5 things we learned from The Undertaker and Goldberg's face-off on Smackdown Live

It has been a while since WWE made a huge announcement in regards to the upcoming Super ShowDown event in Saudi Arabia on June 7th. A match that the fans had been clamoring for since years on end, was finally made official. WWE announced that Hall of Famer Goldberg would be returning for the first time in two years to face none other than The Undertaker inside the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium.

When Goldberg made his WWE debut way back in 2003, the WWE Universe wondered whether Vince McMahon would give us the dream encounter between him and The Undertaker, who was donning the Biker persona at the time. Nothing of this sort happened though, and things didn't change when Goldberg made his triumphant return to WWE in 2016.

Nevertheless, we are going to witness The Deadman and The Master of the Spear square off against each other in one of the most anticipated matches in the history of WWE. The two Superstars faced off on tonight's SmackDown Live, mere days before the eventual match. Let's take a look at 5 things we learned from the segment!

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#5 Lack of pyro hurts Goldberg's overall aura

The entrance

Ever since Goldberg made his debut in WCW, one thing that has become synonymous with him is his elaborate entrance that stayed with him throughout his career in professional wrestling. The grand entrance would see him make his way to the ring and perform his signature pose on the ramp, while being surrounded by pyro.

Tonight, the pyro was missing, and it dawned upon many that how much those fireworks add to Goldberg's overall persona and demeanor. Hopefully, WWE saved it for Super ShowDown, as the entrance just doesn't click if the pyro is removed from it.

#4 The SSD match needs to be a short affair

Something like this needs to happen again

When Goldberg made his way out to the ring tonight, it was clear as day that he isn't the same intimidating behemoth he once was. Goldberg is 52 years old, and the age did show when he came out tonight. On the other hand, we have The Undertaker, who looked like a mess the last time he came face to face with Goldberg. The two legends met inside the ring at the Royal Rumble match in 2017, with Undertaker looking alarmingly unhealthy.

It has been more than two years since that encounter, and Undertaker has only gotten worse with the passage of time. Allowing the match to cross the five-minute mark wouldn't be a good idea at this point. Instead, let the two Superstars replicate the match between Goldberg and Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 33, and it won't end in disaster.

#3 No matter what, Undertaker will always get heavily cheered

The Undertaker

The breaking of The Undertaker's legendary WrestleMania streak kicked off a series of horrible decisions that resulted in The Undertaker's legacy taking a serious hit. He went on to lose to Brock Lesnar on multiple occasions, with the final nail in the coffin being his loss to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33. Additionally, The Undertaker's health has gotten worse over the past few years.

Despite all of this, one thing has remained constant, and it wasn't any different tonight. The Undertaker will get heavily cheered no matter what! His character has lost a lot of steam over the years, but the fact remains that he is one of the most revered athletes in WWE history, and fans are far from giving up on him anytime soon. As soon as the gong hit tonight, the arena erupted in cheers, and the confrontation was met with an even louder ovation.

#2 This dream match was twenty years too late

20 years too late

When WCW was at its peak, Goldberg was steadily becoming one of the biggest Superstars in the industry. On the other hand, The Undertaker was playing his part in helping Vince McMahon fend off the competition. When WCW folded, Goldberg was one of several main eventers who chose to sit out their WCW contracts and collect the money.

If Goldberg had decided to debut in WWE almost immediately, there's a slight chance that we would've witnessed a rivalry between him and The Undertaker, with both Superstars in their prime. Of course, this could've been done in 2003 too, but WWE decided against it.

Now, the two legends are finally facing off against each other. The problem: both are visibly old. Their appearance and demeanor tonight made it clear that the match won't be anything we could've expected from the two in their prime.

#1 There's a reason why Super ShowDown is being promoted around these two 50-year olds

The real draw

Despite both Superstars being way past their prime, there's a reason why WWE is hell-bent on promoting Super ShowDown around these two. When Goldberg was interrupted by The Undertaker's signature gong, and The Deadman actually appeared behind him, the arena went into a frenzy. The crowd was way into what was happening inside the squared circle.

A simple face-off between Goldberg and The Undertaker was garnering way more response than anyone from the current roster ever could, probably minus Brock Lesnar. This is a big reason why WWE is centering the show around this dream match, and not Kingston vs Ziggler, or Rollins vs Corbin.

These two legends are surely hogging the spotlight, and they will rightfully do so until WWE somehow manages to put over regular Superstars, to the extent that they would get the kind of cheers The Undertaker or Goldberg gets.