Chapter 76: Real Madrid is Back
As the saying goes, the name of a person is the shadow of a tree.
Ronaldo came off the bench and immediately attracted the attention of Barcelona.
But the alien's first attack was unsuccessful.
It was a quick counterattack after Real Madrid intercepted the ball in their own half.
After consecutive passes, Zidane stopped the ball near the center circle, controlled it, and handed it to Felipe on the left. The Brazilian left-back dribbled the ball along the left, then made an oblique pass to the penalty area with his left foot.
Ronaldo tried to get rid of Thiago Motta and moved forward to chase the ball, but his turning speed and sprint were obviously slow. The ball was scooped up by Barcelona goalkeeper Valdes near the front of the penalty area.
The Brazilian was more than a beat slower!
Although there was no chance, Ronaldo still gave Felipe a thumbs up.
"If this were Ronaldo at his peak, he would definitely catch up, but now Ronaldo..." The commentator's remarks more or less represented the regret of the fans for Ronaldo now.
Injuries have tormented the genius.
…
After Ronaldo came on, nothing seemed to change.
Negredo was still running non-stop, pressing Barcelona's backline, while Ronaldo kept chasing in the frontcourt.
Sometimes he pressed Belletti on the left, and sometimes he pressed Van Bronckhorst on the right. It looked like Raul, who had just been substituted.
Barcelona continued to control the initiative and the ball, putting constant pressure on Real Madrid.
Time was passing bit by bit, but the situation remained the same.
In the seventy-fifth minute, Gao Shen made a second substitution, and Guti replaced Zidane, whose physical energy was almost exhausted.
This was a like-for-like substitution because Zidane's physical energy was almost depleted, meaning he could no longer press Deco and Iniesta effectively.
To ensure the defensive quality of the team, Gao Shen had to replace him.
After Zidane came off, he also embraced Gao Shen and sat directly on the bench.
This match was crucial for the La Liga title this season. The closer the game got to the end, the more tense the situation became.
Barcelona continued to press and attack frantically, while Real Madrid waited for an opportunity to counterattack.
After Van Bommel came off, Deco and Iniesta moved to the forefront, especially when transitioning from offense to defense. Gao Shen had a clear plan for Real Madrid's counter-attack line, first looking for Zidane and now for Guti.
After setting up this layout, all Gao Shen could do was wait.
…
The team created two or three good chances, but Ronaldo failed to seize them, which distressed the alien somewhat.
After a month's absence, he appeared again without feeling any discomfort, but his opponents were prepared.
Puyol was very quick and flexible, and his personal defensive ability was very strong. Thiago Motta didn't give Ronaldo a chance either.
More importantly, Thiago Motta seemed to have learned from Van Bommel's experience in the Champions League midweek. He was asked not to leave his position easily, leading to a conservative stance.
Faced with this situation, Ronaldo couldn't do much.
Football games are like this. No matter how strong an individual is, they must wait for the right moment to play a role.
Fortunately, Real Madrid's defense was quite stable. Although they faced several threats, either through players' desperate efforts or Casillas' brave saves, the goal remained unbroken.
Barcelona was determined to attack to the end and didn't make further adjustments.
Time entered the eighty-minute mark like this.
After an attack failed, Barcelona chose to pass back.
Deco and Iniesta passed back and forth, mobilizing Real Madrid's three midfielders.
Van Bronckhorst quickly stepped forward to respond. After being followed by Negredo, he returned the ball to the midfielder.
Deco dribbled the ball forward and passed it to Ronaldinho, who came back from the left and raised his hand for the ball.
The Brazilian was disturbed by Abeloa and had no space to deal with it. After stopping the ball, he quickly passed it back to Deco.
This pass by Ronaldinho, wanting to avoid the interference of Beckham and Abeloa at the same time, was slightly forward. As a result, Deco didn't rush forward for the first time, but stopped in place, causing the pass to go directly into the air.
De La Red intercepted, stepped forward to grab the ball, strode forward, and made a straight pass.
Guti appeared in the gap, and when he received the ball, neither Deco nor Iniesta was in position.
Barcelona captain Puyol, very experienced, saw Guti running to the space to catch the ball and immediately sensed danger. He called out to Thiago Motta to pay attention to Ronaldo and went up to press Guti, aiming to force Guti to pass back.
But almost at the same time, Ronaldo saw Puyol moving forward to press, so he retreated and raised his hand for the ball, looking like he was coming to support Guti.
This sudden move forced Thiago Motta to follow him.
Who is Guti?
The Fourteenth Master, whose brain circuit is different from others!
Although he and Ronaldo didn't have the best relationship, they had cooperated for many years and had a tacit understanding. As soon as Ronaldo came back, Guti knew what the alien wanted to do.
