God Of football

Chapter 82: He’s A Real Problem

Izan strode onto the pitch, his presence immediately lifting the energy of his teammates and the Spanish fans. Clad in Spain’s vibrant red and yellow jersey, the number 21 on his back caught the stadium lights.

His hair was damp from the halftime warm-up, coupled with his blue eyes, which was rare for a person of his ethnicity; Izan looked intoxicating, which was shown by how the women in the crowd shouted at him, forgetting he was only a minor.

”Here he is folks. Spain’s wonderkid. Rewriting history in his last match, Izan would like to do the same tonight. A young player known for his agility, intelligence, and flair. With the pressure of facing a formidable German team, we hope to see what he can do.”

The Commentator went about his job, exciting the fans with his words. Spain trailed 1-0, and every move mattered.

Izan, who was looking to position himself in a dangerous place, heard his name. He found Jose Gaya signalling at him to go and take the corner.

Izan nodded and walked to the corner flag, setting the ball down as he waited for the referee’s signal.

Hearing the sound of the referee’s whistle, Izan looked into the box to see if his teammates were ready.

Spotting a target, Izan sent a ball driven with curl to the far post. Ter Stegen, who had his eye on the ball, felt the need to come out, but he also felt uncomfortable doing so as the ball was near, yet still far.

Choosing to stay on his line, ter Stegen watched as the ball streaked past him. The ball went over the heads of a few players who turned to look at who was meeting the ball.

Suddenly, Joselu appeared and lunged himself, leg first towards the ball. In the next scene, the striker was running towards Izan amidst the shouts of the Spain fans as the ball rested at the back of the net.

Luis de la Fuente who had been emotionally down for a while, pumped his fist into the air. The Spanish players followed Joselu as the striker jumped at Izan.

Izan caught Joselu into a hug but he soon fell under the weight of his teammates as many had followed suit.

The chants of the Spanish fans grew louder and louder. Thomas Muller tried to motivate the German boys after they had conceded and it had some ample effect as the faces of the players brightened a bit.

The celebrations of the Spaniards were cut short by the referee who told them to return to their half. The Spanish team followed and went to their position.

”Spain is level here, folks. A delicacy of a cross was sent in by Izan and met by the timely foot of Joselu. His first touch of the game has brought his team level.”

The referee blew his whistle as the game restarted again in the 61st minute. After the Germans restarted, Izan quickly positioned himself, spearheading the midfield as it was his natural habitat.

Germany passed the ball around as they looked to break Spain’s tempo. It showed effect as the intensity of the game slowed down a bit.

This went on for a while as the Spanish defence relaxed. The ball was at the hands of Gündogan by now.

Spotting the gaps in the Spanish defence, he signalled to Leroy Sane to make a run. The winger did so expertly, breaking the offside trap set by Spain’s defence in the process.

Gündogan timed his pass to Leroy Sane’s run as both actions synced. The Bayern Man looked back and saw that he had run ahead of the ball, so he slowed down considerably.

This action didn’t impede him, though, as he dragged his left leg back, caught the ball and went into a running motion.

” A magnificent touch from Leroy Sane as he drives on with the ball. A blend of pace and control and it looks as if he is going on his own”

With his Assassin-like movement, Sane got away from Vasquez, coming into a confrontation with Ayneric Laporte, but the latter was also done in by Sane as he nutmegged the defender.

The German fans rose to their seats as they seemed to be witnessing something spectacular. Le Normand rushed towards Leroy Sane after making sure no player was behind him.

But the winger had already gone for a curler. The ball went on its journey as it flashed past David Raya.

The whole stadium, including the players had turned into onlookers. Some watched on with anticipation while others prayed.

Leroy Sane’s shot hit the post and came back out, but it hit Raya’s back on the way out, sending the ball towards goal.

The crowd looked on once again, waiting for the ball to either be cleared or cross the line. The former happened as Jose Gaya slid behind the ball and sent it outside.

The Spanish players sighed, relieved but they were not out of danger yet as Gaya’s cleared ball fell into the path of Wirtz.

The Midfielder steadied and went through with a shot, but Izan, who had tracked back decently, threw his leg in the way, deflecting the ball over the goal.

The Spanish fans sighed again as the players shook Izan in happiness for his timely block. Rodri called the celebration short and told his teammates to focus.

The corner from Germany didn’t amount to much as it was sent out even before it reached the box.

Raya quickly picked it up and initiated a lightning-fast attack.

A few quick succession of passes brought the ball to Pedri. A couple of German players rushed to try to use their number to their advantage.

Pedri waited for a way out and he got one when Izan approached from behind the two. With a swift leg movement, Pedri sent the between the two.

Izan looked back as the ball was approaching and found Emre Can rushing from behind. With a flick of his heel, Izan sent the ball to his left where Pedri had run into space before following up.

The quick exchange of passes between the duo opened a few gaps in the German formation. Pedri being the clever fox he was, took advantage of this to slip a pass behind the German line.

