Chapter 541: Just a Point Away



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Juventus FC 1: Empoli FC 0

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"Oh, my goodness me!" Fabio Crudeli, the commentator for the day, yelled as Zachary ran to the corner flag to celebrate the goal. "Zachary has done what he does best again. He found the back of the net during the 55th minute to score Juventus' 1st goal during the 55th minute. What a season this young lad is having! He just can't stop scoring."

"Yes, indeed, he can't stop scoring," Tiziano Caressa, the other commentator, said. "I have just watched the replay. The way Zachary escaped from his marker and floated into the space before the Empoli defense was just ingenious. He waited for the exact moment when Mirko Valdifiori, the Empoli holding midfielder, looked away from him. With perfect timing, he escaped like a fox in the box, and before Valdifiori could spot him again, he was already meeting the ball with his head and scoring the 1st goal for Juventus. His game reading and reaction to abrupt situations on the pitch is simply out of this world."

"I can't understand how he makes scoring so easy," Fabio Crudeli commented. "By the way, you're the person always with the statistics. How many goals has he scored so far this season?"

Tiziano Caressa chuckled. "Today's goal against Empoli is his 30th in the Serie A. He has also found the back of the net five times in the Coppa Italia, twice in the Supercoppa Italiana, and fourteen times in the UEFA Champions League. Aside from that, he also scored two goals during his debut games for Ivory Coast. As such, he has now netted a grand total of 53 goals in all competitions this season."

Fabio Crudeli whistled on hearing the statistics. "I don't think there is any player in Europe who can compete with him in terms of scoring this season. He might go home with the golden boots of all the competitions this season."

Tiziano Caressa laughed. "Juventus is now leading by a goal to nil just ten minutes into the second half. Do you think the Old Lady players will hold on to this advantage and win the game?"

"Well... I can't answer that," Fabio Crudeli said. "The Juventus players have lacked the sharpness they usually possess during today's game. The midfielders have not played many forward passes, and because of that, their strikers have not gotten many touches within Empoli's box. If they don't up their game and start creating chances, then there's a possibility that they will lose points today."

"I guess that happens when you are only four points away from winning the Serie A title, yet you still remain with nine games before ending the season," Tiziano Caressa said.

"True!" Fabio Crudeli agreed. "The Juventus players should lack the motivation to give their all, especially since they were already ahead of the second-placed AS Roma by 27 points before the game. But, of course, we can't forget that a miracle worker like Zachary is still on the pitch. Even if the whole team is playing at a below-par standard, he can still produce moments of brilliance and possibly extend Juventus' lead."

"Exactly!" Tiziano Caressa agreed. "If Juventus does win, they will only be one point away from clinching the Serie A title. That would also imply that a draw from their Saturday fixture against Parma would make them the 2014/15 Italian champions."

"All these are still ifs since today's game is yet to end," Fabio Crudeli said. "Let's first wait and see if they can hold off Empoli before counting how many more points they need to become champions..."

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In the meantime, the game restarted as the commentators were discussing. The Empoli players, who had just conceded a goal, immediately started taking risks by going on the offensive. They committed numbers forward for the next twenty minutes, hoping to score and bring proceedings back to level terms.

Their efforts were quite impressive. They relied on long balls to their two strikers and wing penetration ending in crosses to mount increasing pressure upon Juventus' defense. They even came close to scoring during the 63rd, 70th, and 75th minutes. However, the impressive goal-keeping skills of Gianluigi Buffon, the world-class keeper, saved the day, thus allowing Juventus to stay ahead on all occasions.

Soon enough, the game proceeded into the final ten minutes. Maurizio Sarri, Empoli's coach, brought on all three substitutes, hoping to change the game situation. And due to the introduction of fresh legs, Empoli's attacks grew increasingly more dangerous until the men in red and blue came close to scoring during the 84th minute.