Directly to Ronaldo's feet?
With that belly, can he turn around and break through?
So, Guti moved horizontally without thinking, and without waiting for Puyol to step forward, he took out the space and quickly sent a through ball.
The ball passed by Puyol and fell directly behind Thiago Motta.
And Ronaldo, who originally seemed to be retreating to support Guti, suddenly made an emergency stop, turned around, started, and sprinted!
Ronaldo might be overweight, but this set of moves was his famous stunt. It was skillful and smooth, and very sudden, catching Thiago Motta by surprise and allowing Ronaldo to rush behind him directly.
Puyol reacted quickly. After seeing Guti pass the ball, he immediately turned around to catch up.
But at this time, Ronaldo had already caught up with Guti's pass.
The entire Camp Nou stadium exclaimed in a flash.
After seeing Ronaldo catch up with the ball, he moved to the right side of the penalty area, just avoiding Puyol's line. After entering the penalty area, facing the attacking Valdes, the alien deftly chipped the ball.
The ball went over Valdes' head and into the goal behind him.
For a moment, Camp Nou became silent.
After Ronaldo lobbed the shot, he didn't slow down. He rushed directly to the sidelines, burst into laughter all the way, and pointed to the live broadcast camera in the distance, looking extremely excited.
On the sidelines, Gao Shen, like everyone else, was stunned for a moment, then burst into ecstasy.
"Yeah!!"
Gao Shen clenched his fists excitedly, almost falling to his knees on the pitch.
At this time, referee Brewer blew the whistle signaling the goal was valid.
It was only at this moment that the entire Camp Nou erupted in exclamation.
"Ronaldo scored!!!"
After Gao Shen jumped up from the ground, he shouted to the sky again, venting his excitement.
But soon, Lucas, Maqueda, Buenaventura, and others who rushed over surrounded him and hugged him.
"Marvelous!"
"We scored a goal!!"
"We won! We won!!"
Everyone was full of excitement and joy from this unexpected surprise.
After being pressed and played by Barcelona for more than 80 minutes, Real Madrid only had a pitiful five shots in the entire game.
It was so miserable!
When have you seen such a weak Real Madrid?
If they couldn't secure a victory tonight, tomorrow, Gao Shen would be drowned in the world's media criticism, and everyone would describe him as a shame for Real Madrid.
But now, he wasn't!
On the contrary, he would become the hero of Real Madrid!
Gao Shen burst into laughter, opened his arms, and embraced all his assistants, including Maqueda.
Then, he didn't stop there. He walked to the bench and hugged Zidane, Raul, and the other bench players.
"Good job, Gao!"
"We are ahead!"
"We must win tonight!"
The Real Madrid players were all excited.
Raul, in particular, had the urge to cry.
In the first century derby of this season, when Real Madrid were defeated 0-3 by Barcelona at the Bernabeu, Raul felt extremely desperate because he saw not only a three-goal gap but also a disparity in strength on the field.
But now, Gao Shen used a game and a goal to tell him and everyone that Real Madrid still had a chance, and it was not time to despair!
From ten points to five points, now it was about to become two points, and it was still unbelievable to beat Barcelona at Camp Nou!
This was a wonderful goal!
But it was not just a goal!
It was more of a manifesto.
Real Madrid was telling Barcelona and the world with this goal: Real Madrid is back!
The greatness of Real Madrid does not lie in superstars, although there has never been a lack of superstars in Real Madrid's history. The legend of Real Madrid has never been written by one person, but by the whole team. The tradition of Real Madrid is not offensive football, not elegant and sexy, but never giving up, always full of the passionate Juanito spirit.
Reversing Arsenal at Highbury, drawing Juventus at Turin, and beating Barcelona at Camp Nou, this is the real Real Madrid!
Raul was truly moved.
He hugged Gao Shen hard and kept shouting on his shoulders, "Thank you, thank you, Gao!"
Gao Shen couldn't fully understand Raul's mood at this moment, but he felt it.
"Calm down, captain, the game isn't over yet," Gao Shen reassured Raul. After he let go, he pointed at Raul with a smile and said, "Let's celebrate together when the final whistle blows. But for now, we have to keep fighting!"
Raul's eyes were red, and he kept nodding. He was a little lost.
Gao Shen was right—the game was not over yet.
Barcelona wouldn't let Real Madrid take three points from Camp Nou without a fight; they would counterattack with everything they had.
Gao Shen walked to the sidelines and loudly appealed to the Real Madrid players, who were returning to the field after celebrating the goal, ready for the restart. He urged them to stay focused, maintain their positions, and defend the goal.
In these last few minutes, Barcelona would be desperate!