Cristiano Ronaldo's Unforgettable Pain! He Could Score Even While Lame!

Tang Long continued turning the pages of the book in his hand, and when he saw the following words from Diletta, he couldn't help but smile knowingly.

Many years later, Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo had left the Top Five Leagues and joined Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia.

"A local Saudi Arabia media outlet asked him: Cristiano, do you have any regrets about your career?"

"Cristiano Ronaldo's answer demonstrated his consistent confidence."

"Regret? You're kidding, I have no regrets!"

"I've won four Ballon d'Or, three UEFA Champions League, and countless league titles. I also achieved a great feat with the Portugal national team in 2016 – we made history by winning the Europe!"

"I have had an absolutely perfect career, and looking back, I am always proud of what I have achieved. My children also look up to me as a role model."

"Although Cristiano Ronaldo said that, the Saudi Arabia interviewer was clearly prepared. He noticed the glint in Cristiano Ronaldo's eyes and pressed on aggressively: 'So, what are your thoughts on the 2016-2017 UEFA Champions League final?'"

"At this point, his gaze became increasingly evasive; he even avoided looking the interviewer in the eye."

"Then, changing the subject, they shifted the conversation to their life after arriving in Saudi Arabia from Europe."

"Cristiano Ronaldo's expression and reaction are genuine; they reflect his true feelings."

"Some say that the only regret of Cristiano Ronaldo's career is the 2017 UEFA Champions League final, where they lost to Manchester City, led by Tang Long, despite having a strong lead."

"Whether Cristiano Ronaldo thinks this way or not, he hasn't explicitly said so, but the author of this book believes so."

That year, 32-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo faced 21-year-old Tang Long.

"Perhaps after that match, the Portuguese truly realized that the era that belonged to him and Lionel Messi had already begun to fade away."

"Tang Long will one day become the undisputed number one player in football. A legend has begun his brilliant career!"

For the past month, Tang Long has felt a surge of curiosity every time he reads this chapter.

When did Cristiano Ronaldo react like this when interviewed by reporters in Saudi Arabia?

He had no idea, and even suspected that Diletta had deliberately fabricated this part for publicity.

After all, when she was still playing for Manchester City, Diletta was very good at creating buzz and hype. Moreover, Diletta is a veteran journalist, and creating media and generating topics is her forte.

But Tang Long never made a single call to Diletta, who was far away in New York, to ask about the truth, because none of that mattered anymore.

In fact, what truly killed this UEFA Champions League match and left Cristiano Ronaldo in awe and sighing was not Tang Long's goal after his Rainbow Flick.

When the score reached 4-3, this goal-fest was far from over!

Real Madrid fans at Cardiff Millennium Stadium have already begun leaving early, clearly having given up all hope of their team's comeback and even wanting to leave early to avoid the crowded public transportation.

But many fans had only walked halfway to the stadium and hadn't even left yet when Tang Long scored another goal, like a knife plunged into their already bleeding hearts, causing them to cry out in pain.

The UEFA Champions League final has reached the 121st minute, entering the final moments of stoppage time.

Real Madrid were awarded a free kick in a good position in the attacking third. Although it was called a free kick, it was considered a corner kick in terms of position because Kolarov's foul occurred near the corner flag.

When Real Madrid struggled to break down Manchester City's defense in positional attacks, this set piece was more precious than gold.

"Everyone, get up there and push into the penalty area!" At Cristiano Ronaldo's command, Casemiro, Varane, Morata, and even himself, a tall and skilled header, all rushed into Manchester City's penalty area.

Not to mention Ramos, who frequently scores headers, for a time the Manchester City penalty area was filled with Real Madrid's headers.

"Navas, you come up here too!"

Without Cristiano Ronaldo's instruction, Real Madrid's goalkeeper Navas had already strode out of the penalty area and rushed into Manchester City's penalty area on the other side.

Although he is only a little over 1.8 meters tall, his jumping ability is amazing.

Clearly, Real Madrid had no other choice but to try their luck, packing Manchester City's penalty area with players and hoping that a set piece could create a miracle, a last-minute equalizer, and force the game into a penalty shootout!

