Chapter 135: When Mystique Meets Mastery

Chapter 135: When Mystique Meets Mastery

Seeing the ball fly into the net, Bruno was overjoyed and he rushed towards Dinatale. Dinatale could have shot himself, but he chose to pass to Bruno. Bruno was thrilled, feeling deeply grateful to his captain for the assist, considering all the assists he had provided before.

"Captain, why didn't you take the shot yourself?" Bruno asked.

Dinatale smiled and said, "Didn't you see you were about to win the Europa League Golden Boot? Of course, I had to help you."

Bruno, puzzled, said, "I've scored 12 goals already, isn't that enough for the Golden Boot?"

Dinatale smirked, "Someone else has the same number of goals. What kind of Golden Boot would that be?"

Bruno burst out laughing, "Captain, you're the best! You're right!"

Bruno and Dinatale hugged and laughed together, jumping around joyously. Makhrez, Cancelo, and other Udinese players joined in the celebration not far from the Sevilla goal. The entire Allianz Stadium in Turin erupted like a volcano, with twenty-five thousand Udinese fans making noise that seemed to shake the stadium itself.

Outside the stadium, fans and visitors watching the game on temporary screens started their own celebrations.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!!!!!!!!!!"

"2:0! Udinese scores another just before the half ends, they're now two up!"

"Bruno Fernandes' goal, his 13th in the Europa League!"

"Udinese's number 70, McSueal, saw his shot hit the post, then the selfless Udinese captain Dinatale, who could have taken a shot himself, chose to pass to help Bruno score!"

"We can see the Udinese players forming a circle to celebrate the goal. It's quite a special celebration, the team spirit at Udinese is really something!"

.........

On the sidelines, Sevilla's coach Emery held his head, then scratched his hair, staring at the field and cursing under his breath.

The frustration and disappointment were indescribable...

He was furious, absolutely furious, extremely furious...

Emery felt he had anticipated everything, he had done well, but why did it turn out this way?

Just as it seemed things were going well for Sevilla, getting closer to a goal and with halftime approaching, their opponents scored!

Ideally, Sevilla would have equalized and gone into the break to tactically regroup, then come back to turn the game around in the second half, ultimately leading Sevilla to their third Europa League title...

It all seemed so perfect, yet suddenly, the score was 0:2. What just happened?

Emery was in agony, feeling that things were spiraling out of control.

Of course, he didn't realize that he was supposed to be the child of destiny in the Europa League, expected to create many miracles and establish himself among the mystiques of European football like Zidane is to the Champions League, Emery was supposed to be to the Europa League.

Unfortunately, this master of mystique was encountering an even more unreasonable force.

.........

The first half soon ended, and Udinese went into the break leading 2:0.

A two-goal lead felt substantial, and the Udinese players felt the cup was nearly theirs. However, Bruno cautioned everyone not to get complacent, to avoid ending up like the second AC Milan.

Bruno knew the miracles Emery's Sevilla had performed in the history of the Europa League; neither Emery as a coach nor Sevilla as a team should be underestimated in this competition.

Bruno's caution made some Udinese players more mindful, though others did not take it as seriously.

Bruno's concerns were soon validated.

Just three minutes into the second half, Sevilla pulled a goal back. A successful interception in the attacking half by Bacca was passed to Rakitic, who, from nearly thirty meters, launched a stunning long-range shot that arced beautifully into the net, beyond Udinese goalkeeper Canizares's reach.

"Rakitic! The Croat scores! He's struck a phenomenal world-class goal, bringing Sevilla back into the game."

"Sevilla pulls one back, there was an element of luck in that goal... Look at Emery's surprised expression, perhaps even he didn't expect such good fortune!"

"The second half has just started, and Sevilla pulls one back, bringing suspense back into the game!"

Commentators from various countries chimed in.

"Sevilla! Sevilla! Oh oh oh—!"

"Die Udinese! The championship must be ours!"

Their goal ignited their passion, and they shouted excitedly.

