The Greatest of All Time

Chapter 73 - Battle Of The Underdogs IV

The second half of the semifinal between NF Academy and ADO Den Haag ensued, running at the same tempo as the first. The Dutch team mostly used wing play to attack while the Norwegian team sat back and defended most of the time.

Zachary was impressed with how his teammates managed to maintain a high level of focus throughout the game. They worked together admirably, using teamwork to keep ADO Den Haag at bay by disrupting most of their wing attacks.

Kasongo and Paul, NF Academy's wingers, helped the wing-backs—whenever they were faced with an attack by ADO Den Haag on the flanks. On the other hand, the three center-backs kept a close eye on Catalin Tira and Papito Merencia, ADO Den Haag's center-forwards. They managed to clear most of the crosses that managed to reach the box.

In the 75th minute, NF Academy's defense and midfield were still putting up a good fight. The score was still 1:1, thanks to their efforts.

However, Zachary was feeling frustrated due to the scarcity of balls coming to his position. He was still playing as a half-striker/half-milder in the 5-3-1-1 formation, just behind ?rjan, the center forward. He had to wait for more than five minutes in-between touches on the ball. Zachary fancied playing in the midfield instead. That would have let him be more involved in both offense and defense.

Zachary broke off his thought process when Robin Jatta, NF Academy's center-back, made an incredible interception within the box. He stopped a dangerous cross from finding Catalin Tira, the ADO Den Haag forward. Without losing his composure, he immediately cleared the ball away, towards the left-wing where Martin Lundal, the left-back, was lurking.

Martin controlled the ball beautifully close to the touchline, skipping away from Tyronne Ebuehi with a deft first touch. He followed that up with a perfectly executed cut-back pass towards Magnus, NF Academy's defensive midfielder, on the inside of the pitch.

However, Danny Bakker intercepted the pass before it could make its way to its target. He controlled the ball with an adroit first touch, using the back of his heel to loop it over the towering form of Magnus, who'd closed down on him quickly before he could run away with the ball.

He moved seamlessly like a fish navigating water, bringing the ball effortlessly back to the ground. He immediately unleashed another of his trademark raking passes to the right-wing, where Ibrahim Fofane was waiting. The creative midfielder had managed to catch the NF Academy defense unawares with a sudden switch to the wing once again.

Uncontested, Ibrahim Fofane, ADO Den Haag's winger, deftly chested the ball, propelling it onto the path of Tyronne Ebuehi, the right-back, who'd run into open space. The two of them exchanged short passes, playing one-twos, speeding along the touchline. They weaved through NF Academy players before cutting back into the pitch. Their coordination was flawless.

Before the defenders could close them down, Ibrahim let loose another of his teasing crosses in-behind NF Academy's defensive line.

Catalin Tira, ADO Den Haag's number-9, pounced on the ball, like a cat that'd seen some catnip.

The number-9 had an uncanny capability to lose his marks and slip through the ranks of defenders. He showed the same brilliance at that moment, sliding in-between Robin Jatta and Lars Togstad, NF Academy's center-backs, before tapping the ball towards the goal.

However, Kendrick Otterson, NF Academy's goalkeeper, had been at the top of his game the entire match. He reacted immediately by stretching out his left leg and managed to get a slight touch on the ball, driving it away from the goal.

Zachary felt a shiver run down his spine as he watched the ball smash off the post before bouncing back into the field of play. The threat to NF Academy's goal wasn't over yet. Calvin Valies, ADO Den Haag's left-winger, came speeding into the box with the intent of shoving the ball into the back of the net. Kasongo was close, hot on his heels.