Chapter 26 - 24 — Eleven Metres

Chapter 26: Chapter 24 — Eleven Metres

Wednesday’s main session had ended several minutes earlier, but the likely penalty takers remained on the pitch with two goalkeepers and an assistant coach.

Rafael placed the first ball on the spot, walked backwards and waited for the goalkeeper to settle on his line. When the assistant coach blew his whistle, Rafael approached and aimed for the bottom-left corner.

The goalkeeper moved the other way, and the ball struck the inside of the post before entering the net.

It counted, but Rafael remained beside the penalty spot as the ball rolled along the netting. His contact had sent it several centimetres closer to the goalkeeper than he had intended, and against someone moving in the correct direction, that difference could decide whether the shot went in.

The days since the defeat against the reserve side had passed through recovery, classes and tactical preparation for Lens. The coaches had shown the squad how their quarterfinal opponents pressed in groups: one player attacked the ball, another removed the nearest pass, and the rest advanced before possession could escape.

Metz had spent two sessions practising how to release the ball before that pressure closed. Now the outfield work was finished, and five footballs waited outside the penalty area while the selected takers prepared for the possibility that Sunday’s match would remain level.

Rafael collected the first ball and replaced it on the spot before shifting his starting position half a step farther to the left.

The goalkeeper crouched and bounced lightly on his toes.

Rafael began his approach, but a memory interrupted his second stride. White tape tightened around his left knee, and a goalkeeper moved early beneath the lights at Wembley while pain travelled through Rafael’s planting leg.

He stopped before reaching the ball.

"You all right?" the assistant coach asked.

"My steps were wrong."

Rafael returned to his starting position and pressed his left boot into the turf. His present knee was healthy, and when he placed his weight through it, nothing resisted or forced him to compensate.

The goalkeeper moved along his line.

Rafael approached again and sent the ball into the bottom-right corner. The goalkeeper chose the correct direction this time, but the shot reached the side netting before his hand could reach it.

"Better," the assistant coach said.

Rafael collected another ball while two teammates completed their attempts. The first scored, but the second lifted his penalty over the crossbar.

The goalkeeper pointed after it. "There are easier ways to give me the ball."

The player jogged after his shot while the others laughed.

When Rafael’s turn came again, he began from the adjusted position and aimed for the opposite corner. The goalkeeper guessed incorrectly, and the ball reached the side netting without touching the post.

As Rafael turned away, pale light appeared at the edge of his vision.

[ACTIVE MISSION]

[REACH THE SEMIFINAL]

[Objective: Help FC Metz eliminate RC Lens.]

[Reward: Free Attribute Point ×1]

[CLOSE]

He dismissed the panel and returned to the line when the assistant coach called for one more attempt.

Lens forced Metz backwards within twenty seconds of the quarterfinal beginning.

Their striker curved his run toward the right centre-back and blocked the pass across defence, while the home winger rushed at Metz’s fullback and a midfielder followed close behind.

"Back!" the fullback shouted.

The ball returned to the goalkeeper, drawing approval from the people gathered behind the barrier. Metz attempted to play through the opposite side, but Lens shifted before the pass arrived, and another red-and-gold shirt closed the receiver.

The goalkeeper cleared long.

Rafael moved beneath the dropping ball with a centre-back already against him. He tried to guide it toward Yanis, but the defender’s shoulder disrupted his balance, and the ball struck the outside of Rafael’s boot before rolling into touch.

Lens restarted before Metz could advance.

As Rafael recovered his position, he looked across the home side and recognised the difference from the reserve match. None of the Lens players carried the same individual physical advantage as the older defenders, but their pressure became dangerous because the second and third players arrived so quickly.

A loose pass gave Lens another opportunity. Their midfielder collected it and immediately released the right winger, who moved inside before shooting from outside the penalty area. The effort passed through several bodies and clipped a Metz defender, but the deflection removed enough pace for the goalkeeper to gather it against his chest.

"Move!" he called as he rolled the ball toward midfield.

The receiver turned and released a forward pass before Lens could surround him, although the ball arrived slightly behind Rafael with the centre-back closing from the other side.

Rafael stepped across the defender’s path and placed his right foot behind the ball.

[HOLD-UP PLAY ACTIVATED]

His first touch remained close despite the pressure against his back. He widened his stance, steadied himself and completed the simple return pass before the defender could force him away from possession.

"Turn!" Yanis called from the right.

The midfielder found him near the touchline, and Yanis crossed halfway before the Lens fullback forced him outside. His attempted pass toward Rafael struck a defender and bounced loose, but Metz recovered it and made Lens retreat for the first time.

The following minutes brought the same struggle. Whenever a Metz player held possession too long, two Lens players arrived; whenever the ball moved early, another burgundy shirt had enough time to offer a passing route.

A Metz midfielder escaped the first wave of pressure and found Rafael between the lines. The centre-back remained close, so Rafael returned the ball with one touch and turned toward goal, but the following pass went wide instead of finding his run.

Lens intercepted near the touchline and attacked through their right winger, who carried the ball inward and drew Metz’s fullback with him. As the fullback followed, the Lens right-back accelerated into the space outside.

Rafael saw the movement from halfway.

"Outside!"

