"Knockaert has dribbled past Briggs, he's still driving forward!"
"Knockaert is down! He had physical contact with Cassetti!"
"The referee has awarded a penalty!!!"
"This is a huge decision! Referee Michael Oliver has made a crucial call!"
"Regardless, this is a penalty that will decide the fate of both teams."
"Knockaert takes it himself. If he scores, Leicester City will go to Wembley for the play-offs, and Watford's promotion hopes will be dashed…"
"Knockaert shoots!! Manuel Almunia saves it!"
"Unbelievable!"
"Now Watford counter-attacks! Forestieri, passes to Hogg—!"
"Deeney!!!"
Jin Hayes had dreamed this dream years ago. The bizarre scene made him feel that it could never happen in reality; only dreams could be so outlandish. He never expected that he would personally witness the exact same situation.
In the second leg of the 2008-2009 Champions League semi-final, with an aggregate score of 6-6, Barcelona led on away goals. Barcelona, instead, was awarded a penalty at the very end, with referee Tom Henning Øvrebø giving Borussia Dortmund the ultimate punishment. He virtually killed the game.
"What the fuck??!"
"My God, I'm going to kill this guy! Don't stop me!"
"What are you doing? Where is your conscience? Where is your professional integrity?"
Inside the box, Sergio Busquets lay on the ground, covering his face in immense pain, appearing to be severely injured. Borussia Dortmund players couldn't believe it for a second. Barcelona's attack just now was indeed thrilling. Consecutive passes between Bojan Krkić, Lionel Messi, Andrés Iniesta, and Xavi created a gap in front of the box.
Who knew that defensive midfielder Busquets would suddenly charge in, receive the ball in front of the box, and take a touch forward. Fortunately, Mats Hummels reacted quickly enough, rushed up, pushed Busquets aside, and stole the ball from his feet at the edge of the penalty area line. Hummels was secretly pleased, about to turn and pass to Jin Hayes, to launch a desperate counter-attack in the final seconds.
As soon as the ball was passed, the referee's whistle sent a chill down his spine. Busquets was actually down in the penalty area? Huh?
Borussia Dortmund players could no longer control their emotions, furiously rushing to surround the referee. But they were quickly pushed away by Barcelona players, who instead surrounded the referee.
"That's a penalty!"
"Penalty! Penalty! It was a foul!"
Even Captain Carles Puyol, who rarely took advantage of others, couldn't help but argue with the referee. He was afraid that Borussia Dortmund might still create a miracle at the very end. He was afraid that Jin Hayes would do something outlandish again. This suspected foul completely reassured the Barcelona players. They had won. The game was completely over. Puyol had to surround the referee for Barcelona to reach the final. Even if Busquets was still lying on the ground, rolling around, clutching his face—God knows how much pain he was in.
"We won!! I declare that Barcelona has entered the Champions League final! They did it!"
"Borussia Dortmund is a respectable opponent, but sorry, we are Barcelona!"
The Catalan TV commentator had already popped the champagne, congratulating Barcelona on their advancement. The pressure brought by Borussia Dortmund made all Barcelona fans uneasy. Even with multiple biased calls from the referee, even with Barcelona maintaining the lead, Jin Hayes was simply a nightmare. Now, the dream could finally end, and a beautiful future awaited Barcelona. This season, they might achieve unprecedented honours. The Dream Team dynasty was established.
When referee Øvrebø pointed to the penalty spot, the stands erupted in cheers, and Camp Nou became a sea of joy. Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund fans in yellow jerseys were in tears. Today's match was simply too difficult. The lads had worked so hard, yet they fell here. Not only that, but Øvrebø was merciless, showing a second yellow card to the already booked Hummels, sending him off directly.
"Hehehehe, really, just destroy it."
Hummels was completely exasperated, laughing bitterly. He had no anger or regret; at this moment, he couldn't even be bothered with Øvrebø, only a mocking sarcasm towards the injustice of fate.
"Beautiful, truly beautiful."
"Mats, don't take it to heart, you've done a great job."
