853 The Final Three Minutes (1/2)
Arsenal might still be leading 2:1, but Manchester City's goal has given Nottingham Forest an immense confidence boost. They felt like all the hard work they had put in up until that point had been worth it. The fans started singing Bendtner's song and cheering for Manchester City in the stands. They had completely put their feelings of hostility toward Manchester City aside.
The Nottingham Forest players began to get even more lively on the pitch as well. They were relentless against a Sunderland side that had lost all will to fight. The Forest players could not help Manchester City score goals against Arsenal. All they could do right now was to try and score as many goals as they could so as to boost their confidence and hopes of becoming champions of the Premier League. If they could, they really wanted to score at least six goals against Sunderland in this home game.
Sadly, Forest was slightly down on its luck. Almost all the Sunderland players had retreated backward to defend, and Forest was not able to score a goal at all. The 3:0 score was enough for Forest to win the game. Thus, Twain slowly began directing his attention toward the match between Arsenal and Manchester City.
This final league match sure is exciting…
As a fan, he absolutely adored the excitement, but, as a manager, he absolutely despised it. The match entered its 80th minute. However, there was no further meaningful news regarding the match between Arsenal and Manchester City ever since Bendtner's goal. The Forest players and fans started getting tense. If the match were to end with a 2:1 victory for Arsenal, Forest would not be able to clinch the champions trophy. Everyone hoped that Manchester City would work harder and turn the match around. However, they could not decide the outcome of the match just with their thoughts and hopes.
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Bendtner was tightly marked by Arsenal's defenders. If one defender was not enough, then two would be employed to mark Bendtner. Arsenal was hell-bent on freezing Bendtner and not letting him have a chance to move about on the pitch. There were times where Bendtner could do nothing but stand rooted on a spot. He could not even retreat backward to help with his team's defense. Even the toughest of men would feel exhausted after running about nonstop for 80 minutes under a scorching sky with almost 90-degree fahrenheit weather. However, Bendtner did not want to make his exhaustion known, because he was afraid that McClaren would take him off the pitch. This was perhaps the most tiring match he had ever played in. Not only did he have to battle with his opponents on the pitch, but he also had to battle with his own manager.
He was not giving his all because he wanted to help Nottingham Forest become champions. He just did not want to see the hard work he had put into the match so far end up being ruined by others. If he were to get taken out of the game, then everything would be over for him, and his goal would have been utterly meaningless. In order to conceal his exhaustion, Bendtner forced himself to run all about the pitch. He tried to find a way to break through Arsenal's defenses and also tried to act as a decoy so as to provide more space for his teammates to make their runs into the penalty box and shoot at the goal. Sadly, Jack Reed was not able to capitalize on all the chances that Bendtner had created for him. If it had been Robinho, he would definitely have scored at least two goals by now. Reed was eager to play in matches and prove himself as a player, but his technique, experience, and spatial awareness were not up to mark just yet, and he still had a long way to go before he could play like Robinho.
Wenger was slightly upset with Arsenal's defenses as he watched the match from the sidelines. His team had focused all their attention on marking Bendtner, but they had missed out on marking the young player Reed. Wenger began to throw a temper tantrum by the side of the pitch. At the sight of Wenger's unhappiness, Philippe Senderos ranted to his team captain Fàbregas. ”That lad doesn't pose a threat at all… I think things would be much worse if we were to let Bendtner make his runs freely… The greatest threat on the Manchester City team is Bendtner. We'll be able to win this match as long as we mark him tightly. I don't think we need to be scared of any other Manchester City player. I really don't know what the boss is worried about… Even if Bendtner does manage to score a goal, we'll still win the match anyway…”
Fàbregas agreed with his views and told him to act as he saw fit. He would help in defending against Reed when the situation called for it. Senderos and Fàbregas were not the only players who thought that way. In fact, the entire Arsenal team thought the same way as they did. They were all exhausted and wanted to take it easy after running about under such a scorching sun for close to 90 minutes.
Why should they work so hard if Manchester City isn't even going to threaten their goalpost?
They should slow down their tempo and not try to fight for the ball so aggressively. It would be all right to let Manchester City move up and attack them. All they needed to do was to mark Bendtner. There were even some Arsenal players who started to fantasize about the scenes at the end of the match where they would lift the champions trophy, just like how many of their fans were fantasizing as well.
Bendtner would have been disappointed if he were to overhear Senderos and Fàbregas's conversation. He was hoping that Reed's liveliness on the pitch would help to take away some of the attention that had been placed on him by Arsenal's players, but it was clear that Senderos was smarter than he thought and he did not take the bait. Bendtner had been lucky to have scored with his long-range effort from before, but Arsenal did not even give him the chance to be lucky now. He would be defended against even when he was 10 yards away from the penalty box.
