Chapter 352: The Counterattack Style That Once Belonged to Real Madrid
Li Ang sat on the bus, looking at the familiar streets and buildings he once knew best.
Even though he had been away from this city for more than two years, once he returned, Li Ang only needed a little time to adjust before quickly relaxing again.
Perhaps emotionally, he didn't consider Madrid his so-called second hometown.
But no matter what, having lived in this city for nine years and starting his professional career here, Li Ang always had a special bond with Madrid...
The Real Madrid fans also directly expressed their longing for Li Ang and Mourinho.
The other Chelsea players on the bus took in the passionate reception from the Madrid supporters.
It wasn't exactly jealousy, but to be honest, they were very envious of Li Ang.
After all, this was Madrid — to be so loved by Real Madrid fans here was, in a way, proof of a player's successful career!
Li Ang and Mourinho could be considered as returning home in glory, but when they arrived at the hotel and faced requests for interviews from local Madrid media, they politely declined.
After all, it was only the first round of the new season's Champions League group stage, and they now represented Chelsea. It wasn't the time to get sentimental.
Even if they didn't mean anything by it, as long as the reporters caught a hint of opportunity, they would write chaotic stories.
So being cautious was the right move. They could reminisce and do interviews after the match was over.
That evening, Chelsea's pre-match training session was quite interesting.
Usually, when a visiting team came to the Santiago Bernabéu and wanted to learn about Real Madrid's history and honors, the club would assign staff to guide them.
But this time, the Real Madrid staff didn't even get the chance — Li Ang personally took his Chelsea teammates on a tour around the Bernabéu.
That night, Real Madrid's official Twitter account even updated several posts about it.
They welcomed Li Ang and Mourinho "home" and posted pictures of Li Ang leading Chelsea players around the Bernabéu's Hall of Fame.
Many Real Madrid fans commented playfully under the posts.
The most liked comment read:
"The two Champions League trophies and two La Liga titles recently added to the honor room were all won by Li Ang and his Real Madrid teammates back then — of course he knows the place inside out!"
It seemed like a joke, but it triggered collective nostalgia among Real Madrid supporters.
Yes, the latest major trophies in Real Madrid's honor room were all hard-fought wins from the days when Li Ang was part of the squad with Mourinho.
It had only been a little over two seasons, but Real Madrid had struggled to reclaim either the Champions League or La Liga titles.
Their performance wasn't bad — consistently finishing in the top three of La Liga and reaching the Champions League semifinals every year.
But everything paled in comparison. Mourinho and Li Ang were on the verge of establishing a new dynasty at Chelsea, with a strong chance of replicating Real Madrid's feat of defending a Champions League title.
On one side, a team struggling to maintain a facade of strength, at risk of slipping back into the "Round of 16 exit" days of the Champions League.
On the other, a team surging like the rising sun, reaching the peak of dominance in world football.
And the investment between the two teams wasn't vastly different.
Since the turn of the century, Real Madrid had never been stingy — there were always big-money signings and no shortage of superstars.
Thinking about it carefully, Real Madrid's decline arguably started the very season Li Ang and Mourinho left.
Meanwhile, Chelsea's revival and return to their iron-blooded glory also began with the signings of Mourinho and Li Ang.
Fans never study the rise and fall of their teams too deeply.
They trusted the most direct comparisons and the simplest answers.
Even President Florentino Pérez had subtly admitted in public that letting Li Ang and Mourinho leave together was a mistake.
If even the club's leader regretted it, the fans could only feel even more sorrowful.
Many Real Madrid fans even started discussing the possibility of Li Ang and Mourinho returning to Real Madrid in the future.
Once that discussion started, it was hard to stop.
Chelsea fans, upon hearing of it, were unwilling to sit idly by. They immediately jumped into the debate, telling Madrid supporters to wake up and stop dreaming.
"Li Ang just signed a new three-year contract with the club, and José's renewal is about to be completed. Stop dreaming!"
"Renewal? When you Chelsea lot triggered Little Lion's release clause, our club had just announced that we were about to renew with him too. And what happened? Anything can happen in the transfer market. Back then, did you predict that Li Ang and José would both join Chelsea?"
