Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-0 at the Mestalla, successfully defending the Copa del Rey and winning their second trophy of the season. This earned high praise from major media outlets in Spain and across Europe.
This was not just because of the win. More importantly, it was the stable dominance Real Madrid displayed.
Gao Shen's comments in a pitchside interview after the awards ceremony were widely endorsed by the media, as he credited everything to his players.
"I'm proud of my players and happy for all Real Madrid fans. They deserve it!"
As for the match itself, Gao Shen said he did not make any special adjustments, focusing instead on playing to the team's strengths.
"Our players performed very well. If I have to highlight something, I would say we were very united, which is why we were able to beat Barcelona repeatedly."
After the game, almost all media agreed with Gao Shen and even provided in-depth analysis.
Unity is indeed Real Madrid's most important weapon right now.
From the turmoil under Mourinho in 2012, with internal conflicts surfacing one after another, to the stability after Gao Shen took charge, Real Madrid have shown two completely different mental states. This has been hailed as Real Madrid's biggest gain under Gao Shen.
Many Real Madrid players have long praised Gao Shen's squad management.
Now, most observers believe that Gao Shen's control of the dressing room is the key to Real Madrid's continued success.
Despite winning both La Liga and the Copa del Rey, Gao Shen is still warning his players to stay alert.
"From the match against Barcelona, we can see that they actually played very well and created a lot of chances, some of which were very dangerous. So I don't think Barcelona's era is over. That is not true."
Gao Shen believes Barcelona's issues are temporary and related to personnel, and they can be solved.
"I believe they will soon get out of their current predicament. When that happens, Barcelona will still be our strongest opponent."
But then Gao Shen added that even if Barcelona return to their peak, he is confident he can beat them.
…
Gao Shen's remarks after the match were even acknowledged by some Catalan media, which is extremely rare.
Barcelona are destined to finish this season empty-handed, and combined with FIFA's transfer ban, the club has fallen into unprecedented internal and external difficulties.
At this moment, Barcelona's mouthpiece, Daily Sports, broke shocking news.
After the Copa del Rey final and the awards ceremony, Martino went to the press room for his conference and to take questions from reporters. At the same time, the players held an emergency meeting in the dressing room at the request of several locker-room leaders.
"Martino, the head coach, was not informed of this meeting."
Mundo Deportivo believes this shows Martino has lost the dressing room and that the players no longer believe he can lead them to victory.
After the press conference, Martino did not return to the dressing room. He went straight to the team bus to wait.
After the internal meeting, the players elected Xavi and Iniesta to speak in the mixed zone. Then the squad returned to the bus together.
Daily Sports reported that Martino had already announced he would leave Barcelona at the end of the season, but he has now completely lost control of the dressing room and the players' trust.
"In fact, Martino had long been a puppet on many issues. He and the dressing room had been at odds for a long time. Both sides were just gritting their teeth and waiting for a chance to part ways with dignity."
That would be after this season.
However, Mundo Deportivo dropped another bombshell, stating that Barcelona's recruitment plans have hit obstacles.
After FIFA announced the transfer ban, Barcelona reacted strongly and said they would appeal, but there were internal disagreements over how to respond.
For example, after the ban was issued, with the support of the management, Barcelona fans held up banners at Camp Nou, in front of the world, telling FIFA not to touch La Masia.
"This further angered FIFA."
On the other hand, Barcelona were also working on reinforcements.
Valdés is about to leave, and bringing in a goalkeeper is imperative. Barcelona set their sights on Borussia Mönchengladbach's German keeper, Ter Stegen.
But Ter Stegen nearly joined Bayern during the winter break. Now, after learning of Barcelona's interest, Borussia Mönchengladbach raised the price, and Bayern accelerated their pursuit.
"In today's European football, top goalkeepers have become scarce. Not only Barcelona and Bayern, but also Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, and Atlético Madrid urgently need goalkeepers."
"In this situation, there is a high probability Barcelona will lose Ter Stegen."
The reason is simple. The German goalkeeper reportedly told a Bild reporter he prefers to stay in the Bundesliga.
If he wants to stay in the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich is the best choice.
