Chapter 79: How Can Everything Go as One Wishes

As soon as the second half began, Griezmann continued his dazzling performance from the first half. On the right flank, he switched directions repeatedly to break through, then unleashed a brilliant ball that was somewhere between a shot and a cross, flying toward the far corner. Areola, unable to reach it in time, watched as the ball once again swept past the goal.

Although the French striker's breakthroughs tonight were splendid and eye-catching, his final touches failed to pose any real threat to the goal, which was the main reason Villarreal had managed to keep level with Atletico Madrid so far.

Atletico's other forward, Torres, was clearly not the player he once was. In Dai Zhiwei's eyes, even if the former Spanish Golden Boy joined the Chinese Super League, he might not secure a spot atop the scorers' chart.

In the next few minutes, it was actually Villarreal, despite being on the defensive, who nearly snatched the lead. A long ball from the back found Dai Zhiwei, who leaned on Godin and didn't control the ball but instead flicked it with his instep, lofting it straight into the penalty area.

After several matches together, Bakambu had finally developed a strong understanding with Dai Zhiwei. The moment Dai Zhiwei made the lofted pass, Bakambu burst forward, but under Savic's interference, his shot was too straightforward, and Oblak blocked it with his chest.

As the saying goes, if you don't take your chances, fate will punish you. Three minutes later, Villarreal suffered a blow: veteran Rukavina fouled Filipe Luis in defense and received a yellow card, his second of the match, meaning he was sent off. The Yellow Submarine found themselves in an even more precarious position, already on the back foot, now forced to retreat further. Only Dai Zhiwei remained up front, while the rest of Villarreal's players shrank back into their own half.

Faced with ten-man Villarreal parking the bus, Atletico Madrid could find no effective solution; their attacks were noisy but lacked substance.

Seeing Marcelino substitute Bailly for Bakambu to further reinforce the defense, Simeone grew anxious, responding with two attacking substitutions—clearly unwilling to let the three points slip away at home.

Simeone's changes produced immediate results. At least on the surface, Atletico's attacks became more dynamic.

Midway through the second half, Atletico mounted a series of three corner kick assaults, but with Dai Zhiwei dropping back into the penalty area, Atletico's set-piece advantage was neutralized.

After relentless pressure, a lapse finally appeared in Atletico's defense.

Areola launched a long goal kick. Pina, without stopping, headed the ball into open space ahead of Dai Zhiwei.

“Brilliant!” Dai Zhiwei finally had a chance to sprint freely, stretching his legs and tearing down the field.

Godin and Savic reacted quickly, converging on Dai Zhiwei from the front and rear.

Dai Zhiwei glanced around; aside from Godin and Savic, other Atletico players were closing in fast.

“This is it!” Without dribbling further, Dai Zhiwei adjusted his stride and, from over forty meters out, hammered the ball with a powerful shot.

With a swoosh, the ball tore through the air like a raging tiger, roaring between Godin and Savic, tracing a marvelous straight line that seemed destined for the top left corner of the goal!

Just as Villarreal fans in the stadium and at home prepared to cheer, the loudest groan of the night erupted—the ball struck the post and deflected out of bounds.

“Damn it!” Amid the cheers of the home fans at Calderón Stadium, Dai Zhiwei couldn't help but curse.

“Ah!” Even Marcelino, who had maintained an air of calm on the sidelines, slammed his water bottle onto the grass.

It was one of Villarreal's few genuine threats to Atletico's goal, but once again, Lady Luck had turned her back on them!

Failing to score affected Dai Zhiwei's mindset, and soon, in a defensive play, his excessive movement earned him a yellow card.

Yet even Dai Zhiwei, whose defensive skills were rough at best, returned to help in the back line, revealing just how passive Villarreal had become.

As Dai Zhiwei collected his yellow card, Villarreal made another substitution: Marcelino sent on young Iniguez in place of Castillejo, bolstering the defense and determined to preserve the 0–0 draw.

Marcelino's intent to hold onto the clean sheet was clear, both in his changes and in the attitude transmitted to the Villarreal players on the pitch. Dai Zhiwei frequently dropped back to defend.

