Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

Chelsea, having weathered Sevilla’s early counterattacks, were the ones who finally broke through.

As the players huddled around Li Ang near Sevilla’s byline in passionate celebration, Mourinho clenched his fists on the sideline, a confident smile stretching across his face.

Before this UEFA Super Cup match began, almost every European sports outlet predicted that Chelsea would take a conservative approach—relying on their stronger defense and midfield control to shut Sevilla down.

After all, for the past two seasons, that’s exactly how Mourinho’s teams had won finals.

In the Champions League final just two months prior, Mourinho had dragged Atlético into a war of attrition and ground them down through sheer discipline. It was a classic Mourinho masterclass in pragmatism.

So when he unexpectedly opened this match by going toe-to-toe in a high-paced offensive battle with Sevilla, the media near the touchline were all stunned.

But once they got over the shock and looked at the scoreboard, they couldn’t deny the truth:

This Chelsea team had the firepower to attack any opponent head-on.

Mourinho’s teams had long been branded as defensively elite and counter-attacking masters. ”Defensive solidity” had always been the label stamped on his brand of football.

But numbers don’t lie. Even going back to his Inter Milan days, Mourinho’s sides regularly ranked top in league scoring.

At Real Madrid, he led his squad to outscore even Pep Guardiola’s peak Barcelona over two straight La Liga campaigns.

Now, at Chelsea, his team was dominant across the board, consistently outscoring Manchester City by a wide margin.

This Chelsea squad wasn’t just good at attacking—it was elite.

High-scoring wins. Dismantling deep-lying defenses. This team could do it all.

So why did fans still associate them so strongly with defense?

Because every time Chelsea reached a final, they prioritized control and risk management.

Look no further than their recent showdown with Atlético—if Mourinho had gone all-out on offense in that match, his players would still have been confident of victory.

This team wasn’t afraid to attack anyone.

Scoring first and cracking open Sevilla’s defense tonight? Totally within expectations.

And Mourinho wasn’t trying to trick anyone or prove a point to critics.

He simply followed his coaching staff’s unified pre-match analysis:

Going offensive would make the match easier.

Because Sevilla and Atlético? Not the same tier.

Using the Atlético gameplan against Sevilla would have been overkill.

Still, Mourinho didn’t let the goal make them complacent.

He immediately called for continued focus and attacking aggression.

Li Ang, after being swarmed by his teammates, clapped his hands and shouted for everyone to stay alert.

One goal wasn’t enough. They needed a second before halftime.

Chelsea’s tactical approach wouldn’t change.

But now that they had the lead, Li Ang dropped deeper into midfield.

To the untrained eye, this might’ve seemed like a retreat, a way of slowing the tempo.

But in reality, it freed up Matić and Kroos.

In today’s game, there was only one midfielder in the world who could confidently shoulder the full defensive burden of a solo pivot for a title-contending club:

Li Ang.

Matić was excellent.

If Li Ang weren’t in the Premier League, Matić would be the undisputed best defensive midfielder in England.

But Mourinho would never use Matić as a true solo anchor.

Even when he appeared to be alone, Li Ang was always nearby, sweeping behind him like a shadow.

Matić was elite in interception, aerial duels, and basic distribution.

But he could be beaten by pacey attackers on through balls.

Li Ang? He had no weaknesses.

Perfect blend of size, strength, agility, and technique.

Tall, but not too tall. Strong, but still mobile.

He could cover a massive amount of ground and recover with elite speed.

On paper, he could handle any attacking player in world football.

So when he dropped deep, it gave Chelsea the security to push even harder in attack.

Sevilla’s players, watching Li Ang drop back, felt the air knocked out of them.

He’d been away from La Liga for two years, but most of them had suffered at his hands back then.

They hadn’t missed him.

And now, he was back in full defensive mode.

Éver Banega, clearly spooked, shifted to passing instead of trying to make forward runs.

But as a deep-lying playmaker, that was fine for him.

His teammate Iborra, though, had no choice.

He was the attacking midfielder—he’d have to go head-to-head with Li Ang.

In the 20th minute, Iborra received the ball and tried to drift wide to avoid confrontation.

Didn’t matter.

Li Ang stepped in, made clean body contact, and took the ball.

Iborra was no lightweight—1.90m tall and 80kg of muscle.

But the moment they collided, a memory flashed through his mind:

That horrible night at Levante, when Li Ang had marked him into oblivion.

Now, here it was again.

Li Ang’s legs poked the ball away while his shoulder sent Iborra reeling.

The duel lasted all of one second.

Iborra stumbled, and Li Ang was already striding away with the ball.

He passed off to Kroos and completed his task in the build-up.

Kroos, rolling back the years with a rare stint at the No. 10 role, played a slick through ball for Hazard, who cut in behind the defense.

Unfortunately, Rami was ready, stopping the Belgian before he could pull the trigger.

Sevilla countered through Reyes.

But this time, he didn’t even reach Azpilicueta’s defensive line.

He got the ball, turned upfield—and Li Ang came flying in, cleanly sliding the ball and Reyes out of bounds.

Two straight defensive stops.

Two attacks crushed.

And the message sent was clear.

Once again, Li Ang showcased his immense value as a deep-lying defensive midfielder.

While those two crucial defensive stops didn’t directly lead to a goal, they undeniably crushed Sevilla’s momentum and attacking rhythm.

