Football singularity-Chapter 702 Tension Definatly Rising
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[21:50 | Second Half | Puskás Aréna | Manchester City (1) 0-1 (2) Bayer Leverkusen]
[51’]
Ederson shuffeld out of his line, fully stepping into his six-yard box as he watched the ball arc in almost in slow motion. Patrick Shick, covered by Dias, raced to the centre, jumping into the air trying to reach it. Aránguiz, followed by Rodri, was looking for the follow-up as he drew Stone’s attention.
Wirtz had turned back to the edge of the box, completely unmarked, just in case anything slipped out, but Gündoğan and De Bruyne were nearby. So Ederson wasn’t worried as he shuffled back, turning towards the two towering players in the air, ready to make the save. Their battle in the air was too intense, though, and both lost their balance, missing the descending ball at the apex.
It scuffed off the back of Dias’s head, changing its angle completely, missing Walker, who awkwardly tried to raise his knee to intercept it. The ball took another hop, flying away from Rakim, who was following, or so he thought. The winger suddenly jumped into the air, his left hand bracing on the grass as his right foot whipped at the ball with violent force.
The connection was pure, instinctive—Rakim’s right boot meeting the ball at the perfect angle as his body twisted in mid-air. The ball exploded off his foot like a missile, rocketing toward the near post from six yards out. Ederson had been caught in no-man ’s-land, positioned for a header that never came.
He barely managed to twitch his arm fully extended, but the ball was already past him. It crashed into the goal’s roof netting with such force that the entire goal shook. Timed for the English side seemed to freeze for a heartbeat as Rakim crashed to the ground, but the loud roar of his jubilation snapped them out.
"Yahhhh." He roared as he jumped up and raced to the corner flag, flexing, pumping his fist, before going down in a long slide from the box side line all the way to the corner flag. He spread his arms wide as if to embrace the sky, leaning back far enough for his hair to brush the grass. He salutted the camera, slapping the flag in one motion, before being mobbed by his teammates.
"RAKIM REX!" Drury’s voice exploded with barely controlled emotion. "AN ACROBATIC MASTERPIECE! WHAT A FINISH! WHAT. A. GOAL!"
"Absolute beauty." Tyldesley roared, his voice cracking with emotion. "Seventeen years old, Champions League Round of 16, and Rakim Rex has just produced another moment of pure artistry! That is world-class!"
[Manchester City (1) 0-2 (3) Bayer Leverkusen — Rakim Rex 51’]
[56’]
City kicked off their initial game plan, going into the half, thrown out of the window as they pushed forward. De Bruyne tried to create something by dropping deep to collect from Rodri, but Baumgartlinger was there instantly, not giving him a second to think. The Belgian managed to turn, playing a quick pass to Sterling on the left, but Frimpong had already read it, intercepting with a perfectly timed challenge.
The throw was taken quickly by Cancelo, finding Gündoğan, who turned inwards, skipping away from Wirtz. Not finding an option, he burst into Leverkusen’s final third, getting quite far as he drew Aránguiz, before exchanging a one-two with De Bruyne. The German midfielder shaped to pass right to Mahrez, drawing Wendell’s attention, then switched it left with the outside of his boot.
Sterling collected it just outside the box, his first touch taking him inwards away from Frimpong’s challenge. He nudged the ball further, dodging Tapsoba, who came sliding across before firing a form long range. Hradecky tracked it, launching himself across his goal, arms fully extended. He managed to brush the underside of the ball, deflecting it just enough to send it spinning over the bar.
"LUKAS HRADECKY!" Tyldesley roared. "World-class goalkeeping from the Leverkusen number 1!?"
[65’]
Pep Guardiola made his move in the 65th after seeing yet another failed attack. The board went up, signalling Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden on for Gündoğan and Mahrez, and the team shifted to an ultra-attacking 3-2-5 formation when attacking. "Guardiola going for broke," Tyldesley observed. "This is all or nothing."
The tactical shift created more space in City’s half, but they continued pushing forward relentlessly. De Bruyne got more space to work as the German sides’ double pivot could no longer afford to mark him as City created overload situations tightly. With more room to manoeuvre, he escaped Baumgartlinger’s marking and called for the ball from Rodri 30 yards out.
He managed to pick out Foden, making a run on the right, hitting him precisely as he beat Wendell on the outside. The young English midfielder raced after it, but he seemed to be too eager, and his first touch was heavy, and he got away from it. He raced after it, managing to barely reach it before it could roll out, sending a first-time cross.
The ball sailed into the box at speed, but it couldn’t get beyond the front post, where Lukas Hradecky coolly caught it. "Respectable, but he’s gonna have to try harder to trouble the keeper."
[68]
Bosz responded with his own changes, bringing on Kerem Demirbay and Leon Bailey for Charles Aránguiz and Moussa Diaby. As Citys desperation for a goal grew they threw more bodies forward, creating chances through sheer volume of possession.
In the 72nd minute, De Bruyne played a quick one-two with Foden at the edge of the box, creating space for a shot. He struck it cleanly from eighteen yards, but couldn’t bend it enough, and it struck the side netting out for a goal-kick.
[77’]
Demirbay snapped into a tackle on Bernardo Silva near the centre circle and won it cleanly. The ball was spilt to Wirtz, who turned away from Rodri with a sharp pivot and immediately looked left. Rakim came inside, calling the ball closely, followed by Walker, but the midfielder sent the pass anyway.
The winger received the ball under pressure from the English full-back, remaining upright despite the physical battle. He somehow managed to flick the ball behind his marker and up along the line for Wendel’s overlap. The Brazilian football player picked up the rolling ball before it could roll out for a throw, attacking the empty area.
Wendell quickly chewed up yards of space as Stones rushed over to cover him. "Leverkusen have space here..." Drury warned, the tone in his voice sharpening. Wendell opened his body before the Englishman could get close and whipped a low ball curving toward the penalty spot.
Schick attacked it like a battering ram, stepping across Dias to get goal side. Silva got their first through managing to swing his boot at the incoming ball awkwardly. "Ohhh, that was the chance to end it!" Tyldesley exclaimed. "Schick nearly gets on the end of it to make it three."
[82’]
City won a free kick on the left flank just inside the final third after Wirtz clipped Rodri with a hasty tackle. "Set-piece opportunity for Manchester City," Tyldesley said, voice tightening. "And at this stage, they’ll take anything—anything—to crack this Leverkusen wall."
De Bruyne placed the ball himself, wiping his palms on his shorts as he glanced into the box. Every blue shirt looked like it had been ordered to live in Leverkusen’s box. Hradecky barked instructions, Tah and Tapsoba pointing and tugging players into shape as the referee did his final checks.
(FWEEET)
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To Be Continued...
