Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

After a goal and an assist in the first half, Leon didn’t continue to ruthlessly exploit a Tottenham side crippled by injuries.

In the second half, he mostly stayed in his own half, calmly distributing and orchestrating Chelsea’s attacks.

But Lukaku? That oaf clearly didn’t get the memo about mercy—he banged in two more after the break, stretching the scoreline to a ridiculous five-goal margin.

Chelsea ultimately handed Spurs a humiliating 5–0 defeat at Stamford Bridge.

And funnily enough, it wasn’t Chelsea fans who celebrated the hardest afterward—it was Arsenal supporters.

Online, Gooners flooded the web with memes and mockery, jeering their North London rivals mercilessly.

Their antics quickly redirected the wrath and attention of Spurs fans away from Chelsea entirely.

The two fanbases erupted into another one of their classic online brawls, while Chelsea supporters simply sat back, grabbed their popcorn, and enjoyed the show with the neutrals.

It wasn’t until the next day, when Premier League Round 29 resumed, that attention finally shifted back to the football.

After slipping up in the previous round, Arsenal barely edged out Swansea at home—thanks to a late 87th-minute header from their star striker Cavani.

Compared to that struggle, Liverpool and Manchester City won far more comfortably.

Sturridge, Gerrard, and Suárez each scored in a 3–0 win over Sunderland at Anfield.

City, meanwhile, quickly shook off their League Cup final heartbreak and smashed Aston Villa 4–0 at the Etihad.

The dominant display earned Guardiola yet another round of glowing media praise.

You couldn’t deny it—when City won, they looked good doing it. Their goals were always pretty, their football easy on the eyes.

In terms of entertainment, only a full-strength Arsenal and Chelsea at their most adventurous could really compete with City in terms of spectacle.

Chelsea’s record was stellar, their attacking output strong.

But in most matches, Chelsea preferred pragmatism—three points over flair.

Even when they did decide to turn on the style, Mourinho usually told his players to ease off once they were two or three goals ahead.

That 5–0 thrashing of Spurs? Total anomaly for a Mourinho side.

As a result, many neutrals weren’t exactly hyped for Chelsea’s upcoming Champions League Round of 16 second leg against PSG.

After all, Chelsea had crushed the Parisians 4–0 in Paris.

Even though Leon had said post-match that they would still respect PSG and go all out at Stamford Bridge…

Hardly anyone believed him.

It was Mourinho, after all. If he even fielded half his regular starters in the second leg, it’d be a miracle.

Fan opinions and media chatter had never swayed Mourinho.

At Real Madrid, he’d rotated aggressively in second legs when the tie was already done. Why would he change now, especially back at Chelsea where he was loved and trusted?

Nope. No chance Mourinho would pander to the crowd by chasing goals in a dead rubber.

Almost all fans and football outlets had already written off the second leg.

Even the French press was subdued in the build-up.

After such a brutal first-leg beating, what could they say? Best-case scenario? Lose with dignity.

No journalist or PSG supporter seriously believed in a comeback.

Probably not even the players themselves.

On March 11, when PSG flew into London and did a training session at Stamford Bridge, the local press snapped pictures of them smiling and joking during the walkaround.

Only Özil (272) looked his usual dead-fish self. Lavezzi and Khedira were even seen waving at photographers.

When the photos hit the news, most fans just commented on PSG’s surprisingly chill mood—and complimented their composure.

But all of it was just fluff—appetizers before the main course.

On the night of March 11 (early morning March 12 in East Asia), the Champions League served up three simultaneous matches.

Milan visited Atlético, and Arsenal traveled to Munich to face Bayern.

No surprises.

Milan got annihilated 1–4 by Diego Simeone’s new European powerhouse.

Arsenal fought valiantly but ultimately fell 0–1 at the Allianz Arena, once again falling just short of the Champions League quarterfinals.

Unlike Milan, who were basically dead on arrival, Arsenal at least went down swinging.

Sky Sports led the coverage praising their resilience.

If UEFA hadn’t insisted on throwing landmines into the draw, maybe Arsenal would have made the last eight in recent years.

In the last four seasons, they’d drawn Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern, and even a still-potent Milan in 2011–12.

It wasn’t about lack of quality—it was just pure bad luck.

Who wouldn’t fall at the Round of 16 with that draw?

And just like that, Arsenal became the first Premier League club knocked out of this year’s Champions League.

On March 12, it was City and Chelsea’s turn.

Compared to Chelsea’s no-drama home leg, City had to go all out at Camp Nou.

