Chapter 277
Manchester United did not expect that the first goal after the start of the game would be scored in this way.
It was like a big pie falling from the sky.
Throughout the first half, Real Madrid played very passively and had almost no shooting opportunities. Manchester United's defenders seemed to have studied their forward line thoroughly - but this was indeed true.
Rooney pressed the ball into Real Madrid's penalty area. Casillas, who had just returned from injury, was on high alert. The defenders in the penalty area put their hands behind their backs, staring closely at Rooney and Alan who were pressing forward at the same time.
Under the pressure of Pepe, Rooney had to pass the ball to Alan on the wing.
Coentrao quickly defended, and just before the ball was about to be kicked out of the baseline, Alan hooked the ball, dribbled past Coentrao and immediately made a pass to the middle.
Ramos in the middle saw the ball heading towards the goal and quickly ran forward to block it, but he didn't expect that this time he would head the ball into his own goal!
Such a dramatic scene actually happened in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16! The whole stadium was boiling with excitement because of this own goal.
Ramos was also completely stunned. He held his head and stared blankly at the goal. Casillas pursed his lips and shook his head at him, as if to say that there was nothing he could do.
Melinger hissed at him very harshly—
"Whose side are you on!?"
"Go back to Seville!"
"Damn it, fuck you!"
The commentators in the broadcast room were also shocked by this own goal and shouted: "Ramos scored the ball into his own goal!! Real Madrid's defender made a serious mistake!!"
"A long shot was given to Sergio Ramos, who was very distressed and regretful. He knew very well that his mistake was likely to ruin Real Madrid's vision of winning consecutive championships!"
"Ronaldo gave Ramos a hug and encouraged the defender who made the mistake. I think he should also be very clear that this own goal is very bad for the game."
"But someone has to step up, someone has to step up to give the team confidence and strength. Ronaldo is like the flag of Real Madrid, he stepped up at the most critical moment."
Less than five minutes into the second half, the score was widened because of an own goal at home, which was a huge blow to the morale of the entire team.
Cristiano looked at Kaka. He needed someone in the team to stand with him and believe with him that they could continue to score goals, equalize the score, and kill the game.
Kaka nodded slightly in the direction of Cristiano. Together with Cristiano, he applauded the teammates around them, urging everyone to cheer up.
Benzema ran towards Cristiano, raised his hands and clapped hands with Cristiano, and said softly: "I know we can do it."
Cristiano nodded and patted Benzema on the back. Soon, Real Madrid's main players encouraged each other and regained their strength.
Although Manchester United was leading by one goal, Nani committed a defensive foul not long after, kicking a Real Madrid player in the chest and earning him a red card, so Manchester United had to play without one player.
The balance of the game seemed to slowly tilt towards Real Madrid.
Ferguson stood on the sidelines and looked at Zidane from a distance. Zidane nodded slightly to the respected coach.
He still looked calm and composed, as if neither Ramos' own goal nor Nani's red card could make Zidane emotional. Perhaps in the years since his retirement, the Frenchman has put a lot of effort into stabilizing his emotions.
Zidane looked at the field. The situation behind was only temporary. They could adjust tactics, replace players, do everything they could, and trust Cristiano.
He paid tribute to the Scottish coach because he knew that this game would be a psychological battle for both of them. He let Cristiano face his former boss, and Ferguson had to face his beloved disciple who he had trained in the past.
After Nani was sent off the field, Real Madrid finally had a clear initiative in the offensive against Manchester United, who was one man short.
"Ferdinand and Vidic surrounded Ronaldo, and Ronaldo was tackled and fell!" The commentator exclaimed, "A tactical foul! But if Ronaldo breaks through the defense, then Manchester United's goal may be in danger!"
But in exchange for a tactical foul, Real Madrid got a free kick in the frontcourt with a small angle.
Cristiano took the penalty.
This is not surprising.
Manchester United formed a human wall, with everyone crossing their arms in front of them. Rooney whispered to Ferdinand: "This guy's free kick is powerful enough to break through several pieces of glass. I don't want to be hit in a vital part."
