Ignoring the teasing from those old-timers, Snuffy resumed his training for the day.
The 19th round of the Bundesliga will kick off on February 4th, with Wolfsburg visiting Frankfurt at their home ground, the Deutsche Bank Park.
Frankfurt is ranked in the middle of the League this season, and their overall playing style is very tough. With tenacious defense and a positive attitude, they have become a hard nut to crack in the Bundesliga this season.
Facing such a Frankfurt, and also for future matches, Snuffy decided to use his 10 accumulated lottery chances.
"System, let's have a Superstar-level draw!"
At this moment, Snuffy's consciousness was focused on the system in his mind, eagerly anticipating which Superstar's skill or characteristic he would draw in his first lottery.
A golden light flashed across his system interface, and a tall, handsome man appeared!
"King of the Six-Yard Box, Ruud van Nistelrooy!"
Snuffy couldn't help but exclaim; he had hit the jackpot this time.
"Congratulations, Host, for acquiring Superstar van Nistelrooy's skill – King of the Six-Yard Box!"
"Open the main panel to view the introduction of King of the Six-Yard Box."
"Skills possessed:
King of the Six-Yard Box: The blade's name is Hidden Dragon, bright as frost and snow. When sheathed, its light is dim, but once unsheathed, it raises a sky full of blood, inevitably taking lives.
Upon entering the penalty area, ball control and shooting ability are greatly enhanced, and the ability to grasp and seek opportunities is greatly improved!
And the closer to the goal, the greater the enhancement!
Snuffy looked at the explanation given by the system and understood the function of this skill.
In short, when Snuffy enters the penalty area, whether it's dribbling, ball control, stopping the ball, or receiving the ball, as long as the ball is at his feet, his control over the football will greatly increase. He can perform the magical dance steps of the King of the Six-Yard Box in the penalty area!
The improvement in the ability to seek opportunities allows him to keenly find various openings in the penalty area, gaining more scoring chances. His judgment of header landing spots in front of the goal, and his judgment of rebound opportunities, are also greatly enhanced!
The improvement in shooting ability and the ability to seize opportunities further greatly enhances his finishing ability, a fatal strike!
From today onwards, as long as Snuffy enters the opponent's penalty area, he will be the most fearsome King of the Six-Yard Box!
At the same time, in the previous few matches, Snuffy also discovered that he could now use Torres's 'Speed is King' at will. When he needed to break through or use speed to attack the opponent's defense, he no longer needed to activate the skill.
It had already become Snuffy's instinct, naturally used before his body even began to move. Just like the real Torres, 'I run when I want to run, I stop when I want to stop.'
This newly acquired skill, King of the Six-Yard Box, is the same; after practice and familiarity, it can be used at will.
He first used eleven skill points obtained from the last match to max out his short passing attribute, and the remaining seven points were added to body coordination.
Subsequent skill points gained from training will also be continuously invested. After maxing out these, it will be the turn of long passing, vision, positioning, and tactical awareness attributes.
After investing these eighteen skill points, Snuffy's overall rating reached 83, further enhanced by his skills and characteristics.
It is likely that his current strength might even be slightly stronger than peak Torres, after all, Torres didn't have van Nistelrooy's skill boost. Not to mention his Ambidextrous and Steel Body.
Snuffy, having acquired a new skill, was like a child with a new toy. After the afternoon's team training, he sought out Naldo, Benaglio, and other players who had teased him that morning.
He asked them to stay for some extra practice with him, to try out his newly acquired skill.
The result was self-evident; Snuffy, with his new skill loaded, displayed astonishing control in the penalty area. This left the players who trained with him exclaiming in surprise, as if they had seen a ghost.
"Oh my god, Snuffy, did you take drugs today?!"
"Although I knew you were fierce before, your performance in the penalty area today gave me an indescribable feeling."
"Yes, I felt it too, your ball control seems even more refined, and your shooting is even more lethal!"
"Benaglio, you've been shot into a sieve today."
After the training, everyone gathered around Snuffy, unable to stop complaining.
"Snuffy, if you play like that in every training session from now on, you'll quickly lose Naldo and Benaglio as friends."
"It's not that exaggerated, is it?!"
"It is that exaggerated! I, Gustavo, never lie!"
...
