Chapter 368: Seventh Title of the Year, an Unprecedented Seven-Trophy King!
"Oh! It's in! It's in! Llorente scores an absolutely crucial goal! Of course, crucial for Real Madrid!"
"Chelsea now has a very good chance to pull off a draw away at Wolfsburg.
If that happens, Real Madrid only needs to work a bit harder to take down CSKA Moscow!"
"I wonder what the mood must be like for the Real Madrid players at the Bernabéu right now!
This round has suddenly become full of suspense again.
And if Wolfsburg want to seize control of qualification, they now have to push forward and attack Chelsea…"
Zhan Jun and Coach Zhang were enthusiastically discussing all the possible outcomes in the studio.
At the same time, Li Ang definitely had his own small personal agenda.
After all, Mourinho had fielded almost entirely backup players and academy kids against Wolfsburg.
For Li Ang, leading these teammates into battle wouldn't affect the first team's preparations much.
And between helping Wolfsburg qualify alongside Chelsea or giving Real Madrid a shot to progress —
Li Ang would much rather see Madrid in the Round of 16.
Wolfsburg coach Hecking, seeing the shift in momentum, chose not to recklessly push his team forward.
He opted for a more cautious approach — tightening the formation to protect the lead.
This decision made perfect sense.
After all, they were still leading by one goal, and there were only 30 minutes left.
If Wolfsburg could hold on to a 2–1 win, they would have the advantage against CSKA Moscow in the final group match.
With qualification on the line, Hecking wasn't about to take unnecessary risks.
Li Ang, upon receiving Mourinho's tactical signal, didn't hesitate.
He took command of possession and pushed Chelsea's midfield line over the halfway line.
In the 65th minute, Matić finished warming up and replaced one of the young midfielders.
Chelsea's midfield trio instantly gained strength!
Matić anchored the defense, while Li Ang and Van Ginkel pushed higher to organize the attack.
Clear roles, proper division of labor.
Van Ginkel, with two senior players alongside him, finally began to settle and find his rhythm.
With Van Ginkel helping to share creative duties,
Li Ang could now insert himself more aggressively into attacks.
Wolfsburg's defenders wanted to cut the link between Li Ang and Chelsea's forwards —
but they simply didn't have a player capable of stopping him one-on-one.
Trying to double-team Li Ang only opened up gaps elsewhere.
If Hazard had traveled with the squad today, Wolfsburg's defense would have been ripped apart already.
Fortunately, Salah was available —
while not quite Hazard's equal, he was now firmly a first-class attacker.
Li Ang kept feeding Salah with pinpoint passes.
Left-back Ricardo Rodríguez was one of the Bundesliga's top defenders —
but so what?
Li Ang and Salah targeted him mercilessly.
Hecking had not anticipated losing control of midfield so completely.
Now it was too late to adjust.
Chelsea's attacks kept building in momentum,
and Li Ang's aggressive surges were creating constant danger.
Finally, in the 82nd minute, Chelsea broke through on the left!
Salah and Li Ang combined for a classic one-two move.
Rodríguez, slightly slow to react, was left behind!
Salah burst into the box but kept his composure.
First, he faked a shot to throw off the onrushing Naldo,
then adjusted his steps and shaped to shoot.
Dante, Wolfsburg's last man, had no choice —
he lunged in with a desperate slide tackle!
But he was too slow!
Salah read it perfectly,
shielding the ball instead of shooting.
Dante clipped him and sent him crashing down inside the penalty area!
The Volkswagen Arena erupted in chaos!
Wolfsburg's players desperately tried to shield Dante from the referee,
pleading for leniency.
But the referee had a clear view of the foul and refused to listen.
He immediately waved everyone away,
called Dante over —
and brandished a red card!
"No suspense there — Dante is off! Chelsea gets a penalty!"
"But honestly, you can't really blame Dante. He had no other choice.
It was just a case of him being too slow compared to a smaller, faster attacker like Salah."
Zhan Jun and Coach Zhang discussed the situation in the studio,
then turned their eager eyes to Li Ang, stepping up with the ball.
"Li Ang's been outstanding today, mentally rock solid.
Let's see if he can convert this penalty…
The whistle blows!
Li Ang steps up — shoots!!!
GOAL!"
Casteels had no chance against Li Ang's cannon shot.
2–2!
Li Ang had dragged Chelsea back from the brink!
While commentators around the world praised Li Ang's incredible ability to turn games around,
he didn't stop to celebrate.
Instead, he sprinted into the goal, grabbed the ball,
and ran straight back to the center circle!
There were less than 10 minutes of regular time left —
but Li Ang wasn't satisfied with a draw!
The Wolfsburg fans groaned in despair.
Hecking stood frozen on the sidelines,
two voices warring in his mind:
"Take a gamble! If you're going to lose two points anyway, might as well risk everything for the win!"
"No — it's too risky!
Holding on to a draw is still better than losing completely at home!"
Ultimately, Hecking chose caution.
Thus, the match ended in a 2–2 draw.
Li Ang didn't look particularly happy —
but coming back from 0–2 down, he had done all he could.
Now it was up to Real Madrid to seize the opportunity.
After a quick shower back in the locker room, Li Ang received news that Real Madrid had beaten CSKA Moscow 3-1.
