Chapter 449: Serie A Debut I
The Chievo players seemed to have gotten a wake-up call after conceding the second goal. They arrayed themselves into a 4-5-1 formation and started playing with more intensity. Their hard work paid off, and they managed to choke Juventus' momentum. In the end, they even avoided conceding another goal until the first half ended.
After the fifteen-minute half-time break, the players of both teams returned to the pitch. And without any delays, the referee blew the whistle to restart the game with a Juventus kick-off.
Carlos Tévez, one of the two Juventus strikers, kick-started the second half by passing the ball back into his midfield to find Andrea Pirlo. The latter brought it under control as he assessed the situation on the pitch with his eagle-like vision. Then, the next instant, he drew his leg back and unleashed a lofted pass towards the left wing before any opponent could close him down.
Whoosh!
Andrea Pirlo's pass was as spot on as ever. The ball zoomed across and over the pitch like a surface-to-surface missile before descending and landing on Kwadwo Asamoah's chest.
Asamoah, on his part, didn't dawdle with the ball on the left flank. He immediately skipped past a sliding tackle from the opposing winger before squaring a pass to Claudio Marchisio, the midfielder running in sync with him through the middle.
The two players then played a series of quick one-twos on the left flank as they tore through the field, heading towards Chievo's goal with an unwavering impetus. A few seconds later, they stepped past the boundary of the final third, and the ball naturally found its way back to Kwadwo Asamoah. The Ghanaian midfielder didn't lose any second smashing the ball with his left boot to unleash a lofted cross towards the box.
It was another goal-scoring chance right at the start of the second half for Juventus. And, of course, Carlos Tévez, the ever-active striker, went into action almost instantaneously. He jetted into the box like a raging Godzilla before pushing off the ground to connect with the incoming cross.
Unfortunately, a little nudge from the opposing center-back rendered his efforts fruitless. His head missed the ball by mere centimeters, thus sealing his fate of missing the perfect chance to score a hat-trick and the third goal for Juventus that evening. He could only place his hands behind his head and sigh with regret.
A few seconds elapsed, and a goal-kick from Chievo's goalkeeper restarted the game. Once again, the Juventus players applied pressure on the opponents and won possession back quickly. They started passing the ball among themselves and launched another wave of attacks to kick-start another spell of dominance for the Old Lady.
The Old Lady players would commence every offensive by building from the back before tearing apart Chievo's formation with abrupt through-passes from either Andrea Pirlo or Claudio Marchisio. Their fluid passing and hard work allowed them to control the game and create many goal-scoring chances that almost resulted in the third goal.
Regrettably, Juventus' luck was terrible during the second half, and they didn't convert any of their chances. Kingsley Coman and Carlos Tévez, the two strikers, both missed one-on-ones with the keeper during the 49th and 55th minutes, respectively. Then, during the 67th minute, the Chievo keeper made an incredible save to stop Andrea Pirlo's long-range effort from finding the back of the net. But that was not all. A few more shots smashed off the post while others missed the target by mere centimeters. Juventus' second half was not going as planned as they couldn't get the third goal, no matter how hard they tried.
To make matters worse, a rare and perfect opportunity for Chievo to get back into the game appeared during the 69th minute. The Chievo players won a corner kick and executed it perfectly to score their first goal for the night during the 71st minute. As a result, the seemingly sure win for Juventus was up in the air as only a single goal separated the two teams when nineteen minutes were still remaining to the ninety-minute mark.
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AC ChievoVerona 1 : Juventus FC 2
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On the sidelines, Coach Massimiliano Allegri sighed and shook his head as he watched the Chievo players celebrate their goal. He was a bit distressed. His players played well and created many chances during the second half. But they were not clinical enough within the final third and failed to convert and kill off the game early in the second half. Moreover, they also allowed the opponents to score and crawl their way back into the game. As a result, they were in for a tense final few minutes. They had to remain cautious and alert until the final whistle sounded, or else they might concede another goal and end their first game of the season with only a single point. As far as Coach Allegri was concerned, such a scenario was totally unacceptable.
