Chapter 161: Against Hønefoss Ballklubb

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle at exactly 7:00 PM, and the match commenced immediately.

Coach Johansen's face was all smiles as his players managed to dominate the game, starting from the very first minute. Even the fact that they were playing at an away ground seemed not to matter to them as they dictated the tempo on the playing field.

They were totally tearing the Hönefoss formation apart with their passing on multiple occasions. Whether it was the three forwards, the three midfielders, or the four defenders—they all played as if their lives depended on the game.

In particular, Nicki Nielsen, Rosenborg's center-forward, was on fire. In the 31st minute, he tore through the Hönefoss defense like a knife through butter and unleashed a right-footed shot to score Rosenborg's first goal of the day.

Coach Johansen could hardly contain his glee as he celebrated the goal. He felt like the squad was finally shaping up under his guidance. Even the bench players on the Rosenborg squad at that moment could rise to the occasion given a chance to start in an official game. He felt he could go places and win many trophies with such a team. His hopes had already soared.

After the goal, the Rosenborg players gained more momentum. They played creative flawless one-touch or two-touch football and managed to push back all the Hönefoss players into their own half. Whenever they lacked options in the middle, they would switch to using wing play and delivering crosses into Hönefoss' box to create scoring chances.

For the next few minutes, the Hönefoss keeper made a couple of incredible saves, and several shots smashed off the goalposts as Rosenborg continued to apply more pressure on their opponents.

Nevertheless, the score remained 1:0 until the 43rd minute when Tarik Elyounoussi, Rosenborg's left-forward, latched on to Ole Selnæs's defense-splitting pass close to the 18-yard box of Hönefoss. Without any hesitation, he fired home with his left foot from around the left corner of the box and scored Rosenborg's second goal just before half-time.

At the Aka Arena, it was all Rosenborg for the moment.

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Zachary followed the proceedings on the pitch from the bench within the visiting team's technical area. He thought Rosenborg would win the game for sure since his teammates on the pitch had been bullying the Hönefoss players for the entire 45 minutes of the first half.

But he changed his view as soon as the second half started.

Team Hönefoss was like an entirely different side after half-time. The players in green and white managed to turn the pressure on Rosenborg by using the long and high ball strategy. They used wing play and high balls to deliver balls to their two forwards until they managed to score in the 50th minute, just five minutes after the start of the second half.

Riku Riski, one of the two forwards in Hönefoss' 4-4-2 formation, was the man that managed to convert and reduce Rosenborg's lead. Zachary could only sigh as the game that'd seemed like a sure win for Rosenborg before half-time had turned into another tough fixture.

For the next twenty minutes, the Rosenborg players struggled to hold possession. Even worse, they failed to get shots on target as they'd done during the first half. They seemed to have left all their skillful ball-handling and creativity in the dressing room at half-time. Zachary could hardly believe what he was witnessing on the pitch. But since he was on the bench, there was nothing much he could do to change the game situation. He could only hope that the coach would be quick to react before Rosenborg conceded an equalizer.

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Hönefoss continued giving Rosenborg a hard time until the unfavorable game situation forced Coach Johansen to call for two substitutions in the 75th minute. He substituted in Zachary for Mix Diskerud, the Rosenborg defensive midfielder, and Tobias Mikkelsen for Borek Dockal on the right flank.

Coach Johansen noticed the change immediately after making the two substitutions. He let out a pent-up breath as Rosenborg managed to stabilize the game once again within a short while.

Zachary played like usual and managed to settle in his new defensive midfield role within a minute after entering the game. He won several aerial and ground duels by relying on his tall physique, thereby sealing off team Hönefoss' long-range ball strategy. After that, he began unleashing passes left and right—into the wings like a true Maestro. That way, Rosenborg started dictating the tempo for the first time during the second half.

Coach Johansen could only sigh at Zachary's on-pitch tactical ability and game awareness, especially in the midfield. Even in a relatively newer position, he could still play like usual and outsmart opponents much more experienced than him. Coach Johansen was quite thankful to have such a phenomenal player on his squad. But at the same time, he felt gratified. He wondered how Rosenborg would manage to keep such a talent with such uncanny consistency.

In the 88th minute, Zachary intercepted another one of the Hönefoss long-range passes deep in Rosenborg's half. He chested the ball to the ground and skipped past an opponent with a deft second touch. Before the opposing midfielder could react, he unleashed one of his signature defense-splitting through-passes towards the right-wing where Tobias Mikkelsen was lurking.

Tobias latched on to Zachary's incredible pass before dashing past a few opponents with his astonishing pace. The right-forward raced along the touchline like the wind and soon stepped into the final third. In some miraculous way, he cut into the pitch, slalomed his way past a couple of more opposing defenders—and soon was one-on-one with the keeper. Tobias had managed to create Rosenborg's best chance during the entire second half by just relying on his incredible pace.

For a second or two, silence fell across the Aka Arena. The Hönefoss home fans believed that the Rosenborg right forward would surely convert the goal. But a moment later, they started jubilating once again as the Hönefoss keeper managed to save Tobias' effort with an outstretched foot.

Coach Johansen couldn't accept the situation. He couldn't believe how a professional forward could miss such a chance after dribbling through the whole defense. He shook his head and made a mental note to include shooting drills on the weekly training menu of all his forwards and midfielders.

*FWEEEEEEE*

The referee blew the whistle and pointed to the corner flag.

Mikael Dorsin, the Rosenborg left-back, took the corner-kick and floated a teasing ball into the crowded box. Tore Reginiussen, the Rosenborg captain, out-jumped the rest of the players and connected with the corner ball to plant a header towards the goal from around the penalty spot.

But once again, the keeper jumped high and shoved the ball away from his goal. As luck would have it, the ball moved straight towards Zachary, who'd positioned himself close to one of the goalposts. Coach Johansen felt his heart start to race as he realized it was yet another clear goal-scoring chance. There wasn't a single player between Zachary and the open goal.

"What!?" Coach Johansen yelled after a moment. He couldn't believe what he'd witnessed on the pitch once more.

Zachary had just failed to direct the ball into the back of the net with his head—even when there was no opposing player to defend the goal. The coach shook his head once again and could only sigh with regret after the ball sailed past the left goalpost by mere centimeters. His players seemed to be having a spell of bad luck in the final minutes of the game. They'd failed to convert two clear chances into goals within a span of two minutes.

However, they managed to hold on to their narrow 2:1 lead until the final whistle. Coach Johansen's mood lightened as the victory had lifted his team to 19 points and sealed their position as second on the Tipeligaen table. Strømsgodset IF was only ahead of them in the first position due to a superior goal difference.

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