First blood Drawn.

The bus ride was silent.

Players had their own ways of preparing. Some listened to music, headphones clamped tight.

Others stared out the window, watching the streets of Gelsenkirchen blur past.

Izan sat near the back, earbuds in, but he couldn't really hear the music. His mind ran through different situations and different solutions.

Beside him, Lamine nudged him. "You always think too much before a game."

Izan smirked, pulling out one earbud. "And you don't think enough."

Lamine grinned. "That's why I'm a winger."

They both chuckled before settling into silence again.

Ahead, the Veltins-Arena loomed. The stadium's sleek steel-and-glass structure gleamed under the afternoon sun, a fortress waiting to be conquered.

Izan clenched his jaw.

It was almost time.

The tunnel opened into the vast arena, a roaring sea of red and blue.