General pov
And there was even an interview with Dick after the game, as he was named man of the match and scored the game-winning goal. David Craig, a reporter for Sky Sports, was the one interviewing Dick, and his first question was
"Richard, you're just 16, bleeding, tapped up… and yet you took that penalty and won the game for Brighton. Making History for the club, can you even put that into words?"
Dick gave a chuckle, but you could see the exhaustion leaking off of him. He then said
"I don't know if I can put it into words. My leg was killing me, but I wasn't going to walk away. The team needed me, the fans were behind me… I had to take it. And when it went in, I felt like everything was worth it."
David nodded and said
"We could see the tears in your eyes after the foul. Were you afraid it was over for you tonight? I mean, it was a heavy foul"
Dick grimaced before saying.
"Yeah… for a second I thought that maybe I would be injured. I thought I'd let everyone down. But the physios worked fast, the gaffer trusted me, and I told myself, 'ten more minutes — that's all I need.' It also helps that I have very flexible joints; without it, I most likely wouldn't have seen the pitch for a long time"
David nodded his head in agreement before asking his last question.
"The fans gave you a standing ovation when you came back on, and again when you were subbed off. How much does that mean to you?"
Dick gave a tired smile before saying.
"Everything. Absolutely everything. I'm young, I'm still learning, and I can admit that easily, but when you hear that noise, thousands of people singing your name… it gives you strength. That penalty wasn't just me, it was all of us — the team, the fans, everyone."
"Dick, thank you for your time"
"Thank you for the questions, have a good night"
After the interview, Dick continued to the examination room, where they gave him some more in-depth tests. Thankfully, he wasn't too badly injured; he only had a minor bruising of his knee, but that was a very minor injury compared to the blow it came from. However, it was recommended that he rest for the next game. Brighton were far on top of the league anyway, so it didn't matter too much.
—-------------------------
The Next Day
"Brighton wonderkid leads them to a historical achievement, while injured"
"Grayson's Grit: Teen Sensation Scores Through Pain to Fire Brighton into EFL Cup Quarters"
"Brighton Beat Premier League Team Southampton To Make History"
The articles poured in after the game; everyone was hyping Dick up like crazy, calling him the next big thing and making him feel like he was on cloud nine. The comments also poured in, all of them from excited fans.
@Seagullfan: This lad really said 'injury time' and scored anyway
@Champions: He's 16 and just played through blood and pain to win it for Brighton. Different breed
@Big_brain2000: Great game, but Brighton risked his career letting him play on. He's 16, not Superman.
@dantheman: *close-up image of the injured leg* Yeah, sorry, but Quarshie was trying to kill Grayson, that was a murder attempt
@BRIGHTONSWINNING: With the run we are on, we will win both the championship and the EFL cup, all thanks to that 16 year old!
The comments and articles were plenty, almost all of them were positive but currently Dick just lay in bed, Riley sleeping on his chest and he was dead tired. His left leg had a dull throbbing pain to it, and the scratches that went down his leg from the studs stung a bit. He lay quietly on his bed, just resting silently, when his dad walked in and gave him a protein shake. The team had suggested he try to build slightly more lean muscle, as he was just a bit skinny now. Dick chugged his drink and then thought.
'Time to grind'
—---------------------------------------------------------
A month had passed, and with it came 4 matches. The first game, matchday 14, was against Bristol City, which they tied 1-1. Bristol got a lucky penalty in the last 10 minutes of the game, which they managed to convert into a goal. Dick was, of course, sitting on the bench the entire game, just watching the game and taking in the tie. The second game was against Cardiff, which they won 2-0. Dick started off on the bench as Hughton wanted to slowly start adding him back into the games due to the "injury" he had. Still, he managed to score once from a lucky header thanks to a corner.
The third game was against Aston villa which they actually lost 2-3, the game ended their unbeaten streak, and it helped them expose some of their weaknesses. Dick assisted 2 in the first half and was then taken off at halftime when the score was 2-1. Then in the second half, Aston Villa took off and scored 2 goals before locking down their defence.
