Chapter 74: The Twin Stars Connection

Suker made two consecutive dribbles along the edge of the penalty box, creating enormous pressure on the opposing defense. The Sarajevo players were now buzzing with confusion in their heads. They did their best to limit Suker's passing by positioning themselves, but now this guy had started dribbling horizontally in front of their goal, causing chaos in the defensive line. The previous two times had been like this, so how should they defend next time? They couldn't find a reasonable answer. The main issue was that they couldn't keep up with his speed, and even if they fouled him in that area, they had to be careful. Who knew if Suker would suddenly make a run into the penalty box, which would risk giving away a penalty? At this moment, the Sarajevo defenders were in disarray. Meanwhile, at Mostar Zrinjski, they saw an opportunity for a forward run thanks to the chaos caused by Suker at the edge of the penalty box. "Yes! This is how we should play!" Van stoyak smiled broadly. He felt the tactic had fully opened up. Of course, these chances had all come from Suker's individual ability to create a significant threat in the final third. But this also indirectly proved his excellent vision. "Suker is playing better and better!" Assistant coach Vandil watched the chaos in Sarajevo's defense and smiled, saying, "Be careful, others might start taking notice!" Van stoyak confidently replied, "In Bosnia, no one can take him away!" The match had entered the 35th minute, and Mostar Zrinjski had taken control of the game thanks to Suker's excellent play on the wing. Of course, they were still occasionally caught on the counterattacks from Sarajevo. At this point, Sarajevo was clearly getting anxious. They no longer cared about any new tactics and instinctively started playing the ball out wide, crossing into the box. But with their hasty attacks, their formation was falling apart. After Maršović knocked the ball out of the penalty box, defensive midfielder Boban controlled it with his chest, spun, and immediately passed the ball to Modrić in the center circle. "Counterattack!!!" Boban shouted. In an instant, Mostar Zrinjski was on the counterattack. Modrić turned and dribbled forward, and upon spotting Suker, he passed the ball to him. The moment Suker received the ball, the Sarajevo defense suddenly panicked. They all tightly marked him. The previous dribbles had left them with a huge psychological burden. So, when Suker touched the ball this time, they didn't dare to make any big moves. However, Sarajevo's young full-back was already rushing toward Suker. "Don't stick out your foot!" Ivan Kričić shouted too late. As Ištvić closed in, Suker subtly faked an acceleration to the inside. When Ištvić shifted his weight, Suker immediately pulled the ball back, as if about to break through from the wing. Ištvić, now in a state of panic, clumsily shifted his weight and staggered toward the right side. Even if he fell, he was determined to stop Suker. But Suker suddenly stopped, flicking the ball with his right foot through Ištvić's legs. As Ištvić was sent tumbling, Suker smoothly bypassed him. "He's gone past him!!" Basodaci shouted loudly. Ivan Kričić saw the full-back being bypassed and, wary of Suker's shooting, immediately rushed over. But Suker flicked the ball forward. "Through ball! Kosović!" Kosović made a run, pulling both central defenders toward the touchline. Suker, continuing his run toward the edge of the penalty area, also drew the right-back away from Biljal. At this point, Biljal was in an unmarked position. Kosopvić had no shooting angle, so he received the ball and passed it quickly to Biljal. Another through ball! The ball went through the legs of Bičević, reaching Biljal's feet. Seeing the chance created by his teammate, Biljal smoothly pushed the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal with his foot. "Goal!!!!!!" "Mostar Zrinjski scores the first goal of the match, with Biljal helping the team secure the lead." "In this attack, Suker's dribbling and passing created a huge threat for the team." "Suker's dribbling in the first half helped the team gain the advantage, and his play also directly led to this goal!" The stadium erupted in cheers. Mostar Zrinjski's fans burst into a loud, jubilant roar. This counterattack was clean and efficient. Two precise passes sent the ball to Suk, who created an opportunity through his dribbling, passing, and Kosović's smart run, combined with Biljal's sharp positioning to score. Biljal was running around celebrating the goal. This was his 7th goal of the season, and compared to previous performances, he had really stepped up. In Suker's view, Biljal was definitely an underrated player. His off-the-ball movement and lateral runs always created space for shooting, and he had a good ability to seize opportunities. This