THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
Against Vlerengen

Saturday, 25 May 2013.

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"Vlerenga..*clap*clap*... Avalanche..*clap*clap*... Rosenborg's... BOOO!"

What an unimaginable madness before the match between Vlerenga and Rosenborg that was supposed to start at 18:00 at Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo.

With his mouth agape, Zachary stood near the center circle, watching the passionate and wild Valerenga fans in the stands. Some waved blue flags, others lit firecrackers and threw them behind goal posts, while others sang as loudly as possible. They are a chaotic mix of passion and chaos.

[What happened?]

The question crossed Zachary's mind.

He had previously thought that Rosenborg fans were the most intense and crazy supporters during the game. But right after stepping into Ullevaal Stadium, Valerenga's home ground, he immediately threw that notion out of his mind. That night has shown him how extreme football fans are.

His mind was still in shock after witnessing the madness of some Valerenga fans. Their passion clearly goes far beyond what sane people consider to be reasonable support for their team.

A few minutes earlier, moments before the game started, two Valerenga fans surprised everyone present. They somehow made it through the security and raced onto the field, surprising most of the players. What was even more shocking was that they managed to snatch the Rosenborg flag from the outstretched hands of Mikael— as he was about to complete the exchange with the other captains.

Before the Rosenborg acting captain could react, the two fans had left him in the dust, leaving him in a state of total shock. Mikael Dorsin was left watching them helplessly as they ran across the field— and walked back to the stands, at a speed like the wind. The two men somehow managed to escape the pursuit of the police, who tried to stop them, long enough to throw the flag at their comrades in the stands.

Some Valerenga fans in the stands reacted immediately. They wasted no time in receiving the flag and then set it on fire to make the entire Ullevaal Stadium chaotic.

Traveling Rosenborg fans reacted instantly by throwing various items, including firecrackers, onto the pitch. It was really a—hal madness that Zachary had never experienced.

The referee immediately decided to postpone kick-off as security officers tried to control the chaos. Ten minutes had passed since the flag burning, but the fans had not calmed down. The players had even gathered in their respective sections of the field to wait for the disturbance to pass.

"Do you think there is a chance the match will be postponed?" Zachary asked Mikael Dorsin, the acting captain of Rosenborg, who was doing some stretches beside him. Even though he had just faced an attack from the fans, he did not seem perplexed in the slightest. Mikael behaves as if the incident happened to someone else while continuing to run his business. He acted with composure that suited veteran defender Rosenborg. Zachary could only sigh in admiration as he watched how he handled the incident.

"No," Mikael replied as he shook his head. "I have no doubt that the referee will postpone the match. The fans will be calm after a few minutes, and then we will be able to play. So, make sure you keep your mind sharp—and your body warms up as you wait until the mess passes."

"Oh, okay," said Zachary. "Is it like this every year?" She asked as she began to do her own stretching routine.

"The chaos never escalated to this level during my time with Rosenborg," Mikael replied, switching from a forward bending posture and starting to do some leg lifting. "But the Valerenga fans are always very energetic every time we play them. They always support and encourage their team as if their life depended on it. The intensity of the shouts from the fans can even cause you to make some mistakes.if your head is not fully interested in the game."

"Make me wonder what they would do if their team managed to become champions!" Zachary commented, starting to undergo a routine of swinging the legs.

Zachary continued chatting lightly with Mikael while continuing to stretch. Since he had already warmed up before the scheduled game time, he had only focused on his lower body to stay ready for the action that would start at any time.

The session turned serious a few minutes later. Several other teammates joined them in a training routine while waiting for the fans to calm down. That way, fifteen minutes quickly passed, and order returned to the stadium.

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Inside the away team's technical area, Coach Johansen was feeling a little uneasy when he saw the referee finally blow the whistle, signaling the match started exactly at 18:30. He fears the distractions that occur before kick-off will disrupt the focus of his players. So, he decided to motivate them before they made a mistake that could cost the team.

"Focus and keep your head in the game," he yelled with all his might as soon as he saw Nicki Nielsen, Rosenborg's centre-forward, starting the game with a pass into midfield. "First, concentrate on calmness and ball possession. Play with a fast passing style and do not let the Valerenga players take the ball easily."

Coach Johansen kept yelling at the Rosenborg players until he made sure that all their heads were in the game. He finally relaxed and began to study the formation of the opposing team.

Kjetil Rekdal, Valerenga's trainer, also used a 4-3-3 attacking formation. It was similar to his in every detail. Valerenga fielded four defenders, one holding midfielder, two attacking midfielders, and one centre-— attacker mostly forming a triangle as the game progressed. In addition, he also used high-pressing tactics, most likely in an attempt to pressure Rosenborg into losing possession more quickly. Even in the first four minutes of the game, his attacking players were all around the Rosenborg defenders, running towards them whenever they received the ball in the back line.

Furthermore, coach Valerenga has set up a pressing zone around Zachary and Jonas Svensson, two Rosenborg attacking midfielders. Whenever either of the two had the ball, the two Valerenga midfielders would double down on the team in question— and then successfully stop Rosenborg's attack from the start. What's more, Valerenga played a high defensive line, perhaps to counter Zachary's breakthrough pass to Nicki, who could come at any time.

Coach Johansen immediately decided that his opponent was not an easy person to beat, given his tactical choices. Kjetil almost closed all of Rosenborg's strong points. Coach Johansen anticipated a difficult 90 minutes because of that.

The first fifteen minutes passed quickly as both teams tried to establish their dominance on the pitch. Zachary played well as always. He released left and right passes—ke both wings to start some Rosenborg attacks. When there is no passing option, he coordinates well with other midfielders to help Rosenborg dictate the tempo as the game progresses. Thanks to his incredible vision and passing ability, Rosenborg began to hoard all the ball possession amid growing jeers from Valerenga fans.

However, the match remained deadlocked with a score of 0-0 until the 20th minute, when an unfavorable change occurred. Christian Gamboa, Rosenborg's right-back, made a mistake and lost possession after receiving a pass near the halfway line. It was a simple mistake born from a slight weakness when controlling the ball. But it's very detrimental to Rosenborg.

Diego Calvo, Vlerenga's left winger, pounced on the loose ball before Rosenborg's men could react. Without a pause, he controlled it in the middle of the sprint before continuing his run across the green. He managed to run along the touchline on the left wing for over a dozen yards before defenders Rosenborg could set themselves up into proper defensive form.

Amid rising cheers from home fans, the left winger sent a teasing cross towards Rosenborg's box just as he was about to step into the final third of the pitch.

Mustafa Abdellaoue, Vlerenga's centre-forward, managed to get a cross and gore the ball into the top left corner from around the edge of the box. With that effort, the tall forward managed to beat Lund Hansen, the Rosenborg goalkeeper, to score the first goal.

1:0.

Valerenga IF, pride of Oslo, managed to score and take first blood in the 21st minute. Valerenga's fans were even crazier than before. They jumped in the stands shouting and clapping to celebrate. The goal sent them into a frenzy of wild cheers that shook the entire Ullevaal Stadium to its core.

Coach Johansen sighed, shaking his head as he watched the Valerenga players celebrate their first goal. What he feared had happened. Some of his players are obviously still out of focus, mainly due to the chaos that occurred early in the game. That's why some of them start making amateur mistakes early in the game. So, he decided to take a hard decision and immediately make a substitution to shake them up a bit.

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