Chapter 255: Champions League Draw
I am stopping the translation of this. Refer to "Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime" to read 100 chapters ahead of this. Decision is final. Thank you.
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As the whistle blew, the Etihad Stadium erupted in cheers from Manchester City fans.
"We won!"
"We're in the semifinals!"
City fans were overjoyed, witnessing history unfold at their home stadium. However, Barcelona fans, who had traveled far to watch the game, were in tears of regret.
"If we had won at home, we could be the ones advancing right now!"
On the field, Messi stood still, hands on his hips, staring at the glaring score on the scoreboard. He didn't move for a long time.
Barcelona had lost, once again falling short in the Champions League. Last time, they fell in the semifinals, but this time, it was the quarterfinals. The results were getting worse year by year.
Thinking about this, Messi sighed and turned to look at the other half of the field.
There, Manchester City players were throwing their hero, Lin, into the air, celebrating wildly.
Iniesta approached Messi and patted him on the shoulder, comforting him, "Leo, don't be sad. We'll come back next year!"
Messi nodded, though doubt crept into his mind.
Barcelona's squad was aging, and with Xavi likely to retire next season, their strength would take another hit.
*Can we really come back next year?* For the first time, Messi questioned the future.
In the previous match, Xavi had already claimed Lin's jersey. This time, after the game, Fabregas was the first to approach Lin, asking to swap jerseys.
"Lin, congratulations!"
Fabregas handed over his shirt to Lin and struck up a conversation.
To be honest, Fabregas was a bit envious of Lin. During the winter transfer window, there had been rumors linking him to Manchester City, but the deal didn't go through. Instead, City signed De Bruyne and Kroos.
Had that transfer gone through, Fabregas thought he might now be celebrating with City instead of commiserating with Barcelona. But, alas, there was no "what if."
"Thank you. I wish you all the best in winning the league," Lin said as he quickly removed his shirt and exchanged it with Fabregas, offering his well-wishes.
"Haha, thanks. We'll need it."
Fabregas gave a bitter smile in response to Lin's blessing. Given Barcelona's current state, he wasn't optimistic about their chances of winning the league.
In the final match of the season, Barcelona would face Atlético Madrid, a team in superb form this season. Barcelona wasn't confident they could win.
Simeone's team, with its high-pressing style and ironclad defense, was a tough opponent for Barcelona. Under the pressure of being behind in the score, Barcelona would have to attack full force at home, but that might play right into Atlético's hands.
If Barcelona couldn't reverse the score before that final match, and were still trailing Atlético, they'd lose the title unless they won the final match.
Fabregas had experienced this kind of pressure several times during his time at Arsenal, and it was never easy.
...
At this match, Manchester City's owner, Sheikh Mansour, was present in the stadium.
From his private box, he watched with delight as his team knocked out Barcelona at home, making history by reaching the semifinals. Having invested so much money in the club, today he finally saw some payoff.
Feeling the need to share his joy on such a happy day, Mansour ordered his assistants to bring in several pre-prepared briefcases.
These briefcases were filled with cash—£5 million in total!
He planned to distribute this money as a bonus to the team for reaching the semifinals.
When City's players finished celebrating and returned to the locker room, they were greeted by the sight of mountains of cash.
"Whoa! Look at all that money!"
"Did someone rob a bank? Where did all this come from?"
"I wonder if anyone would notice if I sneakily took a little?"
Negredo, pretending to be sneaky, faced the group while subtly trying to grab some money behind his back.
"There's no security cameras here. As long as you can get past these dozen pairs of eyes, feel free to take as much as you want," said Kolarov, his eyes fixed on Negredo, making the striker uncomfortable.
"Hehe, just kidding! I'm an honest and good-natured guy. How could I ever do something like that?"
Negredo sheepishly put the money back, frustrated that he was wearing his uniform. *Who designed this cursed kit with no pockets? I couldn't hide the money even if I wanted to!*
Seeing Negredo clowning around, vice-captain Zabaleta playfully knocked him on the head, laughing as he said, "Knowing our boss, this must be a bonus from Sheikh Mansour, right?"
Zabaleta had been with Manchester City for six years, joining when the Middle Eastern ownership took over. He was well acquainted with their generous ways.
Bringing this much money could only mean one thing—the boss was handing out bonuses.
"A bonus? So we get to split it up?" The players' eyes lit up at the word "bonus."
"Pa-pa!"
At that moment, Pellegrini walked into the locker room.
"The bonus will be distributed based on everyone's contribution in these two games. Does that sound fair to everyone?"
Everyone glanced around and saw that the club's chairman, Al-Fahim, was standing next to Pellegrini. Clearly, this arrangement had been decided by him.
