Chapter 10: The Champions League Draw and the Super Cup Match...
That evening, the entire AC Milan team attended the draw ceremony for the 2007/08 Champions League season.
No team can rival AC Milan in terms of looks.
As a renowned male model team in the football world, the handsome men in suits captivated countless photographers the moment they appeared, and the flashbulbs never stopped after they took their seats.
Maldini, Inzaghi, and the others were already used to being the focus of the camera, and they calmly let the camera sweep back and forth.
Nesta seemed a little uncomfortable; he had a bit of camera phobia. Although he tried his best to remain calm, his wandering eyes and restless hands betrayed his true feelings.
Fino, who was beside him, sensed his unease, gently patted his hand, and gave him a tender, reassuring smile.
Nesta felt a little embarrassed. Fino had just come of age, and it was even his first time in such an occasion, yet he could act so calmly, while he was more than ten years older than Fino and still needed Fino to comfort him.
Just as he was about to indicate that he was in no trouble, Fino extended his left hand in a fist in front of him.
"Sandro, blow a breath."
Nesta felt that Fino's tone and actions were a bit like coaxing a child. Although the situation was a bit strange, he still obediently blew a breath.
He opened his palm, and a candy lay quietly in Fino's hand.
Nesta landed, peeled off the candy wrapper, and popped the candy into his mouth. With the food distracting him, he felt his anxiety subside a little.
Many years ago, Fino used this trick to coax the children in the orphanage to sit still and wait for interviews and filming. He never expected that this trick would work on adults as well.
Kaka, who was sitting in the front row, turned around at some point and, seeing this scene, opened his mouth to Fino, asking for candy.
"ah……"
So cute!
Fino smiled and took out a piece of candy from his pocket, holding it in his fist and gesturing for Kaka to blow on it.
Fino doesn't actually eat much candy, but he's developed the habit of carrying a few candies with him. These candies are for Kaka, and seeing Kaka's smile after eating the candy always warms his heart.
This scene was captured by a camera that was always pointed at Milan.
The lottery ceremony hadn't even started, but the live broadcast had already begun. To appease the audience's impatience, multiple cameras were constantly searching for scenes that would interest them.
The moment this interesting scene appeared, it was immediately switched to the live stream.
[Cabrini looks so gentle; she's so young, yet she's already playing with her two older brothers.]
Nesta and Kaká actually blew air in unison, haha, how childish!
Doesn't this scene look like a dog trainer training a dog?
[Looks just like him! Isn't Kaka the famous smiling angel Samoyed? Haha.]
What about Nesta?
Loyal and brave, Bernese Hill!
...
The draw ceremony was interspersed with the awards ceremony for the best players in the Champions League last season. As the reigning Champions League champions, AC Milan players were naturally the favorites to win awards.
Apart from Petr Cech of Chelsea taking home the Best Goalkeeper award, AC Milan won all the other awards.
The best defender was legendary captain Maldini, the best midfielder was midfield maestro Seedorf, and the best striker was the godlike Kaká, who also won the Player of the Year award.
In the draw, Milan also drew a favorable group, being placed in Group D with Benfica from the Portuguese Primeira Liga, Celtic from the Scottish Premiership, and Shakhtar Donetsk from the Ukrainian Premier League, giving them a great chance of advancing.
Ancelotti's smile is harder to suppress than an AK.
The second day of the European Super Cup match took place at the Stade Louis II, with last season's Champions League winners AC Milan facing off against last season's Europa League winners Sevilla.
A few days ago, during a La Liga match between Sevilla and Getafe, Sevilla's promising star Puerta suffered a sudden cardiovascular and cerebrovascular accident, collapsed, and died after being rushed to the hospital.
At this time, Puerta was not yet 23 years old, and his girlfriend was already pregnant, with only 20 days left until her due date.
As the players warmed up, fans from both sides chanted Puerta's name together to commemorate the player who died young.
Seville fans held up banners that read "Puerta, you are with us" and "Puerta, we will never forget you," while Milan fans held up banners that read "Glory to Puerta."
Both teams' players wore black armbands as they entered the field, and Puerta's name was embossed below their jersey numbers.
Before the match, players from both sides, along with more than 17,000 fans in the stadium, observed a minute's silence in memory of Puerta.
In this somber atmosphere, the competition began.
In this match, Ancelotti recreated the lineup from last season's Champions League final. Apart from Kaladze replacing the injured Maldini, the other 10 players were all starters from last season's Champions League final.
Dida guarded the goal, with Oddo, Nesta, Kaladze and Jankulovski forming the front defense. Gattuso, Pirlo, Ambrosini and Seedorf formed the midfield, which was good at both attack and defense. Kaká was positioned slightly higher, lurking behind the lone striker Inzaghi as a shadow striker.
Sevilla's players worked very hard, but the reigning Champions League champions were clearly the better team, and Milan quickly took the lead shortly after kickoff.
In the 5th minute, Nesta delivered a brilliant low cross from the backfield, which crossed half the field and accurately reached Seedorf's feet. Seedorf then passed the ball to Inzaghi on the left flank, and Inzaghi dribbled into the penalty area.
Sevilla's two defenders closed in from both sides. Inzaghi cut inside past Dragutinovic on the right, but as he prepared to shoot, Alves slid in from the far right to block his shooting angle.
Inzaghi passed the ball to Kaká, who had already made a run forward. Kaká quickly fired a low shot with his left foot, which hit the left post and bounced out of play.
In the 15th minute, Sevilla won a corner kick. After the corner was taken, Dida misjudged the situation and rushed out, allowing Sevilla midfielder Renato to head the ball into the net and score the first goal.
