In the 81st minute, Van Nistelrooy went down in the penalty area after contesting a header with Van Buyten.
Van Buyten told Van Nistelrooy to stop pretending and get up.
Van Nistelrooy's anger flared instantly. He got to his feet and slammed into Van Buyten.
However, Van Buyten was built bigger and sturdier, and in that collision, Van Nistelrooy was the one who came off worse.
Players from both sides quickly converged.
But with both teams still chasing goals, everyone did their best to keep the situation under control.
In the end, both Van Nistelrooy and Van Buyten were shown yellow cards.
In the 86th minute, Cassano's aggressive press caused Hargreaves to pick up an injury.
Bayern brought on veteran Hasan Salihamidžić in Hargreaves' place.
Salihamidžić had turned thirty less than two months earlier.
In that era, that already counted as being a veteran.
He had come through at Hamburg, joined Bayern in 1998, and spent nine years with the club, helping them win six Bundesliga titles, four German Cups, and the 2000–2001 Champions League.
At the time, he was regarded as one of the best wide players in the world.
He was known as the Angel Wing.
It was from this point on that "Angel Wing" became the highest praise for wide players, a title later inherited by Argentine winger Di Maria.
Unfortunately, Salihamidžić had already reached an agreement with Juventus during the winter transfer window and would be joining the Bianconeri in the summer.
After Sali came on, Van Bommel, who had been on the right, shifted into midfield.
This change made Bayern's central defense more solid while also sharpening their attacking threat down the right flank.
Real Madrid soon made their second substitution as well.
Emerson replaced Robinho.
Compared to Bayern's attacking adjustment, Real Madrid's change was far more conservative.
Replacing Robinho with Emerson was clearly about strengthening defense.
In other words, Capello had accepted a 2–2 result.
In his view, this wasn't the worst possible outcome.
With the return leg in Munich still to come, Real Madrid would still have a chance to be the final winner.
But neither the Bernabéu crowd nor Su Hang on the pitch supported this decision.
Because in football, defending is always something that looks easy but is actually much harder.
To borrow a line from a well-known football commentator, there's nothing easier than playing for a draw—and nothing more likely to make you lose.
In the 91st minute, Real Madrid were in possession while Bayern pressed aggressively.
Emerson played the ball back to Guti, intending for him to recycle it further.
But Guti had always been rebellious—or perhaps, as a true Real Madrid man, he understood the desires of the Merengue fans in the stands better than anyone else.
They wanted to win.
Bang!
Guti threaded a through ball.
But Lahm read his intention, moved early to block the lane, and deflected the pass.
Gago was the first to bring the ball under control.
Lahm charged straight at him.
Gago tried a V-pull, attempting to show off against Lahm.
But under Lahm's rough collision, he lost his footing and surrendered possession.
Lahm completed the tackle.
Gago lay on the ground, protesting to the referee that it was a foul.
The referee didn't even look at Lahm.
His officiating threshold was extremely high.
Gago had played the entire match without realizing this, which alone showed that he was far from being a good defensive player.
Bang!
After taking two touches, Lahm chipped a pass forward, finding Sali, who had cut inside from the right without the ball and kept driving forward.
Sali didn't stop the ball, instead nudging it ahead and accelerating, powering straight past Kompany.
Kompany hadn't expected the old veteran to be this fierce. Once beaten, he simply couldn't catch up.
"One-on-one! Sali through on goal!"
"Shoot!"
"It's in!"
"Sali! The veteran Sali! He's still so outstanding—unbelievable that Bayern are about to lose such a great player!"
"Gago made a huge mistake—he never should've played with fire at the back!"
"Kompany's reaction was just as heavy as Van Buyten's on the other side!"
"Even Casillas rushing out couldn't save Real Madrid!"
"Three–two! Bayern snatch a last-gasp winner against Real Madrid!"
As the clock reached the 94th minute, the referee blew the whistle three times.
Bayern left the Bernabéu with their heads held high.
They took a victory away from Madrid and returned home in triumph.
Bayern midfielder Hargreaves was named Man of the Match.
When the final whistle sounded, Real Madrid fans hurled white scarves onto the pitch to vent their anger at the team's conservative tactics in the closing moments.
Real Madrid captain Su Hang also showed rare fury when facing reporters.
Reporter: "Su Hang, you led Bayern twice but were ultimately beaten by a last-minute goal. Where do you think the problem lies?"
Su Hang: "We had many shortcomings in this match. Starting with me, every single person on the team let the fans down."
"On top of that, injuries were also one of the reasons for this situation."
"But what I want to say is that many things can't be changed by effort alone. When the match entered its final stage, we clearly lacked more reliable substitutes."
"I'm not saying Modrić, Mata, or Higuaín aren't excellent players. I believe they'll all become outstanding, even great, players in the future."
"But not now. Their current ability and their chemistry with the team haven't reached the level required for matches of this standard."
"Even the fans understand this. I don't understand why the club is still keeping Beckham in the reserves."
"A player like Beckham—strong, experienced, mentally mature, and with exceptional chemistry with the team—is exactly what Real Madrid needs right now."
Several reporters clicked their tongues.
Was Su Hang… firing at the management?
Reporter: "So you're siding with Beckham? You should know that if Beckham doesn't renew his contract, he'll leave on a free transfer to LA Galaxy this summer."
"That would be a huge loss for Real Madrid."
Su Hang spread his hands. "I don't stand with anyone. I stand with winning."
"As a player, my responsibility is to win matches for Real Madrid and bring honor to the club."
"As for transfer fees, club revenue, and commercial development—that's management's job."
"I've never interfered in management decisions, so I don't think management should interfere with the team to achieve their own goals."
"Even if Beckham renews, how much does the club plan to ask LA Galaxy for? Ten million? Fifteen million?"
"It won't be more expensive than Ronaldo, will it?"
"But we could earn back most of that just by reaching the Champions League quarterfinals. What about the semifinals? The final? The title?"
Reporter: "But after losing to Bayern, your chances of turning things around next week are practically zero, especially with them having three away goals."
"And even if Beckham returns, Zidane won't. Real Madrid's fundamental problems still won't be solved."
"Zidane's role is irreplaceable—something I think we all understand."
"So at a time like this, talking about qualification and championships… don't you think that sounds a little ridiculous?"