After the defeat in the Premier League, Arsenal F.C. responded in the best possible way.
Their performance in the fifth round of the UEFA Champions League was dominant, and the convincing victory quickly silenced many of the critics who had been questioning them earlier in the week.
Inside the club, however, there was no celebration aimed at the media.
Professional clubs experience this cycle constantly. Praise one week, criticism the next. Most players had long ago learned not to take it personally.
Still, a few Arsenal players decided to respond in their own way.
Several of them posted messages on social media, indirectly hitting back at the critics. Alexis Sánchez was among the most vocal. Even though he did not score in the match, he produced a superb performance, assisting three goals and constantly creating danger.
Sánchez's message was clear.
The response on the pitch had already answered the criticism.
The reaction from British and European media was almost predictable. Many outlets simply avoided mentioning their earlier criticism.
If you say nothing now, then perhaps nobody remembers what you said before.
Facing that kind of selective silence, Arsenal players could only shake their heads.
After five rounds, Arsenal maintained a perfect record in Group D.
The standings were clear.
1: Arsenal, 5-0-0, 15 points.
2: Borussia Dortmund, 4-0-1, 12 points.
3: Galatasaray S.K., 0-1-4, 1 point.
4: RSCAnderlecht, 0-1-4, 1 point.
The gap between the top two and the rest of the group was enormous.
Arsenal and Dortmund had already secured qualification. The only remaining question was which of them would finish first.
That meant all attention shifted to the final group match.
Dortmund would travel to London.
The winner would likely claim the top position in the group.
Elsewhere in the competition, José Mourinho and Chelsea F.C. were also performing strongly.
Chelsea's group had been relatively manageable, which allowed them to focus more attention on the Premier League. Even so, they remained unbeaten with four wins and one draw.
In the final round, they would face Sporting CP.
Few analysts believed Sporting could trouble Chelsea.
The other English clubs in the tournament had not been as impressive.
Liverpool F.C. struggled badly in their group, which included Real Madrid.
Many supporters had hoped Liverpool would mark their return to the Champions League with strong performances.
Instead, after five matches, they had managed only one victory.
Their record of one win, one draw, and three defeats left them fighting with FC Basel for the second qualification spot.
When Kai looked at the standings, one detail immediately caught his attention.
In only half a season, Ouyang Fei had already scored twice in the Champions League.
Two goals in five matches.
For a young player newly arrived in European football, it was an impressive achievement.
Ouyang Fei had joined Basel this season. Kai originally expected it might take one or two years for him to adapt.
Instead, he adjusted quickly.
Now he was already a semi-regular starter.
Even in Basel's match against Real Madrid, the coach trusted him enough to send him onto the pitch.
That decision alone showed how much confidence the staff had in him.
Kai felt genuinely happy for his compatriot.
More importantly, Ouyang Fei would likely become one of his teammates at the next World Cup.
Kai hoped the young striker would continue improving, challenge the giants of Europe, and gain as much experience as possible.
The final English representative in the Champions League, Everton F.C., had performed even worse than Liverpool.
After five matches, their record stood at zero wins, two draws, and three defeats.
They had not managed a single victory.
Because of that, many supporters of Manchester City F.C. began claiming that City would perform far better if they were in Everton's position.
Still, Everton had not been completely ineffective.
In fact, the only draw conceded by FC Bayern Munich in the group stage had come against them.
After five rounds, the qualification picture across Europe was becoming clearer.
In Group D, everything now came down to the final meeting between Arsenal and Dortmund.
The other two teams would simply play their last match, experience the atmosphere one final time, and then exit the tournament.
Compared with previous seasons, Arsenal looked far more composed.
The pressure was not on them.
Instead, it rested firmly on Dortmund.
Arsenal sat comfortably at the top of the group.
For Dortmund to take that position, they needed to break Arsenal's balance.
The problem was how to do it.
. . .
Inside Dortmund's training facility, Jürgen Klopp sat with his coaching staff studying Arsenal's squad analysis.
Documents covered the table.
The more they examined the team, the more difficult the challenge appeared.
Arsène Wenger had spent nearly three years building this version of Arsenal.
The result was a squad far more stable than previous generations.
And the foundation of that stability lay in midfield.
Specifically, the defensive midfield area.
Klopp rubbed his forehead.
"How exactly are we supposed to get through their midfield?"
He had asked the same question many times already.
Each time, the answers were unsatisfactory.
His assistant, Peter Krawietz, leaned forward.
