Rise of a Football God

Another premier league matchday, another set of exciting heavyweight clashes in the most watched football league in the world.

(Premier league:)

(Matchday 15:)

(Everton – Liverpool)

(Date: Postponed- Time TBD)

…

(Brentford 4-2 Newcastle)

(Date: 7th December, 2024)

…

(Aston Villa 1-0 Southampton)

(Date: 7th December, 2024)

…

(Crystal Palace 2-2 Man City)

(Date: 7th December, 2024)

…

(Man United 2-3 Nottm Forest)

(Date: 7th December, 2024)

…

(Fulham – Arsenal)

(Date: 8th December, 2024)

…

(Leicester City – Brighton)

(Date: 8th December, 2024)

…
Experience more on empire

(Ipswich Town – Bournemouth)

(Date: 8th December, 2024)

…

(Tottenham – Chelsea)

(Date: 8th December, 2024)

…

(West Ham – Wolves)

(Date: 9th December, 2024)

With the Everton vs Liverpool clash postponed, 4 of the 10 exciting clashes of matchday 15 of the English premier league were already played but the Fulham players didn't pay attention to that yet as they focused on their own challenge.

Arsenal was not going to be an easy stumbling block to climb.

At some point in the new season, Arsenal seemed to lose their title-pushing momentum after losing their captain, Martin Odegaard to injury. But now, with their captain's return, Arsenal seemed to be back to their usual imperious form.

Coach Marco Silva was wary about the threat of their opponents but not deviating from his way, this coach set up his team in its normal balanced formation.

Besides, it was a home game, Fulham had no intention of playing cowardly.

Just like expected, both teams started with their strongest starting XI.

For Fulham, the regular, Bernd Leno started in between the posts while directly in front of him was the quadruple of Tete, Diop, Bassey and Robinson. Ahead of them was the midfield duo of Berge and Lukic.

Ahead of the midfielders was the attacking triumvate of Alex Iwobi, Emile Smith Rowe, and Sam. Today, Raul Jimenez started as the striker.

Compared to them though, the Arsenal team lineup looked far more imposing like an all-star gathering of heavyweights.

Starting in their typical 4-3-3 formation, their 3-man attack comprised of Leandro Trossard on the left, Kai Havertz in the middle, and Bukayo Saka mounting his post on the right side of the pitch.

Their midfield trio comprised of Declan Rice, Jorginho, and Martin Odegaard, while their 4-man defense was formed by Jurrien Timber, Kiwior, William Saliba, and Thomas Party in right back, covering for the injured starting right back for Arsenal.

Naturally, the Spaniard, David Raya started in between the posts.

That Sunday evening, the build-up to this game was already crazy as the Fulham home supporters created an electric atmosphere to support their team.

Even more than the Brighton game, their voice was loud, rising through the roof of Craven Cottage.

It truly felt like a derby game.

And when the referee's whistle eventually sounded, it was the signal to start the tug of war between 2 in-form teams.

FWEEEE!

Arsenal started kick-off and within just a few minutes, they managed to steal authority over this game from Fulham despite the loud noise being made by their fans, signs of a great team with an elite mentality.

Arsenal dominated early, showing signs of getting an early lead but against the run of play in the early proceedings, the home side stunned Arsenal.

And for the umpteenth time this season, it was all Sam-orchestrated.

Whoosh!

Having noticed a weakness in the Arsenal midfield already, Sam slid in as soon as Jorginho got the ball, winning back possession with a perfect sliding tackle.

Before the Italian could recover, he raised his head, spotting Jimenez' run in-behind immediately, then…

Bam!

Sam did not hesitate, hitting the ball up and high as it rose above the imperious Arsenal defense led by William Saliba.

Raul Jimenez just managed to beat the imperious French defender for pace, squirming past Kiwior after before hitting the ball on a first-time volley.

BAM!

One hit, one goal…, the net rippled!

It was Raul Jimenez's first touch of the game and it resulted in a goal.

"GOALLLL…!!!" Craven Cottage exploded.

"Damn! What a perfect pass!" The commentator raved.

"That sliding tackle to steal the ball was near perfect, and then that lobbed pass? That was just world-class from Sam, absolute world-class!"

"And then the finish? It was all vintage Fulham in display!"

"Sam, what a prodigy we're bearing witness to!"

While the commentator raved, Raul Jimenez charged towards the corner flag, sliding on his knees in celebration as he pumped his fists excitedly, passionately taking in the adoration of the home fans.

But after standing up, he pointed towards one of his teammates immediately, Sam, attributing the glory of this goal towards him.

And finally getting over their initial excitement caused by the goal, the home fans responded immediately, starting a familiar chant.

"Sam!" "Sam!" "Sam!"

The chants exploded all across this stadium, a prelude to another Sam masterclass in Craven Cottage.

FWEEEE!

When the game restarted, Arsenal rallied behind their star attacking players, going on deadly attacking raids at the Fulham box.

But Fulham didn't stay idle either.

With Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard orchestrating the threat for Arsenal, Sam and Emile Smith Rowe stayed at the heart of everything Fulham.

These 2 friends entered samba mode on the pitch, passing and showcasing tiki-taka football, then the silky dribbles…, both of them were in imperious form.

Together, they tortured the Arsenal defense time and time again, making this game an even and exciting end-to-end encounter.

All the fans in this stadium, both the home and away fans had their hearts in their throats throughout the first half as both teams kept on having their chances.

Despite trying their best, Arsenal simply could not break the rugged and compact Fulham defensive set-up in the first half as stunning the world of football again, Fulham actually went to half-time leading 1-0 against Arsenal!

The game was yet to come to an end, but the world of football was already experiencing upheavals in social media as fans raved about Fulham's form.

During half-time, Coach Marco Silva only had a little team talk with his players, urging them to do what they do best in the second half against Arsenal.

And finally, the 11 players of both sides made their way to the pitch again.

The atmosphere in Craven Cottage was still fever-pitch.