Defensive Awareness 75+1
Tackling 80+1
Covering 75+1
Clearances 63+1
Su Hang could only say one thing to Lahm: he got lucky.
If they crossed paths again now, Lahm might lose his football dream altogether.
At the same time, Su Hang could only say to Messi, Xavi, and Iniesta: you guys were unlucky.
This skill was simply outrageous.
An absolute god-tier ability that let the strong bully the weak.
Su Hang figured it was time to put bulking up on his schedule as well.
He mainly operated down the left flank. If he was willing to actively track back on defense, then players like Xavi, Deco, and Messi—under his height advantage—would all develop a psychological aversion to physical contact.
They'd turn into three Reyes.
Reyes: ???
With everything lining up like this, how could Su Hang not be full of confidence for the upcoming match?
Of course, Barcelona also had their own X-factor.
That was Ronaldinho—who, after suffering a major setback, abandoned his indulgent lifestyle and completed his Legendary Path, raising his rating to 102.
Without the support of a 100-rated Zidane, this was Su Hang's first time facing a peak, legendary-tier player.
...
On the afternoon of March 10th, both teams stepped onto the pitch at Camp Nou.
The starting lineups had already been announced earlier.
Real Madrid lined up as follows:
Su Hang, Raúl
Emerson, Guti, Beckham
Diarra
Raúl Bravo, Helguera, Kompany, Sergio Ramos
Casillas
=
Van Nistelrooy had been forced off injured in the previous match. With only three or four days having passed, there was no way he could return yet.
As for Cannavaro, he felt some discomfort after the match against Bayern Munich. Medical checks showed muscle fatigue, and the recommendation was to rest him for one game, otherwise the risk of injury would be extremely high.
Under normal circumstances, Cannavaro would still have played.
After all, this was the Clásico.
But at Su Hang's insistence, Cannavaro was given a chance to catch his breath.
Real Madrid simply couldn't afford to lose anyone else.
At the same time, considering that Beckham was most comfortable as a right-sided midfielder, Capello adjusted the starting formation.
This setup also made full use of the few reliable substitutes Real Madrid had.
Cassano could play both striker and attacking midfielder. Robinho could play as a striker or left midfielder.
Gago was also available as insurance if needed.
Barcelona, on the other hand, fielded a complete starting lineup.
Ronaldinho, Eto'o, Messi
Deco, Márquez, Xavi, Iniesta
Puyol, Oleguer, Thuram
Valdés
=
Eto'o, who had missed the previous Clásico, finally got his chance to face the team he tormented most.
With the referee's whistle, the match officially began.
Camp Nou welcomed a crowd of 97,000—its highest attendance of the season.
As a result, Barcelona's players showed tremendous intensity from the start.
From the very first minute, they completely suppressed Real Madrid.
Even though Real Madrid's diamond midfield gave them a numerical edge over Barcelona's three-man core, they still lost control of the middle against the footballing elf that was Ronaldinho.
When the ball was at Ronaldinho's feet, it was almost impossible to win it back.
Press too aggressively, and you were even more likely to get shredded by him.
In the fourth minute, Ronaldinho dribbled to the left side of the penalty area, shook Diarra with consecutive feints, and fired off a long-range shot.
The ball struck Helguera and nearly resulted in an own goal.
In the fifth minute, Su Hang dropped deep to receive the ball, helping his teammates carry it past midfield.
Guti immediately surged forward, took Su Hang's pass, and laid it off to Emerson, who was overlapping down the left.
Emerson reached the byline and drilled in a low cross.
Bang!
Thuram stuck out a leg to intercept.
The ball bounced toward the left side of the penalty arc.
Su Hang, who had continued his forward run after passing the ball, didn't hesitate for a second. Drawing his bow and nocking the arrow, he unleashed a left-footed volley.
Valdés leapt full stretch but couldn't get a hand to it.
A burst of white nets silenced Camp Nou.
"This… GOAL!"
"Who could have imagined it? Completely under pressure, yet Real Madrid strike first!"
"But then again—who could possibly doubt it? Su Hang scoring in this match, even opening the scoring!"
"This is Su Hang! Your Su Hang, the King of La Liga!"
"Anyone who watched Real Madrid's midweek away match against Bayern Munich will notice this goal is almost identical to Su Hang's fourth goal in that game."
"Both came after an opponent's clearance, followed by a long-range strike."
"And both were left-footed volleys."
"Su Hang's finishing has reached an incredible level. His use of his non-dominant foot is exceptionally polished!"
"This is pure fundamentals—something many players spend their entire careers trying to master."
"People often say Su Hang lacks talent, but turning weaknesses into strengths through sheer effort is itself a form of talent."
Su Hang's goal completely ignited Barcelona, and their attacking tempo quickened.
In the ninth minute, Helguera's pass was intercepted by Xavi.
Two or three years ago, Helguera had once carried Real Madrid's back line.
But starting last season, his form had fallen off a cliff. Barely in his early thirties, he was already running low on fuel.
It wasn't that his decline was unusually fast—this was simply what players at this stage typically looked like.
Xavi immediately threaded a through ball to Eto'o.
Casillas rushed out at once.
Eto'o chipped the ball at the near post, sending it over Casillas.
But Kompany, who had raced back to the goal line in time, headed the ball clear, completing a crucial goal-line save.
In the eleventh minute, Deco held the ball in the left half-space, scanned the field, and slipped in a surgical through pass for Eto'o.
Eto'o received with his back to goal and, without stopping the ball, played a quick one-two with Ronaldinho, who was bursting forward.
At the critical moment, Guti—who had tracked back aggressively—got a toe to the ball, breaking up the attack.
The ball fell to Xavi, who found Eto'o again before Diarra could close him down.
Eto'o turned and slid in another through ball.
Barcelona's right winger Messi cut in from the right into the penalty area, carrying the ball clean through into a one-on-one.
He made a slight adjustment, ready to shoot.
But in the very next moment, Real Madrid forward Su Hang appeared inside the box, barging Messi aside before he could pull the trigger and completing a clean tackle.
"Oh! Messi was careless there! He didn't expect Su Hang to track back this far, and that extra adjustment cost him."
"Su Hang isn't playing as a pure striker today. Most of the time he's positioned at left midfield or as an attacking midfielder, giving Real Madrid an extra passing outlet in midfield."
"This helps them contend with Barcelona's midfield led by Ronaldinho."
"So in practice, Real Madrid are playing with Raúl as a lone striker."
In the twelfth minute, Su Hang dropped deep once again to receive the ball and was brought down by Márquez.
The referee didn't blow the whistle.
Because Real Madrid still had possession.
Beckham won the ball and, uncharacteristically, drove forward through the center, using Raúl as cover.
After spending several years being forced into a defensive midfield role, Beckham had learned a thing or two.
He could whip pinpoint crosses from the flank, or thread incisive through balls from the middle to launch even deadlier attacks.
Bang!
Before the pressure arrived, Beckham passed the ball to Su Hang, who had just pushed himself up from the turf.
Before he could even straighten his back, Su Hang stabbed a through ball into the penalty area.
Guti burst through, chased the ball, and was hauled down by Oleguer.
In the next instant, Oleguer clutched his head in despair.
Because Guti had gone down—squarely inside the penalty box.