Chapter 249: Return to the Starting Line-up I

After departing from Coach Johansen's office, Zachary immediately trekked to the locker room to change his sneakers before heading to the gym for the fitness session.

He walked at a moderate pace, occasionally slowing down to look at the posters lined up on the walls of the brightly lit hallways of Lerkendal Stadium.

The posters were pleasing to the eye and gave the stadium's hallways a uniquely majestic feel. They mostly depicted past Rosenborg squads that had managed to win accolades. A few portrayed retired Rosenborg legends that put up incredible performances during their time on the team. Just by looking at them, one could envision the glorious history and past grandeur of Rosenborg. The only blemish was that the radiance didn't include any European accomplishments.

Nonetheless, Zachary always enjoyed gazing at them. He'd often wondered if he would get the chance to have his poster on the walls of Lerkendal Stadium as well.

He was confident in his skills — but he knew he could only spend a few years of his football career at Rosenborg. He planned on spending two or three years in Norway before moving on to greener pastures. He wasn't that self-assured that he could match the achievements of the other Rosenborg legends and have his poster plastered on the walls in such a short time frame. It looked even more unlikely after he'd taken two whole months off to recover from an injury.

'I can only start slow and try to do my best for the remainder of the season,' Zachary resolved. 'As long as I perform well during this week's training, I'll be able to make the squad for the Sunday game against Viking Stavanger. That should be the beginning of my comeback.'

Zachary quickened his pace after taking a glance at Coach Nils Arne Eggen's portrait. In a matter of minutes, he arrived in the locker room. He'd assumed it would be empty since all the players were supposedly in the gym, attending Coach Rolf Aas' morning fitness session. But to his surprise, he found Mikael Dorsin, the Rosenborg assistant captain, changing his attire right beside his locker.

"Hoho!" the assistant captain said, clicking his tongue on seeing Zachary. "Welcome back. We missed you here. How are you?" He stepped forward and gave Zachary a bear hug.

"I'm okay, Mikael," Zachary replied, accepting the hug. "And you? How are you doing?"

"I'm fine," Mikael replied, smiling and stepping away from Zachary. "It's nice to see you again. Is your injury finally healed? And have you managed to regain full fitness?"

"Yes. The doctors cleared me to return to training this morning. I'm as fit as a fiddle."

"That's awesome," Mikael said, settling on one of the benches in the locker room. "Your return will certainly boost our morale when we face off against Viking Stavanger on the weekend. If we win or draw that game, we'll be champions. So, if you had delayed your return by even a week, you would have missed out on the victory celebrations."

"I can see that you're confident," Zachary said, also settling on one of the benches and starting to change out of his sneakers. "But then you should be since we're the best team in Norway. Although Viking Stavanger is a tricky side, we'll still win by a wide margin as long as we play at our best as a team. How is the team's morale at the moment?"

"The morale is a bit on the low side," Mikael replied, shaking his head. "We lost to Molde last Saturday and also faced defeat while playing against IF Elfsborg during the previous Thursday's Europa League fixture. Most of the players on the team have been in low spirits because of those two consecutive defeats. I was even worried we might fail to win the weekend game against Viking Stavanger. But since you're back, I'm relieved. With you on the team, there's no way we can lose to a side like Viking Stavanger."

"Don't count on me too much," Zachary said hurriedly, shaking his head. "I have been out of action for two whole months. I'll try my best in training and the upcoming games for sure. But I'm just not that confident I'll regain my previous form immediately."

Although Zachary wasn't sure he would return to his peak state right after his two-month injury, he still had high hopes for Rosenborg's upcoming games. As long as he managed to make the starting line-up, he was sure he would impact the results, even when not at his best. That was because his game didn't just depend on dribbling and sprinting through opponents. He was also a Maestro — good at passing, unleashing long shots, and taking free-kicks.

Zachary had trained his passing and free-kick techniques in the G.O.A.T Skills Simulator during his two-month recovery period relentlessly. As a result, the mental aspect of his game was sharper than ever. He was confident he could still unleash tricky passes behind the defense and score free kicks whenever he got the opportunity in a competitive game.

