THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
chapter-266

Coach Johansen was all smiles as he followed the game's progress from Rosenborg's technical area. His mind was at ease since his players had managed to hold on to their two-goal advantage despite a constant barrage of attacks by Red Bull Salzburg. He had reason to hope he could bag the game with a clean sheet. As long as the team defended well and held on for the next ten or so minutes, they would secure the much-needed three points. That would bring them a step closer to achieving the unthinkable goal of qualifying for the next round of the Europa League.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and pointed towards the corner flag at that moment. Sadio Mane, Red Bull Salzburg's winger, had just made another crazy run through the flanks and unleashed another shot at goal from the outside of the 18-yard box. It was another tense moment for Coach Johansen and his players. However, Daniel Örlund, Rosenborg's goalkeeper, was alert and reacted promptly to push the ball out of play with his fingertips for a corner kick.

The Red Bull Salzburg players were in a hurry to restart the game. They quickly organized themselves to attack the corner in a matter of seconds. And without any dilly-dallying, Kevin Kampl, Red Bull Salzburg's right-winger, matched their urgency and floated in a teasing cross into the crowded box.

What followed was another critical moment for Rosenborg. Alan, one of Red Bull Salzburg's two center-forwards, jumped high and planted a header towards the goal from around the penalty spot.

TENSION!!! PRESSURE!!!

The ball flew towards the top right corner like a bullet, thus eliciting another wave of thunderous cheers from the home fans. However, Daniel Örlund, the Rosenborg keeper, was alert once again. He leaped and managed to direct the ball out of play with a heavy punch. Red Bull Salzburg's efforts had been rendered fruitless once again in the 84th minute.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and pointed towards the corner flag again. Kevin Kampl didn't waste any time sending another lofted corner ball into the box. However, that time around, Yerry Mina, Rosenborg's center back, managed to outjump the entire crowd of players within the box to send the ball faraway towards the right flank with an imposing header.

Tobias Mikkelsen, Rosenborg's right-winger, reacted and chased the ball like the wind. He relied on his incredible pace to reach it close to the touchline on the right flank before any other player on the pitch. Without wasting time, he brought it under control with an outstretched boot and then took off like the wind towards the other side of the field.

Another Rosenborg counterattack was on.

Christoph Leitgeb, one of the Red Bull Salzburg midfielders that hadn't participated in the corner kick, soon came to close Tobias down. However, the right-winger fed the ball past him and beat him for pace. He continued darting along the touchline like a bullet train until he managed to make it to the final third in only a matter of seconds. His pace was really extraordinary.

Coach Johansen was on the tip of his toes as he watched Tobias end his run with a grounded pass diagonally towards the box. What a chance! It was another precious opportunity for Rosenborg — one which the coach wanted his players to capitalize on and seal the game.

The goddess of luck seemed to be with Rosenborg that day. Tobias' cross managed to dart across the entire pitch and make its way into the path of Nicki Nielsen, who was arriving at the far post. The ever-reliable center-forward didn't disappoint when it came to matters within the box. He darted forward like the Flash himself and tapped the ball into the back of the net with an outstretched boot.

Red Bull Salzburg 0: Rosenborg BK 3!!

Coach Johansen roared out loud, punching his fist into the air to celebrate the goal. He had achieved the impossible. His team had scored the third goal against a Europa League veteran team in the 87th minute. What a night! He couldn't remember the last time he'd been that excited.

"Guys!" He roared out loud after his players had finished celebrating the goal. "Focus and defend! Let's do our best to prevent the opponents from scoring. Only three minutes plus added time remaining. Defend! Defend and Defend!"

Coach Johansen continued roaring out commands at the pace of a machine gun throughout the remaining few minutes of the game. He ensured that his players stayed in proper defensive shape, enduring Red Bull Salzburg's barrage of attacks. He was determined to maintain his first clean sheet in the Europa League.

A few moments later, Coach Johansen let out a pent-up breath of air after noting that the Rosenborg players were receptive to his commands. They followed his instructions to the letter and defended as if their lives depended on the game. As a result, they managed to hold on to their three-goal advantage until the sound of the final whistle resounded across the Red Bull Arena.

**** ****

After the match, the Rosenborg players and coaches spent the night at the Altstadthotel Amadeus Hotel. Everyone was in a jolly mood after hammering Red Bull Salzburg 3:0 and keeping their hopes of qualifying for the next round alive by gaining their first three points in the Europa League. They thus spent hours celebrating in the hotel bar and went to bed very late that night.

The next day.

The Rosenborg team returned to Trondheim by plane in a triumphant mood. They utilized the entire Friday to recover from match fatigue before diving into serious training again the day after.

Since they'd already won the Tippeligaen and were under no pressure, the training session that Saturday was a light one. The players only went through simple team drills to prepare for their final Tippeligaen match for the season against Lillestrøm Sportsklubb before calling it a day.

Sunday, November 10, 2013.

The Rosenborg players boarded an afternoon Scandinavian Airlines flight at around 1:00 PM and then headed to the city of Lillestrøm. On reaching Lillestrøm, they enjoyed a light meal that served as their lunch before resting for an hour. After that, they traveled by bus to a nearby training ground to put in a few hours of additional training. They spent almost two hours warming up their muscles — and soon it was the time for the match against Lillestrøm Sportsklubb.

For that match, Coach Johansen benched most first-team players. The likes of Zachary, Mike Jensen, Thomas Partey, Nicki Nielsen, and Mikael Dorsin could only watch the clash against Lillestrøm Sportsklubb from the sidelines. Despite that, Rosenborg still started the match with a bang and took the lead very early in the first half. By capitalizing on a mistake made by one of the Lillestrøm SK defenders, John Chibuike, Rosenborg's left forward for that match, netted to give the visitors the lead just after eleven minutes of gameplay.

However, the Rosenborg field players didn't take the foot off the gas even after scoring the first goal. Pushing for a second, John Chibuike came close once again, banging a header on the woodwork, before Jonas Svensson, Rosenborg's midfielder, grazed the post with a free-kick.

Excellence!! Brilliance!! Teamwork!!

The Troll Kids were on fire throughout the entire first half and early stages of the second half. But despite their dominance, they were unable to double their advantage against Lillestrøm Sportsklubb until late in the second half.

Mix Diskerud, Rosenborg's defensive midfielder, was the player that scored the second goal during the 70th minute. With a thunderous effort from outside the 18-yard box, he beat the keeper and fired Rosenborg into a seemingly unassailable position.

However, that wasn't the end of the tantalizing action that day. The proceedings on the pitch grew more exciting and pleasing to the eye after Coach Johansen introduced both Zachary and Nicki Nielsen in the 80th minute.

Zachary, on his part, was on fire right after entering the field of play. He immediately linked well with John Chibuike before unleashing a long-range shot at goal. However, the Lillestrøm keeper was alert and managed to save the effort, keeping the score 0:2 in favor of Rosenborg.

Nonetheless, Zachary was not discouraged by his failure to score. He continued pushing forward and linking up well with Nicki Nielsen until he managed to bag a goal on the counterattack in the 87th minute. With that, he'd taken his season tally to twenty-one goals, cementing his position as top scorer for the Tippeligaen that year.

**** ****