The TV broadcast paused the replay of the goal to examine Cristiano Ronaldo's position at the moment Bale passed the ball, checking for offside.

Of course, he wasn't offside. The goal was perfectly legitimate.

As the game resumed, Real Madrid, buoyed by their two consecutive goals, continued to press Dortmund's goal.

Soon, the same pattern emerged, but this time Bale switched to the left wing, using his speed to dribble to the edge of the penalty area before sending in a cross with his left foot. Cristiano Ronaldo rose high at the far post and headed the ball towards the goal!

As the ball flew towards the net, Dortmund fans were terrified, because from the camera angle, it looked like a sure goal.

But in reality, Cristiano Ronaldo's header sailed just outside the far post...

"Ronaldo's header—! What a pity! It goes just wide!"

"Real Madrid's attack is relentless. At this rate, Dortmund is doomed..."

"If Real Madrid scores another goal, this game will be over..."

"There's a reason why curses are curses. Why has no defending champion ever succeeded? Of course, we can always find reasons and explanations in hindsight, but why do these reasons and explanations always happen to the defending champions, and not to the challengers?" The Spanish commentator was quite fond of the word "curse." "We can, of course, find some seemingly scientific reasons, but frankly, it's just because it's a 'curse'!"

※※※

Dortmund wasn't nearly as affected by the first goal as they were now.

Conceding goals in quick succession is a heavy blow to any team's morale.

Having gone from leading to trailing, many Dortmund players were unsettled and distracted.

This was evident in Cristiano Ronaldo's header that almost went in.

Under the onslaught of Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo, Dortmund's defense was already in tatters. The only reason they hadn't conceded again was Real Madrid's poor luck.

If this situation continued, Dortmund would definitely collapse. Then it would truly be all over.

Zhou Yi understood this very well.

But he didn't give up. He was observing the game and thinking of countermeasures.

Real Madrid, taking a one-goal lead, were in high spirits and had no intention of stopping there.

They wanted to completely crush Dortmund, as their supporters hoped.

On the one hand, this would make Real Madrid's victory more secure. On the other hand, Zhou Yi suspected it had something to do with Real Madrid facing Dortmund four times last season but only winning once. Real Madrid wanted revenge. No matter how much they denied it, the emotions deep down wouldn't disappear just because they denied them.

Real Madrid's attack was fierce. In the eyes of Dortmund supporters and professional commentators, this was a dangerous and unfavorable situation for Dortmund.

But in Zhou Yi's eyes, it was quite the opposite. It meant Dortmund had opportunities.

Real Madrid could launch fast breaks, and so could Dortmund!

Real Madrid had a fast attacking trio in Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Benzema, the "BBC" combination. Dortmund also had fast attacking players like Reus, Aubameyang, and Yan Min.

If Real Madrid had retreated and defended after taking the lead, Zhou Yi wouldn't have had much of a chance.

Zhou Yi kept looking at his teammates, observing them, understanding their game, and analyzing their condition to select the right candidates for a counterattack.

He quickly locked his gaze on Yan Min. There wasn't much of a choice. Yan Min was almost always the first person Zhou Yi thought of in situations like this. Because his personality allowed him to maintain a strong fighting spirit no matter what difficulties he faced.

It was this strong fighting spirit that allowed him to perform better than others when facing adversity.

Although he had chosen his candidate, Zhou Yi wasn't in a hurry to pass the ball forward.

He was still waiting, waiting for a better opportunity.

He was like Vasily, the sniper in the ruins, aiming his rifle at the German soldiers, but not in a hurry to pull the trigger, patiently waiting.

Waiting for what?

Waiting for the moment the explosion sounded, so it could cover the sound of the gunshot and not reveal his position.

Zhou Yi was also waiting, waiting for a more suitable opportunity. If he just passed the ball out casually, he would not only waste the opportunity but also alert Real Madrid.

Even if some balls looked like they had a chance for a counterattack, he restrained himself and chose to pass the ball laterally instead of making a through ball.

This kind of waiting was risky, because it was very possible that Real Madrid would score again before a good opportunity presented itself. Even if there was an opportunity afterward, it probably wouldn't matter.

But Zhou Yi had no choice. He had to trust his teammates, and he himself had to contribute to the defense.

Although he didn't have an advantage in physical strength, and his defensive ability wasn't as good as his teammates who specialized in defense, he did have his own advantages in defense.

