From Arsenal to the Ball God

Chapter 310: Chapter 96: Deschamps at the Crossroads of Life! Ma’el Executes a Blitzkrieg! The Massacre Is About to Uncork!

”What a brilliant move, this is the level of a genius! Valbuena tries to chase back and intercept... too aggressive, he’s bypassed directly, Ma’el has skillfully shaken off three players in a row!

”Arriving in the middle, defender Diawara dares not retreat any further, Ma’el had just showcased his ability to shoot from a standstill in the last match.

”He’s coming!!”

On the field, just when many had yet to fully engage in the match, Ma’el cut from the flank to the center and had already stretched his body, swung his left arm, and prepared to strike with his right leg.

”Snap.”

At the moment of the shot, noticing defender Diawara attempting a sliding block, he took another small step to the right.

With improved ball control and rhythm skills, this kind of feigned pass and shot is no problem for him!

”Scratch!” Indeed, Diawara couldn’t hold back his nerves, sliding in for the block. Upon realizing he had been tricked, a look of fear flashed across his face as he quickly got up to catch up.

”Boom!!”

But Ma’el would not give him another chance; he repeated the shooting motion, his body stretching even faster, and his leg swinging with a wider arc.

This time, it’s a real shot!

”Whoosh!” The soccer ball, propelled by Ma’el’s foot, swiftly soared, piercing through the air toward the far corner of the goal.

Due to the shooting angle not being very wide, Ma’el’s dipping shot didn’t have much curve; he prioritized power in the shot.

Goalkeeper Mandanda had explosive power indeed, as seen from Ma’el’s angle, his leap and ascent were very quick, ranking among the fastest lateral-moving goalkeepers he had ever encountered.

If it were a curving ball, the opponent would likely cover the entire goal quickly, punching the ball away from the net.

But with an explosive dipping shot, it’s not as easy to defend, as the speed of the ball is ultimately faster than human speed.

”Swish!” The soccer ball smashed into the top corner decisively, with hardly any spin or slipping into the net, hitting it squarely.

Goal!!

One to zero!

”Ohhh.....!!” The away fans of Arsenal, in an instant, rose from their seats with exclamations, raising their hands in astonishment.

How long has it been since the match started?

The goal is here?

Who could have expected this!

”The ball is in! Just 28 seconds into the match, Ma’el’s goal has put Arsenal Team in the lead!

”This goal came so suddenly! Marseille Team’s defensive strategy was broken immediately!

”Azpilicueta was dumbfounded on the spot, and Benoit slammed the ground; from that position, he should have committed a foul... even if it meant getting a yellow card, Ma’el should not have entered the middle!

”This could very well be one of the fastest goals in this season’s Champions League, enough to be ranked in the top ten in Champions League history!

”Blitzkrieg! Ma’el strikes against the French team Marseille! This is the team from his hometown.”

...

”Clap clap.....!”

On the sideline, Wenger clapped his hands excitedly, the joy on his face seemed to sparkle with brilliance.

The photographer, very skilled at capturing moments, after shooting Wenger’s expression, focused on Deschamps at the far end... without cutting the camera, capturing the stark contrast in reactions between the two coaches on film.

In the blurred foreground of Wenger clapping, far off, Deschamps stood silently like a post, seemingly immobilized by a field of magnetic disillusionment.

”Haha....!” Arsenal’s players erupted in laughter and cheers; some still hadn’t warmed up, hadn’t adjusted their shin guards, and now had to join in the celebration.

”Yes...!”

After scoring, Ma’el ran toward the fan zone on the sidelines, in this lavender-producing island city, he spread his arms and closed his eyes, as if standing in a sea of flowers.

Third goal in the Champions League!

He’s gradually making his mark worldwide, stepping into the home fields of more teams in various countries, leaving traces in many places!

”Wuhu!” Van Persie rushed over and jumped onto his back, Walcott was the second to jump over.

By the time Arteta joined the pile, Ma’el, overwhelmed, collapsed to the ground, laughing and stretching out his limbs, as if sunbathing by the beach.

