Chapter 495: Zachary Vs. the Cagliari Fans III

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Cagliari Calcio 2: Juventus FC 1

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After a few seconds of silence, Zachary's spectacular goal gave way to thunderous cheers intermixed with annoying boos, monkey chants, and vuvuzelas. As the volume of the sounds increased, they blended together into a single booming wave that exploded forth and shook every soul within the Stadio Sant'Elia.

But all the noise had nothing to do with Zachary, especially since his entire focus was only on the game. He sprinted forward and picked the ball from the back of the next before running all the way back to the middle and placing it on the center spot.

His hurried actions expressed his intent clearly. He yearned to restart the game quickly after scoring the game so as to keep his team's momentum going. He desired to increase his team's chances of scoring a goal or two within the next few minutes. And that way, he wouldn't have to face the embarrassment of suffering a defeat against a much weaker Cagliari side and its annoying supporters.

"Ragazzi!" Zachary used his little knowledge of the Italian language to call out to his teammates, who were taking up positions on the pitch as they readied themselves for the restart of the game. "We're just a goal down. We only need to score one more and tie the game. Let's do this. Let's show Cagliari that we are Juventus." He ended his little speech by clapping his hands for emphasis.

On hearing Zachary's loud shout, most of the Juventus players on the pitch were surprised. They did not respond to his little motivational speech but turned to glance at him with weird looks.

Their expressions betrayed their inner thoughts, and they seemed amused by the sudden change in the on-pitch behavior of their often-quiet but highly skilled teammate. Most times, he wouldn't say a word during a match. But right then, he had just yelled at them using a tone of voice more intimidating than the one often used by 'an angry' Coach Max Allegri. Zachary's change was sure surprising for them.

On noticing their slow reactions to his yell, Zachary was a bit annoyed. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he shouted, "Why do you all have blank looks on your faces? Aren't you aware that we must win this game? We must score as soon as possible. We can't lose to a weak team like Cagliari. We're Juventus, for God's sake."

At that moment, right after hearing his provocation, his teammates seemed to regain their wits. It was unknown who yelled first. But all the Juventus on-field players soon joined in to shout, "we're Juventus," repeatedly, as they waited for the Cagliari players to take their positions on the other side of the pitch. Their team spirit was overflowing and pouring out of their bodies like a torrent as they waited for the referee to blow the whistle and signal the restart of the game.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee finally blew the whistle after a few more seconds. Right then, Víctor Ibarbo, Cagliari's center-forward, restarted the game with a back pass toward his midfield. He kicked the ball from the center spot, hoping to find Daniele Conti, Cagliari's captain, positioned close to the border of Cagliari's defensive third.

"High pressing! Let's close them down right away..."

Zachary yelled at the top of his voice when he saw the Cagliari man about to control the ball. His blood boiled with an indomitable fighting spirit, and he led the charge toward the other half, intending to deny the Cagliari players any time to settle down. He was like an incarnation of Usain Bolt on the pitch, and in only a few seconds, he was within meters of Daniele Conti, who happened to have taken a few extra unnecessary touches on the ball.

"What the hell is this guy doing? Why is he slow? Is he inviting me to take the ball from him?"

Lightning-fast thoughts flashed through Zachary's mind as he raced forward. But those musings didn't slow his actions, and he continued closing down the Cagliari captain. Like a mighty lion pouncing on helpless prey, he accelerated and ran at Daniele Conti like mad.

"Man on! Man on..."

The yells of the Cagliari players seemed to jolt Daniele Conti from his trance. Raising his head slightly, he noticed that an opponent, who happened to be Zachary, was already bearing down on him. He panicked and hastily whirled around before raising his leg with the intent to kick the ball to Albin Ekdal, his counterpart in Cagliari's midfield.

"Chance..."

Zachary thought to himself as he read the Cagliari midfielder's intentions like an open book. He didn't rush to make a sliding tackle as he had previously intended but instead kept bearing down on the opponent while waiting for an opportunity.

Then, when Daniele Conti swung his leg to kick the ball, Zachary acted with all the haste he could muster. Like a martial artist, he whipped out his leg while being carried by his forward momentum to initiate a sliding tackle. He timed his move to perfection and thus utilized an outstretched boot to block the ball.

"It actually worked..."

