Preparations for the Semifinal

It was Monday morning, the day before NF Academy's semifinal match with ADO Den Haag.

Zachary and his teammates woke up and had breakfast early before heading to the gym for post-match recovery exercises and massage. The academy management had fully covered the fees for their gym activities during their stay in Riga. They could enjoy the facilities of the Riga People's Fitness Gym on the days following their matches. Zachary was satisfied with the arrangement.

The squad spent an hour at the gym going through Coach Bjørn's post-match recovery routine. Zachary diligently stretched using foam rollers— a routine that involved rolling different parts of his body slowly over a tube. Coach Bjørn had said foam rolling helped reduce post-match-related soreness and muscle pain, shortening recovery time considerably.