"Don't worry, I'm fine, hehehehe."
Jin Hayes still wanted to comfort Hummels, but he had already walked straight off the field. Borussia Dortmund fans in the stands still gave him a warm round of applause. Hummels was an excellent warrior. Even if he left the field today, he left standing tall.
As Barcelona players stood together discussing who would take the penalty, Hummels walked to the sideline, looked at the camera, and the anger that had accumulated for 90 minutes finally burst out. The burly man with a full beard shouted into the camera lens: "It's a disgrace! It's a disgrace!! This is a disgrace!"
Assistant coach Željko Buvač was completely numb; he stepped forward, patted Hummels on the back, and led him towards the dressing room. But halfway there, Hummels suddenly stopped.
"Coach, I want to watch a bit more."
"Alright."
Buvač didn't know what there was to see. Anyway, once Barcelona scored the penalty, the game would end immediately. Hummels staying there was just pure heartache. But Hummels always felt something was off; he remained at the entrance of the player tunnel, his eyes anxiously fixed on the field, on his team's number 10. Jin Hayes.
"Since you are the saviour, since you are synonymous with miracles—will there be a miracle today?"
On the field, Barcelona players finally helped Busquets up. He didn't appear to be injured at all; Hummels hadn't made any elbowing motion. In fact, during slow-motion replays, high-speed cameras even caught Busquets' subtle movements. German commentator Berenberg even chuckled: "This—Busquets lying on the ground, still peeking?"
"I can only say, it's a real waste of talent if he doesn't go to Hollywood to compete for this year's Oscar."
"Today is truly a farce."
"Borussia Dortmund's warriors, no matter the outcome, you were all excellent, you fought to the very end."
Finally, Barcelona's soul, Lionel Messi, stood before the ball to take this decisive penalty. The final ticket was at his feet; whether he scored or not, Barcelona would advance to the pinnacle of Europe. Outside the box, Borussia Dortmund players desperately surrounded the penalty area. They had almost lost their fighting spirit, but their basic professional training made them still rush into the box, ready to attempt a clearance at any moment. Missing one centre-back, Florian Kringe, who came on as a substitute in the second half, played as a defender. The 10 Borussia Dortmund players on the field stood solely on willpower.
Marco Reus, his thoughts had already drifted far away, lost in reverie. "Marco, Marco!!"
"Hmm?"
Jin Hayes brought him back to reality. Reus looked curiously at his good friend. Wait—Jin still hadn't given up?
A faint spark reignited in Marco Reus's eyes.
"What do you say?"
"Later, try to rush forward as much as possible, be careful not to be offside."
"You mean—"
"No matter how small the probability, I want to try one last time, if there's a chance."
"Okay!! I'll join you!"
"Mm."
The two clasped hands tightly, exchanging strength.
As Lionel Messi placed the ball near the penalty spot, Jin Hayes was also telling Jakub Błaszczykowski and Nuri Şahin the same thing.
"Jin, honestly, I really admire you." Şahin smiled.
He had thought this season would end like this, and he would sheepishly go to Real Madrid. If he could still participate in a miracle before leaving, Nuri Şahin felt it would be worth it, his whole life would be worth it.
"What?"
"Nothing, since you want to go crazy, I'll go crazy with you one last time." Anyway, they would most likely lose, so what was there to lose?
Jin Hayes's actions were seen by goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller.
"Could it be, this kid…"
"Very good, if there's really a chance, if there's really anyone who can do it, it can only be you."
Weidenfeller, whose confidence had wavered, took a deep breath. He decided to give it one last fight.
In the stands, Jürgen Klopp was still preparing his draft for the press conference. He planned to fiercely denounce the referee and the unfair game. However, seeing Jin Hayes actively communicating on the field, seemingly wanting to do something, Klopp smiled, not a mocking smile, but a genuine, heartfelt happiness. No matter what, with such a player, he was lucky.
"Kid, this didn't make you give up, did it?"
What a born superstar.
The eyes of the whole world were focused on Messi; Borussia Dortmund fans were completely disheartened. Fans far away were already numb, silently watching Messi about to score this penalty and celebrate. Duan Xuan's voice seemed to come from beyond.
