Theodore successfully anticipated Hal Robson-Kanu's choice.
He swiftly stretched out his right foot to cleanly intercept the ball!
At the exact same time, Jack Grealish, who had tracked all the way back from the forward line, collapsed on the winger to participate in the defense.
Under the suffocating combined pressure from Theodore and Grealish, Robson-Kanu's attempted breakthrough ultimately ended in absolute failure.
But immediately after losing the ball, West Brom launched a frantic second wave of attack.
Veteran midfielder Gareth Barry picked up the loose ball and suddenly delivered a sweeping lofted pass! In an instant, the ball was already dropping dangerously inside Aston Villa's penalty area.
At this chaotic moment, West Brom forward Jay Rodriguez controlled the ball before the Villa defenders could clear it!
He unleashed a powerful shot!
The ball rocketed toward the net, but Aston Villa's center-back Tyrone Mings threw himself into the firing line, violently blocking the shot with his chest!
However, the referee immediately blew his whistle.
He pointed dead straight to the penalty spot!
The referee had awarded West Brom a penalty!
"What the fuck?!"
"Are you taking the piss?! A penalty?! Why the hell was a penalty given?!"
"The Aston Villa center-back clearly blocked the shot with his chest! Is this referee fucking nearsighted?!"
"More than nearsighted! He's practically blind!"
"He is just blowing his whistle arbitrarily now!"
"Is this referee determined to make completely biased calls all night?!"
The moment the referee pointed to the penalty spot, the Aston Villa fans inside Villa Park instantly erupted in fury, voicing their outrage one after another.
"Don, do you think the referee's decision was even remotely justified?" Sky Sports commentator Gary Weaver asked, his voice dripping with disbelief.
Weaver was already too angered by the referee's performance to speak objectively and could only let his co-commentator, Don Goodman, provide the analysis.
"Hahaha, this referee is having an absolute nightmare tonight, Gary!" Goodman laughed in sheer disbelief.
"It feels like the man drank two pints of vodka before the match started! So many of these calls are completely unjustified, like this absurd penalty and the two red cards earlier."
"After a performance like this, the referee's career at this level might genuinely come to an end."
At the penalty spot, Jay Rodriguez stepped up to take the kick.
Actually, according to West Brom's official penalty-taking order, the first-choice taker should have been the veteran, Gareth Barry.
But Barry clearly also believed this penalty was complete bullshit.
Plus, Barry was previously Aston Villa's iconic club captain—he didn't want to be cursed and hated by the home Aston Villa fans for scoring a fraudulent penalty.
So, he simply gave up the taking opportunity to his teammate.
It has to be said, the older you get, the wiser you become.
Beep!
When the referee blew his whistle, Jay Rodriguez fired a powerful shot and the ball went straight into the top corner of the goal.
3-2.
West Brom, playing with a one-man advantage, had finally scored a second goal.
When the goal difference between the two teams narrowed to just a single goal, it undoubtedly gave the trailing West Brom players massive hope of equalizing.
Therefore, after the restart, West Brom's players continued to frequently and aggressively push forward in attack.
However, Aston Villa immediately took drastic measures.
Assistant coach John Terry, commanding the touchline in Dean Smith's absence, immediately instructed all ten players on the field to drop deep into their own half for defense.
Aston Villa once again set up a rigid, impenetrable defensive bunker formation!
To be honest, when Aston Villa's entire team retreated into their own half, West Brom's attacks didn't have many effective solutions.
This was especially true for Robson-Kanu on the right flank.
Although in the first half this player often managed to easily break through Aston Villa's defense with his individual dribbling ability, when Kortney Hause was sent off and Theodore took up the role of full-back, everything completely changed.
Almost every single breakthrough attempt by Robson-Kanu was thwarted by Theodore.
In addition, Grealish also began to heavily participate in the defense during this period, which undoubtedly made Robson-Kanu's chances of success even slimmer.
