Chapter 108: Chapter 23: He Is Not Fit to Be a Leader

“Where is the referee from?”

“From Catalonia.”

Having received this answer, Schuster sneered and said, “Catalonia? Then I have nothing more to say!”

After Real Madrid defeated Valencia, they faced a match against Sevilla.

In this match, Schuster made adjustments to the team’s lineup.

Chen Zhong was not included in the starting lineup. Schuster took Francisco’s advice and gave the 16-year-old some rest.

However, with only Chen Zhong missing from the previous match’s lineup, Real Madrid ended up losing 0-2 away to Sevilla.

In this match, Ramos rashly received two yellow cards and was directly sent off, becoming the spark that led to the crushing defeat.

Lose to Sevilla?

Schuster had never considered this possibility, especially after using Gago and Diara as double defensive midfielders to ensure defense, yet still being defeated by Sevilla by two goals. This made him surprised and even angry.

But he had no way to criticize Ramos since he could understand what Ramos had encountered. So, during the post-match interview, when he heard the reporter mention that the referee was from Catalonia, he snapped.

Compared to Schuster’s displeasure, the newly appointed Brazilian coach Manolo Jimenez seemed a bit overly smug. When faced with a reporter’s interview, his first words were, “If our luck were a bit better, then we wouldn’t have ended with just 2:0.”

When asked by reporters about the secret to his victory, Jimenez squinted with pride and said, “I carefully studied Real Madrid’s previous match against Valencia, so we had a strategy to counter them.”

“As for whether Ramos’ two yellow cards changed the situation, my answer is a definite yes.”

Sevilla, betrayed by their former coach “Ramos,” turned the entire Pizjuan Stadium into Ramos’ judgment platform during this match. They erased the cursed surnames on the banners and directly used the “farewell” banners for the former coach to “welcome” Ramos.

On the field, Sevilla fans drowned Ramos in insults and ridicule. Just 21 years old, Ramos became agitated in the continuous waves of shouting.

He made an unnecessary and rough move to bring down a Sevilla player and even grabbed an opponent’s neck in an argument, which got him two yellow cards and a direct send-off. Ramos’ absence directly led to Real Madrid’s defeat in this match.

Ramos’ behavior also sparked controversy, whether among the fans or internally. Many people stopped associating the word “leader” with Ramos when discussing him.

“I used to think Ramos had the qualities of a leader.”

“But now I think if he is Real Madrid’s leader, that would be a disaster for the future.”

“He must learn to control his emotions. We wouldn’t have lost this match. If Chen were on the field, he wouldn’t have gone crazy over these insults.”

This may not be the attitude of all Merengue fans, but it’s a topic some people mention when talking about this match. Ramos had been regarded as a future leader for the past two seasons, but with the emergence of the more outstanding, deeply-rooted Chen Zhong, fans have clearly included Chen Zhong as a candidate for the future leader.

Internally, some players discussed this matter, with some resenting Ramos’ lack of judgment, some understanding but not accepting, and others simply making jokes.

Although this loss to Sevilla didn’t knock Real Madrid out of the top spot, it did narrow the point gap with other teams.

“Chen!” Marcelo chattered on the side, “You have no idea how arrogant Kanoute was on the field!”

Kanoute is an old acquaintance of Chen Zhong. Chen Zhong’s first official appearance for Real Madrid was during the Spanish Super Cup, where he, playing as a defender, perfectly restricted Kanoute.

In this match, Kanoute also showcased his strength. In the 32nd minute, he stopped the ball with the outside of his foot and fired a powerful shot from 12 yards out, scoring a goal.

The striker, who was included in the Golden Ball’s top 50 list, celebrated wildly after his goal, always remembering what happened during the Spanish Super Cup.

In the post-match interview, Kanoute stood in front of the camera, with a regretful smile on his face, he said: “Scoring a beautiful goal against Real Madrid is a wonderful and unforgettable memory for me.”

“It’s just that it would have been even better if Chen could have been on the field.”

“The last time we faced each other was a few months ago in the Spanish Super Cup, and he left a very deep impression on me.”

What Kanoute said in the interview also awakened the memories of the Merengue; in that match, Chen Zhong played the role of a “hero”. Whether it was a desperate iron-blood block in front of the goal or a fearless header goal, it all showcased a level of responsibility far beyond his age.

