"The match was as good as over." Enzo stormed into the locker room, throwing his towel to the ground in frustration.
It was surprising, given that Enzo had always stood by Luca's side. Rashid had thought Enzo was too stubborn to care about his surroundings, but now he saw a pattern.
Almost all of Luca's supporters, including Luca himself, were highly competitive. Their resistance to Sandro's leadership stemmed from their unwillingness to be led by someone they considered weak.
"That's why I said this tactic made no sense. Playing with only one center-back the entire match? Why not just let us play without a goalkeeper while you're at it?" Enzo continued to vent his frustration.
Rashid glanced at Sandro, who typically would step in to handle such disrespectful outbursts in Rashid's defense. Yet, Sandro sat there, shoulders slumped. The three goals Marco Nasti had scored were largely his fault.
The first goal was the goalkeeper's mistake, but Sandro, who shared the defensive area with the keeper and failed to alert him, was also to blame. After that, Sandro grew more nervous. His tackles became reckless, and he was sloppy in possession. The second and third goals all stemmed from his poor passing.
"It's not too late to make a substitution, Coach," Dario offered, suggesting himself. Though less assertive than before, it was clear he was unhappy that Rashid had chosen a backup goalkeeper over him for such a big match. Despite this being just a preseason game, playing against Milan at the San Siro could be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for third-division players like them.
"That's true. Besides playing so openly, you didn't even field your best players." Enzo gestured to Luca, who hadn't even broken a sweat yet. Luca was also benched for this game. Enzo sighed, trying to calm his emotions. "I don't understand what you were thinking."
"Coach!" Sandro suddenly stood up, eyes sharp with determination. "Please, don't replace me. I need to make up for my mistakes."
Rashid scoffed. "Only an amateur substitutes the on-field leader when the team is struggling." He instructed the players to sit and gather around. "But Enzo's point has some merit. We're going to make a few tactical changes."
***
The players gradually returned to the field, Enzo among them with a sullen expression. He glanced back and forth between Rashid and the new substitute.
As if questioning, "Are you serious?"
Rashid crossed his arms, considering whether to bench Enzo for the next game. On one hand, he was an outspoken player who frequently challenged the locker room's authority—a type of player Rashid generally didn't like.
Yet, Rashid couldn't deny that Enzo's points often had validity. Just like now, when Rashid decided to position Enzo deeper, swapping places with Sandro.
"First off, I'm not a defender, so this isn't going to work."
However, the defensive role Rashid had envisioned wasn't the traditional one. It was a far more classical role—a sweeper and primary playmaker from the back: a Libero.
This role demanded a collaborative midfield game, where the Libero would sweep up or receive the ball from the goalkeeper and push forward, playing one-twos with the midfield trio to open spaces or send it directly to the forwards. Essentially, a Libero needed three qualities: creativity, vision, and comfort on the ball.
Sandro had failed in this role for various reasons. If Sandro could be seen as a modern-day Paolo Maldini, he'd be more of a no-nonsense center-back.
You'd expect him to make clean interceptions and tackles. He would provide absolute security at the back but not elegant passes. While he could deliver accurate long balls, it wasn't his style of play.
The second reason for the failure was the lack of cover. Typically, a Libero is part of a trio of center-backs who rotate defensive duties with the right or left center-backs.
This was the system Rashid had implemented, at least on paper. However, the two center-backs in question were positioned further up when the ball was still in the opponent's third, aligned with the defensive midfielders. These positions, often called Half-Backs, were occupied by Enzo and a defensive midfielder named Ethan Caldwell.
When the Libero advanced, the Half-Backs were supposed to cover the backline, ready to counter a potential fast break.
And that was precisely what had happened during the second and third goals. Though both started from Sandro's poor passes, Enzo and Ethan were too late to intercept or provide cover.
This was understandable. Enzo was a box-to-box midfielder, while Ethan was more of a number 10. During build-up play, instead of holding their positions as instructed, they pushed forward into the second third of the field.
Therefore, Rashid replaced Ethan with a much more defensive midfielder: Jonas Meyer.
As for Enzo, he wasn't the Libero Rashid had envisioned. But among the available players, he was the most comfortable on the ball and had enough football intelligence to create plays.
"PEEP."
Rashid noticed a change in Milan's approach. Their defense tightened up, and their pressing became more intense.
Such seriousness was rare in a preseason game. Rashid glanced over at the opponent's bench, where Martinelli was staring back arrogantly. 'It seems my provocation is going better than expected.'
Rashid stepped forward and shouted instructions for his players to be more patient. "Pass the ball around. Feel the rhythm. Yes, just like that."
The first ten minutes of the second half turned into a cat-and-mouse game. Occasionally, the ball ventured into the final third, but it always circled back to the center.
Martinelli tapped his foot impatiently, finally realizing Rashid's positional changes in the defense. The player with the name E. Moretti on his back, now positioned deeper, was orchestrating a neat ball circulation.
Standing at 190 cm with an athletic build, he was nearly unbeatable in physical duels. All of his passes found their targets. True, there weren't any threatening through balls, and the ball mostly rotated within Aeterna's defensive third. However, seeing the ball stick to Aeterna's players caused an inexplicable frustration to well up inside Martinelli.
Martinelli belonged to an era that valued results over possession. Yet, seeing his team dominated in such a manner made him uneasy. "What are you doing? My wife evencould press better! Listen up! Press more, press more." Martinelli signaled for Milan to push their defensive line higher. It was high enough that their goalkeeper even ventured into the second third of the pitch.
'So, you want to play cat and mouse? Fine, I'll play along.'
That effort finally paid off in the 60th minute. Enzo's pass was intercepted by Kevin Zeroli, showcasing not only his vision and accuracy but also his tenacity in winning the ball.
Kevin Zeroli looked at his teammate on the right wing who was open, seemingly about to pass it. However, he weaved in place and nutmegged the Aeterna player who tried to stop him.
His target wasn't the winger. Kevin's target remained the same: their star player, Marco Nesti.
Kevin Zeroli delivered a sublime pass, and Marco Nesti received it effortlessly. With only the goalkeeper left in his way, it seemed like a sure goal.
'This will be easy.'
But then, Marco was suddenly shoved off balance. He tumbled to the ground.
The whistle blew. 'What just happened?'
Marco stood up and looked ahead.
Marco always considered himself the biggest. At 193cm, he was expected to keep growing. It was said he could rival Peter Crouch and become one of the tallest clinical strikers in the world. Therefore, Marco always saw himself as a lion—the biggest, the toughest, the deadliest.
However, when he looked up, Marco saw a giant. Far taller, far sturdier, far bigger.
Their eyes met. Marco recognized that gaze: a predator's.
"Got something to say, kid?" the figure asked.
Marco finally identified him. It was the opposing captain: Alessandro Bianchi. Never had he imagined that a 35-year-old on the brink of retirement would almost make him feel fear.
"Well, now you're asking for it." Marco grinned. "Game on, old man."
On the sideline, Rashid looked at the scoreboard. Still 3-0, but that wasn't what he was focusing on. '65th minute.'
Before his players could form a wall, Rashid called Enzo and Sandro over.
As they approached, Rashid said, "The time has come. Execute Plan Cannon."