THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

"Even the commentator calls us underdogs," Kasongo grumbled.

"Don't worry about the commentator," Paul replied, smiling. "Let's just do our part and show the people in this stadium that we're top-dogs, not underdogs."

They were in a rare break on the pitch after celebrating Zachary's goal with the rest of the team. They had a minute or two to rest since the ADO Den Haag coach had opted to make a substitution right after conceding a goal.

"That's right." Kasongo nodded. "Winning this match will shut people up. Maybe our juniors will be regarded as top seeds when they travel here for next year's Riga Cup."

Paul smiled. "That's a nice one. Maybe, our academy is about to welcome a golden age. We're playing in the semis."

Kasongo didn't proceed with the conversation. He listened to the cheers instead and felt like they were the most sublime music in the world. There was a fire in his heart that was missing at the beginning of the match.

Not many academy players had been expecting to reach the semi-finals when they first arrived in Riga. The possible exception was Zachary since he played every single game like a champion. Most players, including Kasongo, had merely come along to gain some experience. They didn't expect to be among the top four contenders for the cup.

They were well aware that they were an inexperienced group, competing with several top academies from around Europe. Even 'simply' qualifying for the quarter-finals would have satisfied them. NF Academy had never made it past the group stages in past sessions of the Riga Cup.

However, on making it to the quarter-finals, some, like Kendrick and Magnus, had begun to believe they could emerge as victors. They'd started preaching to the rest of the squad members, trying to motivate them to work towards the same dream.

The rest of the squad had been receptive to their motivational talks, but most—still had an inferiority complex. They felt that winning against strong teams like Zenit was nothing short of a miracle, impossible to replicate. Losing the game against Genoa had reinforced that complex further.

If Kasongo had to be one hundred percent honest with himself, he would have to admit that he'd been part of that group of self-doubting incompetents. But that had ended during the game against ADO Den Haag.

Zachary's goal had riled him up, bringing to the surface several wild ambitions in the deepest recesses of his mind. For the first time since his arrival in Riga, Kasongo felt a hundred percent confident in his squad. He believed it was capable of winning the cup.

In the meantime, the feeling was fleeting, just a spark of hope, a ray of sunshine yet to be born, but he could feel it nonetheless. Perhaps that was merely optimism, the grasping for possible opportunities in the future. But, he resolved to play at his best and win the tournament to cultivate that feeling.

Kasongo cast a cursory glance towards the touchline and noticed that ADO Den Haag's substitute was ready to come on. "Man, you better go back to your position," he shouted, giving a light push to Paul, preventing him from continuing the conversation. "We need to keep our heads in the game," he added.

"Okay, okay," Paul yelled back as he jogged across the pitch towards the left-wing to take his position.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew his whistle, and the match restarted after the goal and the substitution. ADO Den Haag played with a high tempo right away, switching the ball from wing to wing, seeking to spear into NF Academy's half.

Kasongo noted that their wingers had great pace and dribbling ability. They often dribbled close to the touchline before striving to provide cut-backs or cross the ball into the box so that their strikers could score. They worked together with wing-backs to outflank defenders, posing the greatest threats to Kasongo and his teammates.

As the match progressed, Kasongo noticed that the ADO Den Haag players had shaped-up into the 4-4-2 formation, unlike the 4-3-3 attacking shape they'd utilized in the first quarter of an hour. They dominated the proceedings for the next few minutes, with the wingers and central midfielders showing class whenever they touched the ball.

The substitute, Danny Bakker, a very creative attacking midfielder, boosted their attacking play considerably. He often let loose pin-point passes that homed onto the ever-moving wingers like sniper bullets.

In the 38th minute, Danny Bakker controlled the ball close to the center-circle after receiving a pass from Tyronne Ebuehi—ADO Den Haag's right-back. Without even a pause, he unleashed a lofted defense-splitting pass towards the left-wing, where Calvin Valies was lurking. The switch from central midfield to the wing was so abrupt, leaving the NF Academy defenders momentarily confused.

Those few seconds were enough for Calvin to chest the ball to the ground, uncontested, and bolt through NF Academy's half, relying on his incredible pace.

