Chapter 439: Another Solid Performance
Juventus' pre-season tour of Asia and Australia proceeded forward as planned. The Italian giants boarded their chartered plane and traveled to Carlton, Australia, on Wednesday morning. On arriving, they spent a couple of hours resting and relaxing in a hotel before heading to a nearby football pitch to continue their intense pre-season training program. Then, when evening arrived, they took the arranged team bus to the Princes Park Stadium to face off against Newcastle United Jets Football Club.
For that game, Coach Massimiliano Allegri fielded a surprising squad. He benched most of his creative players like Zachary Bemba, Andrea Pirlo, Claudio Marchisio, and Fernando Llorente with the excuse of wanting to rest them. As a result, Juventus put up a not-so-impressive performance and only scored a goal late in the 71st minute.
Fortunately, the Juventus defenders were as hard-working as ever. They helped the team keep a clean sheet and win the game with a score of 1:0 after five minutes of added time.
After the game, the Juventus squad stayed in Carlton for only one more day to relax and recover from the post-match fatigue. Then, on the morning of Friday, they boarded their chartered plane and traveled to Kallang, Singapore, to kick-start the final phase of their pre-season tour of Asia and Australia.
They were back in action two days later, on a rainy Sunday evening. They faced off against the LionsXII & S-League Internationals Select team and put up an incredible performance that wowed the fully packed Singapore National Stadium.
Zachary, who had started his first game for Juventus, played incredibly well. He quickly linked up well with Andrea Pirlo and Claudio Marchisio to dominate the midfield and bring the opponents to their knees. His solid passing and remarkable spatial awareness worked like magical charms as he created chances that almost resulted in goals during the opening fifteen minutes.
But alas, the opponents held on for dear life by defending like maniacs. They put their bodies on the line to keep the ball out of the net and prevent Juventus from scoring an opening goal. As a result, the score remained deadlocked at 0:0 until the 32nd minute, when Andrea Pirlo managed to create something out of nothing by relying on his incredible passing range.
The Italian Maestro reacted with all the haste he could muster after the opponents failed to convert a corner kick. With his signature long-range pass, he unleashed Carlos Tévez, the Argentine striker who had been lurking on the right flank, and in so doing, initiated the counterattack.
Carlos quickly connected with the ball and brought it to the ground with his chest. Before the nearby opponents could close him down, he whirled around and took off towards the other half like a raging hurricane.
Whoosh!
Tévez's short strides ate up yards of space in a matter of seconds as he tried to outrun the opponents who had stayed back to defend during the corner. But when he stepped into the final third and was about to reach the box, he met a no-nonsense defender, who swept him off the ground with a sliding tackle.
*FWEEEEEEE*
The referee blew the whistle immediately. He rushed to the scene and straight away awarded a free kick to Juventus in front of the arc of the 18-yard box. He then spent a few seconds trying to calm Carlos, who was already fuming, before showing a red card to the opposing player who had made the dangerous tackle.
"Do you wish to take it?" Andrea Pirlo asked Zachary as they stood before the ball and prepared to take the free kick a few seconds later. The Italian Maestro was stuttering a little due to his not-so-expert command of English.
"Yes, I wish to take the free kick," Zachary replied. Of course, he wouldn't pass up such a rare opportunity to impress the coaches, especially at that late stage of the pre-season tour. He wanted to quickly show his good points to his teammates and coaches and cement his place on the Juventus squad in the shortest time possible.
The edges of Andre Pirlo's mustache rose up slightly as he smiled. He assessed the situation in the opposing box before saying, "There are about 32 yards to the goal. What do you think is the best strategy for the set piece? Should we take it directly on goal, or do we try to find our teammates with a lofted ball over the defensive line?"
"I'll go directly for goal if I'm to take it," Zachary responded, his tone exuding confidence. "I'm certain I'll be able to test the keeper with the power behind my shot."
Andrea inclined his head to glance at Zachary with a surprised expression. "Although this is the pre-season, we still wish to score and win the game. Are you confident?" He asked.
"Yes, I'm confident," Zachary responded. He had never halted his free-kick training within the system simulator or on the physical training grounds. He was sure that he would be able to give the keeper a hard time as long as he utilized his Bend-it-like-Beckham Juju and his newly acquired Missile Launcher skills while taking the free-kick.