"That's pure sophistry! Li Ang is living happily in London now. He's about to win the first Ballon d'Or of his career at Chelsea! Something he wouldn't get at Real Madrid, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Bale already there. If he went back, he'd only split votes. There's absolutely no reason for him to return!"
"Ronaldo and Bale are aging. Real Madrid will soon need a new king. Little Lion was our prince — it's only natural for him to return. You know it too; you're panicking!"
"You're talking nonsense!"
…
The fans of both teams were already arguing fiercely over a completely hypothetical situation before even seeing the match.
The next morning, after completing his final pre-match training at Getafe's training ground, Li Ang was ambushed by a journalist from Marca and was completely baffled.
"Transfer? The summer window is completely closed. Where would I transfer to? Where did you hear this nonsense?"
"The fans said it... Maybe there's been some misunderstanding. Right now, I'm 100% focused on Chelsea, that's it."
"I don't want to comment on this discussion. I just want to focus on the game, thanks..."
After brushing off the Marca reporter, Li Ang returned to the hotel to rest.
It wasn't until the evening, when the two teams warmed up before the match, that Li Ang appeared again in front of the media.
This time, Li Ang didn't shy away from the reporters' cameras. Before the warm-up officially started, he went over to warmly greet his former teammates!
There were new faces at Real Madrid — players like James Rodríguez and Gareth Bale, who were both familiar and unfamiliar to him.
But there were still many old friends.
Nacho, Cristiano Ronaldo, Modric, Lucas Vázquez, Carvajal, Pepe, Ramos, Casemiro…
Li Ang smiled and hugged each old friend one by one. The only regret was not seeing his mentor, Xabi Alonso, again at the Bernabéu.
Longo had left Real Madrid after the 2014–15 season.
He didn't go to Bayern Munich or PSG, the big teams that pursued him, but chose to return to Real Sociedad.
While still capable of playing, Longo opted to enjoy football and begin preparing for his future coaching career — a perfect ending to his playing days.
After all, when you think about it, Longo had honored every club he played for throughout his decade-plus professional career.
Representing two different clubs and winning the Champions League with both, completing a full set of club honors, and on the national team level, winning three consecutive major tournament championships — Longo's career had no regrets. Since he wanted to return to the essence of football, it was the best choice for him.
Li Ang didn't know whether Longo would come to watch the match in person today.
A few days ago, during a phone call, Longo had joked that he wanted to stay at home with his wife and children and wasn't much interested in Champions League matches anymore.
Still, Li Ang held a small hope in his heart.
What if Longo wanted to give him a surprise today and was already sitting in a box with his family, waiting for the match to start?
Since he could no longer share the pitch with Longo, as Longo's only direct disciple, Li Ang wanted to show Longo his current growth and strength.
It wasn't to show off, but to express gratitude.
Gratitude for Longo's willingness to selflessly help him back then, for leading an unknown youngster like him towards real improvement.
He had always wanted, just once more on the pitch, to boast a little in front of Longo:
"Teacher, look! Now I'm just as good as you were!"
…
Carrying a bit of anticipation, Li Ang briefly chatted with his former teammates before returning to his own team.
After warming up, both teams quickly returned to the locker room to make final preparations for this crucial Champions League clash.
Today, Li Ang did not need to give a pre-match pep talk in the locker room.
Because Terry, who had performed exceptionally well in recent training sessions, would be starting in place of Maguire today.
It wasn't because Maguire had performed poorly recently or slacked off in training — Mourinho's decision was purely out of caution. After all, Terry's big-match experience was much richer.
Maguire had been solid recently, but with Terry also in good form, Mourinho naturally trusted the veteran's game sense more.
Although Terry had said beforehand that Li Ang should still serve as captain, Li Ang nonetheless handed the captain's armband back to Terry.
In terms of respecting veterans, Li Ang had always been exemplary.
Thus, today's pre-match rally was led by Terry, while Li Ang joined the rest of the team in shouting and building up the atmosphere.
Facing Real Madrid was a very important match for Chelsea.
After all, they had been drawn into a group of death this season, and securing top spot was much harder than in previous seasons.
Real Madrid was Chelsea's main rival for first place in the group, so in head-to-head matches, Chelsea had to fight for victory with everything they had!
