even more prone to collapse, even worse than his 15-year-old self.
But he at least gave him a chance,
He at least kept his word and was willing to admit defeat,
When Chen Tao dribbled aimlessly on the field not according to tactics, Thomas Doll didn't say much.
For Chen Tao, he was not a bad person.
Thomas Doll was simply not suitable for the position of a Bundesliga head coach.
Under high-pressure environments, no matter how normal a person is, they will become abnormal.
Perhaps leaving the top League head coach position and going to a more comfortable environment would be better for him.
...
In the 73rd minute of the second half, Frankfurt 1-0 Borussia Dortmund.
On the scoreboard, only time was passing, but the score remained unchanged.
Chen Tao and Nuri Şahin, who had warmed up at least 4 times and were about to warm up for the 5th time, had just stood up when they were called aside by assistant coach Dick Fuhren.
"You two change your clothes, get ready to go on."
Everything was ready, Chen Tao stood by the sideline.
Thomas Doll, in a suit and tie, was right beside him.
"You know, Chen. Two years ago, I thought I could win the Champions League."
Thomas Doll stood with his arms crossed, looking at the field, his eyes filled with the Hamburg team that made it to the Champions League in the 05/06 season.
"That year I won the Bundesliga Best Coach award for the first time. I thought Borussia Dortmund would be the starting point of my glory…"
"Now it seems, I'm still stuck in May 2006, and I haven't been able to move on."
Chen Tao didn't know how to respond.
What kind of coach doesn't give tactical instructions or reminders before a player goes on, but instead talks about his life passing by?
"Chen, you are truly the most talented player I have ever seen. You shouldn't be confined by rules…"
"There's no tactics to talk about today, just go out there and play to your heart's content."
Thomas Doll patted Chen Tao's back, shook his head, and turned to go back to the bench.
Nuri Şahin stood like a wooden stake for a long time beside him,
Only after the coach left did he point to his nose, feeling wronged:
"What about me? Aren't you going to say a few words to me?"
Chen Tao pointed his thumb at himself, a carefree smile playing on his lips:
"You're not the protagonist."
"I am the only protagonist on this green field."
"Piss off! Arschloch!"
Nuri Şahin was unconvinced, kicking out but Chen Tao easily dodged it.
Until the ball was out of play, the fourth official raised the substitution board.
The stadium DJ announced the substitutions:
"Number 7 Tinga is off, Number 35 Nuri Şahin is coming on…"
"Number 1 Błaszczykowski is off, Number 24, Chen Tao is coming on…"
The moment the DJ called out Chen Tao's name,
The Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt was filled with thunderous boos!
The sound wave formed by 50,000 people was like a materialized tsunami, sweeping in from all directions, completely engulfing the 15-year-old Oriental youth beside him!
If it were Nuri Şahin himself, being booed by tens of thousands of people would probably make his legs go weak,
But Chen Tao's expression remained unchanged, and the smile on his lips grew even brighter.
At this moment, Nuri Şahin finally admitted.
"He is indeed the protagonist on the green field."
According to an anonymous poll on the Kicker forum, Chen Tao topped the list of most disliked players in the Bundesliga!
Except for Borussia Dortmund fans, almost every team disliked this flashy young man.
The reason is simple,
He can trick every club's players in the most flamboyant way!
You have no way to stop him except by fouling him!
After he came on, the first time the ball was passed to Chen Tao's feet, it was his time to perform!
...
"Well done, guys."
"You worked hard!"
"Everyone worked hard."
At the end of the match, captain Sebastian Kehl, panting, took off his jersey and draped it over his shoulder, shaking hands and hugging his teammates one by one.
Today was truly a difficult match.
If they lost to Frankfurt, Borussia Dortmund's points would drop to 7th place, trailing 3rd placed Schalke 04 by 9 points!
This also meant that Borussia Dortmund would most likely lose their Champions League opportunity.
On the scoreboard now, Frankfurt 1-1 Borussia Dortmund.
Chen Tao's active performance after coming on curbed Frankfurt's attack,
He also created at least 5 excellent chances in the front third.
It was a pity that the frontline had lost Alexander Frei, and his teammates failed to capitalize on Chen Tao's passes.
It was still up to Chen Tao himself to withstand the pressure,
Suddenly breaking through with the ball in the final moments of injury time,
He dribbled past 3 defenders on the wing, cut inside, and burst into the box.
Facing the rushing goalkeeper, Chen Tao habitually pulled the ball and changed direction to round the goalkeeper, then dribbled to the open goal and tapped it in to secure the equalizer.
The first time he dribbled past multiple defenders and scored, his teammates cheered with joy.
After seeing this type of goal many times, his teammates became numb to it, as if it was just Chen Tao's basic operation.
They managed to secure a crucial equalizer and earn 1 point away from home,
There are still 4 League matches left,
Borussia Dortmund needs to catch up an 8-point deficit.
And their opponents are successively 2nd placed Werder Bremen, 4th placed Wolfsburg, 3rd placed Schalke 04, and Bundesliga hegemon Bayern Munich!
Looking at the Oriental youth surrounded by reporters,
Sebastian Kehl's originally desperate mood suddenly sparked a glimmer of hope.
"What if?"