Rise of a Football God

(Premier league:)

(Fulham – Brentford)

(Date: 4th November, 2024)

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(Crystal Palace – Fulham)

(Date: 9th November, 2024)

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(Fulham – Wolves)

(Date: 23rd November, 2024)

After Sam's brilliant display against Everton, leading his team as they thrashed their rivals, he took his tally for the season to 9 goals and 8 assists in just 12 games, an incredible tally for any player.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Sam was feeling good and in extension, Fulham was feeling good.

After the Everton game, they had more than a week of rest preparing for their next game. And this time, they took on Brentford at home.

Both teams approached this game with their strongest lineups.

With the likes of Bryan Mbeumo and Lewis-Potter all starting for Brentford, they were a threatening side and Fulham was well prepared to face their threat.

Fulham started with a lineup that had only few changes to their old one, as Reiss Nelson started today.

Due to Fulham's form in the premier league though, wary, Brentford approached this game with a defensive mindset despite also playing the same 4-2-3-1 formation as their rivals.

Against the run of play in the first half, Janelt, the Brentford midfielder stunned Craven Cottage as he scored from a header, sending Brentford up front.

In the 24th minute of this game, the Fulham defense was undone as Brentford started losing.

Familiar patterns seemed to be rearing their heads again but this time, led by Sam, Fulham simply refused to give in to whatever pattern.

They played with their head down and in the game.

The first half ended with them losing 0-1 still to their opponents but after second half started, they seemed to come out of their shells. Coach Marco Silva must have given them a hell of a dressing down in the dressing room.

Brentford defended effectively for a time despite the Fulham pressure, but it was a familiar name that rendered all their efforts null.

Sam explosively cut into the Brentford lines like a god.

Nutmegging players, shoving them aside with his physicality, and then the ever-present elastico to cut through them before exercising his impressive finishing.

From start to finish, it was perfection from the young Fulham midfielder as he singlehandedly dragged his team level in the 65th minute of this game.

Game on!

Both coaches made changes as the game wore on, contrasting offensive and defensive changes as clearly, Brentford was fine with settling for a draw while Fulham wanted nothing less than a victory.

Despite Sam playing in an extraterrestrial level this game, after one of the substitutes was assigned to man-mark him in this second half, his influence waned though he remained a threatening presence in the field.

Brentford's defensive approached worked as even at 90 minutes, the score line remained level but this time, Coach Marco Silva's changes worked wonders.

A super sub became Fulham's savior today.

In the 90th plus 2 minute, Harry Wilson became the savior, lashing into a cross from Emile Smith Rowe to score the winning goal.

But not satisfied with that, in the 90th plus 7 minutes, the super sub struck again with his head again. This time, it was a diving header as he got on the end of another perfect Smith Rowe pass.

Incredibly, after an intense affair all night, Fulham won 3-1.

Emile Smith Rowe won the man of the match award.

…

The next game on 9th November against Crystal Palace in away ground was another perfect example of samba football orchestrated by Sam and Smith Rowe.

In this game, despite playing in away ground, Fulham dominated for large swaths of the game as Sam and Smith Rowe continuously combined to devastating effect, cutting Crystal Palace open again and again.

And with the Fulham defense on top of their game, the Palace attack led by Ismaila Sarr and Juan Mateta was completely shut out.

After a series of one-two passes between Sam and Smith Rowe, methodically working their way through the Palace defense, Emile Smith Rowe finally added the finishing touch, scoring a clinical goal to give Fulham the lead.

Fulham led at the 45th plus 2-minute mark, Sam got the assist.

During the second half, Crystal Palace tried to rally but the heat created by Sam and Smith Rowe was too much.

With frustration mounting, one of their players finally made a stupid mistake, collecting a straight red card after a reckless foul to reduce Crystal Palace to 10 players and that was the end of the line for them.

The foul resulted in a freekick for Fulham that didn't result in a goal.

But Sam eventually got in on the fun just 5 minutes later, scoring in the 81st minute of this game before Harry Wilson again as a super sub wrapped up the game in the 83rd minute, dooming Crystal Palace to a resounding defeat at home.

Fulham won 0-3.

Emile Smith Rowe won the man of the match award again.

…

Fulham's next home game against Wolves became the true challenge.

Like usual, both teams started with their strongest lineups and bolstered by their home fans, despite the fact that Fulham got the lead early through an Alex Iwobi goal, Wolves equalized soon after through Matheus Cunha.

Both goals were scored in the 20th and 31st minute respectively.

The first half ended 1-1, but when second half started, Fulham seemed to lose control as a Joe Gomes goal in the 53rd minute exposed them.

In the 53rd minute, they began trailing 1-2 to their opponents.

Fulham fought hard for the equalizer to no avail till the 80th minute. Again, it was Sam getting his name on the scoresheet.

His goal production rate for Fulham was just ridiculous.

His output was unlike an attacking midfielder; it was even higher than that of elite strikers in the premier league.

In the 80th minute, 2-2.

Fulham leveled the game in the 80th minute and started chasing the winner but not done yet, Matheus Cunha pulled the plug again, stunning Fulham in the 87th minute with his second goal of the game.

In the 87th minute, Fulham trailed again 2-3…, it was a crazy game.

But despite the constant trials from their opponents, Fulham simply refused to give up as Sam responded 3 minutes later, scoring an absolute screamer that beat Sa, the Wolves goalkeeper to bring his team level again.

90 minutes, 3-3…

Fulham started chasing the winner again, but then, they were stunned again in the 90th plus 5 minutes by a Goncalo Guedes goal in the 90th plus 5 minutes.

90 plus 5 minutes, 3-4…

"Damn! Incredibly, Fulham are trailing again! Surely, they can't recover from this, can they?"

A minute later, Sam raised a ball above the Wolves defense for Muniz to lash on to, unleashing an instinctive striker's shot to level the game.

"GOALLLLL…!" The commentator was going bonkers. "What a goal! What a time to score it, what a game!"

But the drama was yet to come to an end.

2 minutes after that goal, in the very last minute of play, Fulham won another freekick about 30 yards away from goal.

"Surely he won't think about it".

POW!

"…"

"…"

"…..!"

Craven Cottage was briefly stunned, and then… ecstasy.

"GOALLLLL…!" The commentator roared at the top of his voice.

"ZINEDINE SAM…!!!" He screamed.

"Oh freaking Christ! This boy was sent from God himself!"

"What did I just witness?! Holy mother of Gods, what a goal!"

"At the last minute? A freekick? Which other 19-year-old can boast of doing things that this boy do? Forgive me, which other footballer can?"

"Sam is an enigma, a maverick!"

While Sam charged towards the corner flag, removing his jersey and screaming at the top of his lungs, Craven Cottage roared in ecstasy as the fans adored the best player of their team.

After his hattrick and unreal-game winning performance, Sam naturally won another man of the match award.

90 plus 5 minutes, it was 3-4 against Fulham.

Fast-forward to 90 plus 8 minutes, it was 5-4 to Fulham.

The commentator's verdict?

"Damn! What a game!"

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