The pre-match rally went smoothly, and Chelsea's starting players were eager to showcase their strength at the Bernabéu.
Of course, Real Madrid's players shared the same mindset.
This clash was a no-retreat battle for both sides. Whoever lost could very well lose control over first place in the group.
Mourinho and Ancelotti both fielded their strongest eleven players.
When the broadcast camera panned across the two teams confidently stepping onto the field, many neutral fans watching on TV became excited instinctively!
There's nothing like a true heavyweight showdown!
Li Ang stood on the familiar Bernabéu pitch, his expression slightly solemn before kickoff.
The Spanish commentators joked that Li Ang might be reminiscing about his past matches here.
It was a tender kind of teasing.
When the referee blew the whistle to officially start the match, Real Madrid, who kicked off first, quickly spread out and launched an attacking probe against Chelsea.
But led by Li Ang, Chelsea's midfield defense aggressively pushed up without backing down!
The two teams engaged in fierce contests around the midfield circle.
Benzema, as usual, tried to drop deep to receive the ball and support the attack, but before he could even stabilize, Li Ang barged in from the side and forced him off balance!
Perhaps because the challenge was a bit too forceful, the referee immediately called a foul on Li Ang.
But Li Ang didn't get angry. Instead, after kicking the ball away, he laughed and pulled Benzema up from the ground.
The two old teammates patted each other's backsides lightly, not taking the confrontation to heart.
However, Ancelotti, watching from the sidelines, began to feel uneasy.
He realized that Li Ang was simply too familiar with the key players on Real Madrid's current squad.
Benzema's deep-dropping play was crucial to Real Madrid's attacking structure.
Cristiano Ronaldo needed to conserve his energy for forward runs and penetrating movements into the box.
Thus, Benzema often had to drop deep to receive passes and even take on some organizing duties.
This helped Modric to advance late and supported Bale and Ronaldo's wing attacks.
But seeing Li Ang's targeted defensive approach right from the start, Ancelotti feared that Benzema might struggle to perform his tactical role tonight.
After the foul, Real Madrid retained possession and continued their attack attempts.
But just three minutes later, it was once again Benzema — trying to drop deep — who was intercepted immediately by Matic!
The two barely tussled for a second before Matic poked the ball towards the wing.
Azpilicueta quickly recycled the ball and passed it back to Kroos, while at the same time, Li Ang had already begun sprinting forward!
Kroos, playing it safe, didn't pass the ball on the ground but instead lofted a precise long ball ahead.
Li Ang, already surveying the field during his run, anticipated the ball's drop point and the defenders' movements.
He didn't stop the ball at his feet but instead headed it forward, bypassing Casemiro's pressing defense!
"Stop Li Ang! Foul! Commit the foul immediately!"
Pepe, standing near the edge of the penalty area, commanded Carvajal to cut inside and foul Li Ang tactically.
But at that moment, Li Ang quickly slipped the ball past Carvajal's inside shoulder!
Hazard burst forward, collected the ball, and drove straight into the heart of Real Madrid's penalty area!
Before Pepe could intercept, Hazard cut inside and unleashed a curling shot with his favored foot!
The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air, heading straight for the far corner of Real Madrid's goal!
Navas reacted instantly!
The Costa Rican goalkeeper stretched his body fully in the air, reaching out with his fingertips to try and deflect the spinning ball!
And he barely managed to get a touch on it, altering its trajectory just enough!
Hazard's shot, though brilliant, failed to bypass Navas's ten-finger wall completely.
The ball struck the junction of the crossbar and post and bounced out over the goal line.
Tens of thousands of Real Madrid fans at the scene exhaled a huge collective sigh of relief!
"My God! Navas saves Real Madrid!"
The English Sky Sports commentator shouted with excitement and regret.
But immediately after, he passionately praised Chelsea's stunningly fast and effective counterattack!
Li Ang patted Hazard, who was still clutching his head in frustration.
It was a pity the ball didn't go in, but they had already executed a successful counterattack attempt. Chelsea's team form looked excellent today, full of promise!
The Real Madrid fans, who had just experienced an emotional roller coaster, couldn't help but sigh again.
Back then, such fast and deadly counterattacks used to be Real Madrid's signature style!
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