Chapter 145: The Sky City Collapses!
Robert Badenberg's shot gave Stoke City a false alarm.
Lynn's expression did not change on the touchline. He had even grown used to his players wasting some good chances.
If every shot that looked like a decent opportunity had to go in, then football scores would start looking like table tennis scores.
But after Robert Badenberg's shot flew over the crossbar, he blamed himself far more than anyone else did.
He kicked the goalpost hard, drawing complaints from the Stoke City players. Badenberg's looks were somewhat ugly to begin with, so when his face darkened, his expression became especially frightening.
He snapped without the slightest politeness at the Stoke players protesting his kick at the post, "Get lost!"
As Badenberg ran back, he kept cursing his own performance in his heart.
He needed to take his chances!
If Ibrahimović was a peerless divine weapon waiting to be unsealed, then Badenberg was only an iron sword still waiting to be sharpened. He needed to prove himself. He needed to tell the world that he was also excellent, that he wanted more—fame, profit, money, attention, everything!
Because of that, when chances appeared, he should be grabbing them tightly!
Compared to his other teammates, who burned with fighting spirit and carried a powerful momentum, Badenberg's wolf-like eyes revealed the ambition in his heart!
Stoke City began to shrink their defensive line on the flanks.
In the 61st minute, Villa dribbled inside and ran into the obstruction of a packed defense. Thomas, Clarke, and Williams formed a triangular defensive net. After Villa became trapped in heavy traffic, he could only force a shot, and the ball struck Williams before bouncing behind for a corner.
Swansea won a corner.
Tobias Rau's corner was headed clear by Clarke at the near post.
Stoke City's attacks failed again and again, which forced them to return rigidly to their traditional wide-crossing tactics.
After shifting play and combining, they would drive to the byline and cross.
Friedrich and Gabbidon repeatedly cleared the ball away.
In the 64th minute, Lynn made a gesture, telling the team to use the flanks more in attack.
The full-backs pushed forward, beginning to dismantle Stoke City's compact defensive line.
In the 68th minute, when Villa once again carried the ball inside and fell into heavy pressure, he had already noticed Tobias Rau's run.
Thomas believed that if he stepped up to press Villa, he could successfully win the ball. He charged forward with full confidence, but Villa slipped the ball between his legs and into the empty space behind him.
Thomas stopped sharply, turned around, and looked back, only to see Tobias Rau charging up like the wind. Just before the ball was about to roll over the goal line, Tobias sent in a cross!
Villa definitely had no time to attack the near post, but he had already tied up the opponent's defensive numbers very well.
In the middle, Clint Hill was tangled with Charisteas. Charisteas fought hard to charge forward and head the ball, but Hill tugged at his shirt and delayed his movement.
Charisteas only felt the ball flash past his forehead at great speed. It almost seemed as if he had grazed it!
After Charisteas missed the chance in front of goal, Robert Badenberg, who had followed up at the far post, shook off Marcus Hall. He also charged forward for a header, and this time, he seized the opportunity!
The ball was smashed into Stoke City's goal by his forehead!
On the wing, Tobias Rau saw Robert Badenberg score with his header and raised both fists, roaring loudly!
Badenberg, after completing his forward run, turned and sprinted straight toward the corner flag. He slapped his chest again and again, his face wild with excitement!
"Swansea have equalized! Robert Badenberg, who came on as a substitute in the second half, has become the surprise weapon! He met Tobias Rau's cross and headed the ball into the net!
"OMG!
"The contrast between Swansea's first-half and second-half performances is enormous. What exactly happened in the dressing room during halftime?
"Lynn's adjustment has been incredibly effective!
"Stoke City have been stunned! Not only has their attacking threat dropped, their defense has also started to look panicked and chaotic.
"There are still twenty minutes left. Who will win this match?"
Stoke City's entire team looked as if they had suffered a heavy blow. Their scalps tingled, and the players looked at one another, feeling that Swansea's attacks were almost impossible to guard against!
A vicious look appeared on Steve Cotterill's face, though it flashed away almost instantly. He began roaring at his players.
He signaled for them to be tougher in their duels and challenges!
And his tactical change was extremely simple: attack hard, hit long balls, and bombard the box!
They had already reached the 70th minute. This was generally the point where players' stamina reached its limit. Stoke City were playing at home, and their endurance was strong, so in the final stage, there was absolutely no need for them to slowly circle around with the opponent anymore!
