The Opel Arena, the home stadium of Mainz 05, has a capacity of 34,034 spectators and officially opened on July 3, 2011.
It's a very modern stadium!
Since being promoted to the Bundesliga five years ago, Mainz has surprisingly established itself here!
Meanwhile, the coaching of Tuchel and Klopp has added a layer of legendary atmosphere to this club.
The next day, it grew dark.
The stadium was already packed with fans!
Mainz fans are predominantly red, while Dortmund fans are predominantly yellow, with each side controlling half of the stadium.
Andy accompanied his teammates and coaching staff onto the field.
He was surprised to see so many Dortmund fans here!
Although the two cities are not far apart, how did Dortmund fans manage to get tickets?
"Welcome to the Bundesliga Round 9 match between Mainz and Dortmund, brought to you by PP Sports."
"In the first 8 rounds, Dortmund won 5, drew 2 and lost 1, accumulating 17 points and ranking 2nd in the standings."
Mainz has 4 wins and 4 losses, accumulating 12 points and ranking 8th in the standings.
"The two teams have met 18 times in Bundesliga history, with Dortmund holding the upper hand with 9 wins, 6 draws and 3 losses.Dortmund has a slight advantage away from home with 4 wins, 2 draws and 3 losses."
"In addition, there are several Asian players in the starting lineup for this match.Our player Andy is also on the list as a substitute."
The broadcast screen flashed, and the rosters of both sides were displayed one after the other.
Mainz (4-2-3-1):
Goalkeeper: Karius; Defenders: Brosinski, Bungert, Stefan Bell, Pierre Bengtsson; Midfielders: Dani Latza, Baumgartlinger; Forwards: De Blasis, Marler, Jairo Samperio; Forward: Yoshinori Muto.Borussia Dortmund (4-2-3-1):
Goalkeeper: Bürki; Defenders: Park Joo-ho, Hummels, Sokratis, Ginter; Midfielders: Weigl, Gündoğan; Forwards: Mkhitaryan, Kagawa, Reus; Forward: Aubameyang
There were still many active fans in the live stream room.
The popularity of the Bundesliga in China has skyrocketed recently!
Especially Borussia Dortmund, whose fan base has grown exponentially!
This also made CEO Watzke and sporting director Zorc speak with great confidence at the shareholders' meeting!
[Guys, can Andy play in this game?]
[If he can play, then he should.I hope everyone won't overhype him; after all, he's only 18.Getting playing time is already a good thing.]
[If he were truly a genius, he would definitely be a starter by now.Look at all the players his age in Europe who are already starting!]
[Dude, do you even watch football?Have you ever seen an Asian player start for a top club's first team at just 18?]
[Shinji Kagawa, Yoshinori Muto.when will the Chinese national football team produce even one of those!Even a substitute would be fine!]
[Ugh!I'm so old, and I still stay up all night just to watch Andy.]
[No, I'm here to find my ex-girlfriend.]
"Beep~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!"
A whistle blew!
The competition has officially begun!
Both teams' players immediately got into the game!
After Dortmund kicked off, Mainz players immediately launched a full-field press!
Andy was stunned watching from the sidelines!
The intensity at the start was even higher than in the Bayern game.
Facing pressure from the backfield, Hummels launched a long pass forward!
Mkhitaryan fell to the ground and swept the ball towards the middle!
Reus receives the pass laterally!
Then he passed it back to Ginter, who had made a late run!
The latter has broken into the penalty area!
At the critical moment!
Mainz defensive midfielder Omgartlinger tracked back and intercepted!
A sliding tackle after a full-speed sprint!
He tackled Ginter on the edge of the penalty area!
"Beep!"
The referee immediately stopped the game!
"Oops!Baumgartlinger committed a foul!Ginter seems to be injured!"
"The referee awarded a penalty!"
"Dortmund were awarded a penalty just one minute into the game!"
"But Ginter seems to be seriously injured."
Inside the penalty area, Mainz and Dortmund players surrounded the referee.
Ginter, clutching his knee, put on a pain mask.
The team doctor rushed onto the field!
Tuchel immediately went to the bench from the sidelines!
He hesitated for 10 seconds between Piszczek and Andy, then looked at Andy!
"Change your clothes!Quickly!"
Andy looked up and pointed to his face.
Me?
The next second, Tuchel's hand was already on his shoulder!
When opportunity knocks, there's no stopping it!
Both Piszczek and Ginter have played for their national teams.
Andy is currently the best choice!
Furthermore, Tuchel also wanted to take this opportunity to see Andy's performance at right-back.
What kind of game can a player play if they are left-footed and don't rely on their right foot for crosses?
"Oh?Andy has come to the sidelines!"
"Is he about to go on stage?What a dramatic start!"
"Our player Andy is about to come on as a substitute.It's extremely rare to see someone come on as a substitute just two minutes into the game!"
"Hopefully, Ginter's problem isn't too serious."
Ginter was carried off the field on a stretcher, his eyes filled with not only pain but also resentment!
As Andy passed by him, he gave him a resolute look.
"Don't worry, brother, I've got you covered!"
Under the watchful eyes of the entire stadium, Andy ran towards Mainz's half!
Inside the penalty area, Reus stood at the penalty spot!
Boos erupted from the crowd!
Especially behind the goal in this half of the box, there are loyal Mainz fans gathered!
Goalkeeper Karius remained calm and composed in the penalty area, bouncing around with ease.
A whistle blew!
Reus made a move!
He circled halfway around the penalty spot and then took a shot with his right foot!
Karius stretched out his entire body in front of the goal and leaped to make a save!
"Bang on the door!"The ball was saved again!
"Why do we say it was saved again?Because Karius has saved three penalties this season!"
"This goalkeeper is extremely good at saving penalties!"
[I'm so scared!I bet on a 0-0 draw, and then they called a penalty!The sky is falling!]
[Aubameyang and Reus really have a good relationship; he even gave up his chance to break the record!]
[Reus is not playing well under Tuchel; his overall season rating is only 6.8!]
[Andy's in!Who knew this kid could fight with either hand!]
We'll have to wait and see what happens; it's uncertain what will happen.
[My favorite manager is Karius; he has a great model and high potential!]
When a dream start turns into a mirage, the opponent's morale will definitely be greatly boosted!
Mainz's attack wasn't particularly sharp, but their counter-pressing was executed very well!
In the 8th minute, Park Joo-ho, under pressure, passed the ball back to Hummels, who was also double-teamed.
The latter can only pass the ball forward without stopping it!
Ultimately, this led to Mkhitaryan being dispossessed by the opponent before he could retreat and receive the pass!
After intercepting the ball, Marler charged all the way into the Dortmund penalty area!
Mkhitaryan pursued relentlessly, pulling his opponent to the ground just outside the penalty area!
The referee promptly showed a yellow card!
And they were awarded a free kick just one meter in front of the penalty area!
Andy, far away, felt powerless to help.
I haven't even touched the ball once!
Why is the fighting so fierce over there?