Chapter 70: Battle of the Underdogs I

"Remember what we discussed yesterday," Coach Johansen said to the players in the dressing room. "Remember all your training. Remember all the hard work you've put into this over the past year." He lowered his voice slightly. Nonetheless, his words still carried to every corner of the room.

"It is the time to go forth and reap the rewards of all your efforts. It all depends on how you handle yourselves over the next 90 minutes. Remember, if you stay focused for every single moment of the game, we'll surely emerge as victors."

Coach Johansen spent a few minutes reminding the players of the game plan they'd discussed the previous day. He reminded them about the individual roles they would take on in the match before sending them off to the game.

Zachary and his teammates stepped onto the field, filled with eagerness to perform. They wished to overwhelm ADO Den Haag completely. Coach Johansen's pre-game pep talk had further inflamed their yearning to win the game and qualify for the finals.

If they could advance past the semis and win the finals, it would prove to be a rare feat amongst Norwegian academies. Winning a tournament meant fame, cash prizes, and increased chances of being picked up by professional teams from all over Europe.

Zachary, too, felt eager to perform. He finished the coin toss with the referee and ADO Den Haag's captain quickly and ran back to his half as fast as possible.

Meanwhile, the fans cheered on, drowning the stadium in thunderous applause. The commentators made some light jokes about the match that was about to begin. It felt like a festival in the Skonto Indoor Stadium, rather than a soccer match.

Zachary decided to call for an on-pitch team huddle before the start of the game. Although he didn't relish the act of bossing around his teammates, he felt he had to remind them about the coach's instructions before such an important game. Surprisingly, the squad seemed happy when he called them for the team huddle.

"Guys," he began as soon as they formed a circle on their side of the pitch. "The coach has already said everything that needs saying about the game plan and tactics. I only want to emphasize one thing. We've got to focus on the little things, the details that make a difference in such a competitive game. Those are the details we have to get right, the ones that we have to accomplish to perfection."

"We've got to carry out the roles assigned to us by the coach to the best of our ability," he added, raising his voice slightly to achieve the best effect on his teammates. "Whether defending or attacking, it's all the same. We've got to stay focused until the final whistle is blown. Everyone has to do their part." He eyed the rest of his teammates in the huddle.

"For Kendrick to do his part in the goal, Robin needs to do his part in the defense. And it's the same for every position on the field. We all depend on one another. Right?" He paused, looking at the rest.

He continued after seeing they were attentive. "Everyone has to play their part to perfection so that the next person can do theirs. That's how we'll play as a team in this game. Otherwise, we'll crumble and lose the game, even if only a single player relaxes for a single minute."

Zachary looked around and noticed that his teammates were listening raptly. They hang on to his words like they were golden or some precious elixir they'd been hunting for all their days. Some of them nodded with their eyes closed while others looked at him eagerly, waiting for him to conclude the team talk.

Zachary's tone of speech turned conclusive. "So, right now, let's get out there and play like our lives and careers depend on it. Let's stay true to who we are. Together, united as one on the pitch." He clapped his hands for emphasis. The rest of the players joined in chanting NF Academy's name in deep grating voices that were hard on the ears.

"Should we pray or something?" Kasongo asked as they were about to break up the team huddle.

"We should," Kendrick and Magnus replied, more or less in unison.

"Then, you should lead the prayer since you suggested it," Zachary intoned, pointing at Kasongo.

"Why me?" Kasongo jumped away from the huddle like he'd been stung by a wasp after Zachary singled him out.

The rest of the players laughed at his reaction.

Kasongo raised his arms in a placating gesture. "I was only suggesting a strategy to help us seal our win. They say; praying increases a team's chances of winning. Something like that. We don't have to go through with the prayer if no one wants to lead it."

Kendrick ended up leading the short prayer before the players returned to their positions for the kick-off.