Manchester City relied solely on Bendtner for its offense. There was not a single player left on the current Manchester City team who could organize the team's attacks after Elano was taken off the pitch. Bendtner had to actively retreat backward to pick up the ball and pass it about. He would not even have the chance to touch the ball if he continued to stand at the front of the pitch. The match had turned into a battle between a single player and an entire team.
Wenger looked at his watch. There were ten minutes left till the end of the match. He and his team would become the champions as long as they pulled through these ten minutes. For some reason, however, the ten minutes felt like an eternity to him. He kept reminding himself: We will become the champions as long as we don't commit mistakes. Our destiny is in our own hands.
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Bendtner ran all over the pitch looking for a way to break through and shoot for goal. He tried attacking from the left, then he tried from the right, but they were both futile attempts. He lacked support from the midfield. Even if he managed to create a moment of chance, the ball would not reach him in time, and all his efforts would be for naught. He had depleted a lot of his stamina by then, and his pants got heavier and heavier.
Looks like he can only rely on himself to score a goal…
Bendtner frowned under the sweltering sun. He was starting to feel a little dizzy from the heat. He suddenly remembered his past, when he still wearing a red Nottingham Forest jersey and was not a Manchester City player yet. His main task back then was to provide chances for his partner van Nistelrooy to shoot at the goal by attracting the defenders over to him. How he wished that he, too, had a partner who could attract Arsenal's defenders over to him right now. In the past, he had always dreamed of becoming a solitary hero. He would be the star player on the team, and he would bask in applause from the crowd after each and every match. The media would constantly report about him, and he would be extremely popular and famous. However, he had finally come to realize now that not everyone can become a solitary hero…
I am so tired…
Bendtner had lost all trust in his teammates. He had stopped passing the ball to them, and he would bring the ball forward himself. However, the result was the same. The ball would be intercepted by Arsenal's defenders. Three minutes had passed. The entire Manchester City team had snapped out of their euphoria and excitement of scoring the goal earlier. There were ten minutes remaining in the match, but none of the Manchester City players was willing to fight with Arsenal to the death. It would be great if they could level the score, but it was not like they would die if they lost the match, so why should they try so hard?
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Twain looked down at his watch on the 83rd minute of the match. Kerslake was silent beside him. Twain did not know if he was not making a sound because he was paying attention to the radio, or if he was feeling dejected about how Manchester City had yet to score another goal.
Forest had just scored their fourth goal of the match, and they were leading Sunderland 4:0. Twain decided to perform three substitutions consecutively and use up his quota for the match. Ibišević was substituted by Nicolás Millán, Fernández was substituted by Cohen, and Gago was substituted by Tiago. Both Millán and Tiago did not have many chances to play in games this season. Thus Twain sent them onto the pitch so as to ensure that the two were qualified to receive a medal should the team end up becoming champions in the end. As for whether or not they would really end up receiving a medal… No one knew just yet.
Wenger might have thought that time was passing by extremely slowly, but it was the opposite for Twain. He felt that time was passing by too quickly. The fourth official had already lifted the board to signal that there would be three additional minutes to the game, but he still had not heard any new updates about the game between Manchester City and Arsenal. It was only then that Twain realized that he was about to reach the end of a 90-minute match. The fans who had been singing and cheering earlier in the stands all went silent. Everyone felt disappointed. It looked like Forest would not be able to perform a comeback at the end despite their efforts. The title of Premier League champion was starting to slip away from them.
Twain stood by the side of the pitch. He had pressed his lips together tightly, and he had an awful expression on his face.
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The second half of the match between Arsenal and Manchester City had only kicked off two minutes after Forest's match against Sunderland. Hence, it was only the 87th minute of the match between Arsenal and Manchester City when Twain saw the fourth official lift the board to signal the additional stoppage time.
McClaren used up his last substitution for the match at the 87th minute. Ashley Young was a little surprised when he was called off the substitution bench. He quickly finished his warm-ups, and, before he even knew it, he was already standing on the turf in the Emirates Stadium. He had been pushed out onto the pitch by the coaching staff hastily, and he was still feeling a little dazed from the sudden change in events. He noticed that Bendtner was looking at him. Sweat was pouring down the latter's face like a river. Young understood why Bendtner was looking at him.
All right, looks like I'm the only person on the entire Manchester City team who can help him…
He ran toward his position on the pitch. Bendtner pulled him over and was just about to open his mouth in between pants when Ashley Young cut him off with a wave of his hands. ”I know what I have to do. I just need to pass the ball over to you, right?”
Bendtner nodded his head.
”Wait for it at the front.” Young patted Bendtner on the shoulder before running away. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please clickfor visiting.
