The storm rages on.
In the 26th minute, Su Hang pulled off a roulette on the left edge of the penalty area to beat Sagnol, then squared the ball to Van Nistelrooy. He immediately continued his run, dragging Van Buyten out of position.
Van Nistelrooy received the ball with his back to goal, held off Lucio, and smoothly laid it off to Guti, who was charging in from the opposite side.
Guti pushed a shot toward goal.
But Lucio reacted at lightning speed, making an anticipatory block and smothering the shot completely.
During this stretch, Real Madrid enjoyed 62% possession, outshot Bayern 8–2, and held an overwhelming advantage both in play and on the stat sheet.
Yet the scoreline… Bayern were leading 1–0.
That's football.
Very often, the more unreasonable the outcome, the more likely it is to happen.
In the 35th minute, Van Nistelrooy dropped deep to offer support.
Tommy Smyth commented thoughtfully, "Back at Manchester United, Van Nistelrooy rarely did this—especially when playing with Cristiano Ronaldo. That was even a source of tension between them."
"But since arriving at Real Madrid, his style has clearly changed. His goal output isn't as high as it was at United, but his importance to the team has actually increased."
"If he maintains this level, Van Nistelrooy still has many good years left in his career."
"If he keeps this up and gives Su Hang enough support, Real Madrid might not be incapable of producing a miracle in this match!"
Before the sentence had even finished, Van Nistelrooy—after receiving the ball and releasing the pass—was taken down by Van Bommel's follow-through and stayed on the ground, unable to get up.
Panic immediately spread through the Real Madrid camp.
The team doctors rushed onto the pitch.
After a brief examination, the medical staff made the substitution gesture.
"Oh! Van Nistelrooy can't continue!"
"This is absolutely disastrous for Real Madrid!"
"Besides Su Hang, Van Nistelrooy is one of the few genuinely dangerous players on the pitch. And after years of partnering up front, he and Su Hang already have real chemistry."
"Without Van Nistelrooy, Su Hang will be even more isolated!"
On the sideline, Cassano came on as a substitute.
On the pitch, Su Hang was speaking to the referee, demanding proper punishment for Van Bommel.
The referee looked slightly awkward. It had been a fairly normal foul—Van Nistelrooy was simply unlucky.
This injury had more to do with Van Nistelrooy himself; perhaps he was just too fatigued.
Whether at Manchester United or Real Madrid, he had always been an absolute starter.
But he was nearly thirty-one years old.
In both the current and past eras of world football, ages twenty-seven or twenty-eight were generally considered a player's final peak.
Thirty marked the late stage of a career—the beginning of rapid decline.
Most players retired between thirty and thirty-three.
That was largely because players in the past paid little attention to maintenance.
Coke, beer, cigarettes, fried chicken, nightclubs—nothing was off-limits.
They also neglected physical upkeep and recovery, lacking systematic and comprehensive injury rehabilitation methods.
So thirty became a hard limit.
That level of physical condition was roughly equivalent to what future players might show at thirty-five, or even thirty-seven, thirty-eight, or forty.
It was absurd.
But this was exactly the kind of change happening in world football.
As a result, how people evaluate a player's age, ability, and value has also begun to shift.
Brighton's Kaoru Mitoma is catching attention in the Premier League at twenty-six. Judged by the old thirty-year cutoff, his value wouldn't seem particularly high—two years at a giant club and he'd likely be phased out or relegated to the bench.
But viewed with a thirty-three to thirty-five age ceiling, his future suddenly looks far more promising.
This is another major reason young players are becoming increasingly valuable—their playable careers are getting longer and longer.
Back on the pitch, Bayern struck back soon after Cassano came on.
The three to five minutes after a substitution are always the most volatile.
The team making the change is both most likely to score—and most likely to concede.
In the 37th minute, Lahm suddenly accelerated with the ball to launch an attack.
After crossing midfield, he switched play with a long pass to the right flank.
Salihamidžić received the ball and played two quick one-twos with the overlapping Podolski, instantly slicing through Raúl Bravo and Cannavaro, who lacked defensive coordination.
Facing Kompany rushing over to cover, Salihamidžić unselfishly squared the ball. Podolski was completely unmarked, with time to take a touch and set himself before shooting.
This time, Casillas was helpless.
The ball hit the net.
The Allianz Arena exploded in celebration.
"GOAL!"
"Podolski! This is our Prince Poldi!"
"Despite joining this season, Podolski hasn't been impressive in the league—twenty appearances and fewer than four goals."
"This goal is even his first in the Champions League this season."
"Compared to Su Hang, who has already scored five for Real Madrid, that's a huge gap."
"But this goal from Podolski is the one that kills Real Madrid! It's more important than all five of Su Hang's goals combined!"
"Two–nil! Bayern extend their lead in the second leg, making it five–two on aggregate! With a three-goal advantage, they'd have to try hard to lose now!"
"This win means everything to Bayern! Instead of grinding it out in the league against Stuttgart, Schalke 04, and Werder Bremen, Bayern should pour everything into the Champions League!"
"Just like Liverpool in 2005—getting back in Europe what they lost domestically!"
"Forward, Bayern!"
The commentator was beside himself, practically delivering a closing statement.
The camera kept cutting to Real Madrid players' faces, recording their despair.
The final shot lingered on Su Hang.
Hands on his hips, he panted heavily, frowning as he stared at the scoreboard, lost in thought.
In the 43rd minute, Bayern were nearly unstoppable.
As Lahm swung in a corner, Van Buyten powered in a header.
But the referee had already blown his whistle, signaling an attacking foul.
Bayern players surrounded the referee, and the replay provided the answer.
Before scoring, Van Buyten shoved Kompany aside, then used his elbow to brace against Su Hang in front of him as he jumped.
That was effectively an elbow to Su Hang's face.
In fact, it was a clear yellow-card offense.
But the referee may have felt the pressure—this being Bayern's home ground and having already disallowed a Bayern goal—and chose not to show a card.
Still, his expression and body language made one thing clear: if Bayern committed another foul, he would blow the whistle, and a card would almost certainly follow, restoring some balance for Real Madrid.
By halftime, despite leading in nearly every statistic, Real Madrid trailed 0–2.
Bayern, meanwhile, headed into the home dressing room in high spirits, even if they regretted not scoring a third before the break.
The contrast in atmosphere between the two sides was stark.
Bayern fans in the stands popped champagne in celebration.
And among the crowd, the already barely noticeable three thousand supporters in white had quietly dwindled by at least half.