After the match against Werder Bremen, most of Wolfsburg's key players were preparing for the Bundesliga's 24th round match against Augsburg.
Compared to their German Cup opponent, RB Leipzig, a team from the German second division, their next League opponent, Augsburg, was a top-ranking Bundesliga team.
According to experts, Augsburg should be able to secure a Europa League spot for next season.
Facing two opponents with such a significant difference in strength, Dieter Hecking naturally used a purely reserve lineup to play away against Leipzig.
He kept the main players at home to prepare for the upcoming tough match against Augsburg.
Even with a reserve lineup, Wolfsburg had the strength of a lower-tier Bundesliga team, and the weaker Leipzig predictably lost 0-2 at home.
Wolfsburg successfully advanced to the quarterfinals of this season's German Cup.
However, facing Augsburg, who were fiercely competing for a European qualification spot,
the Wolfsburg players experienced a predictably tough battle.
On March 7, 2015, at Augsburg's home stadium, WWK Arena,
Wolfsburg ultimately relied on a penalty won by Snuffy and successfully converted by De Bruyne to narrowly defeat Augsburg away from home.
Wolfsburg dominated the match away from home, but an embarrassing situation arose. Usually, when they had an advantage on the field,
Wolfsburg would surely press forward with full force, bombarding the opponent's half.
But this time, under Augsburg's tenacious defense, despite having a significant advantage in possession, they couldn't convert their high ball possession into shots and goals.
If not for Snuffy's flash of brilliance with a breakthrough, the most likely outcome for the entire match would have been a 0-0 draw.
After several consecutive big wins, Wolfsburg's attacking power seemed to be experiencing some issues again.
De Bruyne's recent workload was quite heavy, and his form in recent matches began to decline uncontrollably.
Even with constant rotation, the overly dense schedule of matches had a considerable impact on the team's core players.
Fortunately, after the match against Augsburg, Wolfsburg got about seven days of rest.
Next, they would face their strongest opponent in this grueling schedule: the Serie A giant Inter Milan.
With Inter Milan's arrival, even before the first leg of this Europa League Round of 16 match had begun, the fans in Wolfsburg began to get excited.
This was the first time in the team's history they would contend with Inter Milan, a clash that would be recorded in the team's history books. Wolfsburg fans also wanted to see what was so special about the Serie A giant!
Although they already knew Inter Milan was on a downward trend, seeing such an unexceptional Inter Milan, devoid of any superstars or legends,
the long-awaiting Wolfsburg fans, and even the Wolfsburg players themselves, still felt a hint of disappointment.
The Inter Milan squad that came to Wolfsburg with Mancini had Shaqiri, who had just transferred from Bayern, as their most recognizable name.
Their veteran goalkeeper Handanovic and new midfield core Kovacic were both on the bench.
From this, it could be seen that Mancini did not attach much importance to the Europa League. Inter Milan's focus was still on the Serie A.
After all, they had missed out on a top-four League finish for several years, and under the suppression of Juventus, winning the championship was almost impossible, but they still had to fight for a Champions League spot.
Compared to a Champions League spot, the Europa League was not as important, especially since with Inter Milan's current squad, achieving good results in the Europa League seemed a bit out of reach.
On March 13, the Volkswagen Arena was surrounded by Wolfsburg fans who had come from far and wide.
The match was also broadcast live by ESPN's German branch.
The commentary guests were German football legends Matthäus and Ballack.
"Michael, which side do you favor more in this match?" Matthäus began to ask Ballack for his opinion on the match during the pre-match broadcast.
"Wolfsburg? They look a bit stronger, but not by much."
"What do you think makes them better than Inter Milan?" Matthäus continued to press.
"A top-class midfielder, De Bruyne! His performance determines the ceiling of this Wolfsburg team!"
"After Kovacic was benched, Inter Milan's midfield clearly had a significant gap compared to Wolfsburg."
"As a former excellent midfielder, I believe the stronger midfield of Wolfsburg should give them an advantage. Lothar, I believe you share my thoughts."
"Is that the understanding of fellow midfielders? But I still support Inter Milan more!"
