SWR: Chapter 808/810

Chapter 808: Football Technology War

Manchester City's 10-0 thrashing of Queens Park Rangers sent shockwaves throughout the UK.

It was the biggest winning margin in Premier League history, smashing the previous record held by Manchester United back in the 1990s.

The Times described Manchester City under Gao Shen as a record-breaking machine. The Blue Moon had now surpassed Arsenal's famous unbeaten run and become the team with the longest undefeated streak in Premier League history.

At the same time, many British media outlets released articles and made public appeals, claiming that Manchester City was dominating the Premier League with an unstoppable momentum, and that the influx of money from Middle Eastern tycoons was disrupting the Premier League's original ecosystem.

Whether it was hype or criticism, Manchester City remained calm and detached, refusing to get involved.

According to Manchester City's marketing director Ferguson, this was entirely normal.

Whether it's fans, the media, or professionals in the industry, it would take time for them to accept Manchester City.

But now, Gao Shen had helped the club weather the toughest period.

From here on, as long as City remained consistently competitive in the Premier League, fans and the media would gradually come to accept them as one of the league's giants.

That's the polite way of putting it.

To be blunt, when the media and fans realize there's nothing they can do to stop it, they'll have no choice but to lie down and take the beating.

Though, deep down, it's killing them.

While Manchester City were thrashing QPR in West London, Leeds United were away at Leicester City, grinding out a 1-0 win with Paulinho netting the decisive goal.

What went unnoticed was that this time, Su Qing and Fernando Lucas had personally led the team.

After this match, the Championship had completed 16 rounds. Leeds United's record stood at 13 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss.

Yes, they had lost a game not long ago.

But for now, the White Roses were still leading the Championship table and were firmly on course for promotion to the Premier League.

As Leeds United's performances improved, more and more of their players were getting national team call-ups. For instance, Paulinho was selected for the Brazilian national team, along with Courtois, Benteke, and others.

These players were gradually making a name for themselves.

After the game against Leicester, Sarri led the team back north to Leeds, while Su Qing and Lucas headed south to London.

That evening, they met Gao Shen at a hotel in London.

The next morning, just after the three of them had finished breakfast, a special vehicle from Huawei arrived at the hotel entrance to pick them up. They then headed west to Reading, a few dozen kilometers away.

After leaving London via the M4 motorway and heading west past East Reading, they exited at the West Reading junction.

At the motorway exit, a unique building came into view. Shaped like an arc with six rays extending outward, it stood out.

The Huawei driver explained that this was the UK headquarters of the Quantum Fund.

Just past this building was Tesco's logistics center and administrative headquarters in the Reading area.

But what really caught Gao Shen off guard was that Reading Football Club's home ground was just to the north of Tesco.

Heading south from the road between Tesco's headquarters and warehouse, you could spot a huge wind turbine. Opposite that stood a square-shaped, five or six-story building with a plain exterior. This was Huawei's UK headquarters.

Gao Shen was genuinely surprised.

Did that mean Huawei employees could just walk over to watch Reading's games?

Strictly speaking, this wasn't Huawei's official UK headquarters—at least not yet.

Currently, Huawei's official UK headquarters was in Basingstoke, located southwest of Reading, and quite nearby.

Huawei's European headquarters was in Düsseldorf, close to Dortmund, Germany.

This time, the person who had invited Gao Shen for a meeting was Yu Dazui, President of Huawei's European operations. He had come directly from Düsseldorf and was about to return to China to take over Huawei's consumer business.

Gao Shen had also made this trip especially to meet him.

"Welcome to Huawei, Mr. Gao!"

As soon as he got out of the car, the head of Huawei's UK division came out to greet him.

In fact, they had already met several times before—not just for discussions about Leeds United's stadium WIFI project, but also regarding sponsorship and other cooperation efforts. One of those projects was Leeds United's big data center.

Football is the best promotional medium in Europe. Every home game brings in tens of thousands of fans, with matches happening almost every week. What better platform could there be?

After signing the cooperation deal with Leeds United, Huawei immediately seized the opportunity, organizing teams across its European branches to launch a vigorous promotional campaign. They focused on collaborating with major football clubs to promote home WIFI and related services.

"We've already secured more than a dozen contracts and reached close to a hundred cooperation agreements across the top leagues in Western Europe. You might not know this, but our competitors like Cisco and Ericsson haven't even reacted yet."

