Chapter 157: Well-Matched in Strength

Before Villarreal faced Juventus in the second leg of the Champions League semifinal, they still had a La Liga match to play in the 36th round.

Earlier in the round, Sevilla had drawn 1-1 with Real Sociedad. Trailing Villarreal, who had one less game played, by five points, Sevilla’s draw meant that if Villarreal could defeat their next opponent, they would secure a spot in the top four and qualify for next season’s Champions League.

But their next opponent was Barcelona.

Should they fight?

Or give up?

If they chose to fight, the opponent was the mighty Barcelona at home. Which team could confidently claim they could beat Messi’s side at Camp Nou?

And what about the Champions League semifinal three days later? Would they just ignore that?

If they chose to give up, it seemed more acceptable—they had a comfortable lead over Sevilla, and even if Atlético Madrid had already beaten Eibar 1-0 that round, as long as Villarreal didn’t lose by more than three goals to Barcelona, they would still hold third place on goal difference.

Moreover, although overturning the deficit in the Champions League semifinal was a monumental challenge, they refused to lose in such a humiliating fashion.

Thus, Escrivá quickly made his decision, leaving most of the key players out of the starting lineup for the match against Barcelona, keeping only goalkeeper Fernández and Dai Zhiwei.

The goalkeeper was not rotated because Villarreal’s first-choice keeper, Asenjo, had not yet recovered from injury. Dai Zhiwei’s continued start was at his own request.

With just three league matches remaining, and tied with Messi in goals scored, Dai Zhiwei did not want to forfeit the chance at the league’s Golden Boot by missing games.

Therefore, Dai’s target for this match was to score, regardless of whether the team won or lost; for the first time, he completely set aside the result.

This defined Dai Zhiwei’s style in the match: whenever he received the ball in the front, he would go solo. He registered an incredible 13 shots in this game, breaking his personal record for most shots in a single match.

Barcelona controlled the game from the start, while the largely reserve-filled Villarreal adopted a defensive, compact stance.

Early on, Joe Angler was booked for a handball outside the box, but Messi’s free kick was a tame shot easily caught by Fernández.

In the 21st minute, Barcelona took the lead. Suárez broke into the right side of the box and passed; Messi’s shot from the left side deflected off A. González, and Neymar slotted in close-range to make it 1-0.

At the 29th minute, Barcelona nearly doubled the lead. Rakitić passed to Messi, who dived into the left corner of the box and shot across goal, but the ball slid just wide.

At the 32nd minute, Dai Zhiwei’s wild shot finally paid off, equalizing for Villarreal.

Roberto Soriano sent a through ball; Dai shrugged off his old rival Piqué, broke into the box on the right flank, and calmly finished from ten yards to the near post, 1-1.

After scoring, Dai relaxed. Regardless of the outcome, he was now ahead of Messi in league goals. Judging by Messi’s form, a hat-trick seemed unlikely. Dai could now focus on preparing for the Champions League semifinal second leg against Juventus.

At the 39th minute, Barcelona missed a chance: Messi crossed from the right edge of the box, but an unmarked Piqué headed just wide from close range.

One minute later, Villarreal responded: Soriano crossed from the left, but with Dai tightly marked by Piqué and Mascherano, Soriano’s header from the edge of the box went wide.

Then Suárez passed; Neymar shot low from ten yards on the left side of the box, narrowly missing.

In injury time of the first half, Barcelona regained the lead. Busquets passed to Messi, who broke through to twenty yards and struck a powerful shot that deflected off A. González into the bottom right corner, 2-1.

This was Messi’s 50th goal this season and his 34th in the league—tied with Dai Zhiwei.

Immediately after the goal, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.

“Leo, not bad, you just can’t shake me off!” Dai Zhiwei smiled wryly, greeting Messi as they headed to the tunnel.

“Ha! Let’s both work hard!” Messi replied, somewhat intrigued by the race for the Golden Boot this season. In recent years, it had mostly been him and Ronaldo, except last year when he had “let” Suárez have it. Suddenly, Dai Zhiwei appearing in the mix was exciting.

The second half began with Barcelona launching an all-out attack. Neymar dribbled into the left side of the box and crossed to Messi, but Fernández made a crucial leg block, thwarting Messi’s attempt to surpass Dai.

Then Alves passed; Digne’s shot from a tight angle on the left side of the box slid just wide.

Five minutes later, Neymar fed Messi again, who volleyed from inside the box, but Fernández saved once more.

Fernández’s successive saves earned cheers from Dai Zhiwei in the front.

Unfortunately, the goalkeeper is not invincible.

At the 69th minute, Barcelona extended their lead. Sergi Roberto passed; Suárez turned past Joe Angler and fired a powerful shot from the right side of the box that was initially saved but rebounded in, 3-1.

This was Suárez’s 27th goal this season, placing him just behind Dai and Messi in the league scoring charts.

However, his hopes of defending the La Liga Golden Boot were now very slim.

Soon after, Dai Zhiwei reclaimed the lead in the scoring race.

At the 77th minute, Barcelona’s goalkeeper Ter Stegen erred, missing his interception. Dai gained possession, evaded a sliding Piqué, and faced an empty net, calmly scoring his second goal, 3-2.

Satisfied, Dai was substituted out by Escrivá for Rafael to preserve energy for Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal.

As for how the team would equalize after Dai’s substitution, neither Dai nor Escrivá allowed themselves to imagine it.

Unexpectedly, less than five minutes after Dai left the pitch, Neymar dribbled on the left side of the box, turned, and crossed. Suárez shot from ten yards, but Alfred N’Diaye instinctively blocked with his hand. The referee immediately awarded a penalty.

Seeing the penalty called, Dai shook his head helplessly, already certain that Barcelona would entrust Messi with the spot-kick at this critical moment.