Ballack stated his opinion, and Matthäus also smiled, expressing his disagreement.
"Inter Milan has indeed declined too quickly in recent years, but as a former member of Inter Milan, I believe their rich European experience will bring them good luck!"
"Alright, the match is about to begin. Let's take a look at the starting lineups for both teams:
The visiting Inter Milan deployed a 4-3-1-2 formation.
Goalkeeper: Carrizo.
Defenders: D'Ambrosio, Ranocchia, Juan Jesus, Santon.
Midfielders: Medel, Guarin, Hernanes, Shaqiri.
Shaqiri played as an attacking midfielder, with the other three lined up in front of the defense.
Forwards: Icardi, Palacio.
The home team Wolfsburg stuck to their familiar 4-2-3-1.
Goalkeeper: Benaglio.
Defenders: Vieirinha, Robin Knoche, Naldo, Ricardo Rodriguez.
Midfielders: Perisic, Gustavo, De Bruyne, Guilavogui, Snuffy.
Forward: Dost.
Alright, without further ado, let's enjoy today's exciting match."
With a whistle from the Referee, the strong showdown between Wolfsburg and Inter Milan began.
As soon as the match started, Snuffy, who was attempting a breakthrough with the ball, felt obvious resistance; the opposing No. 18 defensive midfielder, Medel, proved to be very difficult to deal with.
Although he was only a little over 1.7 meters tall, his weight of over 150 pounds meant he did not appear frail in defensive duels; on the contrary, he was full of aggression.
After being harassed again and forced to pass the ball back, Snuffy looked at the short opponent and felt a tremendous headache. He truly lived up to his nickname, "Chilean Gattuso."
He really had a bit of Gattuso's feel. There truly were no mistaken nicknames on the football field. Players who made a name for themselves were not easy to deal with.
Ten minutes had already passed since the start of the match because Snuffy's and Perisic's attacks on the wings were limited by Inter Milan's three defensive midfielders, especially Medel.
Wolfsburg's old tactic of combining wing and central play could not be executed at all.
In positional play, although the current Inter Milan could no longer display the characteristics of the Italian chain defense from their peak as a Serie A powerhouse,
their basic skills in compressing space and collective defense in defensive positional play still rendered De Bruyne's and Dost's central attacks ineffective.
Of course, Inter Milan's own attacks were entirely initiated by Shaqiri alone, so they naturally couldn't create much threat; after all, you couldn't expect those three defensive midfielders to organize attacks, could you?
Because neither side could create threatening attacks, the match itself appeared less exciting, which left the fans present feeling a little disappointed.
For the fans, they naturally preferred to see an exciting attacking battle.
Seeing the situation on the field, Dieter Hecking, knowing that relying solely on the midfield and attack would not break the deadlock, gave instructions from the sidelines for the full-backs to push forward.
Wolfsburg concentrated six players in the area between the midfield and Inter Milan's penalty box, continuously breaking through on both wings and through the middle.
Under such numerical superiority, Inter Milan's impenetrable three defensive midfielders finally had gaps exposed, but there was still cover from the defensive line behind them.
Although Wolfsburg had a certain advantage in terms of possession, they still couldn't easily breach Inter Milan's defense, and instead, they had to be wary of Inter Milan's quick counter-attacks behind the defense.
In one breakthrough, Snuffy deftly pushed the ball behind Medel, then used his excellent explosiveness to instantly shake off the reacting Medel.
He sprinted straight towards Inter Milan's penalty area, believing this breakthrough was successful, but as soon as he entered the box, he was challenged by Inter Milan center-back Ranocchia.
Snuffy, caught off guard, lost possession. Ranocchia passed the ball back to Inter Milan goalkeeper Carrizo, who launched a long ball into Wolfsburg's half.
Shaqiri received the ball in the center and quickly accelerated, dribbling forward. Facing Gustavo's defense, a clever change of direction allowed him to shake off Gustavo.
He continued to carry the ball towards Wolfsburg's penalty area, and on the right side of the box, he passed it to Icardi, who came out to receive it.
Icardi, with his back to goal, shielded Naldo, then turned and angled a pass to Palacio in front of the goal.