A few of the players stood still, but Izan rushed towards the ball line. He was on something. The German player who was near Izan quickly recovered and chased after the latter.

As Izan took hold of the ball, he made a quick turn only to find Henrichs in front of him. With a sharp nudge to the left, Izan followed the ball, but so did Henrichs.

Izan, who had an idea, could already see the reels and clips of what was about to happen. Izan dribbled right, then left before running with the ball.

As the defender neared again, Izan used a Ronaldo chop to send the ball the opposite way. Henrichs, who was galloping towards Izan, found it hard to suddenly change directions.

This resulted in him falling as Izan sped away. The gasps and reactions from the fans confirmed what Izan had thought about.

With the ball at his feet, Izan soon came near the penalty box. He came face to face with another player from the opposition team but Izan played it safe this time and rolled the ball to his left before sending a cross inside the box.

Joselu, who had already made his mark, rose to the sky and made contact with the ball, but it looked like it wasn’t enough as Ter Stegen held the ball confidently.

The back and forth was really exciting for the fans as it wasn’t every day that you got to see pure attacking football from both teams.

As Germany resumed play, Izan immediately made his presence known, cutting off passing lanes and pressing high.

Although his defensive starts weren’t high, it was better than most attacking players. Within minutes, he intercepted a loose pass, showcasing his sharp reading of the game.

With a burst of speed, he advanced upfield, weaving past one defender with a feint and skipping past another with a delicate touch.

The crowd erupted as he threaded a perfectly weighted through ball to the striker but Joeslu could only force a save from Germany’s goalkeeper.

The players could feel it. They were getting nearer and nearer to scoring. Izan’s technical brilliance was matched by his relentless work rate.

He was everywhere – dropping deep to collect the ball, orchestrating plays, and then surging forward to join the attack.

His control was sublime, his first touches precise, and his decision-making quick and effective. In one sequence, under pressure from Gündogan and Jonathan Tah, Izan spun away with a clever turn, maintaining possession and drawing a foul, giving Spain a crucial free kick near the centre circle.

The freekick didn’t give fruition to anything good but the fans were elated from the kind of football they were watching.

Izan had been a glimpse into greatness ever since he stepped onto the pitch. The kid was tormenting the German side but Rudi Vőller didn’t know how to restrain him.

He wanted a couple of his players to mark him and roughen him up a little bit but after he saw Izan escape from an encirclement of 3 players with the ball in hand, he gave up.

Doing that also had its disadvantages, as Izan would draw the attention of his players while creating space for him.

As the game progressed, Germany attempted to assert their physical dominance, but the Spanish team remained unfazed.

Izan, who held much of the ball, absorbed tackles with remarkable composure, bouncing back each time.

This resulted a couple of yellow cards being shown to the German side. Spain’s wingers, invigorated by his vision, stretched the German defence, allowing Izan to exploit the spaces in the middle.

With a quick one-two pass with Vasquez, who had come central, Izan created another opening. This time, his curling cross into the box narrowly missed the head of the forward but forced a corner.

Defensively, Izan was just as committed. In one critical moment, Germany’s Wirtz broke through Spain’s defensive line.

Izan sprinted back, closing the gap with determination. With impeccable timing, he slid in to dispossess the forward just outside the penalty area, drawing cheers from the crowd and applause from the coaching staff and his mates.

His ability to transition seamlessly from defence to attack became a cornerstone of Spain’s second-half strategy.

”That kid is a problem,” Muller said as he looked at Gündogan attentively. ”Well, there’s not much we can do about him. Let’s try to see this match to the end without conceding. A draw against a Spanish team like this isn’t that bad” Gündogan replied.

In the 75th minute, Spain earned a free kick about 25 yards from the goal. The Spanish fans who had seen Izan step up were expectant as they had seen firsthand, Izan’s free-kick ability.

His eyes scanned the wall and the goalkeeper’s position as the referee settled things on his end. The stadium fell a bit silent as Izan took a deep breath.

[Pinpoint accuracy, activated ]

Izan watched the goal and steadied himself before delivering a curling shot that arches beautifully towards the top corner.

The ball was destined for the goal, but the German goalkeeper dived at full stretch, barely managing to tip the ball over the bar.

Izan held his head in surprise as it had been a while since someone saved his freekick. It was a moment of brilliance that nearly changed the game.

Despite the scoreline remaining unchanged, Izan refused to relent. In the final minutes, his energy and creativity continue to drive Spain forward.

With the clock ticking down, he embarked on a solo run, dribbling past two defenders before unleashing a powerful strike from the edge of the box.

The shot ricocheted off the post, inches away from a goal. Frustration was etched on his face, but his resolve remained unshaken.

A/n: Another chapter for my lovely reader. Thanks tadaes_ Manzel and beast89 for the gifts to mention a few. Love you all for reading. I’ll try to release another chapter in a while. Have fun