Both starting lineups entered the players' tunnel—the battle was about to begin!
Leo Lin walked at the very back of the line. The moment he stepped onto the pitch, the blinding floodlights hit him head-on.
"WAAAAAAM!!!"
The roar eruptting from the entire Allianz Arena instantly made Leo Lin's ears ring!
He could clearly feel the ground beneath his boots vibrating.
The grass underfoot was noticeably damp and slippery.
In the terrifying South Stand, not a single fan was seated. Everyone stood shoulder to shoulder, bouncing together in a celebratory dance, singing songs of victory as if Bayern had already won the match.
One of Europe's most intimidating home grounds—statistically the most dominant fortress in the Bundesliga—was exactly like this.
Moments later, the match kicked off!
"This is the Allianz Arena, Bayern's home ground."
"Bayern are playing very steadily, constantly pushing forward. Their attacks are coming in waves."
"Liverpool are opting for defensive Counterattacks. They're not rushing forward. The balance of play is very clear—Bayern attacking, Liverpool defending."
17th minute!
"Thiago controlling the ball through the middle, Vidal trying to block Leo Lin."
"Thiago switches play with a long pass to the left—Ribéry receives it!"
Liverpool's back line attempted to spring the offside trap, but Joe Gomez accidentally dropped too deep!
Ribéry beats the offside trap and is through one-on-one!
Gomez desperately chases back, trying to recover the ball, but he can't catch him!
Just as Ribéry was about to enter the penalty area, Gomez made a ruthless decision. From behind, he subtly clipped his shin into Ribéry's trailing heel, instantly knocking Ribéry off balance and sending him crashing to the ground!
Gomez immediately raised both hands, pretending innocence as if he hadn't committed a foul.
But it didn't fool the assistant referee on the touchline, who immediately raised his flag to signal the foul.
Leo Lin grabbed his head with both hands. He knew exactly what that foul meant.
"Foul! Joe Gomez stops Ribéry's one-on-one!"
"Gomez is simply too young. His positioning broke Liverpool's offside trap and gifted Ribéry the chance."
Liverpool players surrounded the referee, trying to pressure him into changing the decision.
But the referee remained resolute, pulling out a red card and sending Joe Gomez off!
"Well… harsh reality."
"Joe Gomez receives a red card. He's been sent off."
"He can head straight to the showers now—and no one will be picking up his soap."
"Liverpool will now play with ten men against eleven."
Gomez looked utterly dejected.
At this moment, Klopp made an immediate adjustment.
He had originally trusted Gomez's defensive ability to deal with Ribéry, but the young defender had paid a heavy price for his inexperience on the Champions League stage.
Arnold came on to replace Mané. Klopp had no other option—defense had to come first.
"Liverpool have switched to a 4-3-2 formation. Klopp still hasn't abandoned the possibility of Counterattacks."
"Thiago will take the free kick. It's a good position and not far from goal."
"This midfield maestro has excellent free-kick technique."
All eyes were fixed on him.
Thiago began his run-up, struck the ball cleanly, and sent it curling toward the top-right corner!
Mignolet froze on the spot!
The shot was too fast and dipped sharply—he had no time to react!
The net rippled with a crisp sound as the ball flew in.
Thiago sprinted toward the sideline and dropped into a passionate knee slide!
The Allianz Arena exploded with celebration!
"This is cruel for Liverpool. They already sacrificed a red card to stop Ribéry."
"But Thiago still scores! Bayern Munich lead 1–0 and now have the numerical advantage!"
Everything had happened too quickly—completely beyond Liverpool's expectations.
But Klopp still refused to abandon the Counterattack. He understood that maintaining some attacking threat was the only way to limit Bayern Munich's pressure.
Still, Liverpool were struggling badly with one man down.
Derek Rae explained to viewers during the broadcast.
"Football is played with eleven players because each person has an important role within their area."
"Now that Joe Gomez is off and Mané has been replaced by Arnold, Liverpool can no longer control their right flank."
"And that gives Bayern Munich's left-back much more freedom to attack—David Alaba."
Derek Rae was absolutely right.
Alaba was doing exactly that.
He kept surging forward aggressively, essentially playing as an attacking full-back. With excellent ball control, he frequently stepped into midfield, helping Bayern create a numerical advantage there.
Bayern's four-man midfield circulated the ball quickly, easily bypassing Liverpool's three-man pressing line.
26th minute!
"Bayern Munich attacking again. Leo Lin pressing alone, with Henderson and Emre Can staying deeper to cover."
With only Leo Lin pushing forward, Henderson and Emre Can dared not step up too high, wary of balls played in behind.
Leo Lin pressured Javi Martínez, who immediately passed to Thiago.
Thiago drove forward and switched it left to Alaba.
Alaba instantly threaded a through ball!
Ribéry made another run down the left.
Fortunately, Arnold managed to keep up, forcing his body in front to win the ball.
But Lewandowski's immediate press nearly forced Arnold into a mistake!
The young English full-back had no choice but to launch a desperate long clearance.
Liverpool looked completely rattled!
"Liverpool are being pinned back entirely. The feeling right now is that Bayern could score at any moment."
Just as Derek Rae said this, Bayern won a throw-in.
Alaba hurled a powerful throw toward the middle.
Lewandowski dropped deep and flicked a header on to Thiago at the top of the box!
The midfield maestro calmly controlled the ball, cushioning it two steps to his left.
He immediately drew his leg back, preparing to shoot!
Emre Can sprinted in from the side!
He meant to intercept—but the slippery turf caused his footing to give way!
The interception turned into a sliding tackle!
"AHHH!!!"
Thiago screamed in pain.
Leo Lin froze where he stood. Being the closest, he saw clearly—Emre Can's studs had slammed directly into Thiago's ankle.
The wet grass had caused an unintended foul!
The referee had no hesitation.
Another red card!
Despite Emre Can's desperate protests, there was no escape.
Derek Rae's voice carried obvious concern, echoing the emotions of every Liverpool supporter watching.
"Liverpool are down another man!"
"Emre Can has been sent off! Liverpool will face Bayern Munich with just nine players for the remaining seventy minutes!"
"I don't know how this has happened—but that's football!"
"Liverpool's luck is terrible tonight!"
"My goodness… how are they going to survive the next seventy minutes?"
Leo Lin turned to look at Klopp.
Klopp made no substitutions.
Beside him, Krawietz held the tactics board, looking somewhat lost.
"Boss…"
Klopp patted Krawietz on the shoulder. Accepting the reality, he shouted instructions toward the pitch.
"4-3-1!"
"Build the defense around Leo Lin!"
"Defend!"
Klopp then pulled Leo Lin to his side and spoke to him directly.
"This is the moment, Leo!"
"Krawietz and I have always believed you have the courage to stop everything—but now is the time!"
"Let it all out!"
"We need you!"
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on p-@-treon.
p-@-treon/GhostParser (65 Chapters Ahead)
You can also follow as a free member to read a few advanced chapters.