Chapter 144: The UEFA Super Cup

Chapter 144: The UEFA Super Cup

On July 13, 2014, all Udinese players returned to Udine to begin their summer training camp. To save money, Udinese did not travel elsewhere for their training but stayed at their own training base. Located at the southern foot of the Alps, Udine generally enjoys a pleasant climate, and with the club's financial constraints, their summer training is typically held at their base.

As the summer training began and the World Cup came to a close, the international football transfer window reached its peak. As usual, Udinese, known for its transfer market activities, saw players coming and going. Generally, Udinese follows a buy-low-sell-high principle, with outgoing player prices significantly higher than those coming in. Most of the incoming players arrived on free transfers or loans.

Due to Udinese's outstanding performance last season, almost all of their main players were eyed by other teams. After Mahrez transferred to Leicester City for 12.3 million euros, Italian midfielder Roberto Pereyra soon moved to Juventus for 15 million euros, and vice-captain Basta transferred to Lazio for 12 million euros.

Although the 23-year-old Argentine midfielder was not a regular starter last season, he still made 36 appearances across all competitions, contributing 9 goals and 8 assists. His overall performance was not inferior to Mahrez's and was even more consistent.

The 30-year-old vice-captain Basta, despite losing his starting position due to Bruno's arrival, still made 30 appearances, scoring 4 goals and providing 5 assists. Although head coach Guidolin tried hard to retain him, Basta chose to leave, understanding that with Bruno's performance, he would still be a substitute. With the growth of players like Cancelo, Kante, and Allan, his playing time would inevitably decrease this season.

Another notable departure was Maciel, who left the club and brought in 12 million euros.

After selling four key players, Guidolin finally lost his temper, forcing Udinese to stop their transfer market activity. Regarding new signings, Udinese initially showed interest in Premier League veterans Evra and Ashley Cole, but failed to meet their minimum salary demands of 3.5 million euros, resulting in Evra moving to Juventus and Cole to Roma.

Ultimately, Giaretta brought in a bunch of free transfers and low-cost young talents. The only signing over 1 million euros was Allan's 3 million euro buyout. Despite being a key player last season with over 40 appearances, Allan was still officially transferred from Udinese's satellite club Granada for this modest fee. After spending about 6 million euros on new players, Udinese closed their transfer window early.

Bruno didn't pay much attention to the transfers, as he had no say in the matter and preferred not to get involved. However, one new player was related to Bruno. At his suggestion, Giaretta brought in Harry Maguire from League One's Sheffield United on loan, with a 5 million euro buyout option. This deal beat Premier League side Hull City, giving Udinese the tall English center-back they needed, especially after Naldo's departure.

After a three-week training camp and two friendly matches against lower-league teams, Udinese faced their first significant challenge of the summer: the UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid on August 12 at 7:45 PM GMT.

Two days before the match, Udinese took their team photo for the new season:

Goalkeepers: 1 Brkić, 22 Scuffet, 31 Karnezis

Defenders: 2 Cancelo, 3 Maguire, 5 Danilo, 11 Domizzi, 15 Bochniewicz, 16 Bubnjic, 26 Pasquale, 34 Silva, 75 Heurtaux, 89 Piris

Midfielders: 4 Kanté, 6 Allan, 7 Badu, 8 Bruno, 19 Guilherme, 21 Hallberg, 23 Jadson, 27 Widmer, 66 Pinzi

Forwards: 9 Muriel, 10 Di Natale, 77 Thereau, 82 Jaadi, 94 Aguirre

On the evening of August 12, at Cardiff City Stadium in Wales, the UEFA Super Cup was about to kick off between Real Madrid, the Champions League winners, and Udinese, the Europa League winners. Real Madrid, filled with star players, seemed to outshine Udinese. The most prominent player in Real Madrid was Bruno's Portuguese compatriot, Cristiano Ronaldo.

Bruno had long admired Ronaldo but had only briefly met him twice during national team duties. Despite the controversies, Ronaldo was undeniably one of the greatest stars in football, at least in Bruno's eyes. In pre-match interviews, when asked about Ronaldo, Bruno expressed his admiration, saying, "I grew up watching Ronaldo's matches." He praised Ronaldo as a great player and felt proud to share the pitch with him.

"At Cardiff City Stadium, when I see Ronaldo, I'll just tell him that Udinese is the champion!" Bruno declared. Perhaps due to Bruno's respectful comments, Ronaldo responded amicably in his interview, saying, "Bruno is already an excellent professional player, but I hope he doesn't play too well because we aim to beat them!"

However, the atmosphere between the two Italian coaches, Guidolin and Ancelotti, was much more tense. Guidolin claimed, "Bruno is the best player in the world, even though he's only 20." Ancelotti retorted, "I don't know Bruno well, but I think Ronaldo is stronger than anyone!"

Nevertheless, Guidolin quickly added, "Ronaldo? He's strong, but I'm more worried about Bale and Modric. They are the most dangerous players at Real Madrid." Ancelotti stated that he wouldn't devise special defensive tactics against Bruno, preferring overall defensive strategies.

When the referee blew the whistle twice, Di Natale led Udinese out of the locker room, with Bruno at the end of the line. As they reached the player tunnel, Real Madrid players were already lined up. Despite not knowing each other well, the players exchanged polite greetings.

Portuguese defender Pepe, whom Bruno met during his national team stint, chatted with Bruno about mutual friends and topics. Then, Bruno saw Ronaldo, who jokingly warned, "Be careful tonight!"

As the match began, Real Madrid launched an all-out attack, with Udinese mostly defending. Ancelotti used a double pivot of Modric and Kroos, with newly signed World Cup Golden Boot winner James Rodriguez ahead of them. Modric and Kroos did not disappoint, firmly blocking Real Madrid's attacks. Unable to break Udinese's defense, Real Madrid resorted to long-range shots.

In the first ten minutes, Real Madrid had three or four long-range shots from Ronaldo, Kroos, and James, but none threatened the goal, all missing the target. James' shot in the eighth minute even flew into the stands.

After withstanding Real Madrid's initial onslaught, Udinese gradually stabilized and started planning their counterattacks.