When the UK regional head spoke about this, he couldn't help but laugh proudly.

And rightly so—their efficiency was astounding.

From what Gao Shen knew, most major stadiums used Cisco systems for home WIFI.

Of course, this business wasn't massive. The core business for telecom equipment vendors still involved giants like BT and Vodafone. The stadium WIFI business was just a small slice, but it had massive branding value and could provide Huawei with a breakthrough opportunity.

Their rapid expansion this time was mainly due to partnering with local telecom operators in each country, who provided endorsements.

Gao Shen praised them repeatedly, admiring their aggressive strategy.

The group arrived at an executive conference room.

As soon as they walked in, Gao Shen saw a familiar face.

He had often seen this person at press conferences.

There was even a viral video online featuring him saying, "Qualcomm, Qualcomm, Qualcomm, Kirin!"

Now seeing him in person, Gao Shen felt a bit dazed.

But Gao Shen was no ordinary person now.

As soon as President Yu saw him and the others, he came over enthusiastically to welcome them and express his thanks.

This collaboration with Leeds United had truly surprised him.

He had flown in from Germany in person, not only to discuss further cooperation, but more importantly, to meet Gao Shen himself.

He was very curious about Gao Shen—not only was he a well-known figure in football, but the partners he had at Leeds United had also caught his attention. He was very interested.

To Gao Shen, meeting President Yu felt like a fan meeting their idol.

His overall first impression was one of clarity and openness.

How refreshing was it?

The entire meeting was filled with laughter and ease, leaving a strong sense of goodwill.

When Gao Shen asked why Huawei had chosen Reading and Basingstoke for its headquarters, most people might have answered tactfully. But President Yu simply waved it off and said, "Because Vodafone and BT are based here. It's convenient!"

These two giants were Huawei's biggest partners in the UK. They had even set up a dedicated Vodafone systems department.

Well, honesty from a gentleman, while the villain hides his motives.

But this openness made things easier—they didn't need to beat around the bush or read between the lines.

Gao Shen's main purpose for the visit was to discuss further cooperation with Huawei.

Previously, Huawei had sponsored Leeds United and successfully built the WIFI system at Elland Road Stadium. Both sides were very satisfied with the partnership. Gao Shen appreciated Huawei's capabilities, not only in hardware but also in software.

He had been facing some business challenges.

For example, data collection and analysis.

In the media, we often see that teams collect players' training data using vests and equipment. But in reality, this method is limited. The data isn't that accurate, and the gear is often uncomfortable for players.

Gao Shen believed that with today's technology, it should be entirely possible to develop better and more advanced wearables that use sensors to collect player information—speed, distance covered, pace, cadence, balance, etc.

Even if the hardware were up to standard, the software was a major headache.

If it were just one team, the data could be processed manually. But Leeds United was now building a comprehensive database, with scouts uploading data from around the world in real time.

Without a more advanced data processing system, Gao Shen would have to keep hiring more staff. Sooner or later, the big data department would bloat, and labor costs would skyrocket.

Video analysts, editors, and other roles involved repetitive and heavy work. Gao Shen believed these tasks could be streamlined—if only someone would develop practical automated systems.

He even proposed an idea.

Give each player a smart wristband or another small device. It could track sleep, temperature, heart rate, blood pressure—basically anything. It could also be used as a smart access card at the club, or a hotel key card for away games.

At the training ground, optical tracking cameras combined with jersey and shoe sensors would feed player training data into the big data center in real time. Coaches could then use tablets or computers to monitor player performance and adjust training loads accordingly.

In short, what Gao Shen wanted was a complete smart ecosystem covering everything—player data, video analysis, match footage, all in one place.

Aside from Su Qing and Lucas, who had heard this before, the Huawei executives, including President Yu, were stunned.

Is this still football?

It sounded more like cutting-edge tech.

But it was very appealing, and fit perfectly with Huawei's next strategic direction.

That was also why President Yu had come to meet Gao Shen in person.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 809: The Master of Bragging

As of November 2011, Nokia was still the world's number one mobile phone manufacturer. The Finnish giant had also partnered with Microsoft in an effort to continue its success in the smartphone sector.

Apple's iPhone had already progressed to the 4S, and the previous generation had achieved an astonishing 40 million units in sales. It had become a dominant force in the smartphone market that could not be ignored.