Kasongo closed down on him right away, trying to intercept the ball and delay the attack. He angled his body to force him towards the touchline, and in so doing, prevent the extremely agile winger from cutting back into the pitch. He committed himself to the defense, trying to create time for the NF Academy defenders to shape up and deal with the incoming attack. Kasongo didn't feel too worried since that was the method they'd been employing to deal with ADO Den Haag's wing attacks throughout the entire match.

However, the ADO Den Haag left-winger didn't dribble as he'd expected. Calvin played a one-two with Robin van der Meer, the left-back, bypassing him on the right-wing before cutting back into the pitch.

By the time Kasongo turned around to give chase, Calvin was already a couple of yards away from him. Kasongo could no longer catch up with the speedy winger.

?yvind Alseth, NF Academy's right-back, also tried to press him for the ball, but his efforts were futile. He had delayed his reaction for a few more seconds than necessary, gifting the winger enough space to cross the ball.

The winger didn't waste the rare opportunity.

Kasongo winced as he watched Calvin Valies dribble towards the box. He then whipped the ball in a circular arc behind NF Academy's defenders.

Calvin's cross was perfectly slotted in, finding Catalin Tira, ADO Den Haag's center-forward, near the post.

Catalin Tira showed excellent brilliance and composure in the box. He planted a spectacular diving header from a very acute angle, almost beating Kendrick to get an equalizer.

However, the goalkeeper was alert and managed to pull off a spectacular acrobatic save. He punched the incoming ball, guiding it over the crossbar. He had saved NF Academy from ADO Den Haag's deadliest attack so far.

Kasongo ran to him and patted his back. "Nice save, man. You really are a Godsend in our goal."

"Enough with the chit-chat," Kendrick scowled at him. "Get ready to defend against the corner. And, stay focused." The keeper seemed to be in an unusually dark mood with only the game on his mind.

Kasongo didn't mind his friend's tone and dutifully marched to the edge of the box. He understood that tensions often grew high in matches, pushing the players into somber moods. Some of his teammates could finish an entire game without bothering to share a few words with others. They only spoke out to request passes, point out others' mistakes, or in a few rare circumstances solely related to the game. Zachary was that type of player, and it seemed Kendrick was slowly following suit.

"Let's defend, let's defend..." His musings were interrupted by Kendrick's bellows, instructing the players to mark each ADO Den Haag player in the box.

NF Academy successfully defended the corner. Robin Jatta, the center-back, out-jumped the other players in the box, heading the corner ball out of play.

The referee pointed to the corner-flag once again.

Tyronne Ebuehi, ADO Den Haag's right-back, moved towards the flag to deliver the corner kick. In the meantime, the players from both teams pushed and shoved their opponents, trying to outwit them. It took several warnings from the referee to put them in order so that the corner kick could proceed without a hustle.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle after he finished organizing the players.

Tyronne Ebuehi sent a long raking pass onto the head of Catalin Tira, who'd somehow gotten away from his mark. The center-forward made no mistake from close in and sent the ball into the bottom right corner.

1:1.

ADO Den Haag had managed to score an equalizer in the 41st minute. The goal couldn't be attributed to a mistake by the NF Academy players. It was 'simply' brilliant play on the part of the center-forward. He had outmaneuvered his opponents to head the ball into the back of the net. The defenders had done their best, but it hadn't been enough.

Kasongo stood with his arms akimbo, watching the ADO Den Haag players celebrate the goal. He couldn't believe that they'd still conceded despite having followed Coach Johansen's game plan to the letter. Kasongo had done the best he could, but his team had still conceded a goal. The cup which had been drawing closer seemed to have moved miles away in a short span of a few minutes.

"It isn't over yet guys..." He heard Zachary yell from somewhere at the edge of the box. "It isn't over yet. We're just back to square one. Let's continue doing our best." The captain went around the box shouting at each of the NF Academy players.

Kasongo smiled, his mood lifting. He hadn't lost the game yet. They could still win if they played well and created more chances.

"Let's go for a win," he shouted, joining the other players who were starting to clap to hype themselves up. The game wasn't over yet. It was just beginning.

**** ****