Use simple, brutal physicality to crush the opponent!
After the match restarted, with the score level, the duel between the two teams became the main theme.
But Swansea's 4-3-3 formation at least allowed them to use numerical superiority in the middle and back lines to make up for their shortcomings in physical confrontation.
Stoke City tried several long balls and aerial assaults, but none of them produced results.
Dario Rosser even sent a cross straight over the goal line, making Steve Cotterill slap a hand over his own face!
It was too ugly.
On Swansea's side, their attacks were repeatedly stopped by fouls. The referee had no choice but to keep pulling out cards to warn players and control the atmosphere of the match, preventing conflict from breaking out.
Within ten minutes, the referee produced six yellow cards in total: four for Stoke City, two for Swansea.
That made Stoke City more hesitant in defense.
In the 81st minute, another Stoke long ball ended in Glendor's hands.
Glendor rushed out of his goal, leapt high before Asaba could challenge for the header, and caught the dropping ball with both hands.
After landing, Glendor charged straight toward the edge of the penalty area, then used a powerful throw to send the ball directly over the halfway line!
The fans in the stands all widened their eyes in disbelief.
Glendor's arm strength was astonishing!
That throw was fucking far!
Of course, Glendor did have a Goalkeeper Long Throw skill card on him. After long-term training, he would occasionally show a side that shocked people.
The ball thrown beyond the halfway line dropped to the feet of Charisteas, who had retreated to help defend.
Stoke City's shape was pushed fairly high, with their defensive line all outside the penalty area. Clarke rushed forward to press Charisteas tightly, and the Greek immediately passed the ball back.
Cromwell, following up from behind, released the ball with one touch, sending a diagonal pass to Villa on the left side of the front line.
Villa was already running forward, and he took the ball in stride without slowing down.
In front of him stood Stoke City's entire defensive line.
Villa's expression was calm as he looked at the retreating defenders. In the next instant, he made a decision that stunned everyone in the stadium.
He kicked the ball into the space behind Stoke City's back line, then sprinted forward at full speed!
The area between Thomas and Williams became a corridor for Villa's explosive run!
When Villa rushed past Williams, who had turned in a hurry and could not build up speed, the Sky City fans were filled with shock.
Was that kid running?
No, he was fucking flying!
After circling past Williams and charging into the penalty area, Villa regained control of the ball as it rolled between Williams and Hill.
A knock-and-run had blown apart Stoke City's entire defensive line!
Villa was through one-on-one!
His duel with goalkeeper Cutler was completed in an instant. When Cutler rushed out, Villa used a chipped shot to lift the ball. The ball rose into the air and traced a beautiful parabola, elegant and unpredictable. Cutler jumped on the spot, trying to slap the ball down from the air with his hand, but it was futile. The moment his fingertips failed to touch it, Cutler closed his eyes in despair.
The ball dropped lightly into Stoke City's goal, bounced off the ground, struck the net, rolled slowly for a few seconds, and then quietly came to rest inside Stoke's net!
Stoke City's players felt as if their heads were about to explode!
For one instant, the Britannia Stadium fell deathly silent!
Then the three thousand away supporters in the stands erupted into deafening cheers!
They were excited, thrilled, even mad with joy!
Villa threw his arms wide and slid on his knees in front of the away fans. After getting up, he walked to the stands, where the crazed Swans supporters rushed forward to hug him and kiss him, wishing they could lift him into the heavens and adore him for the rest of their lives!
Swansea's players joined this grand, wild celebration!
On the touchline, Lynn took off his suit jacket and casually tossed it back onto his seat in the dugout. He smiled, loosened his tie, then raised his head with immense pride!
Steve Cotterill's hatred surged to the sky. He kept roaring toward the pitch, telling his players to wake up, while repeatedly tapping the watch on his wrist.
He was probably reminding the players: we still have time! Don't fucking give up so easily!
"Super Villa! Super Villa! He destroyed Stoke City's entire defensive line by himself!
"OMG! How can he be that fast? He was like a bolt of lightning slicing through Stoke City's defensive area, leaving every opponent far behind him. And the final chipped finish was absolutely brilliant!
"After seven league rounds in the Second Division, Villa has scored his tenth goal!
"He simply cannot be stopped. He has carried the crazy scoring momentum from the Third Division straight into the Second Division!
