THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

"Oh, my, what an electrifying counterattack from the Rosenborg players," Kristin heard Anne Rimmen, the commentator, say as the cheers started to die down. "Just in the 31st minute, it's Rosenborg 2 Strømsgodset 0. I'm at a loss for words. Harald! What's your take on this goal?"

"That attack was the true definition of perfect attacking chemistry in football," Harald said, his voice animated. "Not a single moment was wasted by any of the three attacking Rosenborg players during the counterattack. It was Zachary to Tobias, and then Tobias to Nicki. Then Nicki performed that backheel to Zachary—and then the young number-33 immediately set lose Tobias with a perfectly-timed pass, sending him well on his way to score."

"Moreover, the whole counterattack didn't last longer than eleven seconds," the pundit continued, his voice lowering. "To me, this is Rosenborg at its best. I can see this team going on to become champions if they maintain this form after today's game."

"Let me take you back for a bit, Harald," Anne Rimmen, the commentator, chipped in. "Do you think Zachary's initial tackle on Stefan Johansen, the Strømsgodset defensive midfielder, was a foul?"

"I don't think so," Harald was quick to reply in a confident tone. "From the replay, you can easily see that Zachary managed to make contact with the ball first — before sweeping Stefan Johansen. That's not a foul in my book. Moreover, the referee was positioned right behind them. I believe he would have immediately blown the whistle if there was any foul play."

"That explains everything then," Anne Rimmen said. "For a moment there, I thought it was a foul. I guess we'll look more into it at the end of the game. For now, let's take you back to the live-action."

****    ****

Coach Johansen was all smiles as he watched his team finish the first half after executing his game plan to perfection. The shift from attacking to a defensive mindset had enhanced the concentration of his players considerably. They had remained focused, not even allowing the Strømsgodset players a single shot on goal. His mind had been at peace throughout the entire first half. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so relaxed while watching his team playing an official game.

However, he was well aware his players still needed to do a lot more work to win the game and secure the three points they needed to get to the top of the table. There were still 45 minutes of play remaining. That worried him since his team had recently been susceptible to conceding needlessly during those tricky minutes of the second half.

So, during his halftime address, he repeatedly urged the players to stay focused and continue following the game plan. He only sent them back to the pitch for the second half after making sure he'd drilled the message into their heads. But he was still a little worried since he was well aware that the root cause of the issue was the shortage of defenders on the team. Moreover, Tore Reginiussen, his captain—and first-choice center back, was still on suspension. That left him with limited defensive options.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and the second half commenced with Strømsgodset's kick-off. The boys from Drammen were on fire from the first minute after the break. They arrayed themselves in a 4-3-3 attacking formation to launch waves of attacks on Rosenborg's box.

On a few occasions, they almost managed to score. However, the Rosenborg players kept their composure and averted all threats without conceding.

Stefan Johansen, Strømsgodset's defensive midfielder, was on fire. He worked very hard and kept on releasing defense-splitting passes to the back of Rosenborg's defensive line whenever he got the chance.

If it wasn't for Zachary, who stayed hot on his heels and kept him in check, Coach Johansen was sure the midfielder would have caused a lot more trouble for his team.

What surprised Coach Johansen the most was Zachary's insane work rate. The young Maestro had been making runs all over the pitch. He'd even made several tackles in both the attacking and defensive midfield, winning the ball plenty of times. However, he didn't seem the least bit out of breath as the game approached the 75th minute.

"Has Zachary hired any professional personal trainer over the previous month?" He asked Trond Henriksen, the assistant head coach of Rosenborg, who was standing beside him.

"I don't think so," Coach Henriksen replied, shaking his head. "He only trains with Coach Bjørn Peters from the academy once in a while. Why do you ask?"

"His work rate has gone up considerably after the break," Coach Johansen replied, sighing. "For a moment, I thought he was on a specialized training regimen to increase his stamina and endurance."

"Even if he were on such a kind of regimen, his endurance would still take long to improve," Coach Henriksen said. "My guess is that he's in a period of rapid development as an athlete. And that's very good for us since he'll be able to play many more matches."

"That might be the case," Coach Johansen replied, his eyes still following the proceedings on the pitch.

His players had just averted another Strømsgodset attack without incurring any damage. They weren't conceding since they'd stayed true to the game plan even as the game entered the last twelve minutes. But, that had come at the cost of weakening the attacking prowess of his team.

"We need to bring in a few defenders to stabilize the squad during the mid-season transfer window," Coach Johansen said, lowering his voice.

"Careful," Trond Henriksen said quickly to interrupt him. "The cameras are always focused on you during matches. You may give away needless gossip to the journalists if they manage to read your lips."

"Oh," Coach Johansen said, caressing his red beard. "But I haven't said anything wrong or harmful to the team. It's what we intend to do."

"You're right," Coach Henriksen said, nodding. "But we can discuss this after the game. By then, we should be at the top of the table. I believe the management won't give us any hard time if we wish to sign a few more players."

"Good," Coach Johansen said, glancing at his watch. It was already the 81st minute. So, he decided to make a couple of substitutions to give a boost to his counterattacking options. He still needed one more goal to seal the lips of all the doubters who were comparing Rosenborg to other teams in Norway. Slaughtering the table leaders by three or more goals would shut them up for sure.

"Tell Borek and John to start warming up," he said to the assistant head coach. "I want them on the pitch within five minutes at most."

"Oh," Coach Henriksen said, raising a brow. "Who are they replacing?"

"They'll go in for Tobias and Tarik, our two wingers," Coach Johansen replied, his gaze still fixed on the field of play. "They're almost out of stamina since they've been running back and forth across the wings. That's why our counters over the last few minutes have been failing to produce any results."

"That's a good call," Coach Trond said, smiling. "I'll tell them to hurry and warm up."