Özil on the Verge of Tears
1. WW1 Historical Fanfic
or
2. Other?
If other, suggest in this paragraph comment. Other can range from a MCU fic to a track and field fic to a Harry Potter fic.
That being said, enjoy the few chapters.
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"GOAL!!"
"Walcott did it!"
In the 14th minute of the match, Arsenal took the lead.
After Ramsey intercepted the ball in the defensive half, he immediately passed it to Walcott. The Little Tiger caught the ball and sprinted down the flank at lightning speed!
His speed was indeed astonishing, leaving Manchester City's defenders trailing behind, unable to catch up.
In a desperate move, Joe Hart rushed out, but as expected, he lost the one-on-one with Walcott, who slipped the ball right through Hart's legs.
0:1!
Arsenal had taken the lead on the road!
On the Arsenal bench, Wenger clenched his fists in excitement, running a few steps to celebrate.
It worked!
His tactics had worked!
Indeed, Manchester City's defense wasn't as strong as their attack, and going toe-to-toe with them was proving to be a viable strategy!
Thinking this, he decided to continue with this approach, hoping to score another goal!
On the field, after scoring, Walcott was equally thrilled.
He ran towards the sidelines, putting his finger to his lips in a shushing gesture aimed at the stands.
Clearly, this was his way of responding to the earlier taunts from Manchester City fans:
Didn't you say you didn't know who I, Walcott, was?
Well, do you remember now?
In response, the City fans erupted in boos!
"You little punk, you're asking for it!"
A burly, hot-tempered fan rolled up his sleeves, ready to jump onto the pitch and teach Walcott a lesson.
But as soon as he made a move, the stadium security was all over him, holding him back and preventing him from entering the pitch.
No way was this going to be allowed, especially since the game was being broadcast live around the world.
If a fan stormed the pitch and caused trouble, it wouldn't just embarrass Manchester City—it would embarrass the entire Premier League.
That's why the Premier League had taken this match very seriously, deploying a large number of security personnel on-site and coordinating with local police, with thousands of officers stationed outside the stadium to maintain order.
The more agitated the City fans got, the more pleased Walcott was.
He relished the feeling of proving people wrong in front of a crowd, but he wasn't done yet.
The person who had disrespected him was Lin, so if anyone needed to be shown up, it was him.
With that in mind, Walcott threw a taunting glance at Lin: Just wait, this is only the beginning!
Lin, however, didn't even notice Walcott's actions. From the start, Lin had never considered Walcott to be his rival.
But now that the opponent had scored, Lin knew he had to respond.
So, after the game resumed, Arsenal's players quickly realized that their opponent's number 10 had become even more active!
Lin was running, dribbling, and passing all over the pitch, and a one-on-one defense couldn't stop him.
In the 18th minute, the ball found its way to Lin again.
Facing Lin was Özil, who reluctantly stepped forward to challenge him. But Lin, as if unaware of Özil's presence, immediately burst forward the moment Özil closed in, and the two collided with a resounding "bang."
Özil, standing over 1.8 meters tall, appeared significantly taller than Lin, who was only 1.73 meters.
So when they collided, Arsenal fans were confident.
With an 8-centimeter height advantage and Özil prepared, the odds were in his favor!
But to their surprise, it wasn't Lin who fell—it was Özil.
They had only considered Özil's height, not realizing that at 71 kilograms, Özil was a typical lightweight, making him vulnerable in a physical league like the Premier League.
As for Lin, he could go head-to-head with the hulking defenders of the Premier League without flinching—why would he be afraid of a guy like Özil, who looked perpetually tired and undernourished?
"Özil's been knocked down again. I think he needs to bulk up!"
Watching Lin casually knock Özil, who looked like a "bamboo pole," to the ground, Martin Tyler, commentating for Sky Sports, spoke with a serious tone.
"Absolutely, the Premier League isn't La Liga. If he wants to succeed here, he needs to improve his physical game, and the best way to do that is to gain weight!"
