"Do you feel good!?"
"ah?"
"I mean, how does it feel to win the championship when you first come here? Does it feel good?"
"Happy!"
Li Ang in the crowd looked at Modric, who was stroking the Western Super Cup with eyes filled with joy, and smiled.
"Then you will have a great time this week. After winning this Spanish Super Cup, we will win the European Super Cup in a few days!"
Modric, who was reminded by Li Ang, remembered it now.
It seems like this. Real Madrid finished the Western Super Cup match on August 29th, and will usher in the UEFA Super Cup match against Atletico Madrid on September 2nd.
If Real Madrid defeats Atletico Madrid and wins the trophy, wouldn't it mean winning two championships in a row within a week?
"What if Atletico Madrid wins?"
"No way, absolutely impossible."
Li Ang looked at Modric, who was still a little cautious, and patted him on the shoulder, as confident as when other teammates assured him of victory last season.
"If we play against Athletic Bilbao, we may overturn in one round, but if we play Atletico Madrid and play ten consecutive one-round deciders, we will not overturn."
"Are we so confident in a local derby?"
"Hey, Chris is here."
Cristiano Ronaldo, who was aware of it, turned his head and saw Li Ang standing next to Modric pointing at him. He thought Li Ang was praising himself, and smiled and nodded at the two of them.
At the current Atletico Madrid training base, Simeone and his coaching team members are still having a headache discussing ways to restrict Ronaldo.
There is no way, no matter which team is going to compete with Real Madrid at this stage, they want to win points or even win.
Then Ronaldo is a big difficulty that cannot be circumvented.
Fifty-one goals in the league and 15 goals in the Champions League, two record-breaking single-season scoring data, made Ronaldo the most threatening striker on the planet.
Such a threat even made Simeone feel that as long as Ronaldo is restrained, Atletico Madrid led by him has great hope of winning the UEFA Super Cup this time.
Perhaps, subconsciously.
Simeone actually also knows that Mourinho's tactical system can still exert great power after removing Ronaldo.
But he didn't care about that much now. In a single-round decisive game, a super giant has too much influence on the outcome of the game.
Moreover, Ronaldo's devastating four-goal performance against Atletico Madrid in the second half of the league last season caused too much damage to Simeone and Atletico Madrid.
Before that game, Simeone was still very confident, feeling that Atletico Madrid led by him could become a sniper hero at the last moment of Real Madrid's sprint to the La Liga championship.
As a result, a 5-1 brought him back to reality very simply.
He has completed his ideal signings in the past summer window, at least most of the new players who arrived in the team are what he needs.
Last season's Europa League championship also gave him some confidence.
Challenging Real Madrid again, Simeone feels that his team is at least capable of fighting.
Whether it can happen or not depends on whether they can restrain Ronaldo on the night of September 2nd!
※※※
The Real Madrid generals easily embarked on a journey to Nice, France on September 1st.
They will arrive at Nice Côte d'Azur Airport at noon, then take a bus to Monaco in the afternoon, and complete preparations for the Stade Louis II before the game.
Mourinho and the members of the coaching staff also conducted some tactical rehearsals during the trip, and did not show any carelessness towards Atletico Madrid.
However, among the players of Real Madrid's first team, there is really no trace of nervousness at all.
Including Li Ang.
After all, he has already played against Atletico Madrid led by coach Simeone.
Atletico Madrid, which has been trained by Simeone for half a season, will definitely be more powerful and difficult than before.
But transforming a team is a long-term task, and it is difficult for Simeone to transform the entire Atletico Madrid team in a short period of time.
At least this season, Atletico Madrid will not and is not qualified to become a stumbling block for Real Madrid to win the championship.
They still need to grow, and after another full season of training, they will transform into the iron-blooded army that will shock Europe in later generations.
Today's Atletico Madrid only has a preliminary reorganization of the defense, and the control of the midfield and the offensive ability of the frontcourt are far from enough.
A team that only knows how to defend can't stop Real Madrid, and a tiger Falcao alone can't disturb Real Madrid's current steel defense.
The gap in hard power between the two teams is still huge.
In terms of public opinion, no matter which country the media is in, they are all optimistic that Real Madrid can once again defeat their rivals in the same city.
The reality of public opinion bias is more severe than Simeone thought.
So much so that he had to encourage his players again before the game and instill in them the firm belief that they must win.
The large number of neutral French fans watching the excitement did not care who lost or won, they just wanted to watch the stars and beautiful goals one after another.
And with a large number of sports reporters stationed in Monaco and outside media also launching full-scale propaganda.
The popularity and attention of this European Super Cup game is still considerable.