That was that his judgment of the situation was more accurate than anyone else's, so naturally there was a high probability that he could anticipate the opponent's passing route. There were only a few reliable passing routes, and he could always cut off one of them...

※※※

In the sixty-sixth minute of the match, Real Madrid launched an attack in the frontcourt.

Modrić had the ball.

Sven Bender pressed him, but Modrić didn't pass the ball right away.

Because there wasn't a good passing option—Zhou Yi had already seen this. When Modrić got the ball, he simulated in his mind what he would do if he had the ball in this situation.

He watched Modrić while adjusting his position.

Modrić, being pressed by Sven Bender, had three options: one was to pass it back, which was the safest option, but Real Madrid's attack would have to be reorganized.

The second was to pass it laterally to Coentrão on the left. Why the left and not the right? Because Sven Bender had forced Modrić to face left. The right was behind him, with Sven Bender in between, and he couldn't see clearly, so he didn't dare to pass the ball there rashly.

The third option was to force a pass forward. It seemed like the worst option, but Zhou Yi thought Modrić might do it anyway, because it wasn't impossible.

He switched direction, facing left, and also facing the direction of attack sideways. He could pass the ball, as long as there was a suitable passing option...

Zhou Yi nodded his head in that direction. He saw Benzema.

Benzema retreated from the front line, obviously noticing the trouble Modrić was in, and was preparing to support him.

Modrić could choose not to pass the ball to him. He could pass to the direction he was facing, where Coentrão was. But Coentrão was near the sideline, a little far from him, and there was also Dortmund player Reus on that line. If Sven Bender interfered with the pass, and the power and accuracy of the pass were affected, then if Dortmund intercepted the ball, it would lead to a direct counterattack.

What if he passed the ball to Benzema?

Benzema was receiving the ball with his back to the goal, but Modrić could immediately run off the ball to get rid of Sven Bender's defense, then pull away to support Benzema. Benzema would pass the ball to him, and then he would make an empty cut, and Real Madrid's attack could continue without being cut short.

In Zhou Yi's mind, this was how he was planning it for Modrić.

If he were Modrić, he might be willing to take the risk. There was a risk in passing the ball forward, but the benefits were the greatest of the three options.

If handled well, they could quickly threaten Dortmund's goal.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yi slowly adjusted his position again. He was now in Modrić's blind spot, diagonally behind him, with Sven Bender between him and Modrić. Modrić couldn't see him even if he turned his head.

Next, all he had to do was wait.

Wait for Modrić to pass the ball out as he wished.

Under Sven Bender's pressure, Modrić finally couldn't hold on any longer and was about to pass the ball.

Just as Zhou Yi predicted, after a feint towards Coentrão, he passed the ball to Benzema!

The moment Modrić feinted to pass to Coentrão, Zhou Yi moved. He didn't care if it was a feint or not. All he knew was that if he wanted to intercept the ball successfully, he had to start now. If he was late, he wouldn't be able to catch it!

As the ball rolled along the grass towards Benzema, Zhou Yi stretched his foot forward with all his might and intercepted the ball from Modrić.

"Zhou Yi successfully intercepts the ball!"

Without hesitation, Zhou Yi adjusted himself and immediately sent a long pass forward from the spot!

The patient sniper finally pulled the trigger and fired that bullet!

The ball flew straight to the left wing of the field.

There, Yan Min turned and ran forward as soon as he saw Zhou Yi intercept the ball—he didn't have the ability to predict the future and didn't know if Zhou Yi would pass the ball to him. He only knew that if Zhou Yi had the ball, he should immediately charge forward and prepare for Dortmund's counterattack. If Zhou Yi really passed the ball to him, then he could catch up and receive the ball. If he waited until he saw Zhou Yi pass the ball to him before starting, it would be over. Zhou Yi wouldn't sacrifice the chance to launch a counterattack just to accommodate him. If he didn't run ahead, he would definitely not be able to catch it!

Sure enough, Zhou Yi's pass had a lot of power. The ball flew very far, and it looked like it might fly out of bounds...

And in fact, Yan Min stretched his foot and stopped the ball right on the sideline...

"Yan Min!!!" He Ping shouted excitedly from the commentary box. "He received the ball on the wing and has already crossed midfield. This is a counterattack opportunity for Dortmund!"

The Dortmund fans in the stands cheered.