Chapter 17: First Half Battering (2)

13'

Manchester Red would make Teeside wish that Anthony had scored the chance he had earlier as they found the back of the net not up to ten minutes later.

It was a beautiful play from Manchester Red. After Anthony's shot, they began pressing for a goal, most of their shots not even close to being on target. After their many attempts, they were finally able to be clinical enough.

Micheal Oyedele dribbled past the midfield players quite easily and sent a through ball to the right back who was poorly marked by Tylen.

The right back passed back to David Gore who was waiting at the edge of the box, catching majority of the Teeside defense off guard as they had expected him to cross into the box.

When the ball reached David Gore's feet, the center backs began to mark the forwards who positioned themselves inside the box quite intensely with the belief that David Gore was going to cross the ball into the box.

They were shocked however, when from the edge of the right side of the penalty box, David Gore shot the ball with his right foot and the ball sailed all the way to the bottom corner of the goal post.

As soon as his shot entered the post, Omari found it hard to believe that a few hundred people could make as much noise as the spectators made. All of them screaming one word 'goal'.

Omari sighed. He knew he'd be one of them if he wasn't on the receiving end of the battering.

'Gooaaaallll! What a goal from David Gore, giving Manchester Red the lead after just thirteen minutes of play'.

'Beautiful play from Micheal Oyedele and David Gore. With just thirteen minutes gone, they've been a real nuisance to Teeside'

'Yes Tim, Teeside would want to find aa way to stop the midfield duo, and fast. If things continue at this rate then they're going to concede again'

After the first goal, things got even more annoying. Manchester Red seemed pretty content to play in their own half, just passing the ball around.

Their style of play was really beginning to piss Omari off. He wasn't angry because they were playing so shamelessly. He was angry because they were copying their tactics.

The manager had told them that if they managed to get the lead, they should play cautiously, much like Manchester Red are playing now.

He'd given them that instruction because they were the underdogs going into the match but here Manchester Red were, copying their tactics!

'Looks like Manchester Red are relaxing after that first goal'

'Yes Tim, they're focused on controlling the tempo of the match, slowing it down to their preference, not allowing Teeside get on the ball at all'

'Well Teeside are going have to do something about that very quickly. If they can't get the ball, then they can't score a goal'.

21'

Manchester Red got another chance not up to ten minutes after their first goal.

Teeside's defense switched off due to Manchester Red switching their style of play to a more cautious approach.

Their goalkeeper fired a long pass to Anthony Forson who was waiting on the left. He got the ball at the middle of the field and went on a solo run all the way to the penalty box.

He easily disposed of the two defenders and set himself a one on one with the keeper. From there, it was an easy finish, his shot finding the back of the net.

'Gooaaaal! What a goal. Beautiful, staggering from Anthony Forson. Beautiful pass from the goalkeeper to Anthony Forson who dribbles his way to the penalty box before calmly placing his shot in the bottom corner to give Manchester Red their second of the game'

'I've got to say, the Teeside players must be quite frustrated with themselves. They switched off defensively and focused only on pressing higher up the field, unconsciously playing with a high defensive line. Anthony Forson exploited this and slotted in Manchester Red's second of the game'

'Teeside have been quite disappointing this first half haven't they, conceding two early goals. One has to remind their self that it hasn't even been up to half an hour and they're trailing by two goals'.

'They definitely have to work on it if they want to have a chance at winning the game'.

'From the way the first half turned out, I don't think that Teeside have a chance at winning this game anymore'

'It's football Tim, anything can happen'

'I think the Teeside players need those words more than I do'

Omari gritted his teeth as he watched Anthony Forson celebrate his goal. His fists clenched and started vibrating violently. He kicked the grass to let out a bit of his frustration.

Damnit! Damnit! Damnit! Damnit!

They were supposed to be winning. It was supposed to be a classic underdog story. What was happening didn't correlate with the script that he had written inside his mind.

He stomped on the grass once more and went to assume his position. Anthony Forson had already finished his celebration. The referee blew the whistle and the match continued.

This time, it was Teeside that was pressing forward, looking for a goal. Manchester Red seemed to have anticipated this because they took on a compact defensive shape as soon as the whistle sounded, leaving little to no space for Middlesbrough to exploit.

'Looks like Manchester Red have decided to go on the defensive here. Even the attacking players seem to have taken up some space in the defense'

'It makes it really difficult for Teeside initiate anything here. All they can do is pass the ball around the penalty box. It's like Manchester Red are telling them "you can have the ball all you want but what are you going to do with it", really beautiful play from Manchester Red'

'Teeside have to be frustrated with themselves allowing two easy goals, but they have plenty of time to turn the game around. Manchester Red seem to realize this fact and have decided not to give Teeside the chance to do so'

'I have to said, beautiful organization and coordination from Manchester Red. They have been everything that Teeside haven't been this first half, organized, coordinated and clinical. I'm really looking forward to seeing whatever answers Teeside have to Manchester Red's questions'

'Looks like we're going to have an interesting first half ahead of us'

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