Chapter 271: Diving and Penalty
With a sudden jolt, Guardiola stood up, his face tense as he watched the field.
Sharing the same feelings was Spain's national team coach, Bosque, who was also present at the scene.
Less than two months remained until the World Cup opening. As Spain's absolute core player, if Lin Quan were injured, how could Spain continue?
On Manchester City's bench, Pellegrini was feeling the same.
Lin Quan was also the core of Manchester City. If he had to leave the field due to injury, their attacking system would collapse, and there would be no chance of a comeback in this game.
"He's really giving it his all!"
On the Real Madrid bench, seeing Lin Quan being tackled and the ball rolling into the Real Madrid goal, Ancelotti couldn't help but sigh.
Players as determined as Lin Quan on the field had been rare for a long time!
The Real Madrid fans who had been booing Lin Quan all along now fell silent.
Though they were opponents, the spirit and effort shown by the opponent moved them, making it impossible to continue booing Lin Quan.
"Ah, this guy, good-looking, talented, and with great skills, yet he's also so determined. It's a pity he's not with our Real Madrid!"
"Yeah, if Lin had joined Real Madrid last year, forget about this year's Champions League, we would have had the capability to chase it for the next ten years!"
In the Manchester City penalty area, after all the shouting from his diving and wailing, Di María got up as if nothing had happened and then witnessed his captain tackle Lin Quan.
Even though it was almost across the entire pitch, seeing that impactful scene still made Di María's heart skip a beat.
If it were him who got tackled like that, he felt his leg would have been broken!
On the field, Manchester City players rushed towards Lin Quan, concerned about his injury.
Manchester City's team doctor quickly came on to examine Lin Quan's condition.
Lin Quan clenched his teeth, sweating profusely from the pain on his forehead.
Casillas had kicked him squarely in the frontal bone with the ball. He felt like he might faint from the pain.
Fortunately, his innate immunity to injury prevented him from being seriously hurt, leaving only intense pain. Otherwise, the consequences wouldn't have been so simple!
Manchester City's medical team initially thought Lin Quan had suffered a serious injury. However, after examining him, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Lin Quan's injury was much milder than they had imagined.
Thinking back to similar situations Lin Quan had faced in previous matches, they could only attribute it to his extraordinary natural gifts; they couldn't find any other reason.
Just like how some people are naturally injury-prone while others rarely get hurt, this was related to his physique!
Despite making this judgment, they still didn't dare to be careless and planned to carry Lin Quan off on a stretcher for further observation and to administer anti-inflammatory treatment.
On the sideline, Pellegrini called Negredo over, preparing to substitute Lin Quan.
However, at that moment, he saw Lin Quan limping to his feet, rejecting the team doctor's suggestion to rest on the sideline.
He gestured to Pellegrini, indicating he could continue to endure and play.
Pellegrini hesitated for a moment, glanced at the scoreboard, nodded at Lin Quan, and signaled that if he couldn't hold on, they would make a substitution immediately.
Seeing Lin Quan stand up and choose to continue fighting, the Manchester City fans who had come to the away game collectively rose and gave Lin Quan warm applause.
"Lin, you don't have to push yourself so hard. It's okay to lose..."
"Yeah, Lin, take care of your body first!"
"Sigh, so moved. What have we done to deserve such a dedicated player at Manchester City?"
"It's not just about dedication; if Lin Quan continues to play like this, he'll definitely become a spiritual totem for Manchester City!"
Seeing Lin Quan limping towards the center circle to restart the game, sporadic applause also rose from the Real Madrid fans.
Although Lin Quan's goal had brought a sense of danger, their opponent's tenacious fighting spirit and determination still earned their admiration.
"Lin, are you sure your injury is okay?"
Passing by the Real Madrid half, Xavi Alonso asked with concern.
Though they were opponents in this match, they were teammates in the national team.
Xavi Alonso was worried that Lin Quan's insistence on playing with an injury might worsen his own condition, affecting his participation in the World Cup.
"I'm fine, it's just a knock, a bit painful but I'll be fine after a rest!"
Xavi Alonso took a look. From the outside, there didn't seem to be any obvious signs of injury, but he hoped what Lin Quan said was true!
