Ajax had fought their way into the Champions League quarterfinals with excellent performances all along the way. They had rarely made serious mistakes, and they had never been blown out by an opponent.
In this first-leg clash, Ajax had arrived believing they could beat Liverpool.
Instead, Liverpool opened the match by hitting them with two warning shots, each one more intimidating than the last.
"I have reasonable grounds to suspect that the two goals Lin just created were modeled on De Jong's and Ziyech's styles of play, only he adapted them through his own ability and turned them into even greater threats."
The Ajax players could sense it too. Leo Lin was learning their attacking methods right in front of them. But he had clearly grasped the essence of it, and had even gone one step further, using what he learned to produce even better attacks.
The remaining five minutes were precious to Ajax, but worthless to Liverpool.
And worthless things should disappear as quickly as possible, so Liverpool used their well-practiced tempo-killing game management to turn those final five minutes into garbage time.
After the half ended, De Jong did not immediately return to the dressing room. He pretended to walk slowly, then followed behind Leo Lin. This was the secret De Jong kept buried deep in his heart.
He had no idea how many times he had rewatched Leo Lin's match footage. Even his own style of midfield progression was modeled after Leo Lin.
De Jong said nothing, because the match was not over yet. But he stayed very close to Leo Lin, almost walking right behind him. He wanted to appear in the broadcast shot together with Leo Lin. He wanted to share the same frame as his idol.
"Although Liverpool are leading at halftime, Ajax have played very well. Their patterns and tactics are exactly like what we saw in their previous matches. There's a real youthful storm about them!"
"And Ten Hag has the intelligence you expect from a Dutch coach. His tactical setup has been excellent. But Lin, through one beautiful attacking move and one brilliant assist, has kept Liverpool in front. He's fully brought out the individual ability of the teammates around him!"
Scholes had put his finger on the key point. Throughout the first half, Leo Lin had focused on bringing out his teammates' individual qualities. In the second half, however, he would continue changing his own style of play. Next, it was time for him to show his own individual ability.
He did not need anyone else to activate him. Leo Lin could activate himself anytime, anywhere.
It was still the same old saying. If the system was not off, then it was on.
Always on.
On full blast.
Fifteen minutes later, Leo Lin kicked into gear.
"The second half has begun, and Liverpool's tactical style has changed again. It's a very obvious change!"
"When Liverpool attack, they're always sending several players into Ajax's penalty area. Salah, Mané, and Leo Lin keep exchanging passes between them."
Leo Lin's target was Blind. In the first half, Blind had been Firmino's responsibility. In the second half, Blind was lucky enough to be favored by Leo Lin instead.
As for the difference between Firmino and Leo Lin, Blind would dare to slap his chest and say he understood it better than anyone, because...
52nd minute.
"Here it comes!"
"Cross!"
"Blind muscles Leo Lin aside and clears it!"
"The ball hasn't gone far! Rodri intercepts!"
"He slips it through again!"
After intercepting Blind's clearance, Rodri threaded the ball back in, still looking for Leo Lin.
At that moment, Leo Lin did something in the penalty area that no one had expected.
Although he was a midfielder, Leo Lin set himself inside the box like a center forward, turning his back to goal and taking up a textbook hold-up position.
"What is he trying to do?!"
"Blind looks uncomfortable. Leo Lin has him pinned!"
Only after facing Leo Lin did Blind fully understand how lucky it was to deal with Firmino.
Because compared with facing Leo Lin, facing Firmino was clearly the happier option.
The instant Leo Lin shielded the ball, De Ligt had already rushed over. He was definitely going to help Blind stop Leo Lin from turning.
De Ligt was strong enough, and Blind was smart. He knew how to use his positional advantage.
So the old and the young, one tall and one strong, formed a perfect defensive partnership.
Just as the two of them thought that level of defensive pressure would be enough to contain Leo Lin, his trademark terrifying burst and turn appeared once again.
"Ah!!!" Don't misunderstand. De Ligt did not shout. That was him screaming inside his head.
"No!!!" Don't get excited. Blind did not shout either. That was him roaring inside.
"Bang!" That sound definitely did not come from a person. It was the sound of Leo Lin's shot smashing into Onana.