Manchester City were equally prepared, with all their players clustered in the penalty area.

In an instant, all 22 players from both sides gathered inside the small penalty area on the vast football field.

Looking around, it was a dense mass of people and legs, with white Real Madrid jerseys and blue Manchester City jerseys intertwined and converging, their colors standing out vividly under the four giant spotlights of Cardiff Millennium Stadium.

Kroos took a deep breath, ran up, and took the set piece!

He unleashed a high, dipping, inside-curve shot that flew straight toward Ramos at the far post.

Veteran Kolarov was defending Ramos. Although he was 4 centimeters taller Ramos was far less accurate in judging the landing point and his jumping ability was also inferior to his opponent's.

Ramos forcefully circled around to his front and delivered a powerful headbutt!

"Roll!"

Manchester City goalkeeper Bravo roared and punched Ramos, sending the ball flying into the air!

Bravo's anticipation of the ball's trajectory was accurate, and his saves were equally impressive!

This clearance immediately threw the Real Madrid players into a panic.

As his own goalkeeper, Navas was still sprinting towards his own penalty area, but he had only just reached the edge of the box, still about 80 meters from the goal. How could he possibly make that run?

Meanwhile, Manchester City's players had already started chasing the ball, especially the incredibly fast Sane, who was in the lead, almost like he was riding on wheels of fire, his eyes fixed intently on the ball as it sped away.

Once he gets the ball, it's an open goal for him.

The equally fast Wales Bale closely followed Sane.

In this match, Bale played in front of his hometown fans, but unfortunately, despite providing two assists and winning praise from Bale, Real Madrid were trailing in the score.

Bale gritted his teeth and managed to catch up with Sane!

This scene left the audience speechless.

Bale played the full 120 minutes in this match, while Sane came on as a substitute. In terms of physical fitness, Sane is definitely superior to Bale.

But Bale, a former full-back, demonstrated what a perfect combination of speed and stamina truly means, and he emerged victorious in this speed contest!

After securing his position at the last second, Bale immediately cut the ball back, turned past Sane, and quickly passed it to midfield playmaker Kroos, hoping to launch a second wave of attack.

After this back and forth, Real Madrid goalkeeper Navas had already sprinted back to his own penalty area, panting heavily, while Manchester City no longer had a chance to shoot.

"Mine!"

In the blink of an eye, Real Madrid players who were retreating began to press forward again, preparing to launch a second wave of attack led by Kroos. However, Kolarov, the veteran who had been repeatedly outmaneuvered on the wing throughout the game, suddenly unleashed some incredible power and rushed out from a distance to slide tackle the ball at Kroos's feet.

Logically speaking, given that he had come all this way and then delivered a brutal sliding tackle, Kroos, with his skill level, should have already anticipated his opponent's intentions.

With a gentle flick, he could easily get past Kolarov.

But perhaps because Kroos, who played the entire game, was already showing signs of fatigue, or perhaps because he was only focused on scoring the equalizer as soon as possible, he overlooked Kolarov, who had come from afar.

With a thud, Kolarov tackled the ball away from Kroos's feet, sending him rolling two or three times on the ground.

The final match flowed very smoothly, and the referee was relatively lenient in his calls for fouls.

Although Kolarov's kick was potentially dangerous, he did touch the ball first, so the referee made no call.

[Lock-on Landing Spot]

Tang Long's brainwaves instantly predicted the ball's trajectory. He sprinted forward, extended his left foot, and leaped high, firmly attaching the ball to his foot as if it were cotton. He then dribbled forward with great strides!

This scene stunned Zidane, who was watching from the sidelines. The overwhelming sense of pressure made Zidane involuntarily take three steps back.

Because Tang Long sped away right under his nose, his speed was so fast, and his movements were so agile and resolute.

As it flew past Zidane, it even stirred up a gust of wind. Zidane felt a slight chill in his hair, but what felt even colder was his pounding heart!

Once Tang Long gets going, it's very difficult to intercept him without resorting to fouls.

