THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

Under the fire of the setting sun, Zachary stood in his position outside the center circle, eagerly awaiting the referee's whistle to kick off the match. He was already in a highly focused state as the longing to kick the ball had already soaked right through his bones. Remaining on the bench for the previous two fixtures had birthed a burning hunger and desire for the game.

As the kick-off time drew closer, his anticipation grew until he could feel the muscles in his legs tingling with excitement. He had long developed an intense urge to wage war with the ball and defeat whoever stood in his way.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee finally gave the go-ahead at 6:00 PM sharp. The match started immediately with Molde's kick-off. Daniel Chima Chukwu, Molde's center forward, immediately kicked the ball back to his teammates in the midfield.

Nicki Nielsen, Rosenborg's center forward, chased after the ball as if his life was on the line, trying to gain possession as quickly as possible. However, Magne Hoseth, Molde's captain and defensive midfielder, controlled the ball with ease and passed it on to Jo Inge Berget before he could make it there.

Zachary sprang into action as soon as he noticed that Jo Inge Berget, Molde's attacking midfielder, was about to receive the ball. Heart thumping fast, he pushed forward like the wind, stepping past the centerline—towards the attacking midfielder at his fastest speed. He intended to follow Coach Johansen's strategy to the letter—by helping his team win possession as soon as possible using counter-pressing tactics.

Jo Inge Berget didn't panic when he noticed Zachary quickly approaching. He even managed to look up briefly to flash Zachary a toothy grin before flicking the ball towards Magnus Eikrem, the other Molde midfielder.

Zachary outright ignored Jo's antics and continued tracking after the ball. His legs pumping like the pistons of an Audi R8 GT, he changed directions immediately—and started bolting towards Magnus Eikrem even before he could receive Jo's pass.

With his high game intelligence, he'd already deduced that he would make it to the midfielder's position before he could manage to control the ball properly. He was intent on winning possession for Rosenborg there and then.

"L?p mot ballen..."

"Skjerm ballen med kroppen..."

Zachary seemed to hear some of the Molde players yelling in Norwegian as he raced towards Magnus. But he ignored them and continued rushing towards the direction the ball was heading like a bullet train on the rails. The desire to win back possession had flickered to life within him, growing into a burning hot fighting spirit that fueled his sprint.

Without any surprise, Zachary made it to Magnus' position in a couple of seconds, just as the defensive midfielder was pushing out a leg to receive the pass from Jo Inge Berget.

Zachary didn't allow the midfielder even a second to bring the ball under control. With his eyes locked on the ball, like a hawk tracking prey, he slid in wholesale to sweep it with a sliding tackle, sending Magnus tumbling to the ground in the process.

"Aaahhh, foul, foul..." Zachary heard Magnus yelling from the ground. But he didn't even cast a single glance towards the Molde defensive midfielder. He was sure he hadn't incurred a foul since he'd caught the ball before sweeping the midfielder off his feet.

So, he picked himself up from the ground with the agility of a cat that had sensed some catnip. Without any delay, he brought the ball under control with a deft touch as he swept his gaze across the pitch, looking for suitable passing options. Since he'd managed to win back possession, he intended to make it count before the Molde players could settle down into the away game's hostile atmosphere.

In a flash, he managed to pick up the position of Nicki Nielsen, who'd long opened himself up, just on the border of the final third, seemingly anticipating a pass from him.

So, Zachary flicked the ball onto his left foot, skipping past a sliding tackle to create a yard of space for himself. Without any dilly-dallying, he dug his boot under the ball, chipping it over the zone of intense rival pressure—towards the Rosenborg number-9.

Zachary's cheeky pass managed to catch the Molde players unawares, giving Nicki Nielsen enough time to control the ball in the final third. With skillful handling befitting the professional center-forward he was, Nicki chested it to the ground and flicked it towards the right flank where Tobias Mikkelsen was lurking.

Tobias controlled it mid-sprint and fed it past Martin Linnes, the Molde left-back, trying to beat him for pace. The Rosenborg right-winger raced after the ball, possibly intending to cut into the pitch and deliver a cross into the box.

But Martin Linnes managed to turn around and retrace his steps quickly enough to slide in and halt Tobias' run before he could penetrate further into Molde's defensive third.

The referee immediately blew the whistle and awarded a free kick to Rosenborg, close to the touchline on the right flank.

"I got the ball," Zachary heard Martin Linnes trying to argue his innocence. "That was clearly not a foul," the Molde left-back argued.

"No, you didn't even make any contact with the ball," the referee replied, showing the Molde left-back a yellow card. "I was right behind you. You caught Tobias on the shin with a high boot instead. That can't go unpunished. You should understand that."

A few more Molde players also arrived at the scene and tried to argue against the referee's decision. But the referee was having none of their nonsense and shooed them away without considering their arguments.

Zachary stayed away from the chaos. He instead picked up the ball to ready himself for the free kick. He couldn't help but wonder why professional players were wasting time disputing a free kick that was very far away from their goal. Instead of protesting the referee's decision, they were better off organizing their defense to ensure that it was in good shape before the set-piece.

[Is their defense in proper shape before the set piece?] Zachary mused, a light bulb going on in his head. He hurriedly looked around the pitch and noticed that most Molde players were still out of position. They were still unprepared to defend against the free-kick.

Zachary could already smell an opportunity as he turned his gaze towards the edge of Molde's box, where Nicki Nielsen, the Rosenborg number-9, was lurking. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he made eye contact with the forward from over twenty-five yards away. In that moment of locking gazes, they managed to understand each other's intent immediately—without a need for words.

So, Zachary sprung into action right away. While trying his best to remain calm and composed, he swept his gaze around the pitch once more to assess the game situation. He immediately noticed that the linesman was attentively watching the position of the free-kick. On the other hand, the Molde players were yet to shape up properly.

So, he hurriedly placed the ball on the ground before raising his leg and unleashing a grounded through-pass towards just the inside of Molde's 18-yard box.

Nicki Nielsen went into action right away on noticing Zachary taking the lightning-fast free-kick. He stepped away from Even Hovland, the Molde center-back, and met the incoming ball on a half-volley with his right boot. He fired home from just inside the 18-yard box and managed to beat the keeper and score Rosenborg's 1st goal for the day in the fourth minute after kick-off.

Zachary first stole a glance at the linesman to see whether the goal was valid or not. A moment later, his smile blossomed into a toothy grin as the linesman's flag stayed down. Even the referee was already pointing to the center spot, indicating that the goal would count. So, he joined Nicki in his celebration as a wave of mad cheering washed over the stands of Lerkendal Stadion.

**** ****