On May 24, 2014, Real Madrid defeated Atletico Madrid 3-0 at the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon, Portugal, successfully defending the Champions League title.
After winning La Liga with a perfect record and successfully defending the Copa del Rey, Real Madrid completed an unprecedented treble in Spanish football history, shaking the whole of European football.
The whole world felt the power of Real Madrid.
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June 6, 2015, Olympic Stadium, Berlin, Germany.
Unstoppable in Spain and having defended both La Liga and the Copa del Rey, Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 4-0 at the Olympiastadion and defended the Champions League again, becoming the first team to win three straight since the competition's reform.
With a successful defense of the treble and a season Grand Slam, Gao Shen's personal reputation reached a new peak.
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May 28, 2016, San Siro, Milan, Italy.
After two crazy seasons in a row, Real Madrid's momentum dipped slightly and they missed the Copa del Rey, but they still won La Liga by a wide margin, as well as both Super Cups and the Club World Cup.
In the Champions League final, Real Madrid defeated Manchester City 1-0 thanks to Pogba's decisive goal and won the double.
The Real Madrid dynasty created by Gao Shen began to face questions, and many believed the team had started to decline.
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June 3, 2017, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales.
At the beginning of the season, Real Madrid came under intense scrutiny, especially after two consecutive defeats and a wave of injuries that put the team under severe pressure. By the winter break, they were still trailing Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the league.
But after the break, Gao Shen led Real Madrid's resurgence with a relentless winning streak, overtaking Barcelona and Atletico to top the table, winning La Liga again, and defeating Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey final.
In the Champions League final, Gao Shen's Real Madrid beat Guardiola's Manchester City 3-1 with their wealth of big-match experience and precise targeted tactics, sealing another treble.
After the final, Gao Shen wanted to retire. Real Madrid president Florentino, Jose Sanchez, Valdano, and others tried hard to keep him. In the end, due to various factors, Gao Shen decided to fulfill the remainder of his contract.
…
In the 17/18 season, Real Madrid's form showed a clear decline, especially that of core player Cristiano Ronaldo. After injuries last season, the 33-year-old Portuguese star's individual level dropped significantly, and Gao Shen had to further adjust his role.
After a grueling season, Real Madrid narrowly edged Atletico Madrid and Barcelona to win La Liga again, making it five league titles in a row.
This was also the third time Real Madrid had won five consecutive league titles, after the 1960s and 1970s.
At the same time, it was one of only three occasions in La Liga's 100-year history that a team achieved five in a row.
More importantly, during this five-year run, Real Madrid also won the Champions League five consecutive times, taking the Galácticos to the pinnacle of the club's history. Gao Shen became the greatest head coach in Real Madrid's history, and Florentino finally realized his ambition, becoming a president comparable to Santiago Bernabéu.
Gao Shen's team stumbled through parts of the La Liga campaign, nearly losing the title several times, and even missed out on the Copa del Rey. In the Champions League, Real Madrid were also inconsistent, especially after entering the knockout rounds.
In the group stage, Real Madrid were drawn into a group of death with Dortmund, Leeds United, and others. In the fight for top spot, they were comprehensively beaten by the new-look Leeds United and advanced as runners-up.
In the round of 16, they won the first leg 1-0 at home against Paris Saint-Germain, then conceded twice away. In the end, they turned it around and advanced thanks to Toni Kroos' late goal.
In the quarterfinals, Real Madrid faced a powerful Liverpool. They drew 0-0 away, then conceded twice at home. However, in the final 20 minutes, Gao Shen made continuous substitutions and adjustments, and the team scored three in a row to win 3-2.
In the semifinals, Real Madrid met a strong Manchester City and lost 3-4 away. Back at home, they conceded again, but scored three in the last half hour to complete another comeback and reach the final.
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On the evening of May 26, 2018, at the Olympic Stadium in Kyiv, Ukraine.
In the Champions League final, Real Madrid faced group-stage rivals Leeds United.
Already beaten twice by Leeds in the group stage, Real Madrid suffered another heavy blow in the final. From the start, they were hunted down by the young Leeds United, forced back into their own half, and looked embarrassed.
Just before halftime, veteran center-back Pepe made a defensive error that Mané seized upon to assist Harry Kane, who opened the scoring.
After the break, Gao Shen launched a targeted wave of attacks at Leeds United's weaknesses. In the 51st minute, veteran Benzema finished from an Isco assist to level it for Real Madrid, 1-1.
After that, the match belonged entirely to Leeds United.
Pochettino's team launched wave after wave of ferocious attacks in the second half, even pinning Real Madrid in their own half for more than ten minutes.