The last game was against Fulham, and they won 2-0 with Dick scoring both goals. One was a header from a corner, and the other was a screamer volley from outside the box with the outside of his foot. He was taken off at the 60th minute as Hughton wanted him rested for their next game against West Ham in the EFL cup.
Then there was the third FIFA World Cup qualifier for Italy, and it was against Liechtenstein. Dick, of course, went to the game in Lichtenstein and managed to score 2 goals before being subbed off. Italy won the game 4-0, helping them solidify their lead over Spain, who remained 3 points behind Italy.
Another thing that happened was that Dick won the player of the month for October, and he still led the goal scorers chart for both the championship and the EFL. 22 goals in 17 league matches, and 6 goals in 4 EFL games, plus he has 8 assists in the league and 1 in the EFL. He was making history and destroying the competition. He was like 7 goals clear of the other goal scorers. But no one cared about the statistics at this moment; no, they were all focused on the West Ham game that was happening tonight, and the fans were going crazy.
—--------------------------------------------------------------------
Nov 29: London Stadium, West Ham vs Brighton.
*inhale*
*exhale*
Dick opened his eyes in the tunnel, having just centred himself, trying his best to get ready for this game. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't nervous; it was a big game and one that he had been getting ready for like crazy. He looked down at the kid who was walking out with him and saw two green eyes staring up at him in awe. Dick smiled and gave the kid a wink, who burst into a smile.
Dick laughed before locking in when the referee walked them out to the pitch. Dick saw the bubbles flying about and heard the chanting of the home crowd going crazy. He ignored it, like it was water off a duck's back, and instead started reviewing game plans and tactics in his head.
After all the formalities were done, the game began.
*TWEEEEEEEEET*
Dick sent the ball back, before running up, just to try and split apart the West Ham formation. It was then that he noticed that 3 West Ham players were sticking to him like white on rice. He looked around, tried moving up and down the pitch, but he just saw that he was being marked like crazy, so all he could do was sigh and realise that this was an even tougher game than he expected.
Minutes passed, and with it, game chances for both sides. Dick led Brighton up a couple of times, having dropped deep in his own half for the ball and then running up the pitch, passing the ball around with Murray, and more, but sadly, nothing came from it, with Dick once being ridiculously close but hitting the post. West Ham also had some chances, but they had the same problem of not being able to finish. But that quickly changed when Paqueta managed to get a lucky bounce from a corner and volley it into the top bins, making the score 1-0. Dick stood up front and bit his lip. He looked around and saw that the Brighton players were starting to look tired and a bit demoralised due to the constant West Ham attacks. So Dick clapped his hands and said
"Lads, wake up the game isn't over yet, there's still another 60 minutes of game time left, so we won't give up now!"
The players perked up slightly but Dick knew the only way to get them motivated again was through a goal so that was what he tried his best to do.
The game started again, and Dick was playing more in his own half; that way, he got rid of the man marking. Dick received the ball from Sidwell before turning around and sprinting down the right-hand side of the pitch. He quickly passed the ball to Murray, before getting the ball back and continuing his run down the middle now.
Dick had now gotten to the defensive line and was faced with the two centre-backs rushing towards him. Wan-Bisakka got there first, and all Dick did was do a couple of fast step overs before hitting a crazy Elastico, giving Ronaldinho vibes just from its fluidity, and getting past Wan-Bisakka. He then leaned his body left, before shooting right, getting past Julio and making it so Dick was 1v1 against the goalkeeper. Dick then faked a shot left, but the goalie didn't bite so Dick just sprinted at the goalie, who slid in to get the ball when dick was close enough. However, Dick saw it coming, so he grabbed the ball between his ankles and jumped over the goalkeeper with a spin before calmly slotting the ball into the goal when he landed.
The stadium went silent for a few minutes before all hell broke loose. Boo's were raining down like crazy, with the home crowd all yelling out their hate and anger towards Dick. He didn't care; he just ran towards the corner of the stadium and did his classic celebration, his arms out and his head tilted back. That was when the rest of the Brighton players came rushing towards him; they all jumped on him, all of them screaming and jumping around in celebration.
