Chapter 71

This was definitely not the script Regino wanted for the match.

If Malaga's coach wasn't Lin Sen, if Lin Sen wasn't the former coach of Atletico Madrid, and if this match wasn't the first of the season, Regino might have been able to hold his temper, watch the game develop, and trust his players. But now, he could no longer bear to quietly watch his team fall behind, so he made his move, or rather, his effort.

Although it was a bit early, only five minutes into the second half.

Atletico Madrid's formation changed from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3.

"New signing Pontier comes on, and now Atletico Madrid has three genuine forwards on the field, not to mention the two wingers. Abel has finally added more offensive firepower, clearly very dissatisfied with the team's performance. It must be said that Lin's defensive tactics have been successful so far. Up to this point, Atletico Madrid has only had five shots, none of which were on target. Malaga, on the other hand, scored with their only shot. Clearly, luck is not on Atletico Madrid's side..."

Luck?

Rod didn't think so.

If a goal is scored when you don't intend to, that's luck. If a goal is scored when you do intend to, that's not luck. In this match, Malaga's offensive and defensive strategies have been much clearer than Atletico Madrid's. When they defend, almost everyone is involved, and when they attack, the routes are so clear they could be used for weaving. In contrast, Atletico Madrid's offense, while lively, has produced no results, and the more they play, the more anxious they become.

Regino's substitution was clearly aimed at strengthening the attack. Although from the formation, Aguero, who had been lost in the opponent's defensive crowd, had retreated to play as a number 9.5 to make up for the lack of midfielders, this change made Atletico Madrid's formation seem top-heavy. If Regino's mindset before the substitution was to win, this substitution clearly showed his other mindset: fear of losing.

Wanting to win but fearing to lose, this mindset usually leads to one result: unable to attack or defend.

Too hasty!

Jimmy's brows were already tightly furrowed in the stands, even he could see the anxiety in Regino's heart.

After bringing on Pontier, the Frenchman was placed at the forefront, Forlán roamed behind him, and Aguero, avoiding the heavily defended area in front of the penalty box, moved closer to the midfield. The two wingers remained unchanged, so while it was a 4-3-3, it was more like a 4-1-3-2. This was almost a full attack, almost abandoning the midfield, or rather... ignoring Malaga's entire midfield.

At this moment, Lin Sen walked to the bench and then drove everyone on the bench to warm up on the sidelines. This action immediately caught people's attention, especially Regino's.

What is he doing? Can't he resist playing an open game? Or is he preparing to strengthen the defense even further?

Regino speculated.

But as the minutes passed, what left Regino speechless was that Malaga's warming-up players actually returned to the bench, and without exception, no one showed any signs of coming on as a substitute.

At this moment, there were new developments on the field.

Malaga, who should have been under more pressure after Atletico Madrid strengthened their attack, suddenly had more opportunities.

In the 52nd minute, Gabi intercepted the ball in the midfield and passed it to the wing, where Eliseu advanced along the flank, but his pass to Rondón was called offside. In slow motion, Rondón was indeed offside by half a body.

Eight minutes later, Malaga came back, and Koke successfully intercepted the ball in the opponent's half. After a one-two with Gundogan, he easily gained a one-on-one opportunity, but once again, the assistant referee stopped Malaga's advance, calling offside. In slow motion, Koke's head was the part that was offside.

In the 67th minute, Forlán's long-range shot was blocked by Godín. Pontier, who found the ball, failed to control it, and the ball was intercepted by Apoño. Malaga quickly formed a counterattack, but the final pass of this attack was also called offside, though from the slow-motion replay, it was impossible to determine if the call was correct.

Three attacks, all starting with an interception, all ending in offside, and all by a hair's breadth.

The Atletico Madrid fans in the stands felt like they were on a roller coaster, experiencing the sensation of weightlessness in their hearts from time to time. Regino, on the sidelines, felt like he was walking a tightrope, as if any breeze could blow him off. However, now that he was on the tightrope, he had no choice but to keep walking, as there was no turning back.

By bringing on Pontier, Regino's intention was for the Frenchman to be the straw that broke Malaga's defense. In his view, although Atletico Madrid hadn't scored, they had more opportunities than Malaga. Once Atletico Madrid broke through that barrier, goals would come naturally. Believing that attack was the best defense, he never thought that for this straw, he was removing a backbone from Atletico Madrid.

Without a backbone, Atletico Madrid's attack and defense were completely disconnected. To compensate for this disconnection, the already advanced defense had to move even further forward, leaving a large blank space behind, playing a high-risk, high-reward game: offside trap!

It must be said, Atletico Madrid played it well.

Three times in a row, Malaga's near one-on-one opportunities were called offside.

At this moment, seemingly dissatisfied with the team's missed opportunities, Lin Sen once again walked to the bench. This time, the warm-up was not a show of force, but two people: Reus and Lewandowski. Soon, the fourth official held up a board.

Number 18 Rondón off, number 9 Lewandowski on!

Number 10 Apoño off, number 11 Reus on!

Direct substitutions? No, not entirely!

