Real Madrid lost!
When Gao Shen heard the news, he was genuinely shocked.
Mourinho's Real Madrid actually lost!
One to zero.
That was the final score at the Veltins-Arena, with the home team celebrating while the away side walked off defeated.
Magath's Schalke 04 defeated Real Madrid 1-0, thanks to a goal from Raul.
On the way back to Carrington from the Etihad Stadium, Gao Shen kept thinking about this.
Real Madrid actually lost.
Mourinho actually lost such a crucial, decisive match.
How important was this game?
After the first three rounds of the group stage, Manchester City led with nine points, followed by Real Madrid with four, Schalke 04 with two, and Inter Milan with one.
In other words, as long as Real Madrid had beaten Schalke 04 away, they would have been second with seven points, holding a five-point advantage over Schalke. With only two rounds remaining, qualification would have been almost certain.
Even a draw would have maintained a two-point lead.
But after losing this direct matchup, Schalke 04 jumped to second place with five points, and Real Madrid dropped to third.
In the last two rounds, Real Madrid will face Manchester City at home and Inter Milan away, while Schalke 04 will play Inter Milan at home and Manchester City away.
It is clear that Real Madrid have now backed themselves into a corner.
What does this mean?
It means that Real Madrid must win their next home match against Manchester City.
But with Manchester City's current form and performance, who dares to confidently say they will beat them?
…
"Mourinho miscalculated."
Back at Carrington, the players were dismissed, but none of the coaching staff went home.
Carlo, Lucas, Borrell, and the others all had deep emotional ties to Real Madrid. Like Gao Shen, they were paying close attention to their former club.
Hearing that Real Madrid had lost to Schalke 04 away was shocking for everyone.
Why did Gao Shen say Mourinho miscalculated?
Because just before this Champions League fixture, Real Madrid had beaten Racing Santander 6-1 in La Liga.
That should have been a good thing, right?
But the problem was that Real Madrid had fielded all of their key starters in that La Liga match, and then again deployed their full-strength lineup for the Champions League game. However, Schalke 04, playing at home, were far tougher than expected.
In truth, Real Madrid's performance was not bad. They registered 28 shots throughout the match but still failed to break Schalke's defense.
Magath had set his team up to defend with everything they had, desperate for the win at home.
For Schalke 04, this was a battle for survival, and every player gave their absolute best.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid's energy was visibly affected.
They had just played a big match on the weekend, and three days later, their physical condition had not fully recovered.
The same issue applied to Manchester City.
After the 8-0 demolition of Arsenal, City's performance dipped noticeably against Wolves, but their superior quality still saw them through.
But Real Madrid had run into a brick wall in Schalke 04.
"The situation in La Liga right now is that Real Madrid lead by just one point, with Villarreal and Barcelona tied for second," Gao Shen analyzed. "Mourinho wanted to maintain their lead in La Liga while also securing Champions League qualification, but now there's a problem. They protected their league position, but paid the price in Europe."
After saying this, Gao Shen let out a long sigh.
He could not say whether Mourinho's decision was right or wrong.
These were the choices every manager had to make.
But from the result, it was clear Mourinho had missed a golden opportunity to seal qualification.
And the consequences of that are obvious.
In the next round, at home against Manchester City, Real Madrid must attack.
Mourinho will not dare to risk leaving everything to the final group match, an away trip to face Inter Milan. The risk would be far too high.
But the question is, can Mourinho's Real Madrid truly go all-out against this Manchester City?
Gao Shen knows he only needs to defend and counterattack, waiting for Real Madrid to press forward.
A draw? Manchester City can accept that.
But for Real Madrid, it would be a disaster.
Even worse, losing ground in the group to Schalke 04 at this stage would heap pressure on Real Madrid and severely damage their morale.
"Right now, Real Madrid are like a team roasting on a volcano," Carlo said, analyzing the situation with clear concern. "Schalke 04 will definitely go all-in against Inter Milan at home. Given Inter's recent form under Leonardo, Schalke stand a good chance of winning."
"The biggest problem is, no matter how Schalke perform, Real Madrid have no choice. They must win the next round. Only victory keeps their hopes alive."
Momentum, both in the league and the Champions League, is built game by game.
A manager's choices always follow the situation at hand.
But right now, Real Madrid are on the back foot. They are passive and under pressure.
Carlo and the others all looked at Gao Shen, as if waiting for him to give a definitive answer.
If Manchester City go all out against Real Madrid, the Spanish giants might not survive.
"We've already secured qualification from the group," Gao Shen said calmly.
