Chapter 852: End the Battle by Halftime
Bruno silently stood at the front of Manchester United's lineup, slowly adjusting his emotions, allowing himself to gradually sink into match mode.
Mourinho had told him: he was only giving Bruno half a match. So he needed to finish the fight before halftime!
Between the Premier League and the Champions League, Mourinho decisively chose the latter. On one hand, although Manchester City was rapidly catching up in points, United still led by six—a relatively comfortable advantage. With only one-third of the league season remaining, there was room for error. The Champions League, however, had entered its knockout stage, a two-legged format where a single mistake could mean elimination—especially against a strong opponent like Paris Saint-Germain. On the other hand, the Champions League's prestige far exceeded the Premier League. At this level, it was natural for a club's focus to shift toward Europe.
Of course, Mourinho would not completely disregard this league match. He devised a balanced plan: rest his main forwards and let Bruno lead a group of substitute attackers into battle, hoping Bruno could guide them to victory over relegation-zone opponents Newcastle United.
To minimize the risk of dropping points, Mourinho kept his defensive line intact. That would guarantee Manchester United's lower limit for this match: even if they couldn't win, they must not lose.
To claim the three points, Mourinho made it clear to Bruno before kickoff—he would only play one half. At halftime, he'd be substituted.
Now Bruno's mission was simple: secure victory for United in the first half.
Luckily, he had rich experience defeating Newcastle. In seven meetings against the Magpies, United had never lost, delivering crushing scorelines such as 0–8, 1–8, and 1–6.
Across those seven games, Bruno contributed 13 goals and 8 assists—averaging direct involvement in three goals per match. He was, unquestionably, Newcastle's nemesis.
...
At Newcastle's left corner flag, Bruno gently placed the ball, pressing down the turf behind it before stepping back several paces and standing tall, eyes locked forward.
Inside the box, several United players with aerial prowess took up their positions.
Newcastle's defenders, tense and jittery, tangled with them, throwing in little tugging and jostling motions that made the area chaotic.
Up in the stands at Cardiff Millennium Stadium, every Manchester United supporter wore an anxious expression.
It was the seventh minute of the match. As expected, United dominated possession and tempo from the start.
Newcastle sat deep, defending their own half and waiting for counterattacks.
Under Mourinho's plan to attack aggressively in the first half, United were proactive at home. In just seven minutes, they had already earned three corners.
The first two, one from each flank, were taken by Riyad Mahrez—neither creating danger. Newcastle had clearly drilled their corner defense.
In the seventh minute, United won their third corner, and Bruno decided to change things up, asking Mahrez for the chance to take it himself.
Since joining United, Bruno had rarely taken corners—not because he lacked ability, but because of tactical division.
Mourinho and his coaching staff believed Bruno was more threatening near the box to capitalize on rebounds.
...
Fans who remembered Bruno's days at Udinese knew his corner kicks had been lethal back then. Even Harry Maguire had benefited from those deliveries when they were teammates.
So when Bruno stepped to the corner spot, United's supporters instantly roared in excitement.
Newcastle's camp, both players and coaches, were puzzled. They couldn't tell exactly what was happening, but the atmosphere felt ominous.
Could it be that Bruno was United's most dangerous set-piece taker?
If so, Steve Bruce's pre-match defensive plan might need serious adjustment.
Bruno could feel the broadcast cameras fixating on him.
He heard the cheers from United fans in the stands—it was encouragement, but also pressure.
Being the star meant bearing this weight.
He exhaled sharply, raised his right hand, and pointed one finger toward the sky. It looked like he was signaling "one." Instantly, every breath around the pitch seemed to stop.
No one knew what it meant, except the United players.
It was the code they had built through countless training sessions—one gesture for one planned move.
...
The referee's whistle blew. Bruno inhaled deeply and sprinted forward, every stride steady and powerful.
He had rehearsed this sequence countless times—it was pure muscle memory now.
Planting his left foot beside the ball, his body formed a perfect angle with it. His right leg swung like a drawn bow, striking the ball in a clean, explosive motion.
A muffled crack echoed through the stadium—the ball soared rapidly at low trajectory, speed over height.
Inside the box, chaos erupted. Virgil van Dijk, Scott McTominay, and Mason Greenwood jostled and darted around, distracting the defenders. But moments before Bruno's kick, Harry Maguire retreated toward the penalty spot, then suddenly surged forward toward the near post.
By the time Newcastle's defenders noticed the danger, the English center-back had already launched himself at the front of goal. He dove in with perfect timing—a flying header that powered Bruno's curling cross straight into Karl Darlow's net.
"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLL!!!"
"Manchester United take the lead in the 7th minute, 1–0!"
"Harry Maguire! A crucial goal!"
"And the assist from Bruno!"
"The quality of that corner was remarkable—the delivery landed exactly where Maguire was headed. One precise touch of the forehead, and Darlow had no time to react!"
...
Harry Maguire, seeing his header hit the net, slammed his fists into the turf in triumph before jumping up and sprinting toward Bruno, wrapping him in a fierce embrace.
The two celebrated wildly at the sidelines, shouting toward the cameras and the cheering fans in the stands.
Behind them, the rest of United's squad rushed over, surrounding them in jubilation.
"That goal was absolutely crucial!"
"Everyone knows United are conserving energy for their Champions League Round of 16 tie midweek. That uncertainty makes any early lead invaluable—it allows them to control the game better."
"Scoring within seven minutes—that's astonishing, but that's football!"
"Bruno's corner technique was superb, and his coordination with Maguire was flawless—moving deceptively, escaping markers, and then darting to the near post for the header."
"1–0! United are ahead!"
...
Steve Bruce clutched his head, practically ripping at his hair in frustration.
He kept shouting instructions from the touchline, urging his players to stay calm.
For Newcastle, burdened with relegation pressure, every remaining match was a final—a battle that could decide their Premier League survival.
Despite meticulous preparation accounting for countless variables, who could have expected Bruno to take the corner and link up with Maguire so perfectly?
When it came to set pieces, Bruno was renowned above all for his penalties. Since earning spot-kick duties at Udinese, he had never missed—converting 57 in a row, an astonishing record.
Those who followed his career knew his corners were once just as lethal at Udinese, though he seldom took them at Manchester United.
Steve Bruce had miscalculated—both Bruno's potential threat and United's tactical variation.
Now, things were looking troublesome.
Three corners conceded in seven minutes and already a goal down—how were they supposed to recover from this?
...
Bruce immediately approached the sideline to make adjustments, signaling Joe Willock, Isaac Hayden, and Jonjo Shelvey to drop deeper and reinforce the wings defensively. First, stabilize—then regroup.
United clearly anticipated Newcastle's intentions. They had no plans to ease off; a one-goal lead wasn't safe—it was a fragile margin universally acknowledged as dangerous.
From Bruno's perspective, Mourinho's strategy was evident: press the advantage and finish the fight by halftime.
It was an extremely smart approach.
The reasoning was simple—United needed to conserve energy for the upcoming Champions League fixture. Several key players, including Bruno himself, would likely be substituted at halftime. If the match stayed tight until the second half, it would put United in an unfavorable position. Hence, they needed to build enough cushion early.
If they failed to do so, the second half would require a shift in tactics—a fallback plan.
Having superior strength allows such strategic flexibility.
(END CHAPTER)
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