Real Madrid players already knew this, so whether it was Carvajal or Casemiro chasing back, one grabbed Tang Long's shirt while the other tried to tackle, they roared and pounced on Tang Long like two raging beasts.

But Carvajal lost his balance and instead of pulling Tang Long down, he tripped and fell, getting his bottom covered in grass clippings.

Casemiro's tackle was hampered by excessive energy, resulting in a distorted movement. He not only failed to tackle Tang Long but also accidentally strained his own thigh muscle, leaving him lying motionless on the ground, alas.

Tang Long dribbled the ball all the way to the basket. During this long run, he felt his legs tighten and a sharp pain shot through his legs, a sign that he was about to cramp up.

Before he cramped up, he decisively took a shot from the left side of the penalty area!

Just as Real Madrid goalkeeper Navas thought he was about to face another extremely difficult save, the ball struck Ramos's raised right arm directly.

Ramos looked flustered and quickly cleared the ball, trying to cover up his handball. However, the referee, who had been following along, saw it clearly and pointed to the penalty spot – Penalty.

All the Manchester City players raised their arms and charged towards Tang Long!

Since joining Manchester City, Tang Long has taken 10 penalties in two years, converting them all, achieving a 100% success rate – truly a perfect record.

The two minutes of added time had already passed. The referee looked at his watch. Perhaps he would blow the final whistle after Tang Long scored the penalty, or perhaps he would give Real Madrid another 30 seconds.

- [Haha, Ramos got caught out. He's a bit stunned, as if he didn't expect Tang Long to shoot so quickly?]

-[Tang Long's shot just now was a curling shot, powered by the ankle, with minimal leg movement, making it highly concealed – a typical winger's style of play.]

-[That's right. By reducing the swing distance of the lower leg, some power and ball speed are sacrificed to achieve a surprise, fast shot!]

-[That's a bit eerie, like the Evil-Repelling Sword Technique. There was no warning beforehand. Tang Long was clearly dribbling the ball just now, and suddenly he kicked it. It's really strange and sinister!]

-[This handball isn't really Ramos's fault. If he hadn't been fully focused and prepared, he could easily have been hit. Ramos's concentration is probably gone by now, and his mentality has collapsed!]

Tang Long, who had just taken the shot, had a cramp in his right leg. He limped as he picked up the ball, wanting to pass it to a teammate, perhaps Sane, or perhaps the veteran Kolarov, with his exceptional footwork, could take a shot.

However, all the Manchester City players rejected Tang Long's invitation, and Kolarov, after receiving the ball, shoved it back into Tang Long's arms.

"So what if you have a cramp? Even if you're lame, you can still score this penalty!"

Many years later, when Kolarov, now a commentator for Sky Sport, was watching an ordinary Serie A match and a penalty was awarded, he suddenly recalled what he had said to Tang Long during the UEFA Champions League final at the Cardiff Millennium Stadium in the summer of 2017: "Even if Tang Long had a limp, he could still score this penalty!"

However, he did not say this to the audience.

Only he and Tang Long knew this statement in the whole world.

Tang Long smiled and said, "Alright, since none of you want to play, then I, the crippled player, will have to take over."

At this moment, his right calf began to swell slightly, and the muscles could be clearly felt twitching; this was a reaction to a cramp.

However, Tang Long refused to squat on the ground and have his teammates help him press down on his feet to stretch.

The match is about to end, and he wants to greet his first UEFA Champions League title with dignity and high spirits.

Since my right leg is cramping, I can just use my left leg.

Try to reduce the impact of leg cramps by running less.

Tang Long almost swung his leg in place, poking the ball directly towards the lower left of the goal with his toe!

Although Navas guessed the right direction, the shot was unpredictable and fast, so he only made a token save this time.

5:3!

At that moment, a sudden realization dawned on Cristiano Ronaldo's mind—he became aware of a problem he hadn't considered before:

After scoring this goal, Tang Long has now completed a hat-trick in this match. With his own brace, both players now have 23 UEFA Champions League goals!