Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

The night after the match against Levante, Mourinho received an unexpected invitation to dinner—from none other than Florentino Pérez.

Also on the guest list were Karanka, the club’s CEO Sánchez, and the head of public relations.

This wasn’t some hush-hush private dinner.

The moment they exchanged greetings and stepped into the hotel, photos started circulating online.

It was a message, loud and clear: Florentino was personally stepping in to show his support. He was standing with Mourinho.

Even if he didn’t always love Mourinho’s conservative tactics, he knew one thing—

Now was not the time for instability.

And that show of support worked.

As soon as the photos hit social media, the public outrage cooled significantly.

Even the portion of Madrid fans still grumbling about Mourinho’s football began to reflect.

Because if you thought about it, Mourinho’s tirade the day before had been entirely aimed at the media.

He hadn’t said a single bad word about the fans.

After the match, he even went out of his way to thank the traveling Madridistas who made the trip to Valencia.

That contrast—between a coach defending his players and fans, while openly battling a hostile press—made more and more supporters realize they may have overreacted.

Now that fans were stepping back from the debate, even if Marca and AS kept barking, the core alliance within Real Madrid—the players, the staff, the club leadership, and the majority of fans—was solid again.

Florentino’s timely intervention had worked.

When Li Ang read the news that night, he knew: whatever else happened in the media, the team was safe.

Florentino wasn’t about to let the house burn down.

And for all the smugness shown by Marca and AS, Li Ang had no doubt—

Once Madrid lifted the Club World Cup in December and completed the six-trophy haul, those same newspapers would be leading the charge in praise.

He’d seen through it all now.

So-called ”club-aligned press”? Please.

All of them were mercenaries, loyal only to the clicks and the headlines.

One moment, they stabbed you in the back. The next, they begged for exclusive interviews.

And Florentino? He couldn’t cut ties with them. Even if he wanted to.

It was a relationship of mutual dependence. Business, nothing more.

Li Ang understood.

But that’s why he appreciated Mourinho’s way even more.

Push me once, fine. Twice, maybe. But push me a third time? I flip the table.

Yeah, the media would come at you. Twist the story. Mock your fury.

But at least you got the last word.

And once you won? They’d come crawling back anyway.

After processing all this, Li Ang opened the team group chat and dropped a friendly warning:

”Guys, best not to do interviews for now. Let things cool down. No upside in feeding the media’s narrative—might even piss off the club.”

It wasn’t out of character for him. Li Ang regularly used the chat to hype up teammates, joke about press traps, or share reminders.

Everyone knew he wasn’t fond of giving interviews, especially not to the big outlets.

So tonight’s message? Totally expected.

Fresh off a win, most of the squad was in a good mood. They flooded the chat with teasing replies.

But Li Ang only smiled when he saw a specific reply—from Captain Casillas.

That was the one that mattered.

Because if anyone needed reminders about media manipulation, it was Iker.

His girlfriend was a journalist, after all.

If someone wanted a leak? They’d know exactly where to go.

Li Ang sighed as he put his phone down.

”I swear I’m holding this family together.”

※※※

On the morning of November 13, after a well-earned rest day, the full squad returned to Valdebebas for training.

Barcelona had just beaten Mallorca 4–1. Again.

By now, Real Madrid’s players had stopped bothering with the league table.

No point hoping for Barça to drop points.

The only option? Keep winning. Stay sharp.

There were six La Liga matches left before the Christmas break.

But Madrid would also fly to Japan for the Club World Cup, which meant Round 16 would be postponed.

So the short-term goal was clear:

Win five straight in the league. Go into the holidays with no pressure.

With that clear objective in place, everyone trained like madmen.

Even Mourinho, freshly bolstered by Florentino’s support, seemed looser.

He started handing out praise again—more than usual.

The vibe had returned.

Real Madrid were back on track. Focused. United.

And thanks to Li Ang’s tireless midfield coverage and his behind-the-scenes vigilance, the fortress wasn’t just standing—

It was stronger than ever.

On November 16th, fully prepared and focused, Real Madrid’s starting lineup departed early for the city of Bilbao with the coaching staff.

Though Athletic Club had only managed a 10th-place finish in La Liga last season, neither Madrid’s players nor fans were taking this trip lightly.

Mourinho, playing it safe, chose not to rotate any of his key players. His starting 4-2-3-1 formation made it clear: he respected Bilbao.

But once the match began, Real Madrid quickly realized something—this was not the same Bilbao they remembered.

With Javi Martínez gone and Fernando Llorente benched, Bilbao had lost much of their punch at both ends of the pitch.

Mourinho had underestimated just how much morale had plummeted inside this team.

Martínez being poached by Bayern wasn’t the problem—it was how Bilbao handled Llorente’s transfer request that had torn the locker room apart.

Llorente, who’d given nearly a decade of service to the club, wanted to follow in Martínez’s footsteps and take a step up in his career.

No one could blame him for wanting more after watching his teammate get a dream move to Bayern.

But Bilbao’s board? They refused to let him go.

Just like they had tried to stop Martínez from leaving for Real Madrid the year before.

In the end, Bayern paid the release clause and took Martínez anyway.

But Llorente, nearing 30, was not so lucky.

There was no big-money club ready to break the bank for him. And when his request was denied, he was cast aside—exiled to the bench.

The anger and confusion were mutual.

Bilbao’s management believed in their long-held philosophy: only field Basque players, and almost never sell their stars unless they aged out or ran down their contracts.

They operated with a ”more in, less out” mentality. Holding onto talent was a matter of pride.

So when Bayern took Martínez, the club was furious. Lawsuits and formal complaints followed.

And Llorente’s request?

It hit at the worst possible time.

They benched him. Signed the aging Aduriz. And just like that, Bilbao had frozen out a top-level striker in his prime.

A player who had scored 28 goals and 6 assists in 53 appearances the previous season.

Watching him rot on the bench shocked the rest of the squad.

Even Li Ang, during warmups, caught a glimpse of Llorente’s lonely figure on the bench and felt a pang of sympathy.

Sitting out a whole year at this stage of his career? He’d never get that time back.

Even if he managed to leave next season, at best he’d return to the level he had at Bilbao.

But the spark? The growth? Gone.

Li Ang couldn’t help but think about the coldness of the modern game.

He didn’t hate Bilbao for it—it was just business.

But something about it still made his chest feel tight.

So he decided:

He needed to vent.

And Gómez and Susaeta, the two forwards positioned just behind Aduriz?

They caught the worst of it.

After 20 minutes, neither of them wanted to get near Li Ang anymore.

They were getting shut down so hard, they looked like they were playing a man down.

Li Ang’s defensive domination completely choked off Bilbao’s buildup.

And Aduriz, without support or service, became irrelevant.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid’s counters were flowing freely.

In the 28th minute, Cristiano Ronaldo latched onto a delicate lob from Modrić and buried the opening goal.

On Bilbao’s end, even Muniain, who had pushed up beyond the halfway line, couldn’t do a thing.

He got completely wiped out by Li Ang’s tireless pressing.

In the commentary booth, He Wei practically burst out of his seat with excitement:

”If you can’t get past Li Ang, you don’t even deserve to face Pepe and Ramos!”

That line would go on to become one of the most iconic soundbites of the season.

And it was true.

Because on this night, Bilbao had no business even reaching Madrid’s center backs.

Li Ang had already sealed off the entire midfield.

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