"Don't talk nonsense, Wazza, the ball won't fly to your vital parts, but if you don't defend it well, Boss will kick it." Ferdinand said, "And I guess he has wanted to do this for a long time. You know he always hates you going to that kind of bar."
Rooney was silent. He felt his hair stand on end.
"Ronaldo runs!"
Rooney stared at Cristiano's movements. He was too familiar with Cristiano's expressions and movements, as familiar as himself. He jumped high, fully expecting that the ball would fly in a high arc.
However, Cristiano quickly passed the ball and tactically passed it directly to Kaka who was in a better position.
The human wall quickly dispersed because of Cristiano's running, and a huge gap appeared.
"Kaka! World wave!!! Long-range shot!! Tactical kick-off assist from Ronaldo!!"
“The score is tied!!!”
"Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka's combined goal! Manchester United equalized the score!"
Manchester United had not yet recovered from the blow of losing points. In less than three minutes, another round of attack from Real Madrid pressed into the penalty area.
Benzema's cross pass from the bottom line quickly passed the penalty area, and Cristiano caught up sharply from behind!
"The ball goes in again!! Ronaldo shoots from a small angle in front of the goal!! The score is reversed!"
Suddenly there was a burst of screams and cheers on the field, and Real Madrid fans in the stands excitedly shouted Cristiano's name!
Zidane clenched his fist and grinned on the sidelines. There were only ten minutes left in the game, and their chances of winning had been reversed by Cristiano.
There were fans on this side of the stands who were happy and silent. The Prince of Old Trafford, who had saved Manchester United time and time again from adversity, has now sent his old club into the abyss of being eliminated in the round of 16.
After scoring the goal, Cristiano went around the goal and avoided his teammates who wanted to rush up to celebrate.
He did not want to celebrate. Sending Manchester United out of the Champions League personally was not something he should be proud of or happy about. There was no complacency on his face for saving his new club, nor was there any excitement for winning. He just did what he should do.
Kaka ran up quickly, and before all his teammates, he hugged Cristiano completely in his arms.
He knew that Cristiano didn't want to celebrate, so he used his body to block the noisy and jubilant noise from Cristiano.
Cristiano opened his arms slightly, and was pushed back a little by the hug from his lover. He turned his eyes to the stands, and saw the disappointed and sad sighs of Manchester United fans, and also the celebration of Real Madrid fans.
Kaka reached out and gently pressed Cristiano's head, pressed Cristiano into his shoulder, kissed Cristiano's ear, and said softly: "You did what you had to do, and you did it well, Cris, you just need to know this."
Cristiano buried half of his face deeper into Kaka's shoulder, and he nodded imperceptibly, closing the hug.
Ramos, Benzema, Varane and others rushed up slowly, excitedly wanting to jump on Cristiano to celebrate, but were blocked by Kaka. They could only jump high and then fall back on the spot, stretching out their arms to grab the Portuguese's hair through a thick wall of people.
"Congratulations to Real Madrid! Congratulations to Ronaldo for being elected MVP of this game with one assist and one goal!"
"Cristiano Ronaldo saved Real Madrid from falling behind! He defeated his former club Manchester United!"
"Manchester United was eliminated in the round of 16! The former star scored the crucial winning goal!"
"Ronaldo refused to celebrate after scoring and hugged Kaka!"
As the whistle blew, the game ended and Cristiano slowly stopped running.
He thanked the team and then walked slowly towards the player tunnel.
He didn't know how to greet his former teammates, and he guessed they were not in the mood to greet him right now.
Ramos casually put his arm around Cristiano's neck and strode into the locker room. If it wasn't so obvious that Cristiano didn't want to celebrate, he would have wanted to hold Cristiano's head hard and kiss him a few times, then shout "Long live Cristiano".
They won! This outweighs his own goal mistake! Although post-match reviews and reprimands will not decrease, at least there will be no irreversible consequences! This is the most important thing.
Cristiano was sitting on the bench in the locker room, his knees bent as he checked the abrasions on his legs. This was inevitable after a game, and he looked like he had rolled several times in the grass.
Kaka took the ointment and sat next to him to apply it to his wound. Cristiano couldn't help but grin at the stinging pain in the wound.
"Cristiano! Someone is looking for you." Marcelo suddenly shouted.
