Chapter 95

On December 14th, the entire Spanish and global football world focused on the Camp Nou Stadium, as this round of La Liga featured a major match: Barcelona vs. Real Madrid at home.

Barcelona, with their impressive momentum, faced Real Madrid, who were plagued by internal and external issues. It was uncertain whether Barcelona would win as expected or if Real Madrid, driven by the need to bounce back, would secure a victory. Notably, after losing 3-4 to Sevilla at home the previous week, Real Madrid officially announced the dismissal of Bernd Schuster. Juande Ramos, who had left Tottenham Hotspur less than two months earlier, took over the German's position. The direct cause of Schuster's dismissal was his frank statement after the loss to Sevilla: "This is Barcelona's season."

Lin Sen, who had long known that Schuster would be fired, was aware that the German was merely a scapegoat for Real Madrid's current poor state. However, as a peer, he still criticized the mentality of top clubs in an interview, praising Schuster and calling him an excellent coach.

Lin Sen led his team to a smooth victory, with Málaga winning 2-0 at home against Numancia. Robert Lewandowski scored the opening goal, and the decisive goal was scored by Koke, who had recently been a bit of a headache for Lin Sen. This made Lin Sen appreciate the "blessing in disguise" even more. On one hand, Koke's excellent performance was a good thing, but on the other hand, it would undoubtedly strengthen Atlético Madrid's resolve to buy back Koke.

Moreover, what Lin Sen found most gratifying about this match was the defense. The defense, which had failed to keep a clean sheet in the previous four games, finally managed to do so. Lin Sen made a choice between the future and the present: Bonucci and Ranocchia would continue to start as center-backs. Of course, he still had work to do.

After losing to Deportivo La Coruña in the previous round, Lin Sen had a brief conversation with Ranocchia and Bonucci. It was not a tedious lecture or a stern warning; he simply told them that they would be his first choice for center-backs for the rest of the season and hoped they would not make him regret this decision. Then, Lin Sen let everything unfold naturally.

What surprised Lin Sen was that this victory over Numancia actually caught the attention of the young Málaga chairman, Little Sánchez. After the match, he personally congratulated the players in the dressing room. Lin Sen did not know that Little Sánchez had once actively applied to coach Numancia but was rejected. To Lin Sen, this was just a minor episode, unlike his situation with Valencia, where he harbored some resentment, not because of the rejection but because of the way he was rejected.

So, for Lin Sen, the match against Numancia was just an ordinary league game, nothing more.

However, Little Sánchez was so excited about the victory over Numancia, even more so than over Real Madrid, because Málaga had finally avenged him. Due to potential changes in the Spanish tax rate, there would be a La Liga chairmen's summit at the end of the year, where all La Liga club chairmen would attend. Little Sánchez was eager to see the expression on Carlos Celsis' face when he saw him.

---

On December 21st, La Liga entered its 16th round, the last round of the year. Málaga, playing away against 8th-placed Santander, drew 1-1 in a rain-soaked match. For Santander's coach, Muñiz, this match meant more because Málaga was the team he coached last season. However, Muñiz did not regret it, knowing that the current Málaga was vastly different from his former team. Even if he had stayed, Málaga might not have performed as well as it did now. Therefore, he was more pleased for the Málaga fans. His departure was voluntary, but it did not mean a complete break.

As for Lin Sen, he had no complaints about the draw. Although many radical Málaga fans wanted to show Muñiz that his departure was a big mistake, Málaga's performance was not particularly good, and the match was evenly matched.

What was particularly frustrating was that the goal was scored by Koke, who had now scored in two consecutive matches. After the match, Lin Sen had to face the consequences of Koke's timely burst of form. A journalist asked during the post-match press conference: "There are reports that Atlético Madrid plans to exercise Koke's buy-back clause in the winter transfer window. What do you think about this?"

What could he think? Lin Sen was a bit annoyed and coldly replied, "The transfer window hasn't opened yet, so talking about this now is meaningless."

Unexpectedly, this response left a loophole for the journalist, who quickly followed up, "You didn't deny that Atlético Madrid has a buy-back clause. So, does it really exist?"

Lin Sen frowned, realizing his previous answer was unclear. He decided to be evasive: "I neither deny nor confirm it. If you say it exists, then it exists."

The journalists, who had been eagerly waiting for more, were a bit frustrated. After a moment, one asked, "After the match, Koke said he would never ignore a call from Atlético Madrid. What do you think about that?"

Lin Sen paused for a moment before responding, "Koke is an honest young man. He has spent much more time at Atlético Madrid than here. Atlético Madrid has nurtured him, so I don't see any problem with his statement."

The journalists tried to press further, but Lin Sen was not going to give them any more chances. He signaled to Balcaz, who reluctantly ended the press conference, citing that the Q&A session was over.

Lin Sen was somewhat irritated and knew the reason for his frustration. Although he had said Koke's response was normal during the press conference, he still couldn't let it go. It wasn't that Lin Sen was upset about Koke's candid remarks; Koke was the man of the match and giving an interview was routine. Lin Sen believed that Koke's words were a result of unscrupulous journalists leading the young, innocent player astray.

However, the fact that he learned about his player's thoughts from a journalist was clearly wrong. Therefore, Lin Sen felt it necessary to talk to Koke and find out his true feelings.

Before the Christmas break.

With Christmas approaching, La Liga would enter a short break, with the next round of matches starting on January 3rd of the following year. Depending on the team's arrangements, the players would generally have a break of seven to ten days.

---

With the conclusion of the last round of the year, the current La Liga standings became clearer.

The first group, aiming for Champions League qualification, is led by Barcelona, who have 41 points from 16 rounds (13 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss), securing the winter championship. Pep Guardiola, who has been named the best coach of the month for two consecutive months after Lin Sen, is almost certain to win the La Liga Coach of the Month award for the third time in a row after the victory in the El Clásico.

Malaga, who had a seven-game winning streak but have not won consecutively since, still holds the second position with 34 points (10 wins, 4 draws, 2 losses) thanks to their early advantage. Despite recent fluctuations, they are seven points behind the leaders, Barcelona. Lin Sen, the youngest coach in La Liga, has faced controversy recently, but his success is undeniable. The As journalist Angel's early-season claim that Lin Sen could not keep Málaga in the league has long been a laughing stock among Málaga fans. Now, they are eager to see Málaga reach the theoretical safety mark of 40 points and recreate the legendary moment when Manchester United fans responded to Alan Hansen.

Following Málaga are Sevilla and Villarreal, with 32 and 30 points, respectively. The second group, aiming for Europa League qualification, includes Valencia, who have dropped to fifth place, followed by Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid...

The most disappointing team is undoubtedly Real Madrid. President Calderón is clearly in a bind, as the summer transfer window's shortcomings have not been addressed, and the strong performance of their rivals, Barcelona, has pushed Real Madrid's fans to the brink of rebellion. For Atlético Madrid, fan dissatisfaction can be addressed with reassurance, but for the member-owned Real Madrid, it could spell disaster for Calderón, who is seeking re-election. Perhaps to show that the club was not unwilling to spend money in the summer but simply did not have the time, Real Madrid pre-ordered Huntelaar from Ajax before the winter transfer window even opened...

As for Atlético Madrid, after a series of early setbacks, Reixach seems to have found his footing, leading the team to two wins and one draw in October, pulling them back into the second group.

In summary, the first half of the season has seen Barcelona establish a clear lead, while the rest of the teams are closely bunched together, with no team leading by more than two points. Except for Barcelona, from Málaga to Atlético Madrid, no team can confidently say they will not falter in the second half of the season.