On the away team's bench, after seeing Robson-Kanu being completely neutralized, West Bromwich Albion's head coach Darren Moore decisively changed his tactics.
He shifted the entire focus of the attack over to the left flank.
Namely, to Jacob Murphy.
However, under the suffocating pressure of multiple Aston Villa defenders, Jacob Murphy found himself in almost the exact same nightmare situation as Robson-Kanu.
There was simply no space to break through.
The match time began to tick away bit by agonizing bit. Unconsciously, it had already reached the 80th minute.
Only ten minutes remained until the end of the match.
There wasn't much time left for the West Bromwich Albion players.
Seeing that the team's attacks were consistently failing to pose any real threat, Darren Moore immediately made desperate substitutions.
He sent on three attacking players in rapid succession.
But this only addressed the symptoms, not the root cause.
Moreover, as time continued to slip away, the West Bromwich Albion players began to grow highly impatient.
And impatience always leads to mistakes.
In the 84th minute, West Bromwich Albion made a fatal, unforgivable error.
Midfielder Jake Livermore, after receiving the ball, initially intended to pass it immediately out to Robson-Kanu.
But due to Livermore's excessive haste and panic, his pass was severely underhit.
As a result, the ball did not reach Robson-Kanu, but instead rolled weakly and landed perfectly at the feet of Theodore Bjorn.
"What on earth?!" Weaver gasped on the broadcast. "Livermore just passed the ball directly to Theodore Bjorn! What kind of play is that?!"
The Sky Sports commentator couldn't help but laugh in disbelief when he saw Livermore's catastrophic pass.
"This mistake is just too basic, Gary!" Goodman added. "It has practically handed Aston Villa a golden counter-attacking opportunity on a silver platter!"
Exactly.
The moment Theodore cleanly controlled the ball, it signaled the immediate start of Aston Villa's counter-attack!
As Aston Villa's lone striker, Tammy Abraham, upon seeing the ball at Theodore's feet, gritted his teeth and accelerated without a single moment of hesitation.
He charged relentlessly toward the opponent's half!
At that exact moment, due to West Bromwich Albion's aggressive attacking push, their defensive line was severely understaffed.
Only the two center-backs, Hegazi and Craig Dawson, remained in the back.
It's worth noting that both of these center-backs are of the massive, physical, strength-oriented type, with incredibly slow turning speeds—like a heavy aircraft carrier trying to change direction in the water.
In other words, as long as Theodore could deliver the ball to Abraham with a well-timed through pass, Abraham would undoubtedly be able to break right through them!
Boom!
Just as Abraham was about to sprint blindly behind the two center-backs, Theodore sent a sweeping long pass forward.
The timing was absolute perfection as Abraham was kept perfectly onside.
Three seconds later, the ball landed right on the edge of the penalty area!
Although West Bromwich Albion's goalkeeper had chosen to rush out in a desperate panic, Abraham had already smoothly executed his shooting motion!
Boom!
The ball mercilessly slid right past Johnstone and swiftly flew into the back of the empty net.
4-2!
The suspense was completely over.
"FOUR ASSISTS!!!" Weaver roared at the top of his lungs. "Theodore Bjorn! Another clinical assist from the 17-year-old!"
"Since Theodore Bjorn joined the Aston Villa first team, almost every single goal the team scores has been directly assisted by him!" Goodman praised. "The teenager's assist efficiency is truly terrifying!"
After Abraham scored the team's fourth goal, the ecstatic fans in the stands of Villa Park simultaneously began singing the team anthem, "Hi Ho Aston Villa," at deafening volumes!
Aston Villa fans had already begun passionately celebrating their gritty victory!
Tucked in the stands, Dilraba and her father Mulati were also joyously raising their arms and cheering along with the hardcore local fans.
West Brom had less than ten minutes left.
Scoring two goals in ten minutes against a parked bus was nearly mathematically impossible.
Therefore, after the restart, the final few minutes completely turned into dead, garbage time.
