Rise of a Football God

After the game against Manchester City at the Etihad, Fulham FC was in great spirits. They felt invincible already in the premier league.

It was still just the beginning of the premier league but topping the league table, this was something that every single player of this squad had never experienced throughout their whole career.

Experiencing it now felt so strange and surreal, and then came the pressure.

The premier league was a heavily broadcasted league. By staying at the top of the premier league table, Fulham was suddenly under the spotlight.

A lot of people wanted them to fail, even more predicted them to fail, and others were simply watching from the sidelines, waiting to see how long they would keep it up before finally faltering.

And the media publicity?

All of this was putting a lot of pressure on the shoulders of the Fulham players, and after the Man City game, this pressure only increased.

The pressure to keep on performing, the pressure to not let up, even Sam was not immune to it. Despite his mentality, Sam felt the pressure and it made him even more desperate to keep on working hard.

He coped better with the pressure through his occasional meditation routine.

Luckily for them, they were not thrown straight into another game after the Manchester City game. Unlike other premier league clubs that played in European competitions, during this time, Fulham was relatively free.

This was why they had a whooping 13 days to rest after the Man City game.

Their next game was against Aston Villa in the premier league.

(Premier league:)

(Fulham – Aston Villa)

(Date: 19th October, 2024)

With 13 days to rest, take in all the feelings of the last game, shed away the pressure and prepare, the Fulham players were more or less set for their next game far before 19th came.

To them, it was just going to be another day at work; this mindset was what helped them cope with the pressure of staying on top.

Like expected, both teams started with their strongest lineups.

Having displaced Muniz in recent weeks, Raul Jimenez started as the striker for Fulham. Behind him was the trio of Emile Smith Rowe, Sam, and Adama Traore, while the 2-man midfield behind them comprised of Pereira and Alex Iwobi.

The 4-man defense comprised of Tete, Andersen, Calvin Bassey, and Robinson, while Bernd Leno naturally started in between the posts.

For Aston Villa, employing the same 4-2-3-1 formation as Fulham, Ollie Watkins started as their striker while behind him was the trio of Morgan Rogers, Ramsey, and Leon Bailey.

Behind them was the 2-man midfield of Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans, while their 4-man defense comprised Digne, Torres, Carlos, and Cash.

Emiliano Martinez, the famous Argentine goalkeeper started as the last man in between the posts for Aston Villa.

Having gotten a famous result away from home at the Etihad, the fact that this game was being played in Craven Cottage bolstered the Fulham players even more. They were the favorites to win.

The fans in black, white, and red were loud around the stadium.

And when the whistle eventually sounded, the players rode the momentum and energy that was being generated by their loud noise.

FWEEEE!

From the first minute, Fulham started this game on the front foot.

In terms of recent form, Fulham was dubbed as the superior team this game and they showed it on the pitch as they dominated the proceedings during the early minutes of this game.

Having been largely suffocated at the Etihad, forced into a defensive role, Sam was eager to get back into his mojo and it was showing.

His first dribble with the ball and shot almost resulted in a goal as he hit the post in just the 2nd minute of this game, but that was just the beginning as 3 minutes later, Sam played an unreal defense-splitting pass.

The center back duo of Torres and Carlos were deleted by that unreal pass, leaving Raul Jimenez one-on-one with Dibu Martinez, the Aston Villa goalie.

Jimenez did not miss his mark, rifling the ball into the top corner.

In just the 5th minute of this game, Fulham's superiority showed as they scored and Sam got his 6th assist of the season.

That was now 6 goals and 6 assists in 11 games this season.

When play restarted, Fulham hoped to build on their early momentum and they did as they kept on leading proceedings, until a moment of shock just 4 minutes later against the run of play stunned them.

It was the Aston Villa attacking midfielder, Morgan Rogers that tore the script of this game apart, singlehandedly writing a new one for his team.

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Against the run of play, this midfielder stole the ball just outside the Fulham 18-yard box. With a feint, he beat Pereira before setting himself up and unleashing an unreal outside the box shot that homed into the top right corner like a missile.

Craven Cottage was silenced…, no one saw this coming.

"And where did this come from?!" The commentator raved.

"What a goal from Rogers! Quick feet to wriggle past Pereira, and an absolutely thunderous shot to beat Leno, what a goal!"

"And just like that, Aston Villa are back in the game".n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Maybe this is not going to be just another at walk at the park for Fulham after all".

In the 9th minute, just 4 minutes after Fulham opened the scoring, Aston Villa equalized, bringing the scores back level 1-1.

FWEEEE!

When the game restarted, the Fulham players pressed on led by Sam but after that goal, Aston Villa became much more solid.

They played like an impenetrable rock with no visible weak points.

Their offense, midfield, and defense were rock solid, not too threatening but they were having a solid game away from home.

After those 2 lightning fast goals in the early proceedings, goals dried up in this game and despite both sides having their moments, none of them could break the deadlock again as the first half ended 1-1.

During halftime, Coach Marco Silva had a little talk with his players before sending them back into the pitch but clearly, his words were not effective enough.

Fulham started the second half weaker than the first as Aston Villa came out roaring from halftime like a Dragon, quickly proving to be the superior team.

It almost seemed like their tactic was conserving their energy in the first half only to show their true colors in the second half.

Fulham tried to regain control of this game even as they lost it but before they could, matters worsened in the 59th minute of this game.

Lashing onto a pass across the face of goal, the sharp Ollie Watkins poked into an empty net to give Aston Villa the lead.

"GOALLLL…!" The commentator screamed.

"Damn! This is football, unpredictable!"

"Nobody saw this coming during that first half, but here we are, Aston Villa are actually leading Fulham at home!"

"Craven Cottage is as silent as a graveyard".

"They clearly didn't see this coming, neither did we".

Charging towards the corner flag, Ollie Watkins slid on his knees in celebration. While they celebrated, the Fulham players focused on themselves.

"Come on!" Sam clapped, riling his teammates up.

They could not draw against Manchester City at the Etihad and come back home triumphantly only to lose in the next game, or even draw again.

When the game restarted, the Fulham intensity increased immediately, almost turning a bit reckless.

Yes, it was reckless because in the 64th minute, disaster struck.

"Oh, what a horror tackle by Andersen".

"What is the referee's decision going to be?"

FWEEEE!

"Oh! It's a straight red card!"

"Wow, Fulham are down to 10 men in the 64th minute!"