Treble -1: The Cradle Prank and Ajax Annihilated
Luis Garcia, shaking a cradle in front of Coach Valverde with an innocently beaming smile, got summoned to the coach's office as soon as the match ended. I watched his retreating back, bowed my head, and offered my condolences.
While mourning Luis Garcia, who was about to be turned into ground meat by his furious (future) father-in-law Valverde, Rafael Obrador—Valverde's errand boy—approached.
"Jesus! The boss wants you too!"
"Eeeee—nope! Can't hear ya! Can't hear a thing!"
I plugged my ears at Rafael Obrador's words and headed straight home. It wasn't until the next day, when a cheerfully grinning Luis Garcia thanked me, that I sensed something was off.
"Amigo! Jesus, thanks a ton! Sofia loved my celebration—she was over the moon!"
"...? The boss didn't say anything?"
My question dripped with 100% pure bewilderment. Luis Garcia just nodded.
"Huh? Yeah. He looked at me, sighed, and just told me to get out."
Hmm... After one ambulance ride to the hospital, did he maybe attain some enlightenment? Then what if he got carted off twice...
"Ascension to immortality?"
I pictured Valverde radiating light from his head as he soared into the heavens like an immortal sage.
"Wonder if he'd really ascend... Should I try another hidden camera prank?"
I toyed with the idea of a sequel prank, but the image of Coach Valverde being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance from last time flashed in my mind.
"Nah, that'd be straight-up trash."
True to my stellar character, compassion welled up in me, and the prank plan vanished into the abyss without a trace.
Real Madrid clinched the league title with a win in round 32. With the treble in their sights this season, the club decided to hold all the victory ceremonies at once after the season ended.
"Reyes de Europa! Hala Madrid!"
The Madridistas backed the club's call. Separate from the citizens flooding the plazas for their own impromptu festivals, the players stayed focused, steadily prepping for the Champions League quarterfinal second leg against Ajax.
"Boss! Shouldn't we bench that ominously named Sergio Pepe?"
"As long as Jesus doesn't spout more useless crap, we'll be fine!"
The training ground buzzed with good vibes, and Jesus didn't even log into SNS until the day before the match—no Ajax mentions whatsoever. That prompted Ajax to start the provocations instead.
Quoting Eric ten Hag—who led Ajax to a stunning 4-1 away win over Real Madrid in the 18-19 season round of 16 second leg at Santiago Bernabeu, propelling them to the semis—Eric Jansen's taunt set Madridistas ablaze.
Madridista SNS lit up with photos and videos of Jesus and Yohan. Seeing that, Coach Eric Jansen piled on.
Champions League Quarterfinal Second Leg. Santiago Bernabeu.
Before kickoff.
Real Madrid 0 (2) : 0 (1) Ajax
The Madridistas filling the stadium belted out Hala Madrid y nada más before the Champions League anthem even started.
"Historia que tú hiciste, historia por hacer!"
In the electric Santiago Bernabeu atmosphere, Yohan’s eyes went wide as he looked around. His adorable expression got caught on the broadcast camera and splashed across the jumbotron.
The players marched in, and Ajax kicked off to start the match.
Ajax came out aggressive from the jump, trying to rattle Real Madrid's defense.
Ajax won the ball back and built an attack. With space opened by their wingers, Giovanni Riquelme picked up the ball.
Giovanni Riquelme—the kid turning heads in the league and Champions League group/round of 16 stages, drawing big-club interest—earned nicknames like "modern soccer rebel" and "the new 10 after Riquelme" with his creativity and flair.
Giovanni Riquelme challenged Real Madrid's players with his creative flair and sharp moves.
He got utterly demolished.
"What? Falling for that basic trick? Compared to Jesus, he's a total rookie."
Vladimir Rajovic—thoroughly drilled by Jesus, who loved grabbing him for forced 1v1s whenever bored—clicked his tongue.
"If it was Jesus, he'd have punched my ribs right there. Rookie."
Giovanni stared in stunned confusion at the utterly irrelevant comment.
"...What the—"
Vladimir Rajovic lifted his jersey slightly, proudly showing off his rib scars.
"Weaklings don't survive at Real Madrid. Only the truly strong do. For us, soccer is survival."
85th minute of the second half.
The Real Madrid vs. Ajax match turned out way more one-sided than expected. With Ajax's alpha and omega—Giovanni Riquelme—shackled by Vladimir Rajovic, their attack dulled, and Real Madrid's momentum surged.
"Puta!!"
Giovanni hit the turf again after another rough clash with Vladimir Rajovic. Rajovic fed the ball to Rafael Obrador overlapping.
"Rafael—!"
He turned at the call and locked eyes with Roberto Fabian ski pointing to the space ahead.
Whoooosh—!
Rafael whipped in an early cross, and Roberto Fabian ski stretched his leg to poke home the ball flying right to him.
"Vamos!!"
As the net rippled, Roberto Fabian ski sprinted to the corner flag for his celebration. The home crowd at Santiago Bernabeu erupted into the victory song for the goal sealing their semifinal spot.
. . . Full time.
Real Madrid 1 (3) : 0 (1) Ajax