This also made many Merengue believe that as long as Chen Zhong doesn’t stray from his path in the future, he is likely to become the leader of the team.

Given the ages of Ramos and Chen Zhong, who will be the future leader of Real Madrid seems quite clear.

Real Madrid suffered away, while Barcelona enjoyed their home advantage with a 3-0 victory over Betis at Camp Nou. Although Betis fought valiantly with 23 fouls in the entire match, which was eye-catching, Barcelona at Camp Nou showed extraordinary strength.

The league has been underway for a few months, and some statistical analyses can now serve as references. Among the top five leagues, Barcelona’s home performance is the most outstanding, with 20 goals scored and only 3 conceded in 7 home matches.

After a 1-1 draw against Valladolid in the last away match, Rijkaard missed his 100th coaching victory at Barcelona. To make up for the coach’s regret, Barcelona launched an attack against Betis from the first minute back at home. Although Betis used tough defense and tactical fouls to tell Barcelona they wouldn’t surrender easily,

faced with Barcelona’s strong desire to attack, their tricks only made Barcelona’s offense sharper. In the whole match, Barcelona had 19 threatening shots, with 7 on target.

If not for Henry hitting the post twice, Messi’s rush skimming the goalpost, and Ronaldinho’s free kick being just slightly high, the score of this match could have been at least 6-0 or even 7-0.

Camp Nou has always been considered one of the toughest home grounds in Spain, and after 6 rounds of the league, Real Madrid and Barcelona’s first national derby in La Liga’s 17th round was held at Camp Nou.

This season, starting from Bilbao, Sevilla, Zaragoza, Atletico Madrid, Almeria, and Betis all suffered defeats here, even Lyon, who call the shots in Ligue 1, and Real Madrid’s recent nemesis in the Champions League, could only leave beaten by 3 goals when facing Barcelona.

Under Rijkaard’s leadership, Barcelona’s home winning rate has reached an astonishing 72%.

Moreover, Rijkaard is one of only two managers who have coached the same club in La Liga for over four seasons, the other being Pellegrini.

Since joining La Liga, Rijkaard has become one of the coaches in Barcelona Club history with the most coaching appearances, and after this match, he also became the third coach at Barcelona to reach 100 victories.

Previously, only two legendary Dutch managers achieved this, Michels (105 wins) and Cruyff (183 wins). From the numbers, Rijkaard will soon surpass Michels, but whether he can catch up with Cruyff is difficult to predict, given that in the past one or two seasons, there have been many rumors about Rijkaard leaving Barcelona.

Additionally, if the team scores 16 more goals, Rijkaard will become the second-most scoring coach in Barcelona’s history.

Rijkaard’s Barcelona has already scored 315 goals, surpassed only by Michels’ era’s 331 goals, but far from Cruyff’s “Dream Team” record of 629 goals in 306 games.

The controversy surrounding Ramos continues, and due to the red card, Ramos can take a good rest for a few matches.

After the match against Sevilla, Real Madrid will head to Greece for the second round of the Champions League group stage match.

The entire Real Madrid team boarded the “Golden Arrow” special flight to Greece for the second round of the Champions League group stage match.

Schuster seems to have heard some media remarks and is eager to prove that his double defensive midfielder tactic isn’t flawed. The previous loss was entirely due to Ramos’s recklessness.

Therefore, in this match, the dual defensive midfielder configuration of Gago and Dias was still employed, while Guti, showing signs of a thigh strain at the end of the previous match, wasn’t included in this match’s starting lineup.

On the plane, Pepe seemed a bit troubled. He had been dealing with quite a few bothersome issues lately, as authorities in Portugal officially began investigating Pepe’s transfer case. The head of the investigation team, Mogado, stated that the transfer of Pepe is likely to involve money laundering, illegal commissions, and tax evasion among several illegal activities.

This season, due to too many injuries, Pepe was even nicknamed the “new Woodgate” by the media.

Tulum, the agent of Sevilla Club’s midfielder Baulsen, even publicly stated: “If Pepe is worth 30 million euros, then Baulsen is worth 84 million euros.”

Sports director Mijatovic is handling these matters, but it doesn’t seem to be going well.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep