Mid-December in North Rhine-Westphalia, light snow was already falling.
For countless Dortmund fans, this winter was truly hard to endure.
Not only did their bodies feel the cold, but even their hearts felt a chilling breeze.
For no other reason than the team's performance being absolutely terrible!
As The Yellow Hornets, who had fought Bayern until the very last moment for the Bundesliga throne just a few years ago and reigned supreme for two consecutive years, they had tasted the bitterness of defeat since the first game of this season.
They thought it was just a small, unlucky start.
Little did they expect that losing would become something the team had to get used to this season!
Three days ago, they lost away to mid-table Hertha BSC, swallowing their ninth League defeat of the season.
Three days later, they dragged their weary bodies back home, only to face an even more formidable opponent!
That was the undefeated League leader for fifteen rounds—Wolfsburg!
If Borussia Dortmund's form this season was outrageously bad;
Then Wolfsburg's form this season was unexpectedly red-hot!
Although they were at home in Westfalen.
However, with Borussia Dortmund's current state, whether they could withstand Wolfsburg, who had the best attacking firepower in the entire Bundesliga, even the most loyal Dortmund fans felt it was unrealistic.
They only hoped the team would give their all amidst their cheers!
On the other side, the Wolfsburg warriors, arriving outside the Westfalen stadium by bus, were eager to get started.
Last season, they had secured a precious draw at this stadium.
And during that match, a controversial scene had occurred.
Mark's breakthrough resulted in a red card for Großkreutz, giving Wolfsburg the advantage of playing with an extra man in the final moments of the second half.
Only then did the drama unfold where he assisted De Bruyne for a long-range shot to equalize the score.
In that game, Mark also left a bad impression on countless Dortmund fans.
Many Dortmund fans felt that he was just a cunning bastard!
Of course, as a competitor, Mark didn't need Dortmund fans to think he was a good person.
He only needed the opponent to feel that he was a big trouble, a player difficult to deal with, and that was enough!
Through the bus window, Mark could see Dortmund fans in yellow and black jerseys heading towards the stadium.
Seeing the Wolfsburg bus, some fans waved their scarves and team flags to demonstrate against them.
Some fans even "kindly and enthusiastically" gave them international friendly gestures.
Even though Borussia Dortmund's form had plummeted this season;
Even though they had lost nine of their last fifteen League matches;
Even though the team had lost its main striker, the new signings performed poorly, and their attacking ability was greatly reduced;
But Borussia Dortmund was still Borussia Dortmund.
Still the Yellow Youth Army that no one in the Bundesliga dared to ignore!
Moreover, they had come to play at the Westfalen stadium, recognized across Europe as a hellish home ground, so they had to give their all!
Thus, Hecking sent out the strongest lineup led by Mark and De Bruyne!
Players from both sides gathered in the tunnel.
Compared to last season, Borussia Dortmund had a few new faces this season.
For example, the returning veterans Shinji Kagawa and Şahin, as well as Lewandowski's "replacement," Immobile...
"Welcome to Sky Sports' coverage of the 2014-15 Bundesliga Matchday 16 blockbuster..."
"Borussia Dortmund hosts Wolfsburg at home..."
"Let's first look at Dortmund's starting lineup..."
"In this match, attacking stars Reus and Mkhitaryan, as well as defensive stalwart Piszczek, are all absent due to injury..."
"The starting goalkeeper is Langerak..."
"On the defensive line are Schmelzer, Hummels, Subotić, and Drmic..."
"The two defensive midfielders are captain Kehl and Sven Bender..."
"The three attacking midfielders are Großkreutz, Gündoğan, and Aubameyang..."
"Immobile continues to serve as the lone striker..."
Looking at this Dortmund starting lineup alone, it's definitely top-tier in the Bundesliga!
But in reality, the team's performance has been very poor.
And a large part of the reason for the poor team results is the poor performance of the players.
Poor player performance also reflects, to some extent, problems with the team's tactics, or is related to training methods, playstyle, internal atmosphere, squad composition, and so on.
Of course, a team's cliff-like decline is definitely not due to just a single reason.
