The Fans in the stadium exploded instantly!
"Holy shit! Another header! He is literally unplayable in the air."
"Two center-backs couldn't stop him, The kid is a monster!"
"The Black Bomber strikes again! He wins the first ball on every corner!"
On the touchline, Sá Pinto buried his face in his hands.
He had explicitly warned his team, structured his entire defensive setup around stopping the teenager, and they still conceded inside five minutes.
A wave of pure helplessness washed over the manager.
With the early lead secured, Villa tightened their grip on the match.
Braga attempted to push forward, but their attacks lacked any real venom. The game devolved into a gritty midfield battle.
It was a battle Villa easily won, largely thanks to Theodore.
Having dumped his ten attribute points into Sliding Tackle after the West Ham match, Theodore's defensive game had leveled up.
His rating of 75 allowed him to frequently launch into perfectly timed sliding challenges to break up the opposition's passing lanes.
The results were devastating.
Out of five tackles attempted in the midfield, Theodore won the ball cleanly four times. One moment he was the Black Bomber dominating the penalty area, the next, he was a midfield enforcer, relentlessly dismantling Braga's buildup.
Alongside Theodore, the rest of the Villa midfield was purring in.
Grealish was terrorizing the left flank, his aggressive dribbling striking fear into the Braga backline every time he touched the ball.
Meanwhile, John McGinn—who had struggled to adapt to the brutal pace of the Premier League in the opening weeks—looked completely at home against European opposition.
He covered every blade of grass, winning back possession and feeding the wingers.
21st Minute.
The Villa midfield trio combined perfectly.
Theodore executed a brutal, perfectly timed slide tackle to strip Palhinha in the center circle.
He popped back to his feet instantly and slid a pass out to Grealish on the left wing.
Grealish received it, but three Braga players immediately swarmed him. Recognizing the trap, Grealish didn't try to force a dribble.
He laid a soft pass inside as the ball rolled to McGinn.
Finding himself completely unmarked thirty yards from goal, the Scotsman didn't hesitate.
He took one touch to set himself and unleashed a venomous swerving strike!
BANG!
The ball rocketed into the top right corner.
The Braga keeper launched himself across the goal, but he couldn't get anywhere near it.
2-0!
"McGinn makes it two!" the commentator announced. "Braga are falling apart at Villa Park. The gap in quality between the Premier League and the Primeira Liga is glaringly obvious tonight."
The second goal completely broke Braga's spirit.
The visitors spent the remainder of the first half chasing shadows, failing to register a single shot on Tom Heaton's goal.
...
Villa marched down the tunnel at halftime with a comfortable 2-0 lead.
In the dressing room, Dean Smith walked straight over to Theodore, clapping him on the shoulder.
"Brilliant shift, Theo," Smith praised. "You've killed the game. We're two goals up, so I'm pulling you off at the start of the second half. Rest your legs for Arsenal on Sunday."
"No, Boss," Theodore replied immediately. "My stamina is fine."
Smith frowned. "Theo, be reasonable—"
"I want to stay on," Theodore insisted. "You can pull me around the 75th minute. Not before."
Smith sighed but nodded in agreement.
The manager knew the truth: Villa's entire winning streak was built on the teenager's shoulders.
Theodore was the engine of the club, and Smith simply didn't have the courage to defy his star player.
Theodore's logic was simple.
A 2-0 lead was never safe in European football. If Braga fluked a goal and swung the momentum, the result—and his System reward—could be in jeopardy.
He needed to make sure the match was dead and buried.
In the second half, Theodore remained the most dominant force on the pitch.
In the 56th minute, he drove the final nail into the coffin.
Picking up the ball in the final third, Theodore was immediately pressed by two Braga midfielders.
Instead of laying it off, he scooped a delicate, perfectly weighted chip over the top of the defensive line.
The ball dropped beautifully into the path of Wesley.
The Brazilian striker used his 191cm frame to shield off the recovering center-back, set his feet, and unleashed a thunderous volley.
The shot nearly ripped the net off the posts!
3-0.
The match was officially over.
Fifteen minutes later, Smith hooked Theodore, replacing him with Conor Hourihane.
As the teenager walked toward the dugout, the Villa Park crowd rose to their feet, delivering a deafening standing ovation.
He had scored one, assisted another, and run the midfield flawlessly.
Without Theodore pulling the strings, Villa's performance visibly dropped.
They struggled to maintain possession and invited pressure, but Braga's forwards were atrocious, squandering two late chances.
The final whistle blew.
Aston Villa had secured a dominant 3-0 victory in their first Europa League group stage match!
Theodore was, unsurprisingly, named Man of the Match.
Down in the mixed zone, the English press corps barely asked about the Braga victory.
Their focus was entirely locked on the impending weekend clash.
"Theo, Sunday you travel to the Emirates to face Arsenal," a reporter from The Athletic began. "They are fifth in the league and looking incredibly sharp. Do you honestly believe Villa can go to North London and get a result?"
Theodore stared blankly at the reporter. "Of course. Like I've said from day one, Aston Villa doesn't fear anyone. And that includes Arsenal."
...
Not long after Theodore returned to the dressing room, the system voice echoed in his mind.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for helping Aston Villa secure their first Europa League victory! Reward: One Black Gold Card!]
As the notification faded, the words "Penalty Area Shooting Attribute" materialized before Theodore's eyes.
He nodded in satisfaction.
His current Finishing stat was sitting at a pathetic 68, any boost in that department was desperately needed.
The text dissolved, replaced by the St. George's Cross of the English flag.
A moment later, a position appeared:
Winger.
"An English winger?" Theodore muttered to himself, running through the possibilities.
"Could it be Saka? Foden? Don't tell me it's Grealish's shooting attribute! God, anything but Jack's finishing."
Soon, the image of a Black player in a pristine white England kit materialized, along with the name of the Black Gold Card.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for acquiring Raheem Sterling's Penalty Area Shooting Attribute! (Black Gold Card!)]
Theodore stared at the image of Raheem Sterling.
The Happy Boy himself.
The man whose point-blank misses made Pep Guardiola drop to his knees in despair!
"You have got to be kidding me," Theodore groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Sterling's shooting attribute? Is his finishing even higher than mine?"
The Black Gold Card lived up to its reputation as the lowest-tier reward.
Theodore was caught between laughing and crying as the final numbers flashed across his vision.
[Finishing Attribute: 68 -> 73]
"A five-point increase. Fucking brilliant."
Theodore sighed in resignation.
Though disappointed with the draw, an upgrade was an upgrade.
It was barely acceptable, but he noticed that even with the boost to 73, his Overall Rating remained locked at 83.
The five points weren't enough to push the needle.
...
It was past nine in the evening when Theodore returned to his empty Birmingham estate. Just as he was about to head to bed, his phone buzzed on the nightstand.
It was a WhatsApp message from Sky Sports presenter Laura Woods.
[Laura Woods: Theo! Congratulations on the Europa League win! Your next match is against Arsenal in London, right? I'll be there covering it for the broadcast!]
Theodore tapped out a quick, polite reply.
[Theodore: Thank you. See you in London.]
The upcoming clash against Arsenal was guaranteed to generate massive global viewership.
Recognizing the magnitude of the fixture, Sky Sports had assigned their top broadcast team, dispatching Peter Drury, Gary Neville, and Laura Woods to provide live coverage from the Emirates.
---------
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