allowed Mostar Zrinjski, through their quick passing, to send the ball to Biljal's feet. The goal shook up the game. For Sarajevo, they had tried to press the attack. They didn't just want to win; they wanted to win in style. But their overzealous pressing caused their formation to become disjointed, and with Suker's constant pressure on the wings, they ended up conceding the goal. "Don't worry about that goal. Let's focus on our rhythm and keep our heads up!" Ivan Kričić shouted encouragingly. He wanted to keep the morale high, but any goal conceded always left them feeling down. Especially with the way Mostar Zrinjski had played, they found it difficult to cope. Especially for Sarajevo's young full-back, Ištvić, who by now had lost his composure. Twice Suker had humiliated him, and his head was spinning. He had no idea how to defend against Suker. If he stretched out his leg, he'd be dribbled past; if he didn't, he would just be left behind, following Suker. What's worse, Suker's passing lanes were impossible for him to predict, leading him to fail at anticipating moves. As an ambitious young player, he wanted to push the starter Jorjači to the bench, but now he understood why Jorjači had been struggling. It wasn't about his inherent skill; it was because this guy in front of him was just too difficult to handle. "Well done!" Suker high-fived Modrić, both of them happy about the goal. "Now they want to press!" Suker said. Modrić nodded, "I see that too, but they don't seem to be very familiar with this style. They keep falling out of shape during the match!" Suker replied, "So we need to step it up, win the ball back, and I'll drop back to cover. You can try making runs forward!" Modrić immediately nodded. The next ten minutes were marked by an intense back-and-forth. Sarajevo pushed hard to equalize, sending more attacking players forward. Mostar Zrinjski, however, relentlessly pressured and countered. Both teams clashed in every corner of the field, and the tempo noticeably quickened. This back-and-forth battle had the fans on the edge of their seats. "Recovered it! Sarajevo passes the ball to the wing, Tillemanči dribbling at full speed, Kerpić pressing forward to limit him. Tillemanči is forced to slow down, oh!!! The ball is stolen!!" Basodaci shouted excitedly. Before Tillemanči could reach the touchline, Suker came from behind, stealing the ball with Kerpić's help. This time, Suerk had run all the way back to his own penalty area. "Great work in defense!" Seeing Suker's active involvement in defense, Jateginić couldn't help but praise him. There was no one who didn't like a player who worked hard and ran back. But Suker's performance wasn't over yet. With Sarajevo pressing forward, Suker passed the ball to Modrić after winning it, and then immediately started sprinting forward from his half. "Mostar Zrinjski is launching another counterattack!" Seeing Suker's rapid run, Modrić passed the ball forward to Kosović, and then began his own run. Suker and Modrić, one left and one right, sprinted forward from the wings. The full-backs also quickly moved forward to provide width. But halfway through Suker's run, he suddenly stopped. He realized that everyone was charging forward in a straight line, and no one was in a position to receive a pass from behind. Suker immediately made a lateral run, moving toward the space behind Kosović. At this moment, Kosović was back-to-goal, fighting with Sarajevo's center-back Ivan Kričić. "Don't even think about it!" "Get out of the way!" Both players were pushing each other furiously. Kosović was trying to free himself for a turn, while Ivan Kričić stayed tight on him, not allowing any space. Just then, Suker's voice rang out. "Captain, pass it back!" Kosović, hearing Suk's call, quickly looked up and, seeing Suker, immediately passed the ball to him. As Suker received the return pass, he pushed the ball sideways, aiming for the space created in the lateral zone, and sent a sharp through pass into it. "Lu-ka!!" At the moment of the pass, Suk shouted loudly. Modrić, hearing the call, immediately accelerated and broke through the defensive line. "Oh!!!! What a through pass!!" The commentator Basodaci shouted excitedly. Scouts and coaches in the stands clapped and praised the play. "Modrić, take your chance!" At the coach's bench, the coaching staff also stood up, visibly excited. In full view of the crowd, Modrić reached the ball first, with the goalkeeper rushing out to close down the shooting angle. As the goalkeeper dived to the side, Modrić gently chipped the ball, displaying an elegant finish. The ball sailed over the goalkeeper's head and slowly dropped into the net. In the final moments of the first half, Mostar Zrinjski led Sarajevo 2-0. Suker provided the assist, and Modrić scored! The Twin Stars of Mostar connected once again, delivering this brilliant goal!