Rise of a Football God

Chapter 168 Samba football



Just like was expected from both teams, Fulham and Leicester City started with their strongest lineup of players.

The home side like usual started with Bernd Leno in between the posts, with the defensive quadruple of Tete, Diop, Bassey, and Robinson forming the Fulham defense.

In midfield, the duo of Alex Iwobi and Lukic started, sitting on top the defense while further up top was the trio of Adama Traore on the right, Emile Smith Rowe on the left, while Sam pushed through the middle as the attacking midfielder.

Ahead of them was Muniz who led the line as the striker.

As for Leicester City, Hermansen started in between the posts with the defensive quadruple of Kristiansen, Faes, Vestergaard, and Justin standing in his front as his protectors.

Further ahead were the likes of the Nigerian international, Wilfried Ndidi and Winks. Among the 4 players sitting ahead of the defensive midfielders was a familiar face to the Fulham players.

After a busy time in the transfer market for Fulham, they got Emile Smith Rowe while they sold a few of their players to rivals in the premier league and one of them now plied his trade for Leicester City and today, he was starting against his former club.

Leicester City's attack comprised of Buonanotte in attacking midfield, Fatawu on the right, the legendary Jamie Vardy in attack while on the left side of this attack was the familiar face, De Cordova Reid.

When the referee's whistle eventually sounded though, Sam did not give a damn about the fact that an old fried played for the opposition.

In his eyes, they were all enemies.

FWEEEE!

From the very onset of this game, Sam showed his mood in this game as immediately after kick off as after receiving a pass from Lukic, he took one glance at goal before unleashing an audacious attempt at goal from the halfway line.

Leicester's goalkeeper scrambled back to his goal post but he was not fast enough as the ball beat him, but then the bar came to his rescue.

"And the bar comes to the goalkeeper's rescue!"

"What an audacious attempt from Sam, the player who is in form, the player who is always in form!"

"What a shot!"

Sam licked his lips excitedly as he watched this ball fly over the bar for a corner kick. 'Nearly,' he smirked. 'But nearly cannot kill a bird, I need to do better!'

While Fulham got prepared to take their corner, the commentator went lyrical about the young Nigerian midfielder as he seemingly was not satisfied with what he already said. "But honestly, can we just give a moment to appreciate the talent of this Nigerian midfielder?"

"Clearly, despite the fact that he's still relatively a newbie to the premier league, none of it has affected Samuel Moses. Adaptation time seems like a myth to the young Nigerian, he's taken to the premier league like a fish to water".

"Just take a moment to focus on his statistics from last season for Fulham despite the fact that he only played a fraction of the premier league games after his late signing". Experience more tales on empire

"A lot of people think it's farfetched but take it from me, Sam is the next big thing in premier league football".

When Fulham eventually took their corner kick, it resulted in a scramble in the Leicester City box but after some chaotic play, the Foxes managed to clear the ball upfield.

And there, gentlemen, was the start of samba football.

The shot from Sam was just him testing his legs.

For the rest of this first half, Sam took control, dominating proceedings for his team and fortunately to help his case, the whole Fulham team showed up today as they rode the momentum created by his energy.

From the beginning, Leicester City was already struggling to wrestle authority over this game and now, Sam took it a notch higher.

Bam! Bam!

Forward pass, return pass…; forward pass, return pass…

Tiki taka, Sam played short one touch passes with his teammates in midfield as they thoroughly enjoyed themselves at Leicester's expense.

At this moment, Sam wore his title of Space interpreter on his sleeve as he passed, dribbled, and intelligently intercepted passes while occasionally throwing in the unreal defense splitting passes for the swift Adama Traore to run into.

And most importantly, he played samba football, regularly weaving through multiple players with his impressive technique as every few minutes, the Fulham fans gasped and rose to their feet in amazement.

All this was crammed into the first 15 minutes of this game.

Within this short time, Sam already did enough to prove that he was heads and shoulders above every other player in Craven Cottage today.

And eventually, the floodgates did open.

This time, after exchanging a series of passes between Emile Smith Rowe in midfield, Sam went on a mazy run with the ball, elegantly weaving through Ndidi in midfield, then Winks as the center defenders closed him down aggressively.

At the end of his rampaging run, Sam threaded a pass in between the 2 center defenders to the right for Smith Rowe who had been chasing him since to run into.

Emile Smith Rowe ran after the ball then…

Bam!

The English midfielder took a venomous shot that seemed to carry a lot of meaning only for it to hit the bar, rebounding back and unfortunately for Leicester City, a Fulham player got to the rebound first.

Having ran upfield alongside Sam as he went on his mazy run, ruthlessly cutting through players like they were not there, Alex Iwobi ended up in the right place at the right time.

