The Greatest of All Time

Chapter 72 - Battle Of The Underdogs III

"Even the commentator calls us underdogs," Kasongo grumbled.

"Don't worry about the commentator," Paul replied, smiling. "Let's just do our part and show the people in this stadium that we're top-dogs, not underdogs."

They were in a rare break on the pitch after celebrating Zachary's goal with the rest of the team. They had a minute or two to rest since the ADO Den Haag coach had opted to make a substitution right after conceding a goal.

"That's right." Kasongo nodded. "Winning this match will shut people up. Maybe our juniors will be regarded as top seeds when they travel here for next year's Riga Cup."

Paul smiled. "That's a nice one. Maybe, our academy is about to welcome a golden age. We're playing in the semis."

Kasongo didn't proceed with the conversation. He listened to the cheers instead and felt like they were the most sublime music in the world. There was a fire in his heart that was missing at the beginning of the match.

Not many academy players had been expecting to reach the semi-finals when they first arrived in Riga. The possible exception was Zachary since he played every single game like a champion. Most players, including Kasongo, had merely come along to gain some experience. They didn't expect to be among the top four contenders for the cup.

They were well aware that they were an inexperienced group, competing with several top academies from around Europe. Even 'simply' qualifying for the quarter-finals would have satisfied them. NF Academy had never made it past the group stages in past sessions of the Riga Cup.

However, on making it to the quarter-finals, some, like Kendrick and Magnus, had begun to believe they could emerge as victors. They'd started preaching to the rest of the squad members, trying to motivate them to work towards the same dream.

The rest of the squad had been receptive to their motivational talks, but most—still had an inferiority complex. They felt that winning against strong teams like Zenit was nothing short of a miracle, impossible to replicate. Losing the game against Genoa had reinforced that complex further.

If Kasongo had to be one hundred percent honest with himself, he would have to admit that he'd been part of that group of self-doubting incompetents. But that had ended during the game against ADO Den Haag.

Zachary's goal had riled him up, bringing to the surface several wild ambitions in the deepest recesses of his mind. For the first time since his arrival in Riga, Kasongo felt a hundred percent confident in his squad. He believed it was capable of winning the cup.

In the meantime, the feeling was fleeting, just a spark of hope, a ray of sunshine yet to be born, but he could feel it nonetheless. Perhaps that was merely optimism, the grasping for possible opportunities in the future. But, he resolved to play at his best and win the tournament to cultivate that feeling.

Kasongo cast a cursory glance towards the touchline and noticed that ADO Den Haag's substitute was ready to come on. "Man, you better go back to your position," he shouted, giving a light push to Paul, preventing him from continuing the conversation. "We need to keep our heads in the game," he added.

"Okay, okay," Paul yelled back as he jogged across the pitch towards the left-wing to take his position.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew his whistle, and the match restarted after the goal and the substitution. ADO Den Haag played with a high tempo right away, switching the ball from wing to wing, seeking to spear into NF Academy's half.

Kasongo noted that their wingers had great pace and dribbling ability. They often dribbled close to the touchline before striving to provide cut-backs or cross the ball into the box so that their strikers could score. They worked together with wing-backs to outflank defenders, posing the greatest threats to Kasongo and his teammates.