"Guardiola is very interested in Ter Stegen and believes the German goalkeeper can significantly improve Bayern's defense."
On the pitch they suffered consecutive defeats, and off the pitch they might be outbid in the transfer market. Worse still, there is serious infighting. The players even shut out the head coach and held a closed-door meeting.
How can this be?
Reports from Daily Sports and Mundo Deportivo quickly caused an uproar around the world.
Everyone realized Barcelona were in real trouble.
And it was very serious.
The sky is falling at Camp Nou.
What made it even worse was that when Barcelona returned home, even though it was late at night, many fans still blocked the players, hurling insults to express dissatisfaction and anger.
Humiliating words such as "mercenary," "shameless," and "trash" were frequently used to attack the players.
Many fans targeted Pinto, believing his mistakes cost Barcelona two trophies in a row.
Others blamed stars like Messi and Neymar, believing they were thinking only about the World Cup.
"Don't forget, you are paid by Barcelona, you bastards."
Barcelona fans did not spare head coach Martino either.
"Get out, Tata."
"Buy a ticket to Argentina and don't come back."
"Have a good trip, and don't look back."
The consecutive defeats, especially the seven meetings against Real Madrid this season without even a draw, are a great humiliation for Barcelona.
Mundo Deportivo also revealed that when fans angrily accused and insulted the players, many Barcelona players, including Messi and Neymar, clashed with them.
The reason was that some extreme fans blocked the players' path, and some even made racist gestures and remarks.
Both Daily Sports and Mundo Deportivo believe the team performed poorly and fans have the right to vent their dissatisfaction.
But the most important thing now is to regroup and prepare for reconstruction.
A reconstruction plan must be proposed as soon as possible to calm the fans.
Barcelona president Bartomeu held an emergency press conference at Camp Nou at noon the next day to reassure supporters, saying that although the team failed to win any of the four major titles, it was not without gains.
At the same time, Bartomeu promised that the club had raised funds and would spend heavily to bring in a number of stars in the summer transfer window, including Falcao of Monaco, Llorente of Juventus, Thiago Silva of Paris Saint-Germain, and Ter Stegen of Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Bartomeu pledged that Barcelona would invest at least 150 million euros net this summer to build a younger and more competitive lineup to challenge Real Madrid next season.
This immediately caused a huge stir across European football.
Everyone was surprised by Barcelona's ambition, because each of the players listed by Bartomeu is very expensive. For example, Falcao is currently valued at 60 million euros, but the Colombian has been injured for a long time and has underwhelmed in Ligue 1.
Then there is Thiago Silva. It will not be easy to lure him from Paris Saint-Germain. Daily Sports revealed that Barcelona have two alternatives, namely Mangala from Porto and Miranda from Atlético Madrid.
But both players are expensive.
There is no need to mention Mangala. Miranda is about to turn 30, and Atlético Madrid have no intention of negotiating with any team. If you want to sign Miranda, you must pay the 30 million euro release clause.
This is a very high price for a 30-year-old center-back.
Mundo Deportivo believes Barcelona are more inclined toward Mangala and Athletic Bilbao's French center-back Laporte, but the former would cost at least 50 million euros, and Laporte would also require a fee of around 40 million euros.
However, for Barcelona, who have vowed to invest a net 150 million euros, these are no longer obstacles.
As for the head coach, Martino is certain to leave, and Daily Sports revealed that Barcelona have secretly contacted Celta Vigo head coach Luis Enrique. The Barcelona legend already has a comprehensive reconstruction plan and is determined to help the club take aim at the powerful Real Madrid next season.
With Barcelona presenting this grand reconstruction blueprint, the transfer market became lively even before the season ended.
The first area affected was the race for goalkeepers.
The young keeper from Borussia Mönchengladbach has undoubtedly become one of the hottest targets. Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, and Arsenal are all watching him.
At this moment, Atlético Madrid, who had been quiet, suddenly announced the signing of 20-year-old Slovenian goalkeeper Oblak from Benfica for 20 million euros.
This transfer was the first shot fired in the summer talent war.
(To be continued.)
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