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Bad news: Conceding a goal early at the Bernabéu, Bayer Leverkusen found themselves in a very passive situation against Real Madrid.
Good news: The fusion value was dynamically increasing, intelligently adjusting based on the difficulty of this match.
Originally, when he stepped onto the pitch at the start of the match, Lance looked at the system panel to select the template to equip. At that time, the fusion value was only 84%.
He didn't expect that only 25 minutes had passed, and the first half wasn't even over yet.
Lance's fierce tackle brought down Cristiano Ronaldo, but it wasn't a foul, only giving the opponent a corner kick. Whilst Cristiano Ronaldo was getting up and grumbling, Toni Kroos walked towards the corner flag with the ball.
Pepe and Ramos came into the box and tangled with Bayer Leverkusen teammates. Lance took a moment to glance at the system.
One glance and he was startled; the fusion value had silently surged!
——
Template Equipped: Bachira Meguru (Fusion Value 88%)
——Skill: Monster Dribbling
——Skill: Monster Passing
——Skill: Monster Devour
Rage Value: 15%
Support Character: Nagi Seishiro - S (Fusion Value 100%)
Support Status: On
——
Lance didn't know whether to cry or laugh. If the surge in fusion value came at the cost of the team's disadvantage in the match, it was still a gain!
Disadvantage is disadvantage; as long as the match isn't over, it means they can still turn it around! No matter how Real Madrid pressed, as long as the defence could hold, Lance had enough confidence to create threats!
"Lance's tackle just now was very spirited, but Real Madrid still dominates the field."
"Toni Kroos takes the corner kick!"
"Pepe——"
Pepe's header hit the crossbar, sending shivers down the spines of all Bayer Leverkusen players again. Being fiercely besieged by Real Madrid, they felt like their goal could be breached at any moment.
Bayer Leverkusen players hadn't experienced this feeling in a long time. It was like someone with a healthy digestive system suddenly getting an upset stomach and diarrhoea, sitting on a long-distance bus on the motorway, unable to ask the bus to stop for a restroom break.
The next service area was still a long way off, at least tens of minutes of holding it in. Enduring wave after wave of attacks in his stomach, all he could do was defend tightly, forcibly using willpower to guard the last line of defence.
Each impact made him break out in a cold sweat; holding back one wave wasn't the end. The thought of endless attacks to come filled him with despair.
Bayer Leverkusen players felt a similar sensation. They held on until the end of the first half, only then letting out a sigh of relief, finding a service area for a temporary solution.
"We're safe, for now..."
In the second half, they re-boarded the bus, with another stretch of road to endure. After Real Madrid's period of silence, allowing Bayer Leverkusen a brief moment of comfort, the fierce offensive returned!
Even more intense than in the first half!
"Cristiano Ronaldo!! Oh my!! He shot directly!"
"Leno fumbles!!"
"Benzema's rebound shot!!"
At the moment Benzema took the rebound shot in front of the goal, Lance thought they were about to go down 2-0. The things trying to escape seemed about to burst out.
In desperation, a leg stretched out, sweeping the ball away almost at the very moment it was halfway across the goal line!
"Oh my!! Rüdiger!! Goal-line clearance!"
But in such a critical moment, how could one guarantee that the next attack would not lead to an accident?
"Now!"
Lance finally couldn't hold back. He glanced at the system's 75% rage value; never mind if it was full rage, he had to try an attack first!
The moment Rüdiger made the goal-line clearance, Lance had already started his run. When the frantic clearance kicked the ball out of the box, Lance was the first to reach the landing spot, taking advantage of Modrić's height of only 172cm, a head shorter than Lance.
He powerfully headed it over Modrić to Son Heung-min!
"A chance for a counterattack!! Son Heung-min!"
As Zhan Jun roared, fans in front of their computer screens saw a glimmer of hope in the desperate situation!
"Could it be?"
"Lance! Go, go, go!"
"Good chance!"
It was indeed a good chance. Pepe was practically playing as a centre forward, with only Khedira and Ramos staying back in defence.
Son Heung-min shook off Carvajal, and Ramos immediately moved over, intending to commit a tactical foul. Even a yellow card was better than letting Bayer Leverkusen launch a counterattack.
Ramos saw Son Heung-min's face and subconsciously assumed he was easy to bully, their slender physiques almost a stereotype. To his surprise, when Ramos charged with his upper body like a shoulder barge, Son Heung-min merely swayed, not losing his balance.
Instead, he used the momentum to create distance and attempted to burst down the sideline!
"Puta!!"
Ramos, in a fit of rage, made a tackle from behind, completely exasperated. But Son Heung-min had anticipated him.
In the last moment before falling after his ankle was hooked, Son Heung-min forcibly swept the ball towards the centre!
"Ramos fouled!! Advantage played!! The counterattack continues!"
The Bayer Leverkusen players initially wanted to complain about the foul, but then they saw a figure emerge from the white crowd, taking the ball and continuing to surge forward!
"Lance!!"
The moment he received the ball, Lance, to be safe, activated Nagi Seishiro's support. His left foot made a perfect first touch, slightly deflecting to the left, dodging Khedira's precise tackle.
At the same time, he turned, held off Khedira, nutmegged him with his right foot, and then turned to break through on the right! He smoothly bypassed Real Madrid's last line of defence, carrying the ball into their half!
Carvajal was furious, chasing back all the way, also attempting a tackle from behind. Even if it meant a red card for a malicious foul as the last defender, he subconsciously didn't want Lance to launch a counterattack.
Anyone else might have been tackled to the ground, but Lance's Wild Instinct came into play. Although Bachira Meguru's dribbling skill didn't describe this, Lance temporarily treated the trait as a passive ability.
The moment he sensed danger, he poked the ball away with his toe, leaped to dodge Carvajal's two-part tackle and hook, and elegantly, like the wind, charged into Real Madrid's penalty area!
"Lance!! He's beaten two defenders!! He's through on goal!"
Iker Casillas rushed out of his goal. In the 2010 World Cup final, he saved Robben's deadly one-on-one, helping Spain win the World Cup.
Today, he could also save this lad's one-on-one! How much stronger could he be than Robben... Wait?
Most people, facing Casillas's charge, would panic and make a hasty move. Yet, Lance repeatedly displayed a calmness unbefitting his age.
He touched the ball to the left with his toe, faking Casillas into diving for the save, then used his left foot's dribbling feel, pulled it back with a flip-flap! And burst past on the right!
Facing an open goal!
"He's beaten Casillas!! Lance——"
"The goal is in!!"
"1-1! Lance scores a one-on-one to equalise for Bayer Leverkusen!"
The Bernabéu stadium stands were silent, the previous clamour abruptly ceasing. At Real Madrid's most dominant moment, Lance, like a god descending, struck Real Madrid head-on!
Shattering the darkness with thunder!
"The Champions League group stage isn't over yet, and Lance's 8 goals reign supreme!"
The spirited Lance performed a backflip celebration in front of the Bernabéu stands. On the other side, Cristiano Ronaldo was seething.
He had worked himself to death and only had 4 goals in the Champions League; less than 4 games with 4 goals was already very efficient. Lance's 8 goals were simply outrageous!
Cristiano Ronaldo felt a real threat for the first time, questioning his life for the first time.
"This brat... can he really surpass me?"