The ecstasy of victory; the crushing sense of defeat

Standing on the sidelines, Coach Luiz Vicente and the other coaches watched with enraptured expressions still on their faces.

They almost couldn't believe what they just witnessed.

Everything just felt too good to be true.

They felt goosebumps, their blood burned hot.

They were like movie watchers who just came out of the theater, having just finished watching the greatest action thriller of all time.

The game was that enthralling and captivating.

The Bogeyman rubbed his bald head in disbelief as he kept staring at the football pitch. "This…, this is a battle for the ages".

One of the other 5 coaches rubbed his face in a vain attempt to wake himself up from this dream. "I feel like we just witnessed the birth of legends that will go on to dominate the football community in the future".

Another one commented. "This game…, this game was legendary".

The unforgettable scenes of the game replayed in their heads.

From Apeman's aggressiveness across the 60 minutes, to Enigma's unreal genius, to Legion's sharp killer instinct, to Drip-Lord's flair, to Endrick's natural talent, all these elements blended together to bring out this beautiful outcome.

To them, the game was out of this world.

The Bogeyman finally regained his composure. "My expectations were vastly exceeded this time, make captivating highlight videos from this game".

He rubbed his chin. "I already made my decision; they shall be our advert material for the final game of the elite team trials".

He grinned to himself. 'I finally achieved my goal all along'.

After that, the Bogeyman and the other coaches finally paid attention to the outcome of the other games that were just played.

Due to the intense battle that played out in Category 1, they neglected to follow the proceedings of the other games but the game A.I kept track of it all.

Like Category 1, all the other categories already finished their games.

While the coaches left to the dressing room to analyze the games, the realization that the game was over finally settled on the players.

What further emphasized this fact was the game stats that were soon projected by the game interface.

{Category 1 Status: Full Time- 60 minutes}

{Player Enigma: 17 Shots; 4 Goals}

{Player Legion: 13 Shots; 2 Goals}

{Player Ultron: 11 Shots; 0 Goal}

{Player Turtle909: 19 Successful Blocks; 2 Shots; 0 Goal]

{Player Apeman: 18 Shots; 2 Goals}

{Player Drip-Lord: 12 Shots; 2 Goals}

{Player Endrickdinho: 11 Shots; 3 Goals}

{Player Robertson22: 23 Saves}

"Hehe…, hot like fire!" Apeman was loud with his celebration.

According to the Bogeyman, qualification to the last phase of the elite team trials depended on the amount of goals that you scored. Apeman was not the top scorer, but his haul of 2 goals was already crazy impressive.

It put him in a much better position for qualification.

Apeman did not care about the others as he celebrated his performance, after which he turned to glare at Endrick and Enigma.

"Enjoy the top while it lasts".

"In the final game, I will crush the both of you". He declared arrogantly.

Apeman's ecstasy was clear for all to see. Most of the players in Category 1 felt the same though they were not as arrogant as him.

Drip-Lord smirked as he looked at the virtual projection. 'In the end, the opinion of others does not matter, what matters is my style of football'.

'My style of football is drip football'.

'Scoring 2 drip goals is all I have to validate it'.

Drip-Lord felt serenity flow through his belly like butterflies roaming through a beautiful garden, brightening his mood instantly.

Legion clenched his fists. 'I scored 2 goals, next time I should score 3'.

He motivated himself but this was no reproach, despite the high standards that he wanted for himself, this took nothing from the joy currently in his heart.

He more than anyone else truly understood the state of the just concluded battle. 'The football pitch is an even more intense battlefield than war'.

As an elite combatant, he knew that the game didn't just involve the physical elements. A lot of it also banked on the psychological aspect, and after everything now, this was why they all felt exhausted.

Legion looked at his fists. 'Football is sweet'.

Robertson22 felt relieved. 'Being put into Category 1, I thought that I no longer stood a chance to qualify, I never expected the difficulty of my quest to stimulate me so much'.

He looked at his hands. 'I feel like my reflexes are better now'.

'Playing against such geniuses improved my goalkeeping skills'.

'I feel a strange sense of satisfaction'.

Turtle909 felt even more satisfaction. 'F*ck the Bogeyman!'

'I don't care if I was unable to score a single goal, what matters is that I broke my defending record, getting 19 successful blocks in just one game'.

'One more successful block and that could have been 20'. He grinned.

He looked at the others around him, then he chuckled. "Hehe…, just wait and see, I will become the best defender in the world one day".

Unlike the others, only 1 thought filled Endrick's mind. 'What…, a…, game!'

'I love this world!'

'It's really the perfect platform for me to pursue my dreams from a fresh plate again…, it's the best platform for me to establish myself as the G.O.A.T'.

'Today, I took the first step'.

'Tomorrow, I'll take 10 more steps at once'. He grinned.

He basked in the ecstasy of his performance, the ecstasy of victory.

As for Enigma, he also felt ecstatic about his performance but he mostly focused on one thing, or betterstill one opponent. 'Endrickdinho!"

Enigma walked closer to Endrick the next moment, then he looked into his eyes. "Your performance today opened my eyes into the realities of football".

"I am impressed". He nodded seriously.

"The only reason why you pressured me so much this time is because I never really cared much about football".

"In the next game, expect a different me".

His eyes glowed in a fiery manner. "You won't see the chance to shine".

Endrick grinned. "You underestimate me!"

Enigma looked into his eyes. "From today, you are my rival!"

Endrick waved it off. "Whatever you say bro, good game though".

They shook hands before separating.

While all the others felt varying degrees of joy and satisfaction, only one player was in his own world, drowning in the crushing sense of defeat.

Ultron held back his tears as he clenched his fists. 'I lost!'

'I couldn't even score a single goal'.

A million thoughts flowed through his mind; the crushing sense of disappointment was so heavy that he felt like he was suffocating.

Ultron could no longer keep it in, he roared in pain. "Argggh…!"

Tears flowed down his eyes without restraints.

Seeing him, thoughts went through Endrick's mind. 'This is football'.

'There is always the winner who basks in the ecstasy of victory, and the loser who drowns in the crushing sense of defeat'.

'To be the G.O.A.T, I need to make winning a normalcy'.

This was when word from Coach Luiz Vicente finally came.

"Aspiring pro footballers, the last phase and game of the elite team trials will be held in exactly a week from now, on Saturday".

"The rules and format will be communicated to you before time".

"Also, the best performers of the 2nd phase will be announced tomorrow, including the 22 who were able to qualify to the final phase".

"Goodluck on your football journey".