The ball was placed where the referee had marked it. Tommy stood behind it, his heartbeat no longer felt. The sounds around him seemed to have stopped. He couldn't see the goal clearly, as if it didn't exist, but he pictured it in his mind. The ball was in front of him, almost as if it was moving from its place. Then suddenly, he heard a voice—it was John. Yes, it was him, as if he was saying, "I'm counting on you."
In the midst of these dramatic moments, he heard the whistle—the referee had given the green light. He paused for a few seconds, took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and then looked at the goal one last time. He picked a corner and struck the ball over the wall. The ball cleared the wall, but the goalkeeper, with great skill, managed to touch it with his fingertips in a breathtaking scene. The ball hit the post, but then settled into the net. Yes, a goal—the fourth goal! The winning goal was historic.
At that moment, John couldn't hold back his tears. The whole team gathered around him. They were special and thrilling moments. But the match wasn't over yet—there were still a few minutes left. There was still a real chance for Racing. Their coach could no longer stand; the shock was too strong. No one had expected such a dramatic scenario.
Back to the match, the referee added seven minutes of stoppage time. It was enough time to score more than one goal—many matches had been decided in added time. For the first time, John asked the players to defend, except for Richard. He told him, "Stay in midfield."
The intense pressure applied by Racing in the first two minutes of stoppage time was incredible. Many balls, powerful shots from inside and outside the box. But City's defense stood very firm. Their determination to win exceeded all expectations and predictions. No one could believe what was happening. The stadium commentator even fainted due to the tension. The entire crowd—from the youngest fan to the oldest—stood in stunned silence.
"What is happening here? Is this really the team struggling at the bottom of the table, the one we beat in the first match? This is unbelievable!"
In one of the attacks, Racing managed to earn their eleventh corner. Everyone went forward, including the goalkeeper. All were in the City's penalty area. It was the last ball, the last chance for Racing. Would they manage to score the equalizer at the final moment?
John's heart was pounding fast. He saw Richard dropping back to help in defense, so he shouted, "Richard, no! Stay in the middle!"
The corner was delivered perfectly, heading toward Racing's captain. But out of nowhere, the goalkeeper appeared and punched the ball away. It went toward Richard, who was alone in midfield. He ran with the ball by himself and managed to score the decisive goal—the goal of relief and securing the three points.
Everything was over. Victory. John had achieved a valuable and completely unexpected win against a tough team that was a favorite for promotion to the second division. It was a shock that shook the league. The local press went crazy. Questions were everywhere: Who is this coach who achieved the impossible and caused the first defeat of a promotion contender?
In the locker room, the celebration was massive. Everyone was celebrating and singing. Frank couldn't believe what had happened—he danced for a minute or two, then went to kiss John's head and said, "Man, where have you been? Where was this all this time? You made me the happiest man in the world! You made the people of this small city incredibly happy. Look at my phone—hundreds of calls for sponsorship deals! This is unbelievable! Who would have thought this would happen? I always believed in this. As long as you're with us, John, who can stand in our way?"
John, with a beautiful smile on his face, said, "The win was wonderful. The players delivered a great match. I want to tell you all that today, honestly, you played a historic game—one of the most epic, difficult, and exhausting matches in the club's history. But you rose to the occasion and achieved success brilliantly. What makes me happiest is thanking all of you for these incredible feelings we shared tonight. You are the ones who gave us this moment. Thank you. But once again, I won't speak for long because I've lost my voice," he laughed. "As you noticed, we'll have time later to talk more. For now, after the press conference, I'll leave you."
During the press conference, there were countless questions. John tried to handle them patiently, but in truth, he was thinking of only one thing—he wanted to go home. It had been a very exhausting day, and home was what he needed.
Frank provided a private car that quickly took John home. He felt severe pain in his neck, so he had to leave immediately. John called his wife, Maria, who had been eagerly waiting for him. She had watched the match—John was undoubtedly the hero of the night.
On the other side, Sar was extremely frustrated. No one could believe what had happened. Some fans gathered outside the stadium, chanting angrily about the team's performance and the coach, whom they saw as weak and responsible for this shocking result. Some were even calling for his dismissal.
Sar did not attend the press conference, knowing he might lose control even more. As he was leaving, he received a call from the club president informing him that his contract had been terminated. The pressure from the fans had been immense, and this decision was necessary to ease the impact of what the president described as a disaster—yes, a disaster.
Sar called Fabio, but he didn't answer. He got into his car and left the stadium. He couldn't accept the way the match had unfolded. Not even the most pessimistic person would have expected Racing to lose like this. But Sar had made up his mind—he closed this chapter and went on vacation to reorganize his future.
Finally, John arrived at his house. The first shock was that a media crew was waiting outside his door. A journalist asked him, "Coach, you were the hero of the night without a doubt. Please tell us about the tactics you used in the match. Analysts noticed that the team seemed to divide the game into separate phases. Can you comment?"
John could barely speak from exhaustion and pain, but he said, "It was a very difficult match. We faced a very strong team on their ground and in front of their fans, but we managed to win, and that's what matters. I'll stop here—please excuse me. My family is waiting inside. As for the tactics, we can talk about them another time. Please excuse me, I'm going in."
John entered the house. Maria was waiting. With his first step inside, the pain faded—the exhaustion disappeared with the first hug from his wife and his son, Michael, who felt immense pride in his father. He closed the door, and the great day came to an end—filled with emotions and beautiful feelings.
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