In the opposition 18-yard box, he unleashed an unstoppable volleyed shot as the ball tore its way into the top right corner of the net.

Sam didn't get an assist for this goal, but his imprint was all over it.

The crowd at Craven Cottage roared with approval, chanting Sam's name as he high-fived his teammates. Despite not being credited with the assist, Sam's creativity had set the tone for that goal.

Leicester City, now trailing, tried to regain their composure but it was futile.

Fulham remained dominant as after that first goal, Sam grew more into his mojo and that only spelled doom for the opposition.

In the 28th minute, he almost doubled the lead with a curling shot from outside the box, but Hermansen pulled off a brilliant save, diving low to his right.

"Sam is unstoppable today!" The commentator raved. "You can't take your eyes off him for a second!"

Despite several more chances for Fulham, the first half ended with the score line still at 1-0. As the players walked off the pitch for the break, the atmosphere in Craven Cottage was electric.

Sam was clearly the focal point and the fans couldn't get enough of his samba-inspired performance.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Leicester City returned from the break with renewed vigor, determined to wrestle control of the game.

They pressed higher, forcing Fulham onto the back foot. In the 53rd minute, Jamie Vardy found himself unmarked in the box after a quick one-two. With the goal at his mercy, he struck the ball… only to send it sailing over the bar.

"VARDY MISSES A SITTER!" the commentator yelled in disbelief. "You'd bet your house on Vardy scoring from there, but somehow, he's bottled it!"

Leicester's persistence began to pay off as they kept possession, stifling Fulham's attacking rhythm.

Sam found himself tightly marked, often swarmed by two or three players. The fouls began to mount, with Ndidi and Winks taking turns roughing him up. By the 70th minute, Sam's frustration was palpable.

In the 80th minute, Fulham's defense faltered. Alex Iwobi, attempting to dribble past Ndidi, lost possession after a clean tackle. Leicester pounced on the mistake, launching a swift counterattack.

Jamie Vardy sprinted down the right flank, shouting for the ball.

Iwobi chased after him, desperate to recover. As the ball was played into Vardy's path, Iwobi tugged on his shirt. The veteran striker tumbled theatrically to the ground.

The referee blew his whistle and pointed to the spot.

"Penalty for Leicester City! And a red card for Alex Iwobi!" the commentator exclaimed. "What a catastrophic moment for Fulham!"

The Fulham fans fell silent as Vardy stepped up. His penalty was perfect, smashing into the top corner.

"Vardy makes no mistake this time! It's 1-1, and Leicester are back in this!"

With just nine minutes of regulation time left and down to ten men, Fulham faced an uphill battle.

Sam rallied his teammates. "We've got this! Stay compact and hit them on the counter!" he urged, clapping his hands to lift their spirits.

Leicester, sensing blood, pushed forward, leaving gaps at the back. In the 86th minute, Sam finally found his moment.

Receiving the ball in midfield, three Leicester players converged on him. With a quick body feint and a drop of his shoulder, he slipped past them like a ghost.

The crowd erupted.

"Samuel Moses is on fire tonight! He's leading the charge, Fulham are countering!"

With Leicester's defense scrambling, Sam spotted Smith Rowe making a run. A perfectly weighted ground pass sliced through the defense.

"Smith Rowe is through! One-on-one with the keeper!"

The English youngster playing as a makeshift winger today did not hesitate as he chipped the ball delicately over Hermansen; the net rippled.

"GOOOOOOAL!" The commentator screamed.

"Fulham lead 2-1! Down to ten men, and they've done it!"

Smith Rowe sprinted to the corner flag, arms wide in celebration, with Sam chasing him, pointing at his teammate.

The Fulham bench exploded in cheers.

Craven Cottage exploded in loud roars of jubilation.

---

The clock ticked toward the final whistle, but Leicester weren't done yet. In the 93rd minute, a cross from the left threatened to find Vardy in the box. Bernd Leno soared high, tipping the ball over the crossbar for a corner.

Leicester threw everyone forward, but Leno caught the corner cleanly. Spotting Sam sprinting down the left flank, he launched the ball long.

Sam chased it down, his pace leaving Leicester's defenders in the dust and then one-on-one with Hermansen, he feinted right, dribbled left, and calmly slotted the ball into the net.

"THAT'S IT! GAME OVER! SAMUEL MOSES SEALS IT FOR FULHAM! 3-1!"

"What a game!"

The stadium erupted in pandemonium. Sam slid on his knees; arms spread wide as his teammates piled on him in celebration. The fans chanted his name, recognizing the brilliance that had carried them to victory.

---

Full-Time.

The final whistle blew; Fulham won.

Sam was named the Man of the Match for his dazzling display. As he walked off the pitch, the crowd's cheers were deafening. The samba football maestro had once again stolen the show.

...

>Read author's note<


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