Hamburg was obviously prepared. At the very least, their new head coach, Slomka, had put in the effort to study Dortmund's recent two matches.

Therefore, facing Dortmund's offensive, Hamburg's defense was very steady, leaving Dortmund with no opportunities.

Dortmund's ball possession once reached 70%, but the scene was dull. They did not convert this 70% possession into even one goal.

Dortmund put in all their effort, but Hamburg's defense was organized very tightly, not leaving Dortmund many chances.

Often, players like Yan Min, who are good at breaking through, had no room to break through. After receiving the ball on the wing, he either crossed it directly, or passed the ball back to his teammates, then recycled possession to look for opportunities.

Even when there were some shooting opportunities, they were often difficult to threaten Hamburg's goal. Either they were too high or wide, or they were caught by Hamburg goalkeeper Adler.

For example, in the twenty-ninth minute, Schmelzer crossed from the left, and Mark, in the center, shot the ball high due to Rajkovic's pressure.

Soon after, when Hamburg had solidified their defense, they gradually began to exert their strength in attack—after all, it was their home game, and to secure their spot in the league, they certainly couldn't be satisfied with a 0-0 draw.

Jiracek created a threat again.

After receiving a through ball from his teammate Arslan, he broke into the penalty area, then beautifully cut past Piszczek and shot.

Fortunately, Weidenfeller reacted in time and caught the ball in his arms.

"Jiracek! This is his second shot of the game, and it's more threatening than the last! Although Dortmund's offensive has been more intense, Hamburg's two shots have been more threatening in terms of danger..."

Soon after, Hamburg player Badelj took a low shot with his right foot from twenty-two meters in the center, and the ball was again caught by Weidenfeller.

Two minutes later, Dortmund tried to launch a counterattack, but Mark fell under the pressure of Badelj and Rajkovic in the middle, and the referee did not make any calls.

Mark lay on the ground for a while before getting up, and the HSH Nordbank Arena in Hamburg echoed with boos, mocking Mark for diving.

However, slow-motion replays showed that Rajkovic did push with his hand. The fact that the player didn't fall hard enough doesn't mean the opponent didn't foul.

Klopp was also very dissatisfied with this, but he just roared twice and shut up. He didn't want to be sent to the stands again for it...

※※※

Apart from Hamburg's counterattacks, the entire first half was generally dull. Neither side had particularly good opportunities, and they were unable to produce any surprising plays or shots.

Dortmund, who had almost locked in victory in the first half of the previous two league games, were completely helpless against Hamburg this time.

Zhou Yi, as the core of the team, was also very tightly restricted by Hamburg. No matter where he appeared, Hamburg players would immediately appear next to him, pressing his passing lanes and space to receive the ball.

And so, as the first half was about to end, the score was still 0-0.

Just when everyone thought the first half would end with this score, the situation on the field suddenly changed!

In the forty-second minute, Hamburg launched a high-quality attack. Westermann crossed the ball from the right to the front of the goal. After the ball fell to the near post, Lasogga received the ball under the pressure of Friedrich and Schmelzer, and then crossed again near the baseline.

Jiracek, who had been active since the start of the game, jumped high at the far post, overpowering Aubameyang, who had returned to defend in front of the goal, and headed the ball in!

Weidenfeller was unable to save his team this time... the ball flew into the goal!

"Jiracek! He finally scored! He broke the deadlock for Hamburg!"

The HSH Nordbank Arena erupted in cheers.

"Hamburg's change of coach is really like a new knife! After changing to a new head coach, the whole team's spirit has been renewed!" Duan Xin couldn't help but praise Hamburg's performance. "They restricted Dortmund's attack very well in the first half, and their own attack was also good... Slomka is indeed a coach with a certain level, especially in terms of securing a spot in the league..."

※※※

Hamburg's players celebrated the goal amidst the cheers, while Dortmund's players seemed a little frustrated.

They came to the HSH Nordbank Arena with strong confidence, hoping to take away three points. Unexpectedly, the first half was very painful, and the game was not in their familiar rhythm at all.