The players all nodded in agreement. They had no problem with performance-based bonuses. The more you contribute, the more you earn—simple and fair.
Thus, based on starting time, goals, assists, and overall performance in attack and defense, Pellegrini allocated the money accordingly.
Lin and other key players received the top tier: £300,000 each.
Non-starters who played in the games got the second tier: £100,000.
Lastly, players who didn't play at all received £50,000 each.
The remaining £1 million was divided among the coaching staff.
With the money distributed, everyone was in high spirits.
What a great reward! Some players even joked that they wished every game came with such bonuses, as they could nearly match their yearly salaries just from bonuses alone!
Of course, for high-earning players like Lin, who had a yearly salary of £20 million, these bonuses were relatively small.
"Alright, now that you've got your money, get some rest. The day after tomorrow, we're heading to Anfield for an away game, and I don't want to see any scandalous stories about any of you on tomorrow's headlines!"
After reminding the players, Pellegrini left the locker room.
The City players, mindful of their still-unsecured league title, listened. They knew they couldn't relax just yet. Only after defeating Liverpool away could they breathe easy.
After a quick shower and change of clothes in the locker room, Lin drove home.
On the way, he checked the score of another match.
At the Allianz Arena, Manchester United had been beaten 3-1 by Bayern Munich, eliminated with a 4-2 aggregate score.
Bayern dominated the game, securing a 2-0 lead by halftime. Robben added a third in the second half, stretching their lead to three goals.
In the 75th minute, Guardiola began subbing out key players like Robben and Ribéry, a move that felt like Bayern wasn't even taking United seriously.
Angered by this, United launched a desperate counterattack, finally scoring in the 85th minute.
But that was as far as their comeback went. They couldn't perform a miracle at the Allianz and were eliminated.
With that, United had lost on all four fronts this season.
They were out of the Champions League in the quarterfinals, sat seventh in the Premier League—seven points behind fourth-place Arsenal, all but ensuring they wouldn't be in next season's Champions League.
They had also been knocked out of the League Cup and FA Cup early, leaving United with nothing to show for the season.
Such results left both Manchester United fans and the club deeply dissatisfied, with rumors swirling that the countdown to manager David Moyes' departure had begun.
But if Moyes were to be sacked, who would replace him?
Whether they wanted to admit it or not, Ferguson's departure marked the end of an era for United.
If Moyes couldn't bring success, would anyone else be able to?
Lin wasn't optimistic about United's future. After all, in another timeline, United struggled for nearly a decade—and might not even be done struggling yet…
...
Manchester City's home-and-away victories over Barcelona shocked the football world!
Social media, TV networks, and newspapers were buzzing.
*The mighty Barcelona has fallen?*
"City's amazing! Beating Barcelona twice—unbelievable!"
"Haha, the media hyped up Barcelona's heritage and their 'unstoppable' team before the match. Now look at them—they've been humiliated!"
"Who would've thought a team that had never made it past the Champions League knockout stages could defeat Barcelona, a team with Messi, the world's best player!"
"But City has Lin, and he scored three goals over both legs—more than Messi!"
"Honestly, while Lin didn't completely dominate Messi, he definitely performed better in these matches."
"Messi didn't seem to be in good form. The post-match stats showed he only ran 6,000 meters in total. Isn't that a bit low?"
"Yeah, that's pretty low. Modern players, if they play the whole match, usually run around 9,000 or 10,000 meters."
"Maybe it's because Messi doesn't have defensive responsibilities, so he doesn't
run as much?"
"Or maybe Messi's stamina isn't great? He seems to walk around a lot during games."
"By the way, how far did Lin run? He was sprinting back and forth constantly—his distance must have been over 10,000 meters, right?"
"Over 10,000? Haha, add another 3,000 meters and you'd be closer!"
"13,000 meters of running? Could that stat be wrong? That's insane!"
"It's probably correct—I saw the same number."
"Lin's stamina is off the charts! He ran more than double the distance Messi did!"
"He's even more of a workhorse than Park Ji-sung!"
...
Before the two-leg series began, most pundits had favored traditional powerhouse Barcelona. But City's victories had silenced the doubters.
Their back-to-back wins over Barcelona proved that City's success wasn't a fluke—they had earned it.
If they hadn't been stronger than Barcelona, how could they have conquered the Nou Camp and then overwhelmed Barcelona at the Etihad?
After the match, even the most critical media outlets had no choice but to shower praise on Manchester City.
Especially the British press, which began flexing its usual muscle in hyping up their heroes.
*The Guardian*: "Manchester City eliminating Barcelona wasn't an upset. They seized their chances and won. We're witnessing the birth of a great team!"
