Chang Sheng sat in the locker room with no fixed items.
Sometimes, he would be busy writing and drawing on the tactical board. After the players had finished warming up, he could see the most detailed tactical diagram.
Sometimes, he would pace back and forth in the locker room, thinking about problems.
Sometimes he just sits in the locker room in a daze.
Such as now.
This is his third Champions League final since his time travel and rebirth.
The Champions League final is no stranger to him.
He still remembers his first Champions League final. At that time, he was a little excited and nervous. He couldn't sleep in the middle of the night and woke up at four o'clock in the morning.
Then I couldn't sleep at all.
So he simply got up and turned on his computer, connected to the Internet, and went to the Chinese CM player forum he often went to.
Then he pretended to be cool, made a starting lineup, and made someone lose his own money - of course it was impossible to really cut it.
He remembers this episode especially because it was his first Champions League final.
The nervousness and excitement I felt at that time was like the first time I went out on a date with the girl I loved.
Uneasy and hopeful.
He still remembers the second Champions League final.
During that game, all his attention was on the weather.
He didn't know if it would rain, because it might mean a change in fate.
At that time, he couldn't care about anything else, he could only care about competing with God and fate.
In the end he won.
And then there’s the third game.
Unlike the previous two games, he seemed very calm in this final.
He was not nervous or excited, nor did he care about other external things.
But this calm also made him a little worried.
Because he wasn't even excited anymore.
This is the Champions League final!
Even if you're not nervous, you should still be a little excited, right?
After all, that is the highest honor in European football...
Does he wonder if he has allowed victory and championships to be taken for granted?
This is his biggest concern.
This sentence is posted in the Lazio dressing room at the Formello training base.
"Winning is addictive, guys."
This is what Chang Sheng once said to Lazio when he first taught them.
This sentence has also been the creed of the Lazio team in recent years.
One victory after another, one championship after another. It is addictive and makes people willing to fight and work hard in order to continue to enjoy this feeling in the future.
So although some people left, more people stayed.
Because they are really addicted.
They are all "addicts" to victory.
But if the team wins often, the leader of this team has lost the feeling of victory, and his heart is no longer beating wildly for those wonderful moments in football games. How can he lead the team to continue to strive for victory?
What about endless rest?
What right does he have to ask his players to work hard in training and play hard on the court?
Is there any reason why the phrase “winning is addictive” should continue to hang on the locker room wall?
He is worried.
Very worried about this.
If winning means nothing to him, he will lose the motivation to keep going.
When every day's work and games have become a routine - thinking that such days will continue for decades, he feels very broken.
This will make him go from loving football to hating football.
Maybe the sight of football makes me want to vomit.
Just like after Batistuta, he never watched a football match again after retiring.
He was worried that he would become like this.
Because he really likes football.
This is his job, but it's also his hobby.
How many people can do what they love for decades?
If it really comes to that point, he himself may have to announce his retirement early.
After winning all the championships he could win more than once before the age of forty, he suddenly felt that this sport was no longer interesting to him. So he announced his retirement... If he really did this, he would definitely be the best player in world football.
Sensational news…
But he doesn't want to be such a news figure.
Of course, he has no actual evidence now. He just feels too calm. Is there any problem?
When people reach middle age, they become a little suspicious...
Finally Chang Sheng shook his head.
Hey, what are you doing with so many thoughts?
Are you really indifferent to victory and championship? Won’t you know everything after this game is over?
※※※
When Chang Sheng finished his contemplation, his players also finished their warm-up and returned to the locker room.
Seeing everyone changing their clothes and sitting in the locker room waiting for him to say something, Chang Sheng threw away the doubts in his mind: "Our results this season are so good, guys. I don't want to repeat what we have achieved.
Results, because this is suspected of cheating money by cramming words... I just want to ask you a question here."
He looked at his men.
"Have you... lost your desire for victory and championships? Have you become accustomed to victory and championships?"
The players thought that the boss was testing them, and they all replied loudly: "No! We have not lost our desire! We have not become accustomed to it!"