Cristiano looked up unexpectedly. He looked towards the door of the locker room and saw Giggs standing outside the door, waving at him.
He immediately put down his socks and walked over quickly with a limp: "Ryan!"
Giggs had the jersey in his hand, but when he saw Cristiano limping, he immediately caught up with Cristiano who was running over: "Slow down Ronnie, what's wrong with your leg?"
"Oh, it's just a scratch. I'll apply some medicine." Cristiano grinned. He lifted his leg and found that the skin near his knee was broken. After the excitement and passion of the game cooled down, the pain was magnified several times along with the fatigue.
Rooney and his companions, who were following Giggs, came closer to watch. Rooney said, "They really didn't hold back at all."
As soon as he finished speaking, he was patted on the head by two tall central defenders, Ferdinand and Vidic.
Rooney: “…”
"This is a game." Cristiano looked at Rooney and he smiled.
"You're right," Giggs said, patting Cristiano on the shoulder and handing him his jersey. "This is my thousandth game for Manchester United. Now I give you this jersey as a commemoration, Ronnie."
Cristiano suddenly remembered that Giggs had once given him this jersey. He took the jersey and saw the signatures of all the Manchester United players on it, even Ferguson's.
On the front of the jersey, there are words such as "For Ronnie" and "Wee home! Ronnie!" Familiar and unfamiliar words are all on this jersey.
Cristiano's eyes were filled with tears, and he whispered, "Thank you Ryan, this is really... this is such a great gift... there is nothing better than this."
He hugged Giggs.
Giggs was slightly surprised when the Portuguese hugged him. He looked down at Cristiano with a smile and said, "You're not crying again, are you, Ronnie? I heard you've grown a few years older."
Cristiano's ears turned red, and despite being teased by Giggs, he had no intention of letting go of his hand or stopping his tears.
He said sullenly, "I can cry if I want to. It has nothing to do with my age."
"Okay, okay." Giggs raised his hands with a smile, pretending to beg for mercy, and turned to look at his teammates. He winked several times and finally had to speak, "Leo! Vida! Wazza! Alan! Damn it, don't force me to call out their names one by one, anyone can come and coax him!"
For the first time, Real Madrid's stars were in their own locker room, dumbfounded to see their top player being frantically coaxed by the opponent's main players.
In the end, Zidane and Ferguson came over and took control of the situation.
Ferguson saw Cristiano's wet eyes, he shook his head helplessly and smiled: "Ronnie, come here, my boy."
Cristiano walked towards Ferguson, who greeted him with open arms.
"Although you asked us to end our Champions League adventure early, I think it's not completely over," Ferguson said. He said softly, "Keep running, my child, I will watch you, no matter where you are, you are my child, okay?"
Cristiano felt his eyes moisten again. His voice was choked with sobs and he could hardly speak. He could only nod heavily.
Ferguson patted Cristiano on the shoulder, then let go and told his players to go back.
They also had a terrible post-game press conference to go through.
Apart from some sharp questions from the British media about their performance, the remaining questions all revolved around Cristiano - the prince of Old Trafford returned home, but completely ruined the Red Devils and missed the Champions League. This will be the headline of the next week.
"This is the first time Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to Old Trafford since leaving Manchester United for so long. Seeing him appear on the court, it's as if he is really back, the old times, everything old is back." The reporter pointed the microphone at Ferguson, "But in fact, he is back as an opponent of the Red Devils and kicked you out of the Champions League. What do you want to say about this?"
"Like you, I have the illusion that he has really come back to us," Ferguson said.
Before he finished speaking, a reporter couldn't wait to ask: "Does Manchester United have plans to buy back Cristiano? As far as I know, it seems that Manchester United has been trying to facilitate this transfer deal in the past two years?"
Ferguson smiled. They had indeed always had this idea. Especially after seeing the cultural gap between Spanish fans and those who did not fully respect the stars, he always wanted to bring Cristiano home.
He neither admitted nor denied it, but just smiled and said: "If Cristiano can return to Manchester United, it would be like a perfect Christmas gift."
Cristiano also saw Ferguson's post-match interview. He blinked and did not respond. He just put the clipping of the post-match interview into his folder.
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