"United have scored twice before the match has even reached the fiftieth minute," Peter said, his voice carrying the disbelief of a final that had tilted sharply in one direction.
"And somehow, it brings the mind back to last season's Champions League final, when they fought from the edge of despair and turned the impossible into something real."
Jim nodded. "They were a very different team then. Brave, emotional, almost idealistic. You could see the talent, but you could also see the chaos. This version is stronger, more mature, and far more ruthless in the way they understand decisive moments."
"That, perhaps, is the beauty of football," Peter continued. "You never truly know the script before it is written. You think you understand the pattern, and then one player, one pass, one touch, changes everything."
Last season's final still lived vividly in the memory of countless fans.
Ling's hat-trick against Real Madrid, the repeated equalisers, the courage with which Manchester United had attacked the so-called Galactic Battleship — all of it felt like something carved into football history rather than simply recorded in it.
Back then, Ling had been the young star breaking through the established order with strength and courage.
Now, he was the leader of the Red Devils, the man who had guided Manchester United past Atlético Madrid, dragged them through that mad comeback against Liverpool, and now placed them within touching distance of defending the Champions League.
Many fans felt fortunate to be watching it happen in real time.
The camera cut to Mourinho on the sideline.
He glanced at the Champions League trophy beside the pitch, then looked toward Guardiola in the neighbouring technical area.
For a moment, his thoughts drifted.
In 2010, when Mourinho officially took charge at the Bernabéu, it had been almost a declaration of war against Barcelona.
And Barcelona's manager at the time had been Pep Guardiola.
When Mourinho sprinted across the Camp Nou in celebration, their relationship seemed to freeze at that exact point.
Mourinho became the stain on Guardiola's perfect football philosophy. Guardiola became the opponent Mourinho most wanted to defeat.
But Pep truly was a genius.
No.
Perhaps insane was the better word.
There was an old saying: one step ahead of the era made you a genius; two steps ahead made you a madman.
Guardiola's obsession with tactics often felt like fanaticism.
He was always thinking, always searching, always trying to find the most perfect version of football imaginable.
Mourinho admitted he was not like that.
He separated work from life. Football mattered enormously to him, but it did not consume every corner of his existence in the same way.
But that did not mean he was weaker.
Perfect defensive counterattacks, divine in-game adjustments, the ability to drag opponents into the kind of match they hated most — those were also weapons at the highest level.
In truth, their relationship was not as bad as outsiders imagined.
When Mourinho's father passed away in 2017, Guardiola had called to offer his condolences, because he knew how important Mourinho's father had been to him.
As Mourinho himself had once said, what happened in football should stay on the pitch. What remained outside it should be respect and something more positive.
Of course, that was wisdom he had only gained with age.
In Spain, their war of words had once filled newspapers almost every day.
Perhaps age simply dulled the sharpness of old rivalries. Perhaps it reduced the appetite for conflict.
"Boss, how do we adjust later?" Faria asked, excitement barely hidden in his voice. "I'll have the players warm up first."
He had joined Mourinho's coaching staff precisely because they shared similar football beliefs, especially when it came to championships, honour, and the practical cruelty needed to win.
Now they were one step closer to a third Champions League trophy.
Faria felt almost weightless, like a balloon floating above the ground.
Mourinho thought for a moment, then spoke in a low voice.
"Once City make their substitution, we respond immediately. Take off Ashley, bring on Luke, and use Scott for Rashford. We switch into a 4-3-1-2 and strengthen the midfield and defensive line."
His reasoning was simple.
De Bruyne was a naturally right-footed player and usually preferred operating from the right half-space, but based on City's current shape, Mourinho believed Guardiola would use him differently tonight.
De Bruyne would likely replace David Silva, combine with Leroy Sané on the left, and create an overload down that side.
McTominay had improved significantly, but dealing with De Bruyne was another matter, especially when it came to defensive positioning.
Herrera was better suited for that kind of work. He had the discipline, the bite, and enough one-on-one defensive quality to make life difficult for elite creators.
After all, he had once neutralised Hazard.
So McTominay would move to the left side of the midfield, Matic would sit centrally and cover both flanks, while Herrera would take the right side and help contain De Bruyne.
As for why Ashley Young had to come off?
His stamina was nearing the limit. There was no way he could survive the full match at this intensity.
"Alright."
Faria nodded and headed toward the substitutes' bench.
...
The match had already resumed on the pitch.
After taking a two-goal lead, Manchester United became visibly more conservative.
They no longer pressed forward as an entire unit, but the intensity in their midfield and defensive pressing rose sharply.
They knew that if they could protect this scoreline until the end, they would lift the trophy every club in Europe dreamed of.
