As Gibson had analyzed, the moment Real Madrid restarted play, the Barcelona players surged forward, implementing a suffocating high press.
Even Messi, notorious for conserving his energy off the ball, began sprinting to press the Madrid center-backs.
Sensing the pressure, Raphaël Varane did not waste any time attempting to play out from the back.
He launched a booming long ball toward the front line, desperate to relieve the pressure and move the danger away from his own penalty area.
But when the ball dropped near the Barcelona box, the towering Gerard Piqué won the initial aerial duel, heading it firm and clear.
The second ball was brought under control by Pedri in the midfield. Possession remained with Barcelona.
The moment Pedri secured the ball, he looked up and threaded a brilliant, line-breaking through pass.
Bang!
In a flash, the ball arrived into the stride of Ousmane Dembélé on the right flank.
At that moment, Dembélé transformed into a blur of black lightning.
He surged down the wing at an uncatchable speed.
The player matched up against the rapid Frenchman was Ferland Mendy.
In the first half, Mendy's confidence had been tested by Messi's intricate footwork.
Now that Messi had shifted central, Mendy was tasked with containing Dembélé's explosive straight-line speed.
The French full-back's mentality was fraying.
Within two seconds, Dembélé utilized his raw pace to knock the ball past Mendy and force his way to the byline.
Glancing into the Real Madrid penalty area, Dembélé swung his foot and delivered a rapid cross.
"A direct cross from Dembélé!" Palmer announced. "But Raphaël Varane heads it clear!"
"That was bizarre decision-making from Ousmane Dembélé," Gibson criticized, shaking his head.
"Although he utilized his incredible speed to burn past Mendy out wide, his final ball was baffling."
"At the exact moment Dembélé delivered that cross, there was only one Barcelona player positioned inside the Real Madrid penalty area—and that player was Lionel Messi!" Gibson pointed out.
"Dembélé whipped an aerial cross into the box, expecting the 170-centimeter Messi to challenge Varane and Militão for a header! His footballing IQ in the final third remains a massive issue."
Following the wasted cross, Messi threw his hands up in frustration, glaring at the French winger.
Once Varane headed the ball clear, the second ball was controlled by a Real Madrid player.
The ball arrived at the feet of Theodore Bjorn.
Operating as Real Madrid's primary attacking orchestrator, Theodore had sacrificed much of his offensive output tonight, dedicating immense physical energy to shadowing Messi on defense.
Even so, he had amassed a spectacular two goals and an assist.
This time, after winning possession deep in his own half, Theodore transitioned the team into attack mode.
He had spotted Karim Benzema making a peeling run off the shoulder of the last defender.
Theodore launched a breathtaking, 60-yard diagonal long pass.
The ball dropped into the attacking third, allowing Benzema to receive it on the right side of the penalty area.
Clément Lenglet was the only defender standing between Benzema and the goal.
The rest of the Barcelona defense had been caught out of position by the speed of Theodore's transition.
That was why Theodore had released the pass with such speed.
Benzema squared up Lenglet.
The French striker executed two quick stepovers, dropped his shoulder, and forced his way down Lenglet's right side, attacking the outside.
Benzema's burst of acceleration was sharp. Lenglet reacted a fraction of a second too late, and Benzema broke past him, driving into the Barcelona penalty area.
If Lenglet attempted a desperate tackle from behind now, Real Madrid would be awarded a penalty.
The Barcelona center-back hesitated, terrified of conceding the spot-kick.
Lenglet backed off, placing all his hopes on his goalkeeper, Marc-André ter Stegen.
On the goal line, Ter Stegen saw Benzema breach the box and rushed out, charging to close down the angle.
Benzema was clean through.
A pure one-on-one.
The elite French striker had two obvious choices: slot a shot past the advancing keeper, or utilize a feint to round Ter Stegen before finishing into an empty net.
Either choice, executed with competence, would result in a goal.
But inexplicably, Benzema seemed to suffer a catastrophic short-circuit in his decision-making.
He made no choice at all.
He did not shoot. Nor did he attempt to dribble past the goalkeeper.
He slowed down, took a heavy touch, and stared at the ball.
Ter Stegen did not hesitate.
The German keeper threw himself at Benzema's feet, bravely smothering the ball and knocking it away before the striker could pull his leg back.
"BENZEMA!" Palmer screamed in disbelief. "He has squandered a golden opportunity!"
"I cannot believe what I have witnessed," Gibson added, baffled. "At this moment, I am seeing the ghost of Mario Balotelli in Benzema! He had a clean one-on-one, the game at his mercy, and he froze! He chose to stand there and contemplate the meaning of life!"
Inside the studio, the commentators were frustrated by the miss.
In their view, this had been the perfect, match-defining chance to restore Real Madrid's two-goal cushion.
