Football singularity

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[7]

From their perch high above the touchline, Derek Rae and Taylor Twellman narrated with unflinching clarity as Bayer Leverkusen surged forward. The two commentators maintained a speech-to-word ratio faster than a Gatling gun.

Taylor's tone carried a note of wonder as he described Rakim Rex's deft flick. "Rex, drifting in from the left, Trent's upon him, and he sees him. Oh my, what is he doing?" The commentator exclaimed as they watched Rakim expertly shift his centre of gravity. In one fluid motion, he managed to drag the ball behind him and flick it over the central defenders.

The ball looked spellbound as it floated delicately above the rising head of the Dutch giant Van Dijk. The defender was forced to react fast to the sudden pass, thus unable to gain enough height in his jump, allowing Lucas Alario room to manoeuvre. The Argentine striker twisted his body, cushioning the dropping ball on his chest while fending off Joe Gomez at its landing point.

In the same motion, he tried to hook a right-footed volley, but Alisson Becker, alert to the danger, was already springing from his line. The keeper spread his body wide, managing to get his knee to the shot, deflecting the ball up into the night sky. Van Dijk, having recovered from his earlier blunder, rose highest heading the ball clear with authority.

Derek's voice rose above the BayArena din. "Leverkusen's first real opening, and it's taken a world-class intervention from Alisson to keep it scoreless!"

Taylor replied on the beat. "And look how quickly Liverpool turn defence into offence—Mané is away on the left!"

[12]

The counter was fast and deadly as in a sequence of passes, Sadio Mané was already in full flight, cheeks puffed, legs gliding over the turf. Lars Bender gave chase but never looked likely to close the gap. A stepover, then another, sent the German full-back sprawling; Mané cut inside and drove a low pass into the feet of Firmino at the penalty spot.

Firmino's trademark no-look flick set Mohamed Salah clear of Wendell, at the edge of the box, but the Egyptian's first-time shot skimmed wide of the far post, nicking the advertising hoarding with a hollow thud. "OH, my goodness, what did we just witness?" Taylor exclaimed as the Reds from Liverpool groaned in disappointment.

"A wake-up call for the Leverkusen backline like no other," Dereck stated as the camera panned over to Peter Bosz, angrily glaring at his backline. Lars, who was closest, seemed to get the message and quickly started relaying instructions to his backline.

[17]

Liverpool's early warning shot rattled Leverkusen into a spell of disciplined possession. The focus for Amiri and Havertz was on controlling the rhythm and helping their backline adapt. They dropped deeper, almost creating a 4-3-2-1 formation to create triangles with Baumgartlinger, drawing Fabinho out of his protective pocket.

The BayArena crowd rumbled appreciatively each time the midfield three weaved beyond the halfway line, but the final ball kept crashing against the brick-wall pairing of Van Dijk and Gomez. The Reds responded in kind the moment they won the ball, utilising quick transitions, trying to overload certain locations in the home side's backline. Wendell and Bender quickly found themselves on the receiving end as Salah and Mané both got to work.

[23]

Salah, drifting inside from the right, played a slick one-two with Henderson. The captain's return ball had just the right weight for Salah to ghost past Wendell, drawing Tapsoba wide. That subtle dislocation of shape was all Firmino needed to slip between the lines.

"Danger here," Derek muttered tensely. "Tapsoba's been pulled too far… and look at Firmino's positioning!"

But Baumgartlinger, reading the danger, slid in with impeccable timing just as the Brazilian wound up for a shot. The stadium roared as the CDM cleared with a decisive toe-poke, sending the ball out for a throw. "Firmino was seeing headlines, but Baumgartlinger had other ideas."

The throw-in was taken quickly by Alexander-Arnold, fizzed back into play and immediately worked across to Wijnaldum. The Dutchman, with his back to goal, used his body to shield the ball and laid it off to Robertson, who had crept forward unnoticed. A one-touch cross was sent screaming into the six-yard box—low, fast, and begging for a finish.

Lukas Hradecky, who had already sneaked off his line, dived low, punching the ball away with both fists just as Mané lunged in. The collision was inevitable, and both men hit the turf, the crowd gasping—but the referee waved it off. "No foul," Derek affirmed. "That's brave goalkeeping from Hradecky."