Everyone nodded, visibly relieved.
"In the last two rounds, we will prioritize squad rotation and training. But when we go to the Bernabeu, we will still play defensively and look to counterattack. Whether Real Madrid win or not is up to them. It has nothing to do with us."
This was Gao Shen's professional integrity.
As Manchester City's head coach, he would never compromise that, even if it didn't hurt the club's own interests.
The only thing he could do was stick to the original plan, which Mourinho would surely have anticipated: rotation and preparation.
Almost every team that qualifies early in the Champions League group stage does the same. Gao Shen would be no exception.
As for whether Real Madrid could win, that was entirely up to them.
Gao Shen could only watch from the sidelines.
Of course, if Real Madrid were eliminated, Gao Shen would still feel sorry for them.
Because next season, they might drop into the third tier of the draw.
…
The situation in this year's Champions League "group of death" sparked heated discussions among fans and media worldwide.
It was surprising enough that Manchester City stood out with four consecutive wins.
But few could have predicted that Real Madrid would sit third, with Inter Milan bottom of the group.
Several Madrid-based media outlets were in an uproar, warning that Real Madrid were in serious trouble and now needed back-to-back wins to advance. Mourinho, though, remained publicly confident, stating that winning two in a row would not be a problem.
Still, some media outlets reported that if Real Madrid failed to progress from the group stage, Mourinho could face the sack.
Florentino Pérez quickly responded, publicly declaring that Mourinho would not be dismissed even if the team failed to qualify.
"We still have full confidence in him."
But everyone could see that this statement was empty reassurance.
…
Back in the Premier League, Manchester City continued their campaign without distraction.
In the 11th round, City defeated West Bromwich Albion 2-0 away, with Van Persie scoring twice.
Three days later, in the 12th round of the league, Manchester City hosted the Manchester derby at the Etihad.
Both sides had just played in the Champions League midweek, so both rotated their squads.
But even with rotation, the gap in squad depth was evident. Ferguson chose to sit back and defend, looking to counterattack.
From the start, Manchester City launched wave after wave of attacks, but Manchester United's back line of Ferdinand and Vidic, supported by the midfield trio of Carrick, Fletcher, and Lassana Diarra, held firm.
At the break, the score remained 0-0.
Early in the second half, Gao Shen adjusted his approach. He subbed on Gareth Bale to attack United's right flank, where young Rafael was stationed, immediately creating several dangerous situations.
Ferguson reacted quickly, bringing on Wes Brown to replace Rafael and strengthen that side. He also swapped Evra for O'Shea to deal with the threat of Robben on the opposite wing.
Then in the 73rd minute, Gao Shen made a move that drew loud applause from the home fans. He replaced Javi Martinez with Van Persie, switching to a two-striker formation with Van Persie and Suarez paired together for the first time this season.
At that moment, the front four were Gareth Bale on the left, Van Persie and Suarez up top, Robben on the right, with David Silva and Rakitic supporting from midfield.
Gao Shen had effectively sent out his strongest attacking lineup.
It showed just how determined he was to win.
Ferguson, sensing the danger, made his final substitution, bringing on Park Ji-sung for Berbatov and pushing Rooney up front.
The match became a fierce battle between Manchester City's organized attacks and Manchester United's dogged defensive stand.
As the game ticked into the 87th minute, with the score still deadlocked, the tension inside the Etihad was palpable.
The breakthrough finally came.
Manchester City's midfield played a quick pass into Van Persie, who dropped deeper to receive near Carrick. The Dutch forward turned and sent a diagonal ball to the left side of the box.
Suarez controlled it, facing Vidic directly as he edged closer into the penalty area.
Gareth Bale charged in from the left, calling for the ball.
Understanding the signal, Suarez played the ball toward the byline. As Vidic's attention shifted, Suarez cut inside across the box.
Bale reached the baseline, latched onto the pass, and sent a reverse cut-back behind Vidic.
Suarez, arriving perfectly, controlled the ball, but was immediately pressured by Lassana Diarra. Off balance and stumbling, Suarez managed to keep his footing just enough to swing his leg.
His strike threaded through the crowded penalty area, slipping past Van der Sar and into the bottom-right corner of the net.
"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!"
"Suarez! Suarez!!!"
"Manchester City finally break the deadlock. One to zero!"
"Manchester City spent nearly 90 minutes attacking, while Manchester United defended for almost the entire match. Just when everyone thought it would end goalless, the deadlock is broken!"
"One to zero, Suarez delivers the winner against Manchester United!"
(To be continued.)