"Obafemi Martins!!"
"The Nigerian player, a product of Inter Milan's youth academy, has opened the scoring for Inter in this match!"
"Martins used his outstanding physical ability to withstand Maldini's interference and calmly slotted the ball into the net!"
"Of course, Figo's free kick was also brilliant. The curved shot toward the far corner was extremely tricky. Dida did his best to make the save but still couldn't clear the danger!"
"15 minutes in, Inter Milan scores first at home!"
"The goal scorer is—"
Tens of thousands of Inter Milan fans erupted in wild celebration.
"Obafemi Martins!!!!!!"
A sea of blue and black surged in waves.
The entire stadium descended into a frenzy.
After a series of intense confrontations, Inter Milan seized the opportunity and took the lead, gaining the advantage.
Portugal's superstar Figo, who just joined this season, made an impact with a beautiful free kick.
Martins finished with poise.
At that moment, Inter Milan fans roared with joy.
The scales of victory were tipping toward Inter!
"Tonight's victory belongs to the Nerazzurri!!!—"
The stadium DJ further intensified the atmosphere.
The entire venue exploded in another wave of deafening cheers.
"There's nothing more I could do!"
Dida shook his head.
He had done his best.
Even managing to touch Figo's deadly free kick was already quite impressive.
But AC Milan was just a bit unlucky!
"Come on, guys! Don't get discouraged, keep pushing!"
Suker clapped and shouted loudly.
With Maldini silently blaming himself, someone had to speak up.
Shevchenko clearly wasn't the type. No one listened to Gattuso, and Pirlo lacked authority.
Suker didn't expect it to fall on him to rally the team.
He turned to look at the Inter players retreating after their celebration.
The truth was—this Inter Milan team was no joke!
Adriano, Figo, Samuel, Cambiasso, Zanetti...
Together, they formed perhaps the strongest lineup right before the historic treble-winning squad.
Adriano had joined in 2004, boosting Inter's attacking power.
This year saw the arrivals of Figo and Samuel, giving reliability to the midfield and defense.
AC Milan had underestimated them.
They always thought of Inter as a 'noisy neighbor'—all bark and no bite.
But recent transfers had finally started to show Inter Milan's rising strength.
This was no longer the Inter that AC Milan had shut out over two legs in last season's Champions League.
As the AC Milan players placed the ball back at the center circle...
The Inter Milan fans kept up their booing and taunting chants.
"Where's Suker? We can't see you!"
"Where's Suker? We can't see you!"
"Where's Suker? We can't see you!"
Suker's face turned cold.
"What the hell is wrong with them?! Why always me?! I'm not even the star player!"
"Shevchenko's right there! Yell at him!"
"Stay calm!" Shevchenko patted Suker's back. "It's just getting started!"
".AC Milan is pushing hard! After conceding the goal, their attacks have intensified!"
"Ball to the left, Suker lobs it over to Shevchenko, Shevchenko shoots!!"
"Ahhhh~~~ just over the crossbar!"
".Inter counterattacks! Adriano is challenging Nesta—he's targeting Nesta who's already on a yellow—pulls the ball wide, shoots!! Just wide of the post!"
"AC Milan pushes forward again! Suker receives the ball!"
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO——
The stadium was filled with deafening boos.
Suker focused on the pitch ahead, with Zanetti cutting off the inside lane, preventing him from cutting in.
Suker tried to push forward, but Zanetti immediately responded, forcing him to retreat and pass the ball back to the outside.
Suker glanced toward the baseline—it was too short; he wasn't confident he could outpace Zanetti there.
"Suker! Pass back!"
Suddenly, Seedorf's voice rang out beside him.
Suker quickly turned and passed!
Seedorf received the ball, faked a breakthrough, took two touches, and passed laterally.
Pirlo stepped up, pulled back his right leg, and let fly!
"Pirlo with the long shot!!!—"
The ball shot toward goal like a missile.
Inter's goalkeeper César once again made a heroic save, diving to knock the ball out for a corner!
"César!! He's in excellent form, already stopping several dangerous AC Milan shots!"
Pirlo stomped in frustration.
It was a high-quality strike, but César's form was just too good.
Corner for AC Milan.
Pirlo sent it in. Shevchenko leapt up to meet it, but couldn't generate enough power—César easily collected it.
