Chapter 741: The Biggest Reckoning in History?
On February 21st, after playing the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 in Rome, Real Madrid arrived in Andalusia to complete the 25th round of La Liga against Malaga.
The away team adopted a strategy of significant rotation, expecting to easily suppress the coastal team. However, the opponents instead gained the upper hand and continuously threatened the Galacticos' goal.
Injuries and the absence of key players indeed had a significant impact on Real Madrid's performance. Despite bringing on Wang Feng in the 60th minute, he only had an effect ten minutes later, assisting Vázquez to score a goal.
However, the Galacticos still ended up drawing 1-1 with Malaga.
To make matters worse, on February 27th, in the 26th round of La Liga, Real Madrid welcomed Atletico Madrid to the Bernabéu.
In this match, Ramos and Marcelo returned to the starting lineup after recovering from injuries, and the Galacticos could be said to have put out their strongest lineup.
However, after battling each other for nearly 80 minutes, neither side could gain the upper hand. At this moment, Pepe received his second yellow card of the match for a sliding tackle foul, resulting in a direct red card!
This became a turning point in the match. Seven minutes later, Griezmann scored the only goal of the match with a header inside the penalty area, helping Atletico Madrid defeat the Galacticos 1-0.
For the first time in over a decade, Atletico Madrid defeated their cross-city rivals at the Bernabéu!
Simeone and his disciples celebrated wildly on the pitch, finally overcoming the seemingly insurmountable mountain. The Rojiblancos were rising.
Many journalists who smelled blood immediately began to write frantically. The Galacticos were finished! With their leader about to leave, they were about to be torn to shreds by the avengers!
On the other hand, Barcelona seemed to be inspired as well. They swept Levante 7-0, not only overtaking the Galacticos to the top of the table but also widening the gap between the two teams to five points.
The facilities at the Bernabéu Stadium were very luxurious, such as the showers. They not only had spacious single positions but also came equipped with temperature control systems and exquisite wooden benches, allowing the players to shower comfortably after the match.
After a refreshing shower, Wang Feng walked into the locker room to relax his muscles and await treatment, while his teammates gathered in groups, checking the news on their phones.
"This is too exaggerated. The end of Real Madrid, the biggest reckoning in history? What nonsense is this? If you didn't know any better, you'd think we were being relegated," Ramos complained indignantly. "It's just one loss in the league."
The anticipated despair and depression from the outside world did not appear here. The mentality of the Galacticos players was generally calm. They had seen all sorts of situations before, and who could assert victory before the final moment?
"The media always want to make a big deal out of everything, especially over in Catalonia. I bet it's busier now than at Christmas," Wang Feng responded with a smile.
"But it's true that we didn't perform well in this match. We wasted many opportunities, and Atletico played better than us. Losing was deserved."
"Sergio is right. One match doesn't mean anything. As long as we win the games we should win next, we can definitely stage a comeback!"
"I'll treat everyone to a gathering tonight to relax our bodies after being sourly defeated by Atletico."
Seeing the captain say this, everyone smiled and nodded in agreement.
Sometimes morale doesn't come from hard training alone; relaxation and balance are also essential for effective improvement.
As expected, Real Madrid did not appear to be significantly affected by their loss to Atletico. They went on to defeat Levante 3-1 and thrash Celta Vigo 7-1 successively, with Wang Feng contributing comprehensive statistics of 23 goals and 19 assists so far. His assist count surpassed Messi's, ranking first, while in the top scorer list, Iguaín led with 37 goals, ahead of Suarez's 34.
At least from this perspective, the combination of Wang and Iguaín being able to surpass Messi and Suarez together also gave the Galacticos confidence. There was still a Barcelona derby at the Camp Nou to determine the final outcome.
On March 8th, in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, Real Madrid hosted Roma at the Bernabéu.
The home team did not give the visitors any chance. The Chinese superstar opened the scoring, followed by Modric extending the lead. In the end, they defeated their opponents 2-0, advancing to the quarterfinals with a total score of 4-0.
After all the matches were played, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid all advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals. La Liga remained extremely dominant, with Bayern Munich and Werder Bremen from the Bundesliga advancing as well.
With the efforts of De Bruyne and Huang Hu, Werder Bremen achieved their best ever performance in the Champions League.
Only one team from the Premier League remained, Manchester City led by Cristiano Ronaldo. Rumors of his transfer were also rampant. He abandoned everything to join his cross-city rivals but failed to win the Champions League as expected, not even reaching the final.
Both fans and players were brewing with pressure and dissatisfaction. This year might be the last time both sides could tolerate each other.
Paris Saint-Germain also became a regular in the quarterfinals. Their situation was similar to Manchester City's, always lacking that final push. It can be seen that money does not represent everything. To win the Champions League, which is considered the key to the elite, more effort is needed.
The last quarterfinal spot was snatched by Benfica. In recent years, teams from leagues like the Portuguese Primeira Liga and the Dutch Eredivisie often outperform teams from the top five leagues, causing occasional upsets, but a prolonged streak of upsets is almost impossible.
After all, whether in terms of platform influence or salary level, they lag far behind the top clubs, and the gap in player quality will only widen.
When Porto reached the Champions League final and lost to Inter Milan led by Wang Feng, that was probably the peak era for such teams.
After the draw, Real Madrid's next opponent was Werder Bremen.
"This is just too bad. Is this the world's malice? Our Champions League journey is over!" Huang Hu complained to Wang Feng on the phone, his words filled with frustration.
"Well, you can still give it your all and struggle. Maybe there's a 0.0001% chance, who knows," the Chinese superstar teased with a smirk.
Huang Hu couldn't help but be speechless. The two chatted about their recent situation, "Werder Bremen's platform is indeed limited. They have put all their focus on the Champions League this year and cannot simultaneously compete in the league. We can only rank in the middle of the table and are definitely out of European competition next season."
"De Bruyne is much more talented than me. He will definitely leave after the season. He was supposed to leave last season, but I persuaded him to stay."
"Wang Ge, where do you think I should go next?"
"Go to a competitive Champions League team. Bayern would be the best choice. The Premier League or La Liga would also work. There's a broader stage there."
Huang Hu also deeply agreed with this view. He had already asked Balmond to sound out the major clubs. As Dongfang Zhuo grew older, the Southern King, who enjoyed the dividends, also hoped for a successor to emerge.
Undoubtedly, Huang Hu, who won the Bundesliga Golden Boot at the age of 24, was the best choice for the future leader of the national team.
For Huang Hu himself, not having to get used to a new language and living environment and being able to quickly integrate was very attractive. The only downside was that Bayern had many talented forwards, so he had to show enough competitiveness.
"Genk and Werder Bremen's experience has laid a solid foundation for me. Now it's time to embrace the challenge!" the Chinese youngster said firmly.
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