Blind and De Ligt had failed to stop Leo Lin from turning, but their defending still made Leo Lin lose his balance slightly as he prepared to shoot.
As a result, Leo Lin could not adjust his shooting angle properly. But right then, Onana would rather Leo Lin had adjusted it, because the lower part of his back, which had blocked the shot, had already gone numb and sore.
"Ouch!"
"That hurts just watching it..."
The ball did not go in. It struck Onana's lower back, then bounced into a position where he could gather it into his arms.
But Gullit could barely bear to look at Onana lying on the ground.
That hand clutching his lower back...
That faintly twitching body...
"Hard man."
"I told you this kid has the potential to become the best goalkeeper in the world!"
"He actually dared to use his lower back to block Lin's shot. Back of steel!"
"Brilliant!"
Leo Lin was furious.
He was furious with himself, because it had been a good chance, and he had not scored.
Leo Lin demanded a huge amount from himself. Missing such a golden opportunity was something he absolutely could not accept.
If Onana could have predicted what was about to happen next, he might have changed the way he had rushed out just now and simply let Leo Lin score. Maybe that would have been better than anything else.
Because after play resumed, Liverpool used their movement in the final third to keep creating shooting chances for Leo Lin, whether from long range or with driven shots.
"Leo Lin again! Another strike!"
"A miraculous save from Onana!"
"He blocks it away with his shoulder! Who knows how he managed that?"
...
"Mané's cross is cleared, but nobody is protecting the first ball again!"
"A thunderous volley!"
"WOW!!!!!"
"That ball smashed straight into Onana's face!"
"The follow-up is blocked too!"
"Onana is saving everything high and low. He's even using his face now, anything to stop Liverpool from scoring a third!"
"It's as if he has become Leo Lin's personal opponent. He simply refuses to let Leo Lin score!"
Onana was in agony.
But his suffering was not over yet.
"Thank goodness for Onana. Otherwise, we'd have conceded at least five or six today!"
"Onana is so good it scares me. He's too strong. He can save with any part of his body!"
"Considering the opponent is Leo Lin, Onana really shouldn't use any part of his body to make saves. Especially..."
The Ajax fans cheered for Onana, applauded Onana, and roared for Onana.
Until the 68th minute, when the cheers stopped dead.
"Salah breaks down the wing!"
"He cuts inside with the ball. There's no space, so he gives it to Rodri!"
Rodri did not stop the ball when he received Salah's pass. Instead, he simply pushed it forward in one smooth motion. That little change in the ball's path instantly gave the onrushing Leo Lin a shooting chance.
Facing Blind, Leo Lin did not force the shot this time. He first adjusted his body rhythm and watched Blind's movement.
Seeing Blind prepare to stick out a foot, Leo Lin pretended to shoot while dragging the ball toward De Ligt's side. Then, just as De Ligt was about to extend his leg, Leo Lin suddenly stabbed a shot away.
Because De Ligt had lifted his foot. And once he lifted his foot, a gap would open.
That familiar sound rang in Onana's ears once again.
This time, even if he wanted to block it with his face, there was no way he could stop it.
"Holyyyyyyyy!!!!"
"Hahahahahahahahaha!"
"He's scored anyway!"
"Ajax defended for so long and fought for so long!"
"But they still couldn't hold out against Lin's heavy artillery!"
"All of Onana's desperate efforts have gone to waste in this moment!"
Ashley Cole had thoroughly enjoyed himself. Leo Lin's relentless barrage of shots had left him staring in disbelief.
"Let me tell you lot something. You all think you're watching Lin play, think you understand Lin, think you know how strong he is. But what do you actually understand?"
"Do you people even understand how good Lin really is?"
Ashley Cole got so carried away that his praise went completely out of control, and he ended up saying something outrageous.
Scholes and Gullit, sitting beside him, did not dare say a word. They were afraid the anger from the fans in the livestream would spread to them too.
The viewers in the livestream were even more stunned.
"If I heard that right. Wait, I need to confirm this again. If I heard that right, I paid for a match subscription just so Ashley Cole could mock me for not understanding Lin?"
"Ashley Cole, I can tell you've never been properly beaten up. Just you wait. I've already prepared the Dutch magic staff. Don't let me catch you!"
"Come on, you guy with the crew cut. Get out of the screen right now! Look me in the eye!!!"