Naturalization? - 4
September 13th. The UEFA Champions League group stage F Group match between Arsenal and Dortmund.
Dortmund had invited Arsenal to Signal Iduna Park.
“Deutscher Meister! BVB!”
Even before kickoff, Dortmund fans were brimming with confidence in victory. Well, it wasn't just the Dortmund fans. German and British media alike predicted an easy win for Dortmund.
And for good reason—Arsenal had suffered a catastrophic 8:2 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford early in the season, leaving the team's morale in the dumps.
Arsenal fans were utterly shocked by that loss.
How shocked? Like this...
Seeing a photo of Hwang Geum-sun, the devastated director, had even Mother-in-law and Winter declaring they'd hold off on teasing him for a bit.
...Though that only lasted a day. For a soccer fan, holding out that long was impressive enough.
Anyway, after that disaster, Wenger and Arsenal went on a spree before the summer transfer window closed—snagging five players in just three days: Park Joo-young, Per Mertesacker, Andre Santos, Yossi Benayoun, and Mikel Arteta.
Bringing in so many at once wasn't ideal, but Arsenal had no choice. Most of their starters were injured.
As a result, Arsenal was in disarray, struggling in the league too.
So naturally, everyone expected an easy win for the unbeaten Dortmund.
But I saw this Arsenal match as a real tough one for Dortmund.
'Dortmund's just a baby crying "wah wah!'
Dortmund lacked serious European experience since their financial collapse.
'One UEFA Cup, one Europa League—that's it? Europa and Champions League are worlds apart, so basically zero experience.'
A manager could fill that gap... but sadly, Jurgen Klopp had zilch in European experience too.
'Even including his playing days, this is his first Champions League.'
In the original timeline, they couldn't overcome it—despite being Bundesliga champs, Dortmund went 1-1-4 in the group and dropped out in fourth.
“But that's without me.”
I had no Champions League experience either... but I'd played the bigger World Cup stage, so maybe it'd be fine.
Whatever. Dortmund had to win this home game against Arsenal.
To keep the players sharp for the rest of the group stage.
That'd be the best way to repay the passionate fans cheering them on.
“Let's go! BVB!”
At captain Sebastian Kehl's shout, the Dortmund players waiting in the tunnel stepped onto the pitch.
The South Tribune card stunt unfurled—a Dortmund crest with a crown, the word "BVB" peeking through.
Probably a "you're last year's champs, play with pride" message.
Didn't matter. The roaring passion from the South Tribune swept away any lingering anxiety I had.
“Die Menschen im Schwarz und Gelben Ruhrgebiet Werden immer stolz an deiner Seite sein.”
I quietly hummed along to the anthem ringing in my ears: "The black and yellow people of the Ruhr will always stand proudly by your side."
Both Dortmund and Arsenal lined up in 4-2-3-1.
This away trip to Dortmund was a crisis for Arsenal all around.
Wenger had been caught on radio chatting with the bench during his suspension in the Udinese qualifier.
UEFA slapped him with an extra ban, leaving "Ricey" (as Arsenal fans called him) in charge.
The first half kicked off with Dortmund dominating, as expected.
No manager on the sideline hurt, but Arsenal's new signings weren't gelling—positioning overlaps everywhere.
And with Cesc Fabregas gone to Barcelona, Dortmund's midfield led by me crushed them in the battle for control.
'Easier than I thought?'
Just as I wondered if we'd cruise to victory—thud!
Mats Hummels' pass went astray, gifting Van Persie the opener.
“Scheiße!”
***
Dortmund ramped up the pressure after conceding.
“Jinho! Push higher up!”
But by the 20th minute of the second half, no goals yet.
Klopp subbed out the off-form Shinji Kagawa for Ilkay Gundogan.
Gundogan wasn't settled in position yet, but it was necessary to let me play more aggressively. I'd only recently taken over Kagawa's role.
"Gino!"
Gundogan intercepted with smart positioning and passed to me.
I caught Lewandowski's eye and lofted a perfect ball into space behind the defense.
Arsenal defenders looked baffled for a split second.
“Block him—!!”
The hunter dashed into the drop zone.
Thud!
“Olé!!”
Lewandowski, awakening bit by bit, rattled the Arsenal net.