Chapter 826 - 66: King’s Cup Final: Smoke of War (Part 2)
The broadcast camera captured a suffocating scene: Pepe pushed away the approaching Busquets, Cristiano Ronaldo and Pique were shoving each other, and Mascherano was holding onto Chen Zhong’s jersey tightly, seemingly afraid that Chen Zhong would go up and take down Alves.
The whole stadium erupted instantly, the fans’ roars almost threatening to push the entire place down and rebuild it.
Chen Zhong realized something was amiss. He quickly took a deep breath to calm his emotions, then pulled his jersey free from Mascherano’s grip. He first blocked between Pepe and Busquets and then shouted loudly, "Calm down! Everyone stay calm!"
At this moment, Kaka also recovered, indicating he wasn’t seriously hurt, and only then did the conflict subside, although tempers had risen between both teams.
"Real Madrid’s free kick!"
"The referee hasn’t issued a card!"
"At least a yellow card for Alves just now, right?"
"Alonso is taking this free kick!"
As Alonso stood in front of the ball, everyone knew this time it wouldn’t be a direct shot, most likely a setup play.
Barcelona and Real Madrid players were shoving each other as Alonso stood at the free-kick point, took a deep breath, then ran up and kicked!
The ball drew a strange arc, over the wall, plunging straight into the penalty area!
Inside the box, there was chaos, with Chen Zhong being watched by most Barcelona players, but this also gave other players opportunities.
Cristiano Ronaldo positioned himself excellently, charging from behind to make a volley shot before Adriano could clear the ball.
The ball, like a cannonball, slammed toward the goal, but it hit the raised arm of the Brazilian defender hard and bounced out of bounds!
"Penalty!"
"Penalty!!!" Cristiano Ronaldo raised both hands, his face flushed, asking the referee for a penalty kick!
On the sidelines, Mourinho was also very excited, looking at the fourth official, but Chen Zhong was relatively calm, merely looking at the referee, needing an "explanation."
However, the referee waved both hands, showing no intent to give a penalty.
Cristiano Ronaldo was about to argue on the spot but was held back by Chen Zhong.
"A penalty?"
"No!"
"The referee’s decision!"
"He believes Adriano’s hand was close to his body."
"This isn’t a penalty."
Real Madrid’s fans, players, and coaches were all unhappy with this, but the referee insisted on his decision, leaving them with no choice.
Guardiola breathed a sigh of relief, while Mourinho cursed from the sidelines, while Florentino, who came to watch the game, had a grim face. He clearly didn’t want to see such a decision.
The two teams continued their competition on the field, soon Real Madrid got another chance!
"12th minute of the match"
"Real Madrid’s attack!"
"Chen Zhong retreated!"
"Got the ball!"
"Beautiful!"
The commentator’s voice suddenly raised a few pitches, obviously not quite believing what they were seeing.
Chen Zhong didn’t stay fixed upfront waiting for the ball but suddenly retreated from the forward line back to the midfield area.
When the other teammates saw this, they quickly passed the ball to Chen Zhong.
Xavi noticed Chen Zhong and chose to come up for close defense, but even though Chen Zhong was big, his foot skills were not clumsy.
When Xavi came close, he unexpectedly used a nimble heel flick to instantly shake off Xavi’s close marking.
A sound of amazement rose from the stands, clearly even fans familiar with Chen Zhong didn’t expect, besides the Marseille Turn and physical confrontation, Chen Zhong could also pull off such delicate footwork.
Chen Zhong advanced the ball all the way.
Guardiola, on the sidelines, instantly became tense, aware that Chen Zhong had a long shot with an extremely threatening foot.
Barcelona’s players evidently realized this too.
"Watch his long shot!" Pique shouted from the back, just as he saw Chen Zhong lifting his foot.
Barcelona players quickly postured up, trying to block the ball’s path, yet Chen Zhong was not shooting but making a lob pass.
As Busquets slid in, Chen Zhong skillfully chipped the ball with the outside of his right foot, simultaneously jumping to avoid Busquets’s sliding tackle.
The ball drew a graceful parabola, precisely passing over Alves’s head, falling toward the empty right-side of the penalty area.
Missed pass?
Some Barcelona fans and players thought so, but soon, they saw a white figure quickly rushing toward the ball.
It’s Cristiano Ronaldo!
Everyone realized it.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Chen Zhong seemed to have a telepathic connection, one passing and the other arriving.
Chen Zhong’s fake shot and real pass caught all of Barcelona’s defense somewhat off guard!
"Cristiano!!"
In the stands, someone loudly shouted Cristiano Ronaldo’s name.
The Portuguese, bold and skilled, didn’t wait for the ball to land but volleyed it directly!
Barcelona’s goalkeeper Pinto didn’t give up but dove in flight.
"Beautiful save!"
"Pinto!"
The commentator praised Pinto’s divine save but quickly began to evaluate Chen Zhong.
"Chen Zhong’s pass was certainly outstanding."
"His unbelievable vision allowed him to see Barcelona’s flaw.."
"Chen Zhong seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, the spin, landing, and timing of this lob pass was textbook quality."
The match continued, both teams still trembling in midfield. Real Madrid and Barcelona are top teams; there isn’t a single team in the world feeling sure to win against these two.
In the blink of an eye, the match reached the 25th minute.
Real Madrid took the offensive first. They always felt assured in passing the ball to Chen Zhong upfront, who consistently managed to place the ball steadily under his foot.
Kaka slotted a pass directly to Chen Zhong, who received the ball at the top of the penalty arc with his back to the goal, and Pique and Mascherano instantly closed in.
He executed a nimble turn while using his strong body to shoulder away their defense.
This combination of agility and strength left Pique and Mascherano struggling.
Once Chen Zhong turned to face the goal, he didn’t make much of an adjustment, instead, he directly lifted his foot, causing countless fans in the stands and in front of TVs to exclaim!
Shooting!
Was he going to shoot?
Or?
A fake shot?
Chen Zhong didn’t shoot directly but made a shooting gesture to deceive the goalkeeper, then took one more step to adjust, his right foot snapping out like a whip!
The ball, carrying a terrifying spin, flew straight to the top-right corner of the goal, although Pinto quickly adjusted his steps and judged the direction, making the save motion.
But the angle of this shot was extremely tricky, beyond his reach.
He could only watch the ball hit the net!
"Goooooool!"
"Chen Zhong!"
"A world-class strike!"
"1:0"
"Real Madrid takes the lead with a goal!"
After scoring, Chen Zhong ran to the corner flag, leaping high, while the visiting Real Madrid fans uninhibitedly cheered Chen Zhong’s name.
The entire stadium was engulfed with the sound of "Chen!"
Guardiola grabbed his hair, just like others felt helpless against Messi, now Guardiola found himself just as helpless against Chen Zhong.
Mourinho laughed heartily, but he quickly adjusted his mindset, letting the team focus on defense, believing Barcelona wouldn’t give up like this.
And indeed, it was the case.
Barcelona, trailing behind, immediately launched a counterattack.
They attempted to quickly bring both teams back to the same starting line, longing for the King’s Cup championship, and would not easily forsake this final!