"You okay? Is there someone you know in the Stans?" Oswin spoke as he scanned the stadium's seated people. "kind of, but from this distance I can't make out whether it's him or maybe I am mistaken them," replied Winston.
Shaking his head, Winston gestured to Oswin and said, "C'mon let's join the rest of the team."
The warm-up drills commenced, accompanied by a feeling of overwhelming pressure from the rival club's fans. He should be accustomed to it by now, yet the Arlesey Athletic FC under twenty-one stadium remained their stronghold. The Arlesey Athletic F.C. under twenty-one stadium is regarded as the second biggest and largest stadium in the under twenty-one league, and can hold capacity of around eighty thousand people.
And the hotel Winston and his team were staying in was also part of the stadium. And the distance wasn't that far; at the back of the hotel, there was a passage that connected to the stadium.
[User daily challenge]
[Call for the ball: 25/0]
[Deadball goals: 2/0]
[Make assists: 5/0]
[Acquired Skills]
[Activated skill: Dead ball]
After a few minutes, the youth players emerged from the tunnel. A loud roar from the stadium signaled they were there for their team; to take the third spot from Westminster F.C. under twenty-one league. When the first whistle blew, Arlesey Athletic F.C. who were starting the game, their play style formation was a two-one- three-four formation with the twins Darwin and Noah as strikers, and Duke as supporting attacking midfielder. The formation exhibited extreme aggression while maintaining robust defensive capabilities. With passes exchanged to entice the Westminster youth, Winston and Maximilian were the only ones susceptible, as others remained steady, periodically tracking the ball from a distance. The two twins were already among the Westminster players. One of the Westminster defensive middle was guarding Duke, while Maximilian and Winston were chasing the tiki-taka ball.
Before they came out of the tunnel, Winston made sure to active the dead-ball skills, and his plan was to score first before assisting with scoring, since the assisting didn't specify whether the player he assisted should score or miss. He still relies on Oswin to pass him the ball from time to time. The only thing he was worried about was his dead-ball technique; his form was still terrible. The only time it genuinely worked was when he wasn't dribbling the ball. Meaning it only worked when he was practicing penalty kicks.
When the youth of another team over touched the ball, Winston saw an opportunity to intercept him and, thanks to him boosting his pace and speed, his burst outmatched the youth. Running alone in the center of the field, crowded by the Arlesey Athletic F.C. youths shielding the ball, wasn't enough for him, legs stretching out for the ball. Oswin, and Maximilian were already sprinting to support him and just like that their formation had an opening like clock work the Arlesey Athletic F.C. youth wasted no time passing the ball to Duke who sprint forward and stepped over a midfielder before seeing an opportunity to pounce the ball to Darwin who ran on the left side he tapped the ball forward the left back ran another way and he approached the goalkeeper on the left side in a ready to shoot stance he low crossed the ball to his twin brother Noah who stretched his leg out.
Thwack!
The move was swift and meticulous; the entire crowd started celebrating before Duke got the ball. Duke's specialty was something else. His passes were meticulous; even defenders had a hard time predicting them, other than the two twins who just pointed in the direction they wanted him to pass the ball. And Darwin is exceptional with speed and ability to control the ball, unlike his twin. He was more of a wide player; he played like a winger. He likes to find these wide pockets. Noah, in contrast, demonstrates a freer style, operating both within and beyond the confines. Same with Winston, he has mastered the long shot, dead-ball skill while dribbling.
As the game prepared to resume, Westminster played it safe this time, noticing how fast their build-up was. They did not want to make the same error—for a minute; they kept passing the ball within each other. Maximilian, heavily marked by two defensive midfielder youths,
Winston found himself unable to make a dynamic run due to the tight marking, similar to Oswin, but still went back for the ball.
Arlesey Athletic F.C. youth players really did study them. Every time Winston or Oswin receives the ball, Arlesey youths would be on their heels and the core system, kept popping up, showing Winston how many times he had received the ball.
