In German, "dorf" means "village," which is why some jokingly call Düsseldorf "the largest village in Europe."
Düsseldorf is the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, one of the most densely populated and economically developed regions in Europe. It is a key city in Germany for advertising, fashion, exhibitions, and communications, as well as a logistics hub for Europe.
Of course, being close to the Ruhr area means the teams can travel back and forth by bus!
"Welcome to Gugu Sports, I'm your familiar commentator, Zhan Jun!"
"Coach Zhang is off today, so I'll be commentating solo for this DFB-Pokal match!"
"After this game, the next Bundesliga match won't be until January 22. I wonder if the Chinese Twin Stars will both be on the pitch by then!"
"By the way, I almost forgot to share some good newsâWang Chu, who grew up through Metz's youth academy, has officially transferred to Borussia Dortmund. From Wang Chu's Instagram and Weibo, you can see it was Ye Chen and Lina who welcomed him!"
"Back to the matchâtoday Düsseldorf is fielding a 4-3-3 formation!"
"The goalkeeper is Ratajczak! A product of Dortmund's youth system, he joined Düsseldorf on a free transfer in 2007!"
"The four defenders are Vandenbergh, Langeneke, Assani, and Levels!"
"The midfield trio consists of Fink, Lambertz, and Bodzek!"
"The three forwards are Rösler, Bröker, and Beister!"
"Notably, Rösler is currently third in the Bundesliga 2 top scorers listâhe's quite a force!"
"Dortmund is also lining up in a 4-3-3 today!"
"Weidenfeller remains the familiar face in goal."
"The four defenders are Kirch, Hummels, Owomoyela, and Piszczek!"
"The midfield trio features Kehl, partnered with Gündogan and GroÃkreutz!"
"The front three are Kuba, Ye Chen, and Lewandowski!"
"Lucas Barrios, who scored in the last match, is reportedly negotiating with Guangzhou Evergrande in China. In an interview, Barrios mentioned it was Ye Chen's recommendation that sparked his interest in moving to Guangzhou. He said the fans there are the best in the world!" Zhan Jun said with a smile.
Looking at this starting lineup, Dortmund is clearly taking the match seriously.
With key players in every positionâdefense, midfield, and attackâDortmund isn't holding back.
As the team's top scorer, Ye Chen is starting. This shows full commitment.
However, on the sidelines, Düsseldorf's Daniel Thioune didn't look too pleased.
At yesterday's pre-match press conference, he deliberately downplayed his team's strength, hoping Dortmund would underestimate them.
But Klopp, that cunning old fox...
Sigh!
There was no choice but to face it head-on!
Whistle!
With the referee's whistle, the match officially began.
Düsseldorf kicked off.
Bröker passed the ball to Beister.
As soon as the ball started rolling, Ye Chen charged forward.
He was subbed off at the 60th minute in the last match, so he needed to make the most of his time today!
If he got subbed off too early again, completing his task would be tricky.
So, he had to seize every second.
Seeing Ye Chen's urgency, the other players couldn't slack off either.
In the stands, Wang Chu and Mané, who were lucky enough to travel with the team to watch, were stunned.
To be this talented and work so hard... they took notes!
In professional football, there's always competition.
But Ye Chen wasn't just competitiveâhe was leading the pack.
Under Dortmund's pressing, Düsseldorf couldn't hold onto the ball for long.
They passed it back to goalkeeper Ratajczak.
Ratajczak tried to control the ball to calm things down, but Ye Chen was already closing in.
With no other option, he launched the ball upfield.
Owomoyela, playing center-back instead of full-back this time, leaped high like a giant statue and outmuscled Bröker, heading the ball to captain Kehl.
Kehl received the ball, but Lambertz rushed toward him.
Kehl quickly passed to GroÃkreutz!
GroÃkreutz took a touch, saw Ye Chen dropping back, and sent the ball his way.
Ye Chen got the ball, but Fink immediately pressed him.
Seeing the ball slightly away from Ye Chen's feet, Fink stretched his leg to intercept.
But just as he was about to make contact, Ye Chen flicked the ball back with his toe and spun 180 degrees!
Another Marseille turn!
The commentator was ecstatic.
"Beautiful Marseille turn! Ye Chen effortlessly bypasses Fink!"
"Ye Chen dribbles into the box!"
But Langeneke stood in his way.
Knowing Ye Chen's quick footwork, Langeneke hesitated to tackle but blocked Ye Chen's path.
Ye Chen feinted a shot.
Langeneke instinctively stretched his leg to blockâ
But Ye Chen nudged the ball left, opening up his shooting angle.
Boom!
The ball flashed white, flying toward the bottom left corner.
Ratajczak lunged, eyes fixed on the ball, but despite his effort, his fingertips missed it by inches!
Clang!
The ball struck the inside of the post and ricocheted into the net!
"Gooooooooooooooal!!!"
"Just 35 seconds in, the young sharpshooter Ye Chen scores with sheer individual brilliance!"
"He's truly a top contender for the Bundesliga Golden Boot!"
"His dribbling is dazzling... I bet Fink hasn't even processed what happened!"
Ye Chen clenched his fist and sprinted toward the away fans, raising one finger high!
Yes!
That was goal number one for today!
But clearly, he wasn't settling for just one...
With his precision shot card unused, there was more to come!
On the sidelines, Thioune buried his face in his hands.
That relentless Chinese player...
That relentless goal!
"Aaaaaah..."
Thioune wanted to scream, but as head coach, he couldn't lose his composure.
Stay calm!
"Bodzek, mark him! Don't leave his side!" Thioune shouted at Bodzek.
Bodzek signaled his understanding with an "OK."
Meanwhile, Klopp smiled knowingly.
As an experienced coach, Klopp saw through Thioune's little mind games instantly.
But wasn't he doing the same?
Why else would he sub Ye Chen off at 60 minutes in the last match, even after he scored and Lewandowski scored twice?
It's all about keeping that hunger for goals alive!