Luis Perea instinctively stepped across, trying to block the passing lane between Su Hang and Zidane.
But Su Hang pushed the ball to his right—he never even considered passing to Zidane on the left.
Su Hang was a striker.
Zidane was a midfielder.
Inside the penalty area, what striker would pass back to a midfielder?
On the other side, center-back Ibáñez watched Su Hang bearing down and immediately thought of sliding in to clear the ball.
But that carried a huge risk.
If Su Hang released the ball early, Ibáñez would certainly earn a card.
Not only could it mean a penalty, but Ibáñez already had a yellow.
One more and he'd be off.
Then Atlético would be finished.
That's the immense psychological weight a defender carries after getting booked.
In the end, Ibáñez held back.
He gambled his teammates would block Su Hang's shot.
He gambled Su Hang would miss.
He gambled Franco could save it.
Bang!
Su Hang pulled the trigger.
Luis Perea slid in a fraction too late.
In football, a fraction too late is as good as a mile.
By the time his tackle reached the spot, the ball was already gone.
Whoosh!
Franco threw himself at the point-blank shot, but Su Hang had aimed for the far corner.
Unless Franco's fingers grew another twenty centimeters, he had no chance.
The ball ripped into the net, sending Real Madrid's white shirts surging in celebration.
Su Hang spun and sprinted toward Zidane, Roberto Carlos, and the others.
"GOAL!"
"Two-one! Real Madrid are back in front!"
"Su Hang has once again drawn level with Torres on goals!"
"The two Spanish prodigies are trading blows!"
"Su Hang's breakthrough was razor-sharp—we've never seen him attack like that before."
"That knee-flick dribble is a classic Latin American move. But even among Brazilian players, it's rare nowadays."
"Who taught Su Hang this trick? Robinho? Ronaldo?"
Su Hang: Why not Rivaldo?
"Halftime whistle! Real Madrid lead Atlético Madrid 2-1 thanks to Su Hang's brace."
"That makes him the team's top scorer with six goals so far!"
"Atlético will have to figure out a way to contain him in the dressing room. They can't let him run riot like this again."
"They should mark him as tightly as they do Ronaldo."
...
The second half began.
Atlético did adjust, but not just to stop Su Hang.
They cranked up the physicality.
Faster, harder, more aggressive.
It was clear—they wanted a home win.
If Madrid's players weren't afraid of broken legs, they were welcome to try scoring again.
48th minute.
López clashed fiercely with Salgado, eventually taking him down.
Though he got the ball first, his follow-through smashed Salgado's ankle.
The referee booked López.
Madrid's medical staff rushed on, only to shake their heads.
Madrid were forced into a change.
Cicinho came on.
The foul added more fuel to the fire.
56th minute. Petrov grabbed Zidane again. Furious, Zidane hurled the ball away, spun, slapped Petrov's arm aside, and bumped him back with his chest.
When Zizou is calm, he's a saint. When angered, he's a demon.
Players swarmed together in confrontation.
If not for Su Hang calming Zidane, it could easily have erupted into a brawl.
Petrov was booked.
Zidane received a stern warning.
62nd minute.
Gabi came through the back of Figo, flooring him as he dribbled forward.
Another clash.
Gabi was shown yellow.
Atlético fans booed furiously.
Two scuffles, and only their players were carded.
This was their home turf!
What happened to the "home whistle"?
They muttered: just watch Barcelona games if you want to learn how to get it right.
The referee felt the pressure.
Even so, his calls had been spot on.
He'd actually been lenient—otherwise Atlético would already have two more yellows.
But with only Atlético players booked so far, it did look awkward.
68th minute.
The powder keg finally exploded.
A minute earlier, Sergio Ramos had muscled Kezman off the ball.
Kezman bided his time and, when standing face-to-face, drove an elbow into Ramos.
The two erupted instantly.
Both teams piled in.
No standoff this time—it was a full melee.
The referee blew his whistle frantically, but no one listened.
Only when Su Hang shoved players apart did order return.
He helped the referee regain control.
His authority over Real Madrid's players was immense.
When he said stop, they stopped.
And he also pushed Atlético players back, making sure Madrid's players weren't attacked while retreating.
Atlético's young captain, by contrast, looked powerless in the chaos.
This was leadership beyond skill.
Su Hang completely outshone Torres.
After things calmed, Madrid made protective substitutions.
Baptista replaced Raúl.
Guti came on for Figo.
Had there been more substitutions, Zidane would have been withdrawn too—injury risk was climbing fast.
In that clash, García was also booked.
76th minute.
Sergio Ramos retaliated with a heavy tackle on Kezman.
Yellow card.
But it was dangerous—on another day, it could've been red.
At tense moments like this, referees often punish harder.
Ramos was tempting fate.
81st minute.
Su Hang drifted wide on the right.
López assumed he'd drive down the line—he was right-footed after all.
But Su Hang feinted, cut inside with his left, nutmegged López cleanly, and burst into the center.
Humiliated, with tempers already running hot, López lost control.
He chased Su Hang and scythed him down from behind, trying to show who was boss.
Only then, seeing the referee's signal, did he realize—Su Hang was already inside the box!
Penalty!
The referee didn't exaggerate the call.
But López had already been booked earlier.
Two yellows became a red.
López was sent off.
Atlético were down to ten.
Zidane buried the penalty.
Three-one.
Atlético's hopes of victory were gone.