THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
First Game In The Cage
As Emily walked into the Lerkendal Stadium stands Wednesday night, her brain stuttered for a moment, every part of her pausing. The momentum of the Rosenborg fans around him was astounding. They had gone crazy, singing various Rosenborg songs as they waited for the match against Tromso Idrettslag to begin. He was quite amazed by the passion that was exhibited.
"This game seems to be quite exciting, already" Ryan Bellmore, his race car driver's friend, shouted from the side, trying to make himself hear the noise. "Although the stadium is rather small, the atmosphere can match that of White Hart Lane for several days of less popular matches."
"I told you," replied Emily, pushing past some fans and heading further into the stands. "Norwegian fans are very excited. There's no way we've failed to enjoy the game in this kind of atmosphere."
"That's unless Rosenborg loses." Ryan laughed as they began to climb up the stairs and towards the seat in the middle.
"That's not going to happen," said Emily, her voice full of confidence. "You must have seen my client's video from the previous game. If he starts, there's almost no chance for Rosenborg to lose."
"You trust him a lot" Ryan said, beaming. "But I'm surprised you allowed him to stay in the Norwegian league if he's talented."
"That was her choice" replied Emily. "There's nothing I can do about it without going against his will behind it. It goes against my work ethic as an agent. Where's the rest, by the way?" He asked, changing the subject.
"They should have been in the stadium" Ryan replied. "Let's find our seats first. We'll call them."
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In the dressing room of the home team of Lerkendal Stadium, Coach Johansen discussed the main points of the game plan for the umpteenth time that night.
"With all means," he said, sweeping his gaze across the room. "Let's do our best to keep a clean sheet during this game. We have conceded a lot of goals over the last few games. That is totally unacceptable for a team of our caliber. So, defenders and midfielders, please, try our best to close all the spaces in our defensive third when we don't have the ball. Are we together?"
"Yes, coach."
"Jonas and Mike" continued Coach, turning towards the two. "You two are our double shafts — defensive midfielders. Please do your best to protect our four defenders from their attacking midfielders, especially from the high balls coming in. Don't let their attacking midfielders, especially Thomas Bendiksen, near our box."
“We also need to dominate possession and hold the ball for as long as possible so we can create more chances. When we don't have the ball, we will use high pressing tactics to recapture it quickly before Tromso can manage to attack us. Are we together?"
"Yes, coach."
"Zachary," he said, turning his gaze toward him. "In this game, their defensive midfielders tend to target you both in the middle and the attacking third of the field of play. Don't panic when it happens. Keep playing at your own pace—even if you don't touch the ball. Remember that attracting the attention of their defensive midfielders is your goal. Leave the rest to your teammates. Are we clear?"
"Yes, coach," Zachary replied earnestly.
"All right then." Coach Johansen nodded, smiling. “For the rest of you, you should all know what to do. Play with confidence, keep it simple, and make no mistakes. If you follow the game plan, I'm sure we'll win this game without rushing. Any questions ?"
All the players, including Zachary, remained silent because everything the coach said was very clear. The coach had discussed the game plan for the previous three days. So, the players had long crammed every single piece of it and could probably read it in their sleep. They do not have to ask questions and remain silent. Zachary, for his part, began tightening his shoelaces and then pulled out his stockings to prepare for his first home game in Rosenborg's white and black. He was eager to start the game and hoped the coach would end his speech soon.
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In the meantime, Mr. Agnar Christensen, the head coach of Troms Idrettslag, also ended his speech before the match in the visitors' dressing room.
“If my prediction is correct,” he said with a smile to his players. "Rosenborg will most likely use their new son, Zachary, as their attacking midfielder, while Mike Jensen and Jonas will play in defensive midfield."
“Using three midfielders, they will try to dominate us with a quick pass in midfield while switching to a wing game a few times during the game. They will also try their best to disrupt our defensive form by maintaining possession. That way, they can find a way to break through a third of our defenses if we lose our stability. Anyway, we don't have to play according to their tone." He stopped, sweeping his gaze across his players.
"We don't have to dance to their rhythm" the coach continued, grinning. "That's why we're going to use our second game plan. Instead of man-marking, we will use zonal marking against their players. When there are Rosenborg players in possession of the ball, we will use one of us to close it down, while the rest will quickly close the space around a given player. When shifting and pressing, we must remain stable and prevent opening holes in our midfield. That way, Rosenborg will have trouble breaking through one-third of our defense. Are we together, my children?"
"Yes, coach."
"And for Zachary Bemba, the new boy," the Troms coach continued.
"Because he performed so well in the previous game, my friend—Coach Johansen most likely thought that we would target that boy in today's game. But who are we?"
"We Troms, the boys from the North," all players shouted in unison, their singing echoing in the changing room like thunder.
Coach Agnar Christensen shrugged strangely, her eyes wrinkled behind her glasses. "Yes, we're Tromso, boys from the North," he said, his voice shrinking. "We did what our opponents least expected us to do. So, we're just going to use Ruben to keep the kid under control. There's no need to control him tight because I don't believe he's good at dribbling. on the ball, we have to mark all the players, space and pass routes to our defensive third."
"We must not let a Rosenborg player remain unguarded near our box when Zachary had the ball. Otherwise, we will get a lot of trouble from his passes splitting the defence. Are we together, as defenders and defensive midfielders?"
"Yes, coach."
The coach smiled and was about to resume—but suddenly, there was a knock on the door. One of the match officials went into the dressing room and said: "Coach, it's time. I hope you're ready."
Coach Christensen smiled at the match officials, first glancing at his watch before replying. "Sorry, we'll be out in a few seconds. As you can see, we're more than ready."
"Good, but please hurry, please" said the match official while still smiling politely. "As you can see, it's seven in 12 minutes. We're too late." He added before exiting the dressing room.
"OK, kids," said Coach Christensen, his voice turning serious. “I'm sure I've said everything that can be said about how we'll approach the game. The rest will be up to you as a player. When out there, use your brain, mark space, and we'll leave Trondheim with three points in the bag. Are we together?"
"Yes, coach."
"Okay, go" said the coach. "Go away. We don't want to keep match officials waiting. Really true?"
The players laughed at that and started coming out of the dressing room.
**** ****
When Zachary stepped onto the field, the voice from the stands completely engulfed him, seizing his brain and making logical thinking or deduction impossible for a moment. He was at a loss for words while observing the chaos in the stands of Lerkendal Stadium.
"Shalalalalala. oh Rosenborg, Shalalalalalala. oh Rosenborg, Shalalalalalala..."
As Zachary walked onto the pitch, he could clearly see the chorus of loud cheers that had long echoed in the stands of spectators in the stadium. Sometimes, it would turn into a wave of crazy excitement that engulfed the entire audience as the fans sang with all their might while clapping. Their energy levels were something else - like they were high on some strange medicine. They seem more eager for the game when compared to the players themselves.
"Brothers?" Mikael Dorsin asked from the side as they lined up in front of the tunnel, preparing to begin the pre-match team handshake.
"Not at all" Zachary answered honestly. "I'm pretty excited, instead."
"That's great" said the veteran defender, his eyes still on the crowd in the stands. "Don't worry about the fans and play your own game. I'm sure you'll do great once again."
"Okay, thank you for your advice," Zachary replied as he nodded.
Moments later, the players of both clubs did a team handshake and immediately took their respective positions on the field. The Tippeligaen match between Rosenborg Ballklub and Tromso Idrettslag will begin at Lerkendal Stadium in Trondheim.
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