Samsung, from South Korea, was leveraging its Android system and world-leading supply chain to show clear signs of catching up to Nokia.

These three giants were the kings of the current smartphone industry.

Meanwhile, there were many mobile phone manufacturers in China, most of which were engaged in producing copycat or OEM phones.

As a leading figure in the domestic tech field, Huawei had been actively exploring a path toward breakthrough and growth. The first question was understanding: what exactly is a smartphone?

That couldn't be answered in just a sentence or two, but it was something that needed to be fully grasped.

Not only inside large domestic corporations, but also on online forums, netizens were constantly discussing the topic.

Apple had opened a door for the world, showing what smartphones could be.

But this was a modular concept exclusive to Apple. Other companies and manufacturers had to explore the path themselves.

Operating systems, the Internet, touch interfaces.

Apple phones had them, and so did Nokia phones. But the biggest differences lay in user experience and the ecosystem.

Was there more beyond that?

Mr. Yu was not only the president of Huawei's Europe region, but also the head of the strategic department. Soon, he would return to China to take over the consumer business, because he strongly believed a new era was coming.

This was an opportunity.

Not just for him, but also for Huawei.

What Gao Shen had talked about could actually be summed up in four words: user experience.

In the UK alone, there were several data analysis systems. Some of them even sold data externally. For instance, Sky Sports, a live broadcaster, was selling data too. They had acquired OPTA Data and bundled various data sets for sale to clubs.

But even after obtaining the data, analysis remained a pain point for clubs.

Many software providers sold the same software to numerous clients, making it hard to deliver tailored solutions. This didn't work for clubs like Gao Shen's Leeds United, which had much higher demands.

To put it simply, it was easy to determine whether data existed, but not whether it was useful.

Now, Gao Shen hoped Huawei could help solve the issue of usability. Not just through software systems and data analysis, but also via hardware.

So what could they gain from working with Huawei?

The answer: exploration.

For a giant like Huawei, exploring the future was extremely important.

Previously, someone in the Strategic Department proposed a vision that Europe was about to enter the 4G era. In the future, could mobile phones become smart terminals, using sensors, algorithms, and big data to understand and analyze human health information?

For example, being able to check your heart rate and blood pressure at any time and receive immediate warnings in case of abnormalities.

If that could be achieved, it would not only be a major selling point but could also revolutionize the mobile phone industry.

From there, it would naturally extend into exercise and health.

There had already been news in the industry that Google in the US was researching smart glasses, and Apple was developing a smartwatch. Huawei also planned to invest in R&D in this area.

For a company at Huawei's level, this was just one of countless small projects. It might not even attract much attention, but they continued to invest in these possibilities every year.

In the realm of sports, Gao Shen and Leeds United were professionals.

Through this partnership with Leeds United, Huawei could quickly gather enough professional data and testing results to better understand the human body.

In fact, such collaborations already existed.

For example, Adidas would invite many footballers each year to help them test and improve products. They even invested directly in an indoor training facility at Ajax to gather more detailed data.

So when Leeds United proposed this idea, Huawei's UK division was immediately interested and reported it up the chain. The Strategic Department, where Mr. Yu worked, quickly decided to support it and planned to invest in the related research.

Hardware and software were Huawei's strong suits.

The meeting between Gao Shen and Mr. Yu essentially finalized the cooperation between the two sides.

Huawei would participate in Leeds United's major project through sponsorship, and also promised that if Leeds United got promoted to the Premier League, Huawei's sponsorship fee would double.

This clearly demonstrated Huawei's sincerity in working with Leeds United.

Gao Shen was generous in return, promising that Leeds United would share its research results and experience in relevant fields with Huawei in the future, and actively cooperate in research, development, and testing.

Not only that, Gao Shen also promised that all high-end flagship smartphones launched by Huawei could be sent to him in the future.

Over the years, he had insisted on giving gifts to players annually. The gifts were always Apple phones and tablets, which had been widely reported in media around the world. As a result, Apple had started sending him new phones and electronics every year.

At this level, many things came to him for free, with companies paying him just to use their products.

Just his Twitter following alone meant that a single tweet could cause a sensation.

Mr. Yu hadn't expected Gao Shen to have such influence.

At first, he thought Gao Shen was only supporting Huawei as a gesture of goodwill because of the Leeds United sponsorship. But after deeper conversation, he realized Gao Shen was also a tech enthusiast.

