At 7:20 AM, Oliver was already standing at the entrance of the Hoffenheim Training Base locker room. He deliberately arrived only ten minutes early today, and there was a reason for doing so. Oliver knew that some teammates would definitely be late for the first joint training session of the new season. He chose to arrive only ten minutes early today, so as not to appear too eager to please the coach, nor to make other late teammates feel awkward. When it came to emotional intelligence, Oliver had it all figured out.
A little after 7:20, the first-team assistant coach walked over with the keys and was visibly surprised when he saw Oliver:
"Are you... new?"
"Hello, sir, my name is Oliver, I just signed recently," Oliver replied in fluent German, extending his hand proactively.
The assistant coach shook his hand, nodding in sudden realization: "Ah, I remember now, the coach mentioned you."
He opened the locker room door, "Come in, Oliver, you can change your gear first. The holiday just ended, so the others will probably take a while to all arrive." Oliver chose an empty locker in the corner and quickly changed into his training uniform.
He noticed that each locker in the changing room had a player's name and number on it: Gnabry's number 10, Wagner's number 9, Uth's number 19. His locker number was the same as his trial number, 17, but outside the locker, there was only a temporarily printed "Ollie" sticker, not a customized name tag like the others. At 7:30 AM, the first first-team player arrived belatedly.
Gnabry, on loan from Bayern, pushed open the door with a yawn and was visibly startled when he saw Oliver: "Are you... the new guy?"
"Yes, Oliver, I just joined yesterday," Oliver replied with a smile.
"I'm Gnabry. I heard you're only 17. To be noticed by the coach, I guess you must be a genius," Gnabry replied, giving Oliver a polite hug before walking straight to his locker.
A notification from the system appeared: [Gnabry interaction +3%]
Over the next ten minutes, players entered one after another: Demirbay, Zuber, Kaderábek... Everyone looked a bit loose, and some were even chewing sandwiches. At 7:55 AM, when the last player, Uth, sauntered in, the atmosphere in the locker room had already become noisy. Some were discussing last night's party; others were complaining about the intensity of the pre-season. At exactly 8:00 AM, the locker room door was suddenly pushed open, and Nagelsmann stood at the entrance, his eyes coldly scanning the entire team.
He had been waiting in the locker room since early this morning, precisely to catch latecomers. The noise instantly vanished; even Gnabry, who was chewing gum, froze. Nagelsmann's voice was soft, yet as sharp as a knife.
"Very good. It seems last season's fourth place has turned all of you into big-name stars."
He slowly walked into the locker room, his leather shoes making crisp sounds on the floor. Oliver noticed that the coach was wearing an all-black training uniform today, which made him look particularly serious.
"Gnabry, a question for you," Nagelsmann suddenly called out his name,
"Is Bayern's schedule different from ours?"
Gnabry's face immediately flushed: "Coach, it's not like that, I..."
"Don't be so quick to make excuses. Do you know why Bayern let you go? Because every other player at Bayern is more eager to climb the ranks than you. They don't want players without fighting spirit."
Nagelsmann was merciless, but his words were indeed spot on.
"And Uth, you were the last to arrive," Nagelsmann didn't let him finish and turned to another late forward,
"Do your legs need a wheelchair to arrive at the training ground on time? I think you can apply to join a disabled football League."
Uth buried his head like an ostrich, and the locker room instantly fell silent. Nagelsmann walked to the centre, his hands behind his back: "Let me remind everyone, we finished fourth last season because Leverkusen lost their last game, not because we were so strong. To put it more bluntly, this fourth place was given to us by God, not something we firmly held in our own hands."
He took a tablet from the assistant coach's hand: "This is the new season's schedule. On August 19th, the first Bundesliga match against Bremen, and on August 23rd, the Champions League qualifier against Liverpool. However, given your current state, I doubt whether you can even beat Liverpool's youth team."
Oliver held his breath, listening to the coach's lecture. He noticed Demirbay beside him instinctively straightening his back.
"I heard some of you think Champions League qualification is a big deal?" Nagelsmann sneered, "Let me tell you, teams eliminated in the Champions League qualifiers are more embarrassing than the last-place team in the Bundesliga. Everyone in Europe will think we went there for tourism!"
He slammed the tablet onto the table with a loud "thwack": "Now, tell me, do you want to be a team that makes history, or a fleeting passerby?"
The locker room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Oliver stealthily looked around, seeing that the sleepiness on his teammates' faces had long disappeared, replaced by varying degrees of tension and self-reflection.
"Tactics meeting room, five minutes," Nagelsmann dropped his final words and turned to leave. After the locker room door closed, the air seemed to flow again. Gnabry was the first to jump up and start changing his shoes; others also began to move. Oliver noticed that no one was speaking, only the sound of hurried breathing and rustling clothes.
"Hey, new guy," Demirbay suddenly whispered to Oliver, "How early did you arrive?"
"About ten minutes," Oliver replied softly.
Demirbay gave him a meaningful look: "Smart. Nagelsmann hates tardiness the most. Nice to meet you, Oliver, I'm Demirbay."
Demirbay proactively extended his hand, and Oliver shook it warmly.
[Demirbay interaction +2%]
Two minutes later, the locker room was empty.
...
Today's training mainly consisted of tactical lessons and team practice. For the new season, many new players had joined, and new tactical adjustments were also needed. Therefore, Nagelsmann wanted to use today's training session to enhance everyone's understanding of tactics and their chemistry.
In the tactics room, Nagelsmann arranged the magnets on the tactics board into a 3-5-2 formation. He lightly tapped the board and said: "As you can see, guys, last season we created an average of 10.3 chances per game, but opponents have thoroughly studied our wing-back overlapping routines, especially in the last few games at the end of last season, we struggled a lot. So, this season, we will no longer primarily rely on the 3-5-2."
