Throughout the entire first half, Marcelo was shredded by the opposing winger.
The opposition repeatedly created danger by targeting him, eventually breaking the deadlock.
Then, under heavy pressure, Marcelo misplaced a back pass, effectively gifting the opposing striker another goal.
0–2.
Marcelo, almost single-handedly, helped Levante take a two-goal lead over Real Madrid.
After the break, Capello immediately replaced Marcelo with Raúl Bravo.
He paid a steep price for his so-called motivational experiment.
Likewise, Gago—who had earned a start due to Reyes' poor form—was substituted in the 70th minute.
His performance was just as underwhelming, though in fairness, he is a defensive midfielder by trade. Asking him to play as a right-sided midfielder was asking too much.
Coming on for Gago was Real Madrid academy midfielder Juan Mata.
But once Mata stepped onto the pitch, it felt as if people were seeing Reyes all over again.
If Reyes was the kind of player who looked sharp but was actually soft,
then Mata was someone who looked soft—and turned out to be exactly that.
The contrast with Luka Modrić was striking.
At this stage, Modrić's weaknesses lay in his close control and agility.
However, his willingness to engage in physical battles—and his effectiveness in them—far exceeded what one would expect given his height and weight.
His weight-gain and strength training were already complete.
All that remained was regaining full bodily control to finish his transformation.
In the 85th minute, the opposition intercepted Mata's touch and scored the decisive goal.
Capello replaced Diarra with Higuaín, switching to a three-forward system.
With Raúl still on the pitch, it was effectively a four-man attack.
In the final minute of stoppage time, Modrić had a flash of inspiration and delivered his best pass of the match—a delicate outside-of-the-foot chip into the box.
Su Hang drew his bow, ready to fire…
But Higuaín charged in, twisted his body awkwardly, and lashed at the ball in one motion.
He didn't even hit the target, blasting the ball straight out beyond the byline.
Su Hang's brace wasn't enough to save the team, and his hat trick was snatched away by a teammate.
Real Madrid missed their chance at a dramatic equalizer and suffered a painful 2–3 defeat at home.
After the match, even Su Hang—usually flawless in front of the cameras—rarely showed such visible displeasure.
A reporter pressed him:
"Was your expression aimed at Higuaín for taking that final shot?"
Su Hang shook his head.
"No. It's on me. I'm still not strong enough. As the captain and the team's top scorer, I didn't win the game with my goals. That's my responsibility."
"Of course, some of our young players didn't perform well, but that's because they're not ready yet. They all have a lot of potential."
"We've been hit by a wave of injuries recently. That's the key reason for our losses. We're adjusting, and I believe the team can get through this difficult period."
In front of the cameras, Su Hang was extremely restrained, unwilling to damage any teammate's confidence.
But away from the cameras, he issued a blunt warning to Capello: as long as he was on the pitch, Higuaín was not to play—
not even if Higuaín were lining up as a defender or goalkeeper.
Capello could only nod and force a smile.
In truth, losing a core figure like Zidane inevitably put the team in trouble.
But against weaker opponents, Real Madrid simply shouldn't be losing.
Yet Capello, eager to push forward his generational transition plan with Calderón, kept fielding young and inexperienced players.
Robinho, Cassano, Guti, Salgado, and Raúl Bravo all sat unused.
And Beckham was still being frozen out.
So what about Modrić, Higuaín, Reyes, Marcelo, Juan Mata, Borja Valero—could they be relied upon?
Could they win matches?
They simply didn't have that ability.
Having two of these "future stars" on the pitch at once already made winning difficult.
This match featured three… even five of them!
How were they supposed to win like that?!
Modrić: ???
Higuaín: You've got to be f*cking kidding me!
Marcelo: What the f*ck?!
Juan Mata: Hey—watch your language!
These players might all become stars—perhaps even top-tier stars—in the future.
But right now, not a single one of them was ready.
Su Hang absolutely refused to be the nice guy who trained rookies for the team.
On one hand, this was the decisive sprint phase of the season. If you wanted to develop youngsters, that should have happened at the start of the campaign.
On the other hand, this wasn't even his club. The players he helped develop—and the money made selling them—wouldn't benefit him at all.
What he wanted was immediate combat power.
Even if that meant players who would retire next season, leave next season, or fall off a cliff next season.
Su Hang's stance was something Capello and Calderón had no choice but to take seriously.
Once Calderón backed down, Capello immediately adjusted the starting lineup.
February 10th, La Liga Matchday 22.
Real Madrid's starting XI saw major changes:
Su Hang, Van Nistelrooy
Robinho, Raúl, Guti
Emerson
Raúl Bravo, Cannavaro, Kompany, Sergio Ramos
Casillas
—
A lineup full of half-baked players.
Captain Su Hang was the youngest player on the team.
Even Kompany, the young defender signed this season and already performing steadily, was four months older than him.
And once those demons and monsters were benched,
Real Madrid had no problems at all against non-elite opposition.
5–1.
Real Madrid hit rock bottom—and bounced straight back.
In this match, every substitution Capello made brought on experienced players: Cassano, Gago, and Diarra.
Watching the eager future stars left on the bench, Capello's heart ached.
Su Hang scored twice again, bringing his tally to seven goals in his last three matches.
His total for the season surged past fifty goals.
He had entered the realm of history, standing shoulder to shoulder with the greats.
For a long time to come, his name would appear in every kind of all-time discussion.
...
February 17th, La Liga Matchday 23.
Real Madrid drew at home against Real Betis.
Emerson's poor performance left the team short of attacking ideas.
In the dying moments, Su Hang scored a dramatic equalizer to secure a point.
After the match, Real Madrid players received generally low ratings.
Sky Sports was blunt:
"If not for Su Hang's run of consecutive goals, Real Madrid should have suffered a losing streak after Zidane's injury."
"Their form is dreadful. Emerson and Guti are wildly inconsistent, while Van Nistelrooy and Raúl struggle to decide matches."
"Real Madrid cannot rely on Su Hang alone. They must find another player capable of stepping up and changing the scoreline."
"Su Hang has been flawless, yet Real Madrid still struggles to win. This is a team-wide problem. With a club as massive as Real Madrid, is there really no one else who can be relied upon besides the King of Football Zidane and the world's top striker, Su Hang?"
In an instant, the pressure on the rest of the squad skyrocketed.
February 20th, the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 kicked off.
Bayern Munich flew to Madrid, visiting the Bernabéu to challenge the defending champions.
Before the match, Bayern players spoke confidently in interviews.
Former European Golden Boot winner Roy Makaay said:
"Su Hang is an outstanding striker, but a team can't survive on a great forward alone."