"They press aggressively," he said. "But pressing is also our strength. If we meet them head-on in midfield, we can force the confrontation."
Across the table, Pepijn Lijnders shook his head slowly while rubbing the top of his thinning hair.
"The idea sounds exciting," he said, "but can we actually out-press them?"
The room became quiet.
Krawietz did not answer.
Because everyone knew the reality.
At the moment, very few teams in world football believed they could outpress Arsenal's midfield.
Kai alone had already made that area extremely difficult to break through.
Then Wenger discovered another relentless ball-winner.
After adapting to the Premier League, N'Golo Kanté had become a constant presence across the pitch.
During one tactical clip, Kanté's voice could even be heard from the sideline camera.
"I run, I run everywhere," he said in simple English, smiling while catching his breath. "Ball there, I go. Ball here, I go again. No problem."
Klopp watched the footage and sighed.
Arsenal had two midfielders who never seemed to stop running.
Two relentless pressing machines protecting the center of the pitch.
Most teams would consider themselves lucky to have even one player like that.
But Arsenal did not have just one relentless midfielder.
They had two.
Facing a team like that meant you were constantly under pressure. The moment you tried to build an attack, the midfield would swarm around you. One mistake, one loose touch, and the ball was gone again.
Over ninety minutes, that kind of pressure could break a team mentally.
Still, the Dortmund staff kept searching for weaknesses.
"Arsenal do have one weakness," said John Achterberg firmly. "Their back line. I've studied them closely. Individually, their defenders aren't particularly strong in one on one situations."
Peter Krawietz shook his head.
"You just said it yourself," he replied. "Individually, they might not be exceptional. But we can't isolate them from the midfield. Their defensive midfielders protect them too well."
He spread his hands across the tactical board.
"And our current attack doesn't have that level of firepower."
Across the table, Pepijn Lijnders nodded.
"In theory, yes," he said. "If we could separate their midfield from the back line, we might expose them. But doing that requires constant pressure and very quick transitions. Right now we simply don't have the tools."
The room fell quiet.
Everyone understood Arsenal's structural weakness.
The problem was reaching it.
To isolate Arsenal's defenders, you needed enough attacking quality to pull their midfield out of position. That meant explosive forwards, constant movement, and extremely high-tempo pressing.
Looking at Borussia Dortmund's current squad, the staff knew the truth.
They could not sustain that intensity.
If players like Robert Lewandowski or Mario Götze were still at Dortmund, it might have been possible.
But those days were gone.
The discussion continued for a long time, yet no solution appeared.
Eventually, Jürgen Klopp stood up.
"That's enough for tonight," he said quietly. "We'll continue tomorrow."
The rest of the staff gathered their notes and slowly left the room.
Only Krawietz and Lijnders remained behind with Klopp.
Suddenly, Krawietz slammed his fist against the table.
"Damn it!"
The dull thud echoed in the room.
Klopp and Lijnders did not speak, but their expressions were just as heavy.
The three of them had worked together for years. They had shared success, frustration, and long nights of tactical planning. There was no need to hide their emotions from each other.
To be honest, they had spent years building something special at Dortmund.
They developed young players, shaped them into stars, and pushed the club back into European relevance.
But every time those players reached their peak, someone else arrived to take them away.
And more often than not, it was FC Bayern Munich.
Anyone would feel bitter in that situation.
Klopp leaned back in his chair.
Lijnders broke the silence.
"Bayern have made another offer," he said quietly. "This time for Mats Hummels."
Klopp's face remained calm, but the disappointment in his eyes was clear.
"What's the club's position?" he asked.
Lijnders gave a thin smile.
"What do you think?"
Klopp sighed softly and shook his head.
Standing beside him, Krawietz spoke again.
"Jürgen, maybe it's time we consider leaving," he said. "We've given seven years to Dortmund. We built something meaningful here. No one can question that."
He paused before continuing.
"But if every time we grow a great team, someone else comes and takes the players, how can we keep moving forward?"
Lijnders nodded slowly.
"We also have to think about our own ambitions," he added. "Do you really want to spend the rest of your career chasing Bayern from behind?"
He looked directly at Klopp.
"Dortmund's finances cannot support the level of project we dream about. If we want to build something truly great, we may need a club with greater resources."
Klopp remained silent for a moment, staring at the tactical board on the wall.
The room felt unusually heavy.
Outside, the lights of Dortmund's training ground were beginning to dim.
. . .
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