*The Times*: "Full of ambition, courage, and hunger, Manchester City triumphed. Congratulations to them!"
This time, Messi couldn't save Barcelona—he looked more like a spectator, while Lin became Manchester's hero.
*BBC*: "Barcelona played in agony. If not for the woodwork, they would've been crushed by City in the first half. Manchester City's victory was a triumph of strength and tactics—they might have provided the blueprint for countering Barcelona's tiki-taka."
*El Mundo Deportivo*: "Defeat is always bitter, but Barcelona's season isn't over yet. They still have five league matches left. Let's hope they can recover from this loss, regain their form, and defend their title."
*Sport*: "Barcelona wasted too many chances at the Etihad. If they had a world-class forward to help Messi share the attacking burden, this match could have turned out very differently."
At the pre-match press conference, Martino had boldly declared that if Barcelona lost to City, he would resign.
Now that the game was over, several reporters brought up this issue to him.
Martino had originally intended to back up his boast with a win, but instead, it backfired. Now, confronted by the press, he was visibly uncomfortable and left the conference in frustration.
The next day, the media went after him, criticizing him for being overly conservative, arrogant, and out of touch.
They weren't entirely wrong. Barcelona's defeat was, in part, Martino's responsibility. His tactics, player management, and in-game adjustments had all fallen short.
Although his contract with Barcelona wasn't yet up, it seemed that if Barcelona didn't win the league, Martino would soon be packing his bags.
Whether he would leave voluntarily or be sacked with severance pay remained to be seen.
The day after City's victory over Barcelona, the remaining two Champions League quarterfinals took place.
At home, Real Madrid comfortably beat Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 to reach the semifinals.
Once again, Real Madrid's "£200 million attack duo" showed their power.
Bale, in particular, was unstoppable on the wings. His blistering speed left PSG's defenders reeling.
Bale scored in the 3rd minute, immediately putting PSG on the back foot. They now needed at least two goals to advance.
Led by Ibrahimović, PSG mounted a fierce counterattack, but Cristiano Ronaldo's 57th-minute goal sealed their fate, crushing any hope of a comeback.
In the end, PSG fell to the might of Real Madrid at the Bernabéu, and their Champions League run came to an end.
In the other match, Atlético Madrid showed incredible resilience at home.
With their fierce defense and relentless pressing, they stifled Borussia Dortmund's attack. In the second half, Diego Costa scored on a counterattack, netting the only goal over the two legs.
That lone goal was worth its weight in gold, as Atlético advanced to the semifinals.
After the match, Atlético's ironclad defense, crafted by Simeone, shocked all of Europe.
Few teams could shut down Dortmund's offense like that. Even giants like Real Madrid, Bayern, and Barcelona had struggled to do so.
But Atlético managed to keep a clean sheet over both legs, earning widespread praise for their defensive prowess.
No wonder Atlético were leading La Liga, having outpaced both Real Madrid and Barcelona. Their strength was undeniable!
After this match, Simeone and his Atlético squad gained widespread recognition across Europe, marking their rise to the ranks of elite teams.
Still, compared to City's victory over Barcelona, Atlético's buzz was relatively muted.
On April 11, after the final quarterfinal matches, the Champions League semifinal draw took place.
Following training that day, Pellegrini gathered the City players to watch the draw together at the club.
The first team drawn was Bayern Munich, and their opponent was Atlético Madrid.
Bayern's manager, Uli Hoeneß, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the draw, seemingly pleased with the outcome.
And it was understandable. Given the current form of Real Madrid, no one in Europe wanted to face them until absolutely necessary.
Bayern certainly didn't.
As for Manchester City, Bayern had already faced them in the group stages.
In their two group-stage meetings, Bayern had drawn one and lost one, gaining no advantage.
While Bayern wasn't necessarily weaker than City, they preferred to avoid facing them again.
Of the three potential opponents, Atlético was the most favorable.
With Atlético drawn against Bayern, it was clear that City's semifinal opponent would be none other than Real Madrid.
And, according to the schedule, City would play the first leg at home and the second away—a tough arrangement for them.
Upon seeing the draw, City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak's smile froze on his face.
On the other side, Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez didn't look particularly happy either.
*What is UEFA thinking? Just because there were rumors linking Lin with us, they drew us together?*
Still, the draw wasn't bad for Real Madrid. Out of the three possible opponents, City might have been the best option for them.
They definitely didn't want to face Atlético, and Bayern was their second least-favorite draw.
This season, Real had faced Atlético twice, drawing one and losing one. They had even lost the home game.
Simeone's Atlético was like a tough, unpleasant opponent, hard to break down.
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