...
"Benzema turned into Benzemew right there!"
"If Real Madrid drop points tonight, it is entirely on Benzema!"
"It's always Benzema!"
"Honestly, if I were Zidane, my blood pressure would be through the roof right now!"
"Even my grandmother could have finished that! What was he thinking?!"
"Why do I have a sinking feeling about this? In football, if you waste golden chances, the football gods usually punish you!"
On global social media feeds, Real Madrid fans were left completely speechless by Benzema's inexplicable decision-making.
On the pitch, Benzema also immediately realized the magnitude of his mistake.
He raised his right hand apologetically toward Theodore and his teammates.
Having survived a near-fatal scare, Barcelona quickly reorganized their shape and launched an immediate counterattack.
Five minutes later, in the 59th minute, Barcelona began working the ball patiently down the left flank.
Sergio Busquets played a crisp pass to Jordi Alba, who exchanged a rapid one-two combination with Philippe Coutinho.
After escaping Dani Carvajal's marking with the quick exchange, Alba suddenly pulled a sharp cutback pass toward the top of the penalty area.
It was the classic, unstoppable routine.
Once again, Alba had found Lionel Messi.
But this time, Messi did not manage to create a clear shooting angle.
The instant the Argentine received the ball, Theodore Bjorn materialized directly in front of him.
Theodore immediately dropped his center of gravity, perfectly blocking Messi's direct route to the goal.
The next second, Messi dropped his shoulder and leaned heavily toward the right.
It was a trademark feint, in reality, he quickly chopped the ball with his left foot and attempted to force his way through on the outside left channel.
Although Messi was thirty-three years old, his close control, acceleration over five yards, and ability to beat defenders were still unparalleled in world football.
But there is always someone stronger on a given night.
Theodore's raw pace and defensive anticipation were operating at an absolute peak level.
It was a violent clash between the sharpest spear and the strongest shield.
The exact moment Messi shifted the ball with his left foot, Theodore had already pivoted his hips.
And just as Messi engaged his explosive acceleration, Theodore stretched out a long leg and hooked the ball cleanly away.
"Brilliant defending!" Palmer shouted. "Theodore Bjorn wins the one-on-one duel against Lionel Messi again!"
"He simply refuses to give the Argentine any space to operate!"
"Rob, I have commentated on Messi for over a decade," Gibson marveled. "And tonight is genuinely the first time I have seen him look physically and tactically powerless against a single marker."
While the commentators were still immersed in analyzing Theodore's brilliant defensive intervention, Theodore had already launched Real Madrid's counterattack.
In the Bernabéu stands, eighty-five thousand fans burst into thunderous, awe-struck applause.
Theodore's name echoed into the Madrid night sky.
Amid the deafening roar of the Madridistas, Theodore charged toward the Barcelona half at lightning speed.
In the blink of an eye, he had crossed the halfway line.
Barcelona's double pivot, Sergio Busquets and Frenkie de Jong, scrambled to close him down, arriving in front of him simultaneously.
But Theodore did not give either Barcelona midfielder a chance to establish a defensive stance.
With a second, heavy touch and a sudden, violent burst of rhythm, Theodore instantly blew past both of them, splitting the gap.
"Foul him!" "Hurry up and take him down!" "Do not let him keep running!"
On the Barcelona touchline, Ronald Koeman completely lost his composure.
He screamed hysterically at his retreating defenders, waving his arms in panic.
A few seconds later, Pedri and center-back Gerard Piqué charged decisively into Theodore's path.
The two Barcelona players converged from the left and right, throwing their shoulders into Theodore, attempting to sandwich him and physically halt his momentum.
At the exact same time, a desperate Frenkie de Jong, having recovered from being beaten, grabbed a fistful of Theodore's shirt from behind, tugging violently.
Under the combined, cynical weight of three players, Theodore's devastating advance was finally stopped.
He was dragged to the turf.
Peep!
Referee José Sánchez blew his whistle sharply for the foul.
Sánchez rushed straight toward Frenkie de Jong and immediately pulled a yellow card from his breast pocket.
Real Madrid were awarded a free-kick in the attacking half.
"If Frenkie de Jong hadn't resorted to pulling his shirt from behind, Theodore might really have bulldozed his way straight through Piqué and Pedri's double-team…" Gibson noted, shaking his head.
"It is a cynical foul, but effective," Palmer added. "Real Madrid have won a free-kick. The spot is roughly thirty meters from goal, so it is quite far out for a direct strike."
"I don't know, Rob," Gibson countered with considerable confidence. "That distance might be a little far for other players, but for Theodore Bjorn, it might just be the perfect range to generate his knuckleball effect."
"Who knows? Maybe the teenager can score his second direct free-kick of the night!"