"If you're that confident, take the free kick," Andrea Pirlo said, stepping back from the ball. "Please do your best."
"Okay," Zachary replied, smiling. "Thanks for allowing me this opportunity."
"There's no need for thanks," Andrea said. "Your skills are what allowed you the opportunity to stand before this free-kick. All the Juventus players, including me, know about you from last season. We don't need to worry that you'll mess up since we're all aware that you have an impressive a hundred percent record when converting free-kicks in the final third. Which one is your prominent leg, by the way?"
"I can use both legs with ease," Zachary answered. "Previously, my right leg was a bit weaker. But after undergoing targeted training regimes over the years, I overcame that shortcoming."
"Eh!" Andrea Pirlo's eyes widened for a moment. "You're a monster. I now understand why you scored all those goals against us last season."
Zachary laughed at that and immediately placed the ball on the free-kick spot. Then, he took a deep breath and assessed the situation in the opponent's box before stepping back from the ball.
As usual, he had already activated the Dead Ball Specialist Juju. His mind was already working in overdrive, trying to deduce the best way to take the free kick and score. He was a hundred percent focused, and not even the loud cheers of the fans in the stands could interrupt his concentration at that moment.
*FWEEEEEEE*
The referee's whistle sounded a few seconds later, and Zachary reacted immediately. He made an angled run towards the ball before taking the last jump step and pulling the trigger. At that moment, his set-piece skills, including the Bend-it-like-Beckham Juju, the Missile Launcher, and Dead Ball Specialist Juju, all worked in sync. He swung his leg down like a whip to smack the ball and send it rocketing towards the top right corner.
The LionsXII & S-League Internationals goalkeeper quickly reacted with a despairing dive. But the ball's incredible velocity and the immense power behind the shot rendered all his efforts fruitless. He could only watch on helplessly as the ball flashed past his outstretched fingertips and homed into the back of the net.
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LionsXII & S-League Internationals 0 : Juventus 1
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"Nicely taken," Andrea Pirlo complemented Zachary as they celebrated Juventus' first goal for the night close to the corner flag. "But don't think that I'll willingly surrender my position as the main set-piece taker of the team. I'll continue training and retake my position when you start missing."
Zachary chuckled. "If I ever start missing, be my guest. But when will that be?"
"Someone is growing some big balls after only converting one set-piece," Pogba said with a grin while patting Zachary's back. "Beware! Andrea doesn't like losing to anyone."
The rest of the Juventus players laughed at that as they continued celebrating the goal. They were all smiles as they hugged Zachary and complimented his incredible set-piece skills.
Zachary's mood had already soared into the night skies of Singapore at that moment. He was filled with glee as he could feel that he had finally gained the full acknowledgment of most of his teammates after converting the free kick. Even quiet players like Carlos Tévez and Kwadwo Asamoah were joking around with him — a testament that they were growing closer to him with the passing of each week.
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The game continued after the goal celebrations. The Juventus players utilized their numerical advantage and pressurized the opponents during the remaining minutes of the game. They played spectacular passing football to tear up the opposing team's formation and open the floodgates. And before long, the balls started finding their way into the back of the net.
Carlos Tévez scored the 2nd and 3rd goals for Juventus during the 36th and the 42 minutes, respectively. Then, just two minutes into the second half, he added another to complete a hat trick for the night.
But that wasn't the end of the one-sided thrashing. During the 57th minute, Paul Pogba connected well with Zachary's well-timed through-pass to score Juventus 5th goal for the night. Then, Fernando Llorente, the Spanish forward, concluded the goal festival by heading home to net the 7th during the 72nd minute. The Juventus players were surely wiping the floor with Singapore's LionsXII & S-League Internationals select team.
Coach Allegri watched the proceedings for a few more minutes before shaking his head and deciding to substitute ten of his starting players. He only left Gianluigi Buffon, the goalkeeper, on the pitch and brought on ten of his young players during the 75th minute. He was that merciful, especially since he was playing a pre-season friendly and didn't wish to continue embarrassing his hosts.
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