Rise of a Football God

"Sam, you just won a 3rd straight man of the match award in 3 of the 4 most important games of the CAF champions league, how do you feel?"

"How do I feel?" Breathing hoarsely, Sam laughed. "I feel good man, not just good, I feel great!" He whooped excitedly.

"Every player starting his career like me dreams of creating moments like I just created today in our career. Giving 3 assists in the CAF champions league final, I had high expectations but definitely not this high". He chuckled.

"I definitely exceeded my own expectations today".

And then, he grinned. "All to cap it off now is to get a goal in the return leg, and most of my goals for my first season as a professional football player would be accomplished already".

"And that right there is the mark of a confident player in form". The male reporter grinned. "Sam, I'm betting all my money on you for the next game, you better fulfill your promise and score".

Sam laughed. "Do that at your own risk. It's definitely not a promise that I'd score but I'll try my best".

"That's enough for me". The reporter laughed. "Anyways, Sam, have you been to social media yet?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, after the game".

"Oh, that? No," he shook his head. "As you can see, I've not even left the stadium yet, I don't even know where my phone is now, so".

"Oh, I see," the reporter nodded. "Well, some excited Enyimba FC fans have started a thread on social media, mainly twitter".

The reporter smiled. "Your fans are convinced that you deserve a spot in the balon do'r podium this year".

Hearing that, Sam palmed his face. "That…, that's just…" he was speechless.

The reporter smiled. "Thought so". He chuckled. "Some are more realistic though, they started a thread, advocating for you to win this season's golden boy award. They firmly believe that you deserve it after your performance today, what do you think?"

Sam scratched his hair and chuckled. "First of all, I'm appreciative of their support and how much they believe in me, it means a lot to me".

"I do have a lot of confidence in my ability, but I don't think I'm yet at the level of those freaks dominating football in the top 5 European leagues yet".

"This season, there are incredible youngsters like Alejandro Balde of Barcelona, Jamal Musiala of Bayern who is my personal favorite, Jude Bellingham, and even Gavi still of Barcelona. There are more incredible talents out there too".

"Personally, I think all these players deserve the award far more than I do. Also, though I don't want to admit it, the league I play in matters too". He smiled wryly. "When I play in a better league, then I can compete". He grinned.

"Talking of better leagues, which club would you love to go to?"

Hearing that, Sam grinned. "I love FC Barcelona". He winked.

The reporter smiled. "They're a great club with a lot of history. They'll definitely make do with an attacking midfielder of your profile, taking into fact that you'll only get better with time".

"I do wish you a great career ahead Sam. Thanks for having me, have a great day".

"You too Charles". Sam smiled, shook the reporter's hand before leaving.

He joined his teammates, listened to his coach, left and signed a few autographs and took a few pictures before returning to his apartment in the guest quarters provided by the club.

That evening, Sam had another video call with his family.

The return leg of the CAF champions league would be played in 7 days. There was a league game in between and for this game, Coach Yemi Daniel decided to rest most of his starting 11 players.

Enyimba FC ended up playing 1-1, ending the game with a draw but it was not the only game in between the 7 days.

The Nigerian FA cup finally started, and Enyimba FC was to play.

Coach Yemi Daniel rotated his players again, starting some and resting others, Austin started but Sam stayed in the bench. In the 60th minute though, he was introduced and ended up chipping in with an assist to conclude a convincing 3-1 winning display from Enyimba FC.

And with both games out of the way, the squad could finally focus on the return leg of the CAF champions league final that would be played in Morocco.

A day to the D-day, Coach Yemi Daniel left to Morocco with his players, lodged a hotel before going through their final tactical briefing.

The night went in a jiffy, and in no time, the D-day was here.

That evening, the 45,000 capacity Mohamed V Stadium in Casablanca, Wydad Athletic Club's home stadium was filled to the brim with tens of thousands of home supporters here to rattle some Nigerian nerves.

(CAF Champions League!)

(Final fixtures: Second leg)

>Wydad AC – Enyimba FC<

>Aggregate: 1-4<

>Date: 11th June, 2023<

3 goals down already from the first leg, it was bound to be a daunting task for this Moroccan footballing giant club if they had the intentions of mounting an incredible comeback and their fans were clearly ready to help them through it.

They would do their part, ensuring that the players did their part.

When the Enyimba FC players stepped foot into the stadium, they were drowned in a chorus of loud boos and whistles. The home supporters hated their nerves for beating their team 4-1 away from home.

They would make today miserable for them and that was exactly what they did as the referee's whistle finally sounded to commence the game.

FWEEEE!

In the Enyimba International Stadium, Enyimba FC dominated throughout, but today, the reverse was the case as from the first minute of the game, the Wydad AC players seeking vengeance pounced like Lions on the hunt.

Coach Yemi Daniel came here with a specific tactical approach though. He played a balanced formation that could help his team stay compact, transitioning from attack to defense seamlessly.

He didn't play a fully defensive formation, but arranged his team in a shape where they could easily arrange themselves in a formidable defensive block.

The tactic worked, but only for 30 minutes.

In the 33rd minute of this second leg final, Wydad AC struck!

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