If it could be explained and analyzed clearly, Klopp, who is under immense pressure, wouldn't be scratching his head every day.
This legendary Dortmund coach even said something dejected like, "We are under a lot of pressure, and the players seem to have forgotten the feeling of winning..." during an interview with reporters.
Although the team's form is poor and the results are terrible.
But the fans still stand by the team, cheering for them with shouts from the bottom of their hearts.
Just as they stepped into the Westfalen stadium, the overwhelming cheers immediately filled the ears of the players from both sides.
Looking up at the stands already dyed yellow and black, Mark's heart was also very stirred.
And in his mind, there was only one thought: "Conquer this famous European hellish home ground!"
It had been eight months since his last visit to Westfalen.
In those eight months, Borussia Dortmund had fallen from last season's Bundesliga runners-up to a team struggling in the relegation zone.
Besides Borussia Dortmund, whose lineup and results had undergone huge changes, Mark's changes were also visible to the naked eye.
Eight months ago, the fledgling Mark was just a super-sub for Wolfsburg;
Eight months later, this nineteen-year-old young man has already become the absolute core and primary scoring threat for Wolfsburg!
With Mark's massive growth, Wolfsburg has also become stronger than eight months ago.
With the referee's whistle, the match began!
Wolfsburg, wearing their dark blue away jerseys, took the initiative to attack.
In the fourth minute, Mark received a through ball from Gustavo and faced Schmelzer on the left wing.
Since Piszczek was injured, the heavy responsibility of defending Mark was given to Schmelzer, who was filling in as a right-back.
This was also a special treatment Klopp had specifically prepared for Mark.
In last season's encounter, Schmelzer was absent due to injury.
So this was his first time facing Mark!
As Schmelzer, who was once hailed as the best left-back in the Bundesliga, had experienced a certain decline in competitive form and physical function after a major injury.
Even so, he was still Dortmund's first choice for the left-back position.
In this match, to limit Wolfsburg's attack, Klopp specifically had him match up against Mark.
Although he had repeatedly watched Mark's match videos and highlights on the projection screen in the tactical room.
And had even played alongside him in the National Team, witnessing Mark's dribbling and breakthroughs up close.
However, it was Schmelzer's first time personally matching up against this German football superstar.
Compared to Piszczek, who has stronger one-on-one defensive capabilities, Schmelzer is better at attacking than defending, with excellent assisting ability and precise crossing.
And when facing a winger of Mark's caliber, he found it very strenuous.
With a step-over feint, then a step-over and a push outward, Mark used his explosive power to instantly widen the distance from Schmelzer.
Subsequently, after cutting inside diagonally with the ball for several meters, he used La Croqueta to bypass the lunging Sven Bender again.
Having bypassed two people with ease, Mark had already reached the left side of the arc in front of the penalty area.
This was his sweet spot.
In the next second, Mark didn't hesitate at all and directly curled a shot!
Bang!
The ball traced a beautiful arc, heading straight for the goal.
Unfortunately, although the shooting angle was tricky, it was weak and was directly caught by Langerak.
Although it didn't pose a real threat.
However, Mark's sequence of moves also earned a round of applause from the away fans.
"That's it!"
"Well done!"
"Wow, Lane entered the game very quickly right from the start."
"This is Wolfsburg's first shot on target in this match..."
Besides Mark, who started with a warning shot, the team's midfield core, De Bruyne, also used his creativity to tell the Dortmund players and fans a cruel fact:
Wolfsburg doesn't just have Mark alone who can create a threat!
Five minutes later, Malanda completed an interception in midfield and passed the ball to De Bruyne ahead of him.
The latter turned around, took a look at the Dortmund goalkeeper who was positioned far out, and directly swung his leg for a highly imaginative lob!
Unfortunately, the power wasn't quite right, and the ball went slightly over the crossbar.
Even so, this narrowly missed lob still gave Langerak and the home fans a cold sweat.
Even Klopp on the sidelines showed a gritting-teeth expression.
He swore in his heart that if this ball had really been lobbed in by De Bruyne, Langerak would definitely be dropped by him!
