Chapter 8

Akin began warming up, doing his stretches as his eyes wandered around the field, a familiar feeling almost long forgotten stirring with him as he took in the historic stadium, the local supporters were finding their seats, even though they weren't many.

Although Youth games are not usually played in the main team stadium pitches, Arsenal and Chelsea have a lot of history and the two meeting can be considered a derby.

The number of supporters for the youth games was not small in the European football league, this being ranked as the most popular sport in the world and the premier league also being the strongest league there is often a lot of hype and reports on young stars.

He and the other bench players began passing the ball between them.

He noticed the Chelsea Youth Squad had also begun warming up in his peripheral.

He soon returned his attention to his side, his eyes catching Noble's; they nodded towards each other before continuing his task.

Brian was also close by with Brady; he noticed Akin, who was now doing kick-ups, an exercise used to train the player's touch.

Each time he did so, he maintained a steady rhythm, but they were no longer surprised; instead, the coaches appreciated it.

Brian, while smiling at his star pupil, turned to the older man,

"Boss, if we can, I'd like to get Akin to play some minutes, he has been working hard this past week, so this can be a reward."

Brady watched Akin thoughtfully before turning to his protégé,

"We will wait and see how it goes first; there's no rush."

Chelsea U15 won the coin toss and chose their side, so arsenal got the kickoff, and both sides got into positions.

"Hello Ladies and Gentlemen, today we are watching the U15 game Arsenal v Chelsea. I am your commentator Micheal Blue; with me is Ben Andrews."

"Yes, Thank you, Micheal. Both teams have a strong presence in the premier league, so it will be interesting to look at their young talent. Let's see their lineup:

For Arsenal U15, the young gunners chose the 4-4-2 formation:

Strikers: No.9 Graham Barett (FW), No.11 Jo Ossei-Kuffour (FW)

Midfielders: No. 10 David Noble(CM), No.4, Steve Sidwell(CM), No.6 Jermaine Pennant (RM), No.7 Stephen Santry (LM)

Defenders:No.2 Brady Chilvers(CB),No.5 John Halls(CB), No.3 Jay Bothroyd(LB),No.8 Israel Monreal De Silva (RB)

Goalkeeper: No.1 Graham Stack

Meanwhile, Chelsea U15 blue boys used the 3-4-3 formation:

Strikers: No.9 Carlton Cole (FW), No.7 Filipe Oliviera (RW), No. 11 Scott Sinclaire (LW)

Midfielders: No. 6 Jimmy Smith(CM), No.10 Anthony Grant (CAM), No.8 Miroslav Stoch(CM), No. 4 Sam Hutchinson (CDM)

Defenders: No.5 Ribert Huth (CB), No.2 Stephen Watt (CB), No.3 Micheal Mancienne (CB)

Goalkeeper: No.1 Lenny Pidgeley (GK)"

"Looks like it will be a good one today, Ben; the referee seems to be ready, so let's watch the game without further ado."

*FWEEET*

After the referee blew the whistle, Koffour tipped the ball to Barrett, who passed back to Noble after a touch.

Noble controlled the ball and began moving up the field; he passed the ball to Santry on the left.

As the young gunners pass the ball around, the blue boys aren't just watching, taking care to mark the forwards.

Noble received the ball and was also being marked and recognised that they can't access their strikers and initiated a run, kicking the ball forward, he ran and chased the ball, blowing past his marker.

He ran into Chelsea's midfield but was trapped as two midfielders came to meet him; sensing danger, he passed to Sitwell on his left, but the ball was cut by Oriviera, who stole the ball and cut past Sitwell and blazed a path down the right-wing.

The Chelsea team launched a quick offensive and ultimately took the Young gunners by surprise; Cole, Sinclaire, and Oliviera were like three ballista bolts cutting through the defence.

Brady watched in dread as his schoolboys were chasing hopelessly; he saw Oliviera cross into the box.

Cole ran forward, seeing that Stack ran out of goal while Chivers and Halls tried to pressure him from behind.

Cole's touch passed to his left as Sinclair cut in, rushing past Silva; there was nothing between him and the goal, so he passed the ball into the net and then exploded into cheers.

The Blue boys bench and the supporters in the stands cheered as they watched their youth team take the lead; Oliviera and Cole came over to celebrate with Sinclair, who scored the match's first goal.

Brady's face was tight as the ball went into the net, but he quickly recovered, clapping as he encouraged the lads,

"It's OK! Just one goal! You can make it back! Graham! Jo! don't go too far forward! don't get cut off from our midfielders!"

Brian was also quick to hide his disappointment, trying to reassure the bench; the players on the bench were shouting encouragingly, and only Akin was watching the game quietly without blinking.

Meanwhile, the commentators were talking,

"It's a fantastic play by the Blue Boys, who took advantage of a lacklustre defence. The Young gunners will have to do better than this if they want to win."

"Your right Micheal, a good counterattack. Oliviera was ready on the wing, and they laid a nice trap cutting off access to the strikers."

As the first half continued, it was apparent that the team was in a disadvantageous position after falling behind.

The Chelsea goal had woken them up, so they were playing much better, but the closer it got to Half-time, the more urgent and rough the players.

They missed several equalising chances in their haste to score while Chelsea defended stalwartly.

Finally, Chelsea got another chance as the ball fell to Huth, who, after getting the ball from Koffour with a timely tackle, passed the ball to Stoch.

Stoch controlled the ball and passed to Grant, who ran up; the three tops also moved up; seeing this, Bothroyd quickly pressed against Sinclair.

Silva was also staying close to Oliveira. Grant ran to the edge of the box and launched a long shot at the goal.

Stack hurried to dive to meet the ball, his heart in his chest, but the ball ricocheted against the crossbar.

The crowd let out soft groans of disappointment, but they quickly changed to cheers as Cole appeared to have snuck in and slotted the ball in.

Stack was too slow in recovering and could only watch as it passed into the goal; a groan came from the young gunner supporters in attendance and the bench.

In the Commentators' booth, the commentators remarked,

"It is unfortunate that Arsenal's young gunners have no luck today!"

*FWEET*

Not long after, the first half ended with both sides entering their locker rooms with very different moods as Chelsea walked in merry and confident.

At the same time, Arsenal, in contrast, were slumped, dragging themselves in silently.

Akin followed along deep in thought; having been quietly observing, he had one thought in mind,

If I get on the pitch, I can still turn this around.