From Arsenal to the Ball God

Martin Kelly felt a sudden lightness, guessing Ma’el’s intention, and quickly moved forward to intercept.

”Bang!”

A collision sound rang out at the sideline of Liverpool’s backfield, as Ma’el stomped the ball on the outside of his body, fiercely clashing with the charging Henderson.

Due to severe exhaustion, Henderson staggered after the collision and before stepping back, he tried to hook the ball from under Ma’el’s feet. Not only did he miss, but he also ended up falling to the ground.

”Pa...”

Ma’el resisted his challenge, then used the sole of his foot to flick the ball towards the sideline, flicking it a distance of about half a meter, perfectly avoiding Martin Kelly’s challenge.

”Boom!”

He then sprinted along the sideline with the ball, seizing the long-awaited chance for a ball-carrying sprint.

Martin Kelly gritted his teeth and turned to chase but after just two steps, felt an unbearable pain in his thigh, tried to run desperately, but lost his balance and was left behind by Ma’el.

The situation changed instantly!

”Oh...!” A faint shout arose from the Arsenal stands, as the fans watched Ma’el sprinting forward, their hearts filled with hope.

”Individual ability!”

In the broadcast room, Zhan Jun couldn’t help but admire, ”Ma’el easily toyed with Henderson and Martin Kelly, dribbling the ball towards Liverpool’s backfield!

”Everyone already knew, recently, the player seems to have gained stronger dribbling skills; he often chooses not just speed and power, but also adds a subtle touch to his moves.

”What is it that he doesn’t have? Is it the lack of headers like Emperor Henry?”

”.....”

”Bang bang bang...!”

On the field, every time Ma’el’s outside foot touched the ball, the ball moved forward four or five meters. He didn’t always push towards the baseline but rather cut towards the center with each dribble.

Liverpool’s defensive line on this side suddenly became chaotic; in structured defensive cooperation, they could dissolve Ma’el’s threat with clever positioning.

But when the opponent breaks through two players and truly starts sprinting, then their numbers are almost just for show.

You’re unmatched in running, unable to catch up... the only thing left is to be the backdrop for Ma’el’s desperate chase while running.

The trailing Gerrard quickly got ahead of the other Liverpool players to catch up with Ma’el, not because his speed was fast, but mainly because he had good willpower and chose a good route.

Moreover, having just scored, his excitement hadn’t faded, making it common to tap into his potential.

Gerrard quickly took a closer line, closing in on Ma’el.

”Boom...boom!”

Ma’el originally intended to push the ball into his pursuit path, block him, forcing him to either commit a foul or slow down.

But Liverpool’s defender awareness was excellent, Skrtel quickly stood in Gerrard’s counter-attack path, starting to retreat, ready to defend against him breaking past Gerrard into a one-on-one.

Ma’el looked at him, his eyes slightly reddened due to the high-intensity sprint, without thinking further, continued taking the ball to the penalty area, letting Gerrard follow by his side.

Upon reaching the penalty line, he suddenly stopped sharply, stepping on the ball.

Gerrard flashed past him, wanting to use his foot to hook the ball from under him, but held back at the last moment, possibly fearing a penalty if he hooked him.

”Boom... Boom...!”

Ma’el quickly reacted, after shaking off Gerrard with a sudden stop, dribbled towards the center, choosing to cut inside.

In others’ eyes, it’s as if he was advancing rhythmically and steadily, cutting in with a balanced dribbling pace.

But in Skrtel’s eyes, it was completely different. Ma’el seemed to pick up speed always during his pauses, forcing him to stop and follow over and over again, until his legs went soft.

”Boom...!”

Ma’el took a big step to the right, seemingly embodying Robben, completing a perfect inside dribble.

”Watch out!!” A voice shouted, as Liverpool’s other defender Glen Johnson moved over for cover, intending to block his shot.

Ma’el made a fake shooting move, easily tricking the attacking full-back’s balance, making him slide in.

But the opponent’s captain, Gerrard, seemed not to have given up. After being left behind, he followed up beside him again.

