Chapter 386: Champions League top 8
On the evening of March 2, 2008, at 8 p.m., at the Cologne Pinault Stadium, in the 26th round of La Liga, Real Madrid faced Valencia away.
This was not a difficult game. Valencia, although one of the oldest teams in La Liga history, had only won a provincial league championship once in the early 20th century. Most of the time, they wandered in the lower leagues, and even playing in the top league was a luxury.
So far this season, they were ranked fifth from the bottom in the league standings, still a long way from securing their place in the top flight. However, Valencia had always been a small-market team, making it difficult for them to invest heavily in development.
After the kickoff, the away team took the initiative and launched a fierce attack. Just 5 minutes into the game, Robben shook off the defender on the wing and crossed the ball to Wang Feng on the right side of the penalty area.
The agile Chinese superstar flicked the ball with his heel, sending it to the feet of the oncoming Higuain. The calm Argentine youngster calmly slotted the ball into the net to open the scoring for the Galacticos.
Real Madrid's onslaught was far from over. In the 18th minute, Sneijder's long pass from the center found Wang Feng, who shook off two defenders and leaped to head the ball into the net, effortlessly breaking through Valencia's defense once again.
Ten minutes later, Sneijder orchestrated another attack. He and Guti engaged in a series of consecutive passes, penetrating all the way to the edge of the penalty area before suddenly shooting from an acute angle.
Seizing the opportunity, the Chinese superstar slid to the ground and made a diving shot, beating the defending player to the ball. It flew into the air and over the goal line, hitting the inside of the net. 3-0! Before the end of the first half, the Galacticos had already secured victory!
In the second half, the away team slowed down the pace of their attack, but the situation on the field remained overwhelmingly in their favor. In the 64th minute, Wang Feng was substituted off. His performance of two goals and one assist in this match was enough to earn him the title of the best player, even Valencia fans couldn't help but applaud him.
In the final moments of the match, Cassano scored again for Real Madrid, sealing the score at 4-0. They swept away the gloom of their cup defeat with a resounding victory.
26 rounds, 38 goals! When Cristiano Ronaldo received this news, he felt as if his heart was bleeding. As the undisputed ace of Manchester United, he felt that this season, both his individual strength and the team's support had reached their peak.
With 24 goals in 27 rounds, although he was leading the Premier League's top scorer list by a wide margin, he was being left further and further behind by the Chinese superstar, a heavy blow to his pride.
There were voices in his mind advising him to give up this rivalry. Winning championships with the team was more important than anything else. But the Portuguese couldn't help but search for Wang Feng's performance and compare himself to him.
Gradually approaching the figure he used to look up to, and then surpassing him, who could resist this temptation?
So Cristiano Ronaldo became increasingly anxious. His teammates and mentor Ferguson had been trying to console him, but his personality was such that he was stubbornly competitive and unwilling to admit defeat.
As a result, his performance in the recent rounds of the league had been erratic again, becoming somewhat "selfish". Eager to continue scoring goals, he always took the ball to attack on his own, ignoring the positioning and passing of his teammates. He not only failed to achieve his goals but also disrupting the team's overall attacking rhythm, leading to Manchester United's poor performance in recent games.
Teammates were quite critical, and Ferguson angrily benched him, saying, "Reflect on yourself properly. If you don't understand, you'll keep sitting on the bench!"
In the Champions League round of 16, Real Madrid faced Roma, while Manchester United faced Lyon. In the first leg away matches, without Cristiano Ronaldo, they were both drawn 1-1 by their opponents.
Returning to the league, they lost to direct competitor Chelsea again, narrowing the gap to 3 points. Arsenal, in third place, was also unwilling to fall behind.
Seeing this, the British media began to condemn Cristiano Ronaldo, blaming him for ruining the team's good situation. Not only was the chance of defending the title likely to be lost, but they might even be eliminated in the Champions League round of 16.
The Portuguese was the perfect scapegoat, after all, he had a grudge against England, and nobody had forgotten about the "winkgate" incident at the 2006 World Cup. Now that they had a chance, naturally, they would heavily criticize him.
It seemed that continuing like this was not the solution. Cristiano Ronaldo and Ferguson, the master and apprentice, had a night-long conversation. No one knew what they talked about, but on the next day of the Champions League match, the Portuguese returned to the starting lineup.
On March 6th, at England's Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester United faced the formidable French Ligue 1 champions, Lyon.
After the start of the game, Cristiano Ronaldo regained his composure, frequently creating opportunities for Rooney and Tevez. When his vision opened up, he still stood at the top of the pyramid of players.
"We might find it difficult to pass this test." Lyon coach Alain Perrin smiled bitterly to his assistant on the sidelines. "Originally, if there were internal problems in Manchester United, it would have been our best chance. The first leg confirmed this."
"But Ferguson is Ferguson, he actually managed to placate Cristiano Ronaldo and the team in such a short time, bringing them together like a rope. This is probably something that many coaches can't achieve."
Just as the Frenchman feared, in the 7th minute, Cristiano Ronaldo was blocked by two defenders on the wing. He immediately engaged in a passing combination with Hargreaves and broke through to the bottom line.
This time, he didn't choose to forcefully cut inside and shoot from a tight angle, as the success rate would certainly be low. Instead, he opted for a precise curved pass, finding Rooney in front of the goal. After hitting him on the head, the ball bounced into the net. 1-0! Manchester United took the lead!
Cristiano Ronaldo's rationality paid off. The goals he had eagerly wanted naturally came. In the 24th minute, while Rooney drew away the defense, he decisively shot from long range, piercing through the goalkeeper's fingertips.
Old Trafford Stadium instantly turned into a sea of celebration. The voices that had once mocked and insulted the Portuguese superstar all disappeared, replaced by praise and cheers.
Next, Manchester United's morale surged, attacking more smoothly, and scoring two more goals in succession, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring twice and Tevez scoring one.
When the referee blew the final whistle of the match, the score stood at 4-0 for both sides, with a total score of 5-1 over two legs, Manchester United eliminated Lyon and advanced to the Champions League quarter-finals!
Back in the dressing room, the Portuguese couldn't help but pay attention to the news of Wang Feng and Real Madrid's match on the same day. He opened his phone and searched for it. Sure enough, the Galacticos also achieved victory, defeating their opponents 2-0 at the Bernabeu, and also advancing with a total score of 5-1.
Wang Feng contributed with one goal and one assist in this match, and his performance was also very impressive. Among all the winning teams, both Real Madrid and Manchester United showed strong dominance, making them strong contenders for the final championship.
"If we can meet them in the final and defeat them, that would be the best ending," Cristiano Ronaldo thought to himself.
Entering the Champions League semi-finals, the eight teams also reflected a new pattern in European football. Among them, the Premier League occupied four seats, with Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, and Chelsea all not falling behind, presenting a thriving scene in the English league.
La Liga occupied two seats, with Real Madrid and Barcelona, while the Bundesliga occupied one seat, with Schalke 04, and there was one dark horse from the Turkish Super League, Fenerbahce.
Serie A was completely wiped out, no longer living up to the glory of the "little World Cup" years, while Ligue 1 still lagged behind.
Real Madrid's quarter-final opponent was Chelsea from the Premier League.
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