I Am Jose-Chapter 152 - : A Chaotic Battle to Preserve the Record

Although Pavón fell to the ground rather awkwardly, he was actually quite pleased. If he, the one initiating the collision, had been sent tumbling from the recoil, then the one being hit must have suffered even more. Even if he didn't send the opponent flying, at the very least, they should have been knocked down.

Pavón wasn't worried about committing a foul. Even though he landed inside the penalty area, the collision had definitely occurred outside of it. Moreover, the contact was in that gray area between a foul and a fair challenge. Even if the referee decided to penalize him, it was unlikely he'd receive a yellow card.

So, as he fell, Pavón eagerly lifted his head to see Drogba hit the ground as well. However, what he saw instead left him utterly shocked...

After taking Pavón's powerful hit, Drogba stumbled forward, seemingly about to collapse just like Pavón had. But with each step, he regained his balance bit by bit. After staggering forward for three or four steps, his posture was already upright again, and with two large strides inside the penalty area, he caught up with the ball!

"Ohhh! What an incredible balance! He managed to stabilize himself so quickly after that impact—Real Madrid is in danger, it's a one-on-one!"

José watched the situation inside the box intently. He had anticipated something like this, but now Drogba had a near breakaway chance. The only issue was that the angle wasn't ideal; he wasn't facing the goal directly. Given his shooting ability, this was a situation where he could easily squander the opportunity...

As the Mallorca fans erupted in cheers, Drogba shifted the ball leftward to face the goal directly. At this moment, Casillas had already spread his arms wide and rushed out!

Seeing Casillas' quick reaction, Drogba panicked a little. He knew exactly how unreliable his finishing could be. On top of that, his footwork had gotten a bit messy when he adjusted his angle. In his attempt to control the ball with the inside of his foot, he instead accidentally jabbed it with his toe...

What does it mean to win by accident? Drogba's shot was the perfect example. He had meant to set up his shot, but instead, his toe-poke sent the ball flying straight toward goal!

Casillas hadn't expected it at all. As a goalkeeper, anticipation is crucial—reading an attacker's body movements to predict how they'll shoot. Many great saves happen because the keeper has already figured out the shot before it's even taken. This is where experience comes into play.

Casillas was not just an elite shot-stopper with lightning-fast reflexes; his anticipation was also world-class. At that moment, he had judged that Drogba was still in the process of controlling the ball—not ready to shoot yet. And in fairness, even Drogba himself hadn't planned on taking the shot just then...

Drogba had tremendous leg strength, and since he had just exerted a lot of energy to stay upright, even his accidental toe-poke carried immense power.

The two players were already very close to each other, and since Casillas hadn't anticipated the shot, he was caught completely off guard. Despite his incredible reflexes, he was still a step too slow in reacting!

The ball skimmed across the grass, heading for the far post. It struck the inside of the upright and ricocheted into the net!

2-2! Mallorca had equalized!

"The... the ball's in!" The commentator stammered, caught off guard by the bizarre turn of events. He quickly composed himself and adjusted his tone. "Didier Drogba has equalized for Mallorca! The young striker, who joined from France this summer, has just scored his first official goal for his new club. This is also his first goal in over a year... It looked like an accidental goal, but no matter how it happened, Mallorca has tied the game at home! José's tactical adjustments have paid off!"

When the ball hit the back of the net, Drogba's mind went blank.

Just a second ago, he was lamenting his mistake, thinking he had completely embarrassed himself. But in the next instant, the ball was in the goal. He was so unprepared for it that, for a moment, he genuinely thought he was dreaming—it really felt like a dream. This goal was just too damn weird...

It wasn't until his teammates rushed over, shouting in celebration, that Drogba realized it was all real. Hugging Eto'o, he finally broke into a wide grin.

"Damn, this guy is lucky..." Even José was momentarily stunned. But he recovered much faster than Drogba did, quickly standing up and applauding vigorously, as if everything had gone exactly according to plan.

"Keep playing like this! Turn the game around in one go!" José shouted onto the pitch.

Drogba's goal, whether fortunate or not, gave Mallorca a massive morale boost.

In the following minutes, they continued to press aggressively in midfield, launching swift counterattacks whenever an opportunity arose. With Marcos and Pablo García providing cover, Motta could focus entirely on orchestrating attacks. Even though Mallorca had fewer attacking players up front, their counterattacks became sharper. Drogba effectively used his physicality as a target man, receiving the ball and immediately distributing it to the flanks to initiate attacks.

Meanwhile, Pavón seemed utterly shaken by Drogba's goal. In the ensuing duels, he was completely outmatched, even beginning to shy away from physical confrontations with Drogba!

To José, this was exactly why Pavón never became a top defender—he lacked the mentality of a true competitor. Even the best defenders get dominated by strikers sometimes. But without the resilience to bounce back from setbacks, one can never be great, no matter how physically gifted they are.

Desailly had once been outmuscled by Viduka, but he didn't let it define him, even in his later years. Maldini had also been embarrassed by Ahn Jung-hwan, yet it never tarnished his legendary status. Even Michael Jordan, the basketball god himself, had been blocked before—but it never diminished his greatness. If Pavón couldn't handle this level of adversity, he was doomed to mediocrity.

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And sure enough, he would later become little more than a punchline—the symbol of Florentino Pérez's failed "Zidanes and Pavones" policy.

With Pavón faltering, Mallorca seized absolute control of the game. Del Bosque made three substitutions—bringing on Portillo, Celades, and Munitis—but none of them could wrest back the momentum. Meanwhile, José was making his own changes, subbing in Klasnić for Eto'o and Campano for Jorge. The young Mallorca squad engaged Real Madrid in a frantic battle, which suited the younger, more energetic Mallorca players perfectly.

Through relentless pressing and defensive pressure, they gradually pushed Real Madrid back and bombarded their goal with attack after attack.

Real Madrid desperately tried to push forward, but Mallorca's high pressing forced them into chaos. With Zidane already subbed off, Figo was left fighting a lone battle...

This chaos continued until the 80th minute, when Mallorca finally broke through. Ronaldinho and Klasnić both had shots inside the box—Casillas and the defenders managed to block them. But when Motta took the third shot, Real Madrid's defense could do nothing.

Mallorca had taken the lead once again!

The 3-2 scoreline remained until the final whistle, giving Mallorca their third consecutive victory over Real Madrid. José also maintained his perfect home record. This victory proved that Mallorca was now a legitimate title contender. After all, if a team that had beaten Real Madrid three times wasn't a serious contender, who was?

Even though the match descended into a chaotic battle in the second half, Mallorca's performance—even when trailing—was never inferior. Real Madrid's two goals were simply moments of individual brilliance.

While José was pleased with the win, he remained cautious about the Spanish Super Cup. A 3-2 home victory was hardly a decisive advantage—they would still need at least a draw in the away leg to secure the trophy.

After the match, José downplayed the victory, instead praising the performances of Mallorca's new signings. Though the win reaffirmed Mallorca's quality, it was just one game. The real challenges lay ahead, especially with the Champions League campaign looming. With a packed schedule, squad rotation would be José's next big test.