There were three days left until the second leg of the Champions League qualifier. Oliver sat at his desk in the dormitory, a tactical notebook spread open before him, and the computer screen played replays of Liverpool's recent matches. He recorded Robertson and Arnold's running habits while simulating various situations he might encounter on the wing in his mind. However, compared to tactical preparations, he was more concerned about his weaknesses.
He brought up the system interface, and a light blue screen unfolded before his eyes, clearly listing his ability values on the personal attribute panel:
[Technical Attributes]
Ball Control: S
Dribbling: B+
Short Passing: B-
Long Passing: C-
Shooting: A-
Heading: D
...
His gaze lingered on "Heading" and "Long Passing" for a long time. His Heading was D-rated, undoubtedly the weakest of all his technical attributes. Considering his position as a right winger, and that Nagelsmann's tactical system did not rely on wingers for aerial duels, improving this attribute in the short term was not very meaningful. Moreover, heading technique could not be trained in three days; it required daily jumping practice, and forcing extra training might affect other more important training sessions.
"Forget it, I'll put this aside for now," he shook his head, turning his attention to another weakness: long passing.
A C-rated long pass might barely be sufficient when playing against lower-mid-table teams in the Bundesliga. But in the Champions League, especially against a top team like Liverpool, any passing error could be seized upon by the opponent for a counterattack. In the previous match against Bremen, his horizontal pass to Gnabry was almost intercepted; if Gnabry hadn't reacted quickly, that scoring opportunity might have been lost.
"I must improve my long passing," Oliver made up his mind.
He clicked on the system store and browsed various training packages under the "Skill Training" category.
[Skill Training Package]
Basic Long Pass Training (500 points): Suitable for entry-level players, improves long pass accuracy by 10% - 15%.
Intermediate Long Pass Training (1500 points): Designed for professional players, improves long pass accuracy by 20% - 30%, and optimizes pass trajectory.
Advanced Long Pass Training (5000 points): Master-level training program, significantly improves long pass accuracy (40% - 50%), and adds passing versatility (e.g., outside-of-foot curves, low driven long passes).
Oliver currently had over 3000 points, enough to purchase the Intermediate Training Package, but still far short of the Advanced one. He hesitated for a moment, considering the cost-effectiveness, and ultimately chose the Intermediate Long Pass Training Package. Although the Advanced one had better effects, the point consumption was too high, and his current long pass foundation was not solid enough; rashly using the Advanced Training Package might yield worse results than the Intermediate one.
"Confirm purchase."
[Ding! Consumed 1500 points, obtained "Intermediate Long Pass Training Package" × 1]
His point balance instantly decreased, but Oliver felt no heartache. Points could be earned again, but the Champions League qualifier opportunity only came once. The training package description immediately appeared before his eyes:
[Intermediate Long Pass Training Package]
Training Content:
Static Long Pass Practice (30 minutes): Fixed-point passing, focusing on improving basic accuracy. Moving Long Pass Practice (45 minutes): Simulating running passes in a match, improving dynamic adjustment ability. Confrontational Long Pass Practice (45 minutes): Completing passes under slight interference, enhancing practical adaptability.
Expected Improvement: Long pass accuracy +25%, optimized pass trajectory, faster release speed.
Oliver carefully read each instruction, already having a plan in mind. Starting tomorrow, he would add extra long pass training after regular training, strictly following the system's plan. Outside the window, Hoffenheim's night remained quiet and peaceful, but a fighting spirit had already ignited in Oliver's heart. Three days later, at Anfield, he had to be ready for his Champions League debut.
...
During the three training days before the Champions League qualifier, Hoffenheim's training base was busier than usual. Before the morning mist had fully dispersed, Oliver was already on the training ground, warming up by himself. He still maintained his habit of arriving early.
Nagelsmann stood by the side of the field; he also arrived very early and nodded at Oliver from afar, a silent understanding between them. In the morning tactical session, the assistant coach repeatedly projected Liverpool's defensive weaknesses. Oliver sat in the front row, his notebook filled with arrows and symbols.
"Their full-backs like to push up, but their turning speed is a weakness..." Nagelsmann explained all the key points about Liverpool to everyone, and Oliver heavily underlined Arnold and Robertson's names. In the afternoon, during the team's scrimmage, Oliver was assigned to the starting group, responsible for attacking on the right wing.
Uth roamed in the front, occasionally turning back and shouting to him: "Oliver, through ball!"
Oliver attempted several long passes, some accurately finding teammates, others veering off target. His long pass completion rate indeed had issues.
After training, he stopped Gnabry, who was about to leave: "Serge, can you help me practice long passes for a bit?"
