Chapter 383: Ending the Match

"Pass to me! Pass to me!"

Up front, Van Nistelrooy kept shouting loudly.

His expression and tone were filled with urgency. As time slipped away bit by bit, Van Nistelrooy grew increasingly agitated.

They were still two goals behind, and time was running out.

They wanted a draw!They wanted a win!

That meant they needed to score!

Everyone has fantasized about being the hero of a comeback, the one who carries the team with a crucial goal.

But not everyone can actually do that.

Van Nistelrooy was not a one-man army type of player; he couldn't create a threat on his own like Suker.

He needed someone to pass him the ball!He needed someone to cooperate!

He transferred to Real Madrid precisely because of Beckham.

He wanted to play the way he used to, even at the age of 30.

Van Nistelrooy believed his era wasn't over, that he still had the ability to turn the tide.

All he lacked was that key pass!

"Pass it! Damn it!"

"There's space right in front of me! Can't you see it?"

"Pass it! Pass it already!"

Van Nistelrooy roared again and again.

His voice echoed throughout the pitch.

Inzaghi, sitting on the bench, saw this scene.

To be honest, he felt a bit of empathy.

As players of the same era, Inzaghi and Van Nistelrooy were active in the same period and were often compared to one another.

And now, one was sitting on the bench, while the other was isolated and helpless on the pitch.

Van Nistelrooy's ability was still worthy of recognition — despite being 30, he was still an efficient scorer.

But all of this was relative; at the very least, they could no longer compare themselves to their peak.

Especially with the rise of these insanely talented young players.

Suker, Kaka, Ronaldo, Modric, Messi, and so on —Every single one of them was a headache to deal with.

They repeatedly created iconic moments, and the old generation was often just the background in those moments.

81st minute, after Van Nistelrooy's endless shouting, a pass finally came.

It was a diagonal through ball from Guti, perfectly placed in front of Van Nistelrooy.

Seeing Van Nistelrooy surge forward, Inzaghi raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Van Nistelrooy breaks into the penalty area. A great pass from Guti. This is one of Real Madrid's few chances — can Van Nistelrooy seize it?"

Van Nistelrooy was running with gritted teeth. Although his stamina was depleted and his movements were awkward, he still managed to shoot.

That shot, clumsily, deflected off Nesta's leg and flew into the net.

"Van Nistelrooy! He scores one for Real Madrid!"

"There's still time!! There's still time!!"

The Spanish commentator shouted excitedly.

The entire crowd of Madrid fans erupted after the goal, roaring in celebration — or maybe venting their frustration.

Van Nistelrooy did the same, running to the edge of the stands with his arms raised in celebration.

As if to say, "See! I'll score if you pass to me!"

But as he left, Inzaghi noticed Van Nistelrooy's knees wobbling slightly.

He was out of energy.

"A lot of people think that scoring one goal against us means they can come back," Inzaghi muttered, glancing at the cocky Van Nistelrooy running past the dugout. He couldn't help but sneer.

Though they were players of the same era, he thought, you're really full of yourself.

Maldini turned to look at Inzaghi, who said softly, "They don't know we've got a mule on our team."

Pfft!Maldini couldn't help but chuckle.

Suker's nickname "the mule" for his insane stamina had stuck.

It started off as a joke, an exaggeration of his endurance.

But as Suker's performance continued to soar, Milan's youth team even officially categorized "mule" as the top stamina tier, above A+.

What once was a joke…

Was now a badge of honor, the highest praise for a player's stamina at Milan.

"How could you let someone score again? You didn't track back those last two steps!"

Kaka was ruffling Nesta's hair like petting a dog or cat.

Honestly, only Kaka in the whole Milan squad dared to mess with Nesta like that.

Suker never got that close to Nesta, not like with Gattuso or Pirlo.

So Suker always avoided teasing Nesta.

But Kaka was different.

One look at Nesta's receding hairline and you'd know…

This once-cool guy was slowly getting bald — all thanks to Kaka's "petting."

Kaka got a kick to the butt from Nesta, sending him back to the pitch.

Suker placed the ball in the center circle, then looked back at Kaka.

"I think I can score another one!"

Real Madrid's players were exhausted, and Suker saw an opportunity to threaten the goal.

If he could score another, he would!

That earlier goal had boosted Madrid's morale.

They still had hope to equalize.

But for AC Milan, they just needed to hold the line. Honestly, a draw on the road wasn't the end of the world.

But now — winning was clearly the goal.

Whistle!

The last ten minutes had begun.

Even with stoppage time, there were only about ten minutes left.

Real Madrid's players pressed hard after the kickoff.

They wanted to disrupt AC Milan's midfield and force mistakes.

But Milan's midfield held firm, steadily passing and advancing.

While passing, Kaka also watched Suk's movement.

As Suker moved toward the left wing, Kaka considered a through ball behind the defense.

But noticing Madrid's defensive shift, he pulled the ball back and cut inside along the baseline instead.

Still, Madrid's defenders reacted quickly.

To be fair, Capello had built a very alert and responsive back line.

Kaka had to pass it back, ready to reorganize.

Suker also drifted back to a central position.

After a few attempts, the Madrid players started getting anxious.

"Push up! Press up!"Cannavaro shouted.

He didn't want to lose. They had to push up and apply pressure.

After a few tries, they finally intercepted the ball.

"Well done!"

Cannavaro shouted.

But before Guti could even control the ball, Gattuso came crashing in from the side and slid the ball forward to Pirlo.

"Gattuso! What a counter-tackle! The ball goes to Pirlo!"

Almost instantly, Suker made his move.

Pirlo, reading him perfectly, launched a lob into Madrid's half.

The ball dropped between Suker and Ramos.

Suker darted to the spot, and Ramos backpedaled.

But after a few steps, as Suker was about to control the ball, Ramos suddenly surged forward.

He wanted to disrupt Suker.

But Suker had seen it coming — standing in front of the ball's path, he lifted his right leg and, with the outside of his boot, gently flicked the ball.

It soared over Ramos' head.

Then Suker shifted sideways, dodged Ramos, and bolted past him.

"OHHHH~~~ SUKER!! WHAT A TOUCH!!"

Suker left Ramos behind. Cannavaro couldn't catch up.

Suker surged into the penalty area. Casillas came out desperately.

As the keeper closed in, Suker chipped the ball with a soft touch.

It arced perfectly — and dropped into the net.

89th minute, right before stoppage time, Suker scored again.

AC Milan led 3-1 away at Real Madrid.

That goal completely shattered Real Madrid's hold on the match.

And it crushed any hope of a comeback.

Suker had once again become the match-winner.

With one strike, he sent Real Madrid into despair.