In the end, Simon's violent outburst was stopped by security.
After the match, the Spanish Football Association announced its punishment for Simon:
A €30,000 fine.
A one-match suspension.
Soon after, Real Madrid announced that the club would cover the fine.
Simon's actions won him strong support from Real Madrid fans.
Naturally, the Sport reporter became a hero in the eyes of Barcelona fans.
They even went out of their way to make excuses for him.
It was clearly a crude personal attack on Su Hang—launched while Su Hang was suffering the immense pain of a career-ending injury.
Yet Barcelona fans somehow spun it into the reporter "helping Barça secure their advantage in the league and Copa del Rey," using off-field tactics to interfere with Real Madrid and make them drop points—calling it a "footballing act."
That spin was cleaner than anything a washing machine could manage.
Not long after, the Spanish Football Association also punished the reporter. Given the severity of his attack on a player, he was ordered to stop all football-related work for six months.
Simon's one-match suspension might cost Real Madrid three points.
And those three points were equivalent to half a year of work for an ordinary person.
Very reasonable.
In fact, the reporter arguably even came out ahead.
But… during his unemployment, Barcelona certainly wouldn't cover his financial losses.
Otherwise, Barcelona might also face joint punishment from the Spanish Football Association.
After all, that would elevate the matter from an individual's actions to club-level behavior.
For a giant club, no matter what, kicking someone while they're down—especially when a player has suffered a major injury—is unacceptable.
It would chill the hearts of all players.
...
May 1st, Italy, San Siro Stadium.
A miracle bloomed.
AC Milan's Kaka scored twice and assisted once, completely dominating the match!
He led his team to a 3–1 comeback win over Liverpool, advancing to the Champions League final with a 4–3 aggregate victory!
Vengeance, complete.
Two years earlier, in Istanbul, AC Milan had been forever nailed to the pillar of shame by Liverpool.
Two years later, at San Siro, Kaka washed away Milan's pain with Liverpool's tears.
As the Rossoneri prodigy pointed both hands toward the sky, the name of another era's protagonist emerged.
The old heavens have fallen; the new heavens rise.
With Su Hang nearing retirement, who would succeed him—Cristiano Ronaldo, or Kaka?
Kicker: "Cristiano Ronaldo or Kaka! This year's Champions League winner will define the next decade of football!"
Bild: "This Champions League final carries extraordinary significance! Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka may become football's peerless duo of the era!"
Sky Sports: "Cristiano Ronaldo is the next world's best forward after Ronaldo and Su Hang!"
La Gazzetta dello Sport: "Kaka is the next king of midfield after Zidane's retirement!"
France Football: "Thankfully Calderón went back on his word—otherwise Real Madrid would have assembled a terrifying lineup of Su Hang, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kaka this season!"
The Dürren Global Post went even further, publishing two images.
The first showed former Real Madrid coach Capello, titled: "The Fake Capello."
The second was a composite poster of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka in Real Madrid kits, titled: "The Real Capello: Kaka + Ronaldo."
The paper claimed that if the "Capello" Calderón promised at the start of the season had truly been Kaka and Ronaldo together, players like Zidane and Su Hang would never have suffered serious injuries from overwork.
Calderón was left with a splitting headache.
However, the very next day, all of Europe's attention abruptly shifted away from Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka.
Because in the starting lineup Simon announced for Real Madrid's Champions League semifinal second leg, the name "Su Hang" appeared in plain sight.
What?
The entire world was stunned.
Had Simon made a mistake?
Was this the cast list for a "Su Hang retirement ceremony"?
How could this possibly be the squad list for Real Madrid's home match against Manchester United?
Wasn't Su Hang supposed to be unable to play football ever again?
The entire world waited for Simon to revise the lineup.
Instead, Real Madrid held a press conference to explain Su Hang's injury situation. Simon accepted questions and firmly confirmed his decision.
"Yes, that's right. When I learned that Su was coming back, my reaction was exactly the same as yours."
"But this is Su Hang's decision."
"This is football."
"There are always things that happen beyond our imagination."
"And that's exactly what Su Hang has always brought us over these past years."
Reporter: "But isn't Su Hang unable to play anymore? His injury was extremely serious!"
Simon: "In fact, Su's injury is indeed serious—but the seriousness lies in the aftereffects. That means the risk of another major injury is extremely high, and if that happens, the damage would be irreversible."
"But for this one appearance, after more than ten days of conservative treatment and modern rehabilitation, he has returned to his normal condition."
"Moreover, Su Hang worked closely with a specialized international medical team, using a combination of advanced therapy and recovery methods to keep his condition under control."
"It's believed that before the end of this season, Su Hang can still compete in relatively good condition, without a major risk of serious injury."
The media present were completely dumbfounded.
Is this real?
Some outlets immediately voiced opposition: "This sounds irresponsible! No medical approach can eliminate such risks entirely! Instead of gambling on his body, Su Hang should focus on long-term health!"
Simon spread his hands. "I can't speak for their opinions. But according to Su Hang's latest medical report… he's as strong as an ox."
Despite Simon's repeated explanations, many European media outlets still refused to believe it.
Even when Real Madrid released Su Hang's medical data, they insisted it was fake.
After all, in the unified portrayal of Western public opinion, any narrative that contradicted their expectations was quickly dismissed as unreliable or fabricated.
Mundo Deportivo strongly condemned Su Hang's inclusion: "Real Madrid are far too selfish! Just to put pressure on Manchester United, they completely disregard Su Hang's life!"
Sport went even further, attacking Su Hang directly: "Su Hang has always been like this. He knows exactly how to maximize attention! He wants to play the lone hero, but he doesn't realize he's harming himself. He'll die on the pitch!"
It was hard to see even a trace of goodwill toward Su Hang from these two outlets.
Their condemnation sounded almost as if they genuinely hoped Su Hang would die on the field.
In the end, UEFA intervened before the match and demanded that Real Madrid submit detailed medical data on Su Hang.
After verification, Su Hang was approved to play.
This wasn't some minor matter like getting an injection. Given Su Hang's popularity and the attention surrounding him, if anything went wrong on the pitch, UEFA would absolutely bear responsibility.
So they followed every required procedure.
Including doping tests—anything that could be done, they did.
And through every step, Su Hang showed no problems at all.
Before the match, everyone was talking about it—but no one was optimistic about Su Hang.
His injury was one reason.
Cech had been so shaken by Su Hang's injury that he rested for an entire month.
As someone who experienced it firsthand, Su Hang couldn't possibly have recovered physically or mentally that quickly.
On top of that, all the pre-match examinations alone would significantly affect Su Hang's condition.
...
Outside the Bernabéu Stadium, as Real Madrid's team bus slowly pushed its way through the sea of fans and entered the stadium, the crowd erupted into madness.
Simon, Zidane, Beckham, Raúl—all of them turned their eyes toward Su Hang.
Everything seemed to be saying:
Welcome the Dragon King back to his throne.
...
(Full Series)
p@treon com / GhostParser