After the referee blew the final whistle, Zachary couldn’t help but bury his head in his hands. The guilt he was feeling multiplied a hundredfold as he was aware that he was the sole cause of his team’s loss. His mind turned blank, and he sat there listlessly while replaying scenes from the just-concluded game within his mind. His poor display on the pitch had affected him that greatly.

—–

The TIM Trophy was one weird pre-season tournament. The three participating clubs had to play three round-robin 45-minute matches in a short period of a single afternoon. And there was almost no time for rest between the games.

The tournament match schedule was as follows. The organizers would decide which teams to play in the first match that lasted only forty-five minutes plus added time. Then, immediately after the first game, the third team would go into action and play against the losing team from the first match. And following that order, the third team would continue playing and end the tournament by facing off against the first-match winner.

Thus, the Juventus players were naturally back in action after a few minutes since they had lost the first game against AC Milan. They faced off against a tenacious Sassuolo side with their relatively strong squad that included star players like Andrea Pirlo, Carlos Tévez, Arturo Vidal, and Paul Pogba. And as expected, Zachary, who had been deemed unfit by the coaching staff, wasn’t on the squad. He wasn’t even on the substitute’s bench and only watched his teammates in action from the comfort of the seats in the technical area.

From the first minute, Juventus played superb passing football and dominated the proceedings on the field of play. They hoarded a large percentage of the possession and launched several waves of relentless attacks against Sassuolo’s defense. Their hard work and uncompromising playing style finally paid off during the 29th minute, and they created a terrific chance on goal.

Arturo Vidal, the central midfielder who had replaced Zachary, worked his magic close to the center circle. He slid in wholesale and dispossessed Simone Missiroli, Sassuolo’s midfielder. Then, with all the haste he could muster, he picked himself from the ground and fed the ball to Paul Pogba.

Paul Pogba was on fire that day. He controlled the ball like a Maestro and stepped past an opposing player with skillful footwork. When the angle opened up, he unleashed a grounded through-pass to find Álvaro Morata, the striker, who had been lurking in a pocket of space before the box.

Morata was quite composed as he connected with Pogba’s pass. With only a single touch on the ball, he left his marker in the dust and was soon on an open highway towards the goal. Before the defenders could close him down, he rounded the goalkeeper and buried the ball into the back of the net to score Juventus’ first goal.

That goal was all it took for Juventus to open the floodgates. The players in black and white continued sustaining an increasing amount of pressure against their opponents. And naturally, it didn’t take long for Carlos Tévez, the often hungry striker, to beat the offside trap and score the 2nd goal. A few minutes later, in the 41st minute, Andrea Pirlo scored the third from a free kick to seal Juventus’ overwhelming victory against Sassuolo.

In the third and final game of the TIM trophy, the sharp and brilliant AC Milan players faced off against Sassuolo. Once again, they dominated the game from the first minute and ended up winning by a score of 2:0. In so doing, they also won the short pre-season tournament as they had beaten all their opponents and accumulated six points. They were the true-blue champions of the TIM Trophy — an honor that would remain with them until the following year.

**** ****

Zachary’s disappointing performance against AC Milan became a hot topic in the news after the conclusion of the TIM Trophy. Various sports journalists and critics all over Europe were not shy to point out that an 80-million Euro signing had committed a basic mistake while playing against his first Italian opposition. Without considering the fact that Zachary had just joined Juventus, they outright criticized him on live television as if he was their enemy. It was total madness on the side of the press.

Emilia Vasquez, the ESPN reporter, also covered the topic on her late-night sports show. She spent a few seconds explaining how the TIM Trophy games had progressed earlier that day before smiling and turning towards the pundits present in the studio.

“Let’s get right into the analysis of the games,” she said. “Gentlemen! What was your take on the TIM Trophy games? Let’s begin with you, Charles.”

Charles Adams, the journalist who had once predicted that Zachary would become a flop at Juventus, smiled. “AC Milan was, of course, the better team among the three participants in the TIM Trophy. Their star players, like Sulley Muntari and Nigel de Jong, were at the top of their game. They played fantastic football and allowed AC Milan to overpower all their opponents.”

“You just mentioned Sulley Muntari,” Emilia Vasquez pointed out. “He was impressive in AC Milan’s midfield, especially during the first game. He dispossessed Zachary Bemba before initiating that counter that led to AC Milan’s goal against Juventus.”

“Yes, Sulley Muntari’s performance was outstanding,” Charles agreed. “But we still can’t credit that goal only to him. There was also Zachary Bemba, who committed that basic mistake and gifted the goal to AC Milan. I almost couldn’t believe my eyes at that moment. The 80-million signing panicked like an amateur and lost the ball in the defensive third! What the hell was up with that?”

“It was just a bad day for him,” Joshua Morales, the other pundit, pointed out. “Even the best players in the world get those sometimes.”

“Or maybe, his skills are slowly declining, and he’s no longer good enough to outmaneuver top European competition,” Charles remarked. “If it were the Zachary from last season, he would have easily dribbled past Sulley Muntari. The Ghanaian midfielder would have stood no chance against that young prodigy that could wipe the floor with his opponents. But what did we see today? Zachary wasn’t decisive enough and lost the ball in the defensive third. And that wasn’t all. His performance during the rest of the game was a disgrace to that number 10 Juventus shirt he was wearing. He failed to control the ball most of the time. He didn’t even create a single chance on goal for Juventus. As I have always insisted, his move to Juventus was a mistake. He would be doing better in any other team.”

“Thanks for your analysis, Charles,” Emilia Vasquez chimed in with a smile. “The TIM Trophy also marks the end of Juventus’ pre-season schedule. Next Saturday, just seven days from now, the new Serie A season will commence, and the Juventus players will face off against Chievo in their opening game. Joshua! From what you have seen today, do you think those players will be ready for the challenge awaiting them next weekend?”

“I think they will be ready,” Joshua Morales said. “Aside from today’s games, they had a pretty good pre-season overall. They were incredible as a team and won all their games during their tour of Asia and Australia. If they can train strategically and build upon those performances over the next seven days, I can see them getting off to a flying start. They might even go on to win the Serie A title again.”

“What about their new 80-million signing, Zachary Bemba?” Emilia asked. “Do you think he will be ready? Can he up his game and become the Zachary from last season within the next seven days?”

Joshua Morales smiled and said, “I think he will be ready. Let’s not forget that Zachary is an incredibly talented and world-class player. Not even the top players from teams like Juventus and Lyon could stop him in the Europa League last season. Considering all that, do you really believe that he’ll fail to adapt to Serie A football? Do you think he’ll fail to score goals and win titles after joining a team with better players? The notion of him not succeeding at Juventus is absurd, especially if you’re to consider what he has already achieved at the tender age of nineteen.”

“Thank you for your profound analysis, Joshua,” Emilia said. “But I have one more question for you. There were some shocking rumors on the internet today. A few reputable journalists in Turin reported that Paul Pogba, the incredibly talented young midfielder, might be on his way out of Juventus. They say he might return to Manchester United before the transfer window closes on September 1st. What do you make of this, Joshua? Could it be that he’s under pressure after Zachary Bemba’s arrival and has thus chosen to leave the club?”

“I think those are just baseless rumors,” Joshua Morales said. “From what I have heard, both Zachary and Paul Pogba are crucial components of Coach Allegri’s plans. He won’t let Pogba go, especially at this late stage of the transfer window. Additionally, there are reports that Zachary already has a good relationship with Pogba. So, Zachary’s presence on the team should not be a factor that pushes the Frenchman out of Juventus. That’s my honest opinion.”

**** ****