Chapter 54: The Hornet Strikes

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P.S. Borussia Dortmund in those days was incredibly strong!

The uproar and disputes in the media were kept far away from Momo by Mino’s stout figure standing between him and the storm. Watermark advertisement test. Watermark advertisement test.

Momo understood that this was Mino’s way of protecting him. And Momo’s way of protecting Mino was through every goal he scored and every victory he secured.

Everyone was watching Momo, eager to learn which club this outrageously expensive prodigy would eventually join.

Or perhaps what they really wanted to know was whether Chelsea, after Roman Abramovich’s massive investment, had truly become a “superclub” that could buy absolutely anything it wanted.

In the thirteenth round of the Bundesliga, 1860 Munich traveled to Westfalenstadion to face Borussia Dortmund. Whatever Mino and the 1860 Munich hierarchy were discussing behind closed doors, Momo was given the chance to start.

Before this, Mino had privately told Momo that relations between the two sides had become rather strained, and that Momo might very well be denied any playing time. Yet as it turned out, Momo was named in the starting lineup.

In the previous three matches, Munich had won twice. Their record could certainly be called respectable. But what if they lost against the formidable Borussia Dortmund?

Although Dortmund were a powerful team, the narrative could easily be twisted into this: without Momo, 1860 Munich had won two of three matches, but once Momo started, they lost?

Perhaps someone would say, “But Momo was facing Borussia Dortmund!”

Yet did anyone stop to consider that China had faced the eventual champions Brazil and the third-place finishers Turkey at the 2002 World Cup? People criticized them all the same. Some even had the confidence to say, “I don’t care who they played. All I know is that they didn’t win. I didn’t watch the match, and the process doesn’t matter.”

As for Dortmund’s lineup, their goal was guarded by their number-one goalkeeper, Jens Lehmann. He was not exactly a mild-tempered man. After all, he would transfer to Arsenal during the 2003–04 season—poor Simon Jentzsch. His misbehavior on the pitch was practically endless, and he was hardly better off it. Most remarkably, even at the age of forty, he would still lose his temper like an impetuous young player.

Up front, Dortmund possessed a “giant” standing 202 centimeters tall: Jan Koller, affectionately known as “Dino.” Whenever he walked across the pitch, he gave people the illusion that the earth itself was trembling. In truth, when Momo saw Jan Koller, a fellow striker, all he could do was smile helplessly.

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Number nine, Jan Koller, was a highly efficient striker. In the previous season, 2001–02, he had scored eleven goals—compared with Miroslav Klose’s nine. All right, scoring in the Bundesliga was difficult! Momo could stake his reputation on it: eleven goals was truly a substantial figure.

Koller’s partner, the 175-centimeter Brazilian number twenty-one, Ewerthon, was an excellent complement to him. One was tall, the other swift, and together they brought out the best in each other. Ewerthon had also scored ten goals in the previous season. The two could practically be called the Bundesliga’s ultimate strike partnership.

Naturally, the number twenty-two on the bench, Marcio Amoroso, was not to be overlooked. He had scored eighteen goals during the 2001–02 season. But this season, he seemed to have run into the infamous sophomore slump, and his performances had been disappointing. Rumor had it that if Amoroso continued in such poor form, Dortmund would choose to sell him.

In midfield, number ten Tomas Rosicky—the “Mozart of football”—was a world-class playmaker. He did not score many goals, but his ability to create chances was second to none. He would later become Arsenal’s midfield lynchpin for many years.

In Dortmund’s defense, the number-six left-back, Stefan Heinrich, the number-four center-back Dede, and the holding midfielder Sebastian Kehl would all pose major problems for Momo.

The greatest threat of all, however, was their number-five center-back, Jurgen Kohler—the captain. He was supposed to retire after this season, but, well, I have postponed that by one year.

Kohler was known as the “Iron Band-Aid.” To the opponents he marked, he was like a strip of adhesive plaster stuck tightly to the body.

Marco van Basten, one of the greatest strikers in football history, once said, “Kohler was the most difficult defender I ever faced. Scoring in front of him was the hardest task.”

Countless great players had lowered their proud heads before Kohler. He was a defender who had sent innumerable strikers fleeing in disarray. His nickname, “Iron Band-Aid,” was not elegant, but it carried a fierce grandeur and reflected the respect and admiration he commanded throughout the football world.

Of course, what shocked people most about Kohler was his disciplinary record. In the Bundesliga, he had accumulated an astonishing eighty-five yellow cards and two red cards.

Together with the number-six left-back, Heinrich, he formed an almost flawless defensive partnership. Heinrich, after all, was a left-back whom even David Beckham had once named as one of the most difficult opponents he had ever faced, alongside Bixente Lizarazu and Roberto Carlos. In that position, Heinrich was the genuine article.

It was rather like Manchester City in the Premier League—though, of course, the later Manchester City. For a period, City’s defensive players were extraordinarily strong. Vincent Kompany, for instance, and the rest.

To anyone paying close attention, 1860 Munich’s intentions could be described as decidedly sinister. At a time when everyone was watching Momo and preparing to seize upon any mistake he made, they had sent a halfhearted, distracted team out alongside him to face such a powerful opponent.

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It was easy to imagine how many eyes were fixed on Momo. Even the smallest mistake could be magnified countless times over.

Watley’s expression was somewhat gloomy. He had already thought of his headline:

“Exposed at Last: A Waste of Space Is Still a Waste of Space.”

Watley did not believe Momo could score against Borussia Dortmund, who had recently spent lavishly to bring in a host of star players.

Lehmann, Kehl, and Kohler were all towering obstacles Momo could not possibly overcome. And was Momo really a genius?

Amoroso’s transfer fee had been twenty-five million. He, too, had once dazzled everyone. And where was he now? Sitting on the substitutes’ bench.

When Momo stepped onto the Westfalenstadion pitch, enormous flags waved overhead and the “Yellow Wall” seemed to stretch everywhere. It truly felt as though he had entered a hive. Momo felt gooseflesh rise all over his body.

Borussia Dortmund in those days was approaching its peak.

Borussia Dortmund in those days was bold and confident!

Borussia Dortmund in those days was filled with ambition, setting its sights directly on Bayern Munich and attempting to knock them from their vaunted throne.

Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz.

Careful—the yellow swarm is coming.

Wave after wave of cheering erupted. A trace of feverish excitement burned in Momo’s eyes.

Come on!

He would never fear a powerful enemy. What he feared was an enemy that was not strong enough—one that would make victory too easy to obtain.