Lewandowski did replace the goal-scoring hero Rondón, but Reus's position was clearly different from Apoño's. Indeed, after Reus came on, Gundogan, who was in the attacking midfielder position, retreated to Apoño's position. The formation was still a 4-2-3-1.

"Atletico Madrid needs to wake up! They are only one goal behind, and they have enough time left, but they can't afford to waste any more. If they wake up now, everything is still possible." The match time was 75 minutes, and Cosol finally began to feel a bit parched.

Not just Hill, but Cerezo couldn't sit still either. He stood up, his eyes fixed through his glasses on the green battlefield, his face stern: Could it be that Lin will really complete a comeback at the Calderón?

The match time ticked away.

Atletico Madrid had gone mad. The previous Malaga counterattacks seemed to have no effect on their determination to attack. Their defense was still very high, and all the other midfield and forward players, including Raul García, had entered Malaga's half. Like a starving wolf suddenly seeing a hedgehog, they kept trying to swallow the opponent, but each time they failed, they could only pace anxiously.

81 minutes, 82 minutes, 83 minutes...

Regino, who had already played his last two cards, stood on the sidelines, his hands unconsciously clenching into fists, but he couldn't control the slight trembling from nervousness... The fans in the Calderón stands, however, showed no signs of weakening. This was a new season, a new beginning, and no matter what, they wanted the team to know that this was not the disappointing last season!

The team needed a hero!

Forlán, who couldn't even enter the penalty area, took another long-range shot. At this moment, perhaps the most focused player on Malaga, Godín, punched the ball away with his right fist. The ball flew directly to the left side of the penalty area, where a figure was already rushing over.

Aguero skillfully controlled the ball, and even though the game was in its final stages, his movements remained flawless.

To his left, Gundogan rushed up again, not to challenge him, but to block the position that made Aguero most uncomfortable. Meanwhile, Koke, who was his teammate last season, had already taken up a position in front of him, and behind him stood the newly substituted Reus.

Another three-on-one!

Aguero was frustrated; Malaga had already invited him to play mahjong more than once in this match.

If the opponents had come to press him directly, it would have been more straightforward, but this kind of surrounding defense without attacking had frustrated Aguero for almost the entire game.

Over here!

At this moment, a voice came over.

Forlán was there to support him, even though a man was also following him. But this was enough!

Aguero passed the ball to Forlán, and Koke instinctively tried to intercept it, but the ball rolled past him. Aguero quickly broke out of the encirclement, and Forlán, upon receiving the ball, immediately pushed it forward with his instep...

"One-two! Beautiful!!" Cosol's eyes lit up, and he shouted loudly.

The best was yet to come. Aguero, upon receiving the ball, performed a familiar Marseille turn, easily leaving Alba behind and entering the penalty area. Facing Wellington's defensive support, he accelerated and slipped past him like a cat. At this moment, Godín came out of the goal.

In the breathless silence of the Calderón, Aguero calmly poked the ball with his toe, and it sailed over Godín. Behind him, Pontier's figure flashed by...

An open goal!

"Goooooooooooooal..." At the moment the ball rolled into the goal, Cosol seemed to have used all his life's strength to shout.

The entire Calderón erupted into madness. Barreto tightly hugged Jimmy, and the overjoyed Hill shook hands with Cerezo in celebration.

1-1!

Not a last-minute goal! Better than a last-minute goal!

The pressure that had built up for almost the entire game was released like a flood, and Regino, almost ready to rush onto the field to celebrate with the players, waved his arms, his face filled with joy: He had bet right!

Regino had thought this was just an ordinary match, but now he realized how important this match was to him.

Lin Sen's brows furrowed slightly, and he walked to the sideline and made a gesture. At this moment, the entire Calderón was in a frenzy, and all the cameras were focused on Atletico Madrid's hero, Aguero. Few people noticed Lin Sen's gesture, but there were always exceptions, and Rod was one of them.

When Atletico Madrid's players finished celebrating and both teams lined up as if the match had just started, the match time was already 89 minutes.

Rod's eyes widened. He saw Lin Sen's gesture and wondered what Malaga could do in these last few minutes. Then, he saw a simple attack.

Lewandowski passed the ball back to Gundogan, then quickly rushed into the opponent's half. Meanwhile, Reus, who was standing in the center circle with him, moved to the left wing.

Gundogan paused for just a few seconds, then looked up and saw the forward, delivering a penetrating pass to Lewandowski. At this moment, Lewandowski was already less than ten meters from the opponent's penalty arc. Without stopping the ball, he performed the same action as Forlán did in the one-two with Aguero, pushing the ball with his instep...

The ball flew to Reus on the wing, and in less than ten seconds, Reus had reached the opponent's penalty line.

Then, Reus made a move that left everyone speechless: he lifted his leg and shot!

No preparation! No time to think!

Reus just shot!

Koupe had no reaction!

The ball shot into the corner like a bolt of lightning, causing the net to ripple...

The second goal!

2-1!

The entire world, which had just erupted, fell into a dead silence!