837 The Crucial Goal

Once the second half started, things played out as Twain had predicted during the halftime interval. Arsenal tried a push from Pepe's position, wanting to see if Pepe had regained his focus.

The players of Arsenal weren't the only ones who had noticed the blip in Pepe's performance. It was also an issue that the live television commentator was concerned about.

"Tony Twain did not replace Pepe on the field. Pepe, who clashed with Akinfeev in the first half, is still in play. And it looks like his anger hasn't dissipated. I really don't understand... Why has Tony Twain, who has always been known for his strict discipline, not responded to such a serious conflict? And if they managed to settle the dispute during the halftime interval, then why does Pepe still look so angry? He never communicates with the goalkeeper. As for Akinfeev... When he directs the game, he calls the names of Bale, Rafinha, and Woodgate, but he doesn't even look at Pepe. That's not a good sign."

The commentator remained perplexed despite much thought. The Arsenal players couldn't care less. All they knew was that there were gaps in the Nottingham Forest defense.

Everyone still remembered how, just before the end of the first half, Arsenal surrounded the Forest team's goal. Pepe was simply too distracted to play during the last few minutes. If it wasn't for Wood filling the position in time and Akinfeev still doing his job conscientiously, Arsenal would have brought a score of 2:0 to the locker room at the end of the first half.

Now, after a fifteen-minute break, it looked like the conflict between Pepe and Akinfeev remained unresolved, which was good news for the Arsenal players.

Wenger thought the same. He stood on the sidelines and signaled his players to continue attacking. A score of 1:0 was not very secure. He needed to score another goal.

Fàbregas controlled the ball in the midfield as Wood came for him with a fierce tackle. He had to get the ball out as soon as possible. Against an opponent like Wood, it would be dangerous to let the ball stay at his feet for more than a second.

Wood pressed hard, but Fàbregas had a plan this time. When Wood pressed him originally, he had been forced to deal with Wood while also looking for a target and route to pass the ball. Having to multitask, he had easily lost the ball at his feet.

Now he did not have to think about where to pass the ball. He knew Pepe's position and so did his teammates. He just had to pass the ball there...

Fàbregas immediately kicked the ball into Pepe's defense zone.

Pepe's test had arrived.

How could he perform poorly enough to deceive Arsenal without causing real trouble for Akinfeev behind him?

He slightly stumbled and was a step late. Vela rushed ahead of him and grabbed the ball. It looked like Pepe's form still hadn't recovered.

But just as Vela was about to go around inward, he was entangled by a stronger and more powerful body. Pepe had moved fast to catch up and push Vela. He could not use too much force. He had to make Vela think his defensive rhythm was chaotic, so his strides alternated between hard and soft. He disrupted Vela so much that the opposing player was forced to pass the ball when he saw his own position veering off. He passed behind him, and Walcott appeared where Pepe should have been. He shot immediately!

Akinfeev had already jumped to make the save, but someone's leg flew up to stop the ball before it could get to him.

It was Wood who saved the day. After he saw Pepe follow Vela, he moved to cover the gap left by Pepe because he knew that Arsenal would attack from there.

Twain heaved a sigh of relief. He was obviously very nervous.

"This plan is really risky..." Kerslake smacked his lips next to him. His entire body was tense.

"Heh heh," Twain chuckled. "Taking risks comes with great rewards."

Seeing that the team's goal was temporarily out of danger, Kerslake relaxed enough to ask a question. He had been impressed by Twain's performance in the locker room. "Hey, Tony, how did you come up with that idea to motivate the team?"

Twain was focused on the game and did not quite understand. "What?"

"First you deliberately put them down, and then you stirred up their fighting spirit... That was an incredible move!"

Twain turned to look at Kerslake, the game's excitement still written on his face. He looked amused and said, "I meant what I said."

"What?" This time it was Kerslake who did not understand.

