Football singularity-Chapter 710 - 709 Rot-Weiss Essen (DFB:3/3)
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[2021-03-03 | Stadion Essen, Essen | DFB-Pokal Quarter-Final]
[Rot-Weiss Essen 1-0 Bayer 04 Leverkusen]
[72’]
The Austrian controlled it instantly, then played a quick pass to Wirtz lurking in the pocket. The teenage prodigy took one touch to set himself, drawing the defender toward him, then backheeled it into Palacios’ path. The Argentine footballer had peeled away from his marker, receiving the ball with the shooting lane wide open.
The Midfielder stayed calm, side-footing the shot past the diving keeper with clinical precision. The ball nestled into the bottom corner, thrusting the home side into more profound despair. "GOOOOOAL!" the commentator roared. "¡Exequiel Palacios! Leverkusen is really running away with this game!"
[Rot-Weiss Essen 1-4 Bayer 04 Leverkusen — Exequiel Palacios 72’]
[90+2’]
Bosz made a final change in the 77th, taking off Wirtz for the defensive Kerem Demirbay. They had already secured the win and just needed to see out the game, and they did. For the next 12 minutes, they played possession football, no longer forcing attacks forward unless an opening presented itself.
The last few chances happened in the 82nd when Essen produced a dangerous counter following a mistake from Bellarabi, who sent a ball back to Bender. The pass lacked power, and before the veteran full back could react, the Essen winger nicked it away. He immediately attacked, cutting inwards as he pushed past Bender, who tried to interfere.
The winger exchanged a one-two with attacking midfielder Harenbrock, sneaking into the box. Jedvaj guided him wide as Hradecky rushed, but the Essen winger remained composed and squared the ball past the Leverkusen defender. Newly subbed in Marcel Platzek goes on the end of the ball, hitting it first time and slotting it into the back of the net.
"Goal Essen!" The commentator exclaimed, but the home side didn’t celebrate much, knowing that it was too little too late. "Marcel Platzek scores what can be considered a consolation goal."
[Rot-Weiss Essen 2-4 Bayer 04 Leverkusen — Marcel Platzek 82’]
The consolation goal briefly stirred something in Essen, but it was more pride than belief. Leverkusen reset immediately, Baumgartlinger barking instructions as the midfield dropped a few yards deeper, tightening the spaces Essen had just exploited. Palacios slowed the tempo deliberately now, taking extra touches, drawing fouls, forcing the referee to blow the whistle in Leverkusen’s favour.
In the 88th, Essen pushed bodies forward one last time. A hopeful ball was lofted into the box, where Platzek rose again, but this time Tah was immovable—meeting him in the air and heading clear with authority. The clearance fell to Bailey, who spun away from pressure and surged down the right flank.
He had options ahead of him—Alario peeling wide, Bellarabi arriving late—but with time bleeding away, Bailey chose control over flair, dragging the ball toward the corner flag and shielding it expertly as two Essen players tried to force him out. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦
The referee glanced at his watch as two minutes of added time were indicated. There was no panic in Leverkusen’s ranks as they calmly moved the ball. They exchanged the ball across the back line as Essen chased shadows, legs finally giving way after an exhausting effort.
One final long ball was launched into the Leverkusen half. Hradecky came off his line decisively, catching it cleanly before crashing into the turf. He stayed down for a moment longer than necessary before slowly resetting, scanning the field ahead. Seconds later, he rose and punted it deep into Essen’s half.
(FWEEET! FWEEET! FWEEEEET!)
"It’s over!" the commentator declared. "Rot-Weiss Essen can leave with their heads held high, but Bayer Leverkusen’s quality tells in the end. The Bundesliga leaders march into the DFB-Pokal semifinals."
[FT: Rot-Weiss Essen 2–4 Bayer 04 Leverkusen]
~~~
[Post-Match Interview Zone | Stadion Essen]
Matthias Opdenhövel stood outside the tunnel with a microphone, waiting as Peter Bosz approached, still wearing his tactical vest over his club tracksuit. The Dutch manager’s expression was neutral—neither jubilant nor disappointed as he awaited his questions.
Opdenhövel: "Peter, congratulations on reaching the semifinals. A bit nervy in the first half, wasn’t it?"
Bosz nodded. "Yes, Essen played very well. They had a clear plan, executed it perfectly, and took their chance when it came. We started off slow, needing a moment to find our rhythm. The important thing is we responded well after going behind."
Opdenhövel nodded before moving on to his next question. "Lucas Alario’s equaliser just before halftime seemed to change the momentum entirely."
"Indeed, it did. Lucas has been working hard, and I’m pleased with his performance today, but that goal definitely changed the halftime talk we were going to have." The manager lightly responded with a small smile threatening to emerge.
"Florian Wirtz was instrumental again, setting up goals and nearly scoring himself. How do you manage his workload with so many competitions?"
He took a second before responding, a thoughtful expression gracing his face. "Carefully. We have many young players on the squad who want to play every game if it were up to them. We, as management, have to come up with a plan that allows them to perform optimally while getting enough rest. For Wirtz, we monitor him closely and make sure he gets rest when needed. But when he’s on the pitch, he’s the most effective ball handler on the pitch. You saw that today."
"You’re now in the semifinals of both the DFB-Pokal and Champions League, top of the Bundesliga—how are you balancing these campaigns?" Opdenhövel asked a question everyone was wondering since tiny Leverkusen is not seen as a powerhouse like Real Madrid with backups of similar quality.
"We take one game at a time." Bosz carefully answered. "I know it sounds like a cliché, but it’s true. We have depth in the squad and believe that every player can step in and perform when required of them."
Opdenhövel nodded before asking his next question. "Rakim has been rotated quite often in the past few games compared to the start of the season. Is there a concern for injury or lack of form?"
Bosz needed a second to process the sudden question before shaking his head. "No at all, Rakim remains one of the best players in the league, as for injuries, there are no worries. It’s just a matter of team management, as they say, the season is a marathon, not a sprint."
"I’m sure that’s reassuring to all the Leverkusen fans at home." He responded as the manager nodded politely and walked toward the dressing room, leaving Opdenhövel to turn back to the camera. "There you have it—Peter Bosz, pragmatic as ever. Leverkusen march on, but the road ahead only gets harder."
~~~
[2021-03-05, 12:30 | Leverkusen Performance Centre, Leverkusen | Training Session]
Two days after the Essen victory, the squad gathered for their final pre-match training session of week 24 in the Bundesliga. Rakim had been on the grounds since 6 in the morning, going through his personal training with his personal trainer, Simba. The large African man put him through his paces, leading him through various body-conditioning and agility drills.
Rakim felt as if he had hit a wall in his progression, and unlike before, he couldn’t ask Eva or check with the system to see what was wrong. Still, he did the only thing he knew to do, which was train more and work harder. The team training took place late morning, ending with a final briefing as the squad that would be travelling to Gladbach was decided.
"Rakim, a second of your time." Head Coach Bosz called out just as he was about to exit the meeting room to link up with Simba and go home.
"See you guys later," He excused himself from Leon, and Diaby walked over to the head coach, who looked like he had wandered through Siberia. It wasn’t hard to see that he was also feeling the pressure to perform, especially as the season was coming to a close, with so many balls in the air. "What’s up, coach? Don’t tell me you plan on resting me again. I promise you I’m fine"
"I know, I know, and no, you will not be joining me on the bench." He quickly replied, unwilling to hear the kid whine about playing time. Only he and Wirtz felt comfortable enough to bother him whenever they didn’t play. "I have two things to discuss with you. One official team’s business, and the other I’m just fulfilling the management’s request, so feel free to decline."
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To Be Continued...
