THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME-Chapter 460: Evolving III

The game continued after the goal celebrations. And without any surprise, the Juventus players continued dominating the proceedings on the pitch by relying on their steady and fluid passing. Their hard work and tactical abilities allowed them to hoard over 70% of ball possession while remaining solid and compact to deny Malmö any chance of launching a counterattack. Anyone watching the game could tell that the Old Lady was slowly sealing Malmö's fate of losing the game on that rainy night.

The players at the center of all Juventus' actions were the three central midfielders - Claudio Marchisio, Arturo Vidal, and Zachary Bemba. They all continued linking up play with the three defenders and the two wing-backs to execute Coach Allegri's game plan. Their creativity and tactical acuteness were obviously at the zenith of footballing standards whenever it mattered. And although their off-ball runs lacked any sense of urgency, they still managed to outplay Malmö in the midfield.

Zachary, on his part, was growing more and more comfortable within Juventus' tactical system as the game progressed. He started having more touches on the ball while executing more successful dribbles to beat the opponents within the middle and final thirds. The young playmaker soon became the true-blue attacking pivot for Juventus, and it didn't take long for him to create another clear goal-scoring chance for Juventus.

That time around, the attack began with Gianluigi Buffon's short goal-kick to Stephan Lichtsteiner, Juventus' right wing-back, during the 40th minute. After receiving the ball, Stephan acted with all the haste he could muster and passed into the midfield to find Claudio Marchisio. Claudio, in turn, worked quickly to skip past an opponent with a deft touch before finding Arturo Vidal on his left. Vidal also didn't waste a second controlling the ball before looking up once and threading the ball in-between two Malmö midfielders to find Zachary.

Juventus had upped the tempo within seconds, and of course, Zachary reacted with the same urgency while connecting with Vidal's pass. The young playmaker looped the ball over Enoch Kofi Adu, one of Malmö's two defensive midfielders, with his first touch to create a few yards for himself to work his magic. Then, he accelerated away from the beaten opponent and hit top speed within a few seconds.

He'd been conserving energy by remaining quiet and reserved in his style of play for a good fraction of the game. As a result, his stamina reserves were ample enough to support his monstrous burst of speed at that moment. He cut through the rain like a racing cheetah and continued bearing down on Malmö's half. He soon stepped into the final third, where he met a roadblock in the form of Emil Forsberg, Malmö's other defensive midfielder.

Emil Forsberg, on his part, was careful as he stepped forward to check Zachary's mad dash through the middle. He constantly reminded himself not to react to Zachary's fancy footwork and side-stepping feints as he closed down the young number-10. Obviously, Forsberg was highly focused on his role as a defensive midfielder and determined to stop the playmaker from beating him again. He was going all out to stop Zachary from initiating another deadly attack against his side.

But, of course, the determination to succeed at something was one thing, while the ability to achieve a purpose was a different factor. It wasn't a guarantee that every determined person would always realize their objectives. And that was what sealed Emil Forsberg's fate at that moment as he faced off against Zachary.

Zachary slowed down and stepped over the ball with his left leg, forcing Forsberg to lean slightly to the right. Then, Zachary abruptly switched his center of gravity and stepped over the ball with his right leg to compel the opponent to react and tilt to the left. His footwork was as smooth as moving clouds and flowing water, and he confused the defensive midfielder.

Forsberg, in turn, was out of options and could only react instinctively to the crisis. His posture was already a mess due to the lightning-fast left-to-right feints executed by the young playmaker. Thus, he could only try his best to save the situation by stretching his leg to tackle the ball off the approaching Zachary's feet. And that was what further sealed his fate.

Whoosh!

Zachary fed the ball through Forsberg's legs to complete a stunning nutmeg before exploding with pace in anything but an instant. He circumvented the dazed and muddled defensive midfielder from the left and was soon accelerating towards the box like a bolt of lightning through the rain. He was on a straight course towards Malmö's goal.

Forsberg, on his part, didn't give up. He muttered a curse under his breath as he immediately tried to turn around and chase after Zachary. But Forsberg's abrupt 180-degree turn caused some more disorientation to his sense of balance, and the midfielder tumbled face-first to the ground. He was soon lying prone in the wet grass, watching Zachary speeding away from him. He was demoralized and defeated as he had failed to stop the cunning opponent.

