After Leo Lin crossed the ball and assisted Firmino's headed goal, Klopp burst into delighted laughter and looked at Krawietz.
Krawietz looked at Zubizarreta, and all of them laughed.
That was because Leo Lin had never shown this kind of crossing ability last season.
"Do you think there's a chance this kid trains his abilities in his sleep? Every time he sleeps, he improves a little more."
"Once he sleeps enough, his dreams come true, and then he develops another brand new skill."
Klopp was almost rambling now, because he simply could not imagine how Leo Lin had improved so quickly.
Leo Lin kept unlocking one new ability after another, as if they cost him nothing.
For other players, developing these abilities might take one season, two seasons, or even longer. Some players with lower aptitude might go a very long time without making any further progress at all.
But Leo Lin was the complete opposite of lacking aptitude. His aptitude was simply far too high.
He could figure things out on his own.
He understood things like a madman.
He just kept understanding more.
The iron wall Atlético de Madrid had built in the first half had been broken through. On the touchline, Simeone pulled Godín over and continued arranging the defense.
"Simeone doesn't look panicked. They've conceded, but there's still plenty of time left."
"Atlético de Madrid still have chances. They just need to find gaps in Liverpool's back line."
Atlético's defensive counterattack tactics were very effective in La Liga, but against Liverpool from the Premier League, the effect was not quite as obvious.
That was because Liverpool had spent years competing in the Premier League. They were not afraid of physical confrontation at all.
Compared with other leagues, Premier League referees sometimes allowed a looser standard of contact.
They even encouraged physical battles to keep the match flowing.
After play resumed, Atlético increased the number of hard challenges on the pitch, but the results were poor.
Especially for Saúl, who of course knew exactly what kind of monster he was up against.
Leo Lin. Forget actively trying to challenge him physically. Sometimes, even trying to avoid him was impossible. This guy was practically born for physical battles.
In the 29th minute.
"Saúl is sticking close to Leo Lin in the middle, but it's very hard for him to interfere with Leo Lin receiving the ball."
Leo Lin was being held off by Saúl, but as he dropped back, he called for the ball from his teammates.
Arnold swung his foot again. He did not look for Leo Lin, instead switching play with a long ball to the left.
Robertson pushed up to receive it, and at that moment, Liverpool's attack was being launched by their left back.
Robertson carried the ball forward, while Mané turned and sprinted ahead of him, moving faster than Juanfran.
Robertson decisively sent a through ball forward.
Leo Lin turned and pushed up at the same time, muscling Saúl aside to gain the positional advantage.
Mané cut the ball back with a low cross.
Firmino received it on the edge of the penalty area, took one touch to adjust, and struck immediately.
Oblak threw himself sideways and blocked the shot. In the scramble inside the box, Godín got there first and cleared it with a powerful kick.
The ball flew over the halfway line and into the front half. Diego Costa dropped back, held off Henderson, and nodded the ball to the right.
The moment Griezmann controlled the ball, he struck it again, sending a beautiful curling switch toward the left.
Koke was already in position. He brought the ball down steadily, and Atlético's sharp counterattack took shape.
Koke controlled it on the wing, facing Arnold and getting a one on one chance out wide.
He did not try to beat him directly. Instead, he cut inside to open up space, then pushed the ball into the middle with a through pass for Diego Costa, who had surged forward from behind.
Costa exploded forward with the ball, while Leo Lin chased back desperately. Of course he knew what Costa was capable of.
Diego Costa deliberately carried the ball toward the left, attacking Matip's side. Compared with Van Dijk, Costa chose to go at Matip.
Matip retreated while defending, in no rush to step in. He was waiting for Van Dijk to move closer to his side.
Costa was not going to give Van Dijk the chance to cover. He drove forward at high speed and quickly closed in on Matip.
When there was only about one step between them, Diego Costa lifted his foot, pretending to shoot, but actually cut the ball to the right side of his body.
It was the same feint he had used before scoring against Portugal in the World Cup group stage.
Matip was beaten by the second move, but he did everything he could to regain his balance, then stretched out his right foot to keep blocking the shot.
Costa had already struck the ball. To avoid Matip's block, he adjusted the angle slightly and sent it farther to the right.
Mignolet dived for the save, but he could feel that his palm had touched nothing.
He had not reached it.
But the ball did not go in either.
After the block, Matip quickly turned his head. To avoid Matip's outstretched right foot, Costa had aimed farther to the right, and the shot skimmed past the Goalpost and flew into the stands.
"Close. That was far too close."
"Diego Costa was only a fraction away from scoring."
"Matip defended that very well. As a center back defending one on one, even though he lost his defensive balance on the first move, he still recovered on the second and forced Diego Costa to shoot wide."
"He didn't give up. That's exactly what a center back should do. Until the final moment, you can never give up."
Van Dijk pulled Matip up, and Mignolet came over to pat him on the back in thanks.
"Atletico still have chances."
"Liverpool need to be careful. If they want to lift the UEFA Super Cup, they have to be more cautious."
The match continued.
Atlético's counterattack had clearly put Liverpool on alert. From then on, even when their formation pushed forward, the moment they lost the ball, Liverpool would foul immediately in the attacking third, using every possible method to stop Atlético's back line from playing the ball out.
Leo Lin was mainly responsible for passing through the middle and the right side, providing attacking support. At the same time, he could also use his teammates' cover to drive toward the right side of the box, break into the area, and look for chances to score.
But Leo Lin soon discovered that ordinary passing methods were very difficult to use against Atlético's defensive line.
Only through the combinations between him, Salah, and Firmino, along with last season's dynamic triangle and Klopp's new tactical changes this season, could they create space.
But that was still far from enough. If they wanted better chances, they needed something unexpected.
Modrić's Outside of the Foot Control was flashing.
Like starlight.
In the 42nd minute.
"Fabinho is settling in very quickly. Compared with the start of the match, his performance has clearly improved."
"They control the tempo on the left, look for an opportunity, then switch play to the right for Salah."
"Salah receives it on the wing. Through ball."
"Arnold pushes forward."
After reaching the right byline, Arnold did not stop the ball. He cleverly cut it back toward the top of the penalty area with a reverse triangle pass. He had already seen Leo Lin.
Leo Lin met Arnold's pass and used the outside of his left foot to wrap around the ball, sending out a curling pass that spun outward.
The curve was huge, and it made the defensive angle extremely difficult for the defenders to judge.
The ball flew along a beautiful path toward the far post. Mané arrived at full speed and struck it first time.
Unfortunately, the angle was too tight, and the shot hit the side netting.
Leo Lin shook his head. He had put a little too much power on that pass.
He could feel that if he wanted to adapt to the outside of the foot skill, he still needed some time before he could bring out its best effect.
Leo Lin was not satisfied with himself, but the Liverpool fans were more than satisfied.
On the touchline, Klopp looked at Krawietz. Krawietz looked at Zubizarreta again, and all three of them fell into a stunned silence once more.
Scholes froze again.
"Is he human?"
"If he's human, I'll eat my damn words!"
"When did he learn how to use the outside of his foot too?"