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After signing with AC Milan, I will be the king of football!-Chapter 788 - 0287 Eleven versus Eleven, We Won’t Lose (Please Subscribe)
Capello vented his frustrations.
The locker room quieted down a bit.
Ramos carefully reflected on his mistakes in the first half.
He rarely did such a thing, but today he had to demonstrate top-notch ability.
Nesta and Maldini’s experience, combined with moments of being outplayed by Drogba and Lampard, made Ramos realize he had quite a few issues with his defending.
Many situations can be understood only when calm, but there’s not much time to think on the field.
That’s why experience is so crucial. Even a genius defender needs to learn from his failures to avoid repeating them.
Away locker room.
Mourinho spoke with the passion of a man standing in a tavern.
"We have secured an advantage, and now we need to maintain it."
Mourinho said, waving his arms, "In the past few years, one person has consistently won the UEFA Champions League; I believe you all know who he is. Yes, it’s Kevin! Kevin might seem like an alien, but today John’s goal has proven that even earthlings can breach the goal he guards."
Light laughter filled the locker room, followed by Terry nodding in agreement.
Mourinho’s statement was quite interesting.
It vividly pointed out Huang Kaiwen’s strength while dispelling their fear of him.
Mourinho’s charismatic presence nearly reached its peak.
His method of drawing media attention to himself, allowing the players some peace, was also well appreciated by the team.
Most of the Chelsea players liked Mourinho.
Mourinho’s main problem with the club stemmed from Abramovich thinking money could do everything. He wanted to interfere more in the team and lacked patience for the UEFA Champions League. Mourihno’s style made Chelsea the enemy of Europe, which Abramovich disliked, creating significant tension between them.
Sheva, sitting on the bench today, was one of the pawns in their previous games, and starting Ballack was nearly the same, only that Ballack was fortunate to struggle through and get reused by Mourinho.
Sheva found it hard to perform Drogba’s role in the lone striker system.
Having never integrated well into Chelsea, after a season of numerous appearances but no significant contributions, he became a permanent fixture on the bench.
"Since Kevin and Real Madrid can be beaten, why can’t we?"
Mourinho, with grand enthusiasm, waved his hand and then said, "In the second half, Essien plays as wingback while Malouda replaces Ferreira on the left flank, Lampard and Ballack as double central midfielders, and Makélélé as the defensive midfielder."
The Chelsea players, thinking the coach was advocating an offensive strategy, also boiled with excitement.
Merely having the courage to play offensively against Real Madrid was rare in football.
Mourinho continued, "We will focus on defense, prioritize it above all. Even without attacking, it is okay. A 1:1 score, along with the away goals rule, is already enough to ensure our advance."
Chelsea players: ...
So it wasn’t about playing offensively.
Classic you, coach!
...
Huang Kaiwen pulled Ramos away from where he was clutching Torres’s collar.
Ramos pointed at Torres and said, "Shit, did you forget you said you wouldn’t push forward? If it weren’t for your pushing forward, they wouldn’t have had the chance to make that corner, and we wouldn’t have conceded."
Huang Kaiwen struggled to suppress a laugh.
Ramos’s logic was quite amusing.
Ramos himself pushed forward quite a bit, didn’t he?
But Huang Kaiwen didn’t point it out, as after all, Ramos was a good brother.
Torres also had no idea what was going on; he always became the scapegoat in crucial matches.
Yet, despite being the scapegoat, he still managed to be in the starting lineup during critical games.
Just always some twist at Real Madrid, Torres got his chance to start.
Huang Kaiwen felt that Miguel Torres was indeed a child of fortune. His luck was almost like when Casillas came into power, only he didn’t have Casillas’s talent.
"Yes, I’m sorry."
Torres, with a bruised eye, said in a tearful voice.
"Damn, who even let you play," Ramos cursed fiercely.
Capello: ...
Just a moment ago he had thought Ramos was right.
Now it seemed like Ramos had some issues with him too!
Was Ramos doing this deliberately? Was he also at fault?
Even though he harbored doubts, Capello remained composed.
His ability to maintain his composure was improving.
As a tactically skilled coach, he was adept at considering all possibilities.
Even unlikely possibilities were within his scope of consideration.
Now it seemed the situation was quite complicated; he would have to sort through it thoroughly once he was home.
"You guys go ahead, we will follow in a bit," said Huang Kaiwen, waving at Raul.
Capello nodded and walked out of the locker room.
Raul waved to his teammates not to linger for the drama and talked with Ramos with his arm around his shoulder.
After everyone had left, Miguel Torres, with feeble legs, knelt on the ground and cried out, "Why, why, I... I tried my best." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚
Huang Kaiwen remained silent.
It wasn’t Torres’s fault; it was the environment he was in.
Such a mediocre player shouldn’t be getting so many opportunities at Real Madrid. Calderon and Bartino didn’t pay much attention to defense, allowing Torres to keep filling in on different flanks.
"Kevin, am I... am I not suited for playing soccer?"
Torres sobbed and asked quietly.
"Why would that be?"
Huang Kaiwen smiled and said, "To be able to start for Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, you’re already a genius; it’s just that your talent isn’t as obvious."
"Then why am I... always criticized?"