In competitive sports, the victor always received more cheers and applause.
When Dutch referee Kuipers blew the final whistle, Lisbon's Stadium of Light completely became a sea of celebration for the Real Madrid fans. The Atletico Madrid players soon left the pitch, clearly desperate to get away from this place of heartbreak as quickly as possible, while the Real Madrid players and fans took over the entire stadium and launched into a wild celebration.
Yang Yang did not join his teammates' revelry. He was exhausted—so exhausted that he did not even want to move. He simply stood where he was.
At that moment, he truly felt as if he had survived a disaster.
Before the match, he had repeatedly mentioned his Champions League Final experience. His hundred-percent success rate in winning the title made him proud, but only he knew the truth: every championship had been won by the narrowest of margins, and looking back afterward was enough to make his heart race with fear.
Tonight was even more so, because Atletico Madrid had been an extremely difficult and terrifying opponent.
Those ninety minutes had taken an enormous toll on Yang Yang. He had almost been unable to keep going.
Of course, that was because the match had ended, and all his exhaustion came rushing over him at once.
If they were still playing extra time, Yang Yang probably would still have been able to run.
People were simply like that.
Yang Yang refused one invitation from a teammate after another and slowly walked toward the Real Madrid stands.
Casillas and Ramos suddenly sprang out from behind him. Flanking him on either side, they draped their arms over his shoulders and suddenly leaned in to plant heavy kisses on both sides of Yang Yang's face. The unexpected "attack" caught him