THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
chapter-335

Emily was still in Zurich, helping Zachary organize his grandma's post-surgery treatment. So, she could only watch the Juventus versus Rosenborg match on the big screen within one of the hospital's many relaxation lounges.

Be that as it may, she wasn't too bored since she had company. With her was Zachary's aunt - Marie, the humorous Ryan Bellmore, the analytical Dr. Brian Sanders, and a group of roughly fifteen more medical personnel working the night shift that day.

"So, what do you think, Emily?" Ryan Bellmore suddenly whispered from beside her. "Do you believe that Zachary can push his worries about his grandma to the back of his mind and perform like usual?"

"He can, and he will," Emily replied confidently, her eyes never leaving the screen. "Zachary is a player who loves football with all his heart. So, he always seems to forget everything else whenever he steps onto the pitch for an official game. I believe he will be able to do the same during this match."

"I see," Ryan Bellmore nodded. "So, what do you think are Rosenborg's chances of winning this game? Be honest, and tell me what you think?"

"Well," Emily replied, sighing. "On paper, the Juventus squad is far more solid and a hell-lot more versatile. So, their chances of winning should be over 95%. However, we can't count Rosenborg out as there's still Zachary and the group of other impressive young players around him. The likes of Takumi Minamino, Thomas Partey, and Nicki Nielsen can all rise to the occasion. If they handle the match well, maybe, they might win. We have to wait and see."

Emily was being practical. But on the inside, she really hoped and yearned for Rosenborg to win that game, especially by relying on Zachary.

As a football agent, she had long understood that crucial matches, especially against big teams, were the best platforms for marketing budding football players. If a young footballer could go against a giant like Juventus and put up an incredible performance, his name would immediately sink deep and root itself within the minds of the entire football community around the globe. On the other hand, if the player couldn't rise to the occasion and play like usual against the much stronger opponent, then the rest of the world would never bother to remember his name. It was that simple.

So, Emily really hoped that Zachary would be the incredible version of a young player against Juventus that night. She wished to see him putting up a phenomenal performance that could dazzle the European Football community. That way, he could finally establish himself as a world-class player and pave the way for his future.

At that moment, the catchy Europa League anthem's tune sounded from the TV speakers, attracting Emily's attention once again. Like a spark igniting and blooming into a fire, the music immediately induced waves of excitement and anxiety within her mind.

"It's beginning," Ryan said excitedly.

Emily didn't reply but kept her gaze focused on the live broadcast of the match. The next moment, she smiled as she saw the match officials and players stepping onto the pitch and causing an explosion of cheers within the stadium. Her feelings couldn't help but fluctuate slightly when the camera zeroed in on Zachary, who was at the end of Rosenborg's line of players. He looked so imposing with his afro hairstyle that matched his tall physique.

"Zachary looks sharper in his new shirt number eight," Ryan, the self-appointed in-house commentator, suddenly remarked. "It's way better than that number-33 of his."

Emily smiled but chose not to respond. Her gaze was still on the screen as the players quickly lined up and exchanged the customary handshakes. Before long, they started taking their positions and what followed was the coin toss ceremony.

Per FIFA rules, the captains of the two teams had to partake in the coin toss ceremony under the supervision of the head referee before each game. The captain that won the coin flip would select the goal his team would play towards during the first half. On the other hand, the losing captain's team would get the opening kick-off.

It seemed that that time around, Gianluigi Buffon, the Juventus captain, won the coin toss since Rosenborg got the opportunity to kick off the game in the first half.

"Welcome to the live broadcast of this Europa League match between Juventus and Rosenborg," the commentator's mellifluous voice suddenly sounded from the TV speakers.

"As usual, Juventus are in their striped black and white jersey, while Rosenborg players are in their all-black away kits today. Both teams were impressive during the last stage of the Europa League."

"Juventus overwhelmed Trabzonspor with a 4:0 aggregate score, while Rosenborg barely edged past Fiorentina, the other Italian outfit, with an aggregate score of 3:2 to qualify for this round," the commentator continued, his voice smooth and fast-flowing. "And today night, the two teams will finally commence their battle for a spot in this season's Europa League quarter-finals. Will it be the mighty Juventus that comes out on top after this first leg? Or will Rosenborg, the underrated Norwegian team, shock Italy again? To find out the answer, stay tuned to ESPN. We'll be back shortly after the break."

After the ten-second break, the commentators utilized the few seconds before kick-off to introduce and analyze the team line-ups and formations. Antonio Conte, the Juventus coach, had fielded a 3-5-2 formation, seemingly with the intent to attack from the first minute. In goal for the Italian giants was the ever-reliable captain of the side - Gianluigi Buffon, while their defense comprised the three players - Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini, and Martín Cáceres. In their midfield were the five players - Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Claudio Marchisio, Mauricio Isla, and Kwadwo Asamoah. And lastly, on their striking were the two phenomenal players - Carlos Tévez and Daniel Osvaldo.