Dick laughed with them all, which was broadcast on the big screen, resulting in all of the West Ham fans just booing and cursing louder. The referee then told them to get back as the game was about to start again, and so they did.
The game was quick to start again, and the first thing that Dick noticed was that West Ham was attacking way more aggressively now; they were passing the ball more in Brighton's half and were positioning their men more in the Brighton half. Seeing this Dicks mind started turning, and he already knew what to do.
The game continued on for a few more minutes, and in the 44th minute of the game, it happened. Souček missed a pass, which was swept up by Baleba, who passed it to Sidwell, who immediately spotted the run from Dick and booted it up the middle of the pitch. Wan-Bissaka and Scarles both ran for the ball, and were trying their best to get it, but Dick was just faster than them. He had started a couple of paces behind them, and in only a few seconds, he had already caught up to them. So just as he passed them and was about to get the ball, he felt someone grip his shirt. Dick tried to fight it; he even managed to get the ball down and run with Wan-Bissaka hanging off his back. But eventually they pulled enough, and he fell down, just about 35 yards out. Dick looked at his shirt and saw that the material had been stretched out slightly.
The referee gave Wan-Bissaka a yellow card and awarded Brighton the free kick. After his performance with free kicks in both games and training, Dick had been made the free-kick taker. So now, he stood over the ball and looked at what was in front of him. The entire penalty box was filled with players, the wall was blocking the left side, and the goalie stood far on the right, not thinking Dick was going to shoot.
Dick took some steps back, did his run up, and just smashed the ball perfectly. The ball flew up, flying towards the right side before it started curving left. The goalkeeper saw the curve and tried to dive and save it, only for the ball to slip past his hands and smack into the top of the post and right into the top left bins of the West Ham goal.
Dick saw the ball go in and immediately ran to the away crowd and hit his celebration. The fans' cheers were drowned out by the booing, but seeing them was good enough for him. Dick smiled at the fans before swinging his arms up a couple of times to get them even more excited. He was then mobbed by, surprisingly, Stockdale, the Brighton goalkeeper, swung his arms around Dicks neck and hugged him tightly. That's also when the rest of the Brighton team came along and celebrated with the two.
Dick was in the middle of a giant blue and white huddle, and all he could do was laugh.
—---------------------------------------------------
*TWEEET TWEEET TWEEEEEEEEEEEET*
2-1 for Brighton. History made. And in the centre of it all was a 16-year-old teenager who scored both goals for Brighton before dropping deep and playing a more box-to-box CM position.
After they scored the second goal, Brighton had parked the bus like crazy. They had developed an ultra-defensive mindset, and one where even Dick was playing defensively. The more surprising part was that he was actually decent at playing defender. But for the rest of the game, around 35 minutes, nothing more happened. Both teams had their chances, West Ham more than Brighton, but neither team could finish.
But the game had ended and Dick had led the Brighton team to their first ever semi-finals in the EFL cup, where they would face Liverpool, which would be Brighton's biggest challenge yet.
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AN: Hey gang, whats up. I don't know if you've noticed but I am trying to speed up the Championship league arc. I just think that, Dick's skill level is far above this so you'll see him struggle more in the higher leagues.
Speaking of higher leagues, what team would you want him to join after the 2016/17 season with Brighton. Do take into consideration that, while he has been performing like crazy, he is still 16 (will be 17 when he goes to the other team) so most likely he'd be put on the bench for teams that value experience and he'd need to prove himself. So, give me your opinions on what team would be good for him, and which teams needed a striker lol.
Also, I'll probably add Billie to the story in the 2018/19 season, because that just makes the most amount of sense to me. I mean, while Dick is popular rn he would explode when he joins a bigger league because that means more coverage and more attention, and I think that 2017-19 was when Billie also exploded onto the scene. So that'd be cool. Plus there is the 2018 world cup where he would get a lot of attention, and if they start dating a bit before that and she comes to the games... you catch my vibe hehehehe
Put your team recommendations here
Mine is Liverpool, but I am a bit biased lol. plus, I feel like Liverpool would be the team he plays with for a very long time and maybe he should go to a different league and get some experience there? idk, I'd appreciate y'alls opinions.