Chapter 608 Relentless Chasing of the Game

Coach Allegri's expression was somber as he welcomed his players into the dressing room for the halftime break. He understood he had to straighten his players' attitudes towards the game or risk shamefully losing the final.

He quickly started his pep talk and requested his players to work harder off the ball during the second half. He also encouraged them not to give up the game and urged them to continue fighting with all they had, emphasizing that goal-scoring chances would eventually come if they maintained their fighting spirit.

Finally, the coach narrowed his eyes and started announcing the changes for the second half.

"Vidal and Morata," the coach said. "You will give way to Andrea Pirlo and Kingsley Coman during the second half. With them on the pitch, we'll switch to a 4-4-1-1 formation."

"Pirlo and Marchisio will play as typical central midfielders occupying the center of the field. Zachary will be our attacking midfielder with the additional role of boosting Tevez on striking. As for Roberto Pereyra and Kingsley Coman, they will play as our wingers during the second half."

"The strategy is still the counterattack," the coach continued. "We defend and tirelessly work off the ball. We ensure we don't concede another goal until a chance avails itself. If we get the counterattacking opportunity, we play neat football and advance the ball through the wings or the middle, depending on the available space on the field."

"Pirlo, we'll require your expertise for this strategy to work." The coach turned to glance at the silent Maestro. "Whenever there's a chance to counterattack, you must quickly use long balls to find Coman, Pereyra, or Zachary up the pitch. That will allow us to skip over Barcelona's midfield and quickly threaten their defense after a turnover."

"I understand, coach," Pirlo gave his word.

The coach nodded and glanced at his watch. He then said a few more words to boost his players' morale before sending them back to the pitch for the second half.

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The referee blew the whistle after the two Juventus substitutes stepped on the pitch. On cue, the second half of the UEFA Champions League commenced with Barcelona's kick-off amid the thunderous cheers within the Olympiastadion.

The Barcelona players immediately resumed their typical tactics. They started passing the ball among themselves with short and intricate passes.

Pa!

The sound of the ball meeting a boot reverberated as Andrea Pirlo deftly controlled the ball. The Maestro then took another touch while scanning the field before doing what he did best.

He smashed the ball with a downward swing of his boot and unleashed a diagonal pass over the midfield. He skillfully took the opposing midfielders out of the equation by finding Kingsley Coman with a single long pass into the left wing.

Whoosh!

Kingsley Coman was like a whirlwind as he raced forward and connected with Andrea Pirlo's pin-point pass.

The counter was on, and the winger relied on his fresh legs to drive into the space left by Dani Alves on the left wing with all the pace he could muster. He soon stepped into the final third before squaring the ball to find Zachary in the middle.

Zachary, on his part, rushed away from Javier Mascherano, the defender harassing him, before connecting with the pass from Kingsley. He calmly collected the ball before playing an immediate diagonal pass to the right side of the box on the half-turn. He was hoping to find Roberto Pereyra, the other Juventus winger.

Roberto Pereyra didn't disappoint since he had already made a timely run from the right wing toward Barcelona's box. He calmly connected with the pass from Zachary and drove into the box with his pace. He then waited and waited to draw in the defenders before calmly squaring the ball toward the box, where Carlos Tevez was arriving.

It was a rare chance, and Carlos Tevez ensured that it counted. The Argentine pounced forward and skipped past Gerard Piqué with his pace before calmly guiding the ball into the back of the net with a simple tap. He relied on the ball's initial momentum to expertly squeeze it past the Barcelona keeper and score Juventus 2nd goal on the night during the 53rd minute.

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Juventus FC 2 : FC Barcelona 3

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The cheers of the Juventus fans hit a crescendo as the info on the stadium's jumbotron refreshed to indicate the fresh score. The Old Lady faithful were beyond themselves with joy as their team was almost completing a seemingly impossible comeback. They were all smiles and expectant to see their team score a third goal.

As for Tevez, the latest goal-scorer, he was brimming with boundless fighting spirit. He didn't waste time celebrating but quickly snatched the ball from the keeper before sprinting across the pitch and placing it atop the center spot. He, too, was like Zachary and only yearned for his team to win the Champions League final.