"Are you ready for this?" Giuly asked Adebayor as they stepped off the team bus at the Stade de France.
The young striker's eyes widened at the sight of France's national stadium. Towering concrete and steel rose into the gray November sky while early-arriving supporters streamed toward the entrances in red, white, and blue rivers. The magnitude of the occasion was palpable.
Adebayor adjusted his headphones, letting the music calm the nerves that threatened to overwhelm him. "I've dreamed of this moment since I was eight."
The Stade de France buzzed with electric energy hours before kickoff. Marseille supporters had traveled in massive numbers, their songs echoing across the stadium's vast spaces as they claimed their sections. Monaco's fans responded with equal passion, creating walls of sound that promised an atmosphere worthy of a major final.