The warning came too late. The winger released his teammate, although his pass carried too much pace and forced the right-back to stretch near the touchline just to keep it in play.

He reached the ball and drove a hurried delivery across the penalty area without controlling it first. A Metz defender attempted to clear, but the ball struck another player and rebounded toward the edge of the box.

The supporting Lens midfielder reached it first and drove a shot through the crowd. Metz’s goalkeeper saw the ball late, and it passed him before he could complete his dive.

The net moved, and noise broke from behind the goal as the scorer ran toward the barrier.

Rafael remained near halfway and watched the Lens right-back jog back into position. The pass toward him had been overhit, and the cross had been rushed, but neither mistake had ended the attack because Lens had reacted first when the ball broke loose.

The referee called Metz forward for the restart, and Lens began pressing again as soon as the ball moved.

A midfielder received with his back to goal and lost possession when the second challenger arrived from his blind side. Lens attacked through the middle, but their final pass ran beyond the striker and into the goalkeeper’s hands.

"Stop waiting!" the Metz coach shouted. "Move it!"

Rafael began drifting toward the right whenever Lens took possession. Their fullback continued advancing, which opened space behind him, but it usually disappeared before Metz could escape the press.

Rafael made his first run without receiving. On the next, a midfielder tried to find him after taking an extra touch, but the fullback had already recovered, forcing Rafael to turn away from goal and return the ball as Lens pressed from both sides.

He released it before losing his balance.

"Again," Yanis said as they recovered their positions.

Rafael pointed toward the space behind the fullback, and Yanis nodded.

Metz regained possession near their penalty area and used two quick passes to move beyond the first Lens attacker, although the third receiver was forced toward the touchline. Yanis came short to help, controlled the ball and turned away from one challenge before sending it down the line.

Rafael had already started his run, but the pass travelled too close to the centre-back, who reached it first and cleared beyond the barrier.

Rafael slowed. They had identified the correct space, but their timing remained wrong.

Lens nearly doubled their lead during the next attack. Their left winger crossed toward the near post, where the striker reached the ball ahead of the Metz centre-back, but his header passed over the crossbar.

The home supporters applauded while the Metz goalkeeper prepared the restart.

Late in the half, Metz attempted to switch play toward Yanis, but the pass carried beyond him and headed for the touchline. Yanis chased it while the Lens fullback raised one arm and waited for it to run out.

The ball slowed before reaching the line.

Yanis hooked his foot around it and dragged it back into the penalty area. Rafael had moved toward the near post, but the delivery skipped off the grass and reached him behind his intended position.

He adjusted his feet and allowed the ball to cross his body.

[TWO-TOUCH FINISHER ACTIVATED]

His first touch brought it onto his right foot as a defender stepped across from the side. Rafael shot before the challenge arrived and sent the ball toward the far corner, but the Lens goalkeeper pushed away from his near post quickly enough to reach it with his right hand.

The ball bounced beyond the far side of the goal.

Rafael stopped inside the six-yard box while Yanis slapped both hands against his head. The goalkeeper climbed to his feet and shouted at the defender who had allowed Rafael to turn, and Rafael jogged across to join the players gathering for the corner.

Metz sent several bodies forward, but Lens headed the delivery clear and reached the second ball outside the penalty area. The halftime whistle followed soon afterwards with the hosts still leading 1–0.

The Metz players gathered around their coach near the technical area. Rafael drank while the coach rested the tactics board against one knee.

"They are waiting for the central pass," he said. "Every time you force it, their second player takes the ball."

His marker moved toward the wings.

"The space is outside, so release the ball before they lock you in and attack behind their fullbacks."

He looked toward the midfielders. "You don’t need to beat the press alone. Let the ball do it."

The coach returned the marker to his pocket. "When we lose possession, recover together. Do not chase different players."

The referee called both teams back, and Metz began the second half with possession.

Their first pass went backwards. Lens advanced, but Metz moved the ball across defence before the press could settle, allowing the right-back to receive with several metres ahead of him.

"Inside!"

He found the nearest midfielder, who released the ball before a Lens player could reach him and sent it toward Yanis. The winger carried possession across halfway while Rafael ran between the centre-backs, but the final pass struck a defender and went behind for a corner.

Metz failed to create a chance from the delivery, although they kept Lens inside their own half after the clearance.

A loose pass eventually allowed the home side to counter, and their winger sprinted into the space abandoned by Metz’s right-back. The nearest centre-back moved across and forced him away from the penalty area, causing the resulting cross to travel too close to the goalkeeper.

He caught it and immediately searched for a forward option.

"Rafa!"

A midfielder received his throw and turned as Rafael moved toward him with the Lens centre-back following.

The pass came hard and slightly behind Rafael. He stepped across the defender’s path and killed the ball’s pace beneath his right boot, and although the contact from behind pushed him forward, his first touch remained close enough for him to lay it back.

The return pass was safe but not perfectly weighted, so the midfielder needed another touch to settle it. That delay allowed Lens to begin recovering, but Yanis had already sprinted into the channel behind their returning fullback.

The midfielder lifted his head and released him.

Yanis reached the pass near the edge of the penalty area as the Lens goalkeeper advanced, and he drove his finish across the man and beneath his outstretched hand.