THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

The Rosenborg players remained turtled up in the dressing room to avoid the fan violence, which had gone on longer than expected after the game. They continued singing, dancing, and chatting loudly to celebrate their victory during the first few minutes. But they all soon grew silent and started dozing off on the benches as the post-match fatigue finally caught up to them. After a few more minutes, snores and sounds of deep breathing resounded across the dressing room as most of the players slipped into a deep sleep.

The holdup then continued for roughly two more hours — and finally, when the clock hand was almost pointing to the 1:00 AM mark, the coaches got the go-ahead from stadium security to depart from the stadium.

"Guys!" Coach Johansen shouted while moving around and waking up the sleeping players. "It's time to go. Pick your things, and let's go back to the hotel."

The players awoke with a start, like soldiers who had just heard an assembly bugle call. They hurriedly donned their jackets and shoes before slinging their bags over their shoulders and following the coaches out of the dressing room.

They walked quickly through the tunnel, and soon, they marched out of the stadium, heading towards their team bus, parked only a few meters away. But it was then that they noticed that the situation around the stadium wasn't right.

"What the hell happened here when we were in the dressing room?" Zachary exclaimed after noticing the anti-riot police surrounding the whole stadium entrance. He couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly to block out the blinding red and blue police siren lights atop the armored vehicles.

"Seems like the Lyon fans went ahead and battled the police after the game," Eric Bailly replied, also glancing around. "By the look of things, it should have been quite a battle."

"This is craziness," Zachary mumbled as his eyes darted all over the place. He'd already noted that the French law enforcers encircling the stadium entrance and Rosenborg's team bus were armed with rifles, batons, and shields, seemingly as if they were guarding against a terrifying enemy. They even appeared to grow more alert when the Rosenborg players stepped out of the stadium.

"Guys!" Coach Johansen yelled from the front of the Rosenborg procession. "Don't drag your feet. Walk fast and enter the bus. We don't want to spend more time here than necessary." He even clapped his hands loudly as if to emphasize his point.

After hearing the coach's voice, Zachary and his teammates didn't continue gaping at the cops and armored vehicles surrounding the area. They hurried their steps and quickly entered the team bus before settling in their seats.

Without further ado, the bus took off, and before long, it was already traversing the wide streets of Lyon, heading to their hotel. Their journey was without any issues as a convoy of armored vehicles and police motorbikes escorted them all the way to their destination.

Before the clock hand pointed to the 2:00 AM mark, they alighted the bus before making their way into the hotel. They were finally ready to end the night, which had been both stressful and filled with the joy of their victory.

Zachary paused a bit at the hotel entrance and looked back. He was again startled when he noticed that the anti-riot police and the convoy of armored vehicles were taking strategic positions around the hotel. It seemed that they were planning to guard the hotel through the night. The notion made him wonder whether the police had gotten information that the Lyon fans were actually planning to assault the Rosenborg players.

Football was supposed to be a sport that brought fun and joy to people all around the globe. So, the sheer image of supporters of one football club assaulting players of an opposing team surprised and unnerved him greatly. It made him wonder whether he should start employing a bodyguard when he traveled through the cities of the teams his team had defeated.

"Zachary!" Coach Johansen called out from behind him. "Don't stand there, staring at the police. Just head to your room and let your body rest. We'll be returning to Trondheim on an 8:00 AM flight tomorrow morning. That gives you only about five hours of sleep."

"I'll head to my room now," Zachary said after turning away from the entrance. "Good night to you, coach."

"Good night, Zachary," the coach replied with a smile. "Make sure that you rest well, as we'll be recommencing serious training the day after tomorrow."

"Don't worry. I'll be ready." Zachary replied before alighting up the stairs and heading to his room. The match against Lyon had worn him out considerably. So, he was looking forward to diving into his bed and sinking into slumberland immediately.

****    ****

As planned, the Rosenborg players returned to Trondheim the following morning. They only rested for a single day to recover from the post-match fatigue before resuming intensive training.

They had a tight schedule over the following seven days. First, they had to face off against Aalesund FK three days later at an away ground in their second fixture of that season's Tippeligaen. Then, four days after that, they would welcome Lyon to Lerkendal for the second leg clash of the Europa League quarter-finals. So, they couldn't relax if they wished to achieve desirable results from the two games.

Since they were well aware of what was at stake, all the players didn't complain when the coaches requested that they invest more time and effort into training. They performed all required drills with their hearts, especially since they wished to continue winning. Their relentlessness caused the atmosphere around the team to become more energetic, and the two days flashed by quickly. Eventually, Sunday morning arrived, and the players who had made the squad traveled to Aalesund to play their second domestic fixture of the season.

For that game, Coach Johansen once again rested all his star players. He benched Takumi Minamino, Eric Bailly, Yerry Mina, Thomas Partey, Nicki Nielsen, and Mikael Dorsin. As for Zachary, he wasn't even on the list of the substitutes that traveled to Aalesund. The coach ordered his playmaker to watch the match on-screen instead of traveling with the team and tiring himself out.

But even without the star players, the Rosenborg reserves still put up a commanding performance. They relied on a 4-5-1 formation to play a defensive game that rendered all the tactics of Aalesund useless. Due to their compact shape, they denied the opponents from breaking through their midfield and creating chances on goal. As a result, the score remained 0:0 as the players headed into the tunnel for half-time.

During the second half, the Troll Kids played a bit more aggressively. They sent more numbers forward and used high-pressing tactics to ensure that Aalesund could no longer dominate possession. Soon, they dictated the tempo and started creating more chances on goal. Eventually, their efforts paid off, and a goal-scoring opportunity arose during the 80th minute.

Mike Jensen, the Rosenborg defensive midfielder for the day, intercepted a lofted pass from an Aalesund defender. He brought the ball down with an outstretched boot before escaping his marker with a few skillful touches. When the angle opened up, he unleashed a long pass towards the right flank to find Riku Riski.

Riku Riski, Rosenborg's right-winger for the day, brought the ball under control with his chest. He then whirled around and fed it past the Aalesund left-back as his speed exploded. He soon crossed into the final third and unleashed a lofted cross to find John Chibuike, the Rosenborg center-forward, within the box.

John Chibuike immediately escaped the harassment of his marker before leaping up to meet the descending ball. He timed his run well to plant a header towards the goal from around the edge of the penalty box. And without any surprise, the ball flashed past the keeper's outstretched hands before nestling itself into the back of the net.

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Aalesund FK 0 : Rosenborg BK 1

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Coach Johansen nodded and smiled as he watched his players celebrating the goal. A few minutes earlier, he'd just been about to sub on Nicki Nielsen and Takumi Minamino so that they could search for the winner.

But since his on-field players had already gotten the goal, he saw no need to go ahead with the substitution. He would only employ defensive tactics to manage the endgame and go home with three points at the end of the day.

"Guys!" He started yelling at his players. "We'll all play defensively for the rest of the game. So, I want nine men behind the ball for the remaining minutes. Only John Chibuike can stay on striking..."

The coach paced the entire length of the touchline as he hollered out instructions. And to his relief, his players adapted quickly and soon started utilizing ultra-defensive tactics.

They all settled in defense and prevented team Aalesund from creating more chances at goal. Thanks to their tactical discipline, the score remained 1:0 in favor of Rosenborg until the final whistle sounded.