The match was one-sided, and Real Madrid were being thoroughly suppressed.
Pochettino went bolder still, replacing the single pivot Fabinho with winger Ousmane Dembélé to strengthen the wing attack.
Gao Shen grew even more uneasy on the touchline.
...
The temperature in Kyiv at night was not high, even a bit cold, but Gao Shen felt a chill down his back.
He did not know when it started, but his back was already soaked.
On the pitch, Real Madrid were in a very bad way, pinned back by Leeds United.
This pack of young tigers, famous in recent years, leaned on their youth and aggression to keep hammering at Real Madrid's defense, creating chance after chance and making the veterans run ragged.
It was no exaggeration to call Real Madrid an old team.
Ramos was 32, Pepe 35, Marcelo 30, Modric 32, Ronaldo 33, Benzema 30.
In the starting eleven, apart from Courtois, Carvajal, Casemiro, Toni Kroos, and Isco, there were five players over 30, which is old.
That was with Di Maria only just back from injury. Otherwise, Real Madrid's average age tonight would have been even higher.
Today's Real Madrid seemed to have lost the invincible aura they once had in Europe.
Who could have imagined that the Real Madrid that once surged through Europe would be battered like this by a Premier League side full of players in their early twenties?
Gao Shen had already made two substitutions.
He first replaced Carvajal with Nacho. Carvajal had just returned from injury and was not in good shape. The first-half goal was connected to his side, so Gao Shen brought on Nacho to deal with Leeds United's left winger Mané.
The impact of the Senegalese winger was astonishing, especially alongside Harry Kane up front and Mbappé on the right. They formed the most explosive attacking trio in Europe.
The starting midfielders were Dele Alli, Kanté, and Fabinho. The back line was Robertson, Van Dijk, Militao, and Arnold. The goalkeeper was Alisson.
Pochettino had just made a change, bringing on Ousmane Dembélé for Fabinho, switching to a 4-2-4, and pushing Mbappé up alongside Harry Kane.
This was an all-out push to finish Real Madrid in 90 minutes.
Gao Shen recognized this, so Casemiro dropped into the back line to form a five-man defense. Toni Kroos, Isco, and Modric effectively became a midfield three screening the defense, with Ronaldo and Benzema ahead.
Real Madrid defended desperately, hoping to drag the game out.
But Pochettino's team attacked relentlessly and had no intention of letting it go to extra time.
…
"This Leeds United is really strong."
In the stands, Real Madrid president Florentino watched with concern.
He had not felt this way in years, nervous about every match.
Now, he finally understood what Gao Shen had meant, and he regretted it.
But it was too late.
Technical director Valdano resigned last summer.
Outsiders thought he left because of age, but only the Real Madrid hierarchy knew he departed due to disagreements with Florentino.
At the time, he supported Gao Shen and wanted to sell Ronaldo, who was determined to leave, and bring in Leeds United winger Mbappé.
At those prices, Ronaldo could have fetched at least 150 million euros, just enough to buy Mbappé. Florentino refused because Ronaldo still had considerable commercial value.
Who was Mbappé?
Just a rookie. How could he compare with Ronaldo?
But after this season, Mbappé, Mané, and Harry Kane shone at Leeds United, not only winning the Premier League but also reaching the Champions League final.
Even in the two group games against Real Madrid, they performed superbly.
By contrast, Real Madrid struggled all season.
Without Gao Shen, they might not even have made it out of the group.
After several brilliant years, the players' performances had clearly declined. That was human nature.
Gradually, boos began to ring around the Bernabéu.
Once fans got used to invincibility, they could not accept decline.
But they never blamed Gao Shen.
Because Real Madrid fans knew Gao Shen did everything he could.
Without him, Real Madrid would have collapsed this season.
And Florentino truly regretted it.
Years of glory made it hard for players to stay hungry, and it also unbalanced his own mentality.
But even if Florentino regretted it now, it was too late.
Before this final, Gao Shen had already announced that he would leave at the end of the season, and this would be his last game in charge of Real Madrid.
Not only that, Zidane would also leave, and the elite coaching staff would depart with him.
As for which players would go with Gao Shen, no one knew, not even Florentino.
This marked the end of an era.
An invincible dynasty ultimately lost to the ruthlessness of time and the inevitability of human nature.
Gao Shen had done enough for Real Madrid, and Florentino no longer had any reason to keep him.
"President, we have to start learning to live without constant success," Real Madrid CEO Jose Sanchez advised.
Gao Shen had not yet left, but Jose Sanchez already missed him.
"No matter what, he must leave with pride and dignity," Florentino said.
Jose Sanchez nodded. "I will arrange it."
(To be continued.)