As for Rosenborg, they'd fielded a 4-5-1 formation, with a line-up almost similar to the one that faced off against Fiorentina in Florence two weeks ago. Daniel Örlund was in goal, while the defense comprised the four players - Mikael Dorsin, Tore Reginiussen, Yerry Mina, and Eric Bailly. Then, the five players - Thomas Partey, Zachary Bemba, Takumi Minamino, Tobias Mikkelsen, and Alexander Söderlund made up the midfield. And finally, on striking was the ever-reliable Nicki Nielsen.

Emily felt her unease grow after comparing the two line-ups. Once again, she had gotten to comprehend the fact that the two teams were entirely on different levels. Comparing the two teams was like pitting the strength of an elephant against the might of an ant. But she still hadn't lost faith as an ant could still put up a fight if it could manage to sink its sharp teeth into the elephant's delicate parts. So, it all depended on how the Rosenborg coach handled the game to exploit Juventus' few weaknesses.

**** ****

Zachary stood right outside the center circle, waiting for the referee to blow the kick-off whistle. His blood was already boiling with excitement as he could hardly wait for the game to begin.

Be that as it may, his mind was abnormally calm since he'd unexpectedly entered into the 'zone' mental state even before the game could begin. As a result, his senses were already super hyper. He could even make out the minute movements of each player around him, even without focusing hard.

*FWEEEEEEE*

Suddenly, the referee's whistle, signaling for the match to begin, sounded. Nicki Nielsen, Rosenborg's only center-forward, immediately flicked the ball to Zachary to kick start the Europa League's first leg clash between Juventus and Rosenborg.

Zachary received the ball right outside the center circle before turning around and flicking it towards Takumi Minamino, one of his counterparts in midfield.

Takumi also handled the ball with a sense of urgency and didn't dawdle. After a single touch, he flicked it towards Tobias Mikkelsen, Rosenborg's right-winger.

Tobias seemed eager to impress, especially since it was his first time making it into the squad in the new year. So, he exploded forth with speed along the right flank, smoothly skipping past Kwadwo Asamoah, Juventus' left midfielder. Before any opponents could close him down, he flicked the ball back to Takumi, the Rosenborg midfielder running in sync with him through the middle.

Takumi once again took a single touch before threading the ball to Zachary, who was, at that moment, already deep into the other half. And as a pleasant surprise, the pass was spot on, making it into Zachary's sprinting path before the opponents could surround him.

It was an opportune moment as Zachary's super hyper senses picked up the rare moment of laxity within the ranks of the Juventus side while receiving the ball. So, he immediately decided to take a gamble, especially since the theme of the first fifteen minutes was to attack boldly.

"Here goes nothing!"

Within anything but an instant, his S-graded agility exploded forth as he sprinted towards Juventus' box like mad. He was soon dribbling the ball through the middle, meandering past a couple of half-hearted challenges from the opponents.

However, he couldn't continue sprinting and breaking through the Juventus line-up with ease as if they didn't exist. Just as he was stepping past the boundary into the final third, he ran into the most-challenging roadblock in the form of Arturo Vidal - the midfielder dubbed La Piranha by the Italian press for his hard-tackling and aggressive, tenacious style of play.

But Zachary only slowed down a little to draw in the opponent. He didn't panic as his keen eyes kept on observing and drawing assessments from each and every minute movement made by the approaching opponent.

Then, just suddenly, Zachary stepped over the ball once, and Arturo, himself, reacted by leaning towards the right by a slight margin. The next second, Zachary executed another step-over, forcing the opponent to respond by shifting his center of gravity towards the left. And that was all the opportunity that Zachary needed.

He accelerated to his top speed and broke past the tenacious midfielder like the wind from the right. The next second, his long strides were again eating up yards of space like there was no tomorrow. It was then that he noticed the shooting angle opening up slightly. And, of course, he couldn't miss the opportunity.

Heart beating fast and hard with anticipation, he drew his leg all the way back like a bowstring, intending to smash the ball towards the goal. But the next moment, a shudder went through his entire being as he noticed a leg stretching out and blocking his shooting angle. That time around, Leonardo Bonucci, one of the Juventus center backs, was the player who'd closed him down.

"Whatever!"

Zachary decided within an instant to continue taking the shot. So, he mercilessly swung his leg hard and fast and smacked the ball with all his strength using the top of his boot. And as expected, the ball took a deflection off the defender's boot, causing an additional pang of anxiety to assault Zachary's psyche.

However, the next moment, his mood took a turn for the better as he realized that the deflection hadn't managed to change the ball's trajectory by a significant margin. Instead, it had added an additional spin and more height to the curling shot, forcing the ball to veer towards the far top right corner like a fast-spinning top. Before the Juventus keeper could react, it had already homed in fast into the back of the net.

SILENCE!

A wave of silence descended across the entire Juventus Stadium as both players and fans couldn't come to terms with what had just transpired. Most remained dazed for seconds as their minds tried to comprehend the second-minute shocker. However, all that had nothing to do with Zachary as he was already rushing towards the corner flag to celebrate Rosenborg's first goal.