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

Chapter 86 The fickle Mario, what does it mean to go in and out of the penalty area?

Inside the home team's locker room.

Pereira is encouraging the players.

"Lads, in ninety minutes we'll be in the Champions League semi-finals this season!"

"Think about the prize money, think about the media exposure, think about your future!!"

"There are many football professionals in the stands, win them over with your performance!!"

"A Serie A powerhouse?"

"He's merely a stepping stone for your conquest of the world!!"

"We have the capability to take them down!!"

Pereira slammed his fist on the tactical board, and the players pounded their chests and roared, their cheers drowning out the support of the fans outside the door!

The away team's locker room.

Antonio Conte stands in front of a tactics board covered with red arrows and circles.

"Just three more games and we'll be heading to Wembley!"

"A 1-1 draw due to an away goal isn't so bad!"

"The real shame is losing the courage to strive!"

"Whether you go home dejected or stage a comeback and continue towards the Champions League trophy, I hope you will make your choice through your actions!"

At 3:30 a.m. Beijing time on April 11, many domestic fans were also paying attention to this Champions League quarter-final.

Although Juventus supporters make up the majority, Mario also has a considerable number of fans.

A football player who can speak fluent Chinese is sure to pique people's curiosity.

"CCTV! CCTV!"

Good evening, everyone!

"We bring you the highly anticipated second leg of the 2012-13 UEFA Champions League quarter-final at the Estádio do Dragão in Portugal: Porto vs. Juventus!"

"I am He Wei, and today I am commentating with Coach Zhang Lu."

"Coach Zhang, let's review the first leg. In Turin, Juventus drew 1-1 with Porto at home, with Pirlo's free kick equalizing Mario's world-class goal."

"Today's score means that Porto can advance as long as they draw 0-0, while Juventus must score, or at least get a draw with goals."

"Hehe, this situation is very delicate. Porto has the home advantage and the away goal advantage, so they can play a defensive counter-attacking game."

"But Juventus have too much experience, especially in the Champions League knockout stages. The key today is who can break the balance first."

"Alright, both teams' players have entered the field. Let's look at Juventus' side first."

"The Bianconeri are still using a 3-5-2 formation, with only minor adjustments to some personnel."

"Pogba replaces Vidal in the starting lineup, Vucinic returns to the starting position!"

"Now let's look at the home team, Porto."

Goalkeeper: Elton; Defenders: Danilo, Otamendi, Mangala, Sandro; Midfielders: Mario, Moutinho, Fernando, Lucho González, Rodriguez; Forward: Martinez. "Porto has changed their formation from the usual 4-3-3 to 4-5-1. Pereira's choice is pragmatic, but they may still use their previous regular formation when attacking."

"Mario is positioned further forward today than in the first leg, it seems Pereira wants to make full use of his long-range shooting ability."

"After all, this young man has already scored 10 goals in the Champions League!!"

—[Breaking news! Our Brother Luo has overtaken us again! Mario, you'd better stay in second place!]

— [Hopefully Porto can advance, then I can watch Mario and Ronaldo go head-to-head, haha~]

—【They're all just scheming, hoping to win another big prize pack, huh!】

—【Actually, it wouldn't be bad if we got Dortmund in the draw~】

—【I wonder if Messi can stage a strong comeback and defeat the Bavarian giants~】

—【We'll know the results after tomorrow!】

— [Pogba and Mario finally face off this time, who will have the last laugh?]

—【The physical gifts of this guy are just too outstanding. I think he can become a historically great midfielder. Mario's stat-padding is at best at Lampard's level!】

With the referee's whistle, the highly anticipated Champions League quarter-final officially kicked off.

The Old Lady took the lead in attacking with the ball, and the blue waves in the stands of the Estádio do Dragão were the first to unleash their power, with the shouts of tens of thousands of people almost engulfing the away team players.

Especially at the moment Pogba touched the ball, they were so impressed by Super Mario's performance that they didn't agree with the talk of "high-end stuff"!

Conte's team launched the first attack, and facing Porto's heavily fortified midfield and defense, Juventus' star player Pirlo ignited the attack with a curling shot from the edge of the penalty area.

The old woman's intention to seize the initiative at the start is very clear.

With only an away goal advantage, if Porto manages to break through the opponent's defense in the opening stages, they will definitely be in a dilemma, allowing Juventus to take control of the game!

The two sides continued to battle, with Porto committing few players to the attack. In the third minute of the match, the Dragon launched its first offensive.

Mario receives the ball near the center circle.

He had just turned around when a black and white figure was already close behind him.

Pogba.

The Frenchman, who had long wanted to prove himself better than Mario, put his arm around Mario's waist and his knee against the back of Mario's thigh.

Taking advantage of his height, he appeared like a moving wall in Porto's attacking path.

Mario didn't try to exploit his weaknesses against Moutinho's strengths; after passing the ball back to Moutinho, he continued his run.

"coward!"

"You came to see me!"

Pogba looked down at Mario, his eyes filled with provocation.

How many Champions League goals have you scored?

"Why is your name completely absent from the top scorers list?"

"Is my phone not long enough?"

Pogba, with his red hair, felt hurt and looked at his opponent with even more displeasure.

On the field, Moutinho passed the ball to James Rodriguez on the other side; the Colombian had impressive technical skills.

After a quick maneuver, he forcefully delivered a cross!

Chiellini intercepted the ball, giving Porto a corner kick opportunity!

"Kid, I won't give you a chance to shoot from long range!"

The tall and long-legged Pogba still stayed by Mario's side. Tonight, the coach's task for him was not only to attack, but also to physically overpower the opposing talented player.

Mario ignored him, constantly moving and running, his eyes fixed on Moutinho in the corner flag area, while his peripheral vision scanned every inch of space in the penalty area.

González was entangled by Chiellini, Otamendi was blocked behind Bonucci, and Martinez was tightly controlled by Barzagli.

Everyone is waiting.

Everyone's scrambling for it.

As for Mario outside the penalty area, Pogba remembered Conte's pre-match instructions and told him not to give him any space to shoot.

The Porto captain raised his right hand and extended two fingers.

Internal tactical hand signals, target back post, curved shot.

Mario's pupils contracted slightly.

The memories of countless corner kick training sessions immediately came to mind, and it was as if the trajectory and path of the ball could be predicted in advance!

He continued moving.

It's not forward, it's backward.

Pogba quickly followed, after all, Mario's long-range shots were not to be trifled with!

We can't give him a second penalty kick; we can't lose to this low-level player in a head-on confrontation!