Zidane was deeply moved by what Yang Yang had said.
In his impression, Yang Yang held a very high position at Real Madrid. Even Florentino had to take his words seriously. Yet over the years, he had rarely spoken up, especially about the head coach's lineup choices and tactics.
But tonight, he had said a great deal. It was obvious that he had noticed some troubling signs within the team.
Zidane himself had been a top professional player. He had experienced Ligue 1, the peak of Serie A, and La Liga during the Galácticos era. He had witnessed Real Madrid at both its peak and its decline, so he understood many things more deeply than ordinary players.
These days, he had also been considering a question: should Real Madrid really play Barcelona's kind of football?
From the preseason until now, Yang Yang had said more than once in media interviews that Real Madrid should improve and develop while building on its own strengths, rather than abandon those strengths and blindly transform itself.
Ancelotti had certainly heard Yang Yang's voice, and he had definitely taken it to heart. But in this match, facing a Barcelona side that had not lost to them in three years, Ancelotti had still wanted to give it a try. Perhaps he simply wanted to see whether Real Madrid's ability to pass and control the ball could really outdo Barcelona's.
The price they had paid was not too high. It was only a 2–1 away defeat in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup, with a second leg still to come. That was nothing to panic about. But the result was still worth everyone's attention and reflection.
More importantly, losing to Barcelona for the first time in three years was a major blow to Real Madrid's