My Goalkeeping System

Fred's failed attempt to head the ball into the goalpost was the last effort of the first half, leaving Unique FC to complete the first forty-five minutes of the game still one goal behind.

They were clearly the most dominant side in the match so far.

However, it took more than just being dominant to win a game of football, being dominant means nothing if the team lacks the capability to finish their chances.

All Real Sociedad needed was a little bit of luck for that ball to fall to Merino and a moment of swift decisiveness from the midfield maestro to put the ball away neatly.

That said, the Spanish side was on edge for most of the first half; with the way Unique FC were constantly terrorizing their defence, nobody knew how the second half was going to end if the game was to continue that way.

Compared to Real Sociedad, which had five shots, with just two of them being on target, the Bilbeth Premier League side had twelve shots, of which nine were on target; it's a shame they couldn't get a goal out of all that.

With the time halftime break time slowly ticking away, the Unique FC squad were currently in their locker room, and of course, Norman was standing in front of them.

The coach wasn't too quick to speak as he slowly observed the players who looked a bit dispirited.

After observing them for a while, he took a deep breath.

"Relax, it's just a goal deficit, it's nothing we can't recover from, right?" The coach spoke. "But of course, if we want to do that, we have to identify the problem, and I'm sure you know what the problem is."

<Do you know what I think, Dave?>

'What?'

<This team lacks a proper striker, Fred might be better than Fredinho at finishing, but that's only by a minuscule level. They're both quite in the same league, the league of mediocrity I mean>

'League of mediocrity?'

<I'm just stating the fact, the problem just doesn't seem apparent because the other forwards make up for their mediocre finishing whenever they can>

'Well, that doesn't seem to be a problem that can be solved anytime soon, but that doesn't mean there isn't a quick solution. So, tell me, Cat, what would you do in the current situation?

<Mmm, let's hear what your coach has to say first>

Norman had been speaking for a while now, and it was finally time for him to tell his team what he had planned for the second half.

"The proposed formation has worked as well as I wanted it to work but we'll have to switch things up a bit as it seems we're lacking clinicality up front." Norman expressed. "So, here's what we're going to do, Mateo; I'm pulling you out from midfield and pushing you upfront alongside Fred as the second striker."

<I know this was already quite clear to me but I have to say it again, he's good>

'What? Was that what you had in mind?' Your next read is at empire

<Yeah, exactly. Having to drop deep most of the time because of his position, Mateo didn't get enough chances to test the goalkeeper, now things will be different. Well, this is only the first part, let's hear what he has planned for the other players>

"Ferran, you'll have to stretch to cover the left side of midfield; you'll be playing centrally alongside Merino for the second half; try to feed Mateo whenever you get the chance.

"Lastly, for the defensive midfielders, Frankie, you played a bit too deep throughout the first half, I think your help would be much appreciated up front."

<Yeah, it felt like the guy was missing the whole forty-five minutes>

"You'll still play the pivotal role alongside Minino, but I want you to be upfront a bit more frequently; Minino won't have a problem playing as a sole pivot most of the time."

"Never thought I would see the day," Minino muttered as he shook his head.

"What was that?" The coach asked, quickly turning to the midfielder.

"Nothing," Minino responded, feigning a smile.

<Looks like your coach has a clear idea of what he wants for the second half>

'Is it….'

<Not exactly, but this is good enough>

'Oh.'

<But you know, Dave…>

'What?'

<The problem of a striker is only a part of your problem today>

'Get straight to the point, Catherine.' Dave sighed inwardly.

<I just feel like today just isn't your day, you should hope I get proven wrong in the second half>

________ ________

"Welcome back, everyone, the second half is just about to kick off here at the Reale Arena as we can see the players making their way from the tunnel to the pitch," Jim commented. "The first half was quite something, there was only one goal, but loads of interesting highlights."

"Yeah, both teams are fighting seriously for that win, and being behind, Unique FC seem to be way more serious than their opponents," Steve added.

The match was set to resume now as Ferran could be seen standing over the ball in the kick-off spot.

With everything now in place, the referee blew his whistle, and as soon as he did, the midfielder sent the ball rolling back to Frankie.

"There's the whistle and we are back into it."

Unique FC, as expected, were playing things safe so far, slowly moving the ball around on their side of the pitch as their opponents grew more and more aggressive in their pursuit of the ball.

Receiving the ball from Roland near the D box, Frankie neatly twisted away from Larick, who was looking for an opportunity.

Away from the striker, the midfielder sent the ball rolling to Minino who was a little further ahead.

Minino got hold of the ball, and quickly sent it rolling to Merino toward the right, avoiding a direct confrontation with Nunez.

However, sending it to Merino wasn't exactly the best option as Emerson, who was right behind the winger at the moment, quickly dashed toward him before the ball could get to him.

Merino could have lost the ball there but he was fast enough to send the ball rolling to Luis Roberto with the tip of his boot.

"He barely made it out of that."

Receiving the ball, the fullback quickly turned around with it and sent it rolling to the goalkeeper.

"And back to Dave."

"I'm on it." The goalkeeper said before pushing the ball toward the left.

Before that ball got to him, someone had already raised his hand asking for it.

Without hesitation, he pulled his right foot back and sent it flying down the left, his target none other than Mateo.

The youngster had just crossed the halfway line when the ball got to him.

"Long ball from the post to Mateo."

Neatly bringing the ball down with his foot, the fullback in front of him dashed forward but but quickly cutting toward the left, the youngster was able to avoid him.

An opposing midfielder rushed in from the side at that moment but a quick right cut from Mateo was enough as he ended up kicking nothing but air.

"Easy work for Mateo Smith."

The two successfully deleted temporarily, the winger took off, racing diagonally down the middle.

"What can the youngster make of this?"

The most of it would have been Mateo's answer if he could hear that question.

Twenty-five yards away from the goalpost, the youngster pulled his right foot back and launched the ball forward.

"Mateo from a distance!"

The ball was sent flying toward the top right corner of the goalpost with great force, and although Arnold was able to react on time, he could only get the tip of his glove on it.

Unfortunately, that wasn't enough as the ball smashed past his glove into the goalpost.

"Unbelievable! Have you ever witnessed a rocket launch? I just did, here at the Reale Arena!" Jim exclaimed. "Arnold could do absolutely nothing about that."

The away fans were all on their feet now, screaming in jubilation as Mateo took off to the side.

With a bright smile on his face, the winger slid down with his full body before his teammates caught up to him, most of them crashing on his body.

"All the clear chances and this is how we score our first goal." Dave chuckled.

<Looks like someone can't handle long-ranged shots>