Rise of a Football God-Chapter 412: A blockbuster clash at the Metropolitano Stadium [1]

16th March, 2026…

A blockbuster clash between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano Stadium.

The atmosphere in Madrid was electric.

The Metropolitano was a cauldron of tension, a fortress bristling with defiance as Atletico Madrid and Barcelona clashed in this high-stakes La Liga showdown. The stakes were even higher due to their past history this season.

Every seat in the stadium was filled, the air thick with anticipation and hostility. It was not a derby game, but the atmosphere was like one of a derby.

It was a game between bitter rivals.

Atletico Madrid hated Barcelona's guts just as much as they hated the guts of their other nemesis, the club in the other side of Madrid, Real Madrid.

The red and white faithful roared with tribal pride, their chants thunderous and unrelenting, shaking the steel bones of the stadium.

But it was the traveling Barca fans, tucked into their section like a spark in dry grass who injected a reckless, overzealous energy into the night.

By now, it was no news that Barca was stringing up an all-time great season this campaign if they continued with this momentum to the end of the season.

They've beaten Atletico Madrid before this season, what was stopping them from defeating their rivals a second time?

Barca fans have witnessed their team perform so many miracles this season, Sam coming up so many times that despite the fact that this was the Metropolitano, they still didn't show any signs of fear.

Flares lit up their enclave in molten blue and red, smoke coiling into the sky like a warning.

They sang with delirious fervor, voices hoarse from passion and alcohol, jeering every Atletico gesture on the pitch, baiting the ultras with choruses that bordered on war cries.

But of course, Atletico Madrid fans were not about to let their Catalan rivals outshout them in their own stadium.

And so…

BOOM!

…It became a tug of war among the fans.

Banners danced wildly in the wind across the stadium, most from Atletico Madrid fans but Barca fans also raised banners, some defiant, others profane, all unapologetically provocative and loud.

But one of them stood out.

[Samuel Moses]

[Happy 40th game of the season!]

Yes, this game was Sam's 40th game of the season in all competitions.

Heck, he already lost count if not for the banner. This season, FC Barcelona fans seemed determined to follow every single statistic of his to the tee.

The champions league clash against Lille may not have exactly pushed the Barca squad to its limits, but still, it was a UEFA Champions League clash, a competition where every team gave their all to win.

Most of the Barca players were tired, still affected by fatigue but Hansi Flick didn't change his formation still.

For this game, he started with his best starting XI.

And then…

FWEEEE!

The game started.

And from the first minute of the game, Barca took the game by the scruff of the neck, dominating, but their dominance was brief. It didn't last long.

Just like Barca, Atletico Madrid started with their best lineup.

And despite the initial dominance by the Catalan side, fueled by the relentless energy of their fans, Atletico Madrid were able to dig in and do what they did best under Diego Simeone, defend deep and hit them on the counter.

The 1st minute passed, Barca dominating…

The 2nd minute passed, the 5th…, the 10th…, then the 18th…

Barca was still dominating, attacking, when Atletico Madrid's stalwart defense won back the ball, immediately hitting the Catalans on the counter.

Pedri lobbed a tricky pass into the 18-yard box, aiming to send the ball beyond the reach of the Atletico Madrid defenders but Robin Le Normand was having none of it as the Spaniard jumped, leaping highest to get to the ball.

The Spaniard did it, and without hesitation, he headed the ball away to the right where Nahuel Molina, the Argentine International was already running.

Raphinha pressed the Argentine International but Molina was calm.

Bam!

He took just one touch of the ball before passing the torch on, kicking the ball forward towards Giovanni Simeone, another Argentine International and the Atletico Madrid coach's son.

The Argentine received the ball, ran a bit with it, raised his head, spotted Julian Alvarez's run before quickly kicking the ball long and high to the left.

Like a remote-controlled missile, the ball moved with speed, arriving perfectly before Julian Alvarez at the left-hand side of the pitch.

Jules Kounde, Barca's right back was caught out of position.

He seemed… to have beaten Barca's highline!

Bam!

The Argentine International, Julian Alvarez did not hesitate, kicking the ball long and abusing his rapid speed to chase after it.

Nicknamed the Spider, Alvarez was swift, rapid, and precise.

Pau Cubarsi soon blocked him, making him slow down but just as the young Spanish center back went for the tackle, Alvarez tricked him, nutmegging him and skipping past him.

Inigo Martinez read a moment of slight weakness in Alvarez's strides, making him to instinctively step forward to make an aggressive tackle.

But the Spider was rapid, too rapid.

With one silky touch, he pushed the ball past Martinez to the right and just as he was about to stagger out of balance, he hit the ball with his right foot.

BAM!

Marc Andre Ter Stegen dived after the ball but his reflexes were not fast enough. The ball flashed past him, diving into the net.

For a brief moment, there was silence, and then… the Metropolitan erupted, turning into a cauldron of noise.

Having been forced to defend since the first minute of this game, to launch their first attack and end up scoring in such decisive fashion left the fans of the Atletico persuasion feeling on top of the world.

Updat𝓮d fr𝙤m ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com.

The Atletico Madrid fans went haywire in joy, screaming at the top of their lungs, Julian Alvarez was also about to charge towards the corner flag to celebrate when he noticed one of the linesmen raising something… a flag.

Alvarez's eyes narrowed.

FWEEEE!

The referee's whistle sounded, confirming it.

It was an offside!

"F*ck!" Alvarez cursed.