622 Japan vs Colombia IV
Aya, the Japanese keeper, stood between the poles, his gaze following the movement of the two before him. Even though he had faith in his teammate, he couldn't afford to lose his guard. Having faced Luis on multiple occasions, Aya was well aware of the threat he possessed. So, he slumped his and leaned a little forward as he prepared himself for a possible threat. Suddenly, his pupils dilapidated at the sight of Luis breaking past Tomiyasu. In their intense duel, Luis had come out on top. Tomiyasu, however, wasn't done yet. Despite losing the duel, he stretched his hands to grab Luis. Feeling the contact, Luis jerked his body to shake Tomiyasu's grip. Fortunately, Tomiyasu hadn't had the time to tighten his grip. So, he easily managed to shake him off. After shaking off Tomiyasu, Luis began to cut inside. However, before he could position himself, Aya rushed to stop him. Upon seeing Aya rushing to him, Luis's heart shuddered a little, his eyes constricting. For a split second, he bit his lips before lobbing the ball above Aya's reach. Though he managed to keep the ball away from Aya, he couldn't evade the outstretched goalkeeper tackling him. Beep!
The referee sounded the whistle, signaling a foul. Immediately, the stadium turned chaotic as the opposing fans started hauling curses at Aya and the Japanese players. With their eyes reddened in fury, they began to make a fuss about the situation. Meanwhile, Luis lay on the ground, writhing in pain. Grabbing his ankles, he wailed. His expression was filled with pain and his complexion looked slightly pale. 'Was he a diver too?' Aya couldn't help but contemplate while looking at the sight of Luis writhing in pain. He could vividly recall that he hadn't even tipped him. Rather Luis had tipped off him instead. Sure, it could be counted as a foul. But he hadn't tackled him to the extent that would injure him. With a stern gaze, Aya approached Luis, "Hey, are you okay? Should I call the medics?"
Given that they had been awarded a penalty, there wasn't any significance in continuing the riot. However, the opposing players continued to protest. They were demanding a red card from the referee. Finally, after a while, the referee separated the two sides. Then he walked over to Luis who was still writhing in pain, lying on the ground.
Taking a quick glance, the referee signaled for medical assistance. Bead-like sweat trickled down the glabella of the referee as he turned toward Aya. He could audibly hear the cacophonous protest from the crowd. At the same time, he could palpably feel the air getting dense. From what he could tell, the offense by Aya wasn't anything serious. But right now, the pressure from the stand was weighing him down, interfering with his judgment. Today, the Colombian fans greatly outnumbered the Japanese fans. So, the pressure from those enraged Colombian fans was huge compared to the pressure from the Japanese fans. Then he walked to Aya and shoved a yellow card on his face. Aya, upon seeing the yellow card became frenzied. His eyes constricted, his brows furrowing as he began to protest, "Huh? Yellow card? For what offense?"
Again, the stadium was sent into chaos. This time, however, it was the Japanese fans and the Japanese players protesting against the referee. Expressing their dissatisfaction, they fiercely protested against the referee's decision. The referee, however, remained adamant about his decision. Unable to handle the pressure from the Japanese players, the referee again pointed another yellow card, booking another Japanese player. Shogo upon getting booked became even more irritated. However, before he could continue with his protest, Endo emerged on the scene and began to console his teammates. If it weren't for Endo's interference, even more of them would have gotten booked. Luis while being carried away could audibly hear the ongoing chaos on the field. If he hadn't been already feeling some discomfort, he wouldn't be wailing that way. However, even though he knew that Aya was being wronged, he chose to remain silent. After all, Aya hadn't even attempted to foul him. It was he who had messed up the timing because of the sharp stinging pain. After the commotion died down, Luis was substituted. In place of him, a veteran defender entered the field. Just from the substitution alone, it was clear that the opposing side was going to solidify their defense. Nanami, equally agitated by the referee's call stood on the sideline flaring his nostrils. With his arms folded, he glared at the referee with bloodshot eyes. However, he didn't make any fuss about it. After all, he was well aware that they were entirely helpless against the referee's call. And if he made a fuss about the decision, the situation would only get worse. So, he stood firmly on his spot, glaring at the referee, cursing him inwardly without voicing his thoughts. After everything was sorted, James stood before the ball, preparing to take the penalty. Aya exhaled deeply, fixing his gaze at the ball. He was determined to make that save. However, though he managed to predict the direction perfectly, he still failed to save the ball.