It turned out that Gao Shen's concerns were correct.
After Simeone made continuous substitutions, Atletico Madrid's suffocating pressure on Barcelona weakened.
Gao Shen could not tell whether it was Simeone's instruction after taking the lead or the players' spontaneous behavior, but Atletico's pressing on Barcelona was clearly lighter than before the substitutions.
At the critical moment, Barcelona showed extraordinary determination.
In the 70th minute, Vilanova replaced full-back Alba with forward Villa, stacking four attackers up front. Combined with their iron triangle midfield, Barcelona's attacking power in the final third was immediately strengthened.
Just two minutes after Villa came on, Sanchez linked up with Messi on the right, broke into the box, and fired a shot that beat Asenjo to equalize for Barcelona.
At this point, Real Madrid was still in the lead.
But then Barcelona launched a relentless wave of attacks.
Atletico Madrid had been full of energy for the first hour, but after their momentum faded, Simeone found it impossible to revive it.
In the 90th minute, Sanchez continuously broke through on the right. After beating Insua, he crossed low from the byline to the front of goal, where substitute Villa slotted it home to complete the turnaround.
2-1!
Strangely, the Atletico Madrid fans at the Calderon Stadium did not react too strongly.
On the contrary, in the box, Gao Shen raised his hands with a puzzled look, feeling baffled.
"I now even doubt whether Simeone has some kind of deal with Barcelona?" Gao Shen almost went crazy.
Carlo, Zidane, Hierro and the others were also disappointed.
Damn, just a few minutes left.
Did Atletico Madrid do this on purpose?
"Simeone probably felt that we defended very well in the first hour, so he wanted to conserve some strength to deal with us later," Carlo said with a bitter smile. This was a bit like a three-way game.
Barcelona only have La Liga left, so they can rest easy. Atletico, however, still have the Copa del Rey final.
If they fought Barcelona to the end in this match and exhausted themselves, wouldn't that mean helping Real Madrid win La Liga while weakening themselves for the Cup final?
Simeone is not stupid. He must be weighing his own priorities and wants the best of both worlds.
In fact, the ideal situation would be what Gao Shen mentioned earlier, that he and Simeone reached a deal where Atletico would not contest the Copa del Rey, and in return fight hard against Barcelona to help Real Madrid win the league.
But that was basically unrealistic.
There was no way the two sides could have that level of mutual trust.
"I really feel like cursing right now!" Gao Shen sighed, turned around, and left.
"Damn it, all that praise for Simeone was wasted!"
Carlo, Zidane and Hierro also looked very disappointed and followed him out.
…
Barcelona eventually beat Atletico Madrid 2-1.
Because Real Madrid had played one more match, they were temporarily in the lead, but Barcelona's last three opponents were not strong.
In round 36, they would host Valladolid. In round 37, they would visit Espanyol. In round 38, they would play Malaga at home.
With one game per week, from any perspective, it seemed almost impossible for Barcelona to let the title slip away.
Among these three, Malaga ranked 6th and could pose a slight threat. Valladolid and Espanyol were further down the table but safe from relegation.
If it had been Osasuna, Celta Vigo, Real Mallorca, Deportivo La Coruña or Zaragoza, the five relegation-threatened teams, it might have been different. They would have fought with desperation.
But Valladolid and Espanyol could not be counted on.
This was also the general sentiment in Spanish football. After Barcelona's comeback against Atletico Madrid, the title was practically within their grasp.
Media close to Real Madrid, such as Marca and AS, concluded that Real Madrid's chances of overtaking Barcelona were only theoretical.
Still, Gao Shen accepted a phone interview with AS and made it clear that Real Madrid would fight until the very last moment and never give up early.
Not only that, Gao Shen even found ways to praise Atletico, saying the Colchoneros had caused Barcelona real trouble for more than an hour, which showed Barcelona's situation was not ideal.
"Atletico Madrid proved one thing in this game, Barcelona is not invincible!"
"Barcelona started the game at a slow tempo and were uncomfortable against intense pressing. In addition, their players' form has clearly declined as the season enters its final stretch. These are all worth noting."
Gao Shen insisted that with three rounds left, anything was possible.
"Valladolid, Espanyol and Malaga are not weak teams. On the contrary, they are competitive. I believe they can create problems for Barcelona."
"It's not over yet!"
Although it was obvious Gao Shen was pointing out ways for those three teams to deal with Barcelona, his words also revealed helplessness.
