Chapter 636: Chapter 73: Chen Can Solve This Problem

The FIFA Golden Ball Award results will be officially announced on January 10, 2011.

After Real Madrid defeated Inter Milan to become world champions in the FIFA Club World Cup, Chen Zhong winning the award seems to be a sure thing.

In the next match, Real Madrid’s opponent is Sevilla. Before the game, Mourinho was in a good mood because Real Madrid drew Lyon in the Champions League Round of 16.

This former nemesis of Real Madrid has long lost its magic. Neither the coaches nor the players of the Real Madrid Team regard Lyon as a big deal.

Everything was developing in a positive direction initially, but recently, Real Madrid’s vice-captain Casillas and Cristiano Ronaldo had a conflict.

This unexpected event caused turmoil in Real Madrid’s locker room.

"I don’t know why he said that!" Cristiano Ronaldo looked at Chen Zhong somewhat aggrieved: "It’s truly unbelievable."

"I know, I know, Cristiano."

Chen Zhong leaned on the soft sofa, his ten fingers interlocked and making a cracking sound.

"I’m happy you came to see me."

"If you hadn’t come to see me, I would have wanted to talk to you anyway."

"But Igor, he didn’t come, which surprised me."

Since joining Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo has been training late nights with Chen Zhong every day, and the two considered each other "training buddies."

However, Casillas theoretically has a closer relationship with Chen Zhong.

Real Madrid’s youth training, Castilla’s "masterpiece."

But when this incident occurred, Casillas didn’t come; Cristiano Ronaldo did. This inevitably makes one ponder the situation.

In fact, Casillas didn’t deliberately avoid it; he was held back by his partner.

After Real Madrid defeated Inter Milan and won the FIFA Club World Cup, the famous Spanish show host Jose Ramon revealed in Cadena SER’s "Crossbar" program that the relationship between Cristiano Ronaldo and local Spanish players led by Casillas had always been strained.

As for the feud between Cristiano Ronaldo and Casillas, it was due to a woman—Casillas’s girlfriend, Sara Carbonero.

According to Ramon, on September 20 this year, in a television program, Casillas’s journalist girlfriend publicly criticized the Portuguese, blaming Cristiano Ronaldo for being selfish on the field and prioritizing individualism.

Additionally, wasting too many opportunities.

It also affected the performance of team core Chen Zhong, believing the Portuguese could often pass the ball to Chen Zhong instead of shooting and wasting chances himself.

These words, at the beginning of the season, were actually not problematic.

At that time, Mourinho had just joined, the Portuguese indeed had more shots and ball possession. Reports about Cristiano Ronaldo being a "ball hog" kept emerging. However, if these words come from a teammate’s girlfriend, they are less comfortable.

Immediately, Cristiano Ronaldo texted Casillas, expressing his dissatisfaction.

At that time, Cristiano Ronaldo was less isolated in the team due to Mourinho’s coaching and the joining of Mendes’s players.

By sending a private message like that, he actually gave Casillas face, wishing the matter to end there.

Both publicly and privately, discussing such internal team matters is not good.

Casillas gladly accepting would be the correct way to maintain the locker room.

But surprisingly, Casillas didn’t act as a peacemaker. Instead, he replied with a text: "My girlfriend is a journalist, and journalists express opinions."

Cristiano Ronaldo: ???

Originally, a simple matter escalated abruptly.

And the most "speechless" thing was that Casillas’s girlfriend later exposed the matter again.

After all, Casillas is a Real Madrid youth prodigy, Castilla’s exceptional player, the team’s vice-captain...

To maintain the relationship between the two, around September 22.

Real Madrid’s president Florentino personally intervened to mediate between Cristiano Ronaldo and Casillas, but neither was receptive.

Casillas had previously used salary raises and departure threats against the club, which lowered his standing in Florentino’s heart.

Later, Chen Zhong returned from Milan with honors, and the team offered him a top salary and captaincy. Although Casillas did not say anything openly, he surely had grievances internally.

Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, due to the club’s "inaction," originally believed that as the Golden Ball Award winner and the world’s number one arriving at Real Madrid, he would receive protection and respect.

However, upon joining Real Madrid, he wasn’t truly the "core," and he was surpassed by Messi, while the club didn’t protect him in Spain the way they protected Chen Zhong,