There were many reporters outside the hotel where Sporting de Gijón was staying.
The players came and went in the hotel lobby, looking at the cameras outside through the glass windows. The players who had not experienced the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid last season were facing Real Madrid for the first time. At this time, they had already begun to feel the difference of this opponent.
An ordinary-looking BMW X5 stopped at the entrance of the hotel. Hierro got out of the passenger seat. The Madrid reporters were excited when they saw him. They waited outside the hotel partly because they were waiting for Hierro, the old captain of Real Madrid.
A group of people immediately squeezed forward and handed over microphones, mobile phones, and voice recorders.
"Fernando! Fernando! "They shouted in Spanish with a strong Madrid accent. "Answer a few questions. We won't take up too much of your time!"
Hierro was surrounded by them and could only stop in his tracks. Although he was now playing in Sporting de Gijón, his family was still in Madrid. After waking up this morning, Hierro asked Li Ang for leave to go home. He did not expect to be blocked by reporters as soon as he returned.
"Oh, it's you guys," Hierro said. There were a few familiar faces among the reporters.
"First of all, congratulations on your wonderful performance in Sporting de Gijón. We simply saw you a few years younger." One of the Madrid reporters gave a thumbs up.
"Thank you. I'm just enjoying the joy of football." Hierro smiled faintly and said. He was no stranger to these reporters. One of the guys who gave him a thumbs up was there when he was terminated by Real Madrid a year ago, waving flags and shouting, saying that Real Madrid should have kicked him out long ago.
Hierro was used to seeing the faces of the media. He was already used to dealing with the media.
*****
"Can you talk about your return to La Liga …" A reporter coughed and asked to break the awkwardness. After Hierro returned to La Liga and joined Sporting de Gijón, he had not spoken to the microphone. This was a good opportunity.
Hierro nodded, "Yes, I was originally playing in Qatar, but Li Ang invited me to Sporting de Gijón. He said that I could still play in the mainstream league. At that time, I was very hesitant, but in the end, I agreed. Now, it seems that my decision was correct. I can still continue to play in La Liga, return to a familiar arena, and face familiar opponents, "Hierro said.
"But the opponent in this match is Real Madrid, Fernando." A reporter from AS asked a question that would make everyone feel awkward. Previously, everyone had tried their best to avoid mentioning this aspect, but how could they turn a blind eye to such a sensational topic?
All topics related to Real Madrid were very difficult for Hierro to face. On the one hand, it was the team that Hierro had played for for almost his entire career. It was his mother team that he had given everything to. On the other hand, he was ruthlessly purged by Real Madrid when he was old.
This time, facing Real Madrid again, it was as an opponent. What would Hierro's feelings be? Was it love or hate?
*****
"Will this match be your revenge against Real Madrid?" The reporter from AS added. This was what everyone was most concerned about.
Hierro raised his head and looked at the reporter. There was no smile on his face.
Li Ang appeared in the hotel lobby. He had originally come down to stroll around. He sat on the sofa and turned his head to see Hierro surrounded by reporters through the glass window. Hierro's face changed when he heard them ask some questions.
Li Ang ordered a cup of coffee and then looked at everything that was happening outside a little sneakily.
Hierro shook his head and said with a serious expression, "I will do my best in the game. There is no such thing as revenge. Real Madrid is my favorite. This game is very special to me. If I can help the team achieve a satisfactory result and win the game, this will be my tribute to Real Madrid."
After he finished speaking, he pushed through the crowd and walked out with his head down.
Hierro's words, although he spoke of his love for Real Madrid, hearing him say that he wanted to win against Real Madrid really surprised these reporters. They were not used to it. He was the old captain of Real Madrid. A group of Madrid reporters looked at each other.
*****
It seemed that Hierro would take this game very seriously.
"It's really an unacceptable scene … The person who loves Real Madrid the most has turned against them," someone murmured.
"Yes, Hierro is in good condition now. It's a pity. If he was still in Real Madrid now, he would be a great help to the team!" someone said.
The others glanced at this person. This person was one of the reporters who had criticized Hierro the most. At that time, he had described the old Hierro as a cancer of Real Madrid. He had sarcastically said that if Hierro loved Real Madrid, he should leave decisively and not be a burden to Real Madrid.
They had not expected such a situation. They had thought that when they interviewed Hierro, they would be able to hear a lot of affectionate words because of Hierro's love for Real Madrid.
However, they had forgotten one thing. The deeper the love, the more the blame.
On the one hand, it was because of Real Madrid's cold-blooded approach that made Hierro sad. On the other hand, Hierro still insisted that Florentino's Zidane and Pavin policy was a failure and unreasonable. Now, he had the opportunity to face Real Madrid as an opponent. What he wanted to do was to help Sporting de Gijón fight and defeat Real Madrid. He wanted to use his actions to tell everyone that he was right. Although Real Madrid needed superstars, they needed players who were trained in Spain more. Sporting de Gijón was such a grassroots team. They had a "real" Real Madrid youngster like Mata in the team. If they could defeat Real Madrid, wouldn't it explain something?!
*****
That night, the players gathered in the hotel lobby. They were going to the Bernabéu team. The game would start in about two hours.
In the car, everyone's expression gradually became serious. Everyone knew that the time for the game had arrived. Not many people were in the mood to joke around.
In the face of a huge opponent like Real Madrid, whether it was the players who had experienced the Copa del Rey last season or the new players this season, no one dared to be careless. Some people had already begun to feel nervous. They were up against a European powerhouse, Real Madrid.
The atmosphere in the bus was a little tense.
The hotel where the team was staying was very close to the stadium. The hotel room was not cheap.
This season, Sporting de Gijón returned to La Liga. The team's advertising income had increased to a certain extent. Coupled with the increase in other income, the club's financial situation had improved. Although they were still unable to provide Li Ang with more funds in the transfer market, they were able to provide the team with good accommodation when the team was playing away games.
Traffic control was implemented on the road that was about to reach the stadium. Therefore, they did not encounter any obstacles along the way. They arrived at the stadium on time, Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
Countless fans from both sides had already gathered here. Sporting de Gijón was playing away, but there were about 3,000 fans who came to Madrid to support their team.
These fans were waiting to enter the stadium.
They greeted the team bus with warm applause and cheers. Of course, the Real Madrid fans gave Sporting de Gijón's team bus with boos and middle fingers.
*****
"Bernabéu, we're here again." Li Ang saw the scene below from the bus. Looking at the forest of middle fingers raised by the Real Madrid fans, he felt a sense of familiarity.
He saw the sea of people outside. He could feel the hostility of the Real Madrid fans towards him and his team.
However, he did not feel nervous at all.
Li Ang was a natural-born big name.
The more important the game, the stronger the opponent, the more excited he was.
Such a highly anticipated match made his adrenaline surge. He probably didn't even realize it himself. He liked being the center of attention so much. He liked being in the limelight. The more people, the better. The bigger the storm, the better.
The bus was about to drive into the parking lot for the away team. Li Ang stood up and turned to look at the players sitting in the back. Everyone knew that their manager had something to say. They took off their headphones one after another, stopped chatting with others, and turned their eyes and attention away from other things to look at their manager.
Li Ang was very satisfied with the players' reaction. He smiled at everyone and said, "This is the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium!"
"We were here last season and took the Copa del Rey title from them. Now, we're here again!"
The manager's calm words caused everyone to hold their breaths. Their eyes began to shine …
Author's Note: The fourth update has been sent to the Thinker in the Clouds with a great reward.
Well, everyone, Xiao Qi now has a little confidence and is weakly asking for monthly votes.
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