Lin Quan's goal had changed the score to 2:1, leveling the aggregate score at 4:4.
This score still gave Real Madrid a slight advantage because they had one more away goal than Manchester City.
If this score held until the final whistle, Real Madrid would still advance.
However, this was the Bernabéu, and how could Real Madrid settle for just a draw?
There was no reason for that!
Therefore, after the restart, Real Madrid once again launched a fierce attack against Manchester City.
Di María, despite his penchant for diving, is still highly skilled.
With Modrić frozen out, Real Madrid relied on the overlapping runs of their two full-backs to attack forcefully down both wings.
During these moments, Di María frequently collaborated with the wide players, providing them with firepower support, and pulling away central defenders, thereby creating space for teammates to make penetrating runs.
In the 81st minute, Di María dribbled past defenders and forcefully shot on target, only to be intercepted by Joe Hart.
Two minutes later, in nearly the same position, the Argentine again made a move, but this time opted to pass to a teammate.
Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema were signaling for the ball, with Benzema in a slightly better position.
However, Di María chose to pass to Ronaldo, after all, who could argue with the team's leader?
Ronaldo, feeling a bit rushed, blasted the ball into the stands, leaving Di María rolling his eyes.
He thought, "I should have passed to Benzema!"
Seeing Ronaldo's decision, Benzema lowered his hand in resignation.
In a team hierarchy, if you don't assert yourself, you'll never rise to the top, unless you can outlast these big names.
But he's only two years younger than Ronaldo and even older than Bale, so relying on longevity isn't a feasible strategy.
Forget it, with my current level, I'd better just be a supporting player. If I want to lead, I might have to move to a mid-table team.
It's better to stay at Real Madrid than go to a mid-table team; after all, with Real Madrid, you win more and achieving results is easier. With this squad, as long as there are no major changes, we can challenge for the Champions League many times in the next few years!
Seeing Di María so active, Yaya Touré began to increase his defensive focus on him.
But the Argentine slipped away like an eel, having come on only in the second half, his physical condition was better than Yaya Touré's.
So, instead of engaging with Yaya Touré directly, Di María opted for quick passes or quick receptions while on the move, quickly distributing the ball.
This constant movement and positional changes made Yaya Touré's defense very difficult.
If this had been the first half, Yaya Touré could have easily marked Di María, but it was now the 80-plus minutes, and he was really feeling exhausted!
Di María keenly observed this. In the 87th minute, he pretended to retreat, tricking Yaya Touré into following him, then suddenly accelerated, leaving Yaya Touré behind and turned back.
At the same time, the ball came to a teammate.
Yaya Touré was a step slower and couldn't keep up with Di María, who took advantage of the situation to enter the penalty area.
Demichelis rushed over to intercept Di María, but Di María dribbled past him.
Di María's shot was a bit exaggerated, and the ball was slightly out of his control. Just as he felt he had messed up, he felt someone tug at him from behind and immediately screamed and fell to the ground.
Whistle!
The referee pointed to the penalty spot.
Demichelis felt very wronged. He had only turned around and brushed against Di María, who exaggeratedly fell as if hit by a heavy hammer.
This was a dive!
The referee couldn't see it clearly, and coupled with Di María's exaggerated cry, he ignored Demichelis' appeals and insisted on his decision.
Ronaldo didn't care about all that. He came to the penalty spot with the ball, ready to take the penalty.
He was Real Madrid's number one penalty taker, and although Di María had created this penalty, he wasn't qualified to take it.
Di María was pulled up by his teammates and retreated outside the penalty area, looking somewhat resentfully at Ronaldo.
"I created this penalty, why can't I take it? I haven't scored in this game yet!"
Ronaldo didn't care. He hadn't scored either and needed a penalty goal to boost his confidence.
Besides, I'm competing with Lin Quan for the Champions League Golden Boot. What's it to you?
How many goals have you scored?
Ronaldo was already one goal behind Lin Quan. In this game, Lin Quan had scored again, widening the gap to two goals between them.
Seeing that there were only a few games left in the Champions League, if he couldn't close the gap as much as possible in this match, it would be difficult to catch up with Lin Quan in the final.
