Unlimited Potential System

[Ding! Host has been given a new mission]

[Mission: Host is been pushed to the reserve team when he feels he's ready for first team football. Put on a memorable performance and make your coach know what you know, that you can play with the big boys.]

[Reward: New Skill, MOTM bonus: +2 stat points]

Tyler smiled when he saw the mission in front of him. He didn't know how he triggered the missions, but they almost always came at the right time. He stood up after tying his shoelaces and brought down his socks on his right leg down to his chin while leaving the one on his left leg fully up to his knee. It was a new look that he was trying out.

A few minutes later, a match official came to call the players and the head coach out. It was time for the match to start.

Tyler could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he stepped out with the rest of the players. They walked out onto the field and Tyler was stunned as he saw the crowd. Well, it wasn't actually a crowd but it was definitely the most he'd ever played football in front.

If he were to take a guess, he'd say that there were around a thousand and half people who were watching them.

'If I feel like this in front of this small crowd, then what's going to happen when I start playing in front of fifty times more people'. Tyler thought as he steeled his mind and walked out with the rest of his teammates.

Thankfully, it was a home game. And while the supporters weren't much by football standards, they were still very passionate.

["Alright everyone, welcome to this outing between AS Monaco and Saint-Malo. It's between two very good teams in the third group of the fourth division of French football. We have lots of exciting young talents on display, and I'm sure we're all excited to watch them play"] The sole commentator's voice sounded in the stadium as the players from the two team went to arrange themselves on their respective side of the pitch.

Tyler rubbed his palms as he briefly scanned his opponents. No matter how low the level was, he was going up against professional footballers, and he wasn't going to allow himself become complacent just because they were in the fourth tier of French football.

The referee's whistle sounded a few moments later and the match begun. It was Saint-Malo who kicked things off. After passing the ball in the center circle, they squared it back to their half of the pitch where they kept possession.

The match came on to a slow start. Saint-Malo preferred to sit deep in their half and pass the ball around, using their passes to draw the opposition out of position and exploit the spaces that they left in behind. It was a very very good tactic and a lot of teams had fallen victim to it. One moment they were passing the ball around and then the next, they were in your eighteen yard box about to text the abilities of your goalkeepers.

Jeremi, the Monaco B coach had already anticipated it and said that asides the front three that would press the opposition defense, the rest of the team should remain in a passive defensive position deep in their half. This meant that a lot of space was left between the front line and the midfield. Saint-Malo couldn't utilize it however, Jeremi thought ahead of time and had the midfield trio engage them whenever it seemed like they had broken through for long enough to allow the front three recover.

All in all, it was a pretty good neutralizing tactic from a viewers perspective, but being one of the forwards that had been required to do a lot of running, Tyler swore at the coach at every chance he got. Ten minutes hadn't even passed since kickoff and already he felt his lungs were about to burst. Thankfully, he didn't have to persist for long. Possession soon changed hands, and he was back to waiting on the shoulder of the last defender and waiting for a pass.

'12

["Well, I think we've had a very slow start to this match so far. Twelve minutes in and we haven't seen any shot from the two sides. Possession's just being recycled but we haven't seen any real threat whatsoever. I think if we are to have a winner in this, then the two sets of players have to up their game"]

As if the commentator's voice held some sort of spell, as soon as he finished talking, Monaco B created the very first chance of the game.

Tiago who had been locked out of the game so far, was very frustrated at the state of the match so he decided to take things into his own hands. He received the ball in his own half, a few yards away from the center circle. When he got the ball, he had his back to his goal and so the safest course of action would've been to pass it back, but Tiago was tired of playing fake.

Tiago shifted his body to the left, fooling the opposition player pressing him from behind, before eventually turning to the right and driving the ball forward. After he moved a few steps, a couple of Saint-Malo midfielders tried to close him down, but he managed to power through them and sent a pass forward to Monaco B's striker. The striker sent the ball back to Tiago who had a bit more space around him with a backheel and the attacking midfielder continued his menacing run.

Before anyone knew what was happening, Tiago was a few steps away from the center of Saint-Malo's penalty box. Everyone had already assembled to close him down, but then Tiago did something that shocked them. He placed the inside of his boot under the ball and lifted it towards the left flank, over the small wall that formed, and to Tyler who was currently making a run.

Tyler caught the ball on his chest, and then he hit it first time, with the side of his foot, sending his half-volley towards the far side of the net. The Saint Malo's goalkeeper dove towards it, but Tyler's shot was just too fast and powerful. It went into the back of the net.

1-0. Monaco B had taken the lead.