His defending was amateurish—one feint from an opponent could leave him completely wrong-footed—but his speed and sense of positioning provided a significant boost to the Yellow Submarine's back line. Time and again, Atletico's passes were intercepted and cleared from danger by this “spoiler.”

Atletico dominated possession but struggled to break into Villarreal's penalty area, resorting to long-range shots from outside the box that wasted opportunities.

As the match approached the final stoppage time, Atletico launched a last wave of attacks, with even center-back Savic pushing up to the edge of Villarreal's penalty area.

At that moment, Dai Zhiwei gave Atletico a fright out of nowhere.

In the final three minutes of added time, Villarreal mounted a sneak attack that sent a chill through the home fans at Calderón Stadium. Bruno received the ball and played a through pass; Pina made an unexpected run and cleverly distributed it, with Dai Zhiwei positioning himself at the edge of the box, ready to unleash a powerful shot without stopping.

Unfortunately, Godin made a timely intervention, clearing the ball ahead of Dai Zhiwei. But the Uruguayan captain paid a price—Dai Zhiwei had already swung his left leg forward in preparation for the shot, and after Godin's clearance, his toes extended right in front of Dai Zhiwei's left foot.

Caught off guard, Dai Zhiwei managed to pull back most of his power, but still kicked the right side of Godin's left foot.

Luckily, Dai Zhiwei had withdrawn at least seventy percent of his strength; otherwise, Godin would have been sidelined for the season, instead of just suffering a minor injury that would heal after a brief spell of pain.

Dai Zhiwei's gesture was met with applause from the Calderón Stadium fans, and Godin, after getting up, gratefully hugged Dai Zhiwei.

He knew that Dai Zhiwei's decision to pull back risked injuring himself.

But this incident was only a minor episode in the match, as Atletico began their final frenzied siege of Villarreal's goal.

After a barrage of shots, the area in front of the Yellow Submarine's goal was left in chaos and peril, but they held out until the very end.

When Koke's free kick was delivered into the box and Gaspar headed it clear from the six-yard area, the referee finally blew the whistle the Villarreal players had been longing for—the match was over.

The score remained 0–0 until the final whistle; neither side's forwards managed to breach the other's goal.

Dai Zhiwei left the pitch with nothing but a yellow card to show for his efforts, having played the full 90 minutes and taken five shots—two on target—both the highest in the team.

Although his performance was not particularly impressive, in all fairness, it wasn't entirely his fault.

For example, Villarreal spent the entire match pinned down by Atletico, unable to commit enough players to attack.

For example, when Atletico's two center-backs double-teamed Dai Zhiwei, his teammates failed to provide adequate support.

For example, Dai Zhiwei had already spent much of his energy in the previous match against Napoli.

“Sigh!” Dai Zhiwei raked his nearly soaked hair, feeling deeply dissatisfied as he walked toward the sidelines.

“Hey, kid, don't be upset, you did really well!” Godin put an arm around Dai Zhiwei's back; Dai Zhiwei's decision to pull his shot earlier had won Godin's respect.

“Don't try to console me!” Dai Zhiwei replied irritably.

“I'm not exaggerating,” Godin said with a hint of pride. “Even Real Madrid led by Ronaldo, or Barcelona led by Messi, breaking through our defense is no easy feat. For you to threaten us single-handedly like this, you're truly among Europe's elite.”

“Hey, hearing you say that, I feel a bit better…”

Though Dai Zhiwei felt he hadn't played well, he still received the highest rating in the team after the match. The football media also praised his performance, noting he was hampered mainly by the team's overall strength.

But for Dai Zhiwei, who aspired to chase the throne of the king of football, this match was his own Waterloo.

After returning from Madrid to Villarreal, Dai Zhiwei, full of pent-up frustration, resolved to unleash it all in training. Even during practice, the Yellow Submarine players sensed the fierce killing aura emanating from Dai Zhiwei. Marcelino, in fact, felt pity for Napoli and Villarreal's upcoming La Liga opponents, but more than that, he was secretly delighted.