Harbinger Of Glory

On the pitch, Højlund stood over the ball and looked towards Bruno, who was watching the official!

Michael Oliver walked over and took his place nearby as the stadium slightly quietened in anticipation of the restart!

”One goal apiece. Forty-five minutes still to be written,” Drury said once more as the camera panned out!

”Manchester United with home advantage. Wigan with belief that has only grown stronger as this extraordinary afternoon has unfolded.”

Beside him, Carragher leaned forward.

”This is where we find out which side learned more from that first half.”

Drury returned as, down on the pitch, Michael Oliver brought his whistle to his lips and let the shrill sound invade the pitch!

”The Theatre of Dreams awaits the second act.”

.....

High above the pitch, Vittoria glanced toward the empty seat beside her and sighed.

Gianna had disappeared toward the washroom shortly before the second half began, leaving Vittoria watching the players return without her.

”Where is she now?” Vittoria muttered and then reached for her phone.

Before her phone could even ring a second time, Gianna picked up!

”Hello?”

”The match has started.”

”I know.”

Vittoria frowned.

”I can hear it,” Gianna said from the other side before chuckling slightly.

”I’m coming,” she said a second later, to which Vittoria just sighed.

The call ended, leaving Vittoria slipping her phone back into her bag and then turning her attention towards the pitch just as Manchester United moved the ball forward.

She leaned closer to the glass and down below, the second half had barely begun, yet neither side looked particularly interested in feeling its way into it.

United moved the ball quickly from the restart with Bruno dropping toward the centre circle to receive before immediately turning his body toward the Wigan half.

Reyes stepped forward immediately, trying to combat his fellow national man, but Bruno shifted it just past him and then sent it long, right into the path of Marcus Rashford, who had already turned on the jets.

The pass came into his path, and the winger took it in stride easily, slipping another touch to get past Joe Bennett, who tried to hold him back!

”Rashford’s away early here!”

Drury’s voice rose as Rashford accelerated down the flank with Bennett chasing desperately behind him!

Seeing the space that had been opened up by Bennett’s absence, Leo shifted across to cover, but once more, Rashford pushed the ball beyond the wing-back and went after it himself.

The Wigan defence found themselves desperately scrambling to find their lines as Rashford reached the final third, looked up and cut inside.

Without waiting, the Englishman slipped his foot under the ball and then lifted it into the air!

The ball was teasing and tempting, but somehow, Jake, who was supposed to be at the front, was the one clearing it as Hojlund tried to win the ball.

The Wigan fans, seeing this, felt a wave of relief wash over them, but Jake’s header had only gone so far when

Garnacho found it, shifted the ball onto his right foot and drove toward the gap between Femi Seriki and Curtis Tilt.

The Argentine looked open for a minute, the path to goal widening by the second, but when he tried to go for it, Tilt shifted outwards, blocking the route and then forcing Rashford to release the ball toward Bruno at the edge of the box.

The Wigan defence turned to spectators, watching as the ball rolled towards the Portuguese maestro and without a moment’s thought, the latter drew his leg back and then ran through the ball!

”IT’S BRUUNOOOO!”

The ball shot off his foot right as Drury’s voice came over the broadcast, but at the last, Tilt got his body into the path of the ball, absorbing the brunt of it without even showing a wince.

The shot hit the defender and ricocheted away, saving Wigan from a potential disaster!

”That was a very good sequence of play. Wigan have escaped, but they might have to rethink their approach towards this game because United have kicked the half off looking like a shell of their first half selves, and I mean this in a good way.”

”United ’s straight at them, and Wigan have barely had time to breathe.”

Femi Seriki, who had been lurking right at the edge of the Wigan box, chased after the ball and got to it under pressure from Varane, but he did enough to slip the ball into Ezra.

On his first touch, the winger directed the ball into Reyes, who had settled centrally.

The Portuguese glanced behind him before spinning with the ball right past the form of Eriksen before finding Leo, who had somehow also joined this Wigan cohort!

Leo’s first touch took him away from the nearest red shirt, and as he did, the green space began to unravel in front of his eyes, and he didn’t waste any time.

He carried the ball through the middle for a few strides before opening his body and sending it out toward Ezra, who had outpaced Varane despite the veteran’s best efforts to keep up!

Eventually, he cut in and found Lindelof waiting for him, causing him to slow down a bit, but before the latter could think, Ezra pushed the ball outwards again, sending it towards the byline!

The Swede went with him, sticking an arm out to keep Ezra in his sights, but it was all for nought when Ezra kept the ball between his legs and then suddenly cut back.

Lindelof, not expecting the sudden move, faltered a bit and strained to recover, but when he picked himself up, all he saw was Ezra bursting back inside and dragging the ball with his left foot!

”Ezra has got Lindelof crawling!” Drury called. ”And that’s a lovely little change of pace!”

Ezra, now in the box, had a route to goal, no matter how abysmally it looked!

He feigned a shot, keeping the United players in tenterhooks before spotting Carlo coming from the opposite side.

It looked like a clear route to Carlo, but the ball would be too close to Onana, and Ezra resisted the cross and instead rolled it back into Leo’s path.

The ball, rolled on the turf, slowly found itself in Leo’s embrace, and what came next was the best of touches a ball could even be subjected to as Leo slipped his right foot under the ball and then used the momentum to lift it over the United setup!

Jake, the subject of attention for Leo, held off Maguire well as the ball fell towards him!

He could feel the Manchester United player panting right behind his neck, but he held on, right until Onana shot off his line, and the second the keeper took another step, Jake put his head to the ball!