Florentino was gone.
He obviously did not get the answer he wanted most.
But it did not matter anymore.
As the team's head coach, Gao Shen also needed to stick to his position. He had to fight for certain interests for the players in his dressing room, even if it was just the most basic decency and dignity.
Of course, Florentino would never clash with him over such a matter.
Gao Shen had done what he could. As for what Florentino and the management would decide next and how they would communicate and negotiate with Casillas' team, that was beyond Gao Shen's control.
We are all adults, and everyone has his or her own interests.
Casillas was no exception.
Even if Casillas were really sold, Gao Shen would not be affected in any way. In fact, his status in the dressing room and in the minds of the players would only be further enhanced.
No one is willing to work for an irresponsible boss.
Since Gao Shen wanted to be the boss of the dressing room, he had to take on that responsibility.
Casillas lost his authority as the boss of the dressing room because he allowed his girlfriend to do those things.
But now, everything Gao Shen was doing would only make everyone in the dressing room rally more closely around him.
As for the conversation between Gao Shen and Florentino, no one would know the specifics unless they chose to reveal them.
Only people inside Real Madrid could infer their attitudes based on what happened afterward.
Externally, Florentino's most important outcome from Valdebebas was reaching a consensus with Gao Shen on a contract renewal.
After returning to the Bernabéu, Real Madrid quickly sent a press release to the major media outlets.
Real Madrid had officially started contract renewal negotiations with Gao Shen.
At such a critical moment, this could greatly stabilize Real Madrid's morale and spirit.
After seeing off Florentino and his party, Gao Shen and his assistants began intensive preparations for the match.
…
This weekend, in the 31st round of La Liga, Real Madrid hosted Rayo Vallecano at home.
Real Madrid broke the deadlock within 3 minutes.
Di María crossed from the left side of the penalty area. Benzema poked a shot in front of goal, but it was saved by the goalkeeper. Ronaldo then pushed the ball into the empty net from the edge of the box, scoring the opener for Real Madrid.
In the 15th minute, after another pass from Di María, Ronaldo broke through the challenge of three defenders and slotted into the far corner from the right side of the penalty area, making it 2-0.
In the 26th minute, Ronaldo timed his run to beat the offside trap and, after receiving Modrić's pass, delivered a wonderful ball across. Benzema finished easily to make it 3-0.
After the break, Ronaldo assisted Carvajal to score, then Ronaldo and Marcelo combined brilliantly on the left side of the area. The Brazilian left-back crossed, and Di María tapped in at the back post for 5-0.
In the 70th minute, Di María latched onto a long pass from Pepe, beat the offside trap to go one-on-one, and scored again for 6-0.
In the 76th minute, Ronaldo received a pass from the substitute Isco, rounded the goalkeeper on the right side of the penalty area, and finished to complete his hat-trick, 7-0.
Just two minutes later, Isco produced another wonderful pass and Morata curled in from the left side of the penalty area.
In the end, Real Madrid defeated Rayo Vallecano 8-0 at home.
While Real Madrid crushed their opponent, Barcelona narrowly beat Espanyol 1-0 away with a Messi penalty. Atlético Madrid came from behind to beat Athletic Bilbao away with goals from Diego Costa and Koke.
It is worth mentioning that Barcelona's first-choice goalkeeper Valdés was injured during the game.
After the match, Barcelona announced that Valdés had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and would travel to Germany for surgery, ruling him out for at least seven months.
With the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals about to begin, Valdés' absence dealt a heavy blow to Barcelona.
And Gao Shen indeed developed his tactics around this point.
…
April 1, April Fool's Day, Camp Nou, Barcelona.
In the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Real Madrid visited Barcelona.
Gao Shen wore his signature, sharp Kiton suit, standing in front of the visitors' technical area, watching the game in silence.
From the moment the whistle blew, Real Madrid seized the initiative and launched high-pressing attacks on Barcelona.
The tempo was very fast, especially in the entire attacking third where Real Madrid pressed Barcelona almost frantically.
Just over a minute in, Real Madrid created a chance high up the pitch.
Marcelo and Ronaldo combined repeatedly, and the Portuguese fired from the left side of the area, but it went wide.
After that, Real Madrid kept turning the screw on Barcelona.
In particular, the two central midfielders, Toni Kroos and Modrić, took turns stepping up to press.
In the third minute, Real Madrid's pressure on Piqué forced him to play the ball back to the stand-in goalkeeper Pinto.
Modrić did not stop there. He left Piqué and sprinted straight into the box, heading directly for the goalkeeper.
