THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
Against Zenit C ⁇ I

Technically, Coach Johansen watched his players face Zenit in the quarter-finals. The match turned out to be as difficult as he had expected.

The Zenit players, with their white shirts, have the most compact defence in the tournament. They play in a 4-4-2 formation, with defenders often passing the air ball to the striker, past midfield.

Coach Johansen continued to watch his squad, in blue shirts. He looks for the occasional sign of satisfaction—the characteristics of inexperienced players.

A team is like a machine, with some moving parts. The players should serve as a collective unit. They should complement each other's abilities in the best way they can. A lack of focus on just a few players can drastically disrupt team performance. Coach Johansen can't let that happen. Not in a quarter-final match where defeat would lead to elimination from the tournament.

So, he watched the players, like an eagle eyeing its prey.

Zachary is in perfect condition and in good position— as usual, often running into empty space to receive a pass from his team-mates. Magnus also worked hard, tackling most of the long-range balls that threatened to find their way to the two Zenit strikers. Kendrick is even more focused, keeping an eye on all the threats to his goal.

Overall, the players are very attentive to the ball and focused on the game. They showed no sign of the satisfaction they showed in the second half of the group stage match against Riga.

He's satisfied.

It seems that his gamble to expose his young players to a hard blow against Genoa has paid off. He left Zachary and rjan on the bench for that game, to humble his team and knock them off their high horse.

He has seen a ferocious sense of complacency develop in the team after they beat BK Frem by a score of 6:0. At that point, he decided to extinguish it before it took root in his team and ended his small chance of fighting for the Riga Cup.

The best way to teach his players a lesson is to use their opponents against them. Although he grimaced at every goal Genoa scored in that match, his players have received timely warnings. They played much better against Zenit despite their lack of experience.

"That airball will be our death" Coach Bjorn Peters, his assistant, observed from the side. "Look at how our centre-backs are struggling to keep Zenit's two high strikers. They're under a lot of pressure."

Coach Johansen nodded without taking his eyes off the field. Robin Jatta, one of the NF academy's central defenders, had just made a long pass towards the halfway line. Konstantin Troyanov, Zenit's defensive midfielder, pounced on the ball and made his first clearance without trying to control it. He blew it up into the air, towards the roof of Skonto Indoor Stadium.

Coach Johansen sighed at the spectacle. The Russian team has been playing angrily throughout the game, even getting a wave of ridicule from the fans present. Zenit players will not let the ball fall to the ground, even for a minute. The game has been turned into a clearance view for clearance— by defenders and midfielders from both sides.

Airballs are Zenit's only tactic.

Even when they decided to attack, they still relied heavily on long-range aerial bombardment. Zenit used the tactic, repeatedly sending long passes—seeking forward passes to opportunistic attackers. They seemed to be waiting for luck, bounce or knock-down, close to the goal.

Such lures have extinguished the beautiful and complicated style of passing play—and the coordinated counter-attacks that have become the hallmark of matches in the Riga Cup. The fans booed the Zenit players for every long clearance they made.

Coach Johansen was worried about how the game went. If the players still cannot let the ball calm down and play with a grounded pass, they will most likely lose against Zenit.

"Zachary," he shouted to his captain—who had moved closer to the technical area to survive the throw-in. "Return a little—to the defensive midfield. Play level with Magnus so you can create a 'two-man' defensive midfield'. When you win the ball, try to keep it on the ground for as long as possible."

Coach Johansen relaxed as soon as he saw Zachary giving his thumbs up to show he had received the message. There will be gaps left in the attacking midfield, but he believes Zachary can do something to hamper Zenit's long-ball strategy. He is the player most likely to achieve achievements across the team.

*FREEEE*

Coach Johansen stopped his muse when the referee blew the whistle for Zenit's corner kick.

"Zenit won a lot of corner kicks" he commented as he watched the right winger Zenit head towards the corner flag.

Coach Bjorn sighed. "They were very good at corner kicks. That's how they managed to beat a tough team like Tottenham in their group. They usually first frustrate the team with long balls and finish them off with corner kicks when they get the chance."

Coach Johansen nodded in agreement. He had already read the report on Zenit's tactical strategy. "Yes, they're fine" he said. "But we're lucky to have Zachary. He has handled most of the corner balls. I guess I owe him a clean sheet, so far."

As if to prove his point, the Zenit winger raised one of his hands and inserted a corner kick ball into the NF Academy box. Zachary reads the ball well. He jumped one of Zenit's attackers and headed the ball out of the box—to a safe place.

"The vision of the game is incredible" commented Coach Bjorn after NF Academy players avoided the threat. "It looks like he can predict the trajectory of the ball even before it gets kicked."

*FREEEE*

The referee blew the whistle down while the score was still 0-0. Coach Johansen followed the players into the dressing room and gave them a bit of motivation. He did not change his tactics.

However, he advised his players to try their best to stay focused for the rest of the game. He instructs them on how they can disrupt Zenit—'s long ball strategy by using grounded short passes or counter-attacks. He gave special instructions to Zachary as they walked back onto the pitch.

“We only need to score one goal, and we will have all the advantages,” he told Zachary. "If we score, they will be forced to abandon the long ball strategy to put pressure on us. Once that happens, they will play right in our hands. So, try your best to score."

Zachary nodded—without answering verbally before running into the field. Coach Johansen returned to the bench to watch the second half. He felt a little nervous when he saw his players take their positions. He can't afford to lose. Not in the quarter-finals.

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