However, this news had once sparked a clash between Il Capitano Totti and the "Prince" Cassano.
Roma's dismal season was closely tied to internal discord, and now Cassano's goal felt like a punishment dealt to Real Madrid.
The camera cut to Madrid's stars — grim faces all around.
On the touchline, Simon frowned deeply.
There was only one option left: go for broke.
In the 77th minute, taking advantage of a stoppage, Real Madrid made a change.
Morientes replaced Solari!
The message was crystal clear — Madrid was desperate.
A midfielder off, a striker on, and a classic target man at that.
Their shape shifted into an all-out 3-3-4.
In the 79th minute, Los Blancos surged forward.
Beckham slid the ball across to Helguera, who came charging up the flank.
Helguera whipped in a 45-degree cross — no finesse, pure determination.
One thought in mind: get it in there!
Inside the box, Ronaldo, Morientes, and Su Hang — three towering forwards — all went airborne.
Roma's area was in full defensive panic.
Morientes outmuscled De Las and met the ball, but his header ballooned straight up.
He leapt again, but without power, sending the ball floating softly toward goal.
Ronaldo sprinted to meet it, but at the last second, Pelizzoli punched it away — and in the process, landed a fist on Ronaldo's head.
The Brazilian dropped to the turf clutching his skull.
The loose ball fell toward the penalty spot.
Su Hang and Roma's midfield enforcer De Rossi exploded toward it, eyes locked in the same unspoken message: This ball is mine.
Hesitate for a split second, and it's gone.
Su Hang swung a leg for the shot.
De Rossi went full stretch with a sliding tackle.
Bang!
The ball deflected sideways as the two collided, shin to shin, in a brutal clash.
"Aaah!"
Ronaldo, Su Hang, and De Rossi all cried out in pain.
The scene was pure chaos.
But Madrid's numerical edge up front now paid off.
Figo pounced, meeting the bouncing ball with a clean strike.
Whoosh!
Goal in the mayhem!
"GOAL! Figo! He's done it!"
"Su Hang and De Rossi's duel sent the ball loose, and Figo buried it!"
"What a ferocious contest — this is pure Champions League drama!"
"2-2! Real Madrid are level!"
"Ronaldo's back on his feet, but Su Hang and De Rossi are still down. Could they be injured?"
Medical teams rushed in.
For Roma, the verdict came quickly — De Rossi was done for the night.
A substitute midfielder began warming up urgently.
For Madrid, the news was better — Su Hang could continue.
Simon exhaled in relief but still had Portillo start warming up.
At this pace, someone was bound to pick up a serious injury.
"Su Hang is tough as nails! That was the kind of challenge where both players risk their careers."
"Extremely dangerous, but neither man backed down."
"Elsewhere, Leverkusen have struck twice in five minutes — almost certain to top the group now!"
"For Real Madrid, a draw is enough to reach the knockout stage."
"If they hold this score, their Champions League hopes are alive."
Football changes in an instant.
Madrid had gone from a nightmare scenario to a promising position.
As long as they didn't concede, they were safe.
But the Romans had no intention of letting that happen — dragging Madrid down was their one mission tonight.
In the 81st minute, Il Capitano Totti played a one-two with Mancini and broke forward.
Beckham, beaten for pace, resorted to pulling him down.
Totti sprang up to confront Beckham, but Su Hang quickly stepped in, chest to chest with the Roman, absorbing his trash talk without a reaction.
The referee arrived, booked Beckham, and warned both Totti and Su Hang not to escalate.
The message was clearly aimed at Totti — Su Hang hadn't laid a hand on anyone and kept his composure.
"Real Madrid make another change — Beckham off, El Maestro Guti on. With Beckham already on a yellow, it's a smart switch."
"Guti's been filling in at defensive midfield since last season, and he's far more accustomed to the role than Beckham, who's only taken it up this year."
In the 87th minute, surrounded by defenders, Zidane fed a pass back to the retreating Su Hang.
A quick one-two and Zidane burst through, forcing Roma's center-back to step up.
Bang!
Zidane threaded a diagonal ball into the box.
Ronaldo held off Cufré and improvised a scorpion kick with his heel — sheer audacity.
But luck wasn't with him.
The ball shaved the far post before drifting wide.
Aside from his earlier volley, Ronaldo's efforts all night had been just inches off.
In the 90th minute, the fourth official signaled three minutes of added time.
Beep!
The whistle blew — Zidane had gone down in midfield.
The referee pointed to Dacourt, having seen him body-check Zidane after the pass.
Zidane sat on the turf, slapping the grass in frustration.
No yellow card?
In theory, the location didn't demand one, but Zizou was having none of it.
He sprang up, booted the ball forward for a quick restart.
Beep-beep-beep!
The referee waved it off.
Now Zidane's temper flared in full.
"You call this fair?" he barked.
"Why deny the quick kick? You saw me take it!"
"Your decision is controversial!"
No surprise — the yellow card came out.
That was Zizou's fiery temper on full display.
"Hey, Zizou!" Su Hang rushed in, holding him back. "Calm down! We're still in this. This score works for us."
"As long as we don't concede, we advance. You get me?"
"You even wasted 30 seconds of their time just now — that's a win."
Zidane, reminded of the bigger picture, cooled down.
Yes.
Even at 2-2, Madrid would go through — if they didn't concede.
But now there was the free kick to deal with.
It was a full 36 meters out — a long, long way.
Normally, the tall defenders would line up outside the opposition's box, Zidane would send it in, and they'd battle for the header — a tried and tested method with good odds from distance.
But…
...
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