”Boom!”

Ma’el repeated the move, once again making a fake shot and then sharply tapping the ball forward, bypassing Gerrard from the side.

There’s a change!

He didn’t cut inside this time!

A person-ball split to enter the box!

It was Gerrard’s first encounter with Ma’el; he never expected the player to have such dribbling decisions and footwork continuity in a small area. His anticipation was that Ma’el would continue cutting towards the same side, trying to shake him off.

So, when Ma’el tapped the ball behind him, he stilled like his feet had glue on them, spiraling uncontrollably backward.

”One...Two...Three...Four!! Oh.....!! Gerrard falls too!”

In the live commentary, Reinke as a guest wearing a headset, watching this scene couldn’t help but roar in excitement, even anticipating the result in advance, ”Five!! This is a wonderful Goal....!!”

He simply couldn’t understand why a player, after making such a series of moves, had any reason not to score!

Not far from him, Wenger craned his neck, watching the penalty area expectantly, beside him Henry with his neck equally stretched, also watching there.

”Boom!!”

In the penalty area, Ma’el violently kicked the bottom of the soccer ball with his right foot, like a bullet fired from a cannon, the ball shot towards the goal.

He didn’t add any unnecessary drama this time; he just needed a goal, a crucial away goal to keep their hopes of advancing alive!

”Swish!” Without suspense, the soccer touched the net, making it bulge violently backward, vibrating continuously.

”Yeah...!!” All Arsenal fans stood up from their seats, once again witnessing a phenomenal performance by Ma’el on his own.

Whenever given the chance, this young general, only 18 years old this year, can ruthlessly pierce your heart with a sharp knife.

One to Two!

There’s still a chance!

”Oh...Fuck!” The old gun king Henry tightly gripped his head in disbelief, frowning, wondering what he just witnessed.

Solve the problem alone?

”Did you see that?”

He turned his head to look to the side, at Wenger, saying: ”That was me! That was me once!”

”Haha....” Wenger’s teeth clenched tightly as he smiled; he wanted to say it was hard to see Ma’el as you, though just considering his back, perhaps one could barely agree.

”No.” Henry quickly shook his head too, considering his age, humor wasn’t on his mind in such moments, only genuine thoughts, ”He’s not like me, he’s destined to be better than me.

”Moreover, he resembles a superstar more than I do; it seems like he’s received a lot since birth, and gotten everything from the age of 18!

”What a wonderful goal! Professor! Come, let’s rejoice together!”

As he spoke, he excitedly jumped up, leaping onto Wenger’s back.

”Aahh...!” On the field, Ma’el swung his right arm, running towards the sidelines to celebrate with a knee slide, roaring excitedly, unleashing all the pent-up frustration from the match.

If you don’t play football, it’s hard to understand the challenge of opponents on such a top stage, which might explain why players often release emotions or show frustration after scoring.

Football surely intensifies emotions; sometimes, many things require a lengthy wait.

This wait might be a half, a few matches, half a year, a year, or even seven years!

Sometimes, you strive for long but fail to achieve your desired result; other times, you’ll feel full of energy yet find nowhere to deploy it.

Countless tactical masters devised intricate formations and strategies, numerous top players created barricades, making you uncomfortable playing.

But don’t worry, football also has a simple side, a brilliant goal can release all emotions.

”Boom.....!!”

Ma’el glamorously knee-slid along the sideline, roaring with excitement as the entire Arsenal team rushed towards him.

In the backdrop, Martin Kelly and Henderson were seen shrugging at each other in complaint, Glen Johnson pounding the ground from his fall, and Gerrard with a bitter look glancing over.

Anfield Stadium now bore his mark, as during the team’s low point, he preserved their hope of advancing to the finals!

Ma’el didn’t celebrate for too long, quickly getting up and urging his teammates to take the ball from the goal for a replay, launching another attack on the opposing goal.

....

ps: Apologies for the late update, sent my parents back to their workplace.

Today’s update is 22,000, monthly update 295,000, aim for 54+7*7k (monthly vote master extra updates).