Since Tobias had gotten injured, he had to replace him with another player who could attack and defend well on the wing. The substitute also needed to have the ability to draw fouls from the defenders so as to create more chances for Zachary to score set-pieces.

Coach Johansen’s gaze soon settled on Karl Toko Ekambi, the 21-year-old winger he’d recently signed from Paris FC. But after a few seconds of consideration, he turned his eyes away.

Karl Toko Ekambi was, of course, a great player who could play perfectly while on the attack through both wings. But his only weakness was his limited defensive ability. So, the coach didn’t require his services in a game where players needed to defend more than they would attack.

Rapid thoughts continued whirling around Coach Johansen’s mind, and finally, he zeroed in on Paul Kasongo, the young winger who had performed incredibly over the weekend. He was the perfect substitute at that moment as he possessed the stamina and pace to defend and attack through the flanks.

”Kasongo!” He yelled out to him. “Come.”

”Aye, coach.” The short winger immediately stepped forward as his eyes glinted with excitement.

”In a bit,” Coach Johansen said, “You’ll sub in for Tobias and play as our right-winger. You will need to exert yourself to defend and attack through the flanks. And if there’s an opportunity, you need to try and force free-kicks out of the defenders so that we can give Zachary a chance to convert more free-kicks. Clear?”

”Yes, coach,” Kasongo replied enthusiastically.

”Good.” Coach Johansen nodded. “You can go and prepare. I want you on the pitch in less than two minutes.”

”Aye, coach.”

—–

The game restarted before Kasongo could come on for the injured Tobias. The Lyon players didn’t seem like they were in a panicked state even after conceding the goal. Instead, they immediately took advantage of their brief numerical advantage to launch a fierce attack against Rosenborg. They used short passes to move the ball through the middle for a couple of minutes until it ended at Jordan Ferri’s feet.

Jordan Ferri, the Lyon midfielder, controlled the ball well before skipping past Takumi Minamino with a swift change of direction. When the angle opened up, he unleashed a long pass towards the other side of the pitch, where Alexandre Lacazette was lurking.

Alexandre Lacazette battled Yerry Mina for aerial superiority before heading the ball towards Bafétimbi Gomis, his counterpart on striking.

Gomis swiftly brought the ball under control and immediately skipped past Eric Bailly to step into Rosenborg’s box. He managed to open up the shooting angle with another simple touch before unleashing a curling shot towards the bottom left corner.

Coach Johansen felt his heart sink as he watched the ball darting towards the goal like an arrow. But the next moment, his tight nerves loosened when Daniel Örlund, the Rosenborg keeper, intercepted the effort with an outstretched boot. The experienced number-one had saved Rosenborg from conceding an equalizing goal during the 23rd minute.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and pointed toward the corner flag.

Coach Johansen breathed a sigh of relief as he’d avoided a goal and also gotten a chance to make a substitution for the injured Tobias.

”Fourth official,” he yelled. “Signal for the substitution. We can’t continue playing with only ten men.”

The fourth official nodded and stepped towards the touchline. When the on-pitch referee gave him the go-ahead, he immediately raised his board, and Kasongo ran onto the pitch. The substitution had finally allowed Rosenborg to even out the numbers after playing with only ten men for about four minutes.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and signaled for the Lyon players to take the corner kick. Corentin Tolisso, Lyon’s right-back, floated a tricky ball towards the box.

Alexandre Lacazette immediately escaped his mark before leaping high in the air to connect with the descending corner ball. He timed his jump well to plant a header towards the goal from the boundary of the penalty box.

It was a tense moment for Rosenborg as the ball was on a straight course towards the inside of the right post. However, at the very last instant, Daniel Örlund, the Rosenborg keeper, came to the rescue once again. He committed himself to a full-body dive before diverting the shot away from its intended trajectory with his fingertips.

But the hearts of most Rosenborg fans were still in their throats as the danger was still at large. They were still tense as the ball smashed off the goalpost the next moment before rebounding into the box.

The players of both teams scrambled after the ball while pushing and pulling at each other’s shirts. But in the end, it was Zachary who got to it first.

Zachary didn’t lose composure even while surrounded by opponents within his own box. He brought the ball under control with an outstretched boot before executing a simple Marseille turn to escape the tight encirclement of the Lyon players. And when the passing angle opened up, he immediately flicked the ball toward Kasongo, who was lurking on the right-wing.

Kasongo controlled the ball well on the right flank and then took off towards the other side of the pitch like the wind. But after sprinting a few yards, he ran into the blockade of Arnold Mvuemba, Lyon’s holding midfielder. So, he could only turn around and pass the ball towards the middle to find Zachary, who was catching up from behind.