"You think I said that deliberately to motivate them?" Seeing Kerslake's confused nod, Twain grinned. "I was telling the truth. I really wanted my team to give up. The pressure was so great that it had caused my own guys to clash during the game. I couldn't pretend that it hadn't happened. If the pressure was bad for the team, I didn't want them to keep going. Their response was beyond my expectations, though, so I changed my mind at the last minute."

"But it seemed like you had a card up your sleeve. It was as if you planned for everything..." Kerslake mumbled.

"Of course, I can't let you see through me at a glance. And as a manager, why would I let them think that I really wanted to give up? That would be a harsh blow to their morale. So, I had to let you think that it was all part of the plan. Look, you were deceived, weren't you? If the players also thought it was all some grand scheme, then we turned a bad thing into a good thing," Twain said with a shrug. Kerslake wanted to punch Twain; he had deceived everyone.

"Why are you telling me this now?"

"They can't hear us anyway," Twain said, nodding at the players on the field.

Even if the Forest players on the pitch had been within earshot, they were too focused on the game to listen. They were thinking about how to score one goal and score another goal to win the game.

Arsenal's corner kick did not pose any threat to the Forest team's goal. The ball was headed out by Wood before it even got near the goal.

As he talked to Kerslake, Twain realized that it wouldn't look good if he continued sitting comfortably in the technical area. If he really wanted people to believe that he was unhappy with Pepe's performance, he should get up from his seat and pace anxiously back and forth. He could even shout from the sidelines occasionally. After all, as far as anyone else knew, his team was in a perilous situation.

He left the technical area and walked to the sidelines to shout toward the field, "Fight back, fight back!"

He was really worried that the players would forget to fight back.

Nottingham Forest had to cherish every attacking opportunity because they wouldn't get many.

After Wood headed the ball out, it was Sagna who got the ball on the sideline when he came up to assist in the offense. He was going to pass the ball, but he quickly became entangled with Fernández and could not disengage himself. Then Wood rushed up and converged with Fernández front and back to intercept the ball!

It was the chance that Nottingham Forest had been waiting for!

After Wood intercepted the ball, he looked up. Instead of following up with a long pass to send the ball forward, he feinted and dribbled the ball along the sideline.

Sagna rushed back to defend, intending to cut Wood off midway. Just as he was about to catch up to Wood, Wood braked and turned around to pass the ball to Gago, who had already plugged in.

At the same time, Fernández, who had just been entangled with Sagna near the end line, as well as Bentley on the other side, plus Şahin and Ibišević who defended against the corner kick in front of the goal, all rushed up. When Arsenal finally responded, the Forest players had already crossed the centerline.

"Return to defend!" Fàbregas shouted to his teammates.

"This is Nottingham Forest's chance to counterattack! It's rare to see such a scene in this game!"

Fàbregas was the first to rush up after Gago got the ball in the middle. The best defense was to end Forest's offense now!

Gago did not go directly head to head against Fàbregas. He sent the ball back to Wood. Rather than stopping the ball, Wood diverted the ball to the side. It was received by Bale, who plugged ahead and dribbled the ball along the side as he dashed forward!

Nottingham Forest's attack was as fast as Arsenal's, but they were more direct than Arsenal. If Arsenal's attack was like a classical symphony, then Nottingham Forest was more like rock 'n' roll.

Arsenal's attack had earned a standing ovation from the neutral fans, while the Forest attack made their supporters jump out of their seats, waving their arms high and shouting.

Bale dribbled the ball along the sideline, and Arsenal's defensive center of gravity tilted toward his side. Rather than trying to break through, he passed the ball to Wood.

Wood then moved sideways to pass to Gago.

Meanwhile, Fernández and Bentley suddenly retreated to the flanks from the sideline, leading Arsenal's defenders to follow suit and adjust.

It was a tiny window of opportunity. Gago saw a gap between the two sides through which he could pass the ball. He did not hesitate to send the ball to the right.

The Arsenal full back retreated to the flank as he followed Bentley. The side was temporarily empty, and Rafinha took advantage of the move to receive the ball.

"Rafinha is completely unguarded! Arsenal has made a mistake!" the commentator exclaimed.

