Chapter 812: Completely Chaotic

After defeating Real Madrid, Gao Shen strictly followed UEFA regulations and attended the post-match press conference on time.

Throughout the press conference, his answers were serious, and he was more cautious than usual—especially when questions touched on Real Madrid or Mourinho. He was even more careful, clearly afraid of saying the wrong thing.

This made many journalists feel frustrated.

So they tried every means possible to steer Gao Shen toward the topics they were most interested in.

For instance, a Marca reporter asked whether Gao Shen had heard the cheers from the Bernabéu.

Gao Shen gave a bitter smile. "The noise was too loud. I couldn't hear clearly."

A reporter from AS followed up—an old acquaintance, Crino, whom Gao Shen suspected might have been specially arranged to attend.

Back when Gao Shen managed Real Madrid, Crino had been the team's beat reporter and knew the club very well.

"Mr. Gao, do you remember this press room?"

Gao Shen glanced around and nodded. "Yes, I remember."

"I still vividly recall that on March 1, 2006, in this very room, you sat right there and declared the need to clean out the Real Madrid dressing room. No one would be given special treatment. Even now, the memory is crystal clear."

Gao Shen smiled wryly to himself. Was this an emotional play?

He glanced at the press officer beside him, who immediately understood and cut in, "This is the official post-match press conference. Please refrain from raising questions unrelated to the match. Mr. Gao is very busy and has limited time."

With no other choice, the journalists tried asking more roundabout questions, but ultimately, they got nothing.

Gao Shen was like iron—refusing to answer anything not directly related to the match.

But after the press conference ended, Gao Shen stood up and pointed playfully at Crino with a half-joking glare. Crino put on an innocent face and gestured for mercy.

In truth, Gao Shen maintained a very good relationship with the Spanish media, especially those aligned with Real Madrid.

That's why many of them had continued to speak up for him over the years.

At times, Gao Shen understood that the hype these media outlets generated could also sway the opinions of Real Madrid fans. However, Mourinho's relationship with the media had deteriorated—particularly recently, when he directly banned AS and Marca.

The reason? Those two outlets were defending Casillas.

It was an awkward situation.

Everyone in the football world knew AS and Marca were mouthpieces for Real Madrid—just as Mundo Deportivo was for Barcelona. Now that their own mouthpieces were banned, how were they supposed to function?

Gao Shen had no choice but to sigh. Mourinho was just too willful.

…

After returning to England from Spain, Manchester City resumed Premier League action in the 13th round with an away trip to face Liverpool.

Benítez's team had indeed encountered serious problems this season. The main issue was Fernando Torres. Since his injury, his form had declined sharply, leaving Liverpool with a serious striker crisis.

There were reports that the club had considered signing Newcastle's local striker Andy Carroll. But Benítez wasn't fond of him, and Newcastle's asking price was simply too high for Liverpool.

As a result, the Reds' attacking dilemma remained unresolved.

However, Liverpool's defense was still solid.

Mascherano had not left the club as he did in Gao Shen's previous life. Instead, he remained to form a double pivot with Biglia. The duo—currently the starting defensive midfielders for the Argentina national team—were very strong.

With a tight backline and disciplined midfield, Liverpool managed to hold off Manchester City's attacking onslaught at Anfield and came away with a draw.

City conceded a set-piece goal in the first half but managed to equalize in the second half through Luis Suárez.

…

Three days later came the League Cup quarterfinals.

Fresh off the Liverpool match, Manchester City traveled south to London to face Arsenal.

Arsenal had the edge in physical freshness, while City had the advantage in strength. The match was evenly contested, but in the 83rd minute, Eden Hazard scored the winner to give Manchester City a narrow 1-0 victory and secure a place in the semi-finals.

It's worth noting that in another quarter-final, Leeds United hosted Crystal Palace, another Championship side.

In the league, Leeds sat top of the table while Palace were battling relegation, with a clear gap in quality. But in the cup, Palace gave Leeds a lot of trouble. They even opened the scoring away from home.

In the 65th minute, a defensive mistake from Leeds allowed Darren Ambrose to strike first for Palace.

Fortunately, just four minutes later, Bolasie set up Benteke for the equalizer.

The two teams battled hard, and the match ended 1-1 after 90 minutes.

According to League Cup rules, the game went to extra time.

In the 108th minute, substitute Mauro Icardi latched onto a header from Benteke and cleverly broke through Palace's defense, slotting home the decisive goal.

2-1, Leeds United edged out Crystal Palace.