The more they talked, the more extraordinary it felt. Many of Gao Shen's views were insightful and forward-looking.

For example, when discussing Huawei, Gao Shen said he wanted to build a high-end brand, drop OEM and low-end segments, and focus on flagship phones.

How?

By building chips in-house, mastering core technologies, and prioritizing user experience.

Wasn't this exactly what Gao Shen had done with Leeds United?

One was in smartphones, the other in football club management.

But Gao Shen's words truly resonated with Yu Dazui. He had been thinking along the same lines and felt that there was tremendous potential here. That was why he was so determined to take over the consumer business.

The more they talked, the more Yu Dazui felt Gao Shen was truly exceptional, and the more he saw him as a kindred spirit.

Of course, what he didn't know was that everything Gao Shen said came from personal experience. He had used these things himself and knew the problems.

Many of the pain points he mentioned were highly relevant in 2011 and very insightful, especially to someone like Yu Dazui, who had a sharp sense for opportunity.

They continued chatting over lunch in Huawei's employee cafeteria. After the break, the discussion resumed.

Yu Dazui was the kind of person who could really talk, and he had depth.

When he and Gao Shen started talking—especially when they started bragging—it was something else.

Several times, Su Qing nearly burst out laughing. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore and suggested touring the headquarters instead, leaving the two masters to continue bragging on their own.

It wasn't until evening that Yu Dazui finally shook hands with Gao Shen, reluctant to part. He said that if he had the chance, he would definitely visit Leeds to catch up with Gao Shen and chat for three days straight.

"Not a bad idea, I'll take you up on it."

"Mr. Yu really seems to appreciate Mr. Gao."

As they walked Gao Shen and the others to the car at the front gate, the head of the UK division noticed that Yu Dazui's eyes were still on the departing vehicle and said with a smile.

"You don't find many young people like him these days."

Yu Dazui praised him, then turned and called out to his colleagues.

"You guys in the UK division must actively support Leeds United. Once the time is right, our headquarters will assign staff to oversee this project. You must take this partnership seriously."

"Has your proposal been approved?"

Yu Dazui nodded. "Headquarters has already begun preparations. When the time comes, we'll establish a sports science research institute. Researching human health never stops."

As they walked, Yu Dazui clicked his tongue in admiration, then suddenly sighed.

"Gao Shen is truly talented. I don't think he should be a football coach. He should come work at Huawei. I'll personally get him into the Strategy Department."

Everyone around was stunned.

What kind of offer was that?

Direct entry into the Strategy Department?

But the head of the UK division gave a wry smile.

"Boss Yu, let's not talk about that."

"Why not? With me backing him, are you saying he still can't get in? If it comes to that, he can just follow me directly!" Yu Dazui said boldly.

"No, Mr. Yu," the UK regional head carefully chose his words and reminded him, "He won't come."

"Why not?" Yu Dazui was surprised.

The UK head looked helpless. "Mr. Yu, it's clear you're not a football fan. It's a miracle you were able to chat with Gao Shen about football."

Yu Dazui laughed. "I'm not a fan, but I didn't embarrass myself."

Right, you weren't embarrassed. It was everyone else who was.

"Mr. Gao really gave you enough face."

"Cut the nonsense. Just say it."

"Mr. Yu, he's the only active head coach in the world to have won three Champions League titles. The only one. The entire European football scene—no, the entire global football world—is fighting over him."

Yu Dazui nodded. "I've seen the news, but I didn't think much of it. So he's really that popular?"

"Yes. Earlier, he just asked us to send him high-end flagships. You thought he wanted freebies, but the reality? Nokia, Samsung, Motorola—dozens of brands are fighting to give him their products, and he turns them down."

"Damn!" Yu Dazui couldn't help swearing. "I really owe him a big one!"

He'd seen this kind of thing before and understood how it worked.

"No kidding," the UK division head nodded. "Also, Mr. Yu, do you know how much a Strategy Department employee makes a year? They work so hard, constantly exhausted, but they don't even earn a fraction of what he does."

"What do you mean?" Yu Dazui was stunned again.

"His annual salary last year was at least 30 million."

"Is that... in RMB?"

"GBP."

"Damn!" Yu Dazui was truly shocked. "So coaching football pays that much? My god, I should've studied this sooner."

After a brief pause, he stopped, turned, and looked at everyone with a serious expression.

