It's like the difference between a first-in-command and a second-in-command.
The second-in-command often only needs to show their best side, so on the surface, they always seem to perform better than the one in charge.
But in reality, the first-in-command shoulders far more responsibility than the second—and none of it can be avoided.
Many second-in-commands end up performing far worse once they actually take the top position, even compared to the leaders they once thought looked mediocre.
Even if Su Hang could pass the test and take on the responsibility of being a lone-striker finisher, the team would inevitably shift its focus toward defense. The overall attacking flow and number of chances would drop sharply, and his personal statistics would decline instead.
High risk, low reward—there was no way Su Hang would agree to that.
Zidane wouldn't agree either.
As the team's core, its brain, a T0-tier midfielder, asking him to pass to just one person would be nothing short of strangling Zidane's ability and imagination.
Zidane even wished he had ten teammates in front of him—because no matter what, he could always deliver the ball to the most dangerous one and create goals.
For an ordinary midfielder, having ten passing options would drive them insane.
But for Zidane, it would drive the defenders insane!
Zidane was never a "win 1–0 and call it a day" type. To him, the only way to win was to score more goals than the opponent.
So he proposed a second option:
"Of course, there's another way—appropriately sacrificing Su Hang to maximize his strategic threat."
"Let him help create chances for others."
Wingers, attacking midfielders, and midfielders with top-tier stats would all benefit from this tactical approach.
The team's attacking patterns and goal sources would become far more diverse.
At their core, both approaches were built on the same foundation: Su Hang, as a center forward, possessing elite finishing ability.
Their weakness was also the same—when Su Hang performed poorly, the team would struggle to score.
The difference was responsibility.
In the first approach, Su Hang would have to live or die by his own output.
In the second, the blame could be shifted to others—after all, it was they who failed to finish.
For a moment, everyone's gaze turned to Su Hang.
Plan B clearly put Su Hang at a disadvantage. Given his status in the team and his current popularity, all it would take was a shake of his head and no one would dare ask him to play the supporting role.
And yet…
Su Hang nodded.
"For the team's progress, my personal gains and losses don't matter," Su Hang said righteously. "Football is a team game. When my teammates find form and their numbers improve, the team as a whole becomes stronger."
"You can't win championships by relying on one person."
As soon as Su Hang finished speaking, the entire meeting room burst into enthusiastic applause.
"Su is real, I'm actually crying!"
"This is Su—selfless as always!"
"From Crown Prince Su back then to Emperor Su now, Su's kindness has never changed!"
"Sacrificing himself to complete the whole team—Su deserves every honor Real Madrid can give!"
"No top striker would play the supporting role at their peak. Su is incredible!"
"Let's hope Su Hang's sacrifice truly awakens the whole team, or they'd be letting him down!"
With the assistant coaches already reacting like this, Capello naturally had no way to continue pushing his Plan A.
Even so, he couldn't help feeling a little regret.
After the meeting, Su Hang and Zidane left together.
"You really surprised me," Zidane said quietly as they walked side by side. "Very few people know how to step back at the height of success. Most get blinded by temporary glory and lose their judgment."
Su Hang shrugged.
"The lesson is right there in front of us. I don't want to become the next Ronaldo."
"These frequent minor injuries have already been a warning for me."
"I don't think my physique is worse than other players', but I have to face the trouble injuries bring."
"Even if it comes down to a knife fight, there's no need to draw blood this early. I don't want to miss a single important match at the end of the season."
Injuries are as fierce as tigers.
Some people might think Su Hang's injury frequency lately has been a bit high.
But to be fair, anyone who watches football regularly knows that Su Hang already counts as ironman-level durable.
In a full year, how many matches has Su Hang played?
And in almost every one of them, he was the core—often fighting tough battles.
For a player like him, missing two or three months a year due to injury isn't excessive at all.
And once a serious injury hits, being sidelined for half a season—or even an entire season—is extremely common.
Maybe Messi and Ronaldo in the future spoiled fans, or perhaps they reshaped how fans perceive things.
Before them or after them, there were almost no superstars who could maintain peak form for more than five years.
Let alone fifteen.
To reduce the risk of injury as much as possible, Su Hang and Zidane came up with this plan.
Help teammates improve their form and stats, thereby sharing the defensive pressure Su Hang faces.
Normally, players who take on this kind of supporting role see their numbers plummet dramatically.
Even scoring double digits in a single season becomes difficult.
But Su Hang dared to do it because—he had Zidane.
With Zidane's ability, as long as he was willing to help Su Hang pad his numbers, selecting the best few chances out of dozens in a match and giving them to Su Hang, Su Hang's stats wouldn't drop by much.
So Su Hang's sacrifice was far smaller than people imagined.
This move was essentially an even trade between Su Hang and his teammates.
They helped share his pressure; he gave up part of his ball control and stats.
Perfectly fair.
Only those who didn't know the inside story would think Su Hang took a huge loss and feel bad for him.
And that—
was the power of a "midfield dad."
Zidane: Oh? Now you know to call me dad?
...
Since Su Hang's sacrifice looked so massive on the surface,
it wasn't hard to imagine how shocked the players were when Capello announced the decision internally.
When Su Hang said, "I hope this helps more teammates find better form," Van Nistelrooy's eyes immediately turned red.
It was a stark contrast to what he had experienced at Manchester United.
Cristiano Ronaldo—take a good look at how Su Hang does things.
If you had even one-third of my magnanimity, I could have conquered cities and taken fortresses for you!
Cristiano Ronaldo: Sigh… getting fooled and still helping count the money. If I had even one-third of Su Hang's way with words, who else could possibly be the fourth-generation King of Football?
Su Hang: "Master Su Teaches You How to Speak" is now open! Only 998—take the art of language home with you! @CristianoRonaldo
September 26th.
The Bernabéu was roaring.
They welcomed the second round of the Champions League.
At home, against Dynamo Kyiv.
This was also Su Hang's first Champions League match of the season.
After the defeat to Lyon, Real Madrid fans were desperate for a Champions League victory to support them in the battle of public opinion.
Otherwise, when bragging—no, telling the truth—to fans of other clubs, they just wouldn't feel confident enough.