Now they were even behind Hamburg.

Judging from Hamburg's defensive performance in the first half, Hamburg would definitely be even more difficult to play against after taking the lead...

Not long after Jiracek scored, the first half of the match ended.

Hamburg entered the locker room with a one-goal lead. Since it was their home game, they would have a greater psychological advantage. Hamburg's performance in the first half was indeed very good. When the whistle sounded, the fans in the HSH Nordbank Arena all stood up and applauded the team's performance.

Marcel Reif also praised Hamburg's performance: "Slomka has indeed brought a lot of fresh things to Hamburg since taking office, and the atmosphere of the team has also improved. Hamburg's performance in this game is completely different from their seven consecutive losses. If they continue to play with this momentum, Hamburg may really end their seven-game losing streak in this game... And Dortmund is really unlucky, to have encountered such a Hamburg at a critical moment... I think Klopp's team's hopes of winning the league title this season may be ruined by this game. And the impact may not only be limited to the league..."

Marcel Reif was not alarmist, but a conclusion after analysis.

If Dortmund couldn't win against Hamburg even after exerting all their strength and sending all their main players, it would definitely bring a heavy blow to Dortmund, shake their confidence, and the impact would not only be limited to this game, but would also affect the next Champions League game. At that time, Dortmund might usher in a double-line collapse in the league and the Champions League within three days...

Klopp himself was also aware of the seriousness of the situation, so during the half-time break, he made a very bold adjustment.

He replaced Sven Bender with Mkhitaryan.

Sven Bender was Dortmund's only defensive midfielder in this game—after Yan Min performed well and occupied a main position, Klopp made adjustments to Dortmund's starting lineup, changing from the original 4-2-3-1 to the current 4-4-2. Aubameyang and Mark partnered as forwards, and the four midfielders were lined up in parallel. In the middle, Sven Bender was responsible for defense, and Zhou Yi was responsible for organizing the attack.

And now he replaced Sven Bender with Mkhitaryan. Mkhitaryan was certainly not a midfielder who was good at defending. He was good at attacking.

Could it be that he wanted Zhou Yi to defend?

Of course not.

Klopp made crazy offensive demands on his team, speeding up the pace and forcibly bringing the game into Dortmund's familiar rhythm.

Only in this way could they defeat Hamburg on the road.

This adjustment meant that Dortmund would have no so-called midfield defense, and Hamburg was now full of momentum, and it would be easy to break through Dortmund's midfield and directly face Dortmund's defensive line.

This was very, very risky. A slight carelessness could make Dortmund lose even more miserably.

In addition to this method, there may be some more moderate methods. But with Klopp's character, he was more willing to choose this extremely risky plan. Although the risk was great, it was possible to reap greater rewards.

Klopp was a gambler, and gamblers are unreasonable.

In addition to letting Mkhitaryan replace Sven Bender, he also asked and encouraged Yan Min, Reus, and Aubameyang to increase their individual breakthroughs, not to be afraid of mistakes, and to take that step.

At the same time, in order to avoid counterattacks after the opponent intercepted individual breakthroughs, he also asked the two full-backs, Piszczek and Schmelzer, to move forward, on the one hand, to support the team's attack on the wings, and on the other hand, to immediately press forward after teammates lost the ball, delay time, and create opportunities for other team members to return to defense.

※※※

At the beginning of the second half, Dortmund made a substitution, with Sven Bender off and Mkhitaryan on.

This substitution surprised everyone.

"Oh... Klopp has made another amazing substitution. He doesn't want any midfield defense at all..." Marcel Reif said helplessly, it was not surprising at all for Klopp to do such a thing.

This was not the first time Klopp had done this. Sometimes he could win the gamble, and sometimes he could not.

But overall, it seemed that he won the gamble more often?

Marcel Reif thought about it carefully and found that Klopp's luck was really not ordinary...

Why was the goddess of fortune so fond of him?