Chapter 632: A Thousand-Mile Raid
After the warm-up matches, Real Madrid welcomed their first-round showdown of the new season against Barcelona, the Spanish Super Cup, with the match taking place at the capital's Bird's Nest Stadium.
The single-round format intensified the competition for the trophy, with both sides deploying their main players in hopes of gaining the upper hand at the start of the new season.
This was the first time domestic fans had witnessed the full-scale battle between the two top clubs in the world at their doorstep, especially with Wang Feng leading the charge. The stadium was packed to capacity, with demand exceeding the temporary seating arranged by the organizers.
"Our fans are incredibly passionate. This place has turned into a home ground for Real Madrid," remarked Zhang Jun in the commentary box. "We can see that most of the spectators are wearing the White Galactic jerseys, giving the feeling of being at the Bernabeu."
"Yes, no wonder Barcelona strongly opposed hosting the Super Cup in China. It inexplicably turned into an away game for them. Of course, there's also a small group of Catalan fans who traveled all the way from Spain, hoping to enjoy themselves," commented Zhang.
"The players from both sides are entering the field now. Both teams are lined up in a 4-3-3 formation. Barcelona's starting goalkeeper is Ter Stegen."
"The back four consists of Alves, Pique, Mascherano, and Puig."
"The midfield trio includes Xavi, Iniesta, and Busquets."
"The front three are Neymar, Messi, and Suarez."
Barcelona started the game with high-intensity pressing and pressure, controlling possession firmly, which made Real Madrid appear relatively passive in the game, forcing them to adopt a more defensive approach by contracting their formation.
The Catalan team quickly created threats, with Neymar's wing breakthrough and cross resulting in Suarez's volley being blocked by Ramos in the penalty area. Shortly after, Iniesta took a corner, and Mascherano's header narrowly missed the post.
Two consecutive close-range shots stirred excitement among the fans in the stands, whose cheers and support grew louder, hoping to provide more strength to the White Galactic team.
Next, Real Madrid launched a quick counterattack. Wang Feng dribbled past Xavi on the wing, then passed into the penalty area. Although Iguaín found space, his low shot was blocked by Ter Stegen, highlighting the Catalan team's new goalkeeper's young age but impressive composure and standard save techniques.
After a brief deadlock, Barcelona broke the stalemate first. In the 20th minute, Messi's subtle movements in the frontcourt attracted defenders, and then he expertly passed the ball between Ramos and Pepe, allowing Suarez to arrive swiftly and shoot past Casillas' fingertips.
With the lead in hand, Barcelona seemed more at ease, maintaining their passing game. Meanwhile, Real Madrid refrained from pressing too aggressively, fearing they might be exploited by Barcelona's passing skills, as both Neymar and Messi possessed exceptional close-range ball-handling abilities.
To expand his influence, Wang Feng consciously dropped back from the wing to a quasi-attacking midfielder position, organizing counterattacks while intercepting opponent penetrations, a change that Coach Ancelotti hoped to see.
In the 39th minute, Wang Feng intercepted the ball in the opponent's half and slotted a through pass to Di Maria. Faced with defensive pressure, Di Maria passed it back, while Wang Feng feigned a breakthrough to create space. In reality, he engaged in a wall pass with Di Maria, allowing him to calmly cross from the baseline.
Iguain leaped high at the far post, directing a header towards the top left corner, but Ter Stegen stretched his body to the limit, using his left hand to block the ball. However, Wang Feng quickly arrived and pushed aside Pique, volleying the ball into the net with his right foot, equalizing for the White Galactic team!
In the second half, in the 57th minute, Alonso sent a long pass to Morata, who then dribbled past the defender on the wing, before making a triangular pass to the edge of the arc where Wang Feng met it with a curling shot using the inside of his foot. The ball seemed to fly towards the top left corner of the goal but suddenly swerved to the right, catching Ter Stegen off guard, who could only watch as it nestled into the net.
"Beautiful! Wang Feng! You're the king of football!" exclaimed domestic fans in the stands, while the Chinese superstar celebrated with them, igniting the passion of the entire stadium.
"The atmosphere here is amazing," added Alonso, who joined the celebration. "Indeed, the fans are always the most adorable people, no matter when."
As time passed, Barcelona's attacks became increasingly fierce. Finally, in the 88th minute, Messi stepped up, dribbling past two defenders in the penalty area before passing to the wing. Neymar faked a shot and then cut inside before passing it back to Messi, who calmly slotted the ball into the net from a tight angle.
"Ah~!" After scoring, Messi looked up to the sky and let out a long roar, releasing his pent-up emotions. He had finally managed to turn the tide at a crucial moment!
Both head coaches began preparing for overtime and penalties. Near the end of the game, Barcelona earned a corner kick, and all Real Madrid players retreated to defend inside the penalty area.
Iniesta floated the ball into the box, and Pepe made an early judgment to head it away, but it fell near Wang Feng.
He quickly controlled the ball, dodged a challenge, and accelerated towards the opponent's half. Suarez attempted to intercept, but he didn't anticipate Wang Feng's speed. In the blink of an eye, the ball flew far ahead.
With most Barcelona players involved in the attack and the rapid pace of the Chinese superstar, they had no time to retreat, except for Alves and Pique trailing behind, with a chance to intercept.
Seeing Wang Feng charging alone past the halfway line, all the fans in the stadium stood up in excitement. They knew this would likely be the last attack in regular time.
Martino was taken aback, rushing to the sidelines and shouting in Spanish, "Stop him, foul him, quickly!" seeming to realize the gravity of the situation. Pique aggressively moved towards the Chinese superstar, while Alves slightly lagged behind to provide support, forming a double-team.
Wang Feng naturally understood that at this moment, the defending players would do anything to stop him, even if it meant receiving a yellow card, but the excellent opportunity would be wasted.
So he focused, contemplating the perfect amount of force needed. At the critical moment, he nudged the ball towards Alves, feeling as if he had directly passed it to him.
Pique's attempt to bring down Wang Feng seemed to freeze for a moment, almost subconsciously halting his movement to observe the situation, while Alves, unable to do much, could only rely on instinct to stretch out his leg and receive the ball.
At that moment, the Chinese superstar erupted, forcefully pushing past Pique and darting through the gap between the two defenders. At the edge of being tackled, he deftly poked the ball away, leaving the Spanish defender in a daze, trying to reach out but it was already too late.
"Wang Feng breaks through Barcelona's defensive double-team! My god, how did he manage to bring the ball out from such a narrow space?!"
"There's no one ahead except the goalkeeper. Ter Stegen comes out. As expected, a slight feint and he's completely beaten. He slots it into the empty net! In the final moments of the game, Real Madrid takes the lead again!"
"Traveling a thousand miles to defeat the enemy! This is a typical long-distance raid-style counterattack, from their own penalty area to the opponent's penalty area. Wang Feng has shown us what it means to be as fast as lightning and as swift as the wind."
"Even when faced with a double-team, his speed didn't slow down. We couldn't even see how he broke free."
With this decisive goal, Real Madrid edged past Barcelona 3-2, lifting the Spanish Super Cup trophy.
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