Chapter 366 The Source Of Danger



[ +10 stat points added to all stat ]

[ Additional+10 stats added to strength ]

[ Strength: 40(+20) ]

[ Dexterity: 70(+10) ]

[ Endurance: 56(+10) ]

That was what his stats looked like before he sent the ball flying toward Lazio's goalpost with a powerful shot.

"He's going for that rocket shot!"

Jorge was a bit off his line but he was able to move back on time and get his right hand on the ball.

He succeeded in getting his hand on the ball as it hit his hand before flying up further to hit the crossbar.

This time it didn't fly over the bar and ended up flying back into the box toward Fredinho who made no mistake in heading it into the box while the goalkeeper was still off balance.

"It's in! They're two goals up with just four minutes left!" Jim exclaimed as Fredinho raced to the sidelines screaming as loud as he could.

"He stopped Dave's rocket shot but he couldn't put it over and Fredinho was there to send it home," Steve commented.

'I was aiming to score by myself but I guess going two goals up is all that matters no matter who scored the goal.'

"Causing offensive troubles from the goalpost is not something you will see from a goalkeeper unless the goalkeeper is Dave Richards."

The fans were going wild now and all you could hear them chanting was Dave's name.

It was pretty obvious that he got more credit for that goal than Fredinho even though it wasn't an assist from him.

"When I heard he could shoot rockets, I didn't it to be like this," Jorge muttered under his breath as he slowly got up from the floor.

There was no doubt that Lazio players had devastated looks on their faces, going two goals behind in the first half wasn't a good thing and unless they could think of a way to completely subdue Unique FC in the second half, they were going to lose this match.

'So, what level two shot-stopper does is add an extra ten stat points to my strength but there is no extra bonus for dexterity and endurance.' Dave said subconsciously with his gaze on his system screen.

<You forgot to add that your energy drops faster now compared to how it was at level one>

[ 88/151 Energy ]

'That's not a problem, I'll just play it cool for now, the first is coming to an end soon anyway, the skill will deactivate as soon as the referee blows his whistle and my Energy will start recovering.'

<Activating the skill close to the first half's end was a pretty good idea, you're starting to catch on quite well>

'If the shot-stopper increases my strength boost in level two ignoring the others and will keep on doing that as its level progresses then that means the sweeper keeper attribute will increase my dexterity as its level progresses and ignore.'

<Okay, I'm just going to say this one, that's pretty good, figuring it out as soon as you saw how shot stopper improved>

'It wasn't really that hard to figure out.'

The match continued with Lazio trying all they could to pull one at least and Dave really wished they didn't try so hard with just a few minutes to go.

Still, with the help of his activated attribute, he was able to easily stop all their attempts until the referee blew his whistle to bring the first half to an end.

"That was a pretty hectic last three minutes for Unique FC, Lazio were totally running over them, and I'm quite surprised they weren't able to pull one back. They should have pulled one back but it's a good thing Unique FC have Dave in between the sticks to take care of those close calls." Jim expressed.

[ 25/151 ]

[ Shot stopper attribute deactivated ]

'I'm glad that's over.' The goalkeeper said subconsciously before letting out a sigh of relief.

<Yeah, that was quite hectic>

"It's like Unique FC just switched off during those last minutes, it could have been costly for them but luckily for them, they still have their two-goal lead," Steve commented. "They looked quite mediocre and if they don't come up with a smart way to deal with Lazio's aggressiveness in the second half, they were dealing with it quite well until the last minutes."

Unique FC players were all in the locker room now with Norman standing in front of them.

He was happy that his team was leading two goals to nothing at the end of the first half but he didn't look calm and there was a good explanation.

"Listen guys, there's no doubt that we will lose this lead if we relax in the second half or start making any mistakes and the worst part is that the only method I had to stop them while also taking our chances doesn't seem like it will last much longer." He expressed.

"So, what are you saying, coach?" Adolf asked.

"I am saying that if they get too aggressive in the second half, then we will have to PARK THE BUS."

________ ________

<Watching him come up with all those smart tactics, he never came off to me as someone who would park the bus against a team but I guess people can do anything in dire situations>

'Yeah, like he said, the most important thing is going through to the knockout stage and if we're going to succeed in doing that, we'll need to win this match through any means possible.'

The players were making their way to the pitch now as the second half of the match was about to kick off.

"Welcome back, everyone, the second half of this interesting match is about to kick off as we can see the players from both teams making their way to the pitch now," Jim said. "The first half was a blast, Lazio FC dominated the game in almost every aspect but somehow, Unique FC managed to get the ball into their goalpost twice while they have failed to score once against them so far, let's see how they respond in this half."

Since Lazio started the game from the kick-off spot in the first half, Unique FC were going to be the ones to do it in this half.

Fredinho was standing over the ball now waiting for the referee's whistle and as soon as he heard it, he quickly rolled the ball to Mateo who immediately sent the ball rolling back to Martinez.

"There's the whistle and we are on the way," Jim said.

"Unique FC will like to cling on to this lead for as long as they can."

Unique FC were doing quite well in holding onto the ball so far and it didn't look like they had any intention of attacking as they seemed to be pushing the ball back just after going a little further on their opponent's side.

That was until…

Ferran got the ball taken off his feet in his attempt to dribble Ryan but before he could do anything with it, the ball was swept off his feet with a neat tackle from Roland.

"What a way to get the ball back."

As soon as the left back got hold of the ball, he got up and zoomed off with it down the wing.

He raced toward the box and just before getting to it, he tipped it over into the box as he found Fredinho there with only one player with him.

Fredinho had the height advantage there so he was able to get his head on the ball.

His touch was on point as the ball was sent flying toward the top right-hand side of the goalpost but it didn't have that much power to it so Jorge was able to get to it and tip it over the bar for a corner kick.

"Oh, that was so close, great save from Jorge," Jim said.

"They have a corner kick to deal with now."

Ferran quickly rushed to the spot as it was his time to find someone in the box and hope that they go three goals up.

He stood over the ball as the referee made sure everything was ready and was he was sure that there was nothing out of place, he blew his whistle.

Ferran slowly took two steps backward before he closed up on the ball and sent it flying into the box.

The ball was nodded back by a Lazio defender before it fell to the foot of another defender who quickly set the ball flying toward Carrigher to set him up for a counterattack.

The ball was sent flying past the striker close to the line dividing both sides but before he could get to it, Dave was already there.

"Taking the risk of leaving his goalpost once again."

He got hold of the ball and could have easily passed it to Martinez who was close by, but he quickly got past the striker with the ball before he sent it flying toward Lazio's goalpost.

"When was the last time I saw a goalkeeper attempting a dribble far away from his goalpost?"

The ball was sent flying toward the left side and was about to go out when Mateo slid toward it and sent it flying in toward the goalpost with his foot.

Jorge blocked the unexpected shot with his body but unfortunately for him, the rebound was sent rolling toward Ferran who was all alone in the middle.

The midfielder didn't have any trouble putting that away.

"Oh, my goodness! It's the third one! They're three goals up!"

Ferran quickly rushed toward Mateo who was still trying to get up from the floor and pulled him down before Minino and the others got to them.

"I know that goal happened as a result of Mateo getting to that ball before it went past the line but it also wouldn't have happened without the ball coming in like that," Steve commented.

"Yeah, it looks like Dave has been the source of danger so far."