Oliver sat in the first row today, staring intently at the tactics board. Nagelsmann's explanations were far more professional and detailed than those of the Paris youth academy coaches. Learning tactical lessons definitely brought about a qualitative improvement.
"This season, we need to add more variations to our formations. First, let's look at the 4-2-3-1." Nagelsmann suddenly adjusted the formation to a 4-2-3-1, moving so quickly that several players instinctively leaned forward.
"When opponents think we're playing three centre-backs, we suddenly switch to four defenders. When they think we're going to control possession, we switch to quick counterattacks."
Then, he picked up the remote control, and a video clip appeared on the projection screen. In the footage, Hoffenheim players were always a half-beat slow when transitioning from defence to attack.
"Look here,"
Nagelsmann paused the screen, "We need to complete a forward pass within three seconds of winning the ball. Oliver, you're the youngest in our team. Tell me, if you were in this position with the ball, how would you handle it?"
Nagelsmann was very much looking forward to the new player's answer. Oliver didn't expect to be suddenly questioned, but he reacted immediately: "Uh... I would first use a feint with my right foot to cut inside, but actually use the outside of my left foot to pass to the open space on the wing. Because at this point, the opposing right-back would be out of position, and our winger would be making an overlapping run. And also... if the wing is blocked, I would immediately pass back to the defensive midfielder to reorganize."
The tactics room suddenly fell silent for a few seconds. Nagelsmann thought for a moment and largely approved: "Basically correct, and you noticed details we didn't show, like the opposing right-back's positioning. Everyone saw it. This is the ability to read the game that I want."
Oliver was very grateful for his good habit of always watching match replays. Although his current game-reading ability couldn't compare to those world-class midfielders, it still had its commendable aspects. He was now like a sponge, eagerly absorbing experience and knowledge. Over the next half hour, Nagelsmann explained in detail the key points of converting between three formations.
Nagelsmann particularly emphasized off-ball movement: "In modern football, space is more important than the ball. You need to think two steps ahead, like in chess, about how to break through the defence."
When explaining the 4-3-3 formation, Nagelsmann specifically asked Oliver to come forward and demonstrate.
"Kid, now assume you are the right winger," He placed a red magnet on the right wing, "But in actual positioning, you need to tuck into the midfield line, leaving the wide space for the right-back."
Oliver immediately understood the tactical intention: "This way, it can both help the midfield control possession and quickly stretch wide during counterattacks to create a numerical advantage."
Nagelsmann rarely showed a smile.
"Smart, and your ambidextrous ability will make it even harder for opponents to defend against you."
After the morning's tactical session, the players went to the training ground for a joint practice. Oliver was assigned to the main squad, playing as a right winger. In the very first attacking combination, he assisted Gnabry's goal with a no-look pass. This pass was part of his fundamental skills.
"Beautiful! Oliver," Gnabry ran over and high-fived him, "Your eyes were clearly looking to the left just now! How could you pass so accurately!"
Oliver humorously replied: "You have a very strong aura of a powerful player, so I can pass to you even without looking."
"Hahahahahahaha..."
[Gnabry interaction +1%]
In the subsequent attack and defence drills, Oliver's performance became increasingly dazzling. After a one-two combination, he blasted the ball into the top corner with Cavani's "Matador's Stab," and goalkeeper Baumann didn't even make a save. A gasp of admiration rose from the sidelines. Even the assistant coach, who was recording data, looked up. Whether it was the combination play or the shot, this young man continued to amaze them.
"Is this kid really only 17...?" Demirbay murmured from the bench. Most impressive was Oliver's chemistry with his teammates. When Demirbay was surrounded in midfield, Oliver always appeared in the most suitable receiving position; when Kaderabek made an overlapping run, he would instinctively tuck in to cover. This tactical understanding made him seem not like a pure newcomer; he might be a newcomer, but for a newcomer, it was a bit impossible. As the training neared its end, Nagelsmann suddenly blew his whistle, stopping play.
"Last practical drill for today,"
He pointed at Oliver: "Kid, you're switching to attacking midfielder."
This temporary adjustment caught the defence off guard. Oliver still performed well in the attacking midfield position, first delivering a through ball that pierced the defence. Then, at the edge of the penalty area, he dribbled past two opponents with Verratti-style close control before curling a shot into the far corner with his left foot to score. Oliver is 184cm tall, but he can lower his centre of gravity as much as possible, especially when dribbling and protecting the ball. A low centre of gravity always allows him to keep the ball firmly at his feet.
"Perfect!" Nagelsmann applauded from the sidelines. This was the first time he had shown such obvious satisfaction during today's training.
After training, Nagelsmann called out to Oliver, who was drinking water.
"Come here for a moment, Oliver."
"Coach, you called for me."
"Next week, and the week after, there are two friendly matches," he said straightforwardly, "Two matches, against Genoa and Bologna respectively. You will start both of them."
Oliver's water bottle paused in mid-air.
"Don't be stunned yet. You know, I really like to use young players, because I think young players have many more new possibilities than those old pros on the field. If you continue to perform well in the friendly matches, there's a very high chance you'll be in the starting lineup for the first League match of the season." He lightly patted Oliver's chest again. "I've seen your trial and witnessed your training performance, so don't disappoint me, handsome young man."
Oliver nodded solemnly: "Understood. I will definitely not let you down, Coach."
Nagelsmann added another sentence before turning to leave: "Alright, go home and rest. Continue to maintain this learning attitude in the future. Hoffenheim is a weak team in the Bundesliga. When playing for a weak team, technique is important, but your brain is even more important."