Chapter 999: The Gameday!

Time passed quickly, and before Higo knew it, he was already back at the Veltins Arena, warming up with everyone while also waiting for the opponent’s team to arrive.

This time, though, the crowd was a little bit bigger than usual, around 1000 people coming to watch the game live.

After all, for Gelsenkirchen people, this was a big game, bigger than anything else. Losing was never an option, or they would never be able to hear the end of it from their annoying neighbor.

"Come on, Higo! Don’t let anyone score against you!"

"Fuck it! Don’t let them leave the stadium alive! Wait for them outside!"

"This is our fucking home! Let’s murder them!"

Honestly, the shouts were so scary, full of people threatening to kill Dortmund players after the game. Even though it would never happen, this sentiment was still enough to intimidate the weak-willed ones on the opponent’s team.

Ao Tanaka, who witnessed the craziness of Schalke’s supporters for the first time, was also flabbergasted. After all, while the fans in Japan were loyal, they would never be this crazy and treat the game as if it were their lives.

"Fucking hell... What is going on here..." The boy murmured quietly.

"Just ignore them, Tanaka-san. They are just like that." Higo patted his teammate’s shoulder gently. "Just make sure that you give your all when you have a chance later, and make sure that you don’t lose the game, or they would have our heads rolling on the ground."

Of course, Higo was joking here, wanting to ease the tension on his friend’s shoulders. There was no way such brutality would be allowed in this modern age.

However, Tanaka, whose imagination had already run wild, had his face turning pale, probably thinking about what kind of treatment he would get if he messed up later.

He knew that he was still not ready for a game like this, and it would be a lie if he said that he wasn’t afraid of the intimidating supporters in the stands.

Fortunately, he wouldn’t have to play from the start. No, besides Jonas Hofmann and Morita, the other midfielder here would be Mustafi, the new defender.

It was definitely not the man’s natural position, but his tendency to drive forward and help organize the play, combined with his natural ability to deal with the opponent’s attack quickly, made him suitable to become an emergency holding midfielder.

That way, though, Schalke would have two midfielders whose purpose was to win the ball in the midfield, and this would make at least Marco Reus’s life like hell.

It also gave the team extra security, as, if needed, those two could drop further to become center backs, creating a great barrier that would be impossible for any other opponent to break.

As the players were warming up, soon enough, the away team finally arrived. They were led by their captain, who was none other than Marco Reus, and behind him, the troops stepped onto the pitch as if they were going to own this place.

Haaland was still busy with his phone while his ears were covered by a massive pair of headphones.

Jadon Sancho danced a little, following the music in his ears.

Even Matth?us Hummels just entered the pitch casually, as if it was his backyard.

Just based on their attitude, they showed that they didn’t take this game seriously, which only infuriated the home supporters more.

"BASTARD! GO BACK TO YOUR SEWER!"

"DIRTY RATS! JUST DIE HERE!"

"GO HOME! THIS IS NOT YOUR FUCKING PLACE!"

Well, only a few players were still trembling due to this kind of intimidation. For those who had experienced a full-house game in this Veltins Arena, those shouts were just like music in their ears.

Once they got into their warm-up jersey, though, the aura shifted immediately. Now, they looked like a proper army, going to the battlefield with the intention to kill every single one of their opponents.

Higo narrowed his eyes quietly from his position, locking on the two players who the coach had already warned him about.

Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho.

"Those two have been targeted by big teams in England like Manchester United and Manchester City, so this will probably be our last encounter against each other in this league. Let’s try to establish my dominance here and make sure that they will never forget about me..."

Higo couldn’t help but clench his fist when he thought about that.

Of course, it wouldn’t be an easy task to do. After all, just like what Frohling emphasized a few days ago, Dortmund had already changed a lot since they were led by their interim head coach, and once again, they became one of the most dangerous teams in the league.

However, Schalke was also here as a strong team.

They were the best defensive team in the league so far, only conceding 15 goals out of 21 games. This was the record that not a lot of teams could achieve even in the history of football, and the fact that they were a defensive team who faced a lot of shots every game only made it better.

So, it was clear that this game would get so many eyes to watch, as it was a confrontation between the team who was in a hot-form offensively against the most stable team defensively.

The moment the players from both teams came out of the tunnel to start the game, all the TV stations that broadcast this game also exploded, as the number of their viewers rose astronomically in a blink.

In DAZN studio, the duo of Daniel Herzog and Michael Ballack were also getting ready, waiting for the formalities to be over.

Once everything was settled and Erling Haaland had already stood in front of the ball, the host finally couldn’t hold it back anymore.

"OKAY, EVERYONE! MATCHDAY 21 OF THE BUNDESLIGA 2020/21! THE REVIERDERBY BETWEEN SCHALKE 04 AND BORUSSIA DORTMUND! THE GAME! STARTS! NOW!"

FWEEE!