"Not a word of what I just said leaves this room, got it?"

He then walked off, mumbling to himself.

The people behind him looked at each other and burst into helpless laughter.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 810: You Don’t Owe Anyone

After returning to Cheshire from Reading, Gao Shen took a day to rest before diving straight back into his intense work schedule.

During this time, while Huawei engineers were in Leeds for integration work, he made a personal trip there, called Yu to thank him for his support, and arranged to meet again when they had time.

"As long as we're not talking about football, if you call, I'll definitely come if I'm free!"

…

For Gao Shen, the two-week international break was truly nerve-wracking.

Manchester City were in excellent form, and the only real threat to their momentum was injuries.

The other Premier League teams could do nothing against City.

They couldn't beat them, couldn't poach their players, so they could only hope for divine intervention.

During this time, the Daily Mail did something particularly nasty by once again calling for a full investigation into Manchester City's finances. They helped Sheikh Mansour do the math and concluded he had invested over one billion pounds into Manchester City over the past few years.

Once the Daily Mail lit the fire, outlets like The Sun jumped in, creating the impression that if they couldn't beat Manchester City on the pitch, they'd try to win off it.

Manchester City had indeed been operating at a loss, and a significant one at that, but their results had been undeniably impressive.

With multiple media outlets stirring up the issue, Manchester City was forced to respond.

CEO Gary Cook came forward to clarify that the club was indeed spending more than it was earning, but he emphasized that Manchester City's revenue had been growing at an astonishing rate every year.

So why had the losses grown?

Because of contract renewals.

Put simply, when a team performs well and players earn new contracts with higher wages, club expenses go up, and so do the losses. Isn't that normal?

Gary Cook repeatedly stressed that the media had exaggerated Manchester City's debt.

"Sheikh Mansour isn't in this for the short term. He's committed to long-term development."

"If you carefully study the companies Sheikh Mansour owns, you'll see he's never had a failed business. He doesn't pursue massive profits, but seeks stability. That's why, since acquiring Manchester City, he has managed the club step by step, steadily."

"Yes, we've made rapid progress in terms of results, thanks to the coaching staff led by Gao Shen and our players. They've brought us glory on the pitch and have driven the club's rapid growth financially as well."

"I believe the club will achieve financial independence in a few years. It's absolutely possible, and it's the direction we're heading in!"

Gary Cook's response was reasonable, but no one really cared about reason.

Manchester City said they could turn things around in the future and asked for a few more years. But who can predict the future?

When Chelsea lured Peter Kenyon and Gourlay away from Manchester United, they also made bold promises of becoming profitable within a few years. Did that happen?

Peter Kenyon left. Chelsea still weren't making a profit and were surviving on cash injections from their owner.

Would Manchester City face the same fate?

What's that? Chelsea are also in debt?

That's Chelsea's problem. Right now, we're talking about you, Manchester City!

Besides, they're not violating Financial Fair Play rules.

Speaking of which, that's a whole other discussion.

…

Gao Shen was completely lost when it came to financial matters. He never paid much attention to the club's finances.

Left with no choice, he went home to ask his wife.

Su Qing pulled up some documents on the computer and handed Gao Shen a copy of Arsenal's audited annual financial report from last season, prepared by Deloitte.

Gao Shen took a look and it was all gibberish to him. It might as well have been ants crawling on the page.

Su Qing had no choice but to patiently explain.

It turned out that capital operations weren't just about taking out loans or doing business.

The devil was in the details of the financial statements.

The Daily Mail and The Sun simply added up all of Manchester City's transfer spending over the years and claimed the club had lost a fortune, saying City had invested £1 billion and had massive losses after subtracting revenue.

But Gary Cook said they were exaggerating.

In truth, both sides had a point.

For example, if Manchester City signed a player for £100 million on a five-year contract, how would that appear in the books?

The answer: amortization.

It's similar to the depreciation of fixed assets.

One hundred million pounds would be divided over five years—£20 million per year—counted as an annual cost.

Now here's the twist. If Manchester City sold that player for £30 million at the end of the fourth year, was that a loss or a gain?

To the media and fans, it looked like a loss.

How could it not be?

They spent £100 million and only got back £30 million, a loss of £70 million. That's huge.

But the reality?

They made money.

Because over the previous four years, £20 million was amortized each year—£80 million in total.