Andy Gray, a former professional player, had more authority on this subject. He used his own experience to advise Arsenal's €50 million record signing.
If Özil didn't improve his physicality, his performance at Arsenal wouldn't improve, and he could even become a liability. If that happened, Wenger's €50 million would have been wasted.
Having commented on the Premier League for many years, both commentators had a mix of admiration and sympathy for Wenger.
Wenger had worked hard to save up that much money, and they didn't want to see it go to waste on a failed transfer.
...
On the pitch, after getting past Özil, Lin quickly drove the ball toward Arsenal's penalty area.
Ramsey moved in to cover, but Lin didn't bother to tussle with him. He decisively passed the ball to David Silva on the wing.
Silva took a few steps forward with the ball and, just before his national teammate Monreal could close in, passed it back to Lin.
By now, Lin had shaken off Ramsey's mark. He received the ball, dribbled a couple of steps towards the middle, and then passed it to the advancing Silva again.
Their exchanges near the wing had completely disrupted Arsenal's defense. By now, players like Wilshere, Flamini, Ramsey, and Monreal were all focused on Lin and Silva.
Meanwhile, Manchester City's forward, Agüero, had quietly made his way into Arsenal's penalty area.
Lin saw that Arsenal's two defensive midfielders were drawn toward him, so he decided to make a through pass to Agüero, who had found space.
Mertesacker, however, made a sharp interception, cutting off the pass. But before he could secure the ball, it was already snatched away from him!
Mertesacker turned in shock and saw that the player who had taken the ball from under his feet was none other than Lin, who had just passed it!
Had this guy already started moving the moment he made the pass?
How else could he have gotten here so fast?
Arsenal's defense was now in complete disarray. After Lin passed to Agüero, they had all focused their defense on the Argentine forward.
But instead, Lin had intercepted the ball himself and was now charging forward.
Mertesacker was out of position, and Koscielny, who was marking Agüero, couldn't close the gap in time.
With no one marking him, Lin dribbled into the box.
After a quick glance at Szczęsny's position, Lin decisively took the shot.
There was no doubt about the outcome—Szczęsny didn't even have time to react before the ball was in the net.
The score was now 1-1.
Less than five minutes after Arsenal scored, Manchester City had quickly equalized.
And the one who scored was none other than City's star player, Lin.
In contrast to Walcott, who had been overly excited and even a bit arrogant after scoring, Lin remained calm after his goal. He simply high-fived and hugged his celebrating teammates and clapped toward the City fans, with no wild celebrations.
To him, scoring goals had become as routine as eating and drinking—nothing to get overly excited about.
But Lin's calm demeanor didn't sit well with Walcott.
"Hmph, what's with the attitude? Trying to act all high and mighty?"
Walcott thought Lin was doing this to spite him, deliberately not celebrating to seem superior.
Walcott saw Lin as a rival and was desperate to outshine him. He believed Lin was reacting to him, interpreting his every move as a response.
But in reality, Lin hadn't paid any attention to him at all. Walcott's efforts were in vain!
Pellegrini, seeing his team equalize so quickly, breathed a sigh of relief.
He wasn't as animated as Wenger, just calmly clapping for his players.
On the other hand, Wenger furrowed his brow, a habitual response after watching his team's lead disappear so quickly.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go!
Wenger had planned to score another goal and then switch to a counter-attacking strategy. With the speed and skill of Arsenal's wingers, Wilshere and Walcott, City would be vulnerable if they pushed too far forward.
But City's attacking power was even stronger than Wenger had anticipated. His greed in not adjusting tactics after taking the lead had given City the chance to equalize.
He just hoped Arsenal could score again. If they did, Wenger vowed he wouldn't be so stubborn next time and would immediately switch tactics.
"Hmph, idiot!"
At Chelsea's training ground, Mourinho, who had hoped Arsenal would stop City, couldn't help but curse after seeing Wenger's team quickly lose their lead.
Wenger was too slow, too sanctimonious.
What's the point of pretty football if you don't win?
If it were Mourinho, he would have switched tactics immediately after taking the lead, never giving City a chance.
But Mourinho seemed to forget that his team had twice taken the lead at Stamford Bridge, only to see it twice wiped out.
...
In the stands at the Etihad, Liverpool manager Rodgers shook his head.
"Arsenal doesn't have much chance of winning. City's in great form today, and relying solely on attack won't be enough to
beat them!"
He wondered if Wenger would realize this. If Arsenal retreated and played on the counter, they might salvage a draw.
But a draw wouldn't satisfy Arsenal—they needed three points, not one.
If both teams took one point, the gap between Arsenal and City wouldn't change, and other teams in the chase, like third-placed Liverpool, could benefit.
So Rodgers was hoping the two teams would wear each other out and end in a draw.
But clearly, City had no intention of following Rodgers' desired script.
After Lin quickly equalized, City's attack intensified.
Lin, Nasri, Agüero, and David Silva, the front four, launched wave after wave of attacks on Arsenal's penalty area.
Before the first half was even over, City had already taken 11 shots.
The main reason Arsenal was under such pressure was that their midfield was too soft.
Özil, who had been easily outmuscled by Lin earlier, seemed to recall some unpleasant memories.
He began to shy away from physical confrontations, instinctively trying to protect himself or even avoid challenges when faced with City's aggressive play.
City's players quickly noticed Özil's reluctance and mercilessly targeted him.
In just a few minutes, Özil wasn't just getting beaten by Lin but was also being bullied by other City players.
City's defensive midfielder Fernandinho, seeing how easily Özil could be pushed around, decided to join in, aggressively tackling and pressing until Özil couldn't even hold onto the ball.
Unfortunately for Arsenal, Özil was their playmaker, the one responsible for distributing the ball according to Wenger's tactics.
It was clear that Wenger had a lot of faith in the German. To accommodate him, Spanish international Cazorla was relegated to the bench.
It was worth noting that Cazorla had been Arsenal's main man last season, playing all 38 Premier League games without missing a single one, contributing 12 goals and 11 assists!
But with Özil seeing so much of the ball, Fernandinho was having a field day!
Whenever an Arsenal player looked to pass, Fernandinho would deliberately keep his distance from Özil, tricking the passer into thinking Özil was open.
But as soon as Özil received the ball, Fernandinho would pounce, shoving Özil aside with his hip.
"Hehe, I'll take that, thank you!"
After stealing the ball, Fernandinho quickly passed it to Lin, but instead of retreating, he continued his run forward.
Seeing his teammate so eager to attack, Lin cooperated by passing the ball back to him.
It was a perfect pass, allowing Fernandinho to take a shot immediately.
Arsenal's players were clearly caught off guard. They had focused all their defensive efforts on City's forwards and never expected their defensive midfielder to push forward and shoot.
Besides, wasn't Fernandinho supposed to be a defensive midfielder?
When did he become a threat in attack too?
What they didn't know was that Fernandinho had a powerful long-range shot. Back when he played for Shakhtar Donetsk, he had often scored from distance with his late runs.
Receiving the pass from Lin, Fernandinho mentally praised his teammate.
No wonder the forwards loved Lin so much—his passes were a joy to receive.
Without overthinking it, Fernandinho positioned himself, leaned back slightly, and unleashed a powerful shot!
With a thunderous bang, the ball rocketed toward Arsenal's goal like a missile.
Szczęsny reacted immediately, his outstretched fingertips just grazing the ball.
But the shot was too powerful. The ball brushed past his fingers and slammed into the back of the net.
As the ball settled into the Arsenal net, Szczęsny shook his right hand and warily glanced at City's defensive midfielder.
That shot was terrifying—he felt like his hand was nearly broken.
After scoring, Fernandinho was ecstatic. He cupped his hands to his ears and ran around the pitch, soaking in the applause and cheers from the crowd.
City fans happily obliged, standing up and clapping for him.
Even the defensive midfielder scored—there was no way Arsenal could make a comeback.
Impossible, absolutely impossible!