After scoring the goal, Sergio Agüero immediately turned his body and ran fast towards William, jumping into the young man's arms while Gabriel Jesus followed with a big laugh. Kevin De Bruyne, who was not far away, just gave a thumbs up while smiling calmly, as if all this was just a morning routine at the training center.
Vincent Kompany, the captain, who was still standing in his own defense area, looked frozen with his mouth slightly open. He immediately ran towards the crowd celebrating in the middle circle with a face full of disbelief.
"Wait, wait! William! Sergio!" Kompany shouted while holding William's head. "You guys really did that? In a real match? I thought your crazy idea at lunch was just a rondo joke!"
Fernandinho also approached, grinning broadly while patting Gabriel Jesus on the back. "I saw the four of them—William, Kevin, Sergio and Gabriel—whispering on the bus earlier, but I didn't expect them to dare to execute that 'quick scheme' in a real match and didn't even discuss it with us," said Fernandinho, shaking his head.
"We've discussed it, Cap," William answered casually after Agüero got off his shoulder. "Kevin gave me a signal during the warm-up earlier. I've analyzed at home and know that Everton's defense line will be very high at the start of the match, so why not give them a surprise?"
Agüero laughed, wiping the sweat from his forehead even though he had only run ten meters. "William said to me in the dressing room, 'Sergio, as soon as the referee blows the whistle, just run between Keane and Jagielka, the ball will get there'. And he actually sent it straight to my feet, we also discussed how to do this after seeing William's research on the training ground!"
Gabriel Jesus chimed in with his iconic telephone celebration towards the stands, "We often do this in behind closed doors training, but doing this in front of 50 thousand people... that's a different level of confidence!"
"Crazy boy," Kompany muttered with a laugh, giving William an affectionate slap on the back of the head. "You just made the boss's tactical instructions for an hour yesterday afternoon irrelevant in the first eight seconds, even though you managed to be prepared for the questions the boss will ask later."
"Ughh–I forgot about that" William answered with a sigh because he knew that Guardiola would be a little angry at him for not telling him he would do this.
The live broadcast camera is now focusing on Wayne Rooney's face, who still looks frozen in his position. As the player who most often scores quick goals, he couldn't believe that he had just witnessed a tactical masterpiece from a debutant.
The roar at the Etihad Stadium did not immediately explode; there was a tense one-second pause as tens of thousands of fans fell silent, trying to process what had just happened before a burst of deafening cheers erupted from every corner of the stands. The Manchester City fans looked at each other, realizing that they had just witnessed the history of the fastest goal they had ever seen in person.
The sound of cheers echoed throughout the Etihad stadium, the fans finally realized that their team had scored a goal–with a mixture of surprise and happiness they all cheered until their voices were hoarse.
"Listen to that cheer Alan! It was a sound that came too late because they just realized that their team was ahead in just 8 seconds" exclaimed Martyn Tyler in a voice full of enthusiasm!
"Never mind them Martyn, I still can't believe what I saw – William with his super vision and passing helped Aguero score the fastest goal in Premier League history replacing Ledley King's goal against Bradford in the 2000-01 season and Alan Shearer's goal against Manchester City in the 2002-03 season."
Alan Smith replied to Martyn and continued "history was created before us all today, Aguero became the fastest goal scorer in Premier League history and the one who provided the assist was a talented young player with extraordinary vision and passing"
"The world may be witnessing the rise of Manchester City right now, a team that used to be a small team in Manchester before being bought by the current owner – a team that was always number 2 because their neighbors dominated the Premier League, now they are showing that they also have talented players who they produce from their Academy"
Martyn Tyler said while thinking about other young Manchester City players who are starting to show their talents, such as Foden and Palmer.
On the sidelines, Ronald Koeman seemed to explode. He slammed his water bottle on the ground and shouted hysterically at his line of defense. "What are you guys doing?! Wake up! It's only been eight seconds!" he shouted with a red face, unable to believe that the offside trap he had instructed was shattered by one pass from a young player.
Phil Jagielka, the captain, could only look down while catching his breath which he had not even had time to catch. He glanced at Ashley Williams with a blaming look, but before the argument broke out, a deep voice calmed them down.
"Forget about that goal! Focus!" Wayne Rooney shouted while clapping loudly, trying to raise the spirits of his teammates. "We still have 89 minutes of game time. Don't let that kid do it again. Gueye, stick to that number 11! Don't give him any room to breathe!"
Rooney stared sharply at William Carter who was walking back to his position. As a veteran, he knew that if they didn't immediately shut down William's movements, tonight would be a nightmare for Everton
Even so, he is also happy because England once again has hope with the emergence of talented young players. Rooney hopes for the best for William - he also hopes that this young talent is not destroyed by injury or worse by momentary glory.
So Rooney will give William a bit of advice after the match.
Returning to the Manchester City side, William walked across the halfway line with unnatural calm for a teenager. He saw Idrissa Gueye starting to approach him with a predatory gaze, but William only smiled faintly.
"Calm down, Will. Now they will start playing rough," Fernandinho whispered as they passed each other.