"Those who questioned whether he could only run wild in the Third Division can shut their mouths now. Villa has more than ten ways to shoot, and he can score with all of them!
"And he can dribble too. He is too strong!
"Swansea have scored three straight goals in the second half, giving us a stunning comeback here at the Britannia Stadium!"
Stoke City's players truly threw everything away.
After the match restarted, their fouls became even heavier. They constantly crashed into Swansea's players. In the 83rd minute, Cromwell was injured after being knocked down in a clash with Eustace!
On the touchline, Lynn almost went mad as he roared at Clattenburg, "Fuck the referee! Write what I said into the match report! The referee is shit!"
Clattenburg was helpless too. He could only keep trying to calm Lynn down, but Lynn did not accept it in the slightest.
In truth, Cromwell's injury had two causes. On one hand, the opponent's physical challenges were rough. On the other, by this point, Cromwell's stamina had already been completely drained, which made him far more vulnerable to injury.
Lynn used Poulsen to replace Cromwell.
The young Swansea captain going off injured enraged Swansea.
In one wave of furious attacking pressure, Swansea's move finally ended when Grosso's long-range shot from outside the box was held by Cutler.
Stoke City immediately launched a counterattack.
Full-back Marcus Hall dribbled past the halfway line, taking advantage of the emptiness in Swansea's back line. He completed a wall pass with Hoekstra, then drove to the byline and crossed.
Glendor came out and went to ground, blocking the ball away.
But Eustace, arriving from deep, followed up and sent the rebound into the empty net!
Swansea's emotions had been affected by Cromwell's injury.
Lynn also found it difficult to control his own emotions on the touchline. The match itself was already enough to make blood surge, and the closer it got to the end, the more tense it became.
After scoring, Eustace ran off to celebrate.
Steve Cotterill's expression improved somewhat.
No matter what, coming back from 2–3 down to equalize was not an unacceptable result.
"Stoke City have equalized! OMG, the two teams are giving us a goal-fest. Will this end in a draw?"
At this moment, the clock on the scoreboard had already reached the 89th minute.
Even with stoppage time, there should not be more than five minutes left.
On the touchline, Lynn made a downward pressing gesture with both hands, signaling for the players to stay calm.
They had completed the comeback in a short time, only to be equalized again. The explosive physical duels and the emotional impact of a player injury had definitely played a part.
Steve Cotterill was also warning the Stoke City players that they absolutely had to defend well in the final moments.
After being equalized, Swansea's players instantly calmed down. Although there was not much time left, they still played steadily.
After continuously organizing attacks and repeatedly using winger attacks to make Stoke City's defensive line tremble with fear, Swansea launched one final attack in the last minute of stoppage time, catching Stoke City completely off guard.
Hanno Balitsch suddenly pushed forward from the right. On the right side of the front line, he powerfully swept the ball across toward the area in front of the box.
Charisteas dropped back once again to receive it. After controlling the ball, he passed it sideways toward the left.
Villa immediately moved inward and cut inside. This was the attacking pattern Swansea had used the most in the second half.
The central midfield and the central forward position had both been creating scoring opportunities for the two wingers.
And that caused Stoke City's defenders to make a major mistake at the final moment!
They "habitually" went to block Villa and Badenberg, but ignored Charisteas!
Because the Greek had not seemed like a threat to goal in the second half. He had mostly been playing the role of a connector, building bridges and creating chances for his teammates.
So when Charisteas turned and charged into the penalty area after making the pass, none of Stoke City's center-backs immediately stepped out to stop him. By the time Villa slipped a diagonal pass into the Greek's running path inside the box, Stoke City's defenders were horrified.
Too late!
After beautifully beating the offside trap, Charisteas controlled the ball, nudged it forward, and shot!
The movements flowed together in one smooth sequence!
Goalkeeper Cutler's save was useless.
Charisteas drove the ball cleanly into the bottom-left corner!
Crisp and decisive!
Like a single fatal cut, it left every Stoke City player frozen like a wooden statue, as if their souls had been ripped from their bodies and their spirits had already died!
Other than Ibrahimović, who sat on the bench staring blankly into space, every Swansea player went mad, whether on the pitch or among the substitutes.
As Charisteas rushed toward the away fans' stand, Lynn and all the substitutes sprinted there as well!
Last-minute winner!
Last-minute winner!
The Swans had slain Sky City at the death!
Above the Britannia Stadium, the Sky City collapsed in an instant!