From Arsenal to the Ball God

A sense of security rose in his heart. The combination of these three players in front of the goal must have one of the top three aerial dominance in this European Cup.

”Boom!”

Klich used his left foot to deliver a curved cross towards the center of the penalty area.

There, Ma’el and Benzema seamlessly completed a position swap, disrupting the marking of the two Serbian defenders.

”Boom!!”

Finally, Ma’el leaped up and headed the ball towards the far corner of the goal.

He made the position!

”Snap!” Serbian goalkeeper Burkic responded quickly with a dive, using his forearm to deflect the ball back into the penalty area.

As Ma’el landed, his legs burst with full power in an instant, taking a few strides forward and poking the ball back towards the net!

A follow-up shot!

The Serbian players couldn’t keep up with him, nor were they stronger. The only one that rushed over, Ivanovic, was even knocked down by his shot.

”Swoosh!” The ball went into the net, and this time the goalkeeper was helpless.

One to zero!

Ma’el’s fourth goal for the France team!

”Haha...!”

”Ohlala...!”

The players of the France team ran to Ma’el with smiles, relieved... it seemed this Ma’el was no different from the one at Arsenal.

Ma’el clenched his fist in place, taking a few small steps before throwing a punch into the sky, ”Vamos.....!”

On the sidelines, Deschamps and his assistant exchanged a smile, increasingly eager for the European Cup to arrive.

”Is he stronger than Henry?” he posed a challenging question to his assistant.

”I think he is, but.....” The assistant thought for a moment, speaking from the heart: ”On the national team level, he still needs more goals and honors to prove himself, especially in the main competitions.”

”Henry has the Grand Slam, you know, European Cup, Champions League, World Cup.”

Deschamps nodded in agreement, meanwhile saying: ”No need to say too much, just confirming with you that he’s stronger is enough, because I think so too.

”The France team now has a better forward than Henry. Now, it’s up to this forward to see if he can lead the France team to success like Henry and Zidane did.”

”Shouldn’t it be like Didier Deschamps leading the France team to success?”

”Get lost.”

”Hahaha.....” The two middle-aged men high-fived and looked at the field, unable to hold back their laughter.

After this goal, Serbia in their furious counterattack created many opportunities, showing signs of scoring.

France’s counterattacks were also very sharp, each touch by Ma’el essentially signaled a threatening attack, often sending shudders through Serbia’s defense.

”Boom!”

”Boom!”

Both sides played open and aggressive, waiting to see who could alter the score again.

In the 25th minute, Deschamps substituted Matuidi for Giroud, changing the formation to 4-3-3, pushing Ma’el and Nasri’s positions forward, coming to the winger positions.

Substituting at this time seemed slightly disrespectful, but with only two matches to test lineup and formation, they had no choice but to do this to try out more tactics.

Giroud also understood Deschamps, said nothing more as he went off, calmly sitting down to drink water.

He was well aware of his role, Benzema’s substitute..... at least in this tournament, he couldn’t possibly succeed in taking the main spot.

What he had to do was quietly await his chance, then showcase his abilities when the opportunity arose, hoping to catch the eye of major clubs and seek further development at a big club.

”Boom!”

In the 42nd minute, Nasri delivered an inverted triangle cross from the right wing, and the oncoming Yohan Cabaye pushed the ball towards the far corner to score.

Two to zero!

The France team showed a new outlook, playing very reasonably, and from the spectator’s perspective, this team now carried a reassuring aura.

”Clap, clap.....!” Deschamps joyfully clapped his hands, then instructed the substitute players to warm up.

In the second half, he wanted to change the lineup and test the state of the rotation players.

This was a necessary task, as the European Cup schedule was tight, and every player in every position could face injuries and fatigue, necessitating preparation for super substitutes to take on the heavy responsibilities.

”Boom!”

Four minutes later, unexpectedly, seizing a lapse in the Serbian defense, Nasri sent a diagonal long pass, finding Ma’el who had already burst through the opponent’s backline.

Ma’el used his thigh to control the ball and then nudged it forward with his right foot as quickly as possible, making adjustments without losing much speed.

”Hey!” The Serbian defender nervously raised his hand, glancing towards the assistant referee hoping to see the offside flag raised.

But unfortunately, it was a classic offside-breaking run, and the assistant referee saw it clearly.

Ma’el dribbled all the way into the penalty area, using his right foot to push the ball out to an angle, ready to shoot for the far corner.

”Boom!”

As the goalkeeper decided to attack, he seized the moment to flick his ankle and slammed the ball into the middle.

Burkic had been guessing where Ma’el would shoot, push to the far corner or aim far and hit near, was dumbfounded when the ball was released.

He awkwardly twisted his body, kneeling forward to quickly close his legs, but it was still too late.

”Swoosh!”

The ball went through his legs and into the net.

Three to zero!

”Yeah.....!”

”OI....!!”

The French players ran to Ma’el again, this efficiency was amazing!

Two games, five goals for the national team!

Ma’el smiled with both hands pointing to the sky, then spread his arms to welcome his teammates rushing in for a hug.

Deschamps did say to play conservatively, but missing a one-on-one just felt fake, he couldn’t go against his conscience.