This guy is different from ordinary people.

Mainz is Klopp's home team. He played there for a full twelve years as a professional footballer. However, unfortunately, during his playing career, Mainz remained a Bundesliga 2 team, meaning Klopp himself never had the chance to play in the Bundesliga.

After retiring from Mainz, Klopp became the team's new head coach in the 2000-2001 season. No one expected that this man would go on to defy the odds and make history!

In the 2003-2004 season, he led Mainz to the Bundesliga for the first time in the club's history. At that time, Klopp hadn't even obtained his A-level coaching license!

There's no doubt that Klopp had something special as a coach.

Later, he attracted interest from Bayern Munich, but he ultimately chose Dortmund instead.

Just last season, in 2010-2011, Dortmund broke Bayern's dominance in the league and successfully won the championship!

However, the new season didn't start smoothly for Dortmund.

After six rounds of matches, Dortmund and Mainz had identical records—2 wins, 1 draw, and 3 losses—each accumulating 7 points. Dortmund was ranked 11th in the league, while Mainz was 13th. The only difference was goal difference: Dortmund had +1, while Mainz had -5!

In the fifth round, Mainz suffered a 4-0 defeat to Hoffenheim, causing their goal difference to collapse, though they had actually scored one more goal than Dortmund.

Dortmund, on the other hand, had gone three matches without a win—drawing 0-0 against strong rivals Bayer Leverkusen, losing 1-2 to both Hertha Berlin and Hannover 96.

Among them, Hannover 96 was a mid-table team, while Hertha Berlin was a relegation struggler.

This meant Klopp was facing immense pressure from the media—after all, Dortmund was last season's champion!

This match was a must-win for Dortmund.

The media wasn't optimistic about their chances. After all, with striker Lucas Barrios injured, Dortmund's attack lacked firepower. Relying on a backup forward who only scored eight goals a season seemed unrealistic.

The day before the match, Klopp announced the starting lineup and substitute list during Dortmund's training session.

Ye Chen was delighted to see his name on the substitutes' list.

Dortmund would continue using their familiar 4-2-3-1 formation. Even though they had a Champions League match coming up midweek, they still fielded their strongest lineup!

Official Punishment Notice for U17 National Team Leader Wang Bo!

The Chinese football world was in an uproar over a shocking news report!

The leaked audio recording from Ye Chen dealt a devastating blow to the reputation of the Chinese Football Association (CFA).

Especially the phrase "My rules are the rules," which was turned into an internet meme and widely shared.

The article detailed the punishment of Wang Bo, but there was no mention of Ye Chen at all.

Wang Bo was immediately dismissed from the U17 national team and banned from working in any football-related profession in China for one year. He was also fined 50,000 yuan.

But was this punishment severe enough?

Netizens exploded with outrage!

How could someone who exploited young national team players, abused his authority, and took bribes receive such a light punishment?

Most infuriating was that the CFA seemed to think the matter was settled…

Perhaps this was what people meant by "too many fleas and you stop itching."

The CFA simply chose to ignore the problem altogether!

However, because of this incident, Ye Chen had now entered the public eye.

Ye Chen had successfully joined Dortmund, the reigning Bundesliga champions. Meanwhile, in July of this year, Hao Junmin had terminated his contract with Schalke 04, meaning Ye Chen was now the only Chinese player in a top European league!

Ye Chen had become the fourth Chinese player to play in the Bundesliga, following Yang Chen, Shao Jiayi, and Hao Junmin.

For many disillusioned Chinese football fans, Ye Chen's rise brought a sense of joy. But the happiest of all was CCTV Sports Channel (CCTV-5)!

After all, they held the exclusive broadcasting rights.

Since Klopp had already confirmed Ye Chen would be in the squad during his Dortmund press conference, CCTV-5 immediately scheduled a live broadcast for the match.

On their website, Ye Chen's photo was prominently displayed on the front page.

The headline was striking:

"Chinese Football Prodigy Ye Chen Set for Dortmund Debut!"

All of a sudden, many Chinese fans shifted their attention to the Bundesliga, eagerly watching a young player named Ye Chen.

But Ye Chen himself was completely unaware of all this.

The match was scheduled for 3:30 PM German time, which was 9:30 PM in China.

For Chinese fans, this was a perfect time to watch a game!

Many fans were used to staying up late for Premier League and La Liga matches. However, the Bundesliga had made adjustments to accommodate Asian audiences, making its matches more accessible.

In the morning, Dortmund held a light training session. Afterward, Klopp approached Ye Chen for a quick chat.

"Ye, how do you feel? Think you'll play today?" Klopp put his arm around Ye Chen's shoulder in a friendly manner.

"Of course! I feel great!" Ye Chen nodded enthusiastically.

He could hardly wait to get onto the pitch!

This was going to be the first official match of his professional career.

Klopp smiled and nodded. "Be ready to play at any time. Dortmund needs your firepower!"

"I'll make sure to seize my chance!" Ye Chen clenched his fist with determination.

After an early lunch, the team boarded the bus to Mainz.

Any football fan would know that pre-match press conferences were usually held the day before the game. Dortmund's away match press conference had taken place the previous evening.

Klopp and team captain Sebastian Kehl had attended.

One journalist asked whether Ye Chen would officially make his debut.

Klopp's response was, "Every player in the squad has a chance to play. Let's wait and see."

Among the reporters was Li Xinran, who asked, "Does Ye Chen have the ability to compete in the Bundesliga?"

Klopp laughed. "Ye has the talent to play in any league. I believe he will prove it very soon!"

The final question about Ye Chen was whether he could coexist with Shinji Kagawa.

Klopp was puzzled. "They are both professional players. They won't bring historical disputes into the football world!"

As the team bus approached the stadium, Ye Chen finally felt the true atmosphere of the Bundesliga.

Fans were everywhere. Many had even paid their own way to travel and support Dortmund at the away game.

Mario Götze, sitting next to Ye Chen, carefully observed him before asking, "Ye, your hands are shaking… are you nervous?"

He then gave a relaxed smile, patted Ye Chen's shoulder, and said, "Relax! I was super nervous before my first professional match too. I barely slept the night before… Man, I almost arrived late for the team meeting the next day!"

But Ye Chen, full of excitement, replied, "I'm not shaking because I'm nervous—I'm shaking because I'm excited… I'm finally about to play in an official match!"

His eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.

"Huh?"

Seeing Ye Chen like this, Götze covered his forehead in disbelief.

This guy is different from ordinary people…

Wait… could he be a football masochist?!