Chapter 209: A More Ruthless One Arrives
The turnaround on the pitch was dizzying!
A split second earlier it was Casemiro and Kroos double-teaming Xia Qi, and Xia Qi looked like he was running for cover!
A split second later, Xia Qi was taking on Kroos and Casemiro alone and then tearing forward like lightning!
The scene changed in an instant; Real Madrid's defenders were left battered.
When Xia Qi reached the edge of the box and lifted his leg to shoot, Sergio Ramos finally reacted and rushed up to block, trying to throw his body in the line of fire.
But as he closed down Xia Qi's shooting angle, Xia Qi retracted his high-raised right foot.
"A feint pass instead of a shot!"
Ramos thought he'd read it — he switched from blocking to stealing and closed tightly on Xia Qi.
Iker Casillas also thought he'd seen through it and adjusted his angle to watch another danger man in the box — Mario Balotelli.
Xia Qi's right foot, raised high, didn't come down to strike; when it fell lightly, he flicked the toe.
A lofted chip!
"A dink…!"
Many seasoned fans in the stadium shouted. Like Ramos, they'd expected a pass and were anticipating a curling cross — but instead:
The goalkeeper was Iker Casillas!
Brother, your heart is huge!
Yet,
the ball, amid gasps and disbelief, sailed over Ramos and Casillas' heads in a beautiful rainbow and nestled into the net.
"Xia Qi!!! That trajectory is gorgeous!"
"A dink strike! Xia Qi levels for Arsenal. Just four minutes after conceding, Arsenal are back on level terms with Real Madrid."
Even though the ball had found the net, intermittent shouts still rose from the Bernabéu stands — many people only woke up after the goal.
"Oh my God!"
"That's an artistic goal. Xia Qi painted a beautiful arc across the sky with his foot."
"From escaping the double team, to the dummy that tricked Ramos, then the dink over Casillas… Xia Qi made it look effortless; in that moment he became Dimitar Berbatov…"
"This is a duel between two superstars.
Cristiano Ronaldo's violent long shot showcased the beauty of power,
Xia Qi's delicate dink displayed the beauty of technique.
The clash between each team's star sent the match into a climax…"
After scoring, Xia Qi didn't perform a celebratory routine; he walked back to the center circle with a casual air.
Sure enough,
his nonchalant celebration was regarded by fans as a taunt at Cristiano Ronaldo's exuberant "siu"!
Arsenal supporters in the Bernabéu waved their arms louder and chanted "siu!" — the audio tag for Ronaldo's celebration; used here the irony was unmistakable.
Real Madrid supporters fumed and jeered: "Boo…"
The temperature in the Bernabéu rose; many male fans stripped their shirts and chanted for their favorite stars.
Balotelli, who was about to run up to join Xia Qi, became the first to rush forward and embrace him.
"Awesome — Ronaldo's face must be darker than mine now!"
"Mario, I need to stay in midfield. Of course, if there's an opportunity…"
"No, you don't. Leave the turnaround goals to me!"
"Your 38-degree mouth says such cold-blooded things?"
"Heh…"
"Xia, Mario is so cold-blooded — pass me the ball…"
"Theo, your 38-degree mouth says such cold-blooded things?"
"Ha ha…"
Who says Balotelli is world-class only below the neck? He can think on his feet too!
…
…
The rest of the match was decided in midfield.
Both Carlo Ancelotti and Arsène Wenger — and the AI — knew the key to the result lay in the center of the park.
Real's trio in midfield was destined to be a historic combination.
The AI's crude way to counter them was to lead teammates in relentless pressing.
Whenever Real's midfield trio had the ball, Xia Qi would send one, sometimes two, even three players to press.
He ran tirelessly back and forth, leading teammates to trap the "ceremonial trio."
Arsenal were playing in a manner that was very un‑Arsenal — yet this highly unified pressing, precisely because it was so un‑Arsenal, happened to be the kryptonite of Real Madrid's ceremonial midfield.
Seeing the continuous pressing cause Real's midfield to be distracted and almost lose control,
fans looked at Wenger as if he were a deity; even Ancelotti couldn't help saying to his son: "Wenger truly is a tactical master — would he be willing to take you as a pupil?"
Wenger, however, was restless on the bench; the kid was too teachable, leaving him without the satisfaction of being a teacher — it made him uneasy.
He wondered if Manchester City could sell him another player of the same type.
…
…
Kroos and Luka Modrić received most of Xia Qi's attention.
Under Xia Qi's persistent harassment, the pair bore massive pressure; keeping possession was an achievement — don't expect them to organize attacks.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema waited up front for service but had to drop back to get the ball.
Their dropping only congested the midfield further and eased pressure on Arsenal's defense.
With the back secure, Arsenal could attack more boldly.
Competitions eventually produce winners and losers.
Xia Qi finally took on Kevin De Bruyne's role.
Fans quickly realized Wenger's decision to make Xia Qi the attacking midfielder was brilliant.
Xia Qi didn't need to look up or adjust the ball — one touch to receive and one touch to release straightened out the attack.
Once he played the pass, wherever he passed there would be an Arsenal player arriving to receive it.
People felt they were watching that flowing, invincible Arsenal again.
If De Bruyne's organization was a surgical, unpredictable pass, Xia Qi's was quietly ingenious.
He bound the whole team together and turned them into a full‑attack, full‑defense machine.
Of course, Xia Qi's style demanded a lot from teammates. At first Gustavo, Cazorla, Balotelli and others were not a perfect fit, but with their "tacit understanding" attribute bonus, they gradually synced with Xia Qi…
…
…
In the 32nd minute of the first half, Kroos had the ball deep in Real's half. Balotelli surged up to press Kroos while Karim Benzema peeled off toward the flank to receive a pass.
Kroos saw Benzema's run — but Xia Qi saw it too.
As Kroos played the pass to Benzema, Xia Qi darted in from an angle and intercepted the pass.
Attack and defense flipped in an instant again!
This time Xia Qi didn't run at goal himself.
After winning the ball, he immediately used the outside of his right foot to skim the ball.
An outside-of-the-foot pass!
This is a high-skill technique; Xia Qi wasn't showing off — he was buying time.
The ball carved a strange arc through the air, precisely avoiding every interception point.
The pass target was unexpected.
Almost everyone thought he'd play to Balotelli up front — Balotelli was even forcing space to receive.
But Xia Qi had "changed his mind."
He didn't play to his mate Balotelli; he slipped the ball to the left to the newly substituted Serge Gnabry.
Gnabry sprinted onto the pass, and as the ball crossed Real Madrid's last defensive line and fell into space, Gnabry arrived exactly on time.
He struck a side-foot volley!
"Gnabry!"
"Shoot!"
The ball became a white streak and crashed toward Real's goal.
It was a strike taken from on the edge of the box — blisteringly fast.
Casillas attempted a save but was a fraction too slow…
The ball crossed the line within a split second.
"Goal!"
"Arsenal have turned it around against Real Madrid!"
"Gnabry gets the goal, but the assist belongs to Xia Qi."
"When Kevin De Bruyne went off injured, Real fans thought they'd gained the advantage — instead something fiercer arrived. Xia Qi held Real's midfield trio firmly and Real have been unable to respond; the game has been passive for them. Xia Qi exploited a gap and delivered a surgical long pass — a deadly cross‑country courier…"
(END CHAPTER)
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