"I have got to change something," Coach Allegri thought and turned towards his bench. His gaze swept over all the substitutes until it stopped on Zachary Bemba, his most expensive signing for the summer. The young playmaker was the perfect player to turn a match around if he was at the top of his game. He could create chances out of nothing, take set-pieces with almost inhuman precision, and score almost-impossible goals.
But the crucial question for the coach to consider was whether the young man was back at the top of his game. Had he really overcome his match-fitness issues? Or did he lie to Coach Trombetta to get some playing time during the season opener? Due to those doubts, the coach was in a dilemma. He was hesitant to introduce the young playmaker into the game.
"A penny for your thoughts?" Coach Trombetta, the assistant coach in charge of the first team, asked from beside him. "What's going on in your mind?"
Coach Allegri sighed again. "I'm just considering whether to introduce Zachary into the game. He's creative and clinical enough. He might be the player that helps us overcome ChievoVerona."
"Then, what is stopping you?" Coach Trombetta asked.
"I still have doubts about his match fitness," the head coach replied. "Has he really returned to his peak? And has he regained his confidence as a player, especially after committing that blunder against AC Milan?"
"He already confirmed that he's in his best shape," Coach Trombetta said. "Moreover, you must have noticed how sharp and impressive he was during the training sessions leading to the match. His dribbling was always unpredictable, his passing accurate, and his execution of the tactical drills superb. My conclusion is that he's fully fit, both physically and mentally."
"I guess I should trust you on this since you have been close to him during the past week," Coach Allegri said, smiling. "Okay. Tell Zachary to start warming up immediately. I want him on the pitch in less than five minutes."
"Okay," Coach Trombetta agreed with a smile. "I'll summon him right away."
"One more thing," Coach Allegri said. "You're in charge of explaining the plan for the last few minutes to Zachary. He has to understand that he will play behind the strikers in our 3-5-2 formation. He has got to stop Chievo's momentum by taking control of the midfield and creating more goal-scoring chances. And when the opportunities arise, he can try his luck on goal from long range. Maybe, he will score."
"I understand," Coach Trombetta replied. "I'll explain all the tactics to him."
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Zachary could literally feel his heart racing with anticipation when the coaches signaled him to start his warm-up. His spirits had already brightened as he was about to make his official debut appearance for his new club.
Without losing even a second, he changed into his match gear and went through a dynamic warm-up routine on the sidelines. He completed it in only five minutes before rushing back to the technical area to prepare for his imminent substitution into the game.
"Zachary!" Coach Trombetta called out to him a few seconds later. "Come here for a second."
"Yes, coach!" Zachary replied with zest and elicited a wave of suppressed chuckles from his other teammates on the bench. But that didn't stop him from running to the coach to receive his match instructions.
"How do you feel?" Coach Trombetta asked as soon as Zachary stepped before him.
"Honestly, I'm both nervous and excited," Zachary replied. "I'm also looking forward to stepping onto the pitch."
"That's great," Coach Trombetta said, nodding. He then explained the tactics to Zachary for a minute or two before prompting the fourth official to signal his introduction into the game.
A few seconds elapsed, and finally, the ball went out of play for yet another Juventus corner kick. The fourth official immediately put up the board to signal Zachary's introduction into the game. Zachary replaced Arturo Vidal in the 77th minute and stepped onto the pitch as an attacking midfielder in Juventus' 3-5-2 formation.
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Zachary's introduction into the game sparked off a wave of mixed reactions among the Juventus fans within the stands. Some supporters were happy to see him on the pitch, while others remained skeptical about his ability to adapt quickly to the highly-intensive Serie A football.
"Do you think that he will be able to perform today?" A fan asked his counterpart while keeping his eyes on the proceedings on the pitch. "Yesterday evening, there were reports that he wasn't fully fit. But now, they have brought him into the game! What's Allegri thinking?"
"Let's choose to trust the coach," another fan said. "He must have considered all his other options before bringing Zachary on. And if Zachary plays like he usually did last season, then we might just destroy Chievo during the final few minutes. Let's wait and see."
"I hope nothing goes wrong. I don't wish to start the season with a draw or a loss."
"Don't jinx things for us, man," the first fan said. "We'll win the game. For now, let's focus. Our players have finished preparing for the corner kick. They will take it any second from now."
"Okay."
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