Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime

Chapter 516: Lin Quan Surveys Real Madrid's Defense—Manchester City 4:2 Real Madrid!

"Interesting!"

Pep Guardiola was intrigued by Real Madrid's tactics. James Rodríguez was a double-edged sword—capable of hurting both the opponent and his own team.

However, Guardiola was even more interested in Zidane's decision to modify Gareth Bale's role.

After Bale suffered several injuries, Zidane seemed to push him into a deeper, box-to-box midfield role.

The advantage of this move was that it strengthened Real Madrid's ability to launch attacks from the center. The downside was that it weakened their wing play.

But in this match, Bale's performance wasn't affected by this change.

In fact, from his deeper position, Bale was able to accelerate more unpredictably, making several threatening runs down the wing.

While many fans felt Bale's £100 million transfer fee was too high, few would call him a flop.

Bale was one of the finest wingers of his generation. His power, speed, and shooting skills made him one of the best in the game.

Since the 2010-2011 season, Bale had established himself as one of Europe's elite wingers.

That year, during a match at the San Siro, when Tottenham were trailing 0-3 to defending champions Inter Milan, Bale, originally a left-back, pulled off a stunning solo run, tearing apart Maicon—who was considered one of the best right-backs in the world at the time—and scored a hat trick, almost single-handedly turning the game around for Spurs.

In the return leg at White Hart Lane, once again led by Bale, Tottenham launched a ferocious attack that ultimately knocked Inter out of the competition.

It was that season when Real Madrid took notice of Bale and began long negotiations with Tottenham to sign him.

If it hadn't been for Lin Quan's meteoric rise, Real Madrid wouldn't have thought twice about Bale's price tag, even at £100 million.

But with Lin Quan's emergence, they began to feel that maybe they overpaid for Bale when they could've spent the same amount on someone even better.

However, Bale and Lin Quan were not the same type of players. While they both played on the wing, their styles were completely different.

James Rodríguez's introduction appeared to have reinvigorated both Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, providing them with more opportunities to score.

But the real threat for Real Madrid was actually Bale!

Bale had been conserving his energy, quietly waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Zidane's true intentions were hard to read, though. Most people only noticed Real Madrid's relentless attacks, as Benzema and Ronaldo kept getting chances to shoot, constantly putting pressure on Manchester City's goal.

"Time is running out! If Real Madrid can't score soon to equalize, they are at risk of losing this final!"

In the commentary box, the Spanish commentator's tone grew more urgent.

With stoppage time included, Real Madrid had no more than ten minutes left.

Every second they wasted brought them closer to defeat.

Real Madrid's players were also growing desperate. Ronaldo, Benzema, and Luka Modrić were all throwing everything into their attacks.

But Manchester City boasted the strongest defense in the Premier League, and against such a solid wall, Real Madrid struggled to find a way through.

"The game is almost over. If they can hold on for a few more minutes, Manchester City will win!"

On Sky Sports, commentator Andy Gray's voice was shaky, his palms sweating from the tension.

Gray wasn't originally a Manchester City fan, but he had gradually fallen in love with the team because of Lin Quan and had become a die-hard supporter.

As he watched Real Madrid launch wave after wave of attacks on City's defense, his heart was in his throat, fearing the team might slip up at the last minute.

Manchester City's defense was pushed deep into their own half, but they had no intention of parking the bus.

They were still waiting for an opportunity to counterattack!

In the 89th minute, N'Golo Kanté intercepted the ball from James Rodríguez, allowing Manchester City to transition from defense to attack.

The three City players positioned up front raced forward like three sharp blades, sprinting down the left, center, and right flanks.

Kanté wasted no time and passed the ball to Kevin De Bruyne, knowing that only De Bruyne had the skill to accurately deliver the ball to City's attacking trio in such a high-pressure situation.

De Bruyne had once said, "If my pass isn't easy for you to control, it wasn't meant for you."

In other words, he had the ability to deliver pinpoint passes that made it easy for his teammates to receive the ball.

"Stop him! Don't let him pass the ball!"

Real Madrid knew full well how dangerous De Bruyne could be. As they tracked back, Sergio Ramos shouted to his teammates, urging them to close down De Bruyne and stop him from making the pass.

Casemiro, the closest defender to De Bruyne, gritted his teeth. Despite having already received a yellow card earlier, he took the risk of a second yellow and charged at De Bruyne, determined to take him down and stop the counterattack.

De Bruyne saw Casemiro closing in, but there was no way to avoid him.

If he didn't get the ball out in time, even if he managed to evade Casemiro's challenge, the opportunity for a quick counterattack would be lost.

De Bruyne made his decision—he wouldn't dodge. Just before Casemiro collided with him, De Bruyne made the pass.

In moments of danger, people trust those they rely on the most.

Although there were three teammates up front, De Bruyne didn't pass to David Silva, who was open, or to Sergio Agüero, who was in the best position to score.

Instead, he passed the ball to Lin Quan.

He did this because he believed that if anyone could make something happen, it was Lin Quan!

Lin Quan was a little surprised that De Bruyne passed the ball to him, as his position wasn't ideal.

Real Madrid's last defender, Pepe, was right in front of him, and Ramos had already caught up, closing in on Lin Quan the moment he received the ball. Together, they formed a double-team.

To make matters worse, Real Madrid's full-back, Danilo, also joined in.

Danilo had been subbed on in the second half and, despite making several long runs up and down the pitch, still had plenty of energy. He was the first Real Madrid player to track back and help defend.

