THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

After conceding a goal, the Atlético Madrid players became more daring on the attack. They launched a series of relentless attacks, hoping to score an equalizer and possibly a winning goal before the ninety-minute mark. However, all their efforts still remained fruitless due to the tactical discipline and defensive solidity of the Juventus squad.

The Juventus players, on their part, were quite impressive during the final minutes. By employing strategies like time wasting, fouls, and parking the bus, they repeatedly took the sting out of Atlético Madrid's offensive attempts. They also constantly fell back as a team and remained solid in defense in order to deny the Madrid-based team any chance to score a goal. As such, they maintained their lead and managed to win the game with a score of 2:1 after six minutes of injury time.

-----

The following morning, Zachary woke up late and went through his post-match yoga recovery routine within the comfort of his expansive master bedroom. He was in a pretty good mood since he'd scored another two goals in the Champions League the previous night. As such, his motions were seamless and brimming with spirit as he went from pose to pose, hoping to quicken his post-match recovery.

After completing the yoga routine, Zachary quickly cleaned up and put on a brand-new Nike tracksuit before heading downstairs. On arriving in the kitchen area of his new villa, he spotted Jaslene, his newly-hired maid, cleaning the kitchen.

She was a beautiful young girl of about 20-something years, and from what Zachary had heard, she was Filipino by descent. That morning, she had donned a pretty and fitting maid's uniform, allowing her curves to stand out within the otherwise dull atmosphere of the villa.

"Boss!" She exclaimed as she caught sight of Zachary. "Good morning?"

"Good morning to you too, Jaslene," Zachary replied with a smile. "But I already instructed you not to call me boss, as that makes me feel like an old uncle. Just call me Zachary like the rest do. Okay?"

"Okay, boss..." She replied but stopped abruptly after realizing her mistake. Smiling shyly, she said, "Yes, Zachary. I understand."

"Good." Zachary nodded and turned his gaze away from her. After sweeping his eyes across the sparkling kitchen and taking in the spotlessly clean tiles, sinks, and floors, he asked, "Where's Inger? Is she up yet?"

"Yes, she's up already," Jaslene replied. "She should be in the dining room at the moment."

"Okay, then. I'll go, find Inger. Just continue with your work."

"Yes, boss."

Zachary could only smile helplessly in response before whirling around and heading to the dining room. On arriving, he found Inger playing with her phone while seated on one of the chairs around the dining table.

"Hello, Inger!" Zachary greeted. "How's your morning?"

Inger's smile blossomed as she turned her focus away from her phone. She cocked her head slightly and replied, "My morning is fine. How about you? You woke up late today!"

"The fatigue from yesterday's match has taken its toll on me," Zachary responded. "I decided to sleep longer to allow my body to recover quicker."

"Oh!" Inger's eyes lit up. "I watched the match together with Bjørn from here. And OMG! You were really impressive when you came on as a substitute. You even scored the equalizer and winning goal for Juventus. Congs, man."

"Thanks," Zachary replied, smiling a bit unnaturally. He always found it slightly weird when acquaintances showered him with over-the-top praises. "Is breakfast ready?"

"Yup," she replied. "I prepared chicken breast with; Avocado, rice, beetroot, spinach, Quinoa salad, and a glass of coconut water. I'll bring the food over immediately."

"Thanks."

With that said, Inger immediately headed to the kitchen before returning with the food a few minutes later. She placed it before Zachary and then went away to do her other chores.

As for Zachary, he quickly busied himself with the food. He ate with relish and finished the meal in less than ten minutes. But since he still felt hungry, he didn't just stop at that.

After consulting with Inger, he picked a glass of milk, cereals, and bananas from the fridge before swallowing them to complete his meal. And with that, he finally finished his breakfast and was thus free to focus on other things.

Coach Allegri had allowed all the Juventus players two days off after they won the match against Atlético Madrid the previous night. Thus, that very day, Zachary had ample free time on his hands, which he mostly spent resting in his new villa.

