As the assist king last season, Jin Hayes also scored quite a few goals. Fans generally remember him as someone who single-handedly dribbled through the entire defense and tapped in on the goal line. Of course, the stronger the opponent, the greater the defensive resistance, and the higher the risk of trying to beat everyone.
With Jin Hayes's technical ability, it was almost impossible for him to be dispossessed. However, playing too many fancy moves could invite rough treatment, and Jin Hayes was frequently fouled by opponents.
According to the official Bundesliga statistics for the 2007-2008 season, Jin Hayes played 26 matches and was fouled 107 times. He was fouled an average of 4.11 times per game—topping all five major European leagues.
This figure even surpassed the treatment received by many later superstars at their peak. Professional players wouldn't indulge fancy tricks; dribbling solo down the wing is one thing, but in the center, one needs to consider the fluidity of the entire team's attack much more.
Therefore, Jin Hayes focused more on passing in the new season, reducing his individual tendency to hold onto the ball. Passing is always faster than dribbling.
In the first two rounds of the season, Jin Hayes racked up four assists, with his only goal against Cottbus being a spectacular 0-degree aerial trap from the byline, followed by a turn and a powerful shot.
The video of that goal was almost worn out by major media outlets, TV stations, and YouTube football bloggers. Everyone thought it might be a long time until Jin Hayes's next goal. Who would have thought that against Bayern, less than a minute into the match, Jin Hayes would once again deliver a world-class goal?
"Only Jin could handle that ball with such artistry! He truly lives up to his name as a young magician!"
Watching the slow-motion replay, commentator Mehmet Scholl was almost having an intracranial orgasm, his brain and hands tingling with excitement. Even Oliver Kahn, who had been in the football world for over twenty years, couldn't hide his excitement, blurting out several German expletives on live broadcast.
From the moment Nuri Şahin passed the half-volley to Jin Hayes, the young number 10 never let the ball touch the ground. He flicked it with his heel, nutmegging Mark van Bommel. Under Hamit Altıntop's tight marking, he flicked the ball on the left side of the pitch to create space, and then—to everyone's surprise—directly took a volley shot. A long-range lob from over thirty-five metres, a standard knuckleball arc, the ball dipping sharply just as it was about to fly over the crossbar.
Kahn watched the replay multiple times from different angles. "You can't blame Michael Rensing for this goal. Even if I were in goal in my prime, I wouldn't have been able to do anything about this kind of shot. It's theoretically an impossible angle. Our Asian youngster is even more terrifying this season than I imagined!"
Kahn couldn't help but feel a little worried for Bayern. With Jin Hayes in this form, the Bavarians were in danger.
…
"Lord Jin is awesome!!!"
"Holy crap, I just turned it on—what happened?"
"Brother, you really missed out if you didn't see that goal. A worldie!"
"What a tragedy! A goal within one minute of kickoff? Are they treating our Bayern like pigs to be slaughtered?"
"Holy crap, he actually scored that! It's unscientific!"
"Not necessarily. Maybe Bayern can come back. Anyway, this match is definitely going to be great."
A few days earlier, on August 24th, the Olympic Games had concluded, with the Chinese delegation topping the gold medal table with 51 gold medals. The Olympics were indeed a global event, but for football fans, they finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel.
CCTV5 finally stopped broadcasting niche sports like badminton, track and field, weightlifting, and wrestling—the Bundesliga had returned to free-to-air television. Jin Hayes's fans didn't need to go to foreign websites to watch this heavyweight match.
Many people had just turned on their TVs, about to check the situation on the Tieba forums, when all the major Baidu Tieba forums exploded. Jin Hayes's goal ignited everyone. A sixteen-year-old Chinese player, starting in a top European league match and scoring a world-class goal within one minute of kickoff—no one would have dared to imagine this in the previous decade or the next two decades.
Since players like Sun Jihai and Zheng Zhi faded from the European stage, Chinese football seemed to have reignited a spark of hope. On the distant European continent, a small flame had already erupted into a brilliant sun.
Everyone was celebrating wildly; only Bayern fans were in happy agony.