"Just leave it be, Ferna. The more they focus on me, the more space there is for Kevin," William answered in a very mature tone.
William glanced towards the bench and saw Pep Guardiola giving him a thumbs up. William knew, even though he had scored an assist in eight seconds, the real game had just begun. With Vision 97 at his disposal, he began to remap the positions of the Everton players who now looked very aggressive and full of anger.
The match continues
William immediately realized that the atmosphere of the match had changed. Idrissa Gueye no longer provides distance; he played very rough, using his shoulders and low tackles to stop William. However, with the calmness of someone who already had a little experience in the world of football, whether as a player or assistant coach, William was not provoked. He used his ability to read the direction of the opponent's movement to turn his body, allowing Gueye's tackle to hit the wind.
The match continued like that, William now didn't provide many passes or maneuvers because he was closely guarded by two Everton players.
However, even so, William was still able to provide passes into empty spaces for the Everton players, therefore they became increasingly wary of William and tightened their respect for him.
And that is what the Manchester City players have been waiting for, when the opposing players are too focused on trying to limit William's space – another player will emerge as a new key to unlocking their defense.
The clock was on to the 25th minute when Everton lost the ball in the final third of City's field. Fernandinho quickly passed the ball to William who was being surrounded by Gueye and Morgan Schneiderlin. Under pressure from two players, William made a very subtle first touch, giving the rebound diagonally to Kevin De Bruyne who had free space.
Because they were too focused on William, they all forgot, in this match Manchester City fielded two midfielders who have the best passing among the world's midfielders.
De Bruyne wasted no time. He released a fantastic flat pass which split the Everton defense vertically. The ball glided sweetly past Michael Keane and landed straight in Gabriel Jesus' running path. With his predatory instincts, Jesus fired a low shot into the left corner of Jordan Pickford's goal.
"GOOOALLLL!! 2-0 to Manchester City!"
"Unbelievable!!! As the Everton players focused on William, the key to unlocking their defense appeared again–and this time Kevin de Bruyne didn't want to be left behind by William and showed world-class passing," shouted Martin Tyler from the commentary table.
"I don't know how Guardiola will use these two guys in the future, but I know that whoever plays first, they will both display world-class passing," commented Alan Smith before shaking his head and continuing, "You see how William kept holding the ball before, and Kevin de Bruyne will only be at the back as a link between the midfield and back with Fernandinho? And now that William has no space, Kevin de Bruyne will advance into the space that William created for himself after attracting 2 opposing players."
"This is truly an extraordinary combination between the two, one will step back to scan and wait for the moment - the other will create open space by making prominent plays and this of course attracts the enemy's attention so that players scanning behind can see the empty space and provide feedback to the front players," continued Martyn Tyler after hearing Alan Smith's words.
Manchester City fans once again cheered happily, they also saw how William attracted the attention of opposing players so that Kevin de Bruyne, who from the start was only a link, had free space to make a pass.
They really couldn't believe what they were seeing, a young player who had been trained by the academy club and had only been promoted to the first team a few days ago could play like that and they even felt that William and Kevin de Bruyne were the perfect combination and would shake up the Premier League.
On the field, Gabriel Jesus, after scoring a goal, immediately ran towards the corner of the field, doing his iconic telephone celebration while smiling broadly at the camera, a message to his mother in Brazil that he had scored another goal.
William and the other Manchester City players immediately ran and hugged Gabriel Jesus.
Kevin de Bruyne hugged William and said, "I knew you would make room for me like during a training session – but I didn't think you could do that when faced with two players bigger than you."
"If I'm honest – my body is running out of energy now, we have to switch tasks. I don't want my body to be destroyed after the match," William answered in a joking tone.
"Oh and you have extraordinary finishing, Gabriel," continued William while patting Gabriel Jesus on the shoulder.
"That's because you two are making their midfielders confused about who they should guard," Gabriel Jesus answered while hugging William.
Sergio Agüero came to hug Jesus and William at the same time. "Two goals in 25 minutes! Everton really don't know what hit them," exclaimed Agüero with a satisfied laugh.
On the sidelines, Pep Guardiola appeared to be celebrating very emotionally. He jumped slightly and pumped both fists in the air before turning towards the bench for a quick discussion with Mikel Arteta. Pep pointed at William, giving instructions through body gestures for William to maintain the depth of the midfield after the deadly attacking transition.
Referee Robert Madley blew his whistle, directing the Everton players to retake the kick-off from the center spot. Wayne Rooney seemed to be trying to revive his team's mentality which was starting to collapse, shouting loudly for Idrissa Gueye and Schneiderlin to be more disciplined in closing the space between William and De Bruyne.
As soon as the ball was rolled, Everton tried to play more pragmatically with long passes towards Calvert-Lewin. However, every time the ball fell into midfield, William was always in the right position to make an interception or simply disrupt the opponent's ball flow.
William feels that his physical condition remains in top shape thanks to additional training from Lorenzo Buenaventura, allowing him to continue moving to cover the holes left by Kyle Walker when assisting in the attack. Pertandingan kini memasuki fase yang lebih keras, di mana Everton mulai meluncurkan tekel-tekel telat sebagai bentuk frustrasi mereka.
