From Arsenal to the Ball God

”Then pass it to me.”

Ma’el patted his chest, and the two were then surrounded by their rushing teammates.

They soon took a 1-goal lead into halftime, but the lead didn’t last long.

Just 5 minutes into the second half, Ruven Roquena’s cross hit Alexander Song’s knee and bounced into Arsenal’s net.

Two to two!

It’s a tie again!

9 minutes later, Blackburn forward Yakubu, who had scored in the first half, got a perfect chance for a counterattack. He received a pass from Nzonzi and went one-on-one with Szczeny.

”Boom!”

Seeing Szczeny’s reckless charge, Yakubu lobbed the ball from outside the box. After bouncing on the ground, it finally landed in the net.

Three to two!

Blackburn is leading!

Wenger quickly replaced Gervinho with Walcott and Alexander Song with Shamakh, switching to an aggressive 4-2-4 formation.

In the 69th minute, Arsenal launched a rapid counterattack, with six midfield and forward players pressing forward.

The one carrying the ball forward was still Ma’el. He had already had two chances today but, for some reason, couldn’t score.

It might be because he was wearing Puma shoes he had never worn before and wasn’t fully accustomed yet.

”Boom boom boom...!”

He dashed up the left flank, quickly surrounded by Real Madrid’s former player Sergado and Samba.

Seeing the open flank, he kept making strides, each faster than the last, stable yet sharp.

Sergado and Samba soon felt the sensation of a slow death. They watched helplessly as Ma’el slowly surged past them, unable to stop him.

When Ma’el cut inside toward the center, the two, unable to stop themselves, collided heavily on the sideline and fell to the ground.

Dane, who came out to block, dared not let Ma’el approach the edge of the arc, attempting to pull Ma’el down outside the box.

Unfortunately, all attempts failed, and he ended up awkwardly sprawling on the ground, biting the dust.

All over the place!

”Boom!!”

Ma’el then curled a dipping shot from the corner of the penalty area, deliberately adding extra force to swing his ankle for more curve to loop past the goalkeeper’s hands.

Blackburn Rovers’ goalkeeper Robinson leaped out, only to fall back to the ground in vain, his hands grasping at thin air.

”Swish!” The ball grazed the right top corner of the net and went in, dazzling and spectacular, leaving the home fans in prolonged silence.

Ma’el didn’t celebrate on the flank but charged into the goal, grabbing the ball and sprinting back to the center circle with a roar.

Three to three!

Ma’el’s 7th goal in the Premier League!

He raced into the breeze, his hair flying away from his forehead, revealing his handsome face.

People could see from the broadcast on the big screen his chiseled and angular features, much like a carved jade with a touch of masculinity from his tanned skin, his physique nearly perfect.

He resembled Italy’s former football icon, Nesta, but with fewer wrinkles.

Many female fans watching tightened their legs, a peculiar feeling rushing through their hearts, thumping wildly.

But unfortunately, the match ended with a score of three to three.

Scoring one goal, providing one assist, and delivering three threatening passes, Ma’el was named Man of the Match, his second time this season.

In an interview, he recalled a previous interview quote and shook his head, ”Like I said, we might trip over a pebble... perhaps it’s not stumbling, just a small stumble, and we keep going.

”No disrespect to Blackburn Rovers, just saying we are supposed to be the stronger side, should have won, but were blocked by their better form.

”It’s okay, three wins and two draws in five games, unbeaten, with eleven points, holding fourth place, still steady in the standings.

”We’ll aim for a higher ranking... now, I need to prepare for the Champions League.”

He waved to the reporters, leaving Blackburn’s home stadium and boarding the team coach for the return journey.

The atmosphere on the bus was somewhat silent; Ma’el didn’t chat with others, retracting his optimistic demeanor shown to the media.

Drawing with Blackburn is certainly different from drawing with Manchester United.

He has to properly adapt to the new shoes and the feeling of setbacks in the Premier League schedule; he needs to maintain composure... only then won’t he surrender rapidly when facing difficulties.

Stay resilient, continue to strive for the championship throne!

...

”Ma’el wearing new shoes, rumors say the player has reached a sponsorship deal with Puma, soon to be announced?” — The Sun

”Arsenal is about to face the new season’s first round of the Champions League, playing away against Dortmund. Besides the clash between Van Persie and Lewandowski, will this also be a battle of prodigies between Ma’el and Götze?” — BBC’s Champions League column

”Golden Boy contest? Ma’el is about to face popular Golden Boy Götze in his Champions League debut!” — Germany’s ”Football Flash News”

Returning home at night, Ma’el saw many reports about him on social media, mostly related to Puma or the Golden Boy Award.

Of course, there was also praise for his consecutive goals... but he’d seen such reports so much that he wouldn’t pay much attention anymore.

Most of the time, he would just skip through, unless it was a report questioning him, he’d take a closer look.

Now he’s no longer the newcomer to the Premier League; with elevated goals, ordinary compliments are unlikely to excite him much.

Only when he achieves his goals, seeing overwhelming reports about his significant moments online, will he be joyfully satisfied for several days.

”Puma is paving the way.”

He put down his phone, thinking, ”It seems Puma never had a Mr. Golden Ball winner; if future cooperation goes smoothly, when I have a chance at the Golden Ball, maybe they’ll go all out to create buzz.”

However... the best way is when he’s truly ready, achieving unmatched strength way above everyone else’s, winning that year’s Golden Ball without suspense!

”Golden Boy Award is also being prepped.”

He thought of the upcoming match against Dortmund, the head-on clash with Götze, raising a few expectations for this award in his heart.

Since his ultimate goal is a Grand Slam, the Golden Boy Award is naturally the first step in significant personal honors.

Moreover, Puma rates this award at a £1 million bonus.

As long as he wins, his endorsement fee with Puma this year will directly rise to £1.85 million, starting from £1.85 million next year in cumulative endorsement fees.

”Gotta strive to blow them away.”

Ma’el cheered himself on; he had already amassed decent stats in the Premier League; if he could outshine Götze in the Champions League, the Golden Boy Award should be a lock.

Thinking no more, he drank some skimmed yogurt and went upstairs to rest.

Starting the next day, Ma’el slowed down his training rhythm, spending more time rejuvenating and getting massages and therapy.

Safina and Harry’s workload increased; a personal team must flexibly adapt to the player’s schedule, adding extra work or resting accordingly.

The league will start again on the 17th, leaving only two days of rest in between.

Ma’el needs to make good use of the time to strive for his body to reach an optimal state!