The perfect midfield: It starts with never passing the ball to Ronaldo.

Chapter 74 Mario is the Champions League top scorer

Valverde's arms, which had been waving wildly on the sidelines, were now limply lowered. They had failed to overcome time, nor had they defeated their opponents.

With just over thirty minutes remaining, scoring six goals to achieve a comeback was completely impossible.

This season's Champions League journey has come to an end!

Pereira stood calmly on the sidelines, chewing gum.

With each passing second, his mood improved.

It only takes four matches to go from the quarterfinals to the finals. If the draw is favorable, it's entirely possible to replicate the 03-04 season.

A miracle of the season.

As the referee blew the final whistle, although Rami equalized the score with a header in the last moment, it was too late.

Porto swept their opponents 5-1 on aggregate to advance to the quarterfinals!

Soldado approached Mario to exchange jerseys, and the red card and penalty in the second half completely convinced him.

After two rounds of combat, he clearly felt his opponent's talent.

This is a talented player who can establish himself in a top club!

It's a pity that he not only has talent, but also strong combat ability!

This prevented him from patting the other person's head and saying, "The future is yours."

Now, the only way to make up for the loss is to collect the opponent's match-worn jerseys.

In the away team's locker room, the first impression was one of quietness, with only the sound of shower water; there was no energy or desire to communicate.

The arrows drawn on the tactical board were all erased and messed up.

It's truly heartbreaking that the team's unexpected rise to prominence led to their dismal exit from European competition!

Costa, having changed into clean clothes, sat in a corner scrolling through his phone.

On social media, some fans called him a fool who ruined the team, while others praised him as a courageous and resilient fighter!

Inside the home team's locker room on the other side, this time the champagne was actually opened.

Golden liquor gushed out, and everyone erupted in celebration. Those who had made it to the Champions League quarterfinals could enjoy both spiritual and material rewards.

The press conference room at the Dragon Stadium.

Valverde looked slightly melancholy.

"We stepped onto the pitch with 300% determination, but unfortunately, tonight the goddess of victory is not on Valencia's side!"

"Costa's red card?"

"That's the choice of a warrior: either watch Mario destroy the net, or exchange a red card for a slim hope."

"I'm proud of the players' attacking run; they were burning until the very last second, but the 0-4 score in the first leg..."

It's frustrating.

"There's nothing we can do; geniuses are all like that, irrational!"

"Back to tonight's match, Porto played to a high standard, especially Mario; this eighteen-year-old has the heart of a cold-blooded killer!"

Valverde readily admitted his defeat, then tightened his trench coat and left the field dejectedly.

Pereira, holding the microphone, had a completely different mindset.

"Porto's football philosophy remains consistent: the dragon will not stop its tearing attack until its opponent is bled dry!"

"This is just a partial victory in the Champions League; we need to be prepared for new challenges!"

"Mario penalized?"

"This shows that our team atmosphere is great, and the players support each other. This is the most beautiful kind of football!"

The microphone was quickly handed to Mario.

"Thanks to my teammates' generosity, it's not easy to get back to the top of the scoring charts, especially for a midfielder!"

"I'm delighted to have surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo in goals scored once again!"

"This proves that I'm competing with the world's top players!"

"In fact, I was the best player in this round of the series!"

The journalist, who was good at summarizing, quickly jotted down the key words in his notebook.

Small newspapers don't care about such things in order to boost sales; grabbing attention and highlighting key points is the most important thing.

Mario: I am the best in the Champions League; Messi and Ronaldo are both my defeated opponents.

Last night, Porto's Super Mario eliminated Valencia in the most brutal way.

An 18-year-old substitute sprinted 40 meters to create a penalty, then unleashed a powerful shot that pierced the last vestiges of the Batistuta's dignity!

With a total of 4 goals over two legs, the 18-year-old prodigy has officially surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo (8 goals) to become the Champions League top scorer!

After the match, the Portuguese player stated that his performance in this series surpassed Messi's and even Ronaldo's!

Indeed, with four goals scored over two legs, especially in the Champions League knockout stage, you could see Mario's teammates on the field even shining his shoes in celebration!

This article immediately grabbed people's attention upon its release.

9 goals! Super Mario tops the Champions League scoring charts by defeating Real Madrid's star player.

Reports like "Valencia died standing in the dragon's throat, bleeding to the last drop of blood" instantly went unnoticed.

Even the headline "Bayern Munich loses 0-2 to Arsenal at home, 3-3 on aggregate, narrowly advancing on away goals" reflects this.

Messi scores a stunning brace at Camp Nou, helping Barcelona overturn AC Milan's deficit.

Even such a powerful team's battle report is inferior!

The comments under the topic were endless.

—【That's fucking arrogant! It reminds me of that smug, irritating expression on the face of the guy in the article who said "I'm so lucky!"】

—【Messi single-handedly created two goals and led his team to a stunning comeback victory against Milan. Isn't that much better than you finishing fifth in La Liga?】

—【Fuck you, how long have you been playing good football? All you do is try to bluff your way into the top two stars!】

—【They're praising Porto's win against Valencia to the skies? Seriously?!】

—【One of them played for Manchester United, and the other for AC Milan. Do you even understand the significance of their achievements?】

—[Mario can't be considered the current Champions League top scorer; at best, he's a Champions League top scorer gem!]

—【Penalties don't count as goals? You're just being stubborn. It's because of brainless fans like you that Ronaldo gets so much hate!】

—【I can't believe someone like Mario, who disrespects his seniors, has fans. I'm speechless!】

—【Dude, can you score 90+ goals in a year? Can you lead your team to a championship with 100 points? Stop spouting nonsense!!】

—[Rationally speaking, one played for Real Madrid against Manchester United, the other for Barcelona against AC Milan, and Porto against Valencia—they're about evenly matched!]

—【Besides, they were only talking about this series. Objectively speaking, four goals is more than two goals.】

—【That's right, let's wait and see how the quarterfinals go!!】

—【Damn it, I hope the draw picks Porto, so Ronaldo can personally teach Portugal a lesson!!】

—【I think you just want to try your luck with the big draw. Considering all these teams, drawing Porto and Galatasaray should be considered a good draw.】

—【Don't overthink it, we'll know the result tomorrow!!】

The public opinion storm that had been brewing for two nights gradually subsided as the draw for the quarterfinals approached.

While the sensationalist headlines in tabloids dealt a blow to Mario's social media presence, there were also benefits.

Just like in business, this young 18-year-old is already considered a superstar alongside Messi and Ronaldo!

This made Pogba, who was far away in Turin, very envious. They were about the same age, but Pogba was suspended with a red card for spitting on someone.

Mario, who at the beginning of 2013 was just a potential rising star competing with himself for the Golden Boy award, has now begun to occupy the third position after Messi and Ronaldo.

Conte doesn't give himself a fixed starting position, nor does he give him the same tactical treatment as Mario.

The weighting on the field is different, how can there be any competition!

The Golden Boy of 13 definitely belongs to that guy!

No, there's still a chance.

While watching UEFA's draw on TV, Bobo had a sudden inspiration.

Draw him, then defeat him, and all the glory will be yours!