After the League Cup weekend, Manchester City hosted Portsmouth at home.
Thanks to a goal from Giroud in the 40th minute of the first half and a late header from Kompany off a corner, Manchester City defeated Pompey 2-0, temporarily pulling themselves out of the shadow of their recent cup exits.
At the post-match press conference, Gao Shen reiterated that he remained patient with the players. He believed that with time and adjustments, they would overcome their difficulties and the team would naturally recover from this slump.
In another marquee match that same day, Ferguson made good on the promise he made to Gao Shen.
Manchester United and Arsenal were deadlocked for over 30 minutes, but then Nani and Rooney scored two goals in a span of four minutes.
In the second half, Antonio Valencia added a third to seal the victory.
Although Vermaelen pulled one back for Arsenal later, they still suffered a 1-3 home defeat to Manchester United.
Currently, Manchester United sit fourth in the Premier League. For Arsenal to break into the top four, they must dislodge the Red Devils.
But in such a crucial match, Wenger's team were soundly beaten by a direct rival on home soil.
Clearly, Arsenal's nickname of "Fourth Place Fanatics" may no longer hold up.
On the other hand, Manchester United have been in red-hot form since December, racking up consecutive wins with impressive momentum.
…
A week later, in the 25th round of the Premier League:
Liverpool beat Everton 1-0 at Anfield.
Chelsea defeated Arsenal 2-0 at Stamford Bridge, with Drogba scoring a brace.
Wenger's unfortunate streak continued with two straight defeats.
As he once joked to Gao Shen, he felt like a bus—frequently run over.
The Gunners' performance in big matches this season had been especially poor.
Manchester United thrashed Portsmouth 5-0 at home, another dominant display.
Meanwhile, after a decent win in the previous round, Manchester City faltered again with a 1-2 away defeat to Hull City.
This marked Manchester City's second league defeat of the season.
Although the Blue Moon's overall momentum remained solid, their post-winter break form had raised concerns about their title prospects. Compared to their earlier 19-game winning streak, recent performances had clearly dipped.
But Gao Shen defended his team, insisting everything was still under control.
"Every team experiences highs and lows, and we are no exception."
"Right now, we may be at a low point, but I believe we'll reach our peak again very soon."
…
As expected, in Round 26 of the Premier League, Manchester City bounced back with a 2-0 home win over Bolton, courtesy of goals from Suarez and Robben, who had just returned from injury.
Liverpool also beat Arsenal 1-0 at the Emirates, thanks to a goal from Torres.
Wenger, unfortunately, had to face three strong opponents in a row and suffered three consecutive defeats. The Gunners' form had clearly hit rock bottom. Even Wenger himself admitted that their hopes of finishing in the top four were fading.
The media also widely believed that, given Arsenal's current performances and squad condition, their chances of securing a top-four finish were increasingly slim.
In the same round, Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw away at Aston Villa, and Chelsea suffered a 1-2 defeat away at Everton.
Ferguson's side finally saw their winning streak come to an end, while Ancelotti's team slipped again.
This round brought a sigh of relief to Manchester City.
With twelve league matches remaining, they were still seen as the frontrunners for the title.
After the win over Bolton, Gao Shen publicly declared that Manchester City had returned to form.
"We are ready to say goodbye to the slump we experienced over the past month!"
The media also gave a positive response to City's win over Bolton. The return of key players like Robben and David Silva had undoubtedly strengthened the squad.
As for Arsenal, after three straight defeats, their top-four hopes looked increasingly bleak.
Following Round 26, Manchester City had no Premier League fixtures scheduled for the weekend.
Not due to an international break, but because of the FA Cup.
This is a long-standing feature of English football—the FA Cup is typically held on weekends. Unfortunately, having been eliminated, Manchester City had no matches and Gao Shen could only continue training with the team at Carrington.
…
After the last experience, Su Qing didn't notify Gao Shen in advance before coming to the UK this time.
Gao Shen always returned to China in secret to surprise her, so this time, she decided to do the same.
She had been quite worried, given how the media were claiming that Gao Shen's Manchester City were in serious crisis and might collapse at any moment. Even though Gao Shen sounded normal in video calls and on the phone, she still felt uneasy.
Until she saw him in person.
"I thought you'd be in really low spirits," Su Qing said.
She had traveled from London to Gao Shen's home in Cheshire on her own. After preparing his favorite dishes, she called to ask him to come home for dinner after training.
She knew that if she didn't call, he would likely stay at Carrington until late.
