Goodbye, Werder Bremen! Goodbye, De Bruyne!
"Sigh, you're marking me so tightly, it looks like I won't be able to score today!" Lin said, glancing at the defender beside him while strolling on the field.
Marcus, the defender marking Lin, heard this and smirked, "Good to know. Just stay put and don't even think about scoring. I'll be marking you so tightly you won't get a single chance…"
Before Marcus could finish his sentence, Lin, who had been walking leisurely, suddenly sprinted past him!
Darn it!
He fell for Lin's distraction!
Marcus realized he had been tricked, but it was too late. Lin had already shaken off his defense and received a pass from De Bruyne near the center circle, sprinting toward Nuremberg's half!
The two Nuremberg players stationed near the center circle immediately rushed towards Lin as he advanced.
However, with Lin already at full speed, stopping him was no longer as simple as before.
Facing the two defenders charging at him, Lin used a "rainbow flick" to pass one and then passed the ball to De Bruyne, executing a one-two pass to get past the other.
After evading the two Nuremberg players, Lin had a clear path ahead.
The remaining defenders were all near Nuremberg's penalty area, quite far from him.
"Stop him!" Nuremberg's coach shouted from the sidelines, jumping up in alarm as Lin charged into their half.
Two Nuremberg defenders rushed up, trying to take the ball from Lin.
But Lin's pace was too fast, and his footwork too nimble. They looked like clumsy bears, getting turned around and failing to take the ball from him.
"Idiots, foul him! Quick, foul him!" Nuremberg's coach was furious, realizing his players were trying to tackle the ball rather than committing a tactical foul to stop Lin.
With Lin's dribbling skills, there was no way they could easily take the ball from him.
The best way to stop his attack was to foul him!
Just knock him down, and it's done!
On the home team's bench, Schaaf heard the opposing coach's shouts and immediately protested to the fourth official:
"Sir, did you hear that? Is this acceptable? He's encouraging his players to commit a crime!"
The fourth official gestured for Schaaf to calm down:
"Mr. Thomas, he's just asking his players to foul, not to commit a crime."
"Also, tactical fouling is allowed in football, and if they do foul, I'm sure the referee will penalize them accordingly."
Schaaf was speechless. Encouraging fouling now?
The opposing coach's shouts were loud enough for the nearby fans to hear clearly.
Upon hearing the coach instruct his players to use fouls to stop Lin, the Werder Bremen fans immediately began to boo him and his team.
On the pitch, Lin heard the opposing coach's shouts.
Seeing the defenders rushing at him madly to prevent him from breaking the record, he chose not to act rashly and began dribbling horizontally along the edge of the penalty area.
The Nuremberg defenders, seeing Lin change direction, also changed their course to follow him.
From the overhead camera, Lin looked like a general inspecting the defense lines. Wherever he went, the defenders followed.
It wasn't until he dribbled past the left-back and entered the penalty area that the Nuremberg players panicked.
He's in the penalty area now, we can't foul him here!
When Lin first changed direction, they had a chance to foul him.
But fouling in that position could give away a dangerous free kick.
Lin had a record of scoring from free kicks in the Bundesliga. If given a good position, he might score.
Their hesitation gave Lin the chance to break into the penalty area.
Now they were really in a bind.
Fouling in the penalty area would mean giving away a penalty kick, not just a free kick!
With Lin's penalty accuracy, giving him a penalty was almost the same as giving him a goal.
So, the Nuremberg defenders were too scared to make any tackles or challenges.
They were so afraid of Lin approaching them that they wanted to back off to avoid being accused of fouling.
Lin had been ready for a tough battle. If the defense was too tight, he planned to pass to a teammate.
But since the defenders backed off, he wouldn't hold back!
After entering the penalty area, Lin glanced at the goalkeeper's position and faked a shot to the far corner.
The goalkeeper, thinking Lin was aiming for the far corner, shifted in that direction and crouched, ready to make the save.
Seeing Lin about to shoot, the Nuremberg defenders finally decided to act, lunging to block his shot.
Noticing the movements of the defenders and goalkeeper, Lin pulled back his right foot, flicked the ball to his left foot, and chipped the ball while jumping to avoid the defenders' tackles.
The goalkeeper saw the ball momentarily leave Lin's control and lunged forward.
But Lin was faster. As soon as he landed, he volleyed the ball, sending it rocketing into the net, just brushing the goalkeeper's fingertips!
The 41st goal!
The 40-year-old Bundesliga record was finally broken at this moment!
Lin pounded his chest in excitement and roared, running towards the sideline.
When he reached the sideline, he took off his jersey, revealing a white vest underneath.
Photographers immediately focused their cameras on Lin's vest, which had a line written in German:
"Long live Werder Bremen!"
Though he had only played for Werder Bremen for one season, it was this team that gave him his start in the top five leagues and led to his current success.
He cherished the memories of fighting alongside his teammates this season.
So even though he was leaving, he would always love this team and this stadium!
The crowd, who had been eagerly waiting for this goal, erupted in cheers when Lin scored.
Seeing the words on his vest, many Werder Bremen fans couldn't hold back their tears.
They didn't want to see Lin leave and wished he could always wear the number 10 jersey.
They hoped Lin would become their legend!
But these were unrealistic hopes.
Lin was only on loan from a big club, not a permanent member of their team.
