Chapter 549: Second Half Begins!
In the end, two changes were made by Kageyama-sensei to face the second half. It was a risky move, considering 45 minutes were quite a long time. With only one substitution left, the room for error the team could afford would be so little that a mistake was basically not an option right now.
The man also inwardly prayed that the team wouldn’t suffer from any injury, because one more person going down would be bad news for the team.
Still, the substitution for those two players was justifiable. Miki Yamane and Naoya had been the most consistent players in the team when it came to minutes played, having never been resting even for a single second in the tournament. Hell, they even played full 120 minutes a few days ago, for God’s sake! No wonder their movement was so sluggish and they were so easily getting beaten by the opponent...
"Come on, Tagawa-senpai, it is time for us to shine." Mamoru grinned as he was warming up one last time on the sideline. "Just wait for my pass on the box, make sure you beat their defenders, okay?"
"Ha! Don’t worry, Mamoru! Even if I die, I will make sure I get the ball!" Tagawa laughed while patting his chest proudly. Then, the referee finally raised the board, allowing them to step in. "Come on, Mamoru! Let’s show them how we super subs work here!"
Even though there was a part where he said it boisterously, Tagawa indeed was ready to die in this second half. He had seen how intense Senegalese players were, and while his teammates failed to adapt to their pace, he, one of the strongest players on the team, would be perfect for this kind of match.
That was why his role was not just a striker in the second half, but also the one who showed the rest of the team that they could survive in the physical clash today.
’Yeah, it will not be an easy task, but I can do this!’
FWEEE!
Soon enough, the referee finally blew the whistle, starting the second half. Now that Japan only had two midfielders dropping closer to the defensive line, there was a huge gap between them and the front line. However, in return, Mamoru and Kawabe had more space to make a run for themselves.
Just like Kageyama-sensei, though, this was the best option. By abandoning the short pass combination in the midfield, the team avoided so many unnecessary confrontations, and not only that, with Morita, Mamoru, and Kawabe, three creative players on the pitch, everything went quite smoothly for the team.
This was shown as Japan got the first chance just two minutes after the second half started.
A diagonal cross from Nakamura managed to reach Tagawa, and even though it was an ugly aerial duel, the striker managed to reach the ball first, deflecting it to the other side of the flank. There, Kawabe reached the spot first just like how he got the chance in the first half. However, instead of executing it directly, his eyes caught a movement on the left flank once again, and with a half-volley technique, he whipped a low, diagonal cross to that spot.
BAM!
"SHIT! Come on!"
Everyone jumped out of their seat when they saw this. The ball was far from the goalkeeper’s reach, and it went straight to Mamoru, who was sliding down on the far post to push it inside. Unfortunately, the pressure from the defender’s side was so great that his touch was far from perfect, and instead of pushing it to the goal, the ball deflected high and hit the crossbar before bouncing on top of the goal.
"AH! Almost!" Mamoru punched the ground in regret. "Good pass, Kawabe-san! Sorry, my execution is terrible!"
"Bah! Don’t worry about it! Just make sure the next attack will be better!" Kawabe gave the bo a thumbs-up before walking back to the right flank.
Still, this was a signal that Japan was going to be more aggressive, and the team really showed that in the next few minutes. Now that Morita and Saito dropped back, they were not getting bothered that much by the opponent’s DMs, and they could create a better chance for their teammates.
Mamoru and Kawabe also worked extra hard right now, having to pick up the ball from the midfield and carry it forward by themselves. Without the close support from the midfielder, they had to rely on individual talent more, which, while being less effective, was the method that the two wingers liked more.
The next wave of attack came again two minutes later, when Mamoru managed to brush off his defender with an exquisite spin move to give himself a space to cut inside. He was being surrounded immediately in the pocket area, but the boy’s vision caught Tagawa moving diagonally to support him.
Seeing this, the boy didn’t hesitate, passing the ball to his senpai. Then...
BAM!
Tagawa tried to shoot from a tight angle with his left foot. Unfortunately, the aim was still far from being perfect, only hitting the side net.
However, this was a good sign for Team Japan. They slowly started regaining their confidence, pushing forward and encircling the opponent in their territory to get the second goal. Every chance only became closer to the goal, and everyone could see that Senegal’s defense was about to crumble.
Then, in the 59th minute, Mamoru’s penetration once again wreaked havoc on the left side. This time, he worked together with Miyashiro, and their one-two pass allowed the boy to get a good sight on goal. With that angle, even though it was still outside of the box, he could curl the ball to the far post to get a goal here.
However, right when he was thinking, someone suddenly pushed him from behind. It was a subtle movement, but enough to shake off the boy’s balance. As a result...
FWEEE!
The referee blew the whistle immediately, pointing at the spot where Mamoru fell. 15 minutes had passed since the second half began; the team got a free kick just two meters away from the box, becoming their biggest chance to tie the score today.