He watched birds in his gardens in the morning and then went through a light gym routine at noon before enjoying a sumptuous lunch prepared by Inger, his chef. Then, after taking a short nap in the afternoon, he had Angelo, his driver, drop him at the language school, where he spent the rest of the day studying Italian.

At around 9:00 PM, he returned home, feeling even more tired after spending hours cramming and comprehending Italian sentences. He quickly took a shower and dried himself with a towel before descending the stairs and heading to the living room. Along the way, he picked a glass of juice from the fridge before continuing further and settling in front of the large screen to watch European Football.

Since it was Wednesday night, there were many Champions League games scheduled. For instance, there were high-stakes games like Barcelona vs. PSG, AS Roma vs. Man City, and Chelsea vs. Sporting. They were all live on different paid Television channels in Italy.

"You're also going to watch football!" Coach Bjørn Peters, Zachary's fitness trainer, exclaimed on seeing him settle on the couch beside him.

"Yes," Zachary replied after taking a sip of his juice. "I want to check out the competition."

Coach Bjørn Peters chuckled. "Checking out the competition is a good practice. But aren't you worried about oversleeping and being late for the team training tomorrow?"

"Nah," Zachary replied with a shake of his head. "We have another day off tomorrow. I don't have to get up early."

"Well, that's new!" Coach Bjørn Peters exclaimed.

"What's new?" Zachary inquired.

"I meant Coach Allegri giving you a day off," the fitness trainer replied with a smile. "The man should be over the moon after Juventus defeated Atlético Madrid."

"He sure is," Zachary said as the image of Coach Allegri celebrating the win yesterday appeared in his mind. After the final whistle had sounded, the coach went crazy with excitement and even celebrated before his opponent - Diego Simeone. But he didn't just stop at that. The coach also awarded all the Juventus players two days of rest as an appreciative gesture for the job well done against Atlético Madrid.

"That was some crazy stuff..."

Slowly pushing the memories of yesternight out of his mind, Zachary fixed his eyes on the large screen. The next moment, his eyes lit up when he noticed that the match on the screen was between Barcelona and PSG. He quickly placed his glass of juice on the table before focusing on the proceedings displayed on the screen.

As usual, Barcelona was the dominant team on the field of play, especially with players like Messi, Neymar, Pedro, Luis Suárez, Andrés Iniesta, and Sergio Busquets in their ranks. After conceding a goal in the opening stages, they quickly flew forward like packs of wolves on the hunt as they mounted a never-ending series of attacks on the Paris-based side. Their teamwork was so out of this world, and they relied on their signature Tiki-taka football to dominate possession and break down PSG's tenacity as the match proceeded forward. And with that, they managed to win the game by three goals to one after Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Luis Suárez found the back of the net during the 19th, 41st, and 79th minutes, respectively.

"This Barcelona team is something else," Bjørn Peters said with a sigh after the game ended. "They are always dictating the tempo in every game they play. No offense to you, Zachary, but I think they have the most lethal attacking combination in the world."

"No offense taken," Zachary replied with a smile. "I'm aware that Barcelona is a great team. If we chanced upon them, we would have to pull out all stops to get even a draw out of them. They are really a scary team, especially with Messi, Neymar, Iniesta, Suárez, and their Tiki-taka football to support them."

"That's true," Bjørn Peters said, nodding. "I have a gut feeling that they will be the biggest obstacle for you and your Juventus as you try to win the Champions League trophy this season. You'll have to defeat them before dreaming about lifting the most prestigious trophy in Europe."

"True," Zachary agreed as memories of his previous life manifested within his mind. "If we can't beat Barcelona, we should forget about this season's Champions League trophy."

Zachary had been a staunch supporter of the game during his previous life. He was well aware that Barcelona would play incredibly well and put up a series of impressive performances in the Champions League that very season. And if the future proceeded as it should, Barcelona would even overpower Juventus in the final and lift the 2014-15 Champions League trophy. In other words, the Barcelona players were the fated champions of Europe that very season.