The All-Around Center Forward

"It's a pity that Real Madrid couldn't take the win in this match. They played exceptionally well in the second half, with Suker scoring twice to help secure a draw on the road!"

"Still, Real Madrid's defense remains a problem. Without conceding those two goals in the first half, they might have won."

"Nevertheless, this game showed us Real Madrid's resilience and fighting spirit. We hope they continue improving and deliver more exciting performances."

With the fifth round of La Liga over, Sevilla drew 2–2 at home against Real Madrid.

Though Sevilla had a man advantage for a while in the first half and used it to limit Suker and score twice, the tide turned in the second half. Suker broke free and netted two goals, turning the game around.

Sevilla gave their all but still couldn't break the dominance of La Liga's two top teams.

It seems that only that red-and-blue team from the northeast of Spain — Barcelona — stands a chance at truly defeating Real Madrid.

After five rounds, Real Madrid's winning streak was broken.

Barcelona now tops the league with five wins in five games.

Real Madrid sits in second place with a 4-1-0 record, trailing by two points.

As for the top scorers:

Suker has 12 goals in five matches — leading the league.

Messi follows closely with 10 goals in five matches.

La Liga is shaping up to be a battle between two titans.

Barcelona leads the standings by a slim margin.

But on the scorer's chart, Suker holds the edge over Messi.

Just like the media predicted, La Liga has entered the "Suker vs Messi" era.

Their monstrous performances strike fear into other teams.

Against either team, a draw is already a win.

The debate between "Suker is better than Messi" or "Messi is better than Suker" is endless.

Fans are fiercely divided.

Real Madrid supporters say Suker's 12 goals make him the best in La Liga.

Barcelona fans counter that Suker lacks team play, calling him a pure striker, while Messi contributes more to the team overall. (Huh)

Some support Suker.

Others stand behind Messi.

The result is the two players being pitted as rivals.

In Real Madrid's locker room, the players naturally all support Suker.

Even those who admire Messi wouldn't dare say it to Suker's face and risk offending him.

In terms of honors, Suker has a slight edge:

2 Champions League titles (Messi has 1)

2 Ballon d'Ors and 1 FIFA World Player of the Year

Messi might still win this season's Ballon d'Or or World Player — maybe even both.

On national team achievements:

Argentina: Copa America 2007 runner-up

Croatia: Euro 2008 champions

Given how close their achievements are, the debates only get louder.

And of course, there's still Ronaldo.

But his accolades are slightly lacking. He should've won in 2009, but Croatia's Euro win meant Suker and Modrić split the Ballon d'Or and World Player awards.

Now some media predict Ronaldo and Messi will split this year's awards.

As for Suker — well, he played in the Europa League with Milan last season, so he's not really in the mix. He's on the shortlist, but his chances are slim.

"Champions League is tomorrow. Be ready!" shouted Pellegrini.

It's been a grueling schedule with games one after another: La Liga, Champions League, Copa del Rey — plus the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

After Alonso's injury, Pellegrini has been ultra-cautious, especially with key players.

A serious injury to Suker could end their season.

So Pellegrini hovered around the players like a worried parent, even scheduling a full pre-match medical.

Three days passed quickly.

Real Madrid arrived in Marseille a day early.

Marseille is the only French team to ever win the Champions League — though that was ages ago — but that legacy still makes them formidable.

Still, they're not on the level of Lyon, France's true powerhouse.

Mentioning Lyon makes Real Madrid grit their teeth.

Of their five Champions League Round of 16 exits, AC Milan and Lyon account for four.

Real Madrid hates both.

So they poached Suker from Milan…

And Benzema from Lyon.

Can't beat them? Raid them.

This match, Pellegrini started Benzema, hoping the Frenchman would shine in his homeland.

But the game took a bizarre turn.

"What's Diarra doing?!"

The Stade Vélodrome fell silent.

Only 9 minutes in, Marseille's defender Diarra had earned two yellows and was sent off.

Oddly, he fouled Suker for his first yellow…

Then fouled Benzema for the second.

Usually, a red like this comes from overwhelming pressure — but Real Madrid hadn't even turned up the heat yet.

Diarra looked more like he was venting than playing.

Apparently, Marseille fans had been harassing him over a poor previous performance, and he finally cracked.