Zachary controlled the ball mid-sprint, and the booing around the stadium rose to a crescendo. Since the Lyon fans seemed to hold a grudge against him, they were once again on their feet, cursing and jeering at him with pure loathing and hate.

But Zachary seemed not to mind the hostility of the Lyon fans and kept on sprinting towards the other side of the pitch like a bullet train on the rails. Soon, he stepped past the center-line, and Jordan Ferri, the other holding midfielder, who’d stayed back to defend, tried to stop his run.

Zachary immediately executed a few side steps and circumvented the defender from the right with another burst of speed. But just then, he ran into a fierce tackle from Bakary Koné, another player who’d been covering the back during the corner kick.

Bakary Koné slid in fast from his blindside and swept him off his feet the next instant. Before he could react, he was already tumbling toward the ground.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and rushed to the scene. He immediately awarded a free-kick to Rosenborg before cautioning Bakary Koné verbally. He didn’t even show the defender a yellow card for committing the dangerous tackle.

—–

In the stands behind Lyon’s goal, the Lyon fans were chattering and cheering loudly. Bakary Koné’s tackle on Zachary seemed to have excited them considerably.

”What an impressive tackle,” one fan remarked loudly. “Koné managed to take down that piece of ** beautifully.”

”Yes, it was indeed a splendid tackle,” another fan said, grinning from ear to ear. “I really hope that Zachary has gotten injured. If he doesn’t stand up again, we’ll benefit.”

”I think that that tackle was a bit of a light punishment on him,” another fan said, shaking his head. “If Koné had raised his boot a bit higher, the tackle would have been more magnificent.”

”You’re right,” the first fan agreed. “I can’t believe that the little ** came to our home and tried to shut us down. How dare he?”

—–

Zachary picked himself off the ground and performed a few ankle stretches. He only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that he hadn’t gotten himself injured.

But just as he was beginning to relax, his ears picked up more jeers and curses from the Lyon fans. They started booing his name again, causing him to wonder whether he’d unknowingly killed their relatives.

”Just ignore them,” Mikael said when he walked up to him a few seconds later. “They know that your skills pose a huge threat to their team. So, they’re doing their best to destabilize your psyche. You can’t let them win against you.”

”I understand. Don’t worry.”

Zachary was slightly riled up as he turned his attention away from the fans. He breathed in deeply to calm himself down before returning his focus to the crucial issues at hand.

Since the free-kick was about fifty-five yards away, he couldn’t take a direct shot towards the goal. He had to send a curling ball towards the back of the defense and let his teammates do the rest of the work.

But Zachary soon determined that such an approach couldn’t yield any results. He was sure that Lyon’s defense, comprising players like Samuel Umtiti and Bakary Koné, would clear the high ball without any challenges. So, if he wished to gain something out of the free-kick, he had to look for a better plan.

Zachary’s mind immediately started working in overdrive as he observed Lyon’s defense. He soon noticed how the Lyon defenders had set up the backline a good number of yards away from their box, and then a bold idea came to him. Since they seemed intent on utilizing an offside trap, he would use it against them.

”Mikael,” he said, glancing at the left-back. “You should be the one to take this free-kick. Let’s try out something new.”

”What do you have in mind?” Mikael asked after leaning closer.

Zachary smiled and whispered in his ear for a few seconds.

Mikael nodded with a smile and placed the ball on the free-kick spot.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and signaled for Rosenborg to take the free-kick a few seconds later.

Zachary nodded to Mikael and immediately took off towards Lyon’s box with all the haste he could muster. Since he’d already assigned Mikael his role, he also needed to do his part to complete the free-kick move. He didn’t look back as his long strides ate up yards of space like there was no tomorrow.

—–

Coach Johansen’s heart raced with anticipation when he watched Zachary accelerate towards Lyon’s box right after the whistle. The boy prodigy circumvented opponents like a rugby player and made it to the Lyon backline in less than six seconds.

And just then, at the moment before Zachary stepped into an offside position, Mikael took the free-kick. He unleashed a curling ball that soared over the defense and started to descend towards the edge of the box a few seconds later.

The free-kick was right on point, and since it was unexpected, it had managed to catch all the Lyon defenders unawares. Thus, there wasn’t any opponent in Zachary’s vicinity when he controlled the ball at the edge of the box. Without losing composure, he stepped past the keeper who’d come out to meet him with a couple of side steps before burying the ball into the back of the net.