That psychological boost was more powerful than any burst of adrenaline.
In the sixty-third minute, David Silva produced a brief flash of the Blue Moon magician's old elegance, weaving through traffic near the wing with those soft, slippery touches that had defined so many years of Manchester City football.
But before he could release the pass, Matic brought him down.
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The referee blew his whistle and showed the yellow card.
Silva stayed on the turf for a moment, holding his knee and breathing heavily. Then he looked toward the sideline and signalled to the coaching staff.
He was done.
If players had visible stamina bars, his would already have been flashing red.
Guardiola's new tactical concept placed a heavy burden on the players. It demanded constant passing, receiving, shifting, and running.
Everyone had to move like gears in a precision machine, and if one gear jammed, the whole system began to grind.
Forcing himself to continue would not help.
It might even drag the team down.
"Here comes Kevin De Bruyne," Peter said as the Belgian stood beside the fourth official. "The weapon Guardiola kept hidden at the start is now being unsheathed."
Jim added, "And this is the period they were probably waiting for. United have worked incredibly hard without the ball, City have moved them from side to side, and now De Bruyne comes on fresh, with half an hour to change the final."
"But it is not only De Bruyne," Peter continued. "Vincent Kompany is coming on as well, replacing Aymeric Laporte."
Jim's voice grew more analytical. "Laporte has had a very difficult evening. He looked uncertain from early on, and in a final, those small hesitations become huge. Kompany brings leadership, experience, and a different kind of authority."
David Silva handed the captain's armband to Kompany, and the Belgian gave him a firm pat on the shoulder.
Both men were ageing.
Both knew their time at the very top would not last forever.
But before leaving this stage behind, they wanted to give Manchester City a Champions League trophy and write their own chapter in the club's history.
"Tell the lads one thing," Guardiola said softly to Kompany. "The meaning of effort is not only success. It is doing everything possible so you leave with no regrets."
Kompany nodded, his expression steady.
"None of us will have regrets."
The Belgian's mentality was extraordinary.
From the moment he came on, every shout and every pass seemed to set a fire inside the City players.
That was what a leader did.
A true leader did not simply wear the armband. He carried enough force of personality that his teammates could feel it.
Former Argentina full-back Pablo Zabaleta had once said that Kompany's defending sometimes created the strange illusion that your team had an extra player on the pitch.
It sounded exaggerated.
But anyone who remembered the 2011-12 title race understood.
When Manchester City and Manchester United fought directly for the league title, Kompany's glancing header in that late-season derby had made him the hero who delivered the decisive blow to their fiercest rivals.
Without that victory, there would have been no Agüero winner two weeks later, and no first Premier League title in Manchester City's history.
In that moment, City fans had felt Kompany's indomitable spirit.
Even now, no longer young, he could still give them hope in his own way.
With the defence steadied, City's attack surged again.
De Bruyne received a pass from Fernandinho.
Facing Matic, he did not attempt to dribble past him directly.
Instead, he combined with Gündoğan through the centre, moving the ball quickly enough to draw United's midfield inward.
The pass travelled diagonally toward United's left flank.
Sané did not take on his marker either. He used the outside of his foot to lay the ball back.
De Bruyne received it again.
On the surface, City had not gained much territory.
But United's shape had caved in on one side.
To maintain stability on that flank, Luke Shaw tracked back, following Bernardo Silva's run down the right.
At that exact moment, John Stones and Kyle Walker pushed forward.
Their movement transformed City's midfield from three players into five, creating the numerical advantage Guardiola wanted.
Rashford was half a beat slow dropping back, and that was enough for Walker to separate himself.
McTominay, stretched thin between too many threats, could only retreat.
De Bruyne struck a classic low, bending pass, skimming it half a metre beyond McTominay and rolling it perfectly into Walker's path.
The England supercar glided into the penalty area, looking to create chaos among United's defenders.
"Near post!" De Gea shouted. "Block the middle!"
City did not have a huge height advantage, so aerial balls were not the main concern. Low crosses across the box were far more dangerous.
As long as United blocked the passing lanes and the shooting angles, City's attack would struggle to become truly threatening.
Compared with Walker's speed, however, his dribbling was much less refined. Once he had to carry the ball at high pace inside the area, his touch began to betray him.
Maguire positioned himself well and poked the ball out for a corner.
"Pass it earlier!"
Guardiola held his head again.
If that had been Bernardo Silva, he might have been able to carry the ball deeper into the box.
But for Kyle Walker, that was asking too much.
His dribbling was not even as good as Maguire's.
The carefully created strong-side to weak-side shift had produced exactly the opening Guardiola wanted, only for the final action to waste it.
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