As long as the opponents relaxed and gave him some breathing space on the playing field, he would punish them. Even in critical moments, he was sure he would be able to take an entire defense out of the equation with a single defense-splitting pass. Moreover, if defenders dared to commit any fouls close to their eighteen-yard box, he would still manage to discipline them with his set-piece technique.

"All that matters is that you try your best," Mikael said, flashing Zachary a smile. "But remember not to force your way back into the game. Instead, you should ease back into training slowly until you feel comfortable and confident whenever you're facing an opponent with the ball."

"That's what I plan to do," Zachary replied, starting to pull on his stockings. "Thanks for the advice. But why are you here and not with the rest in the gym? Do you plan on dodging Coach Rolf Aas' fitness session?"

Mikael smiled on hearing that. "I received a knock to my ankle during the game against Molde on Saturday. So, I had to pass by the hospital first — to have it checked out. That's why I'm late for training."

"Is everything okay, then?" Zachary inquired hurriedly. "Don't tell me that you're also injured, now."

"There's no need to worry about me," Mikael replied, tone nonchalant. "It's not a big deal. The doctors have assured me it's just a bruise. It'll heal in one or two days at most."

"That's a relief," Zachary said, letting out a breath. "We wouldn't want to lose you at this critical point late in the season. We still have two more matches in the Tippeligaen. Then, we have to play the Norwegian Cup finals, plus the three remaining Europa League group stage games. We can't afford to lose any player right now."

Mikael chuckled on hearing that. "I'm not going anywhere. But that reminds me about our Europa League campaign. I always get depressed just by thinking about our performances in the opening three games of the tournament. We couldn't even manage a single draw in all the games! We were truly miserable." He sighed audibly.

"But we still have a chance to qualify," Zachary said, also sighing. "As long as we win our remaining three games, we'll have a good chance to qualify for the knock-out stages. We have to come back with a bang — by defeating Red Bull Salzburg, the table leaders, on November 7th. As long as we win that game, we'll have the necessary momentum to thrash the rest of the group."

"That's a lofty goal, and I like it for sure," Mikael said, sighing. "But you have to remember that Red Bull Salzburg is quite the powerhouse in the Europa League. Moreover, we're playing away in Austria. That game will be a very tough battle for us."

"That doesn't matter," Zachary replied, tone emphatic. "As long as we don't give up and try our best, we have a good chance of winning. We must play that game like it's a final. We can't afford to lose."

Zachary would face a penalty from the system if Rosenborg failed to qualify for the knock-out stages of the Europa League. He would have to pay a total sum of 120,000 Juju points if he couldn't accomplish any milestone in the system's 2013/14 Europa League Serial Mission. It was one hell of a system penalty that he couldn't afford to incur in the short term — without hindering the smooth progress of his career.

He had already failed to complete the first milestone of playing at least 80% of Rosenborg's Europa League fixtures. He could only set his sights on the second milestone — which necessitated him to help his team qualify for the knock-out stages. That was the only way for him to escape the penalty.

"Let's not set our sights at those far-off lofty goals for the moment," Mikael said, standing up. He'd already finished donning his training attire and seemed ready for the fitness session. "Instead, we should focus on the next Tippeligaen fixture."

"We have to put up our best performance to win against Viking Stavanger next Sunday," the assistant captain continued. "We'll become the 2013 champions if we can win or at the very least acquire a draw in that game. After that, we'll have gained all the momentum to face off against Red Bull Salzburg. Moreover, our schedule will free up considerably since we won't have to table our main squad during the last game of the season against Lillestrøm. So, we'll have all the time to prepare for the other two remaining Europa League group games without any interruptions."

"You're right," Zachary concurred, also standing up. He'd also finished donning his gym attire and switching his sneakers. "It all starts with us winning the Sunday game and becoming the 2013 Norwegian champions. Otherwise, we won't have the necessary capital to challenge Red Bull Salzburg or Standard Liège."

"I'm glad you understand," Mikael said, patting his shoulder. "And I'm also glad that you're back, Zachary. We have missed your contributions to the team."

"Thanks, Mikael," Zachary said, grinning. "We should probably head to the gym now. Otherwise, we might have to face Coach Rolf Aas' wrath if we delay any longer."

"Okay," Mikael said, placing his bag in his locker. "Let's go do some gym work."