On the stands not far from them, Marseille fans looked on with complicated expressions, partly expecting from him, yet bitterly disappointed at the defense being broken at the start.

”Umm.....!”

Front row in the stands, a family of five sat there, the older sister holding Eva, covered her mouth to stifle any sound.

They had just met up with Eva and hadn’t yet reacted when Ma’el cut in diagonally right in front, finishing a brilliant world-class goal.

Even they couldn’t help but tremble uncontrollably, so how could Eva endure?

A few Marseille fans sensed something was off and looked over with curiosity.

Clément, with his teeth clenched, turned his head, with an exaggerated expression of grief and shook his head bitterly, barely holding back tears.

It seemed less like a goal conceded and more like a raging fire had just burned down his livelihood..... what could he do? He hadn’t learned acting.

Others seeing his devout sorrow said nothing further and turned their attention elsewhere.

Clément, sighing, turned back, caught his wife’s eye, and couldn’t help but stifle laughter with a quick reaction, clenching his face to hide his exposed teeth, continuing to feign grief.

...

”Beep!”

Once the match resumed, Marseille Team fell into confusion, unsure whether to maintain the deep defensive position for counterattacks or to push forward aggressively.

Before coach Deschamps could make up his mind, they naturally remained undecided.

During this moment of disunity in tactical thought, gaps arose between offense and defense, quickly turning into chaos.

In the 4th minute of the match, seeing the situation getting increasingly chaotic, Deschamps was forced to make an early decision.

He approached the sidelines, gesturing for the players to pull back: ”Regroup! Stabilize the situation first, don’t rush! Think carefully about the pre-match plan, think about how you’ve been defending and attacking!”

He pointed to his head, reminding the players to stay calm; coaching in reality isn’t like playing a video game.

Each player has their own thoughts; it’s impossible to instantly reverse their state... they still need time to think.

”Snap!” However, Arsenal appeared to have the intention of kicking a team while down, seizing the moment before Marseille could regain composure, launching aggressive pressing in the midfield.

In the 6th minute, Arteta’s tackle created a perfect transition from defense to offense.

”Scratch!” Valbuena, somewhat more aware, slid in to halt Rosicky, who received the second ball, taking a yellow card to stop the attack.

Only five minutes later, Alexander Song’s maneuver from around the back forced the opponent forward, Andre Ayew, to pull him down from behind, earning Marseille another yellow card.

In the 14th minute of the match, it was Ma’el, who, catching an opponent midfield error from Benoit, chased back to block with his body, intercepted the ball, and passed it to Arteta at his side.

”Boom!”

This time Marseille had no opportunity to foul, and Arteta sent a curling shot directly into the far post of the goal.

Van Persie had already anticipated this landing point, arriving at the far post to chest the ball down.

Before the soccer ball descended, he leapt into the air first and with a side volley, struck it into the near corner of the goal.

”Aahh...!!” The field once again erupted into chaos, amidst which the Arsenal players had somewhat gone berserk.

Two to zero!

Ma’el raised his right hand and ran toward Van Persie, passing countless bewildered Marseille players en route.

In truth, they possessed no lack of individual ability, strong in organizing both offense and defense, but they had failed to gain the initiative from the start.

Arsenal deliberately added fuel to the fire, creating chaos, aiming to eliminate any uncertainty in the match before their opponent could stabilize.

”Top of the group!”

Van Persie extended one finger, ran a few steps, and slapped the corner flag.

”Two assists!”

Arteta, too, smiled excitedly from the sideline; how long had it been since the start, would he have a chance to complete a hat-trick of assists?

Yet truly, both of these goals weren’t exactly clear-cut opportunities... one was Ma’el scoring through sheer individual ability, the other Van Persie’s.

Following top forwards and racking up assists is highly satisfying!

”Uncorked!”

Ma’el, smiling, ran towards the pair, mimicking an uncorker opening a bottle of beer, signifying a drive for a big win.

One couldn’t blame him for being so ruthless against his hometown team; it was crucial to leave a strong impression on Deschamps..... this would affect his future position in the France team.

....

ps: Adjustments are about to start for a few days, it will be this number henceforth.