On February 3rd, the entire Wolfsburg team traveled to Frankfurt, preparing for the match against Frankfurt the next day.
At the pre-match press conference that afternoon, reporters from all over Europe crowded the entire press conference hall.
As a typical Bundesliga team that has been in the lower-mid table for years, Frankfurt's public relations staff had never seen their press conference hall so lively.
Even the press conference two years ago, when the team announced its relegation, was not half as busy as it was now!
Needless to say, these reporters were all attracted by Wolfsburg, after all, Wolfsburg is currently the most popular team in the Bundesliga!
From the Bundesliga Round 13 match on November 30, 2014, when Wolfsburg won 1-0 against Borussia Mönchengladbach, up until their last match, a 6-1 victory over Bayern Munich.
Wolfsburg has now achieved a six-game winning streak in the Bundesliga, including the famous slaughter of Bayern. If you also count a Europa League group stage victory interspersed within, Wolfsburg has achieved seven consecutive wins across all competitions.
No matter when, winning streaks always attract people's attention, not to mention that Wolfsburg also has two dazzling young talents in their squad.
De Bruyne's performance this season has been the best of his career so far, already attracting the attention of major European powerhouses.
Snuffy, with his incredible performance of nine goals and three assists in two substitute appearances and two starts so far, has already attracted the attention of all major clubs across Europe!
Due to Snuffy's self-protection and Dieter Hecking's special care, Snuffy has never accepted media interviews.
As the hottest rising star in Europe right now, the intensity of media pursuit for him is imaginable! They will not miss any opportunity to get close to Snuffy or get news.
For various reasons, a pre-match press conference between Wolfsburg and Frankfurt literally turned into a special meeting about Wolfsburg.
All the reporters were almost exclusively asking questions to Dieter Hecking and De Bruyne, who attended the press conference as the team's core player.
Those who asked if Wolfsburg was confident in continuing their winning streak against Frankfurt, or if they were confident in winning the Bundesliga, were still acceptable.
Some reporters asking if De Bruyne and Snuffy would transfer this summer were also tolerable. Of course, upon hearing such questions, Dieter Hecking would not give a pleasant look and directly refused to answer.
Finally, some tabloids or sensational media like The Sun went crazy asking about De Bruyne's private life and Snuffy's privacy.
Annoyed beyond measure, Dieter Hecking directly left the pre-match press conference with De Bruyne. If I can't provoke them, can't I at least avoid them?
After a lively pre-match press conference, various exaggerated news reports were flying around before the match started the next day.
Things like Wolfsburg being arrogant, confidently stating they would win and not taking Frankfurt seriously, and that they would definitely surpass Bayern Munich and win the Bundesliga this season.
Or that Wolfsburg's twin stars would definitely leave this summer, having already confirmed their moves to this and that major club.
As for gossip news like De Bruyne still loving his ex-girlfriend and wanting to rekindle their romance, or Snuffy having a childhood sweetheart he'd been with for years, there were countless such stories.
This left all Bundesliga fans feasting on the gossip, filling their plates to the brim.
At 3 PM on February 4th, the Deutsche Bank Park, a stadium capable of holding 52,300 people, was already filled with fans from both sides who came to watch the match.
It's worth mentioning that nearly ten thousand Wolfsburg fans traveled with the team, which is usually very hard to imagine. This clearly shows that Wolfsburg's recent performance has earned them the greatest support from their fans.
Thousands of miles away in the East, China Central Television's sports channel was broadcasting this Bundesliga match in the early hours of local time in China.
"Hello, viewers and friends, this is CCTV Sports Channel.
The 19th round of the Bundesliga, Frankfurt versus Wolfsburg, is about to begin. Here are commentators Duan Xuan and guest Liu Jingjie bringing you the commentary for this match.
The home team Frankfurt's formation is 4-1-2-1-2:
Goalkeeper: Trapp
Defenders: Kinsol B, Zambrano, Russ, Oczipka
Midfielders: Makoto Hasebe as a single defensive midfielder, Stefan Aigner, Takashi Inui, and Stendera forming a diamond four-man midfield with Stendera as the attacking midfielder.
Forwards: Seferovic, Meier
Wolfsburg's formation and lineup are the same as in the last match.
The players are now entering the field!"
