The 90-minute match concluded.
In the 2010/2011 Champions League semifinal, Barcelona 1-1 Real Madrid.
"This match was brutally intense. The entire game saw 11 yellow cards, including red cards for Ramos and Puyol. Xavi and Alonso were injured and substituted. Both teams fought fiercely for 90 minutes but still couldn't determine a winner!"
"Real Madrid managed a draw away against Barcelona. For Barcelona, they will have to travel to the Bernabéu again in a week to face Real Madrid!"
"A draw away is hard for Barcelona to accept. They've already lost the league title. If they lose the Champions League as well, their only hope is the Copa del Rey final at the end of the season. But if they can't even win that, Barcelona will face the embarrassment of going two consecutive seasons without a trophy!"
"Meanwhile, Real Madrid's winning streak has been interrupted—though this is only a draw in the Champions League. Their league winning streak continues. Looking at the entire season, this is the only match Real Madrid has drawn!"
At this point, Gonzalez couldn't help but sigh. "This Real Madrid team has truly performed exceptionally!"
"Suker!" Gonzalez emphasized again.
"Whenever Real Madrid faced difficulties, Suker always stepped up. In this match, it was again Suker's counterattacking performance that forced Puyol into a red card and his free kick that equalized the score."
"We've always said Suker is excellent, but his performances in these two matches can't just be called excellent. In such high-stakes clashes, his impact and presence are astounding."
"Now, two matches are over, with one final match remaining. Folks, let's return to the Bernabéu in a week!"
The entire Camp Nou was on the verge of eruption.
Dissatisfied Barcelona fans began storming the pitch, forcing Real Madrid players to immediately retreat to the locker room after the match.
Even Mourinho skipped the post-match press conference. The players didn't even shower, directly boarding the bus to leave.
Mourinho was bold, but not stupid!
Staying to gloat now risked being torn apart by these angry Barcelona fans.
So, he led the players away immediately.
Only after arriving at the airport, boarding smoothly, and embarking on the return journey did he slowly exhale.
The losses in this match were significant.
Alonso injured, Ramos red-carded.
These two players would miss the next home match.
As for Ramos, it depended on the disciplinary outcome whether he could make the Champions League final.
Yes, Mourinho believed that back at home, Real Madrid would surely secure victory and reach the Champions League final.
La Liga was never Mourinho's target.
The Champions League was the ultimate goal!
The plane flew on, many Real Madrid players exhausted and fast asleep.
Suker also dozed off—this match had drained them physically and mentally.
Suddenly, constant hissing sounds of pain came from beside him.
Suker opened his eyes and looked toward the aisle.
Benzema sat there, clutching his hand, frowning, constantly sucking in air.
"What's wrong?" Suker asked.
Benzema raised his right hand, showing his pinky finger.
"Look!"
Suker focused.
"Is this... a sausage?"
What sausage? This was a pinky finger!
Just that the pinky was swollen like a sausage and somewhat blackened.
"Did you break this finger?"
Benzema frowned; "I don't know, I've never broken a finger before!"
Suke immediately stood up and shouted; "Team doctor, Karim's finger is broken!"
Hearing this, Mourinho abruptly stood up.
The team doctor immediately came over.
Other Real Madrid players woke up, looking at the doctor and Benzema.
After a quick check, the doctor nodded; "The pinky is broken, needs surgery!"
"Surgery?" Suker said; "Can't it be reset? Like cracking the joint back into place."
the doctor shook his head.
Mourinho frowned deeply.
Benzema also spoke up; "Must it be surgery? No other treatment?"
Surgery would mean missing the upcoming matches.
But Benzema didn't want to miss these games.
"The bone can be pulled back into place and fixed with bandages and a splint, but recovery is slow and there's a risk of deformity!"
No one spoke, all eyes on Benzema.
Surgery was the correct choice.
Even if Benzema had surgery, it was unavoidable.
But selfishly, they also hoped Benzema would stay, not further reducing their strength.
Just then, Benzema said; "Treat it after we land, no surgery!"
Hearing this, the players collectively sighed in relief.
Suker patted Benzema's shoulder; "Awesome!"
Mourinho also looked approvingly at Benzema, exhaling softly.
In the current situation, if Benzema had surgery, it would truly be dangerous.
The plane arrived in Madrid.
An ambulance was already waiting, directly taking Alonso and Benzema to the hospital for treatment.
Others had minor injuries, mostly superficial wounds.
Suker kept his socks on the entire time.
He didn't dare take them off!
After all, the wounds had healed.
Mourinho looked at the injury-ridden team and sighed helplessly, finally dismissing them to rest.
