From Arsenal to the Ball God
Chapter 294 - 92: Adebayor Slaps Himself in Anger! Ma’el’s Solo Breakthrough! The Abstract Walker [3/3] (Part 2)
"Clang!"
He gasped and touched his head as he got up, pretending to fix his crew-cut hairstyle, and squeezed out an awkward smile before embracing everyone.
They then ran back to their half together, mimicking the Arsenal players’ two celebrations on the way, making a shut-up gesture towards the Arsenal fan section.
"Oh.....!" This gave the Tottenham fans a second chance to celebrate, and they erupted with even louder cheers.
Not far away, Ma’el clenched his fist slightly uncomfortably. He instinctively glanced towards the sidelines and saw Adebayor rushing over towards him with an angry roar, putting on a confrontational face.
"Bring it on!"
"Boo!"
The other side mimicked his two celebration gestures, shaking their heads and taunting him from the sidelines, as if this was the usual round of mockery during a derby match.
Ma’el took a deep breath to get himself back into the game. There was still time; they hadn’t lost the chance to grab three points yet.
Most importantly, he could feel there was still power within him—he could push through a couple more times.
Keep it coming!
As for the opponents scoring, there wasn’t much he could do; he could only admit that a few of their players performed well..... They also made the mistake of celebrating prematurely before the game ended, which was human nature.
But as long as he didn’t provoke first and managed to counter in the end, becoming the winner when it concluded, everything else wouldn’t matter.
"Beep!"
The game restarted, and Wenger was jotting something down in his little notebook again. However, this time he was more cautious, leaning back to write stealthily.
"Oh dear." But Philip still had a trick up his sleeve. He pretended his shoelace came untied, bent down to tie it, and then kicked over his water bottle, running to the side of the coach’s bench to pick it up.
Just like that, he snuck behind the coach’s bench and went to peek at Wenger’s notes through the vent.
When he stuck his head out of the vent, Wenger’s face was merely a foot away, staring coldly at him.
Philip: "..."
Is this the defensive awareness of a top coach, anticipating moves?
...
"Boom!"
Ten seconds after the match resumed, Arsenal, under pressure, had no choice but to pass the ball back to Szczeny.
Their three lines didn’t retreat but stood firm in the midfield, ready to launch a counterattack.
"Close in!" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
"Come on! Focus in the middle!"
Tottenham wasn’t in a rush either at this point, seeing the ball returned to the goalkeeper, their three lines moved back to organize the defense near midfield.
In the upcoming time, they were surely going to focus on stability, securing the defense first, and then seeking the chance for a decisive counterattack.
"Boom!"
Szczeny then delivered a long kick, sending the ball towards the right side of the pitch where the crowd was denser, attempting some straightforward offense.
Ma’el didn’t idle, taking a few steps towards the middle to look for a second-ball opportunity.
At the last moment, staying on the wing didn’t mean much, and not getting the ball would only make him anxious.
Kyle Walker just made an assist and might still be indulging in the euphoria of attack..... waiting on the wing for a counterchance, or perhaps he thought the middle area was crowded enough for Ma’el not to pose a threat.
"Pop!" The first point was taken by Tottenham defender Ledley King, who headed the ball onto Ramsey.
Ramsey’s eyes widened, quickly controlling the ball while Tottenham’s defensive midfielder Scott Parker hurried over, aggressively attempting a tackle.
Yet, after a few stumbles, the ball stayed with Ramsey, and Scott Parker missed his mark entirely... losing his defensive position, allowing Ramsey to ’passively’ break free.
"Boom!" Ramsey then passed the ball smoothly towards the oncoming Ma’el.
Beside Ma’el was Modric, marking him tightly, but after making one solid touch, it wasn’t a big issue.
He turned right, dragging the ball to his body’s right side while completing a turn, facing the offensive direction.
Such a smooth turn, coupled with Tottenham players still not fully recovered from their previous goal fever..... several Tottenham defenders were bunched up slightly behind the center circle, leaving a huge gap behind them.
From an outsider’s perspective, their defense seemed crowded, not showing any significant weakness.
But Ma’el, through judging the situation, captured Tottenham players’ negligence—what appeared to be a tight defense was actually poorly organized, with each player standing uncertainly in position.
"Boom....." He took a step forward towards the Tottenham goal, confirming this point, and upon noticing Kyle Walker was far, a sudden idea hit him to break explosively through everyone’s backside, "Boom!"
With a sharp sound of him touching the ball, Ma’el burst through Tottenham’s entire backline, accelerating through a gap among three to four players suddenly.
Super breakthrough!
A breakthrough against four players!
Modric didn’t react in time, while Van der Vaart hesitated to catch him.
By the time center-backs Ledley King and Cahill sensed the danger, he was nearly unstoppable!
"Tap tap tap!" He sprinted wildly, his long legs striding forward, surpassing all defenders in an instant, forming a one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
"Yeah.....!" the roar shifted to the Arsenal fan section, as the fans saw Ma’el suddenly charging with unstoppable momentum towards the Tottenham goal in their direction.
On-site, the Tottenham fans also stood up from their seats, their mouths agape, unable to believe what was happening before their eyes.
At the sidelines, Redknapp was stunned at the coach’s bench, his face filled with shock looking at his side’s defense, realizing it was this fragile, his fists clenched tight.
Wenger stood up from the coach’s seat, approaching the sideline full of anticipation once more, was there going to be another surprise?
"Oh.....!"
In the broadcasting room, even Zhan Jun couldn’t hold back a gasp of amazement, before regaining professionalism: "A breakthrough with one kick! Tottenham’s backline is carved open! Ma’el is about to perform a solo! "
"Without complicated moves, not even a change in direction, just a bold straightforward run, yet achieving such an effect! "
"What’s Tottenham’s backline doing? Ma’el is now facing the goalkeeper one-on-one!"
On the pitch, Ma’el quickly closed in on Tottenham’s goalkeeper Frederick, who hesitated, unsure whether to come out or not.
"Boom!!"
He hesitated not a bit—having bypassed four players, his excitement reached its peak, a feeling deep down told him that as long as he kicked hard, the ball would undoubtedly drill into the net.
He struck towards the left, aimed straight for Frederick’s right side, who rapidly went down trying to block it with his heel, but it was too late.
"Swipe!"
The ball slammed into the net, leaving Tottenham fans and players dumbstruck, while only the die-hard Arsenal supporters on the South Stand erupted with even louder cheers, "Oh...Yeah.....!!"
Ma’el, in an instant, was engulfed in an unprecedented surge of excitement, feeling as though he was born for the pitch, for pivotal battles.
His entire body’s muscles tightened up, all muscle lines and bulging veins were fully visible, yet he felt not an ounce of fatigue, only an overwhelming sense of infinite strength.
"Yeah.....!"
He roared, running to the Arsenal fan section, tearing off his shirt in a celebration of stripping.
10th goal in the Premier League!
A brace against Tottenham!
And it might be a game-winner!
It was just one of those days, achieving a key milestone in such a critical match, and also a major feat in his career, and doing it in such a beautiful way.
Celebrating prematurely.... he celebrated till the end, without Adebayor turning the tide against him!
A wonderful day!
"Wow.....!!"
Apparently not satisfied, he jumped on the advertising board, clutching his arms and shaking fiercely.
"Ah!" Some female fans in the stands immediately blushed with their mouths agape but didn’t look away, staring firmly at Ma’el’s physique.
Even quite a few Tottenham female fans held back their sorrows, glancing furtively while keeping an eye on their wary husbands, taking a big risk for a peek.
...
Today’s target: 54,000 words, 18k today, aiming for three updates before tomorrow’s early morning.