Throughout history, finals have been conservative affairs, driven by the allure of the trophy. Scorelines tend not to be exaggerated, unlike the Istanbul Miracle, where six goals were scored in a final, a rare event in Champions League history in decades.
If Ronaldo scored this penalty, he could narrow the gap to just one goal.
That way, if I score another goal in the final, I can catch up with Lin Quan.
As for overtaking Lin Quan, it looks difficult at the moment, and hopes are slim!
Joe Hart bounced around in front of the goal, trying to unsettle Ronaldo and apply psychological pressure.
But Ronaldo had a big heart; his penalty success rate was very high.
So, in their duel, poor Joe Hart was completely fooled. After seeing Ronaldo's steps, he judged that Ronaldo would shoot to the top left corner, only to find after diving that Ronaldo had shot straight down the middle.
If he hadn't dived, he could have stood still and still stopped it.
You could say Ronaldo has both skill and nerve!
After scoring this goal, Ronaldo ran to the sideline, leapt high, and struck his iconic celebration pose.
In the previous match at the Etihad Stadium, his celebration was met with a chorus of boos from the Manchester City fans.
But this time, at the Bernabéu, he received enthusiastic applause and cheers from over 80,000 spectators.
Yeah, that's the feeling!
That feeling of being in the spotlight, the center of attention, with everyone cheering for me!
Ronaldo really enjoys this feeling!
Real Madrid's players rushed towards Ronaldo, excitedly embracing him.
Ronaldo's goal changed the score to 3-1. With just a few minutes left in the game, you could say Real Madrid had one foot in the final.
Manchester City's players looked disheartened. Conceding a goal at this point was a heavy blow to their morale.
Everyone's energy levels were severely depleted. At this moment, they were hanging on by a thread, but Real Madrid's goal was like a pin deflating their spirit.
"No worries, we just need one goal!"
Lin Quan retrieved the ball from the goal and walked over, comforting his teammates:
"Even if they don't score again, we still need to score at least one goal. And now that they've scored, we just need one goal!"
Upon hearing Lin Quan's words, Manchester City players' eyes lit up.
Yes!
If they score another goal, they'll equalize on away goals with Real Madrid.
Then it'll be extra time!
Before Real Madrid scored this goal, if Manchester City scores again, they could advance to the final on away goals.
But after Real Madrid scored, if Manchester City scores again, they can only equalize the gap between the two teams, and both sides will have to play extra time or even a penalty shootout!
Thinking of this, Manchester City players instantly regained their morale, each one reigniting their fighting spirit!
Real Madrid has nothing to fear; let's compete with them!
As the game restarted, Real Madrid's players were still immersed in joy, but suddenly they noticed the Manchester City players across from them, eyes red, charging towards them like enraged bulls!
Although Pellegrini's substitutions were criticized by Guardiola, taking off Kroos deprived Manchester City of their midfield organizer and threat from long passes.
Although De Bruyne had good passing ability, he played too high up the field and was easily restricted.
This was why Manchester City's second-half attack lacked threat and had to rely on Lin Quan's individual skills to create opportunities.
But Fernandinho's addition hardened Manchester City's midfield.
Once he adapted to the game's pace, he and Yaya Touré formed a strong defensive duo, shutting down almost all of Real Madrid's attacks from the center.
In the 89th minute, seeing Angel Di María sticking too close to the ball, Fernandinho decisively stepped in and, with his teammates' support, wrested the ball away from Di María.
Nearby, Real Madrid players immediately pressed him, wanting to regain possession and stop Manchester City's counterattack.
Fernandinho only had time to glance in Lin Quan's direction before kicking the ball forward with all his might!
Go, Lin!
This pass was similar to Manchester City's aerial bombardment tactics against Barcelona, kicking the ball from the back to find their forwards in the front.
Real Madrid had obviously watched that game, so seeing Manchester City play this way surprised them all.
If Lin Quan gets the ball, the defense line is in danger!
Absolutely cannot give him the chance to receive the ball!
This was the consensus in the hearts of almost all Real Madrid defenders at that moment!
(End of this chapter)
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