Gao Shen's first rea when he saw Bara's starting lineup was that he had guessed wrong.

  Goalkeeper Valdes, a bae of Van Bronckhorst, Marquez, Puyol, ati, Van Bommel as a holding midfielder, Ded Xavi in front of him, Ronaldinho, Eto'o, and Messi up front.

  Gao Shen had predicted Messi correctly but got four others wrong, particurly the ter bad right back.

  Rijkaard had repced Edmilson with Van Bommel and Oleguer with Belletti.

  This was a very clear signal.

  He wao attack, and keep attag until the end!

  Upon realizing this, Gao Shen couldn't help but take a deep breath.

  At that moment, the pyers on the field were doing their warm-up exercises, while Lucas, Bueura, and others were waiting fao Shen to make the final decision, as they had guessed the Bara starting lineup incorrectly.

  Do not uimate this.

  There are only eleven pyers iarting lineup, aing tw have a signifit impact.

  "Rijkaard is like a gambler who's now desperate and has nothio lose." Gao Shen smiled bitterly.

  Dealing with such a gambler isn't that difficult; the challenge lies in the fact that he leads one of the most powerful teams in world football.

  It was as if Rijkaard was saying to Gao Shen, "I'm going to attack to the death!"

  So, what would Gao Shen do?

  Fag a formidable Bara, all Gao Shen could do was defend.

  The key was to withstand the pressure.

  "It's evident that losing La Liga has had a signifit impa him, a huge blow to Bara," Lucas analyzed.

  As a top student from a prestigious school, Lucas was very intelligent. After coag with Gao Shen at Real Madrid for three months, he went to Loughbh Uy for further studies. He quickly adapted to the role and became increasingly profit.

  People outside couldn't fathom what was happening in Bara's locker room, and could only analyze from various clues.

  Gao Shen guessed that Rijkaard was under immense pressure.

  But Bara was still very strong.

  ...

  When the Real Madrid pyers fiheir warm-up auro the locker room, Gao Shen and the coag staff were already waiting.

  Gao Shen had even written out Bara's starting formation oactical board.

  As soon as the pyers came in, after a brief rest, Gao Shen immediately began expining the oppo's starting lineup and tactics.

  "It's pretty much the same as before, but this time we o pay special attention to the fnks. Watch out for Van Bronckhorst ati's overpping runs; we o be very mindful of that."

  "Raúl, Beckham," Gao Shen poio the two superstars, "Both of you must track back to defend as soon as possible, no matter what. We sacrifie offense, but defense must be e all costs."

  "Remember, our oppos are desperate, so the most crucial point in this game is that it will be a test of patience. We o be more patient than our oppos. More importantly, this formation from Bara tells us that we'll have plenty of opportuo terattack."

  "So, when the critical moment es, don't get too caught up in pushing forward. Retreat to defend in time!" Gao Shen instructed.

  Raúl and Beckham both nodded.

  "When Bara is in possession and attag, the fullbacks will definitely press fgressively, leaving a lot of space behind them."

  Gao Shen looked at Negredo, "I want you to stay up top in this match. When transitioning from defeo attack, based ouation, make runs behind their fnks, fight for the first ball, and wait for your teammates to support you in the sed wave. Uand?"

  Negredo nodded.

  Previously, Gao Shen had assigned him tet Van Bronckhorst, but now he had more freedom, able to attack from both sides. This was both an opportunity and a challenge.

  Negredo was fident that when fag Puyol and Marquez, he had a physical advantage and could hahe tasks Gao Shen had set for him.

  "Finally, I'll repeat what I've said before: order, order, order!"

  "Everyoay calm, be patient, and avoid making mistakes, got it?"

  "Uood!"

  The pyers responded in unison.

  ...

  Because it was the 50th anniversary of the European Cup, the anizers had specially arranged a short and brilliant performance before the match.

  Football legends Bebauer and Ptini were in attendao watch the game, making the Stade de Fraar-studded with celebrities from politid business gathered.

  Fifty years ago, the first European Cup winner was Real Madrid.

  At that time, Real Madrid won five secutive European Cups, pleting an unpreted five-peat.

  Fifty years ter, Real Madrid has been reborn in an incredible way, reag the Champions League final once again.

  If Real Madrid wins the title tonight, it will also bee a cssi the history of the European Cup.

  Tonight's referee is Hauge from Norway.

  Fans familiar with the Champions League won't be strao him, as he was the referee who sent off Del Horno at Stamford Bridge in this season's round of 16, leading to much troversy after the match.

  Mourinho even bsted Hauge, acg him of "helping" Bara to win.

  Gao Shen was also very cautious, repeatedly reminding his pyers before the game to be mindful of their as and avoid getting booked.

  He clearly remembered that Arsenal lost a Champions League final because goalkeeper Lehmann was sent off. The timing wasn't clear, but it seemed to be very early in the game.

  In other words, Arsenal lost 1-2 to Bara after pying most of the match with ten men.

