Football singularity
Chapter 515 515 Bow-Tied & Gift Wrapped

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[19:00 German Time | Bay Arena, Leverkusen | Bayer Leverkusen 3 vs 0 Dusseldorf]

[70]

The tempo hardly dipped. Wirtz, only 16, was full of energy and gave the veterans something to worry about. He ragged around the midfield lines like a matador dodging multiple bulls.

He had one of the best techniques on the team, with his first touch being feather-light, allowing him to suddenly explode with speed at a moment's notice. Wanting to impact the game as soon as possible, he exploded into pockets of space whenever an opportunity presented itself. That's why, after receiving a short pass from Baumgartlinger, he turned with the ball's momentum and sped past Stöger before unleashing a weighted pass up the right channel.

Diaby received the ball midstride, doing his best to hold off Ampomah as they broke into the final third. Using his shoulder to nudge the defender, he gained a breath of space and immediately drilled a curving cross into the box.

The ball flew towards the near post, forcing Kastenmeier to jump forward and punch the ball out of his box before Volland could get any funny ideas. "Florian Wirtz has become a mainstay in the first team since his achievements in Poland, and it's not hard to see why," Derek Rae enthused. "He hasn't even been on the pitch two minutes and is already looking for reasons to keep his name in the team sheet."

Twellman chuckled. "It's like giving a kid the keys to a Ferrari and realising he actually knows how to drive stick."

"Ahem, what does that gotta do with football?" Rae questioned, wondering how his praising Wirtz led to a Ferrari product placement. "Never mind, Dusseldorf is on the counter, Ampomah is tearing down that left flank."

[74]

Ampomah was a blur of red boots on the wet grass. He hurdled Wirtz's sliding challenge on the touchline, let the ball roll ahead of him, and with one last stutter-step to the wrong-footed Lars Bender, he gained space. Without hesitation, he whipped a vicious, waist-high cross toward the penalty spot.

Hennings flashed across Tah's blind side again, meeting the delivery with a glancing header. The connection was true; the ball arced toward the top corner, only for Lukáš Hrádecký, who had been covering the near post, to raise his glove to deflect the ball out of play. He got a good hand to it, managing to keep his goal safe yet again to the delight of the home fans.

A minute later, Ampomah stood at the corner flag, shaking the raindrops out of his hair as the away supporters began a rhythmic clap behind him. They looked for any semblance of redemption, no matter how little and hoped their team could rise to the occasion. Leaving the BayArena, the home of their bitter rivals, in a 3:0 humiliation wasn't something they could live down; they weren't Arsenal fans after all.

Ampomah didn't disappoint as he sent in a vicious inswinger with his right foot, but Wendell rose imperiously at the back edge of the six-yard line, thumping a clearing header that nearly reached the centre circle. The visiting side managed to retain the loose ball, killing any attempts at a counter, but struggled to turn the possession into a worthwhile attack.

[80]

Rakim and Diaby exited the stage in the 80th minute for Leon Bailey and Lucas Alario. They both received a warm welcome send-off for their contributions in today's match. They had both not only scored for the team but also assisted, which the fans who never cared about personal accolades appreciated.

Bailey wasted no time announcing himself, using every opportunity to make an impact in the squad. This season, he had found it hard to hit the ground running, unlike the other wingers in the squad. With 5 wingers in the squad and 2 more players able to confidently play the role, the battle for minutes had been brutal.

Squad rotation helped, but the pressure to deliver was there as he could feel that his role in the squad was getting smaller. The Jamaican took his first meaningful touch just inside his own half in the 83rd minute. He spun on a dime, slipping around his marker, and ripped away down the left touchline like a dragster off the lights.

Zimmermann, who had been used to marking Rakim, who used his skills to miss with acceleration to get by him, tried the same approach with Bailey. It backfired, though, as the winger had no desire to make it look nice and simply tapped into his Jamaican trackster genes. Forced to improvise, Zimmermann tried to jockey him wide, but Bailey's second acceleration was pure lightning.

One step over, then a nutmeg through the full-back's planted legs and he was gone like a teenage boy with sudden fatherly responsibilities. Bailey's afterburners carried him to the byline in the blink of an eye. A sea of red and black scarves rose in expectation. The Jamaican snapped his head up, spotted Alario and Volland charging into the box at pace and drilled a cut-back their way.

Alario met it on the slide, six yards out, but the ball ricocheted wickedly off the slick surface and thundered into the advertising boards instead of the gaping net. A collective gasp rippled around the BayArena.

"Alario had the bow-tied and the gift wrap on," Derek Rae lamented. "He just forgot to attach the postage stamp."

Twellman chuckled. "That's the kind of chance you dream about…and then wake up screaming about when you put it wide."

[86]

Düsseldorf tried to respond with a desperate high press, but every misplaced pass felt like kindling tossed onto Leverkusen's counter-attacking bonfire. Wirtz, who was playing with a happy expression, was the most active; he sent his marker sliding as if he were on skates with a shoulder drop before turning in the opposite direction. Not holding onto the ball, he clipped a cheeky outside-of-the-boot switch to Wendell on the opposite flank.

The left-back cushioned it elegantly and returned the favour inside as Wirtz cut a diagonal run forward. Without even looking at the ball, he received the return pass and used his momentum to pirouette away from Morales. Drawing another defender, he got close before slipping a square ball into Bailey's stride at the top of the D.

Bailey chopped inside Hoffmann, who over-committed and paused just long enough to watch Ayhan slide by like a first-time skater who only bothered to learn how to go forward. With the path cleared, the winger didn't even look up and wrapped his left foot around the ball, sending a sumptuous curler toward the far corner.

Kastenmeier launched himself full-stretch, gloves grazing air. The strike kissed the underside of the bar and bulged the netting with a satisfying thump. "GOOOAAL! Leon Bailey with a work of art!" Rae's voice rose above the roar. "That is an exclamation point the size of the Rhine!"

Twellman whooped. "When you can bend physics to your will like that, you deserve a standing ovation, and he's getting one from almost every corner of this ground."

[Leverkusen 4 – 0 Düsseldorf]

[88]

Bosz, on the sidelines, celebrated the goal like an actor auditioning for the next Creed as he punched the air in joy. He had merely wanted to see what the other players on the bench had to offer, and they did not disappoint. He wasn't the only one celebrating as the rest of the bench had jumped up in joy to celebrate as if it were the game-winning goal.

That proved to be the last noteworthy thing to happen in regular time as the visiting side was utterly defeated. They showed no intentions of attacking, and the Red Lions simply let the match play out. Soon, the fourth official's board flashed 2 minutes. By now, the home supporters were bouncing, chanting their song as if that was the very reason they had come to the Arena.

Düsseldorf produced one last symbolic surge in the 92nd minute: Ampomah fed Kownacki, who dinked a clever ball over the top for Hennings. The striker chested down, but Tah lunged in with a telescopic leg, nicking the ball cleanly and drawing a roar almost equal to a goal. Twellman quickly commented, "That's a centre-back's equivalent of a mic-drop."

[90+2]

Referee Daniel Schlage checked his watch, then delivered three sharp peeps.

[FULL-TIME: Bayer Leverkusen 4 – 0 Fortuna Düsseldorf]

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To Be Continued...