This meant Madrid now had eight points, while Wolfsburg had five.
With only one group-stage match remaining, Real Madrid had successfully seized back control of their qualification destiny.
Afterward, fans everywhere joked that Real Madrid should properly thank Li Ang and Chelsea for fighting hard and not taking it easy against Wolfsburg.
Indeed, countless Madrid fans flooded the official Chelsea and Li Ang accounts with messages of gratitude.
But this time, Li Ang did not respond actively.
This kind of topic was still somewhat sensitive.
It would be awkward if he responded too warmly — how would Chelsea's management view it?
Thus, Li Ang opted for a cold approach,
merely posting a neutral message encouraging fans to support Chelsea in the upcoming London derby.
On the afternoon of November 29th, Chelsea traveled to White Hart Lane to face a rebuilding Tottenham side.
Under Pochettino, Spurs had shown promising signs of revival and were currently fifth in the Premier League.
They didn't have many wins — but they had even fewer losses — their main problem was too many draws dragging down their points tally.
In 13 matches, Spurs had 6 wins, 6 draws, and only 1 loss —
highlighting their instability.
Against weaker teams, they often dropped silly points.
Against stronger teams, they somehow managed to grind out draws.
Spurs had lots of young players, high-energy running, and an attractive style of play.
But their youth also meant they lacked the killer instinct to finish games consistently.
Facing such a team, Chelsea couldn't say it was an easy match —
but at least they knew exactly how to handle them.
Don't get into end-to-end battles.
Don't let the game turn chaotic.
Spurs' attack wouldn't pose too much threat against Chelsea's disciplined defense.
And in terms of transitions and counterattacks?
Spurs were no match for Chelsea.
From kickoff, Mourinho deliberately ceded possession.
Pochettino had no choice but to walk into the trap.
He couldn't suddenly switch to a pragmatic, defensive game at home.
The fans would demand attacking football —
it was part of the job.
And Spurs' board and supporters loved Pochettino's vibrant style.
But this also meant that if he played too conservatively,
the backlash would be swift.
They were unrealistic —
they wanted pretty football and trophies —
without the resources that top clubs like Real Madrid enjoyed.
In reality, Pochettino's job was to develop youngsters, keep them competitive, and maybe dream of a top-four finish.
As the match unfolded, Spurs found themselves caught in Chelsea's trap.
By halftime, Chelsea had already clinically scored two counterattacking goals.
In the second half, Chelsea sat even deeper, giving Spurs no chance to counterattack.
In the final moments, Harry Kane was once again shut down by Thiago Silva and Maguire.
As for Son Heung-min, the new signing from Bayer Leverkusen,
he was rendered completely ineffective under the combined marking of Li Ang and Azpilicueta.
Chelsea left White Hart Lane with another satisfying victory.
Meanwhile, Manchester City were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Southampton —
a huge bonus for Chelsea!
But Chelsea had little time to celebrate.
In the next round, they were surprisingly held 1-1 at home by Bournemouth.
Despite hammering 20 shots and hitting the woodwork twice,
Suárez and Hazard just couldn't find a second goal.
It was Chelsea's turn to frustrate —
and City fans took full advantage to mock them.
However, Chelsea quickly stabilized.
In their final Champions League group match, they drew 0-0 at home against Real Madrid,
comfortably topping the group.
Then, they brushed aside Watford 3-0 in the league.
After beating Watford on December 14th,
Chelsea boarded a flight to Asia to participate in the Club World Cup.
The tournament format was simple.
On December 17th, Chelsea would face Guangzhou Evergrande, the AFC Champions League winners, in the semifinal.
Three days later, they would face either Hiroshima Sanfrecce or River Plate in the final.
Nowadays, the Club World Cup was no longer a playground for South American teams.
Europe's elite had widened the gap significantly.
Thus, Chelsea didn't expect any serious difficulties.
Still, the coaching staff repeatedly reminded the players not to relax too much.
The whole world was watching —
they were on the brink of an unprecedented achievement:
seven trophies in a single year.
A slip-up would be catastrophic.
Li Ang fully agreed.
He even watched Hiroshima versus River Plate's semifinal match to scout their potential opponent.
On December 17th, Chelsea faced Guangzhou Evergrande in Yokohama.
Li Ang warmly greeted the Chinese players before the match,
recognizing their success in winning the AFC Champions League.
But once the game kicked off,
Li Ang switched to 100% focus.
Guangzhou looked eager to compete,
but by the 8th minute, Hazard had already shredded their right flank and assisted Suárez for the opening goal.
Chelsea showed no mercy.
By the 21st and 28th minutes, they scored twice more.
In the second half, Mourinho subbed off Li Ang, Suárez, and Matić to rest them.
Chelsea comfortably won 4-1 —
conceding a goal just to leave Guangzhou a little dignity.
But against River Plate in the final,
Mourinho showed no such generosity.
This time, Li Ang, who had merely warmed up in the semifinal, exploded.
He scored twice — once with his head, once with his foot —
leading Chelsea to seal the victory by halftime!
In the end, Chelsea crushed River Plate 4-0 in Yokohama,
winning the 2015 Club World Cup title!
And when Li Ang lifted the trophy high and roared into the sky,
Chelsea had completed an unprecedented feat:
Seven trophies in a single year!
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