This time, Inter didn't immediately counterattack.
Instead, under Cambiasso's direction, they pushed it to the wing to slow the tempo.
"Damn it!"
Suker gritted his teeth.
This wasn't the time to slow things down.
They couldn't let Inter dictate the pace!
Inter was trying to slow things down—Suker wasn't having it!
"Andriy! Costa! Let's press! Midfield press forward! High pressing!!"
With that, Suker charged forward.
Shevchenko and Rui Costa followed suit.
The three surged into Inter's half, pressing wildly.
Just as Inter tried to slow the game, AC Milan dragged the tempo right back up.
"This is intense!"
From the VIP box, Gisele Bündchen watched the match wide-eyed.
She wasn't a hardcore fan but had seen plenty of matches.
She wasn't unfamiliar with football.
But the intensity and quality of this match were far beyond anything she expected.
She looked at Suker.
He was chasing the ball with everything he had—so different from the usual talking goofball. Now, he looked ruthless.
Gisele clenched her fists slightly.
"Come on!"
On the pitch, the pressing began to pay off.
Inter defender Samuel, overwhelmed, launched the ball forward.
"Adriano!!"
Adriano chased the ball down with Nesta right behind him.
As the two contested the ball, Adriano suddenly went down.
Adriano fell.
Nesta instantly raised his hands.
Suker and the others turned in alarm.
"!!!"
WHISTLE!!!
The referee pointed to the spot of the foul but glanced at Nesta and walked away.
Whew~~~~~~
Suker and his teammates sighed in relief.
If Nesta had been called for another foul and booked, Milan would've crumbled.
Nesta narrowly escaped.
Another free kick for Inter—Figo stood over the ball again.
The stadium roared in anticipation—Inter fans had high hopes for Figo's set pieces.
BANG!!!
Figo struck the ball hard—it sailed over the wall and dipped rapidly.
Dida reacted quickly, diving to trap the ball beneath him.
"Dida!! Excellent positioning! Figo's free kick was still a major threat!"
Dida rose with the ball in his arms.
At that moment, someone shouted:
"Dida!! Over here! Send it!!"
Suker had already sprinted to the midfield circle.
Dida saw him and immediately launched a long throw, then kicked the ball high upfield.
Suker turned and burst into a full sprint!
He was incredibly fast.
More importantly, only Samuel and Cordoba stood between him and the goal!
The two defenders rushed back.
As they neared the box, Suker slowed slightly, raised his right foot, and tapped the ball forward.
The ball rolled about two meters ahead of him.
"Chance!"
Cordoba's eyes lit up and he lunged forward.
He wanted to intercept.
"Don't go!!"
Samuel shouted, but it was too late.
Suker suddenly accelerated again—he was instantly at the ball.
His explosive burst was on full display.
"Oh no!"
Cordoba panicked.
Suker raised his right foot like he was about to shoot.
Cordoba stuck out his leg to block.
But Suk feinted and chipped the ball lightly.
The ball sailed over Cordoba.
Suker hopped past him!
"Suker!!! He's past him!! A fake shot and a chip—Samuel is charging in to challenge him!"
Suker caught up to the ball, now slightly ahead.
Samuel lunged in.
Suker tapped the ball again—between Samuel's legs!
"Nutmeg!! Suker!!!" Aldo Serena screamed excitedly. "One-on-one!!!—"
Near the 6-yard box, Suker looked up sharply.
Goalkeeper César had rushed out, trying to cut the angle.
But Suker didn't shoot immediately.
As they closed in, Suker softly flicked the ball.
A delicate lob.
The ball floated over César's outstretched arms and into the net.
34th minute—AC Milan's lightning counterattack.
Suker dribbled half the field, beat two defenders, and scored!
After the chip shot, Suker turned and sprinted toward the corner flag, sliding in celebration.
He stared straight at the stands.
Both hands cupped behind his ears!
In the Inter Milan section, silence fell.
The sudden goal had stunned them all!
"Suker's rhythm during those dribbles was perfect—from the first move, he had Inter's defenders reacting slowly!"
"A solo run across half the pitch, beating two defenders—this goal fully showcases Suker's incredible individual skill!"
"Thanks to Suker's goal, AC Milan levels the score!"
"34 minutes into the first half—AC Milan 1:1 Inter Milan!"