After all, whether Real Madrid could win La Liga now depended entirely on Barcelona's attitude.
As long as Barcelona avoided mistakes, Real Madrid would not win the league.
Alfredo, editor-in-chief of AS, wrote in his column that Gao Shen's first season back at Real Madrid was already astonishing.
Not only were they the strongest runners-up in La Liga history, but they had also reached the Champions League final and the Copa del Rey final.
All of this proved that under Gao Shen, Real Madrid were heading in the right direction.
Alfredo revealed, "Although Gao Shen refuses to blame the players, the truth is that if it weren't for several costly mistakes by Real Madrid players, they would already have the league title."
"But Gao Shen is not Mourinho. He never talks about internal issues publicly."
The AS editor-in-chief suggested that regardless of whether Real Madrid ultimately won La Liga, the Champions League or the Copa del Rey, the club should do everything possible to keep Gao Shen.
"There is no doubt that he is the best coach in world football today, and the most suitable coach for Real Madrid. We must keep him no matter what!"
"Only he can lead Real Madrid to revival and glory!"
Both AS and Marca conducted reader surveys, and nearly 100% of Real Madrid fans supported keeping Gao Shen.
Why nearly 100% instead of 100%?
Another report explained it.
According to a Marca journalist on Twitter, fans of other teams such as Barcelona and Atletico posed as Real Madrid fans and voted for Gao Shen to resign.
It was an organized campaign.
This showed that fans of rival clubs wanted Gao Shen gone as soon as possible.
Although this briefly lowered Gao Shen's approval rating, Real Madrid fans quickly realized what was happening, rallied, and counterattacked with overwhelming numbers.
As a result, Gao Shen's approval rating remained close to 100%.
Not only that, De La Morena of SER Radio revealed that Gao Shen had been voted the most popular coach in Real Madrid history, and a true Real Madrid fan favorite.
Faced with this overwhelming public support, club president Florentino Perez personally appeared in an interview with Real Madrid TV, making it clear the club had never intended to sack Gao Shen.
Not in the past, not now, and not in the future.
"If possible, I would even sign him to a ten-year contract."
"In my mind, he is the best coach in the world, and irreplaceable!"
Florentino said that Real Madrid's performance this season proved Gao Shen's coaching ability.
"He is the best coach in the world, bar none!"
He also promised that Real Madrid would strengthen the squad this summer to improve bench depth and overall competitiveness.
But he stressed that it was too early to talk about transfers now.
At the moment, the most important thing for Gao Shen and Real Madrid was to focus fully on the Copa del Rey final and the Champions League final.
"I, along with all Real Madrid fans, look forward to him leading the team to our 18th Copa del Rey and 11th Champions League titles."
…
While the outside world was in turmoil, preparations at Valdebebas continued in an orderly fashion.
The morning after Barcelona's 2-1 win over Atletico, Gao Shen left a note on the locker room blackboard, inviting the entire first team, including players, coaches and staff, to lunch at a Spanish restaurant in the northwest suburbs of Madrid.
The venue was a villa-style countryside restaurant, popular among the Spanish upper class.
From the architecture to the gardens, from the scenery to the accessibility, everything was excellent, and the menu was extensive.
Whether Spanish food, Brazilian cuisine, or other dishes, everything was available.
In fact, one of the restaurant's signature dishes was Brazilian roda ballo.
This time, Gao Shen paid for the entire team's lunch out of his own pocket.
His only goal was to let everyone relax as much as possible and conserve energy for the upcoming Copa del Rey and Champions League finals.
"I want to say, let's put La Liga aside for now and focus on the two finals!"
"I said it before the season, if I don't win at least one of the two titles, La Liga or the Champions League, I will be fired!"
Gao Shen repeated this promise in front of the players to remind them.
"If you don't want me fired, if you want me to keep inviting you to places like this, then stay focused, give everything, and win these two finals. Put more pressure on Barcelona."
"Come on!"
Gao Shen raised his glass high.
"Fight for the championship! Hala Madrid!"
"Hala Madrid!" everyone responded, raising their glasses and shouting loudly.
The restaurant echoed with Real Madrid's ambition.
Gao Shen might not need to think about La Liga anymore, since it depended on Barcelona's mistakes. But he was determined to win the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.
No matter what, he would not let those two trophies slip away.
(To be continued.)