Although Messi’s penalty conversion rate was lower than Dai’s and Ronaldo’s, he was still the world’s best player. With a flawless chipped penalty, he sealed the match at 4-2.

After this match, both Messi and Dai Zhiwei had scored 35 league goals this season, and with only two league rounds remaining, the race for the La Liga Golden Boot remained wide open.

...

On May 8, the entire Villarreal squad arrived in Turin two days early, demonstrating their serious focus on the match.

At the pre-match press conference, Escrivá said, “For us, overturning the deficit is a challenge. We didn’t get good results at the Allianz Stadium last time, but now we still have 90 minutes to change the situation. We will give it our all.”

Beside him, Dai Zhiwei affirmed, “Juventus is a strong opponent, but in 90 minutes, anything can happen. We will definitely score away goals and fight hard! We won’t give up any chance to reach the final!”

As the season drew to a close, with injuries and other factors, teams revealed their intentions clearly. In the second leg of the Champions League semifinal, Escrivá and Allegri largely kept their starting lineups from the first leg.

Juventus made only one change: the returning Khedira replaced Marchisio. Villarreal replaced Trigueros with Rodrigo to strengthen their attack.

Juventus starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Buffon

Defenders: Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini

Midfielders: Khedira, Pjanić, Sandro, Alves

Forwards: Dybala, Mandžukić, Higuaín

Villarreal starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Fernández

Defenders: Gaspar, Musacchio, Rukavina, Costa

Midfielders: Dos Santos, Bruno, Rodrigo, Soriano

Forwards: Bakambu, Dai Zhiwei

When Bakambu passed the ball to Dai Zhiwei, the second leg of Villarreal versus Juventus officially kicked off.

After a few passes, Castillejo and Bruno executed a one-two; Bruno then sent a direct pass from the right edge of the box. Using his physical advantage, Castillejo shook off Dybala’s defense and charged into the box.

He brushed past Pjanić’s pressing, found a gap, and sent a cross into the middle. Unfortunately, Buffon, positioned well forward, caught the ball, and although Dai Zhiwei had shaken off Bonucci’s marking, it was to no avail.

Bonucci passed to Alves, who surveyed the box, then quickly dribbled diagonally forward and crossed swiftly toward Villarreal’s penalty area.

Musacchio battled Pjanić at the far post to prevent him from jumping, then leapt up to clear the descending ball.

“Oh no!” Musacchio sensed a black-and-white figure rushing from the side ahead of him. He wanted to act first but was pinned down by Pjanić pressing hard against his waist, limiting his movement.

A tall figure had already surpassed Musacchio and headed the ball squarely in the center, instantly redirecting it toward Fernández’s right side, flying straight into the far corner.

Rukavina, still not fully in rhythm early in the match, failed to protect Musacchio’s front, allowing Khedira to steal the ball from behind and launch a shot.

“Shot! Khedira’s header—oh, the crossbar!” the Italian commentator exclaimed as Khedira’s powerful header crashed against the crossbar and out.

Villarreal narrowly escaped disaster. The players quickly raised their alertness; Dos Santos and Bruno took greater care in handling the ball.

Bakambu used his physical advantage to shake off Chiellini, cut inside swiftly, and entered the box. Bonucci hurriedly moved to cover Bakambu, with Pjanić also closing in.

Bakambu didn’t expect his cut inside to attract three defenders’ attention and realized he couldn’t break through. With a quick arch of his foot, he passed rapidly to the overlapping Dai Zhiwei.

At this moment, Dai was unmarked in the center. Accelerating, he shook off Sandro’s grasp from behind, penetrated the box, and deftly feinted past Pjanić, creating space.

This was a shooting opportunity!

Dai glanced at Buffon’s position, didn’t stop the ball while moving, and fiercely struck the upper part of the ball with his left foot—a low shot flying straight toward the right side of the goal.

Buffon was blocked by retreating Bonucci and didn’t expect Dai to shoot immediately upon entering the box. He dived quickly.

Though Dai’s shot skidded close to the ground, it was extremely fast. Just as Buffon hit the ground, the ball had slipped past everyone and through his fingers.

“Gooooooooooooooal? Oh, no! Dai Zhiwei’s shot grazed the post and went out—I thought it was in. So close!” the Spanish broadcaster initially shouted excitedly when he saw the ball flying past Buffon’s fingertips, only to realize moments later, seeing Dai not celebrating, that the ball had narrowly missed.

Escrivá and Allegri, too, initially believed Dai’s shot was a goal, their expressions changing dramatically in seconds.

After the restart, both teams focused on defense, knowing that the first mistake would lead to conceding and complicate the game.

Midfield battles became the focus. Dos Santos sped up his passes, quickly delivering the ball to Rodrigo on the left wing.

Rodrigo took the ball with chest control, suddenly accelerated, and seeing Sandro approaching, flicked the ball to the outside, then powered through, breaking past Sandro and opening a gap on the left flank. Gaspar followed closely.

However, Rodrigo was soon stopped by Barzagli. He halted abruptly, pulled the ball back, and kept close control to prevent Barzagli from touching it.

Then Rodrigo flicked the ball between Barzagli’s legs, sending it rolling again down Juventus’s left side. A yellow-clad figure sprinted forward rapidly to receive it.

Gaspar, receiving Rodrigo’s pass, ignored the closing Pjanić and charged into Juventus’s penalty area.

Glancing inside the box, Gaspar saw Bakambu and Dai Zhiwei making runs. Without hesitation, he lofted a high cross.

Bakambu spotted the ball coming, shook off Bonucci, leaped high, and powerfully headed the ball toward the right side of the goal.

There, Dai Zhiwei was charging forward with speed!