Gnabry was pouring mineral water over his head and shook his wet hair when he heard this:
"Again? Didn't we practice this morning?"
"That was only ten passes, let's do fifty more," Oliver fished another ball out of the basket.
"Huh??? Fifty passes?" Gnabry exaggeratedly clutched his chest, "Oliver, are you trying to murder your teammate?"
Oliver tucked the ball under his arm, revealing a sly smile: "It's not for nothing, I'll teach you that chip move."
Gnabry's eyes immediately lit up. He still couldn't stop thinking about that move: "The one you used in the Bremen match? The one where you flicked your calf and the ball flew over the defender's head?"
Oliver nodded, "Yes, that one. Fifty passes for one dribbling trick, worth it, right?"
"Deal! But first, if you can't teach me, you have to treat me to a meal. I want Chinese food, and you have to help me avoid the bad ones," Gnabry said cheerfully.
"No problem at all."
The two laughed and walked towards the empty half of the field. Uth had already reached the locker room door but turned back when he saw them; he had also been quite motivated lately.
"Oliver, Serge, are you practicing again? Can I join?"
Thus, an interesting scene appeared on the training ground: Gnabry and Uth took turns running to different positions, while Oliver delivered long passes from various angles. Uth and Gnabry would occasionally give Oliver pointers. Sometimes it was a low through ball, sometimes a high arc, and sometimes a diagonal pass with a strange spin.
"Oliver, your footwork has improved so fast! Your passes in the last match really weren't as good as they are now," Uth said in surprise after receiving an accurate forty-meter long pass.
"Pure self-discipline, buddy," Oliver replied, wiping sweat.
Gnabry jogged over and nudged him with his elbow: "Time to deliver on your promise, right?"
Oliver had no choice but to put the ball down and demonstrate the chip move as slowly as possible:
"The key is that your ankle needs to be like this at the moment of contact..."
Gnabry tried to imitate him, but either kicked the ball five meters high or couldn't get the ball to stop where he wanted it to.
"Damn it! This is much harder than it looks!"
"It's okay, take your time, ask whenever you don't understand," Oliver laughed, "Continue practicing passes?"
"Then let's do twenty more, but this time I'll run to even trickier positions..."
The second day's training was even more systematic. Oliver strictly followed the plan provided by the system, starting with static long passes, repeatedly practicing the same movement from fixed points. Nagelsmann stopped to watch for ten minutes, said nothing, but patted his shoulder as he left. All of Oliver's extra training was done after he completed his mandatory training, and Nagelsmann would allow Oliver to arrange his time after training as much as possible. He knew the kid had it under control; he wouldn't under-train, nor would he blindly over-train.
In the afternoon's team scrimmage, Oliver made three long pass assists, one of which directly found Gnabry, who had successfully beaten the offside trap.
"Beautiful! That pass was much better than yesterday!" Gnabry ran back to high-five him after scoring.
Oliver chuckled, panting: "Still a long way to go."
He noticed Nagelsmann talking to the assistant coach on the sidelines, both occasionally looking their way. The third day was the final pre-match training, with light rain falling, but the training intensity did not decrease at all. Oliver's long passes had become much more consistent; even the slippery pitch did not affect his performance.
Gnabry even joked when receiving his pass: "Oliver, did you secretly swap for a pair of golden right feet?"
"Secret training. If you want to learn, add fifty more passes," Oliver winked mischievously.
"I'll call you Big Bro, spare me!" Gnabry pretended to run away but was pulled back by Oliver.
"Hey, don't run, little bro."...
During the tactical drill session, Nagelsmann specifically arranged several wing tactics targeting Liverpool. Oliver was required to frequently swap positions with the midfielders, sometimes cutting inside, sometimes going to the byline.
"Pay attention to the timing of your passes; Liverpool's defenders are not perfect at handling these changes in rhythm," the coach shouted from the sidelines...
In the locker room after training, Gnabry hummed a song while changing clothes. Uth came over and asked Oliver: "Nervous, kid? We're going to Anfield tomorrow."
Oliver was tying his shoelaces and replied: "A little, but mostly excited."
Uth said seriously, "You'll perform well. Everyone has seen your progress these past three days, especially your passing."
Nagelsmann stopped Oliver, who was about to leave, at the locker room door, intending to give him some private coaching again. He handed Oliver a USB drive,
"Oliver, brain work. Inside is an analysis of Liverpool's Robertson, he's your direct opponent. Make sure to watch it tonight."
"OK, Coach," Oliver took the USB drive.
The coach was really too considerate. On the way back to the dormitory, he brought up the system interface; his long pass attribute had changed from C- to C. Although it was only a small improvement, those accurate passes that found teammates, and the sweat shed on the training ground, gave him more confidence for the upcoming match.
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