Piotr Zielinski, the substitute left midfielder, threaded a brilliant pass to Simone Verdi, another substitute who had just taken on the reins on Empoli's striking line. Simone Verdi, on his part, connected with the through ball well before unleashing a snapshot toward the bottom left corner.

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It was a tense moment for the Juventus fans as the ball headed goalward, skimming over the grass like a snake traversing the jungle. Fortunately for the team from Turin, Gianluigi Buffon, the keeper, came alive at the last moment. He palmed the ball toward the left side of the box, thus saving the day and keeping Juventus in the lead again.

In the meantime, Patrice Evra, Juventus' left wing-back, had just collected the ball punched by Buffon. The Frenchman immediately controlled the ball before smashing it toward the other side of the pitch where Fernando Llorente was lurking.

Close to the center circle, Fernando Llorente held off the defender with his tall physique while bringing the ball under control. He chested it to the ground before threading a pass back into his half toward the fast-approaching Zachary.

Zachary's spatial awareness was as sharp as ever. He controlled the ball while mapping the positioning of his teammates within his mind. He then took another touch before unleashing a lofted pass that soared over the defense, heading toward the right side of the pitch, where Álvaro Morata was lurking.

"Whoosh!"

Álvaro Morata was like the wind as he connected with Zachary's first-time pass. He chested the descending ball forward and set off on a mad dash for the box. He soon skipped over a challenge from one of the Empoli holding midfielders before beating Federico Barba, the center-back, for pace.

Álvaro Morata eventually came out of the challenges on top before penetrating the box to face off against the Empoli keeper. He remained composed and looped the ball over the approaching keeper to score Juventus' 2nd goal for the night during the 85th minute.

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"GOAL..." Fabio Crudeli, the commentator, yelled as the ball nestled into the back of the net. "What beautiful football! A splendid counterattack from Juventus has just seen them extend their lead to two goals during the 85th minute. It all started with Buffon palming away the ball to make that save. Then, Patrice Evra found Fernando Llorente with a long ball, who, in turn, found Zachary with a pass back into the middle. Zachary didn't waste even a second before playing a superb pass over Empoli's defense. His pass took three Empoli players out of the equation, thus setting an opportunity for Álvaro Morata, who remained composed and scored Juventus' second."

"This is team Juventus at their best," Tiziano Caressa, the other commentator, said with an audible sigh. "I believe that this goal has done it and won them the game. They are just one point away from winning the title. But surprisingly, they still remain with nine more Serie A games before ending their season. What a football season they have had!"

"I believe we're seeing the making of history," Fabio Crudeli said. "Let's not forget the fact that they are unbeaten in all competitions. They haven't lost a single game up to this point in the season. I'm beginning to believe that they are the best team in Europe at the moment."

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The game commenced after the goal celebrations. The Empoli players seemed to have lost all their morale after conceding the second goal. They started committing mistakes in midfield and soon failed to maintain their zonal marking strategy in many crucial areas of the field of play.

The Juventus players, who had just built up all the momentum after scoring the second goal, didn't miss the chance to exploit the weakness of their opponents. Through their excellent midfielders, like Zachary, they maintained possession via quick exchanges of passes. Eventually, their brilliance paid off, allowing them to create a clear goal-scoring opportunity during the 90th minute.

That time around, it was Carlos Tevez, the substitute who had just stepped onto the pitch, in action. The Argentine striker pushed off the ground in the box and got to the end of a cross from Patrice Evra. He outwitted the center-backs in the air before heading the ball home to beat the keeper and score Juventus' 3rd goal for the night.

The game continued after the celebration with Empoli's kick-off. But nothing noteworthy happened during the game's closing stages. As a result, Juventus remained in the driving seat and eventually won the game by a score of 3:0 after six minutes of injury time.

With that ending, the Juventus players had taken their season tally to a whopping 83 points. They were still 27 points ahead of the second-placed AS Roma and only a draw away from winning that season's Serie A title. Their season was for the history books, as they could potentially win the trophy before playing their last nine games of the 2014/15 season.

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