Chang Sheng smiled: "Don't lie! You said that. I will definitely not believe it. If you want me to believe that you really don't, then prove it with victories and championships. Bayern Munich is the only team we have not defeated in the Champions League."
Although there are many reasons for this, the results are there, we just haven't beaten them. This is a good opportunity for us to tell those who are watching that we are not afraid of Bayern.
Munich! ‘Fear’ is not in our vocabulary!”
Compared with the importance of this game in the Champions League final, Chang Sheng did say a little less before the game.
But the players don't care, as long as the boss says so.
That's normal.
If the boss suddenly stops talking one day, there is a problem.
※※※
Players from both sides were soon waiting in the tunnel to play.
The player tunnel at the Bernabeu Stadium is different from other stadium tunnels.
Most other stadiums have an open tunnel, with players from the home and away teams together. There is no partition in the middle.
There is a wall in the middle of the tunnel at the Bernabeu Stadium.
This wall separates the home team and the visiting team.
There is a section of hollow barbed wire in the middle.
Only from here can you see the opponent's players.
It is invisible from other places.
Players from both sides looked straight ahead and did not talk much.
Even German players like Gotze did not greet their compatriots when they played in the game.
This is the Champions League final and the two sides are enemies.
Moreover, they were eliminated by Bayern Munich in the two previous matches. There is hatred between them.
To get close, wait until the game is over.
※※※
While the players were waiting in the tunnel, the coaches and substitute players from both sides also came out.
When he wins, he high-fives the players one by one.
No words, just an action.
This action means a lot.
Then the two coaches came out of the tunnel.
Chang Sheng and Van Gaal did not shake hands and hug each other to show their friendship.
Because there is no friendship between them.
When Louis van Gaal was coaching Barcelona, it was the failure of the team that led to his dismissal.
Not only do the two have no friendship, but they also have hatred...
Moreover, both Van Gaal and Chang Sheng can be regarded as "crazy" coaches. Based on the principle that madmen are incompatible, the relationship between the two cannot be much better.
The two of them sat on their own coaching benches, waiting for the players to appear.
The five-star flag symbolizing the Champions League logo has been laid out in the middle of the Bernabeu Stadium. Ball boys are holding flags with the logos of the two final teams on both sides of the center line to guide the teams on the field.
The Santiago Bernabeu Stadium is already packed. The VIP boxes are all full of people.
For this match, fans of Lazio and Bayern Munich occupied 85% of the seats in this stadium.
The remaining 15% of seats are reserved for sponsors, officials and neutral fans.
Getafe fans had organized this match long ago. They bought about 2,000 neutral tickets and entered the venue to watch.
Although the tickets are said to be for neutral fans, everyone knows that these people must be cheering for Lazio.
They all wear Getafe's home jerseys. It just so happens that the colors of Getafe's home jerseys and Lazio's home jerseys are very similar. They are both blue, but Getafe's blue is deeper, like sea water, while Lazio's home jerseys are blue.
The blue is lighter, like the sky.
In this game, Lazio got the home team draw, so they wore all home jerseys.
Coincidentally, those Getafe fans and Lazio fans were sitting next to each other, and at first glance, they couldn't tell who was who.
※※※
When the Champions League theme song played, the first burst of cheers erupted in the Bernabeu Stadium.
Because the players are about to appear!
Subsequently, to the exciting music of the Champions League theme song, players from both sides filed out.
The cheers at the Bernabeu Stadium grew louder and louder, with fans from both sides cheering for their players.
Just like in a competition, no one wants to be silenced by the other party.
So they tried their best to raise their voices.
For a moment, the sky above the Bernabeu Stadium was filled with cheers. This sound shook the world!
When Chang Sheng heard the almost crazy cheers, he felt that his heart, which had been peaceful all day, suddenly beat violently several times, and the speed and intensity were different from before.
He felt palpitations!
But he wasn't afraid it was a heart attack or anything.
On the contrary he was happy.
His mouth was originally pursed, and then the line gradually turned upward. Finally, he grinned and laughed.
Because he felt that he didn't have to wait until the game was over.
Before the game even started, he felt excited just by hearing the deafening cheers!
His heart responded correctly!
It seems that I have not lost interest and love for football!
