The area around the Santiago Bernabéu was already burning with heat long before kickoff.
Most of the fans were there to support Real Madrid, but even among them, some held up threatening placards and vented their blazing anger at President Calderón.
"If we lose this one, you'd better be ready!"
"We will never watch Ho-young shine here!"
They were not anti-fans who hated Ho-young.
As true Real Madrid supporters, it was simply something they could not bear to witness.
That was how unprecedented the attention on this match had become.
The open ticket sale had naturally sold out on the very first day, and the stands were packed three hours before kickoff.
Outside the stadium, ticket scalping was still going on.
The face value of a ticket during general sale had been 420 euros, but now a single ticket was being sold for 7,000 euros.
And that was for a Category 1 ticket that did not even offer a full view of the pitch.
Even VIP scalped tickets had climbed into the 16,000 euro range.
Considering that VIP scalped tickets for a World Cup final could reach around 40,000 euros, it was not an outrageous figure, but it was still a price that made no sense for a Champions League semi-final.
That kind of thing was only supposed to happen for a final.
That was how much the entire world was looking forward to this match.
Ho-young, who had left Madrid, facing Real Madrid.
The overwhelming majority were expecting Ho-young's revenge match, but on the other side, there were also a few people who wanted to see Ho-young lose.
But inside the stadium, the atmosphere leaned entirely one way.
"¡Vamos!"
"Ronaldo!"
"¡Vamos!"
"Benzema!"
"¡Vamos!"
"Higuaín!"
"¡Vamos!"
"Madrid!"
Chants for Real Madrid filled the entire stadium.
The voices of the Manchester City supporters who had flown in from England could barely be heard.
That was because only 476 tickets had been allocated to the away side.
[This is the advantage of being the home team. Real Madrid are already ahead before the match even begins.]
[Yes, it shows just how thoroughly Real Madrid have prepared. Now all that remains is to get the football right.]
Meanwhile, both dressing rooms were buzzing with activity.
An hour and a half before kickoff, in the away dressing room.
Guardiola and the players were gathered together, all wearing grave expressions.
Normally, it was his rule never to enter the dressing room before the match began, but this time he had no choice.
"We're making a slight adjustment to the tactics."
"!"
"Right now?"
An emergency situation.
It was unusual enough that Guardiola had come into the dressing room, but to suddenly announce a tactical change as well was enough to leave the players stunned.
But Guardiola had good reason for it.
"The grass is much longer than we expected."
"How long?"
"It looked about 40 millimeters."
"For fuck's sake. They've really gone all in trying to disrupt us."
Eden Hazard threw a punch into the air.
For a player whose main weapon was quick dribbling, there could hardly be worse news.
But then,
"Calm down. That will actually work to our advantage."
"What?"
It was hard to understand.
Grass that long was deadly to Manchester City's 4-3-3 system.
But the words Ho-young spoke next cleared up everyone's confusion.
"So you're planning to set up for the counter."
"Correct. Ho-young is right."
A counter strategy.
They were going to use Real Madrid's prepared plan against them.
In other words, Calderón's scheme had unintentionally revealed Madrid's strategy.
"The fact that they've let the grass get this long means they intend to play a slow, possession-based game built around individual skill. They'll probably keep the ball at the back for long stretches."
"Hmm. So what you're saying, boss, is that since they'll try to dominate possession, we'll unsettle them with aggressive high pressing. But if it's really 40 millimeters, wouldn't it be better to report it to the referee?"
David Silva's point made sense as well.
Normally, complaints from the away team about grass length were ignored, but if it was too excessive, the referee could order it adjusted.
But Guardiola saw it differently.
"Even if they cut it down to 30 millimeters, it would still hurt us. Besides, the pitch condition is terrible as well. It looked dry already, as if they had not watered it properly. So I think it is better to act like we're playing along with their plan, then catch them off guard."
A gamble.
Guardiola intended to turn Real Madrid's shallow trick back against them.
In other words, an ambush within an ambush.
"As always, I expect you to follow through well. Even if the tactics change, there is only one thing we need to focus on, fulfilling our own roles. If we do that, we win."
""Understood!""
Thirty minutes remained.
Guardiola spent that time refining the tactical setup.
Then, one hour before kickoff.
The moment both starting lineups were announced, Guardiola's brow narrowed.
"Casillas, Marcelo, Ramos, Albiol, Arbeloa, Pepe, Khedira, Alonso, Ronaldo, Benzema, Higuaín... what on earth is this..."
It was a lineup completely different from what he had expected.
The structure of the side was difficult to read.
Iniesta thought the same.
"It seems certain that Ramos will start at centre-back, but the rest is hard to tell. Or are they trying to build a five-man back line?"
"Hmm... I see it differently."
After thinking deeply, Ho-young shared his view.
"I think Pepe will play as a defensive midfielder alongside Khedira."
"Pepe?"
"Yes. He is more than capable of doing it. He was used as a defensive midfielder at the South Africa World Cup, and he also played there when I was at Real Madrid."
"Right. That makes sense."
Of course, all of it was still speculation.
No one could be certain whether Pepe would line up as a defensive midfielder or if they would go with a five-man defense.
Even before kickoff, the two sides were already locked in a massive psychological battle.