Taylor chimed in. "And he did—absolutely no hesitation. Liverpool are beginning to show their teeth now, though. The pressure is mounting."

[26]

Leverkusen tried to reset, keeping possession along the back line, but the tempo Liverpool imposed was relentless. The press came in waves—Salah, Firmino, Mané, all moving like predators in sync. Hradecky was forced into a rushed clearance, and though it found Rakim on the left flank, he quickly found himself out-muscled by Trent.

He barely managed to poke the ball towards Amiri in the centre of the field. He did well to recover the ball under pressure, twisting away from Fabinho's first lunge before nudging it to Havertz. The German playmaker looked up, eyes scanning for options, but Wijnaldum was tight to his hip. A quick shoulder feint bought him half a yard, enough to slide a pass down the line for Diaby.

Diaby exploded at lightning speed, forcing Robertson to shuffle back as he dribbled down the line. Before the defender could decide to stop him, he chopped inside so quickly that the left-back couldn't even react. The ball now on his stronger left foot, Diaby fired a vicious curler towards the far-left corner.

"Diaby! It's curling Alisson's scrambling backwards!" Derek's voice reached a crescendo.

The shot whistled past Van Dijk's head, dipping wickedly just under the crossbar, but Alisson threw himself backwards, throwing a hand up. His outstretched fingertips kissed the ball just enough to divert it off-course. It clipped the top of the bar and spiralled out for a corner, causing the home fans to groan in disappointment.

[32]

The resulting corner saw Havertz whip in an outswinger from the left, the delivery crisp and curling with menace. Tapsoba rose above Van Dijk for a split second, his forehead connecting with the ball (smack!), but it was always rising, sailing just a few inches over the bar and thudding against the digital advertising boards.

"Another half-chance for Leverkusen," Taylor noted. "You get the feeling that if they don't capitalise soon, they might regret it."

[35]

Liverpool responded by slowing the tempo. Alisson rolled it short to Van Dijk, who calmly directed traffic with sweeping gestures. Gomez and Robertson began to push higher, spreading the field wide, pulling Leverkusen's midfield out of shape bit by bit.

In the 36th minute, a crisp exchange between Fabinho, Wijnaldum, and Alexander-Arnold down the right saw Liverpool progress upfield. With a snap change of pace, Salah accelerated past Wendell, drawing a panicked reaction from the crowd. He squared the ball across the top of the box, Firmino dummied, letting it run for Mané. Mané took one touch, nudging it past the lunging Bender and drilling it low (CLANG!).

The shot cannoned off the near post, kissing the inside before bouncing out of play. "OH, my days, Liverpool almost had it," Taylor exclaimed as the away fans who had jumped up in anticipation now listlessly sat back down.

[37]

The near miss sent fresh waves of anxiety through the BayArena. Peter Bosz was already yelling instructions from the technical area, his arms windmilling in frustration. "Drop deeper! Compress the line!" he barked as if trying to will his players to respond before Liverpool's gears fully meshed.

Leverkusen restarted with a short goal-kick to Tapsoba, who passed calmly to Tah. But the moment Tah tried to step forward, he was greeted by Firmino's hunting run. The ball was played square to Baumgartlinger, who tried to pivot but was instantly pressed by Henderson.

The Liverpool captain poked it loose—Wijnaldum latched onto it. "High turnover! Liverpool in again!" Derek's voice rode the sudden tension.

Wijnaldum wasted no time, skipping a desperate Havertz tackle and slipping the ball into the channel where Salah had peeled off Wendell's shoulder. The Egyptian cut inside with elegance, using one touch to shift the ball onto his left foot. "Trouble here!" Taylor snapped.

He curled it low, along the turf, aiming inside the far post—but Hradecky read it like a book. The Finnish keeper dove early, his right glove managing to clamp down on the incoming ball. He managed to firmly get a hold of the ball, deftly pulling it into his body to protect it. "Massive save!" Derek exclaimed. "That could have been curtains!" A chorus of relieved whistles and thunderous claps erupted from the Leverkusen faithful.

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To Be Continued...