Zachary couldn't contain his happiness after robbing Daniele Conti of possession and sending the ball only a few meters away. But all the joy he was feeling still didn't slow down his actions. Instead, the overwhelming delight became fuel for his fighting spirit, and he picked himself from the ground with the urgency of a cat that had just caught the scent of some catnip.

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Adrenaline pumped through his system, and he accelerated and pounced on the loose ball like mad. He got to it before any of the Cagliari players could react, and what followed was obvious.

The Cagliari players were slow to react as they had not expected their always-reliable captain to lose the ball in a dangerous area immediately after the restart. So, Zachary took advantage of their sluggishness and cut through them like a knife through butter. He rushed through the middle, skipping past opponent after opponent, as he took a mazy route towards Cagliari's goal at breakneck speed.

Of course, a few Cagliari players reacted better than their teammates while trying to stop him. For instance, Simone Benedetti and Luca Rossettini, the two Cagliari center-backs, tried to block Zachary by relying on their incredible physiques to bar his way.

But who was Zachary? He was a man who was almost unstoppable after gaining momentum, and as such, they couldn't stop his run. With just a few side steps and a simple body feint, Zachary sent the two men packing and was soon one-on-one with the keeper who had come out to meet him.

All that mattered at that moment was remaining composed, and Zachary being Zachary, of course, couldn't fail at such a simple task. He slowed down slightly to draw in the keeper. Then, when the keeper took the bait and rushed forward, Zachary darted past him toward the right before hammering the ball into the back of the net to score Juventus' second goal during the 67th minute.

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Cagliari Calcio 2: Juventus FC 2

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The score on the mega jumbotron changed to confirm Juventus' second goal as the home fans grew totally silent for the first time that evening. They stopped their booing for a few seconds, and at that moment, Zachary again experienced true bliss, taking joy in the fact that he was the very person that had silenced them.

However, even while feeling joyful, Zachary didn't celebrate as usual. Instead, he stood right before Cagliari's goal and faced Cagliari's staunch supporters behind the goal before putting a finger to his lips. His message to them was clear: "Please, will you shut up!"

"BOOO..."

"Screech! Screech..."

Zachary appeared to have poked a hornet's nest with his taunting celebration. The fans seemed totally incensed, and they immediately renewed their booing and jeering with an ever-growing momentum. Mixed in with their shouts were even insults targeted at Zachary's ancestors, family members, etcetera. The Cagliari fans had obviously gone mad with rage after their team conceded an equalizing goal against Juventus. Naturally, emotions of anguish, disappointment, and dissatisfaction were quickly brewing in their ranks.

Having just scored a goal, Zachary grew more spirited as he sensed their rage. He didn't know why, but at that juncture, he felt that the anguish of the Cagliari supporters was comparable to the cheers of the Juventus supporters back in Turin. He was experiencing true happiness as he watched the fans who had taunted him the whole evening go mad with rage. As such, the corners of his lips slowly curled upwards as a soft smile outlined his often-intense facial features.

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On the sidelines, Maurizio Trombetta, the assistant coach in charge of the first team, sighed and shook his head after noticing Zachary's actions. He turned towards Coach Allegri and said, "We informed this boy not to agitate the fans. But he went against our advice and taunted the fans after scoring. His future while facing off against Cagliari will be filled with hardships."

"Who cares about the future?" Coach Allegri answered off-handedly. "I would do the same if I were in his shoes. What matters now is that he has scored two goals and tied the score within seven minutes after stepping onto the pitch. As a result, we still have more than twenty minutes to bag another goal and win the game. We should be able to go home with another three points today."

"Indeed..." Maurizio Trombetta hummed an agreement. With his experience as a coach, he could tell that the momentum was with Juventus. Thus, if nothing unexpected happened, Juventus would score another goal or two and eventually win the game.

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The predictions of the coaches were spot on. After the game restarted, the Juventus players utilized high-pressing tactics to win the ball back as soon as possible. Then, from there on, they started launching waves and waves of attacks until they created an opportunity for Alvaro Morata, who scored Juventus' 3rd goal during the 82nd minute.

However, that wasn't the end of the drama on the pitch. The game proceeded forward, and during the 87th minute, Juventus won a free-kick right outside the box. And, of course, Zachary being Zachary converted the free kick successfully to score Juventus' 4th goal and his third for the evening. He had bagged another hat trick in a Serie A game and thus couldn't contain his happiness as he picked up the match ball and headed towards the press area for the post-match interview.

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