THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
chapter-606

The game continued after Barcelona's goal celebrations.

The Catalans were still on fire, even after scoring the second goal. They continued applying pressure on Juventus' defensive set-up with their Tiki-Tiki style while trying to find spaces to exploit all over the field. They were relentless with their attacks while dominating sixty percent of the ball possession.

The Juventus players, on their part, were performing below par. Their tactics were a mess, and they couldn't check the performance of the more driven Barcelona players. The Old Lady players could only hold on for dear life as they waited for half time, the only time they could reorganize.

Regrettably, the old saying held true for Juventus, and bad things came in twos or threes. When everything was going downhill, something worse happened sooner rather than later.

The Juventus players had stuck to their game plan even after conceding the two goals. They had remained compact in midfield and defensive as a whole. They had focused on preventing Barcelona from advancing into forward areas by crowding out those central areas in front of their box.

But the same issue that had caused them to concede the first two goals still impacted them. Their narrow 4-3-1-2 formation, focusing on numerical superiority and compactness in central areas, left a lot of gaps on the flanks. The same problem allowed Barcelona to exploit their lack of wingers and the acres of space in the wings to create another goal-scoring chance during the 39th minute..

Lionel Messi was once again the man who initiated Barcelona's brilliant passage of play. He drifted into the central areas and connected with a pass from Sergio Busquets before working his ball magic.

The little Argentine wonder skillfully skipped past Arturo Vidal before cleverly switching play to the left side of the pitch with a sudden long pass over the middle. He pinged the ball to Jordi Alba on the opposite border of the penalty area, who skillfully exchanged a lightning-fast one-two with Neymar to break into the box from the left side.

The Juventus defenders couldn't scramble back in time and prevent the damage before the Jordi-Neymar quick combination ended with Luis Suárez receiving the ball within the box..

Luis Suárez, on his part, was as composed as ever. He turned and twisted to avail space for himself and force a shooting angle. Then, just as suddenly, he hammered a carpet shot through the defender's legs and found the bottom left corner to score Barcelona's 3rd goal on the night during the 40th minute.

—–

Juventus FC 0 : FC Barcelona 3

—–

The cheers around the stadium hit a crescendo as the information on the jumbotron refreshed to indicate the new score.

The Barcelona fans were already going bonkers as they jubilated like never before. They sang at the top of their voices and hugged each other like the best buddies as their team celebrated the third goal on the field of play. They were having the time of their life as they witnessed their team destroy Juventus, another footballing giant in Europe.

"Well, well," the voice of Steve Bower, the commentator for the night, sounded at that moment. "This is a complete smashing by Barcelona. The Catalans have outmatched Juventus in every aspect of the game, whether in tactics, morale, or individual brilliance. It's only the 40th minute, but they are already leading by three goals to nil. The 2015 UEFA Champions League final might already be theirs."

"True!" Conor McNamara, the other commentator, said. "I expected a tightly contested match. But Juventus has really disappointed me. All the Old Lady players seem to lack the zeal to win the final. They lack creativity and are not doing enough off the ball, an issue that has allowed Barcelona to find spaces in the advanced areas of the field. I don't know what's up with them."

"Massimiliano Allegri's tactics have also been below par," Steve Bower commented. "I can see what he's trying to do. He wants his players to remain compact in the midfield while waiting for opportunities to counterattack. But this is clearly not working. The Barcelona players aren't making many mistakes on the ball, leaving no chances for Juve to exploit and launch their counters."

"Indeed," Conor McNamara agreed. "The only critical mistake that could have resulted in a goal was that of Neymar. That was when the Brazilian winger tried to dribble past Stephan Lichtsteiner during the 16th minute and failed miserably. Juventus capitalized on the mistake and launched a counter, which ended with Tevez on a one-on-one with Ter Stegen, Barcelona's keeper, at the other end of the pitch."

"However, Carlos Tevez missed the God-sent opportunity, allowing Barcelona to launch their own counterattack. That was what resulted in the second goal for Barcelona."

"Well," Steve Bower said. "Those are the issues that come with missing opportunities in a high-stakes football game. The missed chances always come back to bite you."

