Starting With Real Madrid

Cavani stood at the penalty spot.

He adjusted the headband on his forehead, smoothed back his damp hair, wiped the sweat from his face, then took a slow step back.

Hands on his hips, he locked eyes with Van der Sar, standing tall in the Manchester United goal.

The Uruguayan striker's face was set with determination.

He had only one thought—score!

In the first leg at home, Cavani had struggled.

His performance had been disappointing, and Gao Shen had eventually substituted him for Pelle.

That frustration had stayed with him.

So tonight, he had poured everything into his performance, working tirelessly against United's defense.

But facing Ferdinand and Vidic, arguably the strongest center-back pairing in world football, was no easy task.

There was no simple solution only one option: work hard, fight harder, and push even more.

Now, he had a golden opportunity from the penalty spot.

And he would not let it slip away.

Thankfully, his teammates supported him.

When Rakitic heard that Cavani wanted to take the penalty, he immediately stepped aside, no hesitation.

That gesture meant everything to Cavani.

He took a deep breath and glanced toward the Napoli bench.

Gao Shen was still in his usual spot, watching him.

Then, with a calm smile, the coach raised a thumbs-up.

Cavani forced a smile and nodded back.

But inside, he wasn't smiling at all.

Twenty-eight-year-old Gao Shen truly felt like an older brother to him.

He still remembered when Gao Shen had personally traveled to Buenos Aires to sign him.

At the time, Cavani had been a young, struggling player, unable to secure a starting spot.

He hadn't been thinking about the Champions League or Serie A.

His only dream had been to play abroad, earn money, and improve his family's life.

Everything else, Europe's top leagues, the biggest stages had been beyond his imagination.

But now, everything had changed.

In just three years, he had transformed from an unknown prospect to a Serie A champion and Golden Boot winner.

He was only 22 years old, yet he had already etched his name into Italian football history.

Last season, when he won the Serie A Golden Boot, he still vividly remembered what Gao Shen had told him.

"Don't settle for this."

"No matter what your goal was before, from now on, aim higher, set a goal that seems almost impossible, even something you've never dared to dream of."

"Then go after it with everything you've got."

"Remember, Edinson, you will surpass Paolo Rossi and become the youngest top scorer in Serie A history!"

Those words had stayed with Cavani ever since.

He believed in Gao Shen.

He admired Gao Shen.

And because of that belief, he had worked even harder this season.

The same was true for all of Napoli.

And now, here they were, standing in the Champions League semi-finals, at Old Trafford.

He, Edinson Cavani, 22 years old, was standing before Van der Sar, one of football's greatest goalkeepers.

He closed his eyes and tilted his head upward.

The deafening noise inside Old Trafford surrounded him.

But with his eyes shut, he heard something else something deeper.

The fear in the voices of Manchester United fans.

They were afraid.

Afraid he would score.

Afraid Manchester United would lose.

Afraid of everything that could go wrong.

He opened his eyes again.

The referee's whistle blew.

Cavani took a deep breath.

Without looking at Van der Sar, he sprinted forward, channeling all his momentum into the strike.

He didn't hesitate.

He didn't second-guess.

With all his strength, he hammered the ball toward goal.

Not just with power but with everything he had trained for, every lesson he had absorbed.

Especially the shooting techniques he honed with Zidane.

The ball rocketed forward, an unstoppable blur.

Van der Sar reacted instantly, diving toward it.

His fingertips brushed the ball, but it was too fast, too strong.

The ball ripped into the net!

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!"

"45th minute! Napoli scores again!"

"TWO TO ZERO!"

"Edinson Cavani, cool as ice from the spot!"

"This is a massive goal! Napoli has now taken control of this two-leg tie!"

"The score is now 2-0 tonight, 3-1 on aggregate!"

"And most crucially, Napoli now has two away goals."

"That means Manchester United must score at least three times in the second half just to have a chance of going through!"

"Looking at how they've played so far, they haven't found any solutions."

"Napoli has been exceptional tonight calm, structured, and ruthless on the counterattack. Their left flank attack has been especially dangerous."

"Meanwhile, Manchester United, despite playing at home, have looked uninspired offensively."

Napoli had delivered the decisive blow.

But as the celebrations continued, one reminder lingered.

"At Old Trafford, nothing is over until the final whistle."

"Because Manchester United never surrender easily."

---

Perhaps because it was a penalty, Gao Shen was mentally prepared.

So when Cavani buried the spot-kick, he simply raised his fists, shouting in celebration but not overly excited.