Bendtner suffered a cramp shortly after Ashley Young got onto the pitch. He suddenly fell to the ground while he was trying to snatch the ball away at the front of the pitch. He pressed a hand over his calf, and his expression was one of agony and pain. Ashley Young bolted over and helped to press down on his leg. McClaren did not react to Bendtner's injury, because he had used up all his substitutions for the game. If Bendtner was not able to continue with the game, then Manchester City would have to play with ten men.
Bendtner's cramp was an unexpected event, but he was back on the pitch after the team doctor and his teammates helped him with his injury for two minutes. Additional stoppage time was given as a result of Bendtner's cramps. The fourth official held up a board, and the time that was shown was five minutes! The Arsenal fans at the Emirates Stadium began booing in discontent. They wished that the match would end right away. Five minutes of stoppage time was ridiculously long to them.
Bendtner limped a little every time he walked on the pitch, but it was impossible to tell that he was injured when he ran. He continued to run about the pitch tirelessly as he looked for a chance to break through Arsenal's defenses. Ashley Young had the most stamina out of all the Manchester City players on the pitch right now. His pace troubled the Arsenal defenders, who were eventually left with no other choice but to split up their forces. Some of them had to switch from marking Bendtner to marking Young instead. Bendtner finally felt the pressure on him lighten a little after Young's arrival.
Senderos also did not seem to be marking him as tightly as before either. Perhaps he did not deem Bendtner to be as much of a threat anymore after he suffered from a cramp earlier. Ashley Young suddenly crossed the ball into the middle of the pitch!
Bendtner jumped up into the air to head the ball, but he headed nothing but air. The ball fell into the hands of Almunia who had rushed out of his goalpost, and Bendtner subsequently crashed onto the ground. Almunia hugged onto the ball in his arms and refused to kick it away. He looked down at Bendtner and was planning to only kick the ball away after Bendtner had made his way out of the penalty box. Bendtner enjoyed lying on the ground, because it meant that he could take a rest. Nonetheless, he could not lie there forever. There was not much time left in the match. Bendtner climbed to his feet after sensing Almunia's gaze on him. He then slowly ran away from the penalty box. The ball flew over his head as he ran.
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A queer silence filled the City Ground Stadium for the final three minutes of the match. Both the Sunderland fans and the Nottingham Forest fans did not care about the match that was being played before them. They had their minds elsewhere.
The Sunderland fans were busy wiping their tears at the stands after knowing that their team was going to be relegated. As for the Nottingham Forest fans, they were all engrossed in listening to the radio for the latest updates from the Arsenal match. The referee's whistle that signalled the end of the match resonated loudly and much more clearly within the silence.
”The match is over!” The commentator said. ”Nottingham Forest has beaten Sunderland 4:0 at home. But, it looks like their dream of becoming champions of the Premier League has gone up in flames…”
The Forest players on the pitch quickly rushed to the side to ask for the latest news from their teammates regarding the match between Arsenal and Manchester City the moment the match ended. They could not conceal the sadness and disappointment on their faces when their teammates told them the score remained 2:1. The players then sat by the side of the pitch and waited for Arsenal's match to be over. All they could do was to wait.
Twain could not sit down like his players did. He still had to shake hands with Sunderland's manager. Nielsen was in low spirits given how his team had just been relegated. Similarly, Twain was also downhearted, and both managers only gave each other a simple handshake before turning to leave. Nielsen walked onto the pitch to console his players, whereas Twain sat down at his seat in the technical area and spaced out.
The Sunderland fans began applauding their team's efforts. They knew that their team had tried their best. It was a shame that they had to face Nottingham Forest, who were hell-bent on achieving a victory, for their final match. The Nottingham Forest fans did not leave the stadium. They stayed behind in the stands and continued to listen to the news from the radio. The FA officials who had been sitting in the VIP room stood up to shake hands with the chairman of Nottingham Forest Football Club, Evan Doughty. ”It's a real shame… This was an exciting match.”
However, Evan was not willing to admit his loss just yet. ”The match over there has not ended.”
That's right. There were still three minutes remaining in the match at the Emirates Stadium. His words made the FA officials feel a little awkward.
There are only three minutes remaining in the match. Are you saying that a miracle could happen? It's already quite the feat that Manchester City was able to score a goal in that match. It means that they did put in effort and they did try to compete against Arsenal.
The trophy that they had brought over to Nottingham was nothing but a replicate. The real one was in London right now.
Don't tell me Forest still dreams of becoming champions? Stop dreaming!
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Arsenal's substitutes had all crowded collectively by the side of the pitch. They were all waiting to rush onto the pitch and celebrate with their teammates the moment the match ended. The Arsenal players on the pitch all had their heads in the clouds by then. What they wanted to hear the most then were the three blows to the referee's whistle, and what they wanted to do the most was to hug their teammates and celebrate becoming champions of the Premier League.
Who cares about the match?