"Barcelona has been a better side at converting chances. First, they benefited from Juventus' missed opportunity to score the second goal. They have now extended their lead to three goals after a brilliant switch-of-play by the one and only – Lionel Messi allowed Jordi Alba to find Luis Suárez in the box. Suárez, on his part, didn't miss and found the back of the net to score Barcelona's third with only five minutes before halftime."

"Do you think Juventus still has a chance?" Conor McNamara asked. "Can they turn this game around and win the final?"

Steve Bower chuckled. "It will be difficult since they are playing Barcelona, one of the best, if not the ‘very best' European team. But I still think they can if they change a few things."

"One, they must find a way to get Zachary more involved in the game. They must find a way to allow him to play to his strengths. He has been on the defensive, constantly running around his half to block passing routes the entire time. He's not a number six. He's a playmaker — a goal-creator, and I don't think this is where a brilliant number 10 should be. Instead, he should be on the other side of the pitch, running at the Barcelona players and creating goal-scoring chances."

"Two, Max Allegri should introduce Andrea Pirlo and a wide player like Kingsley Coman. By doing that, he will increase his team's prospects of launching counters through Pirlo's long balls while also checking Barcelona's dominance in the wing areas."

"That might not work," Conor McNamara remarked. "But you must understand that Allegri must take off a central midfielder to bring on a winger. That will open up spaces in the central areas for Barcelona's strong midfield to exploit. The switch could work against him."

"True," Steve Bower agreed. "But Max Allegri has got to do something. Right? He doesn't have many options since he's already losing the final by three goals to nil. He has to risk it and take off a midfielder to bring on one more attack-minded winger."

Conor McNamara chuckled and continued with the game commentary. "Well, the game has restarted, and Juventus are on the attack for the first time in what has really been a while. Claudio Marchisio is on the ball. He passes to Arturo Vidal, who in turn finds Carlos Tevez."

"Carlos Tevez on the ball. He turns and plays the ball to Zachary. Zachary has controlled it well. Oh, what an intelligent set of skills. Zachary has skipped past Ivan Rakiti? with a brilliant display of footwork. He plays the ball back to Tevez. Oh, it's a foul!"

"Javier Mascherano, one of Barcelona's center-backs for the day, has taken out Carlos Tevez, his countryman, with a ruthless sliding tackle just a few yards away from the box," the commentary continued. "The referee has shown him a yellow card and awarded Juventus a free-kick in a dangerous area with only two minutes remaining to half time. This could be a chance for Juventus to grab a lifeline for this game."

"Indeed," Steve Bower, the second commentator, agreed. "Juventus have Zachary, one of the most lethal dead-ball specialists in the world. If he can make something out of the free-kick, it could be the beginning of Juventus' comeback in this UEFA Champions League final."

—–

Zachary's heart was beating fast and hard with tension as he took a few steps back after placing the ball on the free-kick spot. He knew what was at stake, so he couldn't seem to contain his anxiety.

If he could find the back of the net and score, his teammates' morale would explode, and Juventus would have a better chance at making a comeback during the second half.

But if he failed to convert, the situation would be different. His team would head into halftime while demoralized, and that could push them to continue performing below par during the second half.

That was how crucial the free-kick was at that point in the game. It could literally decide which team would have the momentum during the second half of the UEFA Champions League final.

‘I must score.' Zachary resolved. He took a deep breath and started observing the situation ahead of him.

The referee had already finished organizing the placement of the wall. Some Barcelona players, including Neymar, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Piqué, Luis Suárez, and Ivan Rakiti?, had already taken their positions in the defensive wall.

But that wasn't the end of Barcelona's defensive arrangements. Andrés Iniesta, the Barcelona captain, had lied down behind the defensive wall to block any avenues of a potential carpet shot below the wall that might threaten his goal.

Lastly, the other Catalans were tightly marking the Juventus players in the box while Ter Stegen, the keeper, was between the posts, watching Zachary like a predator watching its prey.

That was how far Barcelona had gone to ensure Zachary wouldn't convert the free-kick. That was how serious the Catalans were in stopping any chances of Juventus making a comeback. They wanted to crush any hopes of Juventus before seeing their win through during the second half.

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