On the evening of September 2, at the Stade Louis II in Monaco, players from Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid followed the referee team onto the field.
Today, He Wei, who was talking about "stand-up comedy" again, accompanied the fans and appeared in front of the TV at around two o'clock in the morning, China time.
With Real Madrid's fourth crown of the year, that is, after winning the Western Super Cup, the country of China is also in a state of excitement. No one wants to miss the important historical moment of witnessing Li Ang win the sixth crown.
They may not have watched football last season, but many of the new fans who got into the game because of Li Ang's domestic business activities in the summer will also start to try to watch games late at night.
They set the alarm clock, got out of bed in the early morning of the summer night, turned on the TV and tuned it directly to Channel 5.
He Wei didn't show his face for too long, and the director quickly focused the live camera on the stadium.
The figure of Li Ang holding the little ball boy happened to burst into the eyes of countless Chinese fans.
And the familiar confident smile on his face also made domestic fans full of confidence in this game!
Barcelona has already passed this season, are they still worried about not being able to beat Atletico Madrid?
Winning the fifth crown is today, for sure!
Compared with Real Madrid's calmness and confidence, Atletico Madrid's players looked more solemn.
Facing Real Madrid, who won the Triple Crown last season as a challenger, the psychological pressure cannot be easily dissipated by shouting a few slogans before the game.
After Mourinho and Simeone shook hands and greeted each other before the game, they walked back to their coaching bench with calm faces.
In terms of tactical preparation before the game, Mourinho believes that it is quite sufficient.
His formation and starting predictions are also basically accurate.
Simeone still didn't dare to change his formation boldly and play 4-4-2, but still played a 4-2-31 that was relatively balanced in offense and defense.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, acted more unrestrainedly, instead of playing 4231, they played 433 very aggressively.
When He Wei introduced the starting lineups of the two teams before the game, he was a little amazed at Real Madrid's tactics and personnel selection today.
"In the backcourt, we can see that Real Madrid's starting lineup is not much different from the past, but in the midfield and frontcourt, coach Mourinho's choice today is very unexpected!
Li Ang and Di Maria partnered as the left and right central midfielders, with only Alonso trailing behind. Cristiano Ronaldo, Higuain and Benzema formed Real Madrid's forward trident today! "
With He Wei's commentary, the fans in China became energetic.
In other words, most of the fans watching this game at this moment are in high spirits!
Simeone was confused by Mourinho's trick again.
"Do you really look down on our offensive capabilities?"
The bandit commander subconsciously had such an idea in his mind.
But when the game officially started, seeing the Atletico Madrid players who were quickly suppressed by Real Madrid and had to retreat to their own half, Simeone could only forcefully suppress his unhappy mood.
Mourinho has the qualifications to formulate strong offensive tactics against Atletico Madrid.
And when Real Madrid put five players in the frontcourt, the two linebackers actively moved forward and back.
Due to the huge defensive pressure, Atletico Madrid was not able to counterattack at this moment. Falcao also had to retreat to the center line to assist his teammates in defense.
After first crushing Atletico Madrid's formation, Mourinho's eyes became calmer.
Falcao is a good center, but he is not a standing center. His biggest threat is not after retreating, but in the opponent's penalty area.
His body shape has already determined that even if Atletico Madrid counterattacks, they will not be able to force the ball in the middle.
Without someone to take the ball in the middle, just rely on Alda Turan's push and pass?
Can he blow out Ramos or force Arbeloa to defend?
Without a speedy explosive point and a disruptive pivot center, it would be too difficult for Atletico Madrid to counterattack Real Madrid.
After all, for Real Madrid, which is old at counterattacks, the defense players know exactly how to prevent their opponents from counterattacking.
Atletico Madrid's offensive methods were unable to be used, and the defense was forced to shrink by Real Madrid. There was no good way to involve Real Madrid's peripherals, so they could only be beaten passively.
If Simeone is bolder and replaces Diego Costa on the bench, the situation will be really different.
The space in Real Madrid's half gives him ample space to play, and he also has a bachelor's spirit that is not afraid of Pepe and Ramos.
With Costa disrupting the situation and protecting the ball, Atletico Madrid will at least have a counterattack path that combines both sides and center.
It's a pity that Simeone will not have the courage this time.
He also did not expect that the Brazilian center on his bench contained the power and ambition to change the situation on the field.
In a tight defensive situation, the young Courtois suddenly became the most nervous and busy player in Atletico Madrid.
Ronaldo's powerful long-range shots at this stage are really difficult to catch.
Courtois, who was stunned by two consecutive blasts from Ronaldo last season, did not dare to neglect at all this time.