Clichy slipped past Bentley to run to the sideline to defend against Rafinha. The flank was handed to Walcott who returned to defend.

The Forest team's attack was quick, and Arsenal's defense was fast as well. If Rafinha were to force a cross pass, Ibišević wasn't absolutely sure he could have gotten the ball. Then the Forest team's one opportunity to attack would have been wasted. That was not what Twain wanted to see.

So, Rafinha hooked the ball and passed it back.

Gago ran over to help him, and Wood moved to the middle. Şahin cruised in the flank to look for opportunities. Ibišević was at the forefront and tried his best to get the attention of the opponents.

Gago seemed to feel that a forward pass would not be effective. He intended to send it back. That was when he heard Twain growl on the sidelines, "Don't pass it back, Gago! Forward! Forward! Attack!"

Gago could only pass the ball to Wood in front of him. Fàbregas immediately pounced on the ball, trying to tackle Wood's ball under his feet.

But Wood protected the ball, moving it too well for Fàbregas to have a chance at it.

Wood continued to shift the ball.

The ball went to the left side again, and Fernández took the ball in the flank. Bale plugged in from his back at a high speed which attracted Sagna's attention. He pulled back a little, and Fernández suddenly cut inward to enter the penalty area!

Nottingham Forest had been passing the ball back and forth outside, making it look like their pace had slowed down and there was no threat. Now, in a flash, they were showing off their abilities, their faces stretched in grim smiles.

Sagna raced back to defend in a panic, but Fernández gave the ball to Bale on the sideline in time.

Bale did not pass the ball but slipped into the penalty area along the end line!

"A breakthrough! What beautiful coordination!"

Seeing that Bale had broken through, it was suddenly pandemonium in front of Arsenal's goal.

Despite Sendero's interference, Ibišević struggled to squeeze forward and prepared to receive the ball.

Arsenal's defenders also rushed toward Bale, trying to stop him before he passed the ball or fired a shot, hoping to use their bodies to knock the ball out of the end line.

Bale saw through their intentions. He would not be stupid enough to give them that chance. Before the encirclement had fully closed in, he swept the ball to the middle with his left foot!

Ibišević crossed in front of Senderos but didn't take the shot. The goalkeeper, Almunia, took the bait and tried to block the non-existent shot, falling to the ground. None of the other Arsenal defenders touched the ball.

The ball slipped past them, and then Gago rushed up to meet the ball and fired a shot!

Unsurprisingly, the ball flew into Arsenal's empty goal. Almunia was still lying on the ground at this moment.

"Goooal! Nottingham Forest has equalized the score! It's not even ten minutes into the second half! Gago scored his fifth goal of the season! This is the crucial goal!"

Gago was so excited after the goal that he turned to run toward Bale, who had passed the ball to him. The two men hugged each other tightly.

Off the field, Twain also raised and vigorously waved his fists.

They'd finally gotten the goal!

"The goal pulled Nottingham Forest back from the edge of the cliff! They have temporarily avoided failure! With three and a half games left in the race for the league title, this is their strongest opponent. This is also Forest's best chance to close the gap in points! Tony Twain certainly won't allow his team to lose to Arsenal. Even if they face a strong opponent in an away game, he will tell the team that winning is the only option! Now from the looks of it, Gago has done it!"

The Forest players looked so excited after the goal. They flocked to Gago, jostling around him and cheering to their hearts' content.

The commentator wasn't exaggerating. The goal was extremely important for them. The duplicitous tactics Twain had set up during the halftime interval were risky and gave them scarce few opportunities. If the ball hadn't gone in, it would have been impossible to predict how the game would have developed from there. Everyone felt that a great weight had lifted once the goal was scored.

The Arsenal players stood in place, feeling a little helpless. To them, it was just a normal goal concession. But if any of them listened carefully to what the Forest players were roaring about, their hearts might have been a little more uneasy.

The Nottingham Forest players in their yellow away jerseys chanted endlessly:

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