After the referee declared the shot valid, the Sevilla players gathered together and pointed to the sky with both hands to console Puerta, and the stadium erupted in enthusiastic applause.
This goal greatly boosted Sevilla's morale.
In the 32nd minute, Sevilla defender Alves connected with Renato from midfield, and Gattuso attempted a sliding tackle to clear the ball, but it fell right to the feet of Sevilla striker Kanoute.
Kanoute dribbled into the right side of the penalty area, Dida rushed out but missed, Nesta stepped up to block Kanoute, and Kanoute lobbed the ball high to Renato, who was now facing an empty net.
Unfortunately, Renato miscontrolled the ball, which bounced forward a meter. By the time Renato regained control and was about to shoot, Nesta had already rushed back to the goal and, at the last second, slid Renato's shot out of the penalty area.
Sevilla's midfielder Duda intercepted the ball on the left side of the penalty area, swung it haphazardly, and the ball flew high over the goal.
"A huge mistake squandered an open goal opportunity; Renato missed a chance to score his second goal."
The Sevilla fans in the stadium swallowed back their cheers and let out a huge sigh. Renato also shook his head and sighed in disappointment.
Milan then won a corner kick. Pirlo took the corner from the right, and Nesta, lurking at the near post, held off the Sevilla player and headed the ball to the far post. Before the Sevilla players could react, Seedorf headed the ball toward the goal, but unfortunately, the ball grazed the top crossbar and went out.
In the first half stoppage time, Inzaghi received a pass from Kaká and scored, but unfortunately it was ruled offside.
Amidst the sighs from the bench, Fino suddenly recalled Inzaghi's offside love comment from yesterday, and couldn't help but feel a bit wicked:
That's it, Pippo has lost his love.
In the second half, Milan, trailing behind, gradually intensified their attack, focusing on the right flank.
In the 55th minute, Pirlo secretly sent a short pass to Gattuso on the right flank. Gattuso dribbled the ball from the wing to the outside of the penalty area, then used his position to cut inside and get rid of Renato. He then lobbed a high ball into the middle, where Inzaghi, who had made a run to get rid of the defender, dived to head the ball.
1-1, Milan have equalized.
The Milan fans who traveled with the team cheered loudly for this goal.
With the score tied, the battle in midfield became increasingly intense.
Gattuso was struck in the face by Keita's arm while challenging for a header, resulting in an eye injury that bled profusely, forcing him to come to the sidelines for treatment.
Fino followed anxiously and saw the team doctor wrapping bandages around Gattuso's head, making it look like he was wearing a super wide white headband.
Seeing Fino's worried look, Gattuso reached out and touched his hair.
Sooner or later, the children will understand that injuries and competitions are inevitable and will always be present.
During Gattuso's treatment, Milan, who could only play with 10 men, not only did not back down, but fought even harder.
In the 62nd minute, Milan launched a quick counter-attack. Pirlo dribbled past the midfield and delivered a high-quality pass.
The ball crossed the entire defensive line of Sevilla's half and landed on the left side of the attacking third. Jankulovski, who had been invisible for most of the game, rushed to the landing point and volleyed the ball with his left foot without stopping it. The ball grazed the fingertips of Palop, who was diving to make a save, and rolled into the far corner.
Milan took a 2-1 lead.
Gattuso, having completed his treatment, returned to the field, but his bandages quickly became soaked with blood, and he was eventually substituted by new signing Emerson.
In the 86th minute, Pirlo once again delivered a precise long diagonal pass from the left flank of the backfield. Kaká received the ball and broke into the penalty area from the right. Dragutinovic was powerless to defend and could only choose to foul Kaká from behind.
Without a doubt, the referee awarded a penalty.
Kaka took the penalty himself.
After a run-up, Kaká aimed at the bottom left corner of the goal and unleashed a powerful shot. Palop guessed the right direction and pushed the ball out with both hands, but the ball flew straight towards Kaká. Kaká headed it forward and easily scored.
Milan sealed the victory with a 3-1 win.
After scoring, Kaká did not cheer or celebrate. Instead, he pulled up the hem of his jersey, pointed behind him with both hands to Puerta's name below his jersey number, and raised his hand to applaud the fans in the stands, indicating that he was dedicating the goal to the late Puerta.
Puerta's name rang out once again throughout the stadium.
At this moment, the passion for football and the devotion of faith intertwined, weaving a holy light around Kaká.
Even though Fino wasn't religious, she was moved by this moment.
With the victory already secured, Ancelotti substituted Fino for Inzaghi in the final minutes. At this point, the team had shifted to a defensive strategy, and Fino was simply given the opportunity to experience the atmosphere of a European competition.
Sevilla's players did not give up, and they launched a very threatening attack in the final moments.
The ball was lobbed from midfield into Milan's penalty area. Substitute Kerzhakov headed it wide, sending it flying toward the right side of the goal. Dida rushed out but failed to reach the ball, nearly getting stepped on by the onrushing Fabiano and also blocking Nesta's path, causing chaos in the penalty area.
Maresca, who also came on as a substitute, rushed in from the right side of the goal amidst the chaos, but unfortunately he was a fraction too slow and there was no shooting angle left. In the end, he hit the outside of the post.
"Dida was completely out of form today. He made several rash runs into the box during the game. He may not have recovered from his vacation yet. It's a pity that Sevilla didn't capitalize on their chances."
Milan held on to their 3-1 lead until the final whistle.
On the field, captain Ambrosini accepted AC Milan's fifth European Super Cup trophy in a low-key manner, without raising it above his head in celebration or leading the team around the field in a round of celebration.
In a post-match interview, Ancelotti dedicated the victory to Puerta.
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