章 730: Same Intentions
In the end, the Galactic ship secured a 1-1 draw at the Calderón Stadium. Ancelotti was relatively satisfied with this result. Getting one point and no injuries was a decent outcome.
Simeone, on the other hand, believed that the team had done well for the first 70 minutes, but the transition from deadlock to leading caused a subtle change in the players' mentality. At present, the Bed Sheet Legion still couldn't handle it well.
In the next match, the 8th round of the league, Real Madrid secured a 3-0 victory at home against Levante.
In this game, Wang Feng continued to spare no effort to create goal-scoring opportunities for Iguaín, the Argentine striker. Iguaín didn't waste his efforts and scored twice.
So far, he had scored 8 goals, averaging one per game, a statistic that ranked among the top in the top five leagues.
However, Iguaín was not the top scorer in La Liga. Currently occupying that position was Barcelona forward Suarez, who had already scored 10 goals.
This "anomaly" quickly attracted the attention of the media and fans because most of the time, the top two positions in the scoring charts would be dominated by Wang Feng and Messi.
Both of them had always been the top scorers for Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively, bearing the responsibility of scoring goals. However, in the new season, their goal-scoring statistics had plummeted.
The Chinese superstar had managed to score 4 goals, while the Argentine star had only scored 1 goal. However, Messi led Wang Feng in assists, with 6 compared to Wang Feng's 4.
Many people speculated whether their decrease in goal-scoring efficiency was due to a decrease in the number of shots. Comparing their number of shots with the previous season, it could be seen that Wang Feng and Messi's threat on goal had significantly decreased.
They both harbored the same intentions: to help their teammates compete for the Golden Boot!
"Things are getting interesting, aren't they?" Wang Feng saw Iguaín looking somewhat troubled and couldn't help but console him, "Gonzalo, trust me, I've never lost in the race for the top scorer, and this time won't be an exception."
Iguaín shook his head and said, "Of course, I believe in you, Wang. It's just that I don't believe in myself sometimes. Suarez's consistency, his ability to sniff out chances in the forward line, and his finishing ability are all amazing."
On the contrary, he felt very inconsistent himself. Sometimes he could score some incredible goals, but once his form dipped, he might not even be able to score in an empty net.
"It's not a big deal. The most important thing on the field is to stay calm. It's easy to panic if you can't seize one or two chances, but in that case, just create a few more chances. Leave it to me!"
The Chinese superstar continued, "If you still feel uneasy, try practicing shooting alone after training. He Saí and I are about to train too, so let's do it together."
Iguaín felt very grateful in his heart. He just lightly tapped Wang Feng's shoulder, and everything was understood without words.
Whether trailing or leading, neither side had it easy. Messi and Suarez could guess the intentions of their arch-rivals. This was no longer a simple individual battle for the Golden Boot but a ubiquitous dispute between two teams and their players.
For so many years, Real Madrid had always overshadowed Barcelona, and Messi's goal tally, created with the team's collective effort, was far lower than Wang Feng's. Amidst his sense of loss, Messi also felt quite guilty.
Messi was closest to Suarez in the team. When he saw Wang Feng not scoring as prolifically as in previous seasons in the first few league matches, while Suarez happened to score a hat-trick and top the scoring charts, the Argentine felt a sense of motivation for his teammate.
Without affecting the team's overall tactics and results, Messi intended to give up some of his shooting opportunities to increase the number of assists for Suarez, allowing the latter to score more goals.
Of course, there was also a hint of competition with Neymar. The club's newly appointed president, Bartomeu, had made his intentions clear. He wanted to replace himself as the team's core with the Brazilian.
He had been delaying the renewal contract, intentionally or unintentionally increasing Neymar's influence within the team. He also did the same in public relations. Messi dared to assert that if he didn't still have value, he would have been kicked out long ago.
So he wanted to announce to the whole team through helping Suarez that he was still the leader of the team and could play an important role in supporting his teammates.
If it was just a sudden impulse before, then now it was imperative to make it happen!
"I don't know if we can win against Real Madrid again, and I don't know if Barcelona can snatch the league title from them this season, but I know I want to beat them, beat Wang Feng once!" Messi said to Suarez very seriously.
The Uruguayan also had a serious expression. This matter was not only related to himself but also to Messi and the entire team. "I'll do my best, Leo!"
It was quite a coincidence that whether it was Messi, Suarez, or Iguaín, they were all part of the South American contingent vying for the top spot. Wang Feng just happened to be there at the right time. However, as he said, he would do his best to help his teammates!
On October 21st, in the third round of the Champions League group stage, Real Madrid challenged Bayer Leverkusen away. Neither side managed to score, and the game ended in a goalless draw.
The previous two victories made this draw easy for the Galactic ship to accept. They still had a great chance of topping the group.
Three days later, in the 9th round of La Liga, the Galactic ship faced Celta Vigo away.
Rotation became Ancelotti's most frequent action this season, and Wang Feng's starting appearance rate hit a historic low. For example, in this game, He Saí partnered with Bale in the front line.
Just six minutes into the game, the away team's midfield intercepted the ball and launched a quick counterattack. Kovacic sent a long pass, Bale dribbled the ball at high speed, and sent a cross from the left side of the penalty area.
He Saí, who made a quick run into the penalty area, met the ball near the penalty spot and shot, opening the scoring for the Galactic ship, 1-0!
In the first half, they also had a chance to extend their lead. Modric received the ball on the wing, feigned to cut inside but actually shook off the defense and went to the byline.
And behind him, Danilo, who had pushed forward to participate in the attack, made a clever choice to cut inside, receiving the Croatian midfielder's back pass.
The unmarked Brazilian defender adjusted the ball after controlling it and shot from outside the box, beating the Celta Vigo goalkeeper, who couldn't save it in time. The ball went into the net.
In the second half, the home team pulled one back through Nolito. In the 75th minute, the Chinese superstar was substituted onto the field for a warm-up.
Seven minutes later, Wang Feng received a through pass from Varane on the wing, dribbled past the defender, accelerated into the penalty area, faced the goalkeeper's advance, and calmly shot into the near corner.
3-1! Real Madrid defeated Celta Vigo away and took three league points.
On October 31st, in the 10th round of La Liga, the Galactic ship welcomed newly-promoted Las Palmas at home.
This team came from the Canary Islands, far from mainland Spain. Its location was much closer to the African continent than to mainland Spain.
Since its establishment in the 1950s, this club had experienced the glory of the top league and had also fallen to the lowest level of amateur competition on the verge of dissolution.
With the relentless love of the people of Las Palmas for football, they eventually returned to the top-level competition. Although they had to strive for survival, everything was worth it.
In front of nearly 80,000 home fans at the Bernabeu, the away team boldly launched attacks. Although Wang Feng assisted Iguaín in opening the scoring, and Modric further widened the lead with a long shot, they still fought fiercely.
The final score settled at 3-1, with Las Palmas striker Tana scoring a valuable goal at the Bernabeu, depriving Navas of a clean sheet.
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