Down 0–1 to Barcelona from the first leg, they had no room for caution.

Naturally, most of the attention went to that match.

In China and the rest of East Asia, the late weekday kickoff made things especially tough for fans.

But for the neutrals who stayed up?

The stage was set—for two wildly different stories to unfold.

With the tie all but decided, most Chinese fans didn’t bother setting alarms to watch the match live.

At best, they planned to catch the highlights and news before work the next day.

Still, even this fraction of dedicated night owls in China made up a massive viewer base for UEFA. Not quite on par with the global attention on the City vs. Barcelona showdown—but higher than your average Champions League knockout.

Ironically, it was Mourinho’s tactics that gave these few fans an unexpected thrill.

At Stamford Bridge, seeing Chelsea line up in a full 4-3-3 attacking shape, PSG manager Laurent Blanc’s face darkened.

”They’re seriously underestimating us.”

One of his assistants muttered angrily behind him.

Blanc didn’t respond, arms crossed and expression grim, eyes fixed on his players.

After the 4–0 thrashing in Paris, PSG had no tactical wiggle room. They had to attack—to salvage their pride.

Typically, in a second leg with such a huge lead, the winning team might show a little respect. Sit back, play a few reserves, let the other team save face.

Especially when the two sides had no real grudge between them.

Last summer, PSG had let Ibrahimović go to Chelsea without drama or ransom demands.

But here? Seeing Chelsea charge out with a full attacking formation, Blanc felt insulted.

”Or maybe... Leon still isn’t satisfied after the first leg?”

That thought popped into Blanc’s head as he watched Leon pounce on Özil like a hungry tiger the moment the match kicked off.

PSG fans grew uneasy under the suffocating pressure.

Sure, Chelsea had rotated—Ibrahimović, Matić, and Terry all rested.

In came Torres, van Ginkel, and Cahill.

Yes, that weakened the backline and midfield a bit.

But with Leon and Lampard working in tandem, Chelsea still quickly seized control of the midfield.

Hazard and De Bruyne pressed high down the wings, pinning PSG’s fullbacks deep.

Even with rotation, Chelsea’s pressing game was as sharp as ever.

Fitness-wise, Chelsea held the upper hand. They only had two competitions left and had managed their rest cycles better than PSG.

And as long as Leon stayed on the pitch, PSG’s technical edge in midfield was a moot point.

Özil had made plenty of noise before the first leg, throwing shade at Leon and pretending he wasn’t worried.

But after being completely dominated at Parc des Princes, he’d gone silent.

Thankfully for PSG, Verratti continued to perform well. Alongside Motta, he kept the team’s rhythm ticking on both ends.

Still, when Leon pressed Özil one-on-one, the Turkish-born German couldn’t advance. Every time Leon approached, Özil panicked—pass back, pass back, pass back.

Seeing that, Verratti shifted the ball more to the flanks—a strategy probably outlined by Blanc beforehand.

Lavezzi was bright on the left early on.

Twice in the opening ten minutes, he took on Azpilicueta one-on-one and came out on top.

As PSG’s second-top scorer behind Higuaín, Lavezzi was someone Chelsea clearly respected.

Naturally, Chelsea’s defense started tilting toward his side.

Cahill gestured for Kalas to keep eyes on Higuaín at all times.

As long as Lavezzi and Higuaín couldn’t link up, PSG posed little threat.

But in the 14th minute, Lavezzi tried something different.

This time, instead of forcing a dribble after cutting inside, he clipped a clever lob into the box—where Higuaín had peeled away to receive.

Kalas followed Higuaín out of the box—but the Argentine jumped and glanced a header backward.

It was textbook target man play—a rare sight from Higuaín in a PSG shirt.

And it completely caught Chelsea off guard.

Kalas wasn’t back in time. On the right side of the box, Lucas Moura had made a well-timed run.

He didn’t take a touch—just met the bouncing header with a crisp volley.

Čech dove, but it was too fast.

The ball zipped past him into the far bottom corner, kissing the post on its way in.

The 3,000 PSG fans at Stamford Bridge erupted in delight.

Lucas clutched the crest on his shirt and sprinted along the endline in wild celebration.

Maybe many PSG fans—and even players—had given up hope before kickoff.

But not Lucas.

He wanted to fight. He would fight—to the very last second, no matter how slim the odds.

And for PSG supporters, to see a goal this early, in Chelsea’s house?

That was more than enough to lift their spirits.

Chelsea fans were not at all happy about conceding—despite still feeling confident in the final outcome. What truly riled them up was seeing the opposition’s fans cheering and celebrating in their stadium.

