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Chapter 347 Advance to the Top 8

Chapter 347 Advance to the Quarterfinals
After the away draw with Dortmund, Hoffenheim stopped advancing. Bayern and Wolfsburg both won this round of the game. Hoffenheim trailed Wolfsburg by three points and was left behind by Bayern by seven points.

But can they do it?Hoffenheim and Bayern have played five times so far, with dismal results, two draws and three losses. Bayern's state this season can be said to be the best in three seasons. Since the beginning of this season, except for being suppressed once by Hoffenheim at the beginning of the league, it has firmly occupied the first position in the standings and has never fallen behind.

If Hoffenheim does not play in the Europa League, Rangnick can fight Bayern at home and retain the hope of winning the championship. Anyway, the final of the German Cup is after the league, but after the match with Bayern, it will be the quarter-finals of the Europa League.

And it can also be seen from the game against Dortmund that after playing at a high level against Benfica, the performance of the players in the following games seemed somewhat weak.

But Rangnick doesn't want to just give up. Anyway, there is still a week before the match against Bayern. With this period of rest, I believe the players can recover most of their state. At the Rhein-Neckar Stadium, even against Bayern, they will have a fight.

Just in case, Rangnick put the two main players on the bench. Eduardo was not fit enough. Maxwell started as a left winger. Salihovic took his place. Ibisevic started because of some minor injuries. Obasi started.

Both sides played cautiously in this game. Bayern faced the same situation as Hoffenheim. They have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League this season, and their opponent in the quarter-finals is the mighty Barcelona.

And Bayern's offense also repeatedly hit a wall in front of Hoffenheim's united defense. In the end, the game ended at zero to zero, with both sides scoring one point.

Although they still failed to break the record of winning against Bayern, Rangnick was not too disappointed-Wolfsburg capsized in the gutter in this game, lost to Hamburg at home, and was narrowed by Hoffenheim.

Even Hoffenheim, which is two points behind them, has a better chance of winning the championship than them. Among the nine opponents behind Hoffenheim, only Werder Bremen, Schalke, and Hamburg are considered strong teams, while Wolfsburg has Leverkusen, Stuttgart, Bayern, Dortmund, and Schalke behind.

After a day's rest, Hoffenheim was going to Switzerland to participate in the Europa League quarter-finals. After the day's training, Long Bisheng returned home and looked at a note in the living room dumbfounded.

"Aaron, Xiao Shan and I went shopping in Switzerland ahead of time. You can handle dinner today by yourself. Also, send me a message after you know which hotel you are going to stay overnight, and we will move in early. Ning Xi."

Looking at the empty home, Long Bisheng smiled wryly. In the past, he went to play away games by himself and left Ning Xi alone at home. Fortunately, after Lu Xiaoshan came, every time he went abroad to compete, Ning Xi would take Lu Xiaoshan, who had a day off, to go shopping and travel in advance. This person, how could he become corrupt so quickly!
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Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland and also the most developed economic region in Switzerland. It is quite close to Germany. In fact, Basel used to be a part of Germany in history, and this city is also a hub connecting Germany, France and Switzerland. There are three railway stations in the territory, which are owned by these three countries, so it is too simple to travel from Germany to Basel.

What attracted Ning Xi and Lu Xiaoshan was another point - Basel, located in the Rhine Valley, is known as the city with the "best weather in Central Europe". It is said that according to the survey, this city receives the most direct sunlight in Central Europe.

So the two of them had a good day in Basel, and then Ning Xi was in the stands and Lu Xiaoshan was watching Hoffenheim play at a high level in this game. They used solid defense in the away game to make the home team helpless, while Marin and others' quick counterattacks were successful. Before the end of the first half, Marin's cross from the wing helped Ibisevic succeed in the second tackle. , After passing the Benfica level, Hoffenheim's luck in the Europa League seems to have improved.

Leading [-]-[-] in the away game, this situation is even better than the last game. At the same time, after the last home game against Benfica, Hoffenheim will accept this lesson and will never be paralyzed at home again, almost capsizing in the gutter.

Rangnick scored two goals in the away game, but Rangnick still did not dare to take it lightly. Because the top three positions in the league are basically worry-free, it seems an impossible task to surpass Bayern.

They almost achieved the latter point. After 15 minutes of the game, Long Bisheng made a steal in the frontcourt and shot a low shot into the net from the front of the penalty area. He stopped his momentum of not scoring in three rounds and scored his No. 13 league goals this season.

After taking the lead, Hoffenheim launched a tenacious defense. Although several main players were on the bench, Schalke Zero Four was still helpless. Long Bisheng’s wide-range running in the frontcourt became a nightmare for Schalke Zero Four.

If the veteran Kuranyi hadn't used his experience to ask for a penalty kick and then made the penalty himself, maybe Schalke would have lost the game at home, but even so, Hoffenheim still achieved their goal and took away from the away game.

Although adding this game, Hoffenheim has already tied three games in a row in the league, but Rangnick is still very satisfied with the team's performance. These three opponents Dortmund, Bayern and Schalke are not easy to deal with. They can still get three draws while taking into account the Europa League. Rangnick began to be full of confidence in the two-line battle next season.

At the same time, the fans of Hoffenheim are not dissatisfied with the team's consecutive draws. Everyone can see that Hoffenheim's focus has now shifted to the Europa League. As long as they win another game, they will enter the quarterfinals of the Europa League!
For this honor, what is it to temporarily give up a few games in the league?You must know that Hoffenheim's No.3 position is still stable. If they can't win the league championship, what is the difference between second and third in the league?
On March 31, the second round of the Europa League quarter-finals kicked off at the Rhein-Neckar Stadium.

Amidst the cheers of [-] Hoffenheim fans, Hoffenheim never made the mistake of the second round of the [-]th round. Each of them completely concentrated their energy.

After overcoming the opponent's opening three strikes, Hoffenheim launched a counterattack. The impact of the two center forwards Long Bisheng and Ibisevic in the penalty area made Basel's defenders feel miserable, while Marin Salihovic, who had a round of rest, continued to attack on the two wings, constantly creating opportunities for the central players.

The first goal came from the midfielder. After receiving a pass from Long Bisheng from the front of the penalty area, Gustavo opened the scoring with a powerful long-range shot. After the goal, the Brazilian midfielder rushed to the stands and shouted excitedly. The fans also applauded him.

After the total score led [-]-[-], Hoffenheim began to control the situation on the field and slowly consumed the remaining time. Basel wanted to counterattack but was unable to do so.

In the second half, Salihovic used a direct free kick to score another goal. Hoffenheim defeated the opponent [-]-[-] with two goals and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Europa League!

Excited Hoffenheim fans set off fireworks in the stands. When the referee blew the whistle for the end of the game, the entire city of Sinsheim became a sea of ​​joy!Hoffenheim participated in the UEFA Europa League for the first time and reached the quarter-finals. Every step forward, they made history.

(End of this chapter)

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