Chapter 380: Chapter 84: The Turin Massacre! The Old Lady’s Dirge! The Bundesliga’s Vindication

The media in Turin stated that in this disastrous defeat on all fronts, it was pointless to blame the players.

"This wasn’t about a disparity in a few positions; it was across the board!"

"Of the 11 Juventus players on the field, aside from the goalkeeper, the other 10 were all outmatched in their positions."

"With a gap like that, how could they possibly not lose?"

...

After returning to Germany in triumph with a 3-0 victory from Turin, Italy, Dortmund received another piece of good news.

The team’s official captain, defensive midfielder Sebastian Kael, had finally recovered from his injury and was set to return.

Kael had already been participating in team training but had yet to receive clearance to play from the team doctor.

This time, he was finally able to take the field.

After returning from Turin, the team immediately headed to Bochum without a moment’s rest.

In Round 26 of the Bundesliga, Dortmund played an away match against Bochum.

Although the rivalry between the two teams wasn’t as intense as the Ruhr Derby, their cities were neighbors, so there was still some bad blood between them.

And in the 18th minute, Kael, making his first appearance after a six-month absence, scored with a long-range shot to announce his comeback!

1-0!

Just as Wang Shuo had said, Kael was a very strong player.

His biggest problem was that he was too injury-prone.

In the 27th minute, Wang Shuo orchestrated an attack, drawing the defenders’ attention. He passed the ball to Kuba, who sent in a cross from the right flank that Götze converted into a goal. 2-0!

The young Dortmund player’s performances were becoming increasingly impressive, even beginning to overshadow Foyelner’s.

After halftime, Holtby pulled one back for Bochum in the 53rd minute.

But Wang Shuo scored twice in the span of just three minutes, in the 64th and 67th minutes.

The second goal came from a corner kick; after Santana’s header was saved by the goalkeeper, Wang Shuo pounced on the rebound and scored.

In the end, Dortmund thrashed Bochum 4-1 in the away match!

Wang Shuo had scored a brace once again!

Meanwhile, in the same round, Bayern defeated Freiburg 2-1 at home.

Bayer Leverkusen defeated Hamburg 4-2 at home.

The league standings and point gaps remained unchanged.

...

Midweek, Dortmund hosted Juventus at home for the second leg of the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 knockout stage.

After winning the first leg 3-0 away from home, there was little suspense left for the second leg.

Compared to the first leg, Zaccheroni made several adjustments to his lineup for the second leg.

Goalkeeper: Buffon;

Defense: Grosso, Cannavaro, Zebina, and Salihamidzic;

Midfield: Muhammad Sissoko and Felipe Melo as a double pivot, with Piero, Diego, and Camoranesi in front of them;

Forward: Trezeguet.

Clearly, Zaccheroni’s starting lineup was considerably younger than in the first leg.

But even with the changes to the lineup and players, Dortmund’s approach remained the same.

Klopp’s strategy was simple, embodying the saying "the fist fears the young and strong." It was to overwhelm the old masters with a flurry of chaotic blows.

Throwing caution to the wind, they came out swinging and went straight for the jugular.

Just nine minutes in, Schmelzer made an overlapping run down the wing and sent in a cross. Wang Shuo pounced on it in front of the goal to open the scoring for the team!

1-0!

Even with the changes to their lineup, Juventus still couldn’t keep up with Dortmund’s pace.

Before the first half ended, Wang Shuo orchestrated another attack, with Kuba assisting a goal by Reus to extend the lead to 2-0!

Then, just four minutes into the second half, Diego, under pressure in the final third, was forced into a back pass. The pass was errant, and Wang Shuo was the first to it, breaking into the penalty area and converting the one-on-one chance.

3-0!

Wang Shuo had scored another brace!

This was now his third consecutive match with a brace!

Dortmund nearly scored again in the 83rd minute.

Valdes, who had come on as a substitute for Wang Shuo, had a golden one-on-one opportunity.

But when faced with only Buffon to beat, he inexplicably skied the shot.

Ultimately, Dortmund won 3-0 at home, thrashing Juventus 6-0 on aggregate!

This stunning result sent shockwaves through the European football scene!

This was especially shocking in the context of the Champions League Round of 16, where Bayern, despite losing 3-2 away to Fiorentina, advanced. With the aggregate score tied at 4-4, Van Gaal’s team eliminated the Purple Lily thanks to away goals.

As a result, in both the Champions League and the UEFA Europa League, the two Bundesliga teams facing their Serie A counterparts had both secured their places in the next round.

This meant it was now a foregone conclusion that the Bundesliga’s UEFA coefficient would surpass that of Serie A!

Barring any surprises, this meant that starting from the 2011-12 season, the Bundesliga would be awarded four Champions League spots.

This news sent a wave of excitement through the German football scene.

Ever since being surpassed by the Premier League at the turn of the century, the Bundesliga had been ranked as Europe’s fourth-best league.

At one point, it was even in danger of being overtaken by Ligue 1. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

But now, the Bundesliga could finally hold its head high with pride!

While all of Germany was immersed in the joy of success in both the Champions League and the Europa League—and the Bundesliga’s ascent to Europe’s third-ranked league—Wang Shuo’s agent, Thomas Essien, arrived at Westfalen Stadium again the day after the home game against Juventus.

But it was different this time.

This time, Thomas Essien was not alone; Shen Qinghe was with him.

Carrying a laptop bag, she followed Thomas Essien into the bright conference room.