What made things even more interesting was the semi-final draw that followed.

Along with Manchester City and Leeds United, the remaining two teams in the League Cup semi-finals were Liverpool and Cardiff.

Two Premier League teams and two Championship sides. Interestingly, Manchester City topped the Premier League, Liverpool sat fourth, Leeds United led the Championship, and Cardiff were fourth in the Championship.

Some media outlets started stirring things up, speculating that the top Premier League side should face the top Championship side.

But they guessed wrong.

Manchester City drew Liverpool, while Leeds United were paired with Cardiff.

The League Cup semi-finals would be played over two legs, home and away.

This result surprised many.

While the League Cup was often seen as a less important competition, it was still a domestic trophy. There was a clear gap between Premier League and Championship teams. The last time a second-tier team reached the League Cup final was the 1999–2000 season.

That year, Premier League club Leicester City faced Tranmere Rovers, then playing in the second tier (then called the First Division).

In the eleven years since, no second-tier team had reached the final.

Now, with Leeds and Cardiff facing off, it guaranteed that one of them would reach the final—breaking a more-than-decade-long drought.

Some media even speculated that the FA had rigged the draw to ensure a Championship club reached the final.

Otherwise, how could it be such a "coincidence" that City drew Liverpool, and Leeds drew Cardiff?

…

After the semi-final draw, the Premier League entered Round 14.

Manchester City hosted Norwich at the Etihad.

The newly promoted team sat deep in defense, lining up with five defenders and three defensive midfielders. But their resistance lasted only 30 minutes before Suárez's goal broke their spirit.

In the second half, further goals from Gareth Bale, Yaya Touré, Van Persie, and Robben sealed a 6-0 victory for Manchester City.

Another dominant win.

…

Three days later, Manchester City hosted their final opponent in the Champions League group stage.

After defeating Real Madrid 2-0 in the previous round, the Galácticos were officially eliminated. Meanwhile, Dortmund had lost 2-3 away to Porto.

This meant Porto still had a chance to advance.

In theory, if Porto beat Manchester City and Dortmund lost or drew against Real Madrid, Porto would go through.

As a result, Porto came out aggressively at the Etihad and pressed hard from the start.

But Sturridge launched a lightning-quick counterattack that allowed Van Persie to open the scoring.

In the second half, a defensive error from Manchester City allowed Porto to equalize, with Hulk getting the goal.

Neither side could break the deadlock afterward.

1-1, a draw.

In the other group match, Real Madrid—having lost interest after being eliminated—suffered a 1-4 defeat away to Dortmund, triggering shockwaves throughout European football.

The world's most expensive and star-studded Galácticos were eliminated from the Champions League, finishing bottom of their group. It was a massive humiliation.

Spanish media and fans slammed Mourinho and the Real Madrid players, accusing them of collecting sky-high salaries without delivering performances, and of lacking ambition.

After the loss to Dortmund, Cristiano Ronaldo publicly voiced his frustration.

"This is not the Real Madrid I expected!"

The Portuguese superstar's remarks sparked further media speculation that he might consider leaving the club.

During Casillas's suspension, Ramos had served as acting captain. After the humiliating defeat to Dortmund, the Real Madrid centre-back didn't hold back in front of the media. He strongly criticized the team's poor performances, especially the state of the dressing room.

"It feels like we've gone back to the days when everything was falling apart. We lack unity. We lack cohesion. Everyone is just thinking about their own interests. Everyone's looking out for themselves."

"Our collapse in those years proved that only through collective effort and unity can we generate real fighting spirit. Even with more stars, if we play as individuals, we will fail."

Ramos added, "Now, everyone should reflect on what they've done over the past few months—including me. Are we doing the right thing? We'll soon find out."

Both AS and Marca reported that there had been a major locker room confrontation following the Dortmund defeat.

"Mourinho's shouting could be clearly heard from inside the visitors' dressing room."

It was clear that Real Madrid had completely lost control.

Calls for a managerial change grew louder and louder. It was obvious to everyone that Mourinho no longer had a grip on the dressing room. Under such circumstances, what were they waiting for?

Especially considering Carlo Ancelotti was still available…

And just then, Chelsea sacked André Villas-Boas.

The reason? He had failed to guide Chelsea through the Champions League group stage, finishing third.

Assistant coach Di Matteo would take charge temporarily.

According to The Daily Mail, Roman Abramovich hoped to bring Mourinho back to Stamford Bridge.

The entire European football world had descended into chaos.

(To be continued.)

***

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