Once the loan ended, they had to part ways.
Thinking of this, countless fans couldn't help but feel sad.
But even as they cried, they applauded Lin.
---
Watching this touching moment, Guardiola felt a lump in his throat.
It reminded him of when he left Camp Nou to explore Italy.
At that moment, about to leave Camp Nou, he must have felt just like Lin did now.
The match had already lost its suspense before Lin's goal, and his goal not only made it 4-0 but also broke Gerd Müller's record.
The Nuremberg players had no more motivation to play tight defense.
They had been marking Lin strictly to avoid being part of his record-breaking moment.
Now that it had happened, their drive was gone.
They no longer had the energy to defend Lin strictly.
With the game nearing its end and a long break ahead, they didn't see the point in exhausting themselves in a lost cause.
Thinking about their upcoming vacation seemed more appealing than wasting effort on this game.
With the opponents slacking off, not even marking him, Lin felt somewhat slighted!
Are you looking down on the Bundesliga record holder?
Nuremberg had given up, but Werder Bremen hadn't stopped attacking!
Though Lin had broken the Bundesliga record, nothing said he couldn't break his own record further!
His teammates knew this, so they kept passing him the ball, trying to help him set a new record.
Lin didn't disappoint them.
In the 78th minute, Werder Bremen capitalized on an error by Nuremberg's midfielder Simons, stealing the ball and quickly passing it to Lin.
Nuremberg's reaction was a beat slow, failing to intercept.
Lin received the ball and charged into the penalty area, facing the goalkeeper one-on-one.
As the goalkeeper rushed out, Lin lightly chipped the ball over his head, sending it into the net.
5-0!
This was Lin's 42nd goal of the Bundesliga season, breaking his own newly set record.
The fans erupted in cheers again, applauding and shouting their admiration for Lin.
Scoring 42 goals in a single season, this record would be hard to break!
Considering Lin's age when he set this record, it might be impossible to break!
The Werder Bremen fans were elated, while the Nuremberg players were furious!
One goal was enough; why another?
Do they think we're pushovers?
Fuming, they returned to tightly marking Lin.
But, like in the first half, focusing on Lin left them unable to guard his teammates!
In injury time, Lin assisted De Bruyne, helping him complete a hat-trick, scoring his last Bundesliga goal.
It was also their last direct cooperation in the Bundesliga.
Finally, with De Bruyne's hat-trick and Lin's two goals, Werder Bremen demolished Nuremberg 6-0 at home.
When the final whistle blew, the Werder Bremen fans stood up and applauded.
They thanked every team member for providing such an exciting match.
Led by captain Fritz, the players made a lap around the stadium, thanking the fans for their support.
Before leaving, Lin bent down and kissed the Weser Stadium turf, bidding it farewell.
The next time he returned, it might be as an opponent.
He hoped the fans who once supported him wouldn't boo him.
Journalists captured this moment, and some fans still in the stands saw it too.
They didn't say anything but told themselves in their hearts:
Lin would always be a part of Werder
Bremen, no matter where he went.
For the journalists, the match result wasn't the main story.
The bond between fans and players was worth reporting, but it wasn't the top priority.
The real news was Lin breaking the Bundesliga record.
That was the headline!
Lin didn't disappoint, breaking the record and sending the journalists away satisfied.
After the game, Schaaf took Lin to the press conference.
Lin patiently answered most of the questions he could.
For those he couldn't or didn't want to answer—like which team he'd join next season, whether he'd renew with Barcelona, or if he'd stay in the Bundesliga—he remained silent.
"Well, that's all for today's press conference. Thank you for coming, and see you next season!" Schaaf said after answering his questions, then left with Lin.
On the way back to the locker room, Schaaf seemed like he had something to say.
But in the end, he kept quiet.
"By the look on your face, I guess you didn't say it?"
Schaaf didn't return to the locker room but went to his office.
Allofs, waiting there, guessed Schaaf hadn't said what he intended.
"Yeah, I didn't say it," Schaaf admitted, shaking his head.
"Ha, if you didn't say it, we might have a tough time next season."
Allofs chuckled self-deprecatingly and left Schaaf's office.
Watching his old partner leave, Schaaf felt a bit puzzled:
Is Lin really going to Bayern Munich?
---
When Lin returned to the locker room, he found De Bruyne waiting outside.
"Do you need something?"
Pushing open the locker room door, he saw it empty, his teammates having left after showering.
The spacious locker room echoed with his voice.
He walked to his locker, touching the name tag gently before removing it.
He wouldn't be back here. The locker needed to be free for a new player.
Not a new teammate, but a new Werder Bremen player.
De Bruyne did the same, then took a football from his bag and handed it to Lin.
"What's this?"
Lin was puzzled, looking at De Bruyne.
"As promised, I'm giving you the ball from my first hat-trick," De Bruyne explained.
He'd been striving for a hat-trick all season, finally achieving it in this last game.
Though a bit late, it wasn't too late.
Leaving without fulfilling that promise would have left him regretful.
Lin felt a bit dazed, recalling his own hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the Telekom Cup's first match last year.
He had written his name and the date on that ball and given it to De Bruyne.
Looking at the ball, he saw De Bruyne had neatly written his name, the date, and a note:
To my dearest friend, Lin—De Bruyne!