  Of course, as time passed, Bara's starting lineup for this match was no lohe same as in Gao Shen's memory, and the situation was entirely different. Rijkaard's tactics were also likely not the same.

  But in any case, it's better to be cautious.

  Gao Shen would rather cede a goal than lose a pyer.

  ...

  With a whistle from Hauge, the game officially began.

  After the kick-off in the ter circle, Messi passed the ball to Eto'o, then quickly moved towards the right side of the frontcourt.

  Eto'o passed the ball back to Ronaldinho, who was just outside the ter circle. The Brazilian trolled the ball, gnced forward, made an angled pass to the right, sending it to the fast-advang Belletti.

  However, Felipe intercepted the ball with a header.

  Bara pushed the ball over the midfield line, applying pressure on Real Madrid's midfield and bae.

  Gao Shen stood on the sidelines, closely monit the a on the field.

  As Belletti advanced, Raúl promptly followed to defend.

  Although the ball was on the right, Van Bronckhorst on the left also pushed past the halfway line, and Beckham tracked ba time.

  Real Madrid's overall defensive quality and tactical discipline were still very high. Now that the pyers were fully vinced of Gao Shen, they executed his tactics meticulously.

  After the team's overall defensive formation, Gao Shen nodded in approval, feeling reassured.

  As expected, Bara attempted several attacks, trying to break through Real Madrid's defense, but to no avail.

  Finally, Marquez attempted a long pass, trying to fio'o directly up front, but Casils rushed out decisively, catg the ball right at the edge of the penalty area.

  The Real Madrid goalkeeper held the ball with one hand and signaled his teammates to calm down with the other.

  This prompted a satisfied nao Shen on the sidelines.

  Bara was in a hurry, but Real Madrid couldn't afford to be rushed. They o trol the tempo, letting Barake mistakes in their urgency.

  As long as Barade mistakes, Real Madrid would have terattag opportunities.

  ...

  From the beginning, the game was one-sided.

  Bara pressed high, while Real Madrid retreated across the board, preparing to terattack.

  The first shot of the game came from Bara, but it wasn't threatening.

  Real Madrid's defense wasn't to be uimated. The team had reached the Champions League final orength of their defense.

  This caused the game to enter a stalemate.

  But after Bara's repeated attacks failed to break through Real Madrid's defehe Madrid team, who had been dormant sihe start, suddenly seized an opportunity.

  Ih minute, after De Red intercepted the ball in midfield, he quickly sent a long pass to the right side of the frontcourt.

  Negredo anticipated the ball's trajectory, rushed forward, used his body to push Marquez aside, shielded the ball, and passed it back to Beckham, who had followed up in time.

  Beckham trolled the ball, evaded the chasing Van Bronckhorst, and crossed the ball.

  Zidane, positioned he top of the ar the penalty area, stopped the ball, bypassed Van Bommel, and suddenly took a shot at goal.

  A powerful le shot, like a thunderbolt, flew directly towards Bara's goal.

  Valdes dived to his side and mao block the ball with one hand.

  At this moment, Raúl rushed in and, under pressure from Puyol, took a shot with his left foot, aiming for the bottht er.

  Unfortunately, the ball skimmed just past the post.

  Gasps echoed throughout the Stade de France.

  Real Madrid's shot was just a hair's breadth away from the goal.

  Raúl roared in frustration, turned, and ran back, shaking his head as he did.

  His shot angle was blocked by Puyol. He aimed to avoid Valdés and attempted a tricky shot but ended up missing the target and the ball.

  On the sidelines, Gao Shen appuded Raul's attempt vigorously, shouting, "Nice job, Raul! Keep going!!!"

  The Real Madrid pyers on the field were fident. Bara had trolled over 70% of possession sihe start, and Real Madrid had only managed one shot so far. However, that shot had been very close to sg and was more threatening than Bara's attempts.

  Bara had yet to create a truly threatening shot, proving that Real Madrid's advaactics were effective.

  "Don't rush! Stay focused and maintain the current rhythm!" Gao Shen's deep voice resohrough the stadium and reached the pyers, who nodded in aowledgment.

  The coach's instrus were reassuring at this crucial moment.

  ...

  The game restarted.

  Despite Bara nearly g a goal, it didn't deter them; instead, it fueled their determination.

  Ronaldinho and Messi were active on both fnks, frequently taking the ball and trying to cut inside. However, their attempts were thwarted because Real Madrid had heavily fortified the areas in front of the penalty box.

  The double midfielders and bae were tightly anized, leaving minimal space. As soon as Bara received the ball, at least two Real Madrid pyers were on them, pursuing and intercepting.

  Belletti and Van Bronckhorst were sistently tracked by Raul and Beckham. Real Madrid's defense remained solid and of high quality.

  This reassured Gao Shen on the sidelines. He believed that as long as the team maintaiheir current rhythm and avoided mistakes, it would be difficult for Bara to breach Real Madrid's goal.

  The remainder depended on Real Madrid capitalizing on their opportuo scainst Bara.

  But then, a major ge suddenly occurred on the field.