Málaga's La Rosaleda Stadium, with a capacity of roughly 29,000, was almost completely full.
Yet the stands were not covered entirely in Málaga's blue and white.
Not everyone inside had come to support the home side.
By Ethan's estimate, at least ten thousand spectators were neutrals or travelling supporters.
Roughly half had made the journey from Britain.
Most of the others had come from Madrid or elsewhere in Spain.
New Manchester United's reputation alone was not yet enough to attract so many discerning Spanish supporters.
They had come for one reason.
Fernando Redondo.
They wanted to see their former hero, their old idol, playing on Spanish soil once again.
Even during the warm-up, Redondo was already the most popular man on the pitch.
Supporters wearing the famous white shirts of Real Madrid repeatedly chanted his name.
For many of them, it had been a long time since they had seen him play.
But they had never forgotten him.
If anything, Real Madrid's current midfield made them miss him even more.
That season, the club possessed an extraordinary collection of attacking talent.
Ronaldo.
Raúl.
Zidane.
Figo.
But behind them, Makélélé was primarily a defensive presence.
Flávio Conceição had struggled repeatedly with injuries and had never truly settled.
Cambiasso remained too young to dominate matches at that level.
Even Del Bosque had acknowledged that Real Madrid lacked a midfielder capable of controlling and organising the game from deep.
Someone like Redondo.
That absence had made supporters appreciate him even more.
Some had travelled all the way to Málaga simply to watch him again.
Spanish television clearly understood the appeal.
Throughout the pre-match coverage, the cameras returned to Redondo again and again.
"We can see that even after more than two years away from football, Redondo remains enormously popular in Spain," Martin Tyler said with a laugh from the commentary booth.
From a purely commercial perspective, signing Redondo had also proved remarkably valuable for New Manchester United.
His wages were substantial, but still only around half of what he had earned at AC Milan.
And as a former global superstar, his presence had brought considerable attention to the club.
Tyler was quick to point out that commercial considerations had never been Ethan's motivation for signing him.
Everything that followed, including the renewed public fascination with Redondo, had grown organically from the transfer itself and the £11 million charitable donation made jointly with AC Milan.
"I think New Manchester United deserve some credit for how they've handled his return as well," Andy Gray said.
"I've heard several major financial firms have tried to recruit people from the club's commercial department.
"That hasn't made much noise in football circles, but in the business world it's attracted real attention.
"It tells you how seriously the Red Rebels take commercial development."
"But their approach is completely different from Manchester United's," Tyler replied.
As someone who followed the Red Rebels closely, he understood their philosophy well.
"I wrote about this before.
"The Red Rebels have always tried to keep ticket prices as low as possible.
"They had to increase them this season because of the cost of renting Old Trafford, but even then, they've introduced all kinds of programmes designed to give value back to supporters.
"When you factor those in, their effective matchday costs are still among the lowest in League One."
"And then there's the charity work," Gray added.
"They might be the most active club in English football when it comes to charitable projects."
"Exactly.
"That comes from Ethan's philosophy.
"Built by the supporters, run for the supporters.
"The commercial side is highly successful, but the money isn't treated as an end in itself.
"It funds the football operation, improves the team, and then a significant portion is channelled back into community programmes, charitable projects, and supporter initiatives."
Gray nodded.
"Plenty of industry people have called it a new model for professional football.
"And I have to admit, Ethan has done an extraordinary job.
"Look at Mourinho.
"Look at Kaká.
"Look at Messi, who is already making a name for himself in the academy.
"He identified many of these people before anyone outside the game had really noticed them."
"And commercially, he's been just as successful," Gray continued.
"A friend of mine works in banking.
"He told me that even relatively junior employees in New Manchester United's commercial department could probably walk into management positions at major companies elsewhere.
"And yet, at Newton Heath, they're still considered ordinary members of staff.
"That tells you something about the talent they've assembled behind the scenes."
Tyler smiled.
"That side of the club is beyond me.
"But Ethan clearly has a gift for giving talented people room to work.
"Florentino Pérez visited Manchester not long ago, and afterwards he openly said there were things Real Madrid could learn from the Red Rebels."
Gray laughed.
"A League One club teaching the Galácticos?"