"Hoo hoo hoo hoo—Jin Hayes's goal helps visiting Borussia Dortmund take the lead! What a brilliant world-class goal!" Duan Xuan found it hard to use more elaborate words to describe Jin Hayes's divine strike. If it were He Wei, he might recite a few poems to express his feelings; if it were Zhan Jun, he might passionately shout out classic lines. Duan Xuan could only chuckle foolishly here.
Jin Hayes didn't celebrate excessively after scoring. He simply slid on his knees with his teammates in the corner flag area, then immediately threw himself back into intense defence. Bayern Munich's counter-attack might be fierce.
"Ribéry! A breakthrough on the left wing!! He tries to cut inside and shoot himself!! That shot went high!! He really should have passed—Klose and Luca Toni were both in position. Ribéry's shot selection is questionable."
"…And another Bayern wing attack, Hamit Altıntop!! A cross from a forty-five-degree angle!"
"Subotić!! A header clearance! Borussia Dortmund's counter-attack opportunity!"
"Kehl, Şahin, Jin, Şahin—Reus! Jin!! Passes again into the half-space! Jakub Błaszczykowski—oh no!! Just a little wide! What a shame!"
"But the attacking combination just now was very fluid. Borussia Dortmund's continuous one-touch passing was perfect! Jin Hayes's link-up play in the final third has become increasingly mature."
After conceding, Bayern launched several attacks in a row, but unfortunately, their execution was a bit rushed, and none of them posed enough threat. On the other hand, Borussia Dortmund almost scored another goal.
German commentator Scholl was full of praise for Jin Hayes. After Dortmund's quick counter-attack reached the final third, Jin Hayes's two link-up plays were simply the finishing touch; his key passes easily dissected Bayern's defence. It was just a pity that Jakub Błaszczykowski's shot lacked a bit of accuracy.
Relatively speaking, Dortmund's attacking coordination was clearly better, the players performed with more understanding, and they looked more like a cohesive unit. Bayern, on the other hand, seemed to be losing their dominance. Under Klinsmann's coaching, their attack was not as good as last season, feeling a bit fragmented with players acting individually.
"The camera focuses on Bayern coach Jürgen Klinsmann. His brows are furrowed, seemingly dissatisfied with the team's performance." Scholl didn't care that they were both Bayern legends, former teammates from the 95-97 era. He mockingly pointed out Klinsmann's coaching limitations: "Actually, he's the weakest link on the whole team. It's the first time I've seen Bayern Munich play like headless chickens on the pitch. If it weren't for Klinsmann, the 2006 World Cup Germany team might not have been semi-finalists—they could have made it to the final."
Kahn, also a Bayern legend, smiled wryly. His colleague was beating a dead horse. He wanted to say a few words to help Bayern and Klinsmann, but he couldn't find any reason to refute. "I can only say that Borussia Dortmund are stronger than last season. They have good players and a good coach, and they might achieve even better results this year."
"Let's get back to the match! Bayern have been dispossessed again in the final third!"
Borussia Dortmund's high press was making Bayern Munich very uncomfortable, unable to even get past midfield. Mark van Bommel was getting old, Bastian Schweinsteiger wasn't a dribbling midfielder, and Hamit Altıntop's ability was limited.
Bayern's only sharp attack came from Ribéry on the left wing.
Under Borussia Dortmund's relentless high pressure, Bastian Schweinsteiger's passing intention was too obvious, and Neven Subotić suddenly pressed forward and easily intercepted the ball.
"Subotić, Şahin — Jin!"
Whenever Jin Hayes got the ball, the Allianz Arena was filled with boos. Bayern fans clearly knew who posed the biggest threat to them. The noble Bundesliga overlords, actually afraid of a 16-year-old? But at that moment, in the eyes of Bayern's supporters, he wasn't a handsome young talent—he was a nightmare.
"Jin, pulling the ball back and changing direction, breaking past Mark van Bommel again! The old captain simply can't keep up with the youngster's burst of speed!"
"Bastian Schweinsteiger's sliding tackle interception!!"
"Beautiful!! Jin Hayes flicked it over him!!"
The young man charged through alone, heading straight for Bayern's central defence.
"Lúcio rushes out!!"