He also gave them the next day off.
Three days, two major battles—even Real Madrid was struggling to keep up.
This Champions League semifinal was also heavily covered by the media.
"The Bloody El Clásico!"
This became a topic across Europe.
The conflicts, clashes, rivalry, and hatred surrounding this match were amplified,The most explosive derby in nearly two decades.
From two of football's top super clubs.
Going head-to-head.
The top-level match and intense physical battles thrilled fans immensely.
Not just the match itself, but the various clashes and bloody scenes got their adrenaline pumping.
And in the end, neither could overcome the other.
Messi's penalty!
Suker's free kick!
They were the absolute protagonists of the match!
But this rivalry wasn't over yet.
The second leg of the Champions League at Real Madrid's home would be the most critical match. With a Champions League final ticket at stake, the atmosphere would become even more intense.
In fact, over two matches, each was more explosive than the last!
The first was purely a grueling contest.
But by the second, both sides were throwing punches.
So, some neutral fans were curious about what the third match would look like.
On the rest day, at Suker's villa.
"Good afternoon!"
Benzema walked in casual wear—a classic black-and-white outfit. His fashion sense was always on point.
His right hand was wrapped in white bandages.
Suker asked; "Still hurt?"
"A bit of a sting when I move, but bearable. Just need to avoid heavy impacts on this hand!"
Benzema said with a smile.
He felt he'd made the right choice again.
Staying this time had further earned him Mourinho's recognition and praise.
During his treatment, Mourinho had accompanied him the entire time, even checking on him constantly.
Not only that, Suker had invited him over for a meal, reportedly preparing some tonics to help him recover.
"Come on, let's go in!"
Suker gestured toward the house.
Just then, Benzema said awkwardly; "Um... outside..."
He pointed outside.
Srna and Kaká were there, grinning widely as they walked in.
"Are you two bloodhounds? How did you sniff this out?" Suker complained.
Srna waved it off; "No way we smelled it. We heard from Karim."
Kaká even pulled up his pants, showing a freshly scabbed calf; "I'm injured too! I need tonics!"
"Come in then!"
Suker shook his head helplessly.
Srna and Kaká had come.
If he didn't invite Di María, that guy would definitely throw a fit.
Besides, for the upcoming matches, Suker needed to rely somewhat on 'Angel's' performance, so giving him a boost wouldn't hurt.
This time, Suker had made oxtail soup.
He'd specially bought a pressure cooker, stewing it for a long time to extract all the nutrients, making the marrow soft and tender. Paired with specially sourced soy sauce and chili oil, it was extremely delicious.
"By the way, last match, Manchester United crushed Schalke 04 4-1. Ronaldo scored two goals—he's now one goal ahead of you again!"
Benzema said to Suker while slurping ox marrow.
Suker nodded but didn't say anything.
Srna understood—Suker was annoyed right now.
But there was no helping it.
Compared to Schalke 04, Barcelona was much stronger.
Ronaldo could pad his stats there, while scoring against Barcelona was extremely difficult for Suker, especially while ensuring victory—making it even harder.
"Don't worry, we'll reach the final. We won't let your Champions League Golden Boot slip away!"
Srna said.
Suker glanced at Srna and waved it off; "Of course I want the Champions League Golden Boot, but more than that, we need to ensure victory. Let's focus on reaching the final first!"
This season, both Messi and Ronaldo had burst into form.
Suker felt these two were stimulated by him winning his third Ballon d'Or.
Especially Ronaldo, who was clinging tightly to him in the Champions League scoring charts. Suker was scoring plenty, but Ronaldo wasn't backing down either.
Currently, the two were taking turns rising on the Champions League scoring charts, the competition extremely fierce.
Many media outlets exclaimed it was thrilling.
But only Suker and Ronaldo knew the pressure they were under to score.
Ronaldo was trying to take advantage of Real Madrid facing Barcelona to pull ahead in goals.
Then, if they met in the Champions League final, Ronaldo would have the initiative.
Suker's scoring pace had been bogged down by Barcelona—there was nothing he could do about it now.
"Alonso probably won't make it. His season is basically over."
Benzema said.
Alonso had a sprained ankle—this kind of injury made it impossible to play. Even moving would be painful, so he could only rest and recover slowly.
Benzema had a broken finger, which didn't affect playing much, so he could still manage.
But honestly, these two matches had been really tough.
"Who do we play next match?"
"Zaragoza!"
"Again? Are they safe from relegation?"
Zaragoza—a club, fighting relegation every year yet always surviving.
There's a saying in La Liga: Zaragoza on a relegation battle is unstoppable.