Such fierce pressing caught Pinto off guard. In a hurry, he punted the ball toward the team's left, Real Madrid's right, trying to find Alba.
But at that moment, Di María suddenly burst forward, intercepted before Alba, and slipped a diagonal pass as he dribbled into the area.
The ball was played from the right side of Barcelona's box and the top of the arc. Neither Benzema nor Modrić attacked it, instead drawing the defenders' attention, allowing Ronaldo, arriving from the front, to beat Piqué to it and guide the ball into the bottom-right corner.
1-0!
…
After taking the lead, Real Madrid tried again but could not break Barcelona's goal.
Gao Shen then decided to consolidate, signaling the team to drop off, stabilize the defense, and wait to counter.
Barcelona took the opportunity to launch wave after wave of attacks.
Unlike before, Barcelona increased their long-range shooting from outside Real Madrid's penalty area.
Neymar, Messi, Xavi, and Iniesta all took turns shooting from distance, clearly looking to exploit the weakness of Real Madrid's single pivot and strengthen their threat from outside the box.
Courtois performed superbly, parrying shots left and right, making it hard for Barcelona to score.
Barcelona attacked with increasing intensity.
The Camp Nou crowd grew anxious. They clearly could not accept the team's poor performance, losing to Real Madrid at home again, and kept urging the team to ramp up the attack.
But just when Barcelona could not find a breakthrough, Real Madrid won the ball at the back and Ramos suddenly launched a long pass over the top behind Barcelona's defense.
Benzema accelerated onto it, reached the edge of the area, and before Piqué could reach the ball, used his body to shield the center-back, brought it under control, and held off Piqué in the physical battle.
Puyol and Piqué looked to double up on Benzema, but the French striker laid it back to the right side of the box with his back to goal.
Di María arrived like lightning from deep, took the ball into the area ahead of Alba, and when Pinto came out, he used the outside of his left foot to prod it.
The ball went under Pinto and nestled inside the left side of Barcelona's goal.
2-0!!
…
Two quick goals disrupted Barcelona's setup and rhythm. In attack especially, Barcelona became very anxious.
Real Madrid played steadily. They were at an absolute disadvantage in territory and possession, but in terms of clear chances, they did better than Barcelona.
Courtois was excellent, keeping Barcelona out for the entire first half.
After the interval, the pattern remained one-sided.
But in the 54th minute, Real Madrid launched another fast counter.
Ronaldo and Marcelo forced their way through on the left, but Barcelona recovered quickly this time and did not allow the counter to develop. When Real Madrid reached the edge of the box, they had to slow down and recycle to Toni Kroos to reorganize.
Real Madrid's midfield circulated the ball outside Barcelona's penalty area, while the front three held the line near the edge of the box, flattening Barcelona's defense. The two full-backs also pushed up aggressively.
Everyone knew Real Madrid's strengths were pace, efficiency, and aerial prowess.
So, in setting up their defense, Barcelona paid special attention to Madrid's wide threat.
But this time, Real Madrid suddenly changed the pattern. Toni Kroos received on the left side of the area, drew Busquets' attention, then switched to an unmarked Modrić on the right.
Modrić took a touch to set himself. With no Barcelona player immediately closing him down, the Croatian midfielder hesitated, then struck it cleanly, producing a world-class goal.
The ball flew with tremendous speed, drew an elegant arc, and found the top-left corner.
Although Pinto tried his best, he could do nothing.
3-0!
Camp Nou erupted in boos.
Barcelona fans were very dissatisfied with the performance, especially with goalkeeper Pinto.
Everyone knew that if Pinto had not made the early mistake, Barcelona would not have played so anxiously.
But there are no ifs.
Pinto's error gave Real Madrid a great opportunity, and Ronaldo seized it.
After going three up, Real Madrid relaxed slightly.
After all, scoring three away goals gave them a clear advantage, but Barcelona hit back quickly.
Messi dribbled past two defenders outside the box, then whipped a world-class left-footed strike into Courtois' goal.
This made Gao Shen on the touchline extremely dissatisfied. He loudly scolded Real Madrid's defenders, demanding they focus, stay alert, and avoid carelessness.
Against a team like Barcelona, any lapse can be disastrous.
They have superstars like Messi and Neymar who can change a game at any moment.
After conceding, Real Madrid became more passive, and Barcelona pressed to close the gap, but Courtois remained very solid.
In the end, Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 3-1 away and put one foot into the Champions League semi-finals.
(To be continued.)