That meant the remaining unamortized amount was £20 million. Financially, the player's book value was now £20 million. Selling him for £30 million meant a £10 million profit.

This is why Gary Cook said Manchester City's losses were exaggerated.

Looking at the financial statements, the club wasn't losing as much as the media claimed.

Since many transfer fees were spread over several years, the reported losses were much lower.

At least, that's how it looked on paper.

…

After Su Qing's explanation, Gao Shen finally understood the situation.

The reason companies go bankrupt isn't necessarily because of losses. It's usually because of cash flow problems.

Once cash flow is cut off, the business collapses.

So, in theory, with capitalized operations like this, as long as cash flow is steady, the team can keep operating.

For clubs like Manchester City and Chelsea, backed by deep-pocketed owners like Mansour and Abramovich, the cash flow was practically unlimited. So the game could go on indefinitely.

"Clubs like Manchester United and Arsenal haven't dared to make big signings in recent years because of cash flow pressure. Even Real Madrid and Barcelona, with their membership models, face similar limitations. But teams like Chelsea, Manchester City, and Paris Saint-Germain don't have that problem. As long as the owners are willing to spend, they can keep going."

Gao Shen realized that UEFA's financial regulations weren't as restrictive as they appeared.

"Financial games are always financial games. Money doesn't appear or vanish out of nowhere. It might move through transfers, but clubs don't actually benefit from that. It's all about dressing up the books."

"That's why clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal, and Bayern Munich keep demanding financial audits of Manchester City. Their business models are completely different. How can they compete on the same playing field?"

Su Qing's words made Gao Shen feel enlightened.

But realistically, financial audits were hard to enforce.

More importantly, even more capital would pour into football in the future. Clubs would start playing the capital game, like Chelsea, Manchester City, and Paris Saint-Germain.

They would aim to rise quickly, close the gap with the top teams, and build their own brand. That would come at a steep cost.

As the market hyped up, transfer fees would naturally rise, and player salaries would follow.

Before, Gao Shen only saw the outcomes of the capital game. Now, after Su Qing's analysis, he understood the mechanics—and that made him uneasy.

Could the capital game really go on like this?

Even with a booming economy and soaring international broadcasting rights, club revenues had limits. The market couldn't sustain it forever. How many clubs still had real value?

"Do you know how grateful Manchester City is to you right now?" Su Qing said to Gao Shen.

She knew he'd been concerned lately, worried about whether he should stay at Manchester City, and she used this moment to comfort him.

"You must have noticed by now that in this capital game, real value is what matters most, but it's the hardest to quantify. And you've made every penny Manchester City spent return equal, double, triple, or even ten times the actual value."

"Manchester City has treated you well, but you don't owe them anything. You don't owe anyone anything," Su Qing concluded.

Gao Shen felt much better after hearing that.

It seemed like Manchester City was still operating at a loss, but that wasn't because the club had no value. It was because their revenue hadn't caught up with their spending.

Purely in terms of value, Manchester City was now one of the most valuable clubs in world football. Only Real Madrid and Barcelona could compete.

And that value had been built by Gao Shen over the past three years.

Gao Shen nodded firmly.

"Ever since I was little, my father taught me to live within my means. When I grew up, I learned to seek truth from facts. That's why Leeds United cannot, and should not, follow this kind of capital-intensive path."

Su Qing smiled and nodded. "Don't worry. You still have me, don't you?"

She knew him better than anyone. She understood what he wanted and how to help him achieve it.

…

Manchester City's financial issues had become a recurring media topic, getting "criticized" every so often.

Gao Shen didn't need to concern himself with any of that. He just focused on preparing his team for the upcoming Premier League matches and Champions League group stage games.

In the twelfth round of the Premier League, Manchester City hosted Newcastle. Gao Shen sent out all non-South American internationals and secured a convincing 3-0 home win.

The Magpies were ranked fifth in the league at the time but were dismantled by Manchester City without a fight, showing the Blue Moon's overwhelming strength.

Three days later, Manchester City flew to Madrid to face Real Madrid at the Bernabéu.

For Real Madrid, it was a do-or-die match. For Manchester City, qualification had already been secured.

Gao Shen rotated the squad and went with a defensive counterattack strategy—a decision any sensible head coach would make in this situation.

As for whether Real Madrid could win, that was Mourinho's problem.

(To be continued.)