In just four minutes, he blocked Ronaldo's long-range shot attempts twice and gave Real Madrid two corner kick opportunities.
Real Madrid did not knock on Atletico Madrid's goal, but several major attackers who were already in form will already have the momentum to perform beyond their normal performance.
Modric's eyes flashed as he watched Di Maria's wonderful performance from the sidelines.
He feels that he is suitable for this position.
Even if he is not playing in the center, if he plays in the left midfield, he can also complete the offensive support for Ronaldo very well.
Moreover, he believes that he will definitely make a better defensive contribution than Di Maria.
"If I am in the left midfield, Leon is on my right, and Di Maria is still playing as the right winger, then we should be able to exert a more powerful offensive combination."
After making a tactical summary, Modric's heart became even more intense.
But Mourinho didn't say anything at this moment. He could only sit on the bench and stare.
Li Ang saw that Di Maria was being surrounded by Atletico Madrid's backcourt players. He decisively accelerated forward and shouted a reminder.
Di Maria, who turned his head to see Li Ang's movement, swung away from the angle and sent the ball over with a diagonal kick.
But at the moment when he was about to face Atletico Madrid's midfielder Gabi, Li Ang decisively turned his back to stand in position, and then faced the incoming ball and scored another point to his left.
Let him have a one-on-one breakthrough with Gabi? What a joke!
Li Ang, who is self-aware, does not want to lose this offensive ball easily.
And his clear choice also allowed Benzema, who retreated to respond, to successfully transfer the ball to Arbeloa at the bottom.
There was chaos in Atletico's penalty area.
Arbeloa made a pass from the area near the baseline, but the direction he aimed was not at the back point of the penalty area.
Instead, it was passed like an inverted triangle to the top of the penalty area where Li Ang and Benzema were penetrating forward!
Gabi and Godin immediately rushed to where the football landed.
But Li Ang relied on Benzema's screen to push the ball to the back of Atletico Madrid's goal!
The moment he collided with Godin, Li Ang felt very uncomfortable. This powerful Uruguayan central defender was too strong!
However, thanks to his involvement in the fight for the top this time, the forward Ronaldo no longer needs to compete one-on-one with Godin.
Miranda failed to defend against Ronaldo's strong impact.
Almost in a relay with Li Ang's header, Cristiano Ronaldo used a close-range swing to attack the goal and fiercely knocked on the door guarded by Courtois!
From the center to the wing, to the final defensive pull and the finishing blow.
Li Ang cooperated with his teammates to complete a wealth of offensive changes. Atletico Madrid's backcourt defense, which had only just been running in recently, was torn to pieces!
Ronaldo, who scored this goal, also made Simeone's eyes darken on the sidelines.
"Is it really impossible to guard against it?!"
The bandit commander smashed the coach's seat with an ugly expression on his face.
But Mourinho was smiling and applauding his disciples at this moment.
"The victory or defeat has been decided."
Listening to Mourinho's confident conclusion, Karanka and all the Real Madrid players on the bench felt that it was still a little premature.
But when, in the 34th minute of the first half, Ramos, who took advantage of the opportunity to attack from a set piece, scored another header, everyone on the Real Madrid bench was convinced of Mourinho!
Atletico Madrid, which was two goals behind, became anxious, but at this moment Mourinho directed Real Madrid to shrink their own half.
The 4-3-3 formation that Real Madrid played before has now become a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Well, Mourinho started to fight back, which made the coach more and more headache.
Higuain burst forward, Benzema retreated to play as an attacking midfielder, and Li Ang also retreated to partner with Alonso to play as a double defensive midfielder.
Real Madrid's players should not be too skilled in changing formations and positions. Atletico Madrid had no choice but to defend at the end of the first half.
In the second half, when Atletico Madrid replaced two forwards in the 75th minute and wanted to fight for their lives, Real Madrid stepped up their counterattack.
Higuain received a pass from Marcelo and scored another goal. At this point in the game, all suspense was basically lost.
When the referee blew the whistle to end the game, Simeone sat on the coaching bench and felt his eyes stinging when he saw the 3-0 score!
Well, there is still progress, from losing 1-5 to losing 0-3.
After hurriedly shaking hands with Mourinho and congratulating him, Simeone walked towards his disciples with strong reluctance.
They will use this season and this painful loss to hone themselves.
But now, the carnival belongs to Real Madrid people.
When Casillas lifted the European Super Cup and sparked cheers from the audience, almost the entire continent trembled under the gaze of Real Madrid.
The fifth crown of the year was obtained.
Real Madrid.
European king of kings!
(End of chapter)