"According to the 18-man squad list we received for Wolfsburg, Zhang Xizhe, who transferred to Wolfsburg this winter break to play as an attacking midfielder and advanced playmaker, has not been selected for the 18-man squad again after the last round.
However, the current hottest rising star in the Bundesliga, German-Chinese Snuffy, is starting in this match."
"Xuan'er, how would you evaluate this popular Snuffy's performance?"
"How else can I evaluate him?! In just four matches, he has already become a starting main striker for a Bundesliga title-contending team, and foreign media are already calling him a strong contender for this year's Golden Boy award! Just praise him for playing well, that's all."
"That's true, although I've only seen his highlights, he plays really beautifully! What a pity he's not Chinese, but a homegrown Wolfsburg youth academy product!"
"Don't say that! Brother Liu, with our youth training, can we even produce a…?"
"Hey, Xuan, the match has started, Frankfurt kicks off!"
Xuan'er's words were cut short by Brother Liu.
"Frankfurt is going for a strong attack right from the start! They are making large-scale ball transfers to both sides, creating opportunities for their wide players to take on Wolfsburg's fullbacks one-on-one."
"Stefan Aigner lobs a high ball into the Wolfsburg penalty area, intercepted by Naldo!"
"Right from the start of this match, Wolfsburg is still continuing with the strategy they used in the last match against Bayern: focus on defense and prepare for counter-attacks."
"When a strong team humbles itself to play practical counter-attacking football, it seems Wolfsburg is determined to win this match today!"
"Takashi Inui is dribbling through the middle, Arnold is sticking close behind him, constantly applying pressure, and he grabs Takashi Inui's arm. The Referee blows for a foul, giving Frankfurt a free-kick 33 meters from the goal!"
"This free-kick will be taken by Frankfurt's attacking midfielder Stendera! He shoots directly towards the goal, and Wolfsburg's goalkeeper Benaglio easily collects it."
"Wolfsburg's counter-attack, Benaglio makes a hand-thrown ground pass to Vieirinha.
Vieirinha carries the ball forward, notices Stefan Aigner chasing him from behind, pushes the ball back, turns, takes two more steps forward, and then sends a long pass directly to the edge of the Frankfurt penalty area."
"Snuffy rushes to the landing spot, lifts his right leg high, and brings the ball down! He continues to accelerate forward, weaving past Frankfurt defender Zambrano! He's one-on-one with the goalkeeper, a clear chance!"
Snuffy dribbled while observing the goalkeeper's positioning, aiming for the subtle gap between the goalkeeper and the goal. He first made a feint of lifting his leg high, making the opposing goalkeeper mistakenly believe he would take a powerful shot.
However, as his right foot landed, he gently pushed the ball. A light and effortless push shot, aimed at the far corner of the goal where the goalkeeper couldn't reach.
Ultimately, this slow but easy push shot broke through the Frankfurt goalkeeper's grasp; the ball crossed the goal line and hit the back of the net!
"GOAL!!!! The ball is in! In the seventh minute of the match, Snuffy scores a relaxed and elegant push shot from Wolfsburg's counter-attack!"
"A perfect first touch, a clever combination of speed and technique, that goal was too beautiful! Right, Brother Liu!"
"That goal was indeed beautiful. Let's watch the replay of the goal. Xuan'er, look, facing the long pass flying from the right side of his own penalty area.
Snuffy's judgment of the landing spot was incredibly precise; with a smooth arch of his right foot, he stopped the ball perfectly on his instep. The key is that he didn't even slow down, directly initiating a second burst of speed to shake off the Frankfurt defender who was originally level with him.
Then, facing the goalkeeper, he made a feint, deceived the goalkeeper, and then took a push shot towards the far corner of the goal. It was simply seamless!"
"Extremely natural and fluid, knowing exactly what to do and how to play every step of the way! Like a cold blade, a single fatal strike!"
As Xuan'er and Brother Liu praised him, Chinese fans watching this Bundesliga match in China also discussed animatedly, quickly sparking lively discussions on Tieba, Hupu, and Weibo.
Of course, Snuffy currently had no idea that he was already gaining some fame in China. He was now marveling at the power of the King of the Six-Yard Box skill, that feeling of being able to do whatever he wanted in the penalty area was incredibly captivating—it was the exquisite dance of the King of the Six-Yard Box.