Rise of a Football God

Sam's demeanor was moody after the game, something that Kayla was not used to seeing and it was safe to say that the English woman was worried.

That evening, Sam finally experienced and understood what Fulham fans felt when he and his teammates fail to clinch the victory, surrendering leads to draw or even lose the game.

Before, he always saw it from a first person POV on the pitch where he was giving his all, fighting to clinch the victory.

Since making the switch from Enyimba FC to Fulham FC, losing no longer became as regular for the West London club but still, Fulham lost games.

On the pitch, after losing, Sam felt devastated every single time but it was a feeling that he could always shrug and move on from quickly simply because he was exhausted after giving his all on the pitch, and also because Coach Marco Silva urged them to forget about the result, focusing on their next game.

But as a fan, there was no coach to massage their hurt egos and sooth their heartbroken hearts, they had to face the heartbreak alone.

And today, Sam finally experienced it first-hand.

As an avid FC Barcelona fan, Sam knew this feeling which was most prominent in his life in the 2018/2019 season when Liverpool did that unforgettable comeback against Barca in the champions league semifinals.

It was the same feeling when a prime Bayern Munich side led by a prime Lewandowski thrashed FC Barcelona 8-2.

In those nights, Sam could not sleep, he felt like he would die.

'Damn!' He sighed. 'It's not easy to be a football fan'.

In the end, he could not bear to see Kayla so worried while not understanding exactly what happened to him. She failed to make the connection that it was the result of today's game that was affecting him.

Heck, it was not even a loss but after seeing his club go 2 goals ahead of their opponents so convincingly, to suddenly lose it all in such fashion was so heartbreaking to Sam.

In the end, he let it out, telling his girlfriend exactly what was wrong with him and for a moment, Kayla was stunned and amused.

"Wow…, I never could have thought". She chuckled.

Sam pouted. "Are you mocking me?"

"No, I mean, no," she laughed, covering her mouth.

Sam scowled. "Never mind".

"No, come on," she went closer but seeing Sam resist her approach, she feigned crying. "Come on babe, I'll cry".

In the end, Sam allowed his girlfriend to comfort him. In that moment, he thought. 'It feels so good to have a girlfriend'.

But then he had another thought. 'What of those Fulham fans who don't have girlfriends?' His eyes widened. 'How do they deal with the pain?'

He suddenly felt devastated again.

…

After the game, the mood in the Fulham dressing room felt like a funeral as the players rued their missed chances and how they threw the game away so easily to their opponents despite dominating throughout.

In the end, the experienced Coach Marco Silva motivated his team. "Don't worry, it's just a draw, not a loss".

"Instead of wallowing in sorrow like this, use it as motivation towards our next game. You must not make the same mistake!" His voice rose up a crescendo.

"You must not make the same mistake, got me?"

"Yes coach".

With that, they left.

…

The worst part of football was that the scheduling didn't give a damn about your feelings, or your current mental state.

After that damning draw against Bournemouth at home despite dominating the game, all the Fulham players were mentally affected but football didn't give a damn, they still had another game to play in just 3 games.

And so, the Fulham players were forced to pick themselves up and return to training, preparing for their next game in the EFL Cup.

(EFL Cup Quarter final:)

(Crystal Palace – Fulham)

(Date: 2nd January, 2025)

Having won the EFL Cup last season, it was another opportunity for them to extend history in this club and win it for a second successive year since they were already in the quarter finals.

In the build-up to the game, the Fulham squad felt optimistic about their chances, so much that after such a grueling run of games, Coach Marco Silva decided to rotate his team for the EFL Cup game.

After such a run of games, fatigue was already affecting most of his players, the Fulham coach had no choice but to make the decision.

Like that, time moved and in no time, it was D-day.

The final Fulham starting XI was already finalized.

Muniz started in attack but behind him was another crop of faces entirely as Harry Wilson, Pereira, and Adama Traore started behind him. Fulham's midfield and defense experienced changes, including the goalkeeper position for this game.

It was a different look Fulham in South Norwood as Crystal Palace welcomed them in their Selhurst Park Stadium.

Unlike Fulham who took the risk of making changes, Crystal Palace kept their strongest lineup for this quarter final game.

Starting in their usual 3-4-2-1 formation, Juan Philippe Mateta led the line as the striker and behind him was the duo of Eberechi Eze and Ismaila Sarr.

Further behind them comprised the midfield quadruple of Mitchell, Lerma, Hughes, and Kporha. The 3-man defense comprised of March Guehi, Lacroix, and the ex-Chelsea defender, Trevor Chalobah.

Dean Henderson started in between the posts for Crystal Palace.

The home fans in Selhurst Park did their best to create a hostile environment for the visitors as their loud noise rose through the roof.

It was a tough time for Fulham as they had to scale through games without their talisman in Sam, but this team was determined to rise to the occasion.

After letting up against Bournemouth already, they had no intentions of doing it a second time, this was why all the Fulham players retained their focus despite the hostile environment that was created by the Crystal Palace fans.

And then, the referee's whistle finally went off, signaling the start of the game.

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