Football singularity-Chapter 717 Heavyweight Exchange
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[2021-04-05, 19:45 | BayArena, Leverkusen | Champions League Quarter-Final 1st leg | Leverkusen v Dortmund]
[26’]
Leverkusen worked the ball patiently through midfield, trying to pull Dortmund out of shape. Wirtz collected it in the middle of the field, surrounded by three yellow shirts. Instead of forcing it, he calmly backheeled it to Amiri, then spun away from Can’s challenge.
Amiri returned it instantly with a clever flick, avoiding Reus’s challenge. Wirtz picked up the ball and dribbled forward diagonally to wrads the right side. His head never looked down at the ball, but he continued to gain pace as the yellow kits converged on him.
He exchanged a one-two with Diby at the flank to escape Can’s pressure, stepping into the final third of the field. He only needed a second before picking out a pass, sending a crisp through ball to the right side of the box. Schick, who had been sitting centrally under Hummels and Akanji’s tight marking, exploded after it.
He reached it first before the ball could cross the six-yard box, but the angle was tight with the keeper and the nearby right-back invading his personal space. He turned as if to face the keeper, drawing the defenders closer, but flicked the ball back behind his left foot with his right.
Both Hummels and Akanji turned rapidly, forcing their momentum, as Diaby, who appeared out of nowhere, latched onto the ball. The Frenchman drew his left foot back as if to shoot, but bent a side-footed pass past Hummels to the area in front of the far left post. Heads turned in time to see Rakim arrive in the time slot and slot the ball into the back of the net.
"Goal Leverkusen!" Drury roared as the home side raced to the corner in celebration. "Jim, we have discussed just how incredible this attacking quartet is, and we just got to see an example of why they’re so dangerous!"
"Beautiful team goal, Peter," the German said simply. "From Wirtz all the way to Rakim, they all reacted splendidly, pulling their opponents into positions where they could exploit them."
[Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 v 0 BvB Dortmund - Rakim Rex 27’]
[31’]
The team goal that sliced open the underbelly of Dortmund’s defence like an Itamae-san in a Suchi restaurant seemed to awaken the Waspas. As if remmebering why they were the second-most-feared team in Germany, they responded with fury, refusing to be cowed by the early deficit. Bellingham won the ball back in the centre circle with a perfectly timed tackle on Amiri, his technique clean and equally aggressive.
The seventeen-year-old sprang to his feet instantly, his head already up, scanning for options. He drove forward three strides before threading a pass into Reus’s feet, who had drifted left. The Dortmund captain dropped stepped up to collect, creating separation from Aránguiz, allowing him to turn away sharply with a clever feint.
He accelerated five yards, drawing Tapsoba slightly out of position, then dinked a pass over the top into the channel. Haaland had already begun his run, surging diagonally at the perfect time to step ahead of Tah. The Ventran defender tried to get in front of him and apply pressure, but he couldn’t risk a foul in the box.
The limited pressure did little to intimidate the Norwegian, who cushioned the ball forward with his right foot while maintaining his stride. "Erling Haaland!" Drury’s voice rose. "He’s through!"
Hradecky rushed out, narrowing the angle, but Haaland didn’t break stride, going wider, forcing the keeper to adjust. Without hesitation, he fired, aiming for the gap between the keeper and the near post. Hradecky did his best to get in front of the ball, but the power behind the shot left him little chance.
"GOOOOOAL!" Drury bellowed. "ERLING HAALAND! The Norwegian sensation equalises! What composure! What class under pressure!"
[Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1-1 Borussia Dortmund — Erling Haaland 31’]
"That’s the quality we’re talking about, Peter," Beglin said. "Bellingham’s vision to find Reus, Reus’s touch to release Haaland, and then that finish—ice cold from the twenty-year-old. Gareth Southgate will be watching Bellingham very carefully for the Euros, and performances like this won’t hurt his case."
"Indeed, Jim. And you have to wonder what Jogi Löw is thinking watching this match. He’s got decisions to make for Germany’s squad—there are a couple of young talents coming up the German system knocking at the national team door looking for a chance?"
[35’]
The match exploded into life after the equaliser as both sides traded blows like heavyweight boxers, neither willing to cede an inch. In the 35th, Leverkusen surged forward when Rakim collected the ball on the left touchline, immediately sizing up Meunier. More importantly, he was sizing up the space behind the full back as the distance between them narrowed.
The Belgian fullback approached cautiously, unwilling to turn this into a race, fully aware of the winger’s pace. Rakim performed a quick stepover with his right foot, then another with his left, his hips swaying rhythmically. Meunier refused to bite, staying balanced, staying up, waiting for his chance like a hunter stalking his prey.
Rakim didn’t give him the chance, though, as he changed tactics instantly—chopping the ball inside with his right foot, accelerating past Meunier’s left side. The fullback tried to recover, grabbing at Rakim’s shirt, but the winger broke free, his acceleration frightening as he latched onto the ball.
He drove into the box at an angle, drawing Akanji across. Without looking up, he whipped in a low cross with the outside of his right boot toward the penalty spot. The ball sliced along the ground, curving past Akanji’s lunge, speeding into the area where Schick attacked it.
The striker managed to get ahead of Hummels, striking the ball first time, but his connection wasn’t clean. The ball cannoned off the outside of his boot, blasting wide past the near post.
"Patrik Schick!" Beglin exclaimed. "Chance of the game, he is unable to convert, though. Rex created that from nothing!"
[39’]
Sancho collected the ball from Can on the right wing, his first touch delicate, taking him away from Wendell’s challenge. The English winger had been relatively quiet, but he suddenly came alive. He drove at the Brazilian fullback with pace, performing a series of rapid touches—inside, outside, inside—his close control mesmerising to the viewers at home.
Wendell held him off long enough, but when he reached the edge of the box, he lunged in. Sancho seemed to anticipate the tackle, though, and slotted the ball through his open legs. He burst into the box, skipping past the flailing defender as Tapsoba suffocated across.
Sancho didn’t take him on and had already cut the ball back to the edge of the box. Bellingham arrived, like a force of nature, completely unguarded and struck it for the first time with his right foot. The ball cannoned off his foot like a Napoleonic field cannon rising toward the top right corner—
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To be Continued...
