Piqué, Are You Out of Your Mind?

At 8:30 p.m. on the twenty-seventh, local Italian time, the Champions League final was about to kick off at Rome's Olympic Stadium.

Both teams' players appeared at the mouth of the players' tunnel.

When Su Dong saw Messi and the others emerge, he immediately went over to greet them.

"Hey, brother!" Su Dong said with a grin, opening his arms to hug Messi.

Messi was delighted as well and warmly embraced Su Dong.

Iniesta came over too. After exchanging a high five with Su Dong, he hugged him enthusiastically and didn't let go for a long while.

The two were the players in Barcelona's squad who were closest to Su Dong, as well as his best friends.

Xavi, Puyol, and the others also had good relationships with Su Dong, but there was still quite a bit of distance between them—especially Puyol.

In this match, he would be the opponent Su Dong faced directly.

Then there was Piqué.

Come to think of it, Piqué was quite an interesting character.

Born into a prominent local Barcelona family, he had a good background. Just as Fàbregas had once moved to Arsenal, Piqué had hoped to make a name for himself at Manchester United. But the Vidic–Ferdinand partnership had been too solid, so Ferguson could only send him out on loan.

He had played well in La Liga, but had struggled to get opportunities at Manchester United. Thus, Piqué returned to Barcelona.

This season, under Mourinho's guidance, Piqué had secured a starting position in Barcelona's back line.

Tonight, Valdes was in goal, while Abidal, Piqué, Puyol, and Alves formed the defense.

Seydou Keita, Xavi, Yaya Touré, and Iniesta formed the midfield, while Eto'o and Messi led the attack.

Just as Heynckes had expected, Mourinho had adopted a 4-4-2 formation.

The powerful, physical midfield pairing