For him, this goal wasn't just Cavani's moment.

The penalty had been earned by Rakitic, Di Maria, and Vargas.

In football, a goal is never the work of just one player, it's the result of an entire team's effort.

That's why, after scoring, Cavani didn't celebrate alone.

He immediately ran to the sideline, calling for his teammates to join in.

That was what made Gao Shen most proud, the strong team spirit within Napoli.

There was competition, there was pressure, and at times, there were even arguments and disagreements.

But everything was always under control.

And because of that, Napoli functioned as a unit, all working toward the same goal.

"Ferguson must have a headache right now." Gao Shen exhaled.

The second half was going to be tough.

Manchester United would undoubtedly launch an all-out counterattack.

But with this crucial advantage, Napoli had taken control.

From here on, their task was simply to react to whatever Ferguson threw at them.

And if things got really bad?

Gao Shen could always drop three defensive midfielders, bunker down, and park the bus.

At that point, what could Ferguson do?

With United's current struggles against a deep defense, if Gao Shen really committed to locking down the game, there wouldn't be much even Ferguson could do about it.

Ferguson did have a headache.

In fact, he was even starting to regret some of his choices.

Did he regret mentoring Gao Shen?

No… wait. Had he ever actually mentored him?

Maybe not.

Never mind.

Regardless, with the score at 0-2, the United players returned to the locker room and the mood was grim.

Every single player knew the situation was dire.

Napoli had seized the decisive moment, and now United needed at least three goals.

And they weren't facing just any team, they were up against the Serie A semi-champions.

Ferguson understood the mentality of his squad.

Their frustration was natural.

But there was no choice.

They had to fight back.

"In the second half, we go all-out."

"Attack—attack like hell. We need a goal as soon as possible."

Ferguson had already decided to make substitutions.

At halftime, he instructed Berbatov and Nani to start warming up.

As for who would come off?

It was obvious, Park Ji-sung.

Just like Rooney, Park had underperformed.

But unlike Rooney, he wasn't a tactical focal point.

If Berbatov was coming on, the only logical player to be sacrificed was Park Ji-sung.

The winger looked disappointed, but he knew there was nothing he could do.

This was football.

This was his role.

The second substitution was in midfield, Anderson was coming off.

When he arrived at United, Anderson had been hailed as the next Ronaldinho.

He had flashes of brilliance, even in the first half, he had made a sharp pass to Rooney.

But for the most part, he had spent his time defending and chasing Napoli's midfielders.

Ferguson needed more attacking power.

That's why Nani was coming in to inject pace and creativity down the wing.

United's biggest problem had been their stalled attack.

Now, Ferguson was changing the system, switching to 4-2-3-1.

With the new setup:

Rooney stayed on the left.

Nani replaced Park Ji-sung on the right.

Berbatov played as the central striker.

Ronaldo dropped into a free-attacking role, a shadow striker behind Berbatov.

This change meant one thing.

Carrick and Fletcher would now carry more defensive responsibility.

Ferguson looked around the locker room.

"I don't need to tell you what this situation is."

"But this is NOT the time to feel powerless."

"This is NOT the worst position we've ever been in."

"We have fought back before we have staged comebacks before."

"We are Manchester United. We do not give up."

He paused, scanning their faces.

"Right now, we need to stay focused, stay sharp. No panic, no reckless play."

"We need three goals—so what?"

"This is a Serie A team, not some unstoppable force. Liverpool scored three in minutes, why can't we?"

"As long as we fight together, as long as we believe, we can turn this around."

"Do you understand?!"

A roar erupted from the United players.

This was their only way forward go all in.

Because when Manchester United fights, they fight to the very end.

And their ability to win tough matches?

It never came from blind aggression.

It came from their unshakable pursuit of victory.

---

Meanwhile, in the visiting locker room, Gao Shen laid out his strategy.

"Manchester United is going to attack immediately."

"Ferguson will almost certainly change formations, I don't know exactly how, and I don't care."

"Because we don't need to guess."

He looked at his players.

"A 2-0 lead is NOT enough to secure qualification."

"This is the Champions League semi-finals, a single mistake can cost us everything."

"If we relax, we could concede two or three goals in minutes."

"That's why we are NOT playing defensively."

He took a step forward.

"We know what our opponents want."

"Just like they knew what we wanted before the match."

"So when the second half starts, we attack."

"If United dares to attack us, then we attack them right back."

With a two-goal cushion, Gao Shen was confident.