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[2021-04-05, 19:45 | BayArena, Leverkusen | Champions League Quarter-Final 1st leg | Leverkusen 1 v 1 Dortmund]
Sancho didn’t take him on and had already cut the ball back to the edge of the box. Bellingham arrived, like a force of nature, completely unguarded and struck it for the first ti with his right foot. The ball cannoned off his foot like a Napoleonic field cannon rising toward the top right corner.
Reacting on pure instinct, Hradecky flew through the air, body fully stretched, barely getting fingertips to it. It was enough to tip it over the bar, earning a sigh of relief from the ho side.
"LUKAS HRADECKY!" Drury roared. "What a save! Jude Bellingham thought he had his first Champions League knockout goal! The Finnish international denies him!"
"Incredible save, but the Leverkusen number one looks far from happy," Beglin observed as Hradecky can be seen giving his teammates a talking to as they set up for the corner. "Can you bla him, though? Sancho carved up that flank far too easily, and Jude practically had a free pop at the goal."
"Speaking of the Euros coming up in June, England has an embarrassnt of riches in that position. Southgate could field Bellingham, Mount, Foden, Henderson—the list goes on. But this young man is making it impossible to ignore him." Drury analysed as Reus set up the corner. "Though he will want to lock down Bellingham after having a talent of Jamal Musiala slip through his grasp early this February."
[42’]
The corner was delivered by Reus, curling dangerously into the six-yard box. Haaland attacked it with power, rising above both Tah and Tapsoba. His header was goal-bound, but Hradecky positioned himself perfectly, catching it cleanly despite the power behind it.
The Finnish keeper didn’t drop to the ground but instead raced to the edge of the box, imdiately launching a counter. He threw the ball out wide to Frimpong on the right. The Dutch fullback controlled it, then drove forward with abandon, his pace causing problems for the retreating Guerreiro. He drove all the way into the final third before exchanging a quick one-two with Diaby to escape Brandt’s press, from behind.
Without hesitation, he whipped in a cross toward the penalty spot. Wirtz had managed to get into space between Can and Bellingham, timing his run perfectly. He rose, getting his head to it, but Hitz reacted brilliantly—diving to his right, palming it away. The rebound fell to Rakim on the left side of the box.
He struck it first-ti with his right foot, but Humls threw himself in the way, blocking it with his leg. "What defending from Mats Humls!" Beglin exclaid. "Experience personified! He read that danger instantly!"
[45’]
The fourth official raised his board, signalling two minutes of added ti. Both sides seed to reach an agreent, and the pace suddenly dropped. Possession football was played with neither side risking an attack that could leave them open to a counterattack.
Dortmund worked the ball patiently from the back, Humls stepping forward with it. He played it wide to unier, who drove forward trying to find Sancho, but quickly turned back as Rakim closed him down—not risking anything, he sent a weighted pass back to Hitz, not leaving room for the winger to chase a sloppy pass.
The Swiss keeper took a calm touch, slowly scanning the field before blasting the ball forward as Schick closed him down. Before the ball fell, the referee checked his watch and loudly blew his whistle.
(FWEEET! FWEEET!)
[HT: Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1-1 Borussia Dortmund]
"What a first half!" Drury announced, his voice still buzzing with excitent. "One-one, and it could easily be four-four! Both sides are playing end-to-end football, both goalkeepers are making crucial saves, and the quality on display has been exceptional!"
"Absolutely riveting, Peter," Beglin agreed. "When you look at the talent on this pitch—Haaland, Sancho, Bellingham for Dortmund; Rakim Rex, Wirtz, Schick for Leverkusen—these are players who will define the next decade of European football. And with the Euros just two months away, national team managers across the continent will be taking notes."
~~~
[Leverkusen Dressing Room | BayArena]
Bosz stood before his players, marker in hand, his expression serious as he waited for them to settle. The whiteboard behind him showed Dortmund’s shape, arrows indicating their attacking patterns.
"Good football," Bosz began, his tone asured. "But we’re giving them too much space in transition. When we lose the ball, we need to press imdiately—don’t let Bellingham turn, don’t let Reus find Haaland in behind."
He pointed at Tah and Tapsoba. "You two have been excellent, but Haaland only needed one chance to score. So stay tight, communicate, and shut him down early."
He turned to the attacking players. "Keep doing what you’re doing. Create overloads in these areas." He instructed drawing circles in the flanks of the final third. "Exploit the space behind their fullbacks. Rakim, Moussa—you’re causing them problems every ti you get the ball. Keep attacking."
"My holding midfielders step up to the edge of the final third when we attack, providing an outlet option." He drew two lines indicating the movents of the two CDMs just at the edge of the final third. "Don’t force an attack if it’s not there, recycle possession and try again."
For the next ten minutes, he continued to give instructions to his players. He and his assistant, Fredrick Bauer, analysed the movents of the key opposing players and ca up with ways to respond. The players paid rapt attention to all the information, doing what they had to on the side.
"Forty-five minutes," Bosz said, clapping his hands together. "Forty-five minutes between us and a massive advantage for the second leg. Let’s go out there and take it."
~~~
*(FWEEET!)*
[45’]
Leverkusen kicked off the second half, calmly working the ball backwards amid a wave of yellow. Wirtz received it and imdiately played it wide to Wendell before Halaand could close him down.
The Brazilian held the ball for a mont, letting Sancho get close before laying it off to Tah centrally. The German defender did not dilly-dally, sending a first-ti pass to Amiri. The midfielder turned away from Reus and Can, flicking the ball wide to Rakim at the sideline.
The winger didn’t receive the ball; instead, he flicked it forward into the space ahead just in ti to dodge the lunging unier. Exploding forward, he reached the dropping ball before Can and used a quick Lacorqueta to slip by him. Not doing much more, he laid the ball off to Charles, and the holding midfielder sprayed it wide to the right.
Like that, they continued to manage the ball, playing keep-away with it, not letting the visitors get a touch. This lasted for three full minutes as the ho side simply maintained possession without looking to attack. Their calm ga managent took the wind out of the visitors, who looked to win the ball back quickly.
In the 48th, Wirtz called for the ball at the edge of the final third and received the ball from Amiri on the turn. Unlike before, when he would distribute the ball, the young playmaker exploded forward, gliding past Reuse. He sent an outlet pass towards the right side of the box, and found Diaby piercing the box at an angle.
The French winger controlled it with his first touch, his pace taking him past Guerreiro’s desperate lunge. He cut inside sharply, drawing Akanji across, but fired before the defender could close him down. He sent a low skimr toward the near post, forcing Hitz to drop low, sohow managing to get a strong hand to it, pushing it wide for a corner.
"Moussa Diaby!" Drury exclaid. "So close to doubling Leverkusen’s lead! Marwin Hitz keeps Dortmund in this tie!"
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To Be Continued...
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