Tyler shook his head.
"I don't think it's as absurd as it sounds.
"The Red Rebels were founded by supporters.
"Real Madrid belong to their members.
"At a deeper level, perhaps Ethan and Florentino see similarities in the responsibilities those ownership models create."
"Fair enough.
"The match is about to start, though.
"I'd still love to get Ethan on one of our programmes one day and hear him explain all this himself.
"Might teach a few clubs something."
Tyler chuckled.
"Good luck persuading him."
The broadcast then switched to the tunnel.
Both sets of players were preparing to emerge.
Several Málaga players greeted Redondo warmly and embraced him before kick-off.
"This is the first European campaign in New Manchester United's history," Gray said.
"And they've already reached the UEFA Cup quarter-finals.
"If they eliminate Málaga, they'll be in the semi-finals.
"They're creating something extraordinary."
"The club's entire existence has been extraordinary," Tyler replied.
Gray laughed.
"Hard to argue with that.
"Let's look at the lineups.
"In goal for New Manchester United is Petr Čech.
"The young Czech international has been exceptional in League One and is already being described as one of Europe's most promising goalkeepers.
"Kolo Touré starts at right-back, where he has established himself as one of Mourinho's most reliable players this season."
"The centre-back pairing is John Terry and Curtis Davies.
"Both are young English defenders, both have already been called into the senior England setup, and both have attracted considerable interest from elsewhere.
"The Red Rebels, however, have made it very clear that neither is available."
"On the left, Philipp Lahm comes in for Evra, who has a minor foot problem.
"Lahm struggled for opportunities at Bayern Munich, but he settled quickly after arriving in Manchester and has shown he can play comfortably on either flank."
Then Tyler reached the most interesting part.
"In midfield, Juninho partners Redondo.
"That is a technically outstanding pairing."
Ahead of them came the quartet the supporters had begun calling the Magic Four.
Kaká in the central attacking role.
Hleb from the right.
Robben from the left.
Drogba through the middle.
Tyler smiled as the players emerged.
"Mourinho has selected something very close to his strongest available side.
"Málaga will have studied New Manchester United extensively.
"How do you stop that front four?
"How do you break through their defence?
"Those are the two questions they have to answer tonight."
Gray agreed.
"That attacking unit has almost everything.
"Technique.
"Speed.
"Movement.
"Physical power.
"Height.
"They can hurt you in several different ways.
"And tonight Mourinho has placed two highly technical midfielders behind them in Juninho and Redondo.
"That tells me he wants much more than simply to defend."
"There is risk in it," Tyler replied.
"Neither Juninho nor Redondo gives you the same defensive aggression as Senna or Essien.
"But I suspect Redondo is playing because Mourinho wants to use his experience and his knowledge of Spanish football to control the match from the opening whistle."
Tyler paused, then laughed.
"People often describe New Manchester United as a highly physical side.
"And they are.
"But technically, they're excellent as well.
"Their football depends on quick passing, constant movement, combinations in tight areas, and plenty of one-touch play.
"You cannot play like that without very good technique.
"This should be fascinating."
...
Redondo stood on the pitch and listened to the chanting from the stands.
But his mind was somewhere else.
He was remembering Mourinho's final instruction in the dressing room.
Control the game.
Then kill it.
Simple words.
Difficult task.
Mourinho had not given him a rigid set of instructions.
Instead, he had designed the structure around him.
Curtis had been told to step forward more aggressively when interceptions were required.
The front four would provide movement and penetration.
Juninho would operate alongside him.
The back four behind him would adjust their positioning according to his control of possession.
In effect, Mourinho had placed the rhythm of the entire match in Redondo's hands.
Was it a gamble?
Some people would undoubtedly describe it that way.
Ethan and Mourinho did not.
Redondo had already shown enough in recent matches to prove that his understanding of the game remained intact.
His physical level was not what it once had been.
His intelligence was.
And Málaga had spent most of their preparation studying the Red Rebels they already knew.
They were expecting Juninho.
Essien.
Senna.
Perhaps De Rossi.
They were not expecting the entire match to be built around Fernando Redondo.
That was the final advantage.
A weapon Málaga had not prepared for.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
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