"Messi takes this penalty, it's already the 93rd minute. Whether he scores or not, perhaps we should congratulate Barcelona."
"Borussia Dortmund's performance this season has been amazing enough. The yellow-black youth storm has introduced the world to this group of brave and tenacious young men. As the team's core, Jin Hayes is definitely the biggest surprise of the past two years!"
"As Chinese fans, I believe everyone is looking forward to his performance next season."
"Back in the league, Jin Hayes still has a chance to compete for the championship. We might see the first Chinese player to win a top-tier league title as a main core player!"
When Duan Xuan said this, his feelings were mixed, mostly regret. He could have been on the Champions League final stage, what a pity. Even if Messi scored or not, it wouldn't change the outcome. Chinese fans were still nervous at this moment. In the bar, everyone held their breath. The bartender pouring drinks almost overflowed the glasses but forgot to stop. In front of the TV, many timid female fans didn't dare to watch, burying their faces in their companions' arms. In a university dorm, several students stood behind a laptop, all eyes fixed on the small 14-inch screen. In despair, there seemed to be a faint glimmer of hope. Barcelona had a 99.99999% chance of reaching the final, but didn't Borussia Dortmund have a 0.00001% chance?
"Messi, ready to take the penalty, run-up—…"
"Shot!!"
Thump-thump, thump-thump! Everyone's heart seemed to stop beating; Messi's left-footed curling shot seemed to be in slow motion. Wait!! A half-volley?!! Could it be…
At the moment when all fans' nerves were extremely tense, Borussia Dortmund's goalkeeper Weidenfeller made a desperate save.
"Weidenfeller!!! Oh my God, he saved the penalty!!"
"Bojan! Follow up with a shot!!!"
"Saved again!!"
Billions of people worldwide probably felt their hearts repeatedly rise and fall at this moment. Weidenfeller made two consecutive miraculous saves, stopping Barcelona's shots. And Neven Subotić was the first to rush into the box, turning and sweeping a low ball out of the area.
"I'll take it!!"
Captain Sebastian Kehl roared, rushing up to block Xavi, receiving the ball, turning, and knocking it to Şahin in front.
"Chance!!!"
At the same time, Reus and Błaszczykowski almost simultaneously felt a surge of energy from their feet. Energy called hope. They ran like mad, head down. Injury time 93:14 seconds, Borussia Dortmund's youth storm was still sweeping through Camp Nou.
"Jin!!"
"Here it comes!!"
Jin Hayes was calmer than everyone else. The situation in front of him was exactly the same as in his dream. He just needed to send the ball to the most crucial position. He turned with the ball, created an angle, and faced Yaya Touré's frantic pressing. He was unable to dribble past him. But at this moment, two lines appeared in his vision—a path to Reus on the left, and a path to Błaszczykowski on the right.
"Go!"
Originally, he had the least confidence in long passes, having almost never made one in a match. But this time, Jin Hayes intended to challenge himself. Just like in training, arm swing, leg swing, core strength, instep rigid—with clear path guidance, Jin Hayes only needed to rely on his basic skills.. From the backfield, hugging the grass, it traveled tens of metres, precisely penetrating the interceptions of Sergio Busquets, Gerard Piqué, Carles Puyol, and Dani Alves to reach Reus's feet.
"A perfect through ball, like a surgical knife!!! Jin Hayes!!! Delivers a masterful pass!!"
"Reus, dribbles long and deep into the attacking third!! Piqué is still desperately chasing!!"
"Reus!! Observes his teammates' positions!! Passes to the right side!!"
"Błaszczykowski!!!"
"Víctor Sánchez is smothering him!! Błaszczykowski, doesn't shoot!!! Instead, he chips the ball to the centre!"
In the eyes of billions of people worldwide, the yellow and black number 10 soared through the air above Camp Nou. Hanging upside down in mid-air.
Bang!
"Jin Hayes!!!!"
Swish!
This crisp sound was called a miracle.