After ninety grueling minutes, the final score was fixed at 4-2!
Aston Villa heroically defeated West Brom at home despite playing with ten men! Securing a massive three points!
The moment the referee blew the final whistle, all the Aston Villa players rushed straight toward Theodore.
"You fucking Norwegian legend! You've become Aston Villa's absolute savior again!!"
"Bjorn! We completely owe this massive victory to you, mate!"
"Keep playing like this! It won't be long before Barcelona and Real Madrid are fighting each other to sign you!"
Grealish, Abraham, and the others sincerely and loudly praised the teenager.
However, Theodore remained as cool and level-headed as always, simply smiling and nodding.
....
Post-match.
At the official press conference.
Aston Villa's head coach Dean Smith went absolutely balistic.
He directly chose to brutally blast the referee in front of the cameras.
"If not for Bjorn and the other players' outstanding heroic performances tonight, our three points would have been completely stolen by that damn referee!!" Smith raged, slamming his hand on the table.
"I have been coaching first-team squads for over a decade, and this is the first time I have ever seen such outrageous, incompetent officiating!"
"The FA must give this club a public explanation!"
Despite the team winning the match, Dean Smith was still absolutely furious!
If his and Hause's red cards weren't officially rescinded by the FA, he would be banned from the touchline for Aston Villa's next two crucial matches.
After the explosive press conference ended, Dean Smith immediately demanded the club's management aggressively appeal the two red card decisions.
....
Back in the locker room, after Theodore finished washing up, the cold mechanical system's voice echoed in his ears once again.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for helping Aston Villa achieve five consecutive wins! Reward: 3 free attribute points!]
Theodore quickly opened his holographic attribute panel to allocate the points.
Actually, through this grueling match against West Brom, Theodore felt his biggest glaring weakness was his evasion and close control.
When facing multiple aggressive defenders pressing him, he didn't have effective technical ways to break through the lines himself.
Therefore, Theodore simply allocated all three free attribute points directly to his Dribbling.
[Ding! Dribbling attribute 68 -> 71!]
[Available free attributes: 0]
"71! That should be a decent enough baseline for now!" Theodore muttered to himself.
Right after allocating the points, Theodore suddenly felt his phone vibrating intensely in his duffel bag.
He immediately exited the system interface and checked the screen.
Sure enough, there was a new text message.
"A message from Dilraba? What does she want?" Theodore wondered aloud.
Previously, Theodore had acted bravely in Berkshire's, helping Dilraba reunite with her lost father.
At that time, Theodore had called Dilraba's phone to send his location, so he already had her number saved in his contacts.
[Hello Theodore! I'm the girl who got separated from her father before! Thank you so much for helping me and my dad! I'm returning to China tomorrow morning, and I'd love to treat you to dinner tonight as a proper thank you! Please do me the honor! I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the Villa Park stadium café!]
Theodore immediately replied with a quick text message.
[Alright, give me five minutes.]
Five minutes later, Theodore walked out of the player's tunnel and met Dilraba at the entrance of the stadium café.
"You're actually wearing an Aston Villa jersey? Are you a Villa fan too?" Theodore asked in genuine surprise after seeing Dilraba's outfit.
"Uh... sort of!" Dilraba smiled brightly. "I only recently became an Aston Villa fan!"
After saying this, Dilraba suddenly spun around, proudly revealing the number printed on the back of her claret and blue jersey.
It was number 33.
Theodore's jersey number!
"I came specifically to watch you play tonight!" Dilraba continued excitedly. "I've already watched two of your matches live with my dad! You play so incredibly well!"
"Every single time the team scores a goal, it's because of one of your amazing passes!"
After hearing Dilraba's effusive praise, Theodore responded very humbly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"It was honestly just luck tonight, that's all."
"By the way! Where is your dad?" Theodore asked, looking around.
"It's already very late, and my dad couldn't stay awake any longer, so he took a cab back to the hotel to rest! But he specifically asked me to thank you again on his behalf!"