Palacio seized this golden opportunity, unleashing a low-angle shot that broke through Wolfsburg's goal.
"GOAL!!!! Palacio's goal breaks the deadlock! Inter Milan has shown their true colors: rock-solid defense and quick counter-attacks!"
"Michael, it seems my favored Inter Milan has gained the advantage! Wolfsburg's youngsters are clearly too eager and pushing too high!"
Matthäus smiled triumphantly at Ballack.
Ballack was not to be outdone.
"From that period just now, we can clearly see that Wolfsburg controlled the game, and a goal will come very soon!"
The two commentators began to openly debate in the broadcast booth, which was also a way to attract viewers and draw more fans to watch the match.
Although they conceded a goal due to over-emphasizing attack, Wolfsburg's players still firmly executed their coach's instructions.
They did not abandon their aggressive attacking despite conceding a goal.
When Gustavo encountered a frontal interception near the center circle, he angled a pass behind the opposing player.
De Bruyne, after shaking off Medel's entanglement, arrived at the ball's landing spot to receive it.
Guarin immediately pressed forward, but De Bruyne calmly short-passed the ball to the right wing. At this point, Snuffy came forward to receive the ball and once again delivered a short pass.
Gustavo made a forward run to receive it, and Wolfsburg executed continuous short passes on the opponent's right wing of the penalty area.
The three players, in continuous cooperation, sent the ball into Inter Milan's penalty area, and the opponent's three defensive midfielders also desperately tried to win the ball back and defend.
Snuffy, at the moment Guarin came back to defend him directly, stopped the ball abruptly, changed direction, dribbled two steps towards the center of the box, and then passed the ball to Dost, who was calling for the ball with his back to goal.
Dost received the ball, pushed it forward, and met the onrushing De Bruyne, who struck it with full power.
With a powerful shot, he sent the ball into the top right corner of Inter Milan's goal.
With this goal, the Volkswagen Arena, which had been somewhat subdued moments before, instantly turned into an ocean of joy.
"GOAL!!!! GOAL!!!! GOAL!!!!"
Ballack in the studio continuously cheered for the goal.
"I told you Wolfsburg would score! De Bruyne played really well in this match!"
This time, it was Ballack's turn to give Matthäus a knowing smile.
The match continued, with Wolfsburg still relentlessly pressing forward with their entire team.
Mancini on the sidelines couldn't help but curse. Did they really look down on Inter Milan's attack that much?
Did they think his two forwards up front were just for show?!
However, most of the midfield possession was controlled by Wolfsburg's players. Shaqiri alone was struggling, and Wolfsburg, having just conceded, would not possibly let him go unchecked.
As long as Inter Milan's most threatening player, Shaqiri, was contained, then Inter Milan's Achilles' heel was clamped down.
Even if their two forwards were threatening, without the midfield supplying balls from behind, they could only stare at each other in the penalty area.
Mancini also wanted to emulate this and restrict De Bruyne, but De Bruyne could constantly combine with Snuffy and Perisic.
All three of them had good ball-carrying and advancing abilities, coupled with the overlapping Vieirinha and the technically excellent Rodriguez.
Wolfsburg's midfield and attack combined flowed like water.
Even with the Chilean Gattuso, Medel, leading the other two defensive midfielders in a concerted effort to encircle them, it was still very difficult to win back possession.
Even if they did win it back, in the process of passing forward, they couldn't get the ball to Shaqiri's feet.
In this situation where the opponent couldn't retaliate, Wolfsburg's ball-carrying players constantly looked for weaknesses in Inter Milan's defense inside and outside the penalty area.
However, this still solid Italian steel defense meant Wolfsburg's attacks were repeatedly fruitless.
But constantly chasing the ball and the increasing defensive pressure on the backline made Inter Milan's players feel extremely tired.
Especially the three defensive midfielders, as the first half neared its end, even the Chilean Gattuso, Medel, known for his ample stamina within Inter Milan, was starting to struggle.
As the first half ended, watching the Inter Milan players return to the locker room, panting,
Dieter Hecking was prepared to end the suspense of this knockout round in the second half.