Perhaps only Lúcio on the entire pitch could pose a real threat to Jin Hayes. With speed, physique, technique, and experience, Lúcio in his prime was indeed very well-rounded—like Bayern's last iron gate standing in front of the young playmaker.
"What the—?"
Jin Hayes originally thought his enhanced physique would be able to withstand Lúcio's charge. Unexpectedly, the Brazilian was still very strong. He was suddenly knocked off balance, almost losing his centre of gravity.
"Oh oh oh oh —"
The Bayern fans in the stadium gasped. They thought their team might finally dispossess Jin Hayes. Seeing this, Lúcio was overjoyed, striding forward to block the teenager with his foot, attempting to position himself to intercept the ball.
Just as Jin Hayes was about to lose his balance and possession, his ball control remained perfect. This was god-level technical talent—god-level ball control. The football was an extension of Jin Hayes's body.
To everyone's shock, the ball almost stuck to Jin Hayes's foot, and he hooked it back from between Lúcio's legs. In an instant, it bounced up from the ground with extreme speed. He leaned against Lúcio with his upper body, using the defender's own strength to complete a turn, and sprinted towards the Brazilian's left side. The moment the turn was completed, his left foot perfectly nudged the ball past.
Since my strength isn't enough to contend with Lúcio, I still have absolute skill.
"How is that possible?!" Lúcio was stunned. He thought he had positioned himself well to intercept. He looked down—the ball was gone. He turned around—the player was gone too. The Brazilian was being played like a fool. The former world-class centre-back hadn't felt this much pressure even when facing Ronaldo or Ronaldinho in their primes.
"OHHHHH — Jin Hayes is past!!!"
Accompanied by the commentator's exclamations, Jin Hayes instantly broke past Lúcio and burst into the penalty area. Martín Demichelis's interception attempt was rather clumsy; Jin Hayes easily changed direction and dribbled past him. By the time the Argentine defender, like an aircraft carrier, had turned around, Jin Hayes was already facing goalkeeper Michael Rensing.
At the same time, Marco Reus was making a run from the other side.
"Borussia Dortmund's twin ghosts attack the goal!"
Amid Mehmet Scholl's exclamations, the goal already seemed certain. Michael Rensing's brain completely froze—he didn't know who to defend. Jin Hayes keenly captured his moment of hesitation. He suddenly changed direction to the right, accelerating to shake off the keeper.
"Shit!!!"
Rensing's desperate dive was already too late. Jin Hayes's explosive leg power allowed him to accelerate like a sprinter. One man, one mission—he charged forward with the ball and crossed the goal line.
The Allianz Arena once again fell silent. Then it was the visiting Dortmund fans' turn to erupt in cheers that pierced the sky.
The slaughter had begun. Bayern had been carved open by Jin Hayes as he once again performed a solo dribbling goal.
"Gooooooal!!! This is crazy!! Jin scores another solo goal! His second of the match!"
"On the scorers' list, Jin Hayes is surprisingly in first place! Can you believe it!"
"Fifteen minutes into the first half, Borussia Dortmund extend their lead to 2–0!!"
Just as Scholl thought this insane goalscoring spectacle was about to end, with Jin Hayes's goal replay still playing as he discussed the dribbling breakthrough with Oliver Kahn, the director suddenly cut the camera back to the pitch a minute later.
"Hey hey hey? Borussia Dortmund's attack has reached the penalty area again!!"
"It's still Jin!! He evades van Bommel and suddenly delivers a rabona pass to the left wing!!"
"An incredible, brilliant pass!!"
"Marco Reus is not offside—"
"Reus!!!! He's got it!!! A beautiful curling finish into the far corner!!"
"OMG! My God!! Borussia Dortmund score two goals within one minute! Less than seventeen minutes into the first half, they lead by three goals!"
"This match — Bayern has been completely shattered!"
Philipp Lahm felt a sense of despair for the first time in his life. On the scoreboard, the words Bayern Munich 0–3 Borussia Dortmund were too glaring.
Borussia Dortmund's twin stars in black jerseys, Reus and Jin Hayes, arm in arm, glided across the green pitch like bombers, dropping a heavy payload on the Allianz Arena. The home crowd was stunned into near silence, while the away end celebrated as if they had already won the league.