"Damn!" Bruno's eyes nearly popped out seeing Rakitic's long shot; the goal was so unexpected.

Was this the counterattack of mystique?

.........

As a master, Bruno was not about to allow mystique to turn the tables.

After play resumed, as Udinese's midfield commander, he immediately ramped up the pace.

Udinese, right after restarting play in the midfield, launched a fierce attack, which seemed to catch Sevilla's coach Emery off guard. He had anticipated an Udinese attack following their loss, but he didn't expect such a reckless all-out offensive, leaving Sevilla rather disorganized.

Kante passed the ball back to Bruno.

Bruno tapped it to Alan and then made a forward run.

Bruno's movement also drew the attention of the Sevilla defense.

Alan, taking advantage of the brief defensive distraction caused by Bruno's movement, looked up to assess the situation,

In front, Bruno was making a run in the middle, with Makhrez on the right and McSueal also positioning on the left, and up front, captain Dinatale was calling for the ball.

Alan didn't have much time to think and flicked the ball out with a twist of his ankle, sending it to his Brazilian compatriot McSueal on the left!

The pass to McSueal wasn't just because of his fast pace and excellent technical skills, which included passing and shooting, but also because there was another Brazilian, left-back Gabriel Silva, on the left who had a good understanding with McSueal. When they were in form, they could really dazzle.

McSueal prepared to receive the ball while Sevilla's player Coke moved up to defend him.

McSueal feinted to control the ball but instead let it roll cleverly past him.

.........

The ball fell, and then everyone saw Udinese's left-back Gabriel Silva rushing forward.

Coke came up to defend McSueal, leaving a large gap behind him for Silva.

Although Silva wasn't as fast as Udinese's right-back Cancelo, he was still one of the fastest in the Udinese lineup. He accelerated to his top speed with the ball.

"Beautiful! Alan's long pass! The combination of McSueal and Silva! The collaboration among the three Brazilians appears very harmonious!"

"An opportunity for Udinese!"

The Italian commentator shouted excitedly.

Silva's breakthrough caused chaos in Sevilla's defense, which hastily shifted to the right.

After drawing Pareja and Carriço to him, before the two could close in, Silva passed the ball out.

Bruno appeared at the near post, pretending to receive the ball but cleverly let it pass.

"Through ball!"

"Beautiful!"

.........

Dinatale appeared in the middle, taking the ball into the penalty area in stride.

Bruno's feint further confused Sevilla's defense. As Fazio rushed towards Bruno, he could only watch helplessly as Dinatale charged into the box.

Fortunately for Sevilla, left-back Alberto Moreno covered quickly, but facing Dinatale who had entered the box, Moreno dared not tackle rashly. He could only run alongside, hoping to force Dinatale to carry the ball into a less threatening angle.

In the box, Dinatale slowed down and made a fake shooting motion, swinging his leg up then down, which Moreno did not fall for.

At that moment, Dinatale swung his right foot again.

Sevilla's talented left-back sneered, not falling for it. At this angle, Moreno did not believe Dinatale would shoot, so he prepared to block a pass instead.

That move opened a small gap.

Just then, Dinatale shot!

A strike!

The ball whizzed between the defender's legs, Moreno even felt a cold breeze underneath, chilling him to the core.

Then the left-back of Sevilla realized something was wrong when he heard a "clang."

Blocked by the post?

Then he despaired as massive cheers erupted.

Dinatale's explosive shot from between Moreno's legs caught Sevilla's goalkeeper Beto completely unprepared. His instinctive save attempt was futile; the ball hit the inside of the post and then rebounded into the net!

"GOOOOOOOOL!!!!!!!"

"Dinatale! The Udinese captain scores! His ninth goal in the Europa League this season!"

"3:1! Udinese has gone wild, Sevilla's recent goal didn't slow their momentum, now the Spanish team is again two goals down." Martin Tyler exclaimed, "Look at the faces of the Sevilla players, they seem confused, as if to say 'what just happened'?"

(End of Chapter)