"Zachary! Bemba! Zachary..."

The cheers around the Juventus stadium hit a thunderous zenith as Zachary approached Malmö's box at breakneck speed. He had already noticed his teammates, including the two strikers - Fernando Llorente and Carlos Tévez, running ahead of him. But that didn't stop him from holding on to the ball longer.

He had matured as a player and already developed into a lethal attacking midfielder. He understood that remaining composed and patient during crucial moments was vital when creating a goal-scoring chance. He knew he could draw the opposing defenders out of their positions if he didn't panic and held onto the ball longer. And if the opposing defenders chose not to bite and close him down, he could also go at it alone and fire at the goal as he had done when he scored the 1st goal. There were just that many options for him as long as he remained composed.

All considerations instantly flashed through Zachary's mind as he continued bearing down on Malmö's box. But just as he was about to consider going at it alone and trying his chances on goal, one of the Malmö center-backs closed him down.

Filip Helander was the man in question. He raced away from his position in Malmö's back-five and ran at Zachary like a raging bull. The center-back's face was contorted into a grotesque expression as if he wanted to murder Zachary on the field.

Zachary, of course, wasn't intimidated by the defender's aggressive approach. He assessed and analyzed his options within a flash as he slowed down before the arc of the 18-yard-box. His mind went into overdrive mode, and he considered unleashing a through-pass to Carlos Tévez. But Zachary dropped the notion the next moment after realizing that the striker was already in an offside position.

But that slight indecisiveness cost Zachary a lot of time on the ball. And before he could come up with a solution, Filip Helander was on him, trying to tackle the ball. The center-back executed an aggressive sliding tackle over the wet surface and went at Zachary like a deadly snake in the green grass. He seemed not to mind the risk of conceding a free kick and was only hell-bent on stopping Zachary from proceeding forward.

"Damn it!" Zachary mouthed a silent curse as he watched the dangerous tackle approaching him. His heartbeat accelerated as his instincts took over control of his body. He dug his boot under the ball and immediately leaped high and above the tackle.

Whoosh!

He could almost hear the wheels in his brain turning and churning as he descended back to the ground with the ball glued to his left boot. Before the other defenders could react and close him down, he accelerated and ran through the gap left by Filip Helander in Malmö's defensive line. He twisted and turned while making his way into the box, and in some uncanny way, he was soon one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

Robin Olsen, Malmö's keeper, did as any experienced goalie would do and ran out of goal to stop him. But Zachary remained composed and unleashed a simple chip over the approaching goalkeeper. His well-timed release allowed him to loop the ball over the keeper, and he found the back of the net again to score Juventus' second goal in the 41st minute.

"Oh my goodness me!" The Italian commentator shouted as Zachary raced towards the sidelines to celebrate the goal. "Zachary Bemba is on fire today. He has once again destroyed Malmö's entire defense and scored Juventus' second goal in the 41st minute. His dribbling skills are at an entirely different level when compared to the version of himself last season. What can I say? He's like a totally evolved player, and it's as if I'm watching a prime Ronaldinho on the field of play."

The co-commentator chuckled. "I'm sure Malmö didn't expect this version of Zachary while preparing for the game today. He is tearing them apart, and they can't do anything to retaliate. Look at what happened when Forsberg tried to stop him. The midfielder ended up on the ground, eating mud as he watched Zachary speeding away to score Juventus' 2nd goal."

"But I have to say that his play was a bit selfish during the attack," the commentator pointed out. "One has to wonder why he didn't pass to either Fernando Llorente or Carlos Tévez, who were obviously anticipating a pass from him. If he had failed to score, I'm sure Coach Allegri would have been on his case for failing to release the strikers on time."

"True," the co-commentator agreed. "But that's only an if. Zachary delivered once again and scored Juventus' second goal for the night. So, his selfishness is a non-factor so far."

"But, I'm sure that Llorente and Tévez must be fuming on the inside," the commentator said. "It's the second time he has chosen to go at it alone and score instead of passing to them."

"We don't know that," the co-commentator argued. "The strikers should also be glad that their team is winning. Remember that results are what matter in football. Had he not scored, they would have had a right to complain about him. But the point is that he managed to deliver. So, they can only choose to bury their frustrations within their hearts."