Seeing Lin Quan about to be surrounded, Manchester City fans in the stands were on the verge of panic!

But they couldn't blame De Bruyne. Just managing to make the pass under that kind of pressure was impressive enough.

"If this counterattack doesn't work, at least waste as much time as possible!"

City's fans quickly lowered their expectations. Sure, a quick counterattack would've been great, but if that wasn't possible, the least they could do was hold onto the ball and run down the clock.

There was only one minute left of regular time, and the assistant referee had just announced four minutes of stoppage time.

Including the four minutes, Manchester City only needed to hold out for five more minutes to lift the Champions League trophy once again!

It was as if Lin Quan had heard the fans' thoughts.

He suddenly slowed down, seemingly giving up on advancing the ball forward and preparing to pass it back to a teammate.

Everyone knew Manchester City's passing game was exceptional. If Lin Quan managed to pass the ball back, City could just keep possession and run out the clock.

Seeing this, Danilo stopped in his tracks, thinking he could intercept the pass and stop City from playing keep-away.

But his clever plan soon backfired.

Lin Quan had never intended to pass the ball back.

Instead, he took advantage of Danilo's hesitation and burst down the wing.

With both Pepe and Ramos positioned centrally, and Danilo out of position, Real Madrid's flank was left wide open.

They had no way to stop Lin Quan.

The space on the wing was too vast, and the risk of getting beaten by Lin Quan was too high.

Pepe and Ramos couldn't afford to step out and leave their positions, as doing so would leave gaps that City could exploit.

So, they chose to backpedal, trying to maintain a safe distance from Lin Quan and block his path to cut inside and shoot.

While this gave Lin Quan room to run toward the byline for a cross, allowing him to cross was far better than letting him cut inside and shoot.

Although Danilo had been left behind, he was fast and still had plenty of energy.

If they could stall for a few more seconds, Danilo would catch up and help them contain Lin Quan on the flank, ending City's counterattack.

But as the saying goes, "Plans are great in theory, but reality often has other ideas."

Lin Quan didn't follow their script.

In his eyes, there was another option: taking on Real Madrid's entire defense!

"Wait, what is Lin doing? He's not running to the byline—he's cutting inside! Is he planning to take on the whole Real Madrid defense?"

Commentators from various countries gasped as they realized Lin Quan's decision:

"He's crazy! Absolutely crazy!"

But when Lin Quan was the one making such decisions, despite calling him crazy, there was also a sense of anticipation:

Could Lin Quan actually pull this off?

"He actually thinks he can beat all of us!"

Seeing Lin Quan cut inside and drive toward them, Ramos felt a jolt of alarm.

Does he really think so little of us that he believes he can take on our entire defense?

Unbelievable!

Both Pepe and Ramos were furious.

They were already embarrassed by the earlier mistake on the wing.

If Lin Quan succeeded again, they might as well throw in the towel and call it quits!

With both defenders holding their ground, Lin Quan knew charging straight at them would get him stopped.

So instead, he pushed the ball horizontally, dribbling along the edge of the penalty area from right to left.

This movement put the Real Madrid defenders in a tough spot. Since they were facing Lin Quan, they couldn't move sideways as quickly as he could while moving toward the goal.

If they didn't do something soon, Lin Quan would slip right past them!

Pepe was the first to act, using both his legs and hands.

He stuck out his left leg to try and knock the ball away, while also reaching out to grab Lin Quan's arm.

Even if he couldn't kick the ball, he'd at least disrupt Lin Quan's balance and throw off his rhythm.

Meanwhile, Ramos stepped up to block Lin Quan's path, hoping to force him into a trap!

The two defenders had made the most logical move given the situation, but their plan failed.

Just before Pepe could intervene, Lin Quan nudged the ball out of reach and shifted his body weight.

Pepe's grab barely affected him, and Lin Quan maintained his balance.

As for Ramos, Lin Quan made a bold decision.

The moment Ramos stepped forward, Lin Quan poked the ball through his legs, nutmegging him!

Ramos had just taken a step, and his balance was still shifting from right to left.

Even though he realized what Lin Quan had done, there was nothing he could do—he couldn't react fast enough.

All he could do was watch as the ball slipped through his legs!

However, Ramos did manage to slow Lin Quan down for a moment.

The ball had left Lin Quan's feet for the first time, rolling more than a meter away from him!

This was a golden opportunity for Real Madrid's left-back, Marcelo!

Initially, Marcelo had been terrified as he watched his two teammates get beaten so easily, thinking he'd be next.

But then Lin Quan "lost control" of the ball.

Overjoyed, Marcelo swung his leg to clear the ball away!

There was a loud thud as Marcelo breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, he had cleared the danger. No need to worry about getting embarrassed by Lin Quan anymore!

Wait... where's the ball?

Why can't I see the ball I supposedly cleared?

And why did the thing I kicked feel... not like a ball at all?

Looking closer, Marcelo realized he hadn't kicked the ball at all—he'd kicked Lin Quan's leg!

The ball had already been poked away by Lin Quan!

Damn it! Am I getting a red card for this?

That was Marcelo's first thought.

The referee had seen the tackle, and his whistle was already in his mouth, ready to blow for a foul and brandish a card.

But just as the referee was about to blow his whistle, a white blur flew past.

The ball rocketed toward the goal, narrowly missing the goalkeeper's outstretched gloves, smacked against the underside of the crossbar, and bounced into the net.

The ball was in, and Lin Quan was down.

For a moment, the entire stadium fell silent as both sets of fans were left in stunned disbelief.

(End of Chapter)

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