But Manchester City continued to dominate. William mulai menunjukkan variasi umpan indahnya. He released a curved diagonal pass 40 meters which landed right at Leroy Sané's feet on the left side, forcing Everton's defense to shift chaotically. Sesaat kemudian, ia memberikan umpan terobosan cerdik kepada Kyle Walker yang melakukan overlap di sisi kanan.
Michael Oliver as the fourth official lifted the time addition board showing the number 3, which means the first half match has entered the final stage.
In the 45+1 minute, Sergio Agüero made a penetrating movement in the central area of Everton's defense before being roughly brought down by Phil Jagielka about 25 meters from Jordan Pickford's goal.
"Hard foul from Jagielka! Referee Robert Madley immediately blew the whistle," shouted Martin Tyler in a high pitch. "This is a very dangerous position for Everton. The distance is only about 25 meters, right in front of the penalty arc!"
William approached Aguero and helped him up, "Are you okay?" He said while pulling Aguero's hand.
"Yeah, I can't believe it–I was fouled like this in the first half," Aguero answered while cleaning the grass and dirt stuck to his trousers.
Kevin de Bruyne approached them while placing the ball at the point of the free kick ordered by Robert Madley, Fernandinho came and asked "Who will kick?"
"Let William do it, from this distance and position this is his skill" answered Kevin de Bruyne while covering his mouth (like football players usually do when talking on the field, I don't know how to explain it)
William and Kevin De Bruyne stood in front of the ball together, this was to deceive the Everton players because they both believed, the players would think no matter how good William was at this – young players still had to wait their turn to appear, and because De Bruyne was there it was certain that he would be the one to execute this free kick.
Alan Smith saw this, "Look who is standing in front of the ball. Kevin De Bruyne is ready, and next to him is the debutant, William Carter. I think everyone in this stadium is betting that Kevin will take the shot. He has a terrifying free kick record."
When the referee blew the whistle, De Bruyne then took a long stance – outfoxing Everton's live fence led by Michael Keane.
However, when Everton's defenders jumped to stop De Bruyne's shot, De Bruyne just ran and passed the ball.
The kick executed by William was not a hard, piercing kick, but an artistic, curved kick that reminded the public of David Beckham's signature style. The ball glided over the live fence, diving sharply towards the top left corner of Everton's goal. Jordan Pickford had jumped as hard as he could, but the ball's precision was so perfect—it was as if William had calculated every physics variable, from distance to wind speed, to ensure the ball landed in an impossible spot.
"GOOOOAAALLLL! A MIRACLE FROM THE YOUNG MAESTRO!" shouted Martin Tyler hysterically. "William Carter! He doesn't just pass passes, he's a pure executor! Absolutely insane precision for a player his age!"
The roar at the Etihad Stadium reached its peak when the ball from William's kick went straight into the corner of the goal. Thousands of home fans jumped from their seats, hugging each other with faces filled with disbelief. The name "William Carter" began to echo throughout the stands, creating a goosebump-inducing atmosphere for anyone who heard it.
"Hear that voice, Alan! Etihad have found their new idol!" shouted Martin Tyler above the noise of the stadium. "We came here to see the return of Wayne Rooney, but we're going home talking about the birth of a new legend. That free kick technique... it's not just talent, it's pure intelligence!"
Alan Smith chimed in in an equally amazed tone, "Look how that ball dived, Martin. Pickford did everything right, but William's precision was on a different level. He really calculated that gap. Three goals in the first half, and this kid was involved in every step of the way!"
On the sidelines, Pep Guardiola held his head in both hands, seemingly in disbelief at what he had just seen. He glanced at Mikel Arteta who could only smile broadly while shaking his head. William has just proven that he can do something like that even though his shooting statistics are below Premier League standards.
In the stands, cameras captured fans holding their heads, as if in disbelief that an 18-year-old's home debut could be this dominant. Several veteran City supporters looked emotional, seeing the similarity in William's vision to the great maestros who once played in Manchester.
Just after the celebrations died down and the ball was placed back at the halfway point, referee Robert Madley glanced at his watch. He didn't give Everton time to breathe any longer.
After Everton restarted the kick-off and the ball was in the hands of their defender.
PRRRIIIIIIITTTTT!
The long whistle blew, signaling the end of a very unequal first half. The players move towards the stadium hallway. William walked slowly while wiping his sweat, surrounded by his teammates who kept patting him on the back. On the other hand, Everton's players walked with their heads bowed, while Ronald Koeman immediately rushed in with fast steps and a very dark face, indicating that there would be a "storm" in their dressing room.
Temporary score: Manchester City 3 - 0 Everton.
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#permission–honestly, this was supposed to be a whole chapter, but while writing, my cell phone was having seizures.
So I decided to turn it into 2 chapters that I will post on the same day.
I will probably update every day until chapter 10, after that it will be according to schedule–there will be exclusive chapters updated on Patreon but not on the Web novel.
I feel like my writing has progressed, although maybe only 0.5%, but it's still progress.