However, if it weren't for Weidenfeller having a minor injury, he wouldn't have had to field this second-choice goalkeeper of insufficient strength... As the match progressed, the Dortmund fans also surprisingly found that the situation on the field seemed to be heading in a direction they didn't want to see.
Wolfsburg, who had been completely suppressed by them at this stadium last season, had now actually taken over, controlling the initiative of the match at their home ground!
And the Wolfsburg players also soon surprisingly found that, compared to the Borussia Dortmund from eight months ago, the Borussia Dortmund before them seemed to have weakened quite a bit.
The players were very anxious, their ball control wasn't steady enough, and there were many mistakes.
Only then did the Wolfsburg players somewhat understand why Dortmund was deep in the relegation zone this season.
Of course, as competitors, they didn't mind stepping on Borussia Dortmund even harder!
In the first fifteen minutes of the match, the Wolfsburg players repeatedly threatened Dortmund's goal amidst the deafening cheers at Westfalen.
Among them, Mark's cross from the left and De Bruyne's through ball in the middle almost resulted in goals.
It was just that Dost, who started as the center forward in this match, missed excellent opportunities.
Dost's positioning ability is good, but his ability to seize opportunities is sometimes still a bit lacking.
And that "bit" is the key factor limiting him from becoming a top Bundesliga striker.
However, when the match reached the nineteenth minute, Wolfsburg, who held the initiative, still managed to be the first to open Dortmund's door!
And the one who scored was not Mark, nor De Bruyne, and certainly not Dost.
It was Perišić!
It was Wolfsburg's familiar tactical routine.
The attack first started from the left wing. After Mark held the ball and attracted two or three defenders, he passed the ball to De Bruyne, who was supporting in the middle.
While Mark made a forward run to draw the defense, De Bruyne suddenly turned around and sent a perfectly timed through ball to the right rib area.
Perišić, cutting in from behind, stopped the ball with his right foot and smoothly drove it into the penalty area, curling a shot into the far corner with his left foot.
The entire movement was seamless!
The ball thus traced a beautiful arc, bypassing goalkeeper Langerak's outstretched hands!
With a "swish," the ball drilled into the net!
The entire goal was very simple and direct.
Since the left wing was firmly occupied by Mark, last season's main left winger Perišić could only compete with Caligiuri for the starting right winger position this season.
However, for Perišić, who is balanced with both feet and can play on both wings, whether it's the left or the right, he can still create a threat.
On the left, he can complete 45-degree crosses or cut inside to shoot with either foot;
On the right, he can also complete cut-inside shots or cross from the goal line with either foot.
This is the advantage of being a balanced two-footed player!
Of course, it's not realistic to expect Perišić to lead the team to victory single-handedly like Mark.
However, with main attackers like Mark and De Bruyne on the field, he is top-tier as a support!
So far this season, Perišić has started ten matches in various competitions and come on as a substitute in five, contributing four goals and four assists!
As a wing support who doesn't have much of the ball, his stats are impressive enough!
"Goal!"
"Perišić!"
"The Croatian opens the scoring for Wolfsburg!"
"It's worth mentioning that this is De Bruyne's thirteenth League assist! This Belgian genius's passing is as precise as a scalpel!"
"Of course, Mark's forward run also attracted the attention of the defenders... After scoring, Perišić did not celebrate."
Instead, he raised his hands and calmly met De Bruyne, who had assisted him.
After all, two years ago, he was still a member of Borussia Dortmund.
Seeing his former club in such a poor state, he didn't want to rub salt in the wounds of his former teammates and fans... As Perišić took the lead in changing the score, Wolfsburg's momentum grew even stronger, and their attacks became increasingly fierce.
However, as they fell behind, the Borussia Dortmund players seemed to have let go of their inner pressure and suddenly woke up.
And they also slowly became familiar with Wolfsburg's offensive rhythm. While establishing their defense, they were also trying to organize some effective counterattacks.
But without key players like Reus and Mkhitaryan, Borussia Dortmund could only rely on the "Gabonese Supercar" Aubameyang on the right wing for counterattacks.
This resulted in a single direction for Dortmund's counterattacks, making them very easy to predict...