On the touchline, Mourinho didn’t rush into making tactical adjustments. Instead, he pointed to his temple with a raised index finger—a universal sign among his players.

It said everything.

Leon didn’t even glance at the PSG players who were celebrating in a pile near the corner flag.

Instead, he immediately pulled aside van Ginkel—who looked like he hadn’t fully woken up—and gave him a quick rundown. Then he turned to Cahill.

”That was my mistake. Bad communication. But I promise you this: they won’t pull the same trick again.”

Cahill nodded firmly, accepting blame and reaffirming his resolve to shut things down.

What mattered most now was trust—trust in each other.

Defensively, Leon couldn’t offer as much support in this first half. But he trusted van Ginkel would shake off his sluggish start and support Cahill and Kalas to disrupt PSG’s rhythm.

As for himself?

It was time to ramp up the attack.

”They dare to hit back? That pisses me off.”

Hands on hips, Leon muttered those words to Hazard and De Bruyne as they waited for PSG’s celebration to end and the match to restart.

The Belgian duo exchanged a glance—then both nodded in unison.

They got the message.

And when the match resumed, PSG quickly realized what it meant to make Chelsea angry.

Torres might not offer the same tactical focal point as Ibrahimović up top, but when it came to pressing and defensive hustle?

He was more relentless.

With Torres, Hazard, and De Bruyne pressing from behind and Leon charging in from the front, PSG’s backline suddenly found themselves under siege.

Motta, Verratti—didn’t matter who was on the ball. They couldn’t organize a coherent buildup to save their lives.

Even with Özil and Lavezzi dropping deep to help, PSG couldn’t string together more than three passes.

The suffocating pressure?

Exactly the same as what they’d faced in Paris.

Had PSG accepted their fate, played it safe?

Maybe they wouldn’t have been punished so quickly.

But since they chose to fight back, they had to be prepared to face Chelsea’s full wrath.

Chelsea’s game plan hadn’t changed—high pressing, pounce on transition, punish quickly.

PSG’s players knew this was coming.

And tactically, if everyone dropped deep and packed their own half, they could’ve withstood it—outnumbered Chelsea’s press and escaped.

But Blanc never had the courage to try that approach. And PSG’s players had no interest in focusing on defense.

All they wanted was to attack. Chase another goal. Push forward.

Dreams are beautiful—but reality bites.

And in reality, PSG’s unwillingness to commit numbers to the back doomed them.

By the 25th minute, Chelsea had been hammering away for nearly ten minutes straight. PSG could no longer hold their shape.

Still, Chelsea hadn’t made them pay yet.

De Bruyne and Torres both got shots off, but neither really troubled Sirigu.

So, Leon decided to take matters into his own hands.

With the ball at his feet, he exploded past Verratti and Motta like a hot knife through butter.

Verratti turned quickly to chase—but Leon didn’t panic.

He drove forward calmly, eyes scanning.

He knew Alex wouldn’t be able to sit still.

And sure enough, as Leon approached shooting range, Alex stepped up—looking to double-team with Verratti.

Leon waited until that moment—then slipped the ball left to Hazard, who had been streaking up the wing alongside him.

Hazard’s eyes lit up.

PSG’s aging right-back Jallet had already lost the foot race. Even with strength on his side, he couldn’t get close enough to slow Hazard down.

The Belgian hit top speed in a flash, zooming down the flank before suddenly cutting inside at the end line—straight into the box.

Torres saw it and charged toward the far post, battling Thiago Silva for space.

Alex, caught out, had to turn and try to stop Hazard—leaving Leon completely unmarked.

Hazard pulled the ball back into the box with a clever chip—a classic cut-back pass.

Leon sprinted in, shedding Verratti with one last burst of strength.

He jumped.

And smashed the header into the net.

Sirigu didn’t even have time to react.

The ball bulged the net—just like that, Chelsea 2–1 PSG (6–1 on aggregate).

Stamford Bridge erupted.

Nearly 40,000 Chelsea fans exploded in joyous release.

All their earlier nerves, their doubts, were wiped away.

Only certainty and pride remained.

On the sideline, Mourinho exhaled.

Before Holland could wrap him in another bear hug, Mourinho turned and told his assistant:

”Go remind them—not to get carried away.

PSG still wants to fight?

Then we’ll bury them deeper.”

Holland nodded, fired up.

And on the pitch, Leon finished a quick celebration with his teammates—then pointed back toward their half.

”Let’s show them what it costs to hit back.

Keep pressing.

Keep attacking.”

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