The God of Football Starts With Passive Skills

Say what you will, that guy Ronaldo might be arrogant as hell on a normal day, but he’s truly a man of his word.

How should I put it?

He’s the type who, after losing to you, won’t just admit defeat. He’ll go and secretly work his ass off to improve himself, just so he can come back and have another go at you.

This time, it was because of their previous bet. He knew how to take a loss!

"Cristiano, you’re the man!" Wang Shuo posted in the group chat.

Not long after, Messi also tagged Wang Shuo in the group chat, telling him to check Facebook.

Twitter didn’t have the functionality to post pictures yet.

Messi had also posted a photo on Facebook. It was a picture of him in a white T-shirt, which also had "Wang Shuo, the world’s best!" written on it. It looked like he’d scribbled it in a hurry after Ronaldo posted his video.

"Hey, didn’t you say you didn’t have a white T-shirt ready?" Wang Shuo asked in the group chat.

Messi replied, "This one was for you."

"But you ended up using it," Wang Shuo typed, adding a smiley face.

"By the way, how’s Pique? I’d like to go see him. Would that be okay?" Wang Shuo asked.

This was actually a very normal practice.

For example, some players who injured an opponent during a match would make a special trip to visit and apologize afterward.

It was all a matter of courtesy.

"It’s pretty serious, but he was taken to the hospital a while ago. He’s not at Wembley Stadium anymore."

Wang Shuo felt a phantom pain in his own groin.

"This has nothing to do with you. You didn’t even touch him, and none of us blame you."

Wang Shuo nodded. "I hope he recovers soon. Please send him my best when you see him."

"Sure."

...

After the Champions League final, media outlets from every country were scrambling to report on it.

The German Bild ran the headline: Wang Shuo, King of Wembley!

In the article, the German media commented, "What a spectacular Champions League final!"

"After Dortmund scored in the first half, they briefly suffered a comeback as Barça went up 2-1, but Wang Shuo’s outstanding performance helped the Bumblebees reclaim the most important trophy in the European football scene."

Bild ran another article that spoke glowingly of Wang Shuo: "O great Chinese striker, in just two seasons, you have completely won over the Dortmund fans and earned your place among the club’s legends!"

Kicker Magazine also published a special report after the match, commenting on the Champions League final.

In addition to a recap of the match, one line in the report read as follows.

"After suffering a 2-1 reversal at the hands of Barça, Wang Shuo personally placed the European crown upon Dortmund’s head!"

The Süddeutsche Zeitung went even further, reporting that Dortmund’s path to the title had been fraught with danger.

"Wang Shuo’s earth-shattering long shot at the start of the match gave Dortmund the advantage, but conceding two consecutive goals brought the Bumblebees to the brink of despair."

"At the critical moment, it was once again Wang Shuo who stepped up to help Dortmund equalize."

"And in the end, it was Wang Shuo once more, whose all-out individual performance in the final moments breached Barça’s goal."

Der Spiegel, in its report, commented that Dortmund’s defense created huge problems for Messi, restricting the Argentinian superstar’s performance, but even with all their effort, Barça couldn’t contain Wang Shuo.

"He was like an untethered horse, galloping freely in Barça’s half and scoring three goals for Dortmund!"

The Frankfurt Allgemeine Zeitung went even further, stating that Wang Shuo had brought the hat-trick back to the Champions League final after a forty-year absence.

The Munich Evening News, while acknowledging Dortmund’s treble this season, also expressed disappointment at Bayern’s situation.

"And it all stems from that transfer back in ’09."

"Bayern chose Gomez, and Dortmund chose Wang Shuo!"

Besides the German media, outlets from other European countries also chimed in with reports.

In Spain, the Marca Newspaper used the headline "The Miraculous Wang Shuo," believing that Barça had fallen at his feet.

The Asi Newspaper also declared that Wang Shuo was a born champion!

Italy’s Milan Sports Daily opined, "This season’s Champions League final was more like a one-man show for Wang Shuo!"

The praise from France’s L’Equipe Newspaper was even more over-the-top: "Wang Shuo, welcome to Earth!"

It wasn’t just the headline; in the article itself, L’Equipe Newspaper compared Wang Shuo to an alien.

And the last player to be crowned with the ’alien’ moniker was the Brazilian superstar Ronaldo.

But L’Equipe Newspaper also pointed out that the biggest difference between Wang Shuo and Ronaldo was that, at the tender age of 20, Wang Shuo had already led Dortmund to the pinnacle of the Champions League—a goal Ronaldo never managed to achieve in his entire career.

In the United Kingdom, The Times stated, "Wang Shuo Leads Tenacious Dortmund to Victory!"

The Guardian Newspaper opined, "Wang Shuo’s three goals caused Barça’s celebrated possession-based system to completely disintegrate."

"Barça’s style of football is now on shaky ground!"

For two consecutive seasons, first being defeated by Inter Milan and now losing to Dortmund, Barça’s possession-based playstyle has already sparked considerable doubt.

At the very least, this playstyle no longer seemed so unbeatable.

The Sun Newspaper praised Wang Shuo as the new king of the European football scene and the front-runner for the 2011 FIFA Golden Ball Award.

They even included a photo that created a stark contrast between an ecstatic Wang Shuo and a dejected, defeated Messi.

When it came to stirring the pot and sparking controversy, the Sun Newspaper had always been a professional.

The Daily Telegraph stated, "At Wembley Stadium, Barça’s ball possession was overwhelmingly dominant, almost double that of Dortmund, but Wang Shuo made Dortmund sharper and more threatening."