[Call for the ball: 09/25]
As the ball he had called out approached him, he performed a dummy run, directing the ball precisely through the legs of the midfielder who was actively attempting to close him down and sprint alongside him. He looked up and saw Winston, who was pointing in front of him, cutting, stepping over the left back who had put out a leg and shielded the ball; Oswin watched the ball going out for a throw-in. Without a moment's delay, the Arlesey youth swiftly passed the ball to Duke, who was positioned in the center of the field. The moment the ball settled at his feet, he artfully flicked it over the incoming Westminster defensive midfielder with a sombrero, and with a display of uncanny precision, he turned and played a high through ball to the right midfielder, who received it with a controlled chest trap.
As the ball rolled on Arlesey's right midfielder's feet, he sprinted forward, with the Westminster youths on him like quicksand. The youth turned around and passed the ball back; now it seems like the Westminster youth have found their rhythm. During this specific period, it was only Maximillian, Winston, and Oswin who were engaged in marking the ball, while the rest of the group concentrated on holding the defensive line. This back and forth between these two teams went on for forty-five and two minutes.
Fweeettt! Fweeetttt!
Some of the Westminster youth had mixed reactions as they had toward the tunnels; the deafening noise of the roaring fans really shocked them. Previously, they had not experienced such a significant level of support, and as the core system's translucent small screen flickered, he realized that he had successfully accomplished the challenging task of completing the call and ball.
[Call for the ball: Completed]
Contrary to the expected feeling of relief, he was instead overwhelmed by the realization that he would struggle to complete the most arduous tasks, given the significant disadvantage imposed by the aggressive marking he was subjected to. The two twins bumped shoulders with Winston, nearly losing his balance. "Tsk, move you trash, your coach should have kept you on the bench," said one twin named Darwin. "Tell him, brother, he should have stayed in the senior reserve; this league is for players who are talented, not some half ass talentless trash;"
Winston said nothing and kept moving; "You should retire and stop wasting our time," Darwin yelled; "You are making the youth league look like an amateur league."
Winston clenched his fist; he wanted to punch these twins; he breathed in and out slowly and continued walking without looking back. Their head coach was disappointed at how they played. He reverted to Plan B, and Plan B was the changing of the formation from the formation they were playing to a four - two - three - one formation.
The offensive formation involved Winston and Oswin frequently shifting from wide positions to a central attacking midfield role, while an additional central attacking midfielder supported the attack, effectively creating a setup resembling four strikers with one midfielder operating centrally and the other reinforcing the defense. The head coach was fully aware that the midfielder represented a potential vulnerability for their team; however, this was a calculated risk he deemed acceptable, given his anticipation that the opposing team would focus on preserving their advantage during the latter portion of the match.
Seated with his hands together, twiddling his thumbs, Winston lost in his thought The speed he had upgraded was doing nothing for him. He still felt his legs were heavy with cement. Before the match started, he felt something was off; his legs were throbbing, not with pain more like his muscles were shifting. His first impression led him to believe that they were possibly starting to ease up at that point. The head coach's motivation snapped him back. "Okay, go out there and play like your life depends on it."
As the second half recommenced with renewed determination from the players emerging from the tunnel, Westminster's newly adopted formation strategically positioned Winston in a wider role, a move that, despite his less pronounced quick burst speed compared to Darwin's agility, was rooted in the coach's observation during training where Winston had effectively showcased his ability to execute rapid, short cuts behind opposing defenders.
After getting the first pass, he sent it over to Maximilian, and Winston passed it back to him while he slowly made his way past the defenders, his feet dragging. Maximilian executed a pass to Winston, who was at that moment in full sprint, racing along the right flank of the field. Three of the Westminster youth players were waiting for the ball. As he attempted to lift his leg to deliver a higher, longer cross, his limbs felt increasingly heavy, and a sliding defender managed to intercept the attempted cross. Kicking it out into a corner kick, as Oswin prepared to take the corner, he raised his hands, Winston standing outside the box hoping to kick a rogue ball. However, on this particular occasion, Oswin directed the ball towards Maximilian, who then utilized his head to propel it forward, resulting in a distinct metallic resonance as it narrowly missed the goalpost.