Huang Kaiwen warmed up on the sidelines.
His steps were still a little unsteady.
A wave of applause rang out across San Siro.
Fans from both sides showed their wholehearted approval of Huang Kaiwen's determination to keep playing through his injury.
Kaka and Andrea Pirlo gathered around him, concerned he might collapse after a couple of steps.
"You're really okay?"
"I can still play."
Huang Kaiwen urged Andrea Pirlo, "Go take the free kick. Let's keep playing."
"All right, then. If you can't keep going, let the coach make a substitution."
Huang Kaiwen shook his legs a couple more times, then slowly walked over to the wall.
Cambiasso jumped, instinctively edging closer to his teammates. If this glass man came over and got hurt because of him, he'd become the biggest villain in Italian football by tomorrow.
Andrea Pirlo ran up and sent the ball toward the center. The wall scattered and charged into the box.
Huang Kaiwen rushed in at once, but Cordoba was already in front of him. He took the ball, turned, and hurriedly passed it back.
Gattuso received the ball on the left and sent it across to the right. Cafu, who had come forward to support the attack, took it and immediately lofted it into the box.
They switched flanks again and again, leaving plenty of players confused.
By the time the ball flew into the box, Inter's tallest player, Materazzi, had jumped too late. The ball was already in the middle.
Shevchenko leaped from close range, but Fontana got there first and punched the ball away.
In a panic, Cambiasso cleared it from the edge of the penalty area toward midfield. It went out over the touchline.
Not long after Milan took the throw-in, the referee blew the whistle for halftime.
Kaka hurried to Huang Kaiwen at once and asked with concern, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. It's just a minor problem."
"Still, you should let the team doctor check you at halftime."
"Sure."
Back in the dressing room, the team doctor was already there before Huang Kaiwen could say a word.
He tapped and examined him, then found that Huang Kaiwen's thigh was fine and he only had a little scrape on his arm. He nodded to Ancelotti.
Ancelotti breathed a sigh of relief, took a handkerchief from his suit jacket, wiped the sweat from his face, and addressed the players. "You all know what's been going on between us and Inter Milan. They resorted to dirty tricks, and even their own fans turned against them. Now the whole city of Milan—and even Italy—is on our side.
"Facing an opponent like this, Kaiwen chose to stand his ground bravely. As his teammates, you should show your support, too.
"For the fans across the country, for justice, and for Kaiwen, we have to win today!"
Maldini led the way in responding, and the rest of the team followed with equal enthusiasm.
With public opinion surging like a tide, Huang couldn't let everyone down. The people's will was like water: it could carry a boat, but it could also capsize it. For the sake of the Italian people, Huang Kaiwen had to win today.
After the break, Milan's players returned to the tunnel in high spirits.
The two teams stood in stark contrast in the players' tunnel.
A team with conviction really was different.
"Milan, Milan, all we want is to stand by you. Milan, Milan, forever for you..."
As the fans sang, the match resumed.
Inter kicked off and sounded the battle charge. From the start, Milan's players pressed hard.
After a few passes back, Materazzi sent a long ball upfield.
This time, however, Nesta, positioned farther forward, gave them no chance. He leaped high and headed the ball to Cafu.
Cafu met it with a long ball of his own.
Compared to Inter's clearance, Cafu's pass was much more accurate.
The ball crossed half the pitch at an angle and found Gattuso, who carried it forward.
He'd noticed that Inter weren't taking his defense seriously today, and he was more than a little annoyed.
He was wearing number eight, after all.
As Gattuso charged forward, he saw Stankovic rushing toward him and immediately passed the ball.
Kaka ran through the middle and let the ball roll between his feet. Huang Kaiwen read the move and came in from the right to receive it.
Cambiasso was starting to panic.
He couldn't defend against two players who were both good at dribbling past opponents at once.
While he hesitated, Huang Kaiwen knocked the ball past him. Kaka surged forward and played a through ball.
Crespo ran to the right side of the six-yard box and struck a shot. Fontana raised both hands and deflected it over the goal line.
Another corner.
"AC Milan have had a lot of corners today."
"Let's see what they can do with this one. Inter Milan have Materazzi."
Andrea Pirlo's corner was cleared again, and Gattuso's foul also stopped Inter's counterattack.
In the 66th minute, Inter Milan made the first substitution. Mancini brought Martins on for Vieri.
Ancelotti wanted to make a substitution, too, but remembering how many times he'd taken Huang Kaiwen off early, he held back.
Even someone with a good temper would get angry if he kept being taken off early.
Martins brought more speed to Inter Milan. The 20-year-old ran wild like a horse freed from its reins, repeatedly using his pace to test Milan's defense.
His shooting and positional awareness, though, left something to be desired.
After he came on, Inter were repeatedly caught offside. On the one occasion he stayed onside, his shot was poor.
After the 80th minute, both managers made another substitution.
Inter brought Van der Meyde on for Emre Belozoglu, while Ancelotti replaced Crespo with Tomasson.
The former Inter striker, who had only just arrived on loan, hadn't made a good start at Milan.
"Neither manager has made any particularly aggressive moves. A draw would be acceptable for both of them."
"I bet Mancini's thinking he wishes he could have given Martins to Cruz instead. Martins has taken three shots since coming on, and none of them have posed much of a threat."
"Martins is still young. He and Adriano are the guarantees of Inter Milan's front line for the next ten years."
"The fans are probably a bit frustrated, too. The second half has been much duller than the first. But that's how it goes in a match between top teams. The closer it gets to the end, the more cautious both sides become. Neither can afford to concede at this stage."
"Three minutes of stoppage time. Inter Milan are on the attack. Veron finds Martins. Martins is moving quickly with the ball and charging into the box. Maldini wins it!"
"Milan counterattack!"
Cafu immediately played the ball forward to Huang Kaiwen.
Huang Kaiwen carried the ball diagonally upfield at high speed.
Faced with the defenders, he immediately played a one-two with Kaka.
The two of them charging through the middle at speed put Inter under immense pressure.
Cambiasso and Stankovic rushed toward them almost simultaneously.
Kaka moved out wide to offer support. After Huang Kaiwen passed the ball, Kaka carried it down the right and charged into the box.
When Cambiasso chased after him, Kaka passed it back toward the edge of the box.
"Pass it!"
Shevchenko, who hadn't kept up, called for the ball on the left. Huang Kaiwen ignored him. What chance would a pass back give them now?
Materazzi, having moved from the right back to the middle, charged straight at Huang Kaiwen.
Realizing he was running out of time, Huang Kaiwen stood just outside the penalty area and swung his left leg.
The instant Huang Kaiwen shot, Materazzi slammed into him.
Ancelotti watched the ball's path.
It went in!
Beautiful!!!
A last-minute winner!!!
Then he looked back at Huang Kaiwen.
His joyful expression froze.
The Milan manager opened his mouth and muttered, "I should've made the substitution ages ago. I was so stupid. Really."
Before you continue