Zachary moved close to the center circle since he was to play as a half-striker, just behind Örjan, NF Academy's center-forward. He started observing his teammates in dark blue jerseys. They were jogging and jumping around their positions while waiting for the referee to blow his whistle. It seemed like the team huddle coupled with Coach Johansen's pep talks had had an effect on their mood. Their body language said it all. They acted like elite professionals and approached the game with the right attitude for winning. The team's morale was at a much higher level and nothing like at the beginning of most of the previous matches.

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Zachary stole an occasional glance at the referee, standing near the center circle. He noticed that he was still signaling his linesmen to take their positions, in-between glances at his watch.

He then turned his attention to the ADO Den Haag players in their green and yellow striped jerseys. They, too, seemed eager to start the semifinal. He'd done some research on their squad. He instantly recognized Catalin Tira, ADO Den Haag's center-forward, who'd already scored four times in the tournament. He was standing close to the ball, ready to kick-off the game. He also recognized Ibrahim Fofane and Tyronne Ebuehi, the two players who'd caused Skonto Academy several problems on the right-wing.

Zachary sighed and turned his attention back to the referee. He hoped Kasongo and Öyvind would be able to mark the wing-duo. Otherwise, their crosses would do a great deal of harm to NF Academy.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew his whistle. The semifinal between NF Academy and ADO Den Haag in the Skonto Arena started at exactly 11:00 on a cold Tuesday morning.

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"Zachary finally remembered to call a team huddle before a game," Coach Johansen commented, half-smiling, his eyes never leaving the pitch. "He's finally starting to act like a captain."

"He's also pointing out mistakes to his teammates," Coach Bjørn Peters observed. "That's an improvement in his leadership skills. I guess he wants to win the match more than anybody on this team."

Coach Johansen didn't reply right away. All his attention was on the game. He was trying to gauge whether his players were carrying out their assigned roles in the match. He was pleased with what he observed.

His players kicked-off the first half energetically—closing the ADO Den Haag players down whenever they lost possession. They then followed his game plan to the letter, deciding to sit back and wither ADO Den Haag's attacks. They played in a 5-3-1-1 formation and only hit back through counterattacks and long balls to Zachary and Örjan.

He had aimed at defending with eight men behind the ball when he'd designed the game strategy. He'd wanted to seal off all the Dutch team's avenues of attacks—especially the wings. His five defenders were supposed to work with the three midfielders to close down any ADO Den Haag attackers quickly whenever they approached NF Academy's box.

Öyvind and Martin, the wing-backs, played well in the first fifteen minutes. They marked ADO Den Haag's wingers tightly, and on many occasions, blocked crosses towards the box. Thanks to their efforts, the Dutch team didn't manage any attempts at goal during the first few minutes.

Coach Johansen was satisfied with their performance.

"What a clean tackle," Coach Bjørn exclaimed from beside him. Öyvind, the right wing-back, had just made a clean sweeping tackle, winning the ball from Calvin Valise—ADO Den Haag's left-winger. The right-back then sprinted with the ball and tried to weave past opponents close to the touchline.

Coach Johansen was sure that he would lose the ball if he continued his run since Robin van der Meer, ADO Den Haag's left-back, was already closing down on him.

"Use long balls to Zachary," Coach Johansen hollered at Öyvind. "Be fast," he bellowed when he saw the right-back still taking his time on the ball.

Öyvind followed his instructions immediately. From right next to the touchline, deep in NF Academy's half, he raised his right foot and whipped a long ball towards the center circle where Zachary was waiting.

Coach Johansen relaxed when he saw Zachary chest the ball to the ground and turn, taking off towards ADO Den Haag's box. Two defenders tried to close him down immediately, but their efforts were fruitless. They'd already left him enough space to accelerate away from them and couldn't win it back. Coach Johansen was confident that few players still in academies could match Zachary's speed.

His heart was pounding like a jackhammer in his chest as he watched Zachary playing a one-two with Örjan. The boy prodigy speared deeper into ADO Den Haag's half, past the defenders in a matter of seconds.

Coach Johansen smiled, calming his bubbly emotions. He'd planned for a long, grueling match against the Dutch team, with almost no goals. However, if his team managed to score in the first few minutes of the game, it would be a relief. He would find it easy to clinch the victory.

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