Theodore quickly waved his hand dismissively. "Actually, there's really no need to keep thanking me. It was just a small favor in the alley."
"That won't do!!" Dilraba insisted stubbornly. "I have to thank you properly! Come on! I am going to treat you to a massive meal!"
After saying this, Dilraba grabbed Theodore's arm and playfully pulled the footballer forward down the street.
More than ten minutes later, Dilraba and Theodore arrived at a high-end private Western restaurant.
"I know professional athletes are incredibly strict about their diets! So I specifically chose this high-end Western restaurant! The ingredients are absolutely healthy and organic! You can eat without any worry!!" Dilraba warmly reassured Theodore as they sat down at a private booth.
"By the way! Big soccer star, after this meal, we will officially be good friends. When I fly back to England to watch your matches in the future, I won't have to buy my own tickets, right?" Dilraba joked, showing a bright, curved smile, looking undeniably cute.
"Aren't you a massive, A-list celebrity? A few ticket prices shouldn't be a big deal for you," Theodore teased back, taking a sip of water.
"Ah!!" Dilraba gasped, her eyes going wide. "You actually know who I am?!"
After hearing Theodore's casual words, the playful expression on Dilraba's face instantly changed from a smile to pure shock.
"You actually know me!! Aren't you Norwegian? Can people all the way in Norway watch the Chinese TV dramas I star in too?!"
Seeing Dilraba's completely startled reaction, Theodore couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"I used to go back to China for vacations, i'm half chinese remember? So I occasionally saw your face plastered on TV screens and billboards!" Theodore casually made up a smooth excuse to brush off his future knowledge.
"Oh, wow! How about this then?" Dilraba offered excitedly. "When I have a new movie coming out in the future, I will invite you to the premiere to watch it for free! And you have to invite me to the VIP box to watch your football matches for free too! Deal?"
"Alright. Deal," Theodore smiled. "But... cinemas in England and Norway probably won't show your domestic Chinese movies..."
Theodore's brutally honest words instantly brought Dilraba crashing back to reality.
"Uh... it's fine!" Dilraba recovered quickly, her chin raised confidently. "I believe one day I will star in a massive global Hollywood blockbuster! Then you will definitely see me in international cinemas abroad!"
Theodore just chuckled and shook his head. "..."
....
While Theodore and Dilraba were enjoying a relaxed chat over their high-end meal, Theodore's name had once again completely flooded social media across the UK and Europe!
Top of the Twitter Trending List: Theodore Bjorn's Quadruple Assists!
Second on the Trending List: 17-Year-Old Theodore Bjorn Helps 10-Man Aston Villa Secure Victory!
Third on the Trending List: Aston Villa's Five-Game Winning Streak! Theodore Bjorn Makes the Ultimate Difference!
He was entirely sweeping the top three spots!
Various prominent British sports media personalities and pundits also shared their thoughts on Theodore on their massive social media platforms.
Gary Lineker (Match of the Day): "Despite facing some truly horrendous, unfair refereeing decisions tonight, Aston Villa still managed to bravely defeat fourth-placed West Bromwich Albion 4-2 at home, and it was almost entirely thanks to the vision of 17-year-old Theodore Bjorn!"
Rio Ferdinand (BT Sport Pundit): "Absolutely outstanding! I can hardly believe my own eyes! Who would dare believe this kid is only 17?! If he keeps developing his game, he will surely be able to rival top, world-class midfielders in the future!"
Micah Richards (Sky Sports Pundit): "Theodore Bjorn is an extremely versatile, intelligent player. After Aston Villa's full-back was sent off, his performance dropping into the defensive full-back position was almost tactically perfect! The kid can literally play anywhere on the pitch."
Mark Goldbridge (The United Stand): "Incredible player! It is just a massive shame he isn't English! He could have completely solved Gareth Southgate's midfield problems for the next three World Cups!"