These guys even managed a draw at Camp Nou during a relegation fight.
"They're safe now!" Srna said; "Currently 13th, out of the danger zone."
Suker sighed in relief; "Good that they're safe!"
After securing safety, Zaragoza would start coasting.
After the last match, if Real Madrid had to fight another relegation battler and suffer more injuries, it would be unbearable.
May 1st, La Liga Round 34, Real Madrid hosted Zaragoza.
In the final five rounds, if Real Madrid solidly won each match, they would secure the title undefeated.
Also, this match was highly anticipated.
The reason was simple: Real Madrid currently had 99 points from 33 wins.
A win here would break 100 points.
In the history of the top five European leagues, this would be the first team to reach 100 points. Thus, many media outlets and reporters were focused on this match.
For this match, Mourinho made some tactical changes.
Real Madrid (4-4-2):
Goalkeeper: Casillas
Defenders: Arbeloa, Carvalho, Pepe, Marcelo
Midfielders: Granero, Khedira, Kaká, Diarra
Forwards: Di María, Suker
Srna and Benzema were benched by Mourinho for rest.
After two major battles, they needed recovery.
Ramos could play in the league, but considering Carvalho would start the next match, he was given a start here to adapt.
Actually, Mourinho had previously approached Higuaín, offering an olive branch to reconcile.
He'd benched him for a season, but now, they truly needed a forward for rotation.
But Higuaín overplayed his hand, directly bargaining with Mourinho about compensation.
He thought he had Mourinho over a barrel, that he could dictate terms and demand more tactical resources or a salary raise.
But this move angered Mourinho, who turned and left without another word.
Mourinho also notified the club to list Higuaín for sale in the summer window, stating there was no place for him next season.
Higuaín was completely discarded by Mourinho.
Assistant coach Faria glanced at the bench—this time, Higuaín wasn't even in the squad.
"Giving up on Higuaín?" Faria still felt it was a pity.
Mourinho said sternly; "I don't need someone who bargains with me. I was giving him a chance, not begging him to play!"
Thinking about it, Mourinho grew even angrier.
"That idiot!"
Having thoroughly angered Mourinho, given Mourinho's current results, Higuaín was basically doomed—there was no changing his fate.
Besides, Higuaín had always been a loner at Real Madrid.
He hadn't aligned with the Spanish contingent nor built good relationships with Suker and others, so no one would plead for him.
"Hey! Guys! Let's go!" Casillas raised his arm, voice energetic; "Let's make history!"
Casillas was incredibly excited right now!
This was about creating brand-new history!
For Real Madrid, they already had enough glory, too many titles, so rarely did something get them this excited and waiting in anticipation.
But this time was different.
Breaking 100 points!
And being the first team in the top five leagues to do so—this was immensely significant for both Real Madrid and the players.
It meant they would be recorded in the club's history, forever remembered.
And as the captain of this squad, Casillas would undoubtedly be highly praised.
Just thinking about it made Casillas uncontrollably excited. He shouted toward the front; "Suker! It's up to you!"
Suker turned and gave Casillas a thumbs-up.
Just watch!
Peep!
The whistle blew.
The match began!
After kickoff, Suke immediately charged toward the wing.
Suker quickly observed—Zaragoza's players seemed listless.
And that was the case.
They'd already secured safety from relegation, couldn't reach European spots, and had no honors to fight for.
Play poorly—same result.
Play well—same result.
Naturally, they had no motivation!
Because of this, their marking on Suker wasn't tight, giving Suker plenty of space to operate.
Suker made a lateral run toward the center.
Di María noticed Suker's position and passed back to Granero.
Granero directly slotted the ball to Suker.
Suker received it with his back to goal, feinted a turn to the left but used his standing foot to nudge the ball into space on the right.
Zaragoza's center-back, initially following Suker, was drawn by the pass and turned to look the other way.
There, Di María made a run, meeting the ball and slotting it through the gap between the center-back and full-back.
Suker sharply darted diagonally forward.
"Suker! Not offside!! One-on-one!!"
Commentator Gonzalez roared.
Zaragoza's players reacted belatedly. As they tried to catch up, Suker had already burst into the penalty area, adjusted slightly, and with the goalkeeper rushing out, gently chipped the ball over him. The ball arced toward the goal.
"Gooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaal!!!!"
"Goal!! Just 7 minutes into the match, Suker and Di María produced a brilliant attacking combination. Di María assisted Suker for a one-on-one finish!"
"Suker's calm chip beat Zaragoza's goalkeeper. Real Madrid leads Zaragoza 1-0. They are getting closer to 100 league points and their 34th consecutive win!—"