She was a little surprised to see him, but even more relieved.
Not just because of the long-awaited reunion, but because she could see the confidence and smile in his expression.
"There's no reason to be down. We just won, and several key players are back from injury and in good shape." Gao Shen explained with a smile. "Over the past two days, I've talked with everyone in the squad. Honestly, their condition and mood are both improving."
Gao Shen and the coaching staff agreed this was a very positive sign for the team's recovery.
"You flew over to spend the New Year with me just because you were worried?" Gao Shen teased.
"No way!" Su Qing shyly shook her head, avoiding his gaze. "It's just… my mom and dad have been really busy with business lately and couldn't take care of me, so…"
A clearly weak excuse.
But Gao Shen didn't call her out on it. He simply smiled and said, "I'm really glad you came."
Su Qing said nothing, but looked at him with eyes full of affection, far more sincere than words could ever be.
…
This season's Champions League wasn't quite as thrilling and had fewer headline-making moments, but it still attracted plenty of attention.
Especially Napoli, who had lost their star manager; Real Madrid, who had brought in a host of superstars; and Barcelona, who were seeking revenge, these clubs were under the spotlight.
But once the round of 16 began, the first-leg results were somewhat underwhelming.
Ancelotti's Chelsea faced Mourinho's Inter Milan, with the first leg held at the San Siro.
Chelsea took the lead through Kalou, but Inter quickly equalized via Cambiasso.
In the end, the match ended 1-1.
Mourinho failed to beat his former club at home and conceded a crucial away goal to Chelsea, an unfavorable result for Inter.
Gao Shen's former club Napoli had remained competitive after a major overhaul in the summer.
Under Allegri, they qualified as group leaders and faced Van Gaal's Bayern Munich away. Benatia scored an early goal, but Klose equalized late in the match.
The game ended 1-1.
Manchester United visited AC Milan.
Although Ronaldinho scored for Milan just three minutes in, Scholes equalized, and Rooney scored twice in the second half to turn the game around.
United ended up winning 3-2 at the San Siro.
After this result, the Red Devils held the advantage. As long as they performed normally in the return leg at home, they had a strong chance of progressing.
In another tie, Barcelona defeated Stuttgart 2-0 away, with Messi and Sánchez both getting on the scoresheet.
But the match that truly drew attention was Real Madrid's away trip to Lyon.
Pellegrini's job was under threat, and he desperately needed a Champions League knockout-stage victory to solidify his position.
Facing Lyon on the road, the Chilean coach fielded his strongest attacking lineup.
The front three consisted of Ronaldo, Higuaín, and Di María, with Kaká just behind them. This front four formed one of the most star-studded attacking units in world football.
Behind them, Mohamed Diarra and Xabi Alonso played as the double pivot, tasked with shielding the defense.
But in the end, Real Madrid lost 0-2 away to Lyon.
In the 41st minute of the first half, Delgado volleyed from the edge of the box past Diarra to score the opener for Lyon. Just 83 seconds into the second half, Makoun added another goal for the Ligue 1 side.
Had it just been a narrow defeat, it wouldn't have been a disaster. But the real issue was that despite having twice the possession of Lyon, Real Madrid had fewer shots on goal.
Worse still, their overall performance was poor.
Valdano, the club's technical director who had accompanied the team, didn't hold back in his post-match comments. He called it "a bad result and a bad performance!"
He later added, "Very bad."
"Our team was so inconsistent, I couldn't believe it. This didn't look like Real Madrid at all."
"For the first hour, we did nothing. We couldn't get the ball to our attackers, and in the final half hour, we barely moved the ball through midfield."
Valdano said he found this incomprehensible.
With world-class midfielders like Diarra, Xabi Alonso, and Kaká, there was no excuse for such a display.
Pellegrini said in the post-match press conference that Lyon's intense running and pressing disrupted Real Madrid's build-up play and made it hard to control the game.
But no matter how it's explained, losing 0-2 away to Lyon in the Champions League knockout stage is an unacceptable result for a team that spent over €300 million in the summer.
Since Gao Shen led Real Madrid to the double in 2006, the club had failed to reach the Champions League quarterfinals in the four seasons since.
Expectations were high this year. But who could have imagined a 0-2 defeat in the first leg?
After the loss, nostalgic voices once again echoed across Madrid and the Spanish football scene.
Zidane, acting as the president's special envoy, immediately flew from Madrid to meet Valdano in London.
(To be continued.)