Great news for Real Madrid — a dream start.

"Gooooooooooooooal!"

"Benzema scores! A tight-angle finish after a brilliant one-two with Suker tears open Marseille's defense."

20 minutes in, from a corner:

Suker scores again — a towering header.

Real Madrid led 2–0 and eased into cruise control.

Marseille tried to respond but couldn't finish their chances.

Suker kept glancing at Ramos, nervous.

Pepe had already picked up a red previously — and Ramos was a ticking time bomb too.

Luckily, Ramos behaved — no judo throws this time.

At 55 minutes, Suker subbed off.

It was his own request — the World Cup qualifiers were approaching.

Next up: Croatia vs England.

Croatia had lost the first leg and was three points behind. Only a direct win could give them hope of topping the group.

No point wasting energy now.

Even without him, Real Madrid easily beat Marseille 3–0 in the second round of the Champions League.

October 4 — La Liga Round 6.

Real Madrid hosted minnows Tenerife.

Easy win: 4–0.

Suker got one assist but no goals — Tenerife had two men shadowing him all game.

But this freed up Benzema and Higuaín, who both bagged braces.

With the match over, the players returned to their national teams.

Suker flew to Croatia the next day.

At Croatia's training center in Zagreb, they were laser-focused on the England match.

A win would mean direct qualification — avoiding the playoff chaos.

England was now under Capello.

While brilliant at club level, Capello's rigidity hurt him at the national level.

He led England to the World Cup semis, only to be destroyed by Germany 4–1.

Same story with Russia — another flop.

Still, for now, England looked solid.

Their style hadn't changed — long balls and brute force — but they were more ruthless now.

In the previous clash, England won 3–2 away. But Croatia had been without Suker, Kovač, and Srna.

Now they were back — and this game mattered.

Bang!

"Suker!"

Srna roared as he dribbled and split the defense with a pass — Suker charged in and scored.

"Whoa!"

Everyone was stunned by Srna's form.

Even in a training match, he was on fire.

"This is just training!" Dujmović sighed.

"To me, it's a match!" Srna shouted.

They played another 10 minutes.

Suker, watching Srna fly down the flank repeatedly, leaned over to Modrić.

"He really hates Capello, huh?"

"At least he's in great form," Modrić grinned.

Indeed, Srna looked like a top-level fullback now — with pace, dribbling, and pinpoint crosses.

Coach Van Stoyac watched closely. Maybe Srna could break England's iron defense.

Push Srna up the right, keep a solid left-back, and use his runs to supply Suker and Mandžukić.

Let Rakitić play just inside to press — England won't see it coming.

Dinner time. Srna stuffed his face.

"Bro, 12 goals in 6 La Liga matches? You're a freak!"

Vukojević sighed, "Too bad La Liga has another freak."

Modrić muttered, "Make that three."

Everyone stared.

"Ronaldo just scored 5 goals in one match."

Gasp!

How are regular players supposed to compete in this era?

"I'm glad I got out early," Dujmović said. "If they caught me, I'd be cooked."

Mandžukić joked, "They wouldn't even notice you."

"What?!"

"He said you wouldn't even qualify for Europe," Modrić translated.

Dujmović exploded — and he and Mandžukić started bickering.

Everyone ignored it — totally normal.

Then Srna said, "By the way, the boss commented on Real Madrid."

"The boss?" Suker blinked. "You mean Mourinho?"

Srna nodded.

"What did he say?"

Srna cleared his throat. "Don't get mad — it's not me, it's him. He said Real Madrid's strength is just a facade. It's all thanks to your individual ability. Against weaker teams, they can't stop you. But against elite sides, once they shut you down, Real Madrid collapses."

"He said Real Madrid relies too much on your goals."

Suker fell silent.

Mourinho had a point.

Real Madrid lacked a true offensive system — they were riding Suker's brilliance.

The 4-3-3 was a mirage — their play lacked cohesion.

Pellegrini didn't seem to have a solution either.

Suker didn't know what to do — he wasn't a coach. He knew a bit, but not enough to build a system.

In the national team, he had Vastic to lean on.

But at Real Madrid? Even if he and Casillas overthrew Pellegrini — who would take over? Who would design tactics?

Maybe they really needed Mourinho to take over.

Or… maybe they could call Ancelotti early?