Chapter 179: The Meazza, Empty

By April, the winter chill had cleared out of northern Italy, and Milan felt completely consumed by the Champions League quarter-final.

Schalke arrived on Monday afternoon aboard a chartered flight the board had arranged, recognizing that this tie was bigger than anything else on the spring calendar. Crawling through city traffic on the team bus, Mateo looked out at the sea of blue covering the streets. Blue flags hung from apartment balconies, blue scarves lined shop windows, and schoolkids walked home with the Inter crest painted onto their cheeks.

Milan had two clubs in the final eight of Europe, and the city was buzzing. For Italian supporters, the Champions League felt less like an ordinary tournament and more like the entire purpose of the season.

Farfán was sitting beside him, gazing out at the crowds with his legs stretched out. He had played in hostile European grounds before and looked totally relaxed. Mateo, on the other hand, had never experienced an atmosphere quite this intense.

"You feel that buzz out there?" Farfán asked, turning his head slightly.

Mateo glanced at him. "You mean the crowd?"

"The way the whole city expects us to get battered," Farfán said with a grin. "Eighty thousand fans on Wednesday night, and every single one thinks we're just a small German side that stumbled into the quarter-finals by accident. Honestly, that's the best setup we could ask for." He reached over and tapped Mateo's shoulder. "You always play sharper when people write you off. I've watched you do it all year. Wednesday is just the loudest stadium of doubters you'll ever face. Might as well enjoy it."

On Tuesday morning, Magath took the squad to the San Siro for a pitch familiarization session, locking the gates behind them.

He refused all media requests, turning down television crews and journalists with a sharp wave of his hand. He had no intention of letting Leonardo learn anything about Schalke's tactical setup. The massive stadium stood hollow above them, rows of red, blue, and green plastic seats rising into the morning shade. The only sounds echoing through the ground were studs digging into turf, short calls between teammates, and the sharp clap of Magath's hands.

During a small-sided tactical match midway through practice, one of the assistant coaches noticed the difference first.

Farfán picked up possession on the right wing, cutting inside onto his left foot. Usually, Mateo would have checked his run, drifted into a pocket of space between the lines, and asked for the ball to his feet so he could turn and spray a pass wide. This time, he did something completely different.

He spotted the opening ahead of Farfán before Farfán even picked up his head. Mateo accelerated into the channel between two orange cones marking the center-backs. Farfán slipped the pass through on instinct, having learned over the season to trust Mateo whenever he broke forward. Mateo met the ball in stride and placed a clean, low finish right into the bottom corner.

It was the sharp run and finish of a natural forward, coming from an attacking midfielder everyone in Europe knew as a pure playmaker.

Magath blew his whistle, cutting the drill dead.

"Mateo," the manager barked, waving him over.

Mateo jogged to the touchline while the rest of the squad caught their breath in the cool air, curious about the stoppage.

"Have you been drilling your off-the-ball runs?" Magath asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Mateo paused, realizing there was no point downplaying it. "Yeah, I've spent some extra time working on getting into the box."

He could never explain the system's role, but he understood the practical shift. For most of the year, he had only spotted passing lanes when the ball was glued to his boots and the rest of the pitch was laid out like a chessboard. Making runs off the ball had always felt unnatural to him, like an instinct reserved only for strikers.

Grinding his Offense stat past the 85 threshold had cleared up that blind spot. Now, his field vision worked even when he was completely away from the ball. He could anticipate the defensive breakdown a second before it happened and attack the gap while it was still open.

Magath watched him closely, his usual stern expression turning into a quiet, tactical calculation.

"Good," Magath said, nodding once. "That is very good." He turned toward the pitch and raised his voice so it echoed against the empty stands. "Everyone, gather around the board."

The squad jogged in. Magath crouched down and used his finger to outline positions on the damp grass, showing the double pivot and the deep defensive block they had practiced in Gelsenkirchen.

"Our defensive shape does not change," Magath said, looking across the circle of players. "We stay compact in two tight banks of four. We let them keep the ball in front of us, and we do not chase them all over the pitch. If you get stretched out at the San Siro, Inter will score five goals and end the tie in ninety minutes." He paused to make sure every player heard him.

"Here is the twist. Leonardo has watched our match film all month. He knows Mateo loves to drop deep, collect the ball, and dictate the tempo. He will put Cambiasso or Motta right on his back to crowd him out."

Magath tapped the turf where he had sketched the central midfield slot.

"Inter are expecting the playmaker who demands the ball to his feet. They are not expecting him to sprint behind their center-backs while everyone is watching the flanks. If they press up high to choke out our midfield, Mateo breaks into the open grass behind them. We give them a problem they haven't planned for."

The manager stood up and clapped his hands together with a crack.

"A creative midfielder who attacks the box like a forward is a great weapon when the other team isn't marking for it. That stays between us until kickoff tomorrow night. Keep the gates locked. Reset the cones, from the start."

By Wednesday afternoon, the district around the San Siro was packed with supporters.

Three hours before the match, the wide concrete walkways outside the stadium were filled with thousands of Inter fans. Blue and black banners waved in the warm spring air, smoke flares drifted over the gates, and loud choruses echoed through the streets. The ground was using its historic name, the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, and the home supporters made sure the visitors felt the weight of the club's history. The local papers had spent two days calling Schalke a temporary speed bump on Inter's road to the semi-finals.

Mateo sat on a wooden bench in the away dressing room, tying his laces while listening to the low, rhythmic roar. Eighty thousand Italian fans were waiting above, ready to whistle his team off the pitch.

He remembered Farfán's words from the bus ride. It really was the biggest room of doubters he had ever stepped into.

Mateo pulled his laces tight, tucked them into his boots, and stood up. He rolled his shoulders loose, letting the nervous energy settle into quiet focus. Leonardo and his coaching staff had spent two weeks studying a young midfielder who liked to sit back and pass.

Mateo walked toward the tunnel, ready to show them someone else entirely.

Hey guys! Just a quick reminder of our bonus event this week: Let's see if we can hit the target. Enjoy the read!