Chapter 1006 Changes from Both Sides!

Soon enough, the players from both teams finally emerged from the tunnel.

However, they weren’t alone on the pitch, as two guys stood on the sideline, ready to enter as well.

Those two wore different jerseys, clearly showing that both teams decided to make a quick change at the beginning of the second half.

For Dortmund, it was no surprise to see Jude Bellingham warming up there, as the man was going to replace Mahmoud Dahoud in the midfield.

As for Schalke, though, the new member of the team, one with the jersey number 26, Ao Tanaka, tried his best to calm down his nerves at this moment.

Yeah, Frohling finally decided to take a gamble, replacing Jonas Hofmann with Ao Tanaka who was deemed to not be ready for a Bundesliga game yet.

Waldoch and the physical team seemed to think that Ao Tanaka wasn’t ready for the typical confrontation in this league yet, afraid that it would only affect the boy’s mentality in a bad way.

Their intention was good, as they wanted to protect a young man like Tanaka more.

However, Frohling saw a different thing in the boy’s eyes. He saw the determination and unwillingness to sit on the bench like the others, not when all of his friends were shining brightly on the pitch.

That was why, before coming to the pitch, he couldn’t help but drag Ao Tanaka to the sideline first for a private conversation.

"Listen, Tanaka. You know that Tomasz and the others didn’t agree with my decision, right? In their mind, you are still not ready for this game, and facing Dortmund’s tough midfielder will be too much for you."

Even though Tanaka was still not that proficient in English, understanding what the coach said was not a problem, and he nodded solemnly, knowing the doubt lingering on the coaching staff about him.

"I know where the doubt comes from, but I also can see how hard you work to come to this game." This time, the coach put his hands on the boy’s shoulder, having his eyes on the same level as Tanaka’s.

"Now, I want you to show that hard work once again on the pitch! It doesn’t matter how hard you get blown away! Get up immediately and recover! Don’t just die on the spot when someone knocks you out! Be a relentless dog! Annoy everyone on the pitch! Make sure that even though your physical state is still lacking, your presence is everywhere!"

That was definitely not something that he could ask of any other players on the team. No, after all, they all had their own pride, and being a rabid dog like that, besides being exhausting, would make them look so desperate on the pitch, something that they tried their best to avoid.

However, Tanaka was different.

He still wanted to prove that he deserved a spot in this game, and Frohling could see that the boy was ready to do anything, even carrying a bottle of water for everyone here, just to get a chance today.

More than that, Tanaka was a Japanese player just like Higo and Morita, and based on his limited understanding of players from that country, he believed they were always willing to do all the dirty work just for the sake of the team.

This time, the coach wanted to bet on Tanaka being the same as Higo and Morita, and the boy himself also understood the intention.

"Don’t worry, Sensei! I will not disappoint you!" He replied in broken English, giving the man a determined nod.

With that in mind, even though Tanaka was so nervous to play his debut game in the Bundesliga, he still stepped onto the pitch, warming up a little with Morita.

"Don’t forget to back me up, Tanaka-san," Morita said while staring at Bellingham. "That boy will be a headache for me later. Also, don’t forget about what I told you earlier."

Tanaka nodded, knowing exactly what his role was in this game.

Soon enough, everyone was finally ready for the game, and the referee had already had the whistle on the tip of his mouth.

Hoppe could be seen standing in front of the ball, trying to loosen the muscles in his legs as he prepared to charge forward the moment the whistle was blown.

Once everything was ready...

FWEEE!

The whistle was finally blown, and the ball fell to Morita immediately.

However, Dortmund also took action. Not wanting to let Morita get comfortable, Haaland charged in with his big body, and behind him, Bellingham also followed, as his task was clearer than ever.

He was definitely being asked to guard Morita, shadowing him whenever the boy went to.

It was clear that Dortmund had already anticipated this, wanting to kill Morita as quickly as possible. However, this worked two ways, as Morita also knew full well about this possibility and had already prepared himself for it.

He waited until the pursuers were close enough to him, and the moment that happened, the boy used his right foot to pass the ball shortly to the gap that was created in the center circle, the exact spot that all the players left after the whistle was blown.

Thud!

There, Ao Tanaka somehow appeared out of nowhere. Even Frohling himself was taken aback by the boy’s presence there, as the scheme should be him moving to the frontline to fight for the second ball after Morita launched a long pass from his position.

However, it was clear that this was something that he and Morita had planned since the beginning.

No one truly knew what he was capable of, and everyone probably just thought that he was just another Japanese player who came here to fill in the gap.

Using that gap of information, of course, the best time to utilize Ao Tanaka as the secret weapon was right when he had just come in.

Now, with the boy holding the ball, having all the space in front of him as a big gap was created between him and Thomas Delaney, Ao Tanaka finally made his very first move of the game.

’Well, let’s see if Morita is right about this...’

BAM!