Chapter 302 The Man To Seal The Game

[ 60/100 HP ]

[ Energy has dropped by 30% ]

[ Stamina will drop faster in your current condition ]

After applying some first aid treatment on the goalkeeper's nose, the bleeding stopped and he was able to sit up on the floor.

'I've lost a lot of blood, haven't I, Catherine?'

<Yeah, but it's not that much>

'Will I be able to continue?'

<Yeah, you can but you'll have to be careful, and just like the system said, your stamina's drop rate has just increased, the best option is to ask to come off>

'But that has to be my decision to make, right?'

<Yeah, but the best option is to come off, you guys are leading after all>

'I asked you if it was okay for me to continue and you said yes, but the best option is to come off, I don't want to come off, I don't want the best option.' The goalkeeper said subconsciously.

"Hey, Dave, will you be able to continue?" Mateo asked but there was no response from the goalkeeper.

<But you guys are already leading, things will get really bad if you get hit again>

'Then, I'll just be careful and avoid getting hit again, this two-goal lead won't mean anything once they make a comeback, that is why I have to stay here and make sure that doesn't happen.'

As he said those words subconsciously, he slowly got up from the floor until he was back on his feet.

"Yes, I think I will be able to continue." He said with his gaze on Mateo who couldn't help but smile.

"Dave Richards is back on his feet and it looks like he's going to be able to carry on," Jim said.

As soon as the home fans saw the goalkeeper back on his feet, they burst into cheers of joy.

"That's good news for them, they wouldn't want to see him go out when the match is just entering the fiftieth, he has been phenomenal so far in this match." Steve expressed.

Everyone was happy to see Dave back on his feet and ready to continue with the match, well everyone except Emma who still had that worried expression on her face.

"I hope you know what you're doing." She muttered.

The match had resumed now as the players were waiting for Dave to send the ball out but he had a different thing in mind.

Instead of sending the ball out, he passed it to Luis Roberto who helped him stretch it further outside the box.

"Looks like Dave's about to try something here."

The goalkeeper raced toward the ball and just before Jonathan could get to him, he sent the ball flying toward the goalpost.

Lesica United's goalkeeper knew what he was about to do and was already ready for it, but that didn't mean it was going to be easy for him.

The ball was sent flying toward the top left-hand side of the goalpost with a powerful shot as the goalkeeper got to it with the tip of his glove, but that was all he needed to push it up a little for it to hit the crossbar before falling over for a corner kick.

"Oh, that was so close, what a wonderful save from Carlo to keep that out," Jim said.

"Yeah, but now they have a corner kick to deal with," Steve said.

The corner kick was going to be taken on the left side so Carlos decided to take it, Ferran was the club's regular corner kick taker on both spots since he could make use of both feet quite well, but Carlos decided to take this one.

He was standing over the ball now waiting for the referee's whistle and as soon as he heard it, he sent the ball flying into the box.

The ball deflected on a Lesica United player's head before falling off toward Ferran near the edge of the box and without hesitation, the midfielder sent the ball flying toward the goalpost.

Carlo was glued to a spot as the ball flew past him toward the right side and hit the crossbar before falling out for a goal kick.

"Oh, dear, that was so close, Unique FC should be four goals up by now," Jim said.

"I think Ferran Phil has been hitting the woodwork a little too much since the start of the season," Steve said. "I remember last season when he tried something like this against Olona FC and it didn't have any problem going into the goalpost."

"His shooting may have gotten a bit rusty, but he's still a great midfielder, and his passes are still top-notch," Jim said.

'I thought you said his shooting accuracy improved, Catherine, from what I've seen so far, I can say it's worse than last season.' Dave said subconsciously.

<Of course his shooting accuracy improved, but shooting accuracy isn't the only thing that decides whether a shot will go in or not>

'Huh?'

<Aiming and shot power also plays big roles in it, just like you have good shooting accuracy but you end up hitting the crossbar most of the time because you aim too close to it>

'Oh, so that's what's going on with Ferran too.'

<Yeah, and he also applies a lot of shot power to shots that don't require that much shooting power>

'Got it, I'll talk to him about it.'

The match continued with both teams trying their best, it would have been okay for Unique FC to just park the bus and hold Lesica United down to the last, but that wasn't Norman's style, the team wanted a third goal and the defense were doing quite well supporting the attack while also doing their job.

Lesica United had quite a number of good moments but the defense did their job well in stopping them and for the shots that managed to slip past them, Dave was there to stop.

[ 5/5 crucial saves ]

'I just have to avoid conceding a goal from any of those forwards until the last whistle and might also throw in a clean sheet as a bonus.' The goalkeeper said subconsciously before he sent the ball flying into the pitch.

In the Seventy-fifth minute of the match, the ball was sent out for a throw-in by Roland to stop Levi's advance, and since Norman had not made any changes since the start of the match.

The official with the board raised the board to show the number seven in red and the number sixteen in green.

"Looks like Carlos is going to be the one coming off and he is going to be replaced by Christian Merino, the man who was the true inspiration behind Unique FC's comeback against Lesica United last season to qualify for the conference league." Jim expressed.

Carlos received a standing ovation from the fans as he left the pitch and Merino received an even louder standing ovation as he made his way onto the pitch.

"Carlos hasn't really been extraordinary tonight but he's had a couple of good chances and now Merino is on the pitch," Steve said. "As we all know, Merino is more vibrant and energetic compared to Carlos and he is way more decisive when it comes to shooting, that's how he was able to break Lesica United's heart that day and now Norman has brought him in to help seal the game for his side."

"One thing is clear, he's not making things easy for Unique FC."

***

Mass release goals.

A magic castle= one extra chapter.

Two magic castles= two extra chapters.