There was only one thing he could be sure of.
"This is going to be an interesting match."
For Ho-young as well, it felt like it would be a meaningful match.
Real Madrid had cast him aside.
Facing them was, in one way, a burden to him as well.
It was the club to which he had devoted his affection and loyalty for so long.
More than that, it was the gracious club that had recognized his future, brought him in, and raised him.
Facing his former club was painful.
But,
"It is just one club."
That was what Ho-young told himself as he focused his mind.
In the end, what mattered was the match.
All he had to do was stay professional and bring joy to the Manchester City fans who supported him.
He decided to put his personal feelings aside for the time being.
And then, as he came out of the tunnel onto the pitch,
"¡Hala Madrid~"
"Y nada más!"
"Y nada más!"
"¡Hala Madrid~!"
A song filled the entire stadium.
How long had it been since he had heard such a familiar sound?
And then,
"Let's have a good one."
Marcelo and Ramos shook his hand, showing strong emotion.
Cristiano Ronaldo stepped forward as well, shaking his hand with resolute determination.
After exchanging greetings with them, the match soon kicked off.
[Karim Benzema takes the kickoff, and the match is underway.]
The formation Real Madrid had prepared was a 4-3-1-2.
Marcelo, Ramos, Albiol, and Arbeloa formed the back four, with Alonso, Pepe, and Khedira lined up across midfield in front of them.
Benzema and Higuaín were stationed up front, while Ronaldo operated in the line behind them with a free role.
[Manchester City, meanwhile, have come out in a 4-2-3-1. Ho-young has been deployed as the attacking midfielder. It looks like they want him to press Pepe aggressively, who is the key to Real Madrid, and take control of the flow of the game.]
Ho-young was starting as an attacking midfielder again after quite some time.
But Real Madrid's response was anything but ordinary.
[The plan appears to be to create the first line of resistance through Pepe's aggressive defending, then have Ramos and Albiol cover quickly behind him.]
[Yes, it's a very appropriate response. It almost feels like they already knew Ho-young would play as an attacking midfielder.]
Real Madrid circulated the ball slowly at the back and built up patiently.
In response, Iniesta, Fellaini, Hazard, Bale, and Ho-young pressed high to try to break up the flow.
Adebayor, leading the line as the lone striker, also joined in.
Manchester City, too, looked perfectly prepared to target Madrid's possession-based approach.
But that situation did not last long.
[Marcelo and Arbeloa are spreading wide on both flanks to create space. At the same time, Pepe drops deeper to open up the passing lanes.]
Real Madrid escaped Manchester City's press by adjusting their defensive spacing and tempo.
At the same time, they launched a sharp attack.
[Alonso sends it long toward the front. It connects in one go!]
The moment they broke the press, Real Madrid moved the ball forward.
Xabi Alonso's trademark long pass.
A perfectly measured ball dropped right to Benzema's feet.
At the same time, Higuaín on the right made a run in behind the line.
Thiago Silva stayed with him to the end, but he could not also pick up Ronaldo bursting through the gap.
[Benzema lays it into the middle!]
[Ah, Fellaini tries to track back, but...!]
With Higuaín and Ronaldo switching positions, Fellaini and Yaya Touré got tangled in their movement.
And then,
Tap!
[Cristiano Ronaldo takes it on his left foot. He shoots immediately!]
Thud!
The opener.
Ronaldo, breaking into the box, calmly drove the ball into the inside corner.
"Ronaldo!"
"Cristiano Ronaldo!!"
It was the moment the Santiago Bernabéu turned into a festival.
[This is a victory of tactics. If the last 10 minutes were a series of 10 games of rock-paper-scissors, Real Madrid won every single one. It's as if they already knew what the opponent was going to throw!]
Real Madrid took complete control as they systematically broke down every tactical adjustment Manchester City had made before kickoff.
From City's perspective, it made no sense at all.
Ho-young, too, sensed something ominous.
"How did they know?"
At this point, it was as if everything they had discussed in the dressing room had been leaked.
"This is strange. The kit man never even came into the dressing room."
That was when suspicion began to grow.
A reasonable suspicion.
There had, in fact, been cases like this before.
"No way."
A creeping sense of unease began to build.
But there was no time to dwell on that now.
"Focus on the match first."
What mattered was the first half.
They had to break this situation if they wanted to turn the match around.
"There are about 37 minutes left."
Ho-young widened his field of vision.
From now on, it was time to read the opponent's flow.
Sami Khedira, whom Real Madrid had brought in during the winter window.
Then Pepe and Alonso alongside him, applying a triple mark, with the world's best defender, Ramos, covering behind them.
Even for Ho-young, it was not easy.
Pepe in particular, playing as a defensive midfielder, was marking Ho-young fiercely with his competitive fire blazing.
His eyes made it clear he had no intention of taking it easy.
"As expected of Pepe. He knows me well."
But on the other hand,
"And the same goes for me."
Ho-young also knew Pepe down to the bone.
And above all, there was one important thing he knew.
How to properly deal with a fighter-type defensive midfielder, the lesson Patrick Vieira had taught him.
"First, I break Pepe."
That was where the flow of the match was going to turn.
(To be continued.)