Chapter 176: The Curse Shattered

There was no dramatic, fluctuating goal feast.

But rather a one-sided massacre.

Tens of thousands of Real Madrid fans turned this small town of Lewokusen into Madrid, into the Bernabéu.

Congratulations to Real Madrid, congratulations to Zidane; after two years, the white-clad army again charges into the Champions League final! What awaits them is the flowers and salute cannons of San Siro!

Duan Xuan jabbed He Wei with his elbow.

But he discovered his partner had fallen silent.

In the director's camera shot.

Someone was celebrating.

Someone was desolate.

Countless complex emotions intertwined.

Only there were no tears of regret.

What they experienced was a massacre tragedy, not an evenly matched contest, not a back-and-forth offensive battle, not a suspense held until the last moment with dramatic twists.

But rather a thoroughly researched dimensionality-reduction strike.

One-sided tragedy.

Lai Nuo tightly clung to the football saved at the last moment.

He grabbed the red-eyed captain Bender and shouted:

"What are you crying for, feeling regret? Wake up! Without Li, we would have been eliminated in the group stage!"

"You've spent all your stamina on women's bellies, haven't you? After which match do you not go play with women?"

"I'm also an idiot! I've been shot stupid by the opposition, I'm trash."

"What are you crying about? Didn't you already plan sports cars and mansions? Dating female stars? Dreaming of transferring to a powerhouse? Do you deserve that?"

"The Champions League semifinals might be the brightest moment of your lives, you nouveau riche!"

No one responded.

Van Dijk's mindset was still okay.

He originally thought he couldn't get past that Chelsea hurdle, after all, during his Southampton days he was repeatedly crushed by Hazard and Diego Costa countless times.

He firmly pressed Lai Nuo's shoulder.

Signaling the other not to continue speaking.

"You're also an idiot, only retreating, damn it, you're retreating into the goal line!"

Gomez collapsed onto the turf.

He took big gulps of air.

His aging body could no longer sustain a high-intensity ninety-minute match.

He wanted to go comfort Li Kang, but he didn't even have the strength to stand up.

Was he going to retire early?

Bellarabi and Calhanoglu exchanged a glance.

"Hakan, will you still leave next season?"

"Let's talk after the Euro Cup."

"Oh! Then forget it, you, Li, and Modric are in the same group."

Son Heung-min buried his head deep into his knees.

He could accept defeat, but could not accept becoming a burden.

The BayArena was the celebration of Real Madrid fans.

Lewokusen fans are a very complex group.

When the team's situation was already lost, most people had already left early while cursing.

Some extremist fan groups wildly threw lighters and drink bottles etc. at the Lewokusen bench.

The cursing never ceased.

Even absolute die-hard fans could not accept the shocking numbers on the scoreboard.

Brandt and Havertz rushed from the bench onto the green field in a flash.

Their expressions were worried.

"Li, losing a match isn't a big deal... In a few years, I'll get revenge for you!"

"That's... the overall strength lies here; let's go back to the dormitory and get a good sleep!"

Li Kang shook his head.

Three phantom beasts painfully knelt on the ground, gradually blurring.

Even the King of Bei lai yin was blown apart by the Royal Ceremony three midfielders.

There was no chance to struggle or catch a breath.

Even the heroic act of saving the world during battles against Arsenal and Chelsea could not be staged.

Not far away.

Kroos hesitated for a long time, ultimately not moving his feet.

"Luka, you should talk to him a few words, this match..."

Modric shook his head: "This match is the best answer... At the club level, the era of a single core has ended; if he cannot recognize his position, always seeing himself as a forward or defender..."

He did not continue speaking.

Suddenly, Zidane's figure appeared in their line of sight.

The Real Madrid head coach did not celebrate with his own players.

Instead, he walked up to Li Kang, grabbed the Lewokusen young player's shoulder, covered his mouth, and whispered a few words quietly.

Brandt and Havertz, who were right nearby, also didn't know what he had said.

All that could be seen was Li Kang shaking his head.

Zidane's face revealed a hint of regret that he could not conceal.

Tuopu Laotou adjusted his tie, his messy white hair sticking up, and strode onto the pitch with his head held high.

"You've already been so out... outstanding, huh!"

"Face reality—we were a team that couldn't even advance from the group stage... no, we're a team that will be eliminated in the Champions League qualifying playoff!"

"The previous qualifying bonuses and broadcast revenue shares—you couldn't earn them back even after several seasons!"

"Don't be such a damn wimp! Get up and go thank that small cluster of loyal fans in the north stand!"

CTV5 live broadcast room.

All the manuscripts He Wei had prepared in his mind were overturned.

He suddenly found himself unable to describe Lewokusen's Champions League journey in words within a short time.

An arduous, tumultuous journey?

A dreamlike, fleeting fantasy?

The bullet comments grew more numerous, obscuring the big screen.

-【Li Mingdeng's curse broken.】

-【Can't even touch the ball, midfield collapses, gets torn apart, nothing left.】

-【Scoring two face-saving goals in the first leg would be not bad; if drawn against Juventus and Atletico Madrid, both legs would likely be shut out and slaughtered.】

-【Now thinking about it, Lewokusen is truly terrible; Arsenal and Chelsea were just a breath away.】

-【Bayern massacred Barcelona, Real Madrid bloodbathed Bayern—what are you, Lewokusen, doing getting involved?】

Amsterdam.

The Dutch legends wore bitter expressions.

They feared the score result would affect the mood of the old football sage.

But then Cruyff laughed and said: "I've also experienced several disastrous matches... the worst one I conceded three more goals than Li did,"

Having said that, he heavily patted Rijkaard's shoulder: "How about you?"

Rijkaard furrowed his brow, tried to recall, but could not remember many heavy-defeat loss scenes.

Whether with the national team or his club, he always had Gullit and van Basten beside him.

Only the Dutch Trio ever bloodbathed others.

For example, the Victory Galaxy Battleship shown on the TV screen—they easily slaughtered opponents 5-0 back then.

Madrid.

Miniano indignantly said: "Lewokusen's coaching staff are simply a bunch of idiots! Won't they choose to defend?"

Bosque stroked his little beard and teased: "This score result is quite normal; they were already two goals down after the first leg, and in the second leg they could only fight with their backs to the wall—under these circumstances, Lewokusen's defense is like experiencing a massive avalanche."

"If it weren't for Lai Nuo's excellent form... they would have lost by far more than five goals."

"Forget it—there isn't that much heroism; Zidane and Maradona have also experienced such slaughterous disasters."

"Next up, we should properly prepare for the European Cup."

Bayer Arena.

Post-match press conference.

Both head coaches did not discuss the specific details of the match.

Regarding the score result.

Zidane's response was simple: "We found the easiest way to defeat this Lewokusen team from our matches against Hoffenheim, Monchengladbach, Schalke 04, and Bernau in the first leg."

Tuopu Laotou remained silent for a long time, unconsciously bending over: "Lewokusen's Champions League journey is not as wonderful as it looks outwardly; Li's outstanding performances in past matches have masked many team problems, narrowly drawing with Arsenal, struggling against Chelsea..."

"Teammates lost themselves, fans lost themselves, including me and the coaching staff, all similarly intoxicated by the joy of qualification..."

"It's a pity that Bayer Arena did not witness a superhero spectacle."