"Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu—GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!!"
"Goal! Goal! Shane scores again! That's his 27th league goal! His 27th!"
"My God…"
"Unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable!!"
"I've said it countless times, but I'll say it again: Shane is controlling this match. He is the brightest star on the pitch!"
"Atlético Madrid lead 2-0! Real Madrid are in serious trouble!"
The commentary box was in chaos.
The Calderón was shaking.
The stands were trembling.
From the media area, reporters could feel the overwhelming energy surging out of the stadium.
"Su! Long live Su!!"
"Real Madrid, go to hell!"
Atlético fans were screaming wildly.
Shane's body slid across the grass before he got up.
Before he could even stand properly, Costa was already on top of him.
The big Brazilian planted a kiss right on Shane's head, then hammered his back with pure joy.
"Beautiful! Brilliant!"
The passion pouring out of that famous face was almost overwhelming.
Shane had barely caught his breath when the rest of the team flooded over.
Everyone knew what 2-0 meant.
At 1-0, the opponent could still come back.
But at 2-0, Atlético were on the verge of victory.
That scoreline was usually enough to secure the three points.
For Atlético Madrid, this win was essential.
If they lost this match, they would have almost no margin for error by the time Matchday 36 came around and they faced Barcelona.
On the sideline, Mourinho stood motionless for a long time.
In the end, he turned and walked back to the bench without a word.
For Real Madrid, losing this city derby would leave the Copa del Rey final as their only remaining realistic chance of silverware this season — a potential redemption match against Barcelona.
Whoever lost would finish the season empty-handed.
Mourinho's thoughts were already drifting ahead.
He knew that whether he won the Copa or not, his time at Real Madrid was coming to an end.
Thinking back on his three seasons at the club, Mourinho's lips curled into that trademark mysterious smile.
No one knew whether it was mockery or self-satisfaction.
Mourinho made no tactical changes after going two goals down.
Simeone also made none.
He was winning, so there was no need.
The first half ended 2-0.
At half-time, both teams returned to their dressing rooms.
The commentators busied themselves explaining what the score meant for the title race.
Barcelona fans, who had been relatively quiet before the match, had finally bared their teeth.
Earlier, they had rarely said anything positive about Real Madrid and had encouraged them to fight hard away from home.
But now…
Barcelona fans felt betrayed.
At half-time, they turned on Madrid.
They flooded social media and live chats with abuse aimed at their rivals.
Real Madrid fans were already furious.
With Barcelona coming at them directly, it was like throwing a match into gunpowder.
The two fanbases went to war online.
...
Inside the home dressing room, Simeone didn't have much to say.
He simply told his players to stay alert for counters in the second half.
Other than that, just keep playing the way they had been.
In the away dressing room, the atmosphere was heavy.
Mourinho said nothing.
No one else spoke either.
The silence was suffocating.
In the end, Mourinho broke it.
"A very bad first half, right?" he said calmly.
"We were league champions last season, and this season we fell out of the title race very early… I think you all know why."
His words made the players' expressions turn complicated.
Even with all the factions and politics, no professional player truly wanted to coast.
No one benefited from giving up.
Everyone wanted trophies.
And at a club like Real Madrid, winning trophies was the expectation.
"Look at the squad we have."
"Honestly, the result of this match doesn't mean much for the table anymore," Mourinho continued. "But I think we still need to give our fans an answer. We need to show them that we are still fighting for this team — fighting for the crest on our chest!"
Mourinho's voice remained calm.
"In the second half, I won't make any substitutions, because these eleven players are the most balanced lineup we can field right now. Your combined quality ranks among the best in the world. You have no excuse to be in this position against any opponent."
"The only thing affecting your performance is this…"
Mourinho pointed to his own temple.
"I've said enough. Think about it yourselves."
He turned, walked out of the dressing room, and closed the door behind him with a soft click.
Inside, the Real Madrid players looked at each other.
"Guys…"
Casillas stood up.
"José is right."
His words surprised everyone. They hadn't expected Casillas to support Mourinho at a moment like this.
"Don't misunderstand me. I'm still very unhappy that my place was taken."
Casillas looked around at his teammates.
Then he raised his hand and punched his own chest, right over the crest.
"I'm fighting for this."
Casillas's eyes burned with determination.
His gaze swept over every player.
In his mind, he could still see the afternoon of his debut for Real Madrid — a 19-year-old kid at San Mamés breaking the club record as the youngest goalkeeper to ever play for the first team.
That season, he played all twelve Champions League matches.
He stood on the Champions League final stage and became the youngest goalkeeper ever to win it.
At international level, after only two years as backup, the 2002 World Cup produced a legendary moment for him when Spain's number one keeper, Cañizares, injured his toe with a perfume bottle in the dressing room.
Casillas was thrown into the fire.
From then until now, he had been the undisputed number one for both Real Madrid and Spain.
He had also become captain of both teams.
He had angered Mourinho by trying to preserve harmony in the national team and prevent the Madrid-Barça rivalry from turning into outright hostility.
But he didn't regret it.
The only thing that hurt was seeing Real Madrid's results suffer because of it.
"Guys…"
Casillas pointed at the crest on his chest.
"I beg you — forget everything else and fight for this."
"Fight for Real Madrid!"
Read ahead with 70+ chapters now with daily updates!
@patreon.com/Authorizz