"Su is getting completely shut down!"

  "Boujellab and Su have zero chemistry!"

  "With less than five minutes left in the first half, Schalke's only threat remains Su's opening goal!"

  "Forty minutes played without a single shot on target!"

  "Vardy has become invisible in the attacking third!"

  "Vardy, the rising star from the lower leagues, clearly isn't ready for a team like Bar?a!"

  "Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is completely neutralized by Alves on the left flank!"

  "Su tries to carry the ball again!"

  "Iniesta, Xavi and Villa swarm him immediately!"

  In the Veltins-Arena, thousands of Schalke fans watch helplessly as Su struggles against the relentless pressure.

  Boujellab keeps making runs down Su's left, trying to provide an outlet.

  But Iniesta has already cut off that passing lane, Xavi pressures the ball carrier, while Villa stays tight on Su, constantly jostling him!

  Bar?a's defensive swarm would trouble any team.

  For Schalke, with only Su capable of maintaining possession, Boujellab loses the ball within seconds of receiving it!

  Magath paces anxiously on the sidelines, watching his isolated star.

  "Gaffer!"

  At that moment, Raul suddenly rises from the bench!

  "I'm going to warm up!"

  The sideline cameras immediately catch Raul's movement.

  When the handsome veteran appears on the stadium's big screen,

  The silent Veltins-Arena erupts in deafening cheers!

  In the North Stand,

  Ann Carr, who's been nervously clutching her briefcase, finally relaxes.

  The group of burly men around her leap to their feet.

  "Damn La Masia dogs! See that? Our Raul's warming up - now you'll see real attacking football!"

  "Raul!!!"

  "Fuck these La Masia brats!"

  "Destroy them! Make them bleed!!!"

  The language is crude, vulgar, yet Ann Carr finds herself strangely exhilarated.

  "Fuck these La Masia actors!!!"

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  Tearing off her white shirt, she joins the roaring chorus.

  Though tattoo-less and thin compared to the others, the fans embrace the foul-mouthed Ann Carr, uniting in their cheers.

  "Raul is warming up!!!"

  "After three months injured, is Raul finally ready to play?"

  "The first half is almost over!"

  "Raul will have a full forty-five minutes to make an impact!"

  With three markers closing in, Su had no choice but to release the ball!

  His 85 dribbling rating simply wasn't enough to break through Bar?a's tight marking.

  Without space to accelerate, his speed advantage was neutralized!

  Just as Iniesta collected the loose ball, Su lunged into a sliding tackle, knocking it out of play!

  Thanks to the entire team's desperate defending, Schalke managed to hold on until halftime without conceding again.

  The referee's whistle finally sounded, ending the first half.

  Assistant coach Hughes helped Magath lead the players into the tunnel.

  Su walked back to the locker room alongside Hao, both wearing grim expressions.

  "Boys, you fought hard out there!"

  "Really fought hard!"

  "You're facing an incredibly strong opponent!"

  "Our entire squad's value combined might not equal Messi's alone!"

  "But we drew them away from home! Now all we need is one more goal!"

  "LISTEN UP!!!"

  "Boujellab, you're coming off in the second half!"

  "Raul's going in!"

  "Hao moves to midfield, Vardy shifts right, Raul as lone striker!"

  "Everyone except Raul must contribute defensively!"

  "Remember this!!!"

  "DEFENSE FIRST!!!"

  Magath's tactical adjustment was straightforward.

  He was putting all his faith in Raul's experience.

  While Vardy possessed more pace than Raul for counters, against Bar?a, Schalke couldn't even initiate counterattacks!

  Their only hope now rested on Raul's veteran savvy and technical quality!

  Hao's partnership with Su would be far more effective than Boujellab's.

  At least Hao could relieve some defensive pressure from Su.

  Beside him, Su panted heavily but nodded in agreement.

  Magath's tactics matched his own thinking perfectly.

  Vardy clearly looked overawed facing Bar?a's defense today.

  Understandable - despite his talent, he was up against peak Bar?a with Puyol and Piqué marshaling the backline!

  In such situations, only a player of Raul's caliber could make the difference.

  And Su hadn't even played his trump card yet!

  The Perfect Partner Card!!!

  He'd been saving it specifically for Raul's introduction.

  Using it on Boujellab would have been wasteful, while Vardy remained too much of a gamble - after all, he'd only been promoted from the ninth division less than a season ago. Sometimes a player's mentality mattered more than skill.

  It had to be Raul.

  This was Schalke 04's final chance!

  Everyone knew Raul's shooting technique and goal-scoring instinct hadn't diminished with age!

  A peak-condition Raul, combined with his playmaking ability!

  Perhaps he could challenge the unstoppable Bar?a!

  .............

  "Tweet!"

  "With the referee's whistle!"

  "The second half begins!"

  "Schalke makes the first substitution! Raul, returning from injury, finally steps onto the Veltins-Arena pitch after his long absence!"

  "The crowd erupts chanting Raul's name!"

  "Hao has also dropped back into midfield!"

  "China's midfield duo is reunited!"

  "Bar?a's attack!"

  "As relentless as ever!"

  "Xavi passes to Messi!"

  "Su immediately closes him down!"

  "I must say, Su's performance today has been a revelation!"

  "His incredible pace allows him to match Messi stride for stride!"

  "Though Su still needs to improve his defensive positioning and tackling ability!"

  "He could definitely become a world-class fullback!"

  "Of course, even if he improves those skills, no coach would waste Su's talent at fullback!"

  "Messi takes a couple of probing steps!"

  "Finding no way past Su, he passes back to Xavi!"

  "Hao steps up to press!"

  Facing Hao, Xavi effortlessly controls the ball before spinning away, following through with a precise toe-poke pass to Iniesta!

  Meanwhile, Villa makes a darting run into the box, meeting Iniesta's perfectly weighted through ball!

  Metzelder scrambles to cover!

  But just as he closes in, Villa unleashes a powerful right-footed strike!

  "Danger!!!"

  "Neuer comes to the rescue again!!!"

  "A point-blank save!!!"

  "Iniesta's pass was absolutely ingenious!"

  "The play was clearly onside!!!"

  "Villa's shot had tremendous power! Fortunately for Schalke, it was struck straight at Neuer, who managed to palm it away at the last moment!"

  "Another corner kick!!!"

  .................