Lin Hao's decisiveness and the speed of his shot were both too fast.
Furthermore, the ball went through his legs, which was a great humiliation for him.
The ball's speed was very high, and goalkeeper Lloris had no chance, but luck was not on Lin Hao's side; it hit the goalpost and bounced back, not into the net.
It was then cleared by a Tottenham defender.
Lin Hao was frustrated, but just as he covered his face in annoyance, he heard his teammates shout, "Defend!"
This showed his inexperience.
Lin Hao quickly retreated to defend. Tottenham launched a quick counterattack, with Son Heung-min carrying the ball wide to attack, facing Holding.
Before Son Heung-min could get past Holding, Lin Hao had already returned. Of course, this was also why Son Heung-min hesitated and didn't get past Holding, as speed is paramount in such counterattacks.
After Lin Hao returned, he directly engaged with his body. Holding seized the opportunity. Although Lin Hao couldn't outmuscle Son Heung-min, Son Heung-min's reaction to the contact gave Holding the perfect moment to tackle, and Holding precisely stole the ball.
After Lin Hao regained his balance, he turned and ran. Holding chipped the ball. Lin Hao received the ball with a side-body touch and then chipped it again. The ball arced in a perfect rainbow over the heads of the rushing Tottenham players. Lin Hao also adjusted his body and dribbled forward.
Whether a player is good at dribbling can be seen from how he controls the ball. Lin Hao's dribbling was perfectly in rhythm. Any defender trying to challenge him would be too late and easily bypassed by Lin Hao.
Aurier, disbelieving, was beaten by a beautiful 'Marseille Roulette'.
Lin Hao's speed showed no signs of slowing down, a stark contrast to Son Heung-min's counterattack earlier.
Upon reaching the edge of the penalty area, facing Dier, Lin Hao cut in horizontally, incorporating a rhythmic stop. Vertonghen also came up, and the two intended to double-team Lin Hao.
As Lin Hao was cutting horizontally, just as Vertonghen approached, he poked the ball in Vertonghen's direction. Vertonghen had just arrived and was slowing down, making him unable to adjust his body to intercept the ball. Lin Hao changed direction, passing between the two defenders.
Actually, at this point, the ball was a bit out of control. If it wasn't out of control, he'd truly be Ronaldinho.
But precisely because it was out of control, it attracted Tottenham's last defender, center-back Foyth, who came forward to challenge for the ball.
But Lin Hao was faster, and after gaining possession, he executed another 'Marseille Roulette', getting past the last defender.
Immediately after the 'Marseille Roulette', he followed up with a shot. His footwork was excellent, leading to a beautifully connected sequence. This shot was taken from too close, and Lloris still had no chance.
The ball went straight into the net.
To the astonishment of tens of thousands of fans at White Hart Lane and millions watching on TV and online, Lin Hao ran to the sidelines, placed his right foot on the advertising board, and reached down to adjust his shin area.
Everyone knew what he meant: "How do you like this country bumpkin?"
The Head Coach on the sidelines was stunned. Lin Hao's performance today was a bit too good, just as he said, he had been reborn.
But why?
Perhaps only Saka, sitting on the sidelines, understood.
Because in this match, in such a short amount of time, Lin Hao hadn't done anything else. Lin Hao had only attacked. In defense, he hadn't done much else, just helped with some tackles.
However, everyone had underestimated Lin Hao's offensive ability, and everyone had underestimated Lin Hao's understanding of the game and of opposing defenders.
During this period, less than a month, Lin Hao's growth in analyzing the rhythm of professional matches was truly astonishing.
Saka had only one feeling: he was truly an exceptionally intelligent person.
At the same time, Saka also felt that while Lin Hao's football IQ was very high, his general intelligence seemed even higher.
But it didn't matter. This was just his own comparison. Compared to all players, his football IQ was already top-tier.
After celebrating, Lin Hao returned and specifically went to Vertonghen's position, saying, "What did you defend?"
"What are you shouting about?"
"I really don't understand. How can someone be so bad yet so loud?"
Vertonghen couldn't say a word, because he truly hadn't defended Lin Hao even once.
But his flushed face clearly showed that he was broken!
The score of the match became one-all. Lin Hao helped his team, and if the score didn't change, this would be considered a last-gasp equalizer. Of course, only a few minutes remained in the match.
However, in these final minutes, Lin Hao not only surprised others but also Saka, who thought he understood him.
In the eighty-seventh minute, Arsenal got a counterattack opportunity on the right wing. Mkhitaryan quickly advanced on the right, combining in a one-two with Bellerín. Bellerín then went to the byline and looked up.
Lin Hao was moving horizontally at just the right time, at the edge of the penalty area. Tottenham's quick retreat left this area wide open.
Bellerín crossed the ball.
On Lin Hao's side, even before the ball arrived, his foot was already raised, his ready stance adopted. This was pure ball sense, knowing that when his leg came down, the ball would surely be there.
"Boom!"
He shot directly without stopping the ball. The ball was powerful and flew into the net again.
As the disbelieving fans reacted, the young man was already standing on the sidelines, hands raised high, under the glow of deep breaths and profuse sweat.
"Wow! He really seems like a superstar in the making!"
Lin Hao scored the winning goal against Tottenham!
Until the end of the match, the score remained two-one. Arsenal won this derby match, defeating their arch-rivals, Tottenham.
And Lin Hao's name once again resonated across the world. All fans, whether they watched the match or not, in this era of rapid information transfer, received a message after the match or when they woke up the next day.
"Three matches and asia's number one brother is done for! Arsenal's new star Lin Hao, in a divine display of power!"
"Shocking! Monthly salary of three hundred pounds, overturning arch-rivals Tottenham!"
"Prodigy unleashes divine power, Lin Hao scores a brace!"
This time, was it a flash in the pan or a true transformation?
However, two shocking performances ensured that Lin Hao's name was remembered by everyone for the first time. The first time, he was merely known.
But Lin Hao still had no time to concern himself with these things. This time, he was truly embroiled in big trouble.
And it had nothing to do with football?
Lin Hao was roughly woken up. He opened his eyes to see a burly man in uniform, who directly showed him his ID in front of his face, then stated, "CID Agent, Paul Kitty!"
"Sit up!"
Lin Hao sat up in a daze, then widened his eyes, looking around. Their small dorm room was filled with numerous uniformed personnel, all crouching on the floor, examining something.
And next door, his roommate lay on the bed, completely covered by the blanket.
"Yes, your roommate is dead. Homicide is not ruled out!"
"Huh?" Lin Hao realized something was wrong and slowly turned his head towards his roommate.
This was a two-person room!