In contrast, Chelsea—confident and organized—continued pressing forward with increasing ease.

The balance of the match tilted further and further in Chelsea’s favor.

Fans watching from around the world finally relaxed. Their team was in control.

After watching the flow of the match for a few minutes, Mourinho made a bold adjustment from the sideline: he instructed both full-backs to push higher up the pitch.

Sevilla’s counterattacks had failed to land any punches—so now was the time to go all in on offense.

Hazard and De Bruyne tucked inside, receiving passes in the half-spaces.

Azpilicueta and Trippier, now playing like classic wingers, darted into the space behind Sevilla’s stretched full-backs to deliver dangerous crosses.

Matić began making runs into the box to ease the burden on Suárez, while Kroos stationed himself at the top of the box to clean up second balls—or foul tactically if needed.

Chelsea’s attacking system ran like a machine. High pressing, aggressive possession, and overlapping movement blended into a relentless offensive storm.

Under this immense pressure, Sevilla’s defense started to crack.

In the 35th minute, De Bruyne—drifting into central midfield—received a pass with his back to goal and swiftly swept it wide.

Trippier overlapped with perfect timing, charging past Trémoulinas down the right wing.

Suárez and Matić, both pushing into the box, crossed paths with cleverly staggered runs, targeting different spaces.

But Trippier didn’t cross right away.

He waited.

Then, spotting Krychowiak shifting inward to cover the box, Trippier suddenly cut inside into the penalty area.

Sevilla’s defenders panicked.

Rami barked at Banega to close down, but Trémoulinas had already recovered, sticking tight to Trippier’s back.

As the two tussled, replays showed Trémoulinas sticking out a leg from behind.

Trippier went down—hard—inside the box.

Goalkeeper Beto’s heart sank.

He rushed to the referee, frantically waving his hands.

Sevilla’s defenders swarmed the official, trying to delay the decision.

But after consulting with the assistant referee, the head ref didn’t hesitate.

He reached into his pocket and brandished a yellow card.

And pointed to the spot.

A penalty.

The thousands of Sevilla fans in the stadium groaned in anguish.

”Yellow card and a penalty! No doubt about it!”

”We can clearly see on the replay—Trémoulinas fouled from behind. Maybe it wasn’t malicious, but it was definitely a foul. No complaints about the card,”

commented Zhan Jun, now broadcasting for LeSports after leaving PPTV.

Back in China, fans watching the stream buzzed with excitement as Li Ang jogged up from midfield to take the penalty.

The decision was final.

Sevilla’s players, angry and disheartened, scattered from the penalty area.

Li Ang calmly took the ball from Kroos and walked to the spot.

”You don’t deserve that penalty! I’m gonna save it!”

Beto shouted, trying to psych him out—but his face betrayed his nerves.

Li Ang didn’t even look at him.

He placed the ball, took five steps back, and waited.

The whistle blew.

Li Ang strode forward and blasted the ball powerfully down the center.

Beto had guessed left.

Wrong.

The ball slammed into the back of the net for Chelsea’s second goal of the night.

Li Ang slowed his celebration on purpose.

He waited for his teammates to join him, then made a celebratory gesture and led them to the corner flag for a group knee-slide.

The Dinamo Arena erupted as Chelsea fans raised the roof with thunderous cheers.

With a two-goal lead, many were already popping their imaginary champagne—ready to celebrate Chelsea’s sixth trophy of the year.

But the players stayed locked in.

There was still work to do.

As the game resumed, Chelsea dropped back into a defensive shell—not on Mourinho’s orders, but instinctively.

Sevilla, morale shattered, couldn’t find a way through.

The 2–0 lead held until halftime.

But when the second half began, Chelsea came out swinging again.

Wave after wave, they battered Sevilla’s back line.

In the 57th minute, after nearly a half of selfless defending, Li Ang surged forward again, disrupting Sevilla’s midfield with a run that caught everyone off guard.

Forced to respond, Banega and company left Matić completely unmarked.

Li Ang laid the ball off, and Matić curled in a beautiful cross with his favored foot.

Suárez ghosted in at the far post, cushioning the ball with his first touch and slotting it calmly into the far corner.

Beto was rooted to the spot.

It was a perfect example of Suárez’s clinical finishing and intelligent movement.

At 3–0, the match was all but over.

Five minutes later, Mourinho brought on Van Ginkel for De Bruyne to shore up the midfield.

Sevilla’s manager Unai Emery had no choice but to gamble.

He brought on Konoplyanka and Immobile, while subbing off Trémoulinas and Krychowiak.

It was all or nothing.

But Chelsea had no plans to counterattack anymore.

They bunkered down in a low block, giving nothing away.

Mourinho rotated defenders smartly.

Kalas and Gary Cahill came on.

Suárez and Kroos were both subbed off.

Chelsea ended the match with six defenders and four midfielders, a bus parked in the box.

Sevilla’s players struggled to even find shooting space.

When the referee finally blew the full-time whistle, the relief on their faces was visible.

Chelsea’s players, meanwhile, leapt into each other’s arms.

They had won their sixth trophy of the year.

Li Ang, as captain, lifted the UEFA Super Cup—the second six-title season of his career.

He still needed the Club World Cup to complete the grand slam of club trophies at Chelsea.

But with two six-trophy years under his belt, he had already become the most decorated player of the modern football era.

Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.

Read 40 Chapters In Advance: /johanssen10