My Football Legends Chat Group-Chapter 84: The halftime whistle

Not even wanting to speak after the tactical lecture, Farke pointed at the water bottles on the bench.

After hydrating, Rio caught up on some much-needed defensive positioning with Cooper on the sidelines. The increase in his Tactical Blueprint efficiency had been a tremendous boon, allowing him to visualize passing lanes a lot clearer.

Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t to the point where he could predict every single movement of the chaotic QPR midfield.

Once the clock hit the 20th minute, Rio reset his focus and signaled to Rutter to drop deep again before entering the mental zone and selecting the next tactical phase.

Since there was not a ’free roam’ option for the whole team, he had to guide them like chess pieces. However, this was not a bad thing, especially since the QPR defense never seemed to adjust their shape.

Plus, the point of the Captain’s Presence was to impose his will on the game and force errors.

After about five minutes of probing, Rio was done with his tactical setup. Since it was QPR, the resistance was around ’Low Block’ difficulty and was a mix of long balls, clearances, and desperate tackles.

Thankfully the System counted what his blueprint stats were and displayed it on the window in front of his eyes.

PASSES COMPLETED: 14

KEY PASSES: 3

INTERCEPTIONS: 2

DRIBBLES: 4

POSSESSION LOST: 1

SHOTS ON TARGET: 1

ASSISTS: 1 (Secondary)

"Not too bad."

Rio looked at the counter and was pleased. Since he was involved in every single attacking phase, it was hard to gauge just how well the team had performed without him pulling the strings.

Most of his lost possession stats were from ambitious through balls, which made him feel slightly better. Of course, he also received ’Key Passes’ for switching the play to James, but it was all experience that he could take with him to the Emirates.

He brought up the Seasonal Mission while he was at it, wanting to see how much progress he had made towards the big goal.

#SEASONAL MISSIONS:

Score 15 Goals in the League [4/15] - 1000 Major points + Silver Lottery ticket

Register 15 Assists in the League [5/15] - 1000 Major points + B-grade Vision Elixir

Win 10 Man of the Match Awards [2/10] - 1000 Major points + Silver Lottery ticket

Complete 50 Successful Dribbles [32/50] - 500 Major points

Win Possession in Final Third 50 times [12/50] - 500 Major points

Captain the Team to 5 Wins [1/5] - 2000 Major points + A-grade Leadership Elixir + Gold Lottery ticket

A wry smile climbed onto his lips as he saw the missions. The rewards seemed to be a little underwhelming now since a lot of his stats had been upgraded to the S grade.

However, at least he knew that the System offered Major Points in exchange for Elixirs that he could no longer use.

He was also rather far away from completing a lot of the missions thanks to focusing on his Creator mission for the last month. But he had faith that by the time he finished the Ascend to the Peak mission against Arsenal that they would all be progressing nicely.

"I’ll just have to be consistent."

Rio’s thoughts drifted to the idiom that Rome wasn’t built in a day, feeling it resonate with him deeply. As long as he continued to work hard, he would be able to forge the path towards the Premier League.

Archie Gray woke up to the familiar sound of his alarm clock blasting Oasis, causing him to stir awake. He looked over at his phone and saw it was 7 AM which he had expected.

Every morning his dad would be up from the early hours, analyzing old Leeds games for his coaching badges. This had been the case ever since Archie was little, therefore he didn’t have much of a reaction.

He never needed a second alarm since his dad would only start the analysis at 7, otherwise, he would face his mum’s wrath.

Archie headed downstairs, sending a muffled greeting to his father who was too busy shouting at the TV screen to hear him.

"Pass it! Pass it you muppet!" Andy Gray yelled, wielding his remote control enthusiastically.

If anyone else was to see the former legend shouting whilst wearing pajamas and holding a cup of tea they might laugh, however, Archie was used to this scene and able to ignore it.

Today was just like any other day yet he was feeling a hint of excitement, despite just waking up with a boot on his foot. It was going to be the first time watching Rio captain the team from the stands, a momentous occasion, even if it was just against QPR.

"Morning Mum."

Archie greeted his mother who was currently immersed in the school emails, armed with a steaming cup of coffee. Despite her husband being a morning person, she was the opposite.

Even though they had been a football family for almost 20 years, she still needed a few shots of coffee to function on matchdays.

"Mmm."

Receiving the usual grunt in response, Archie headed to the bathroom and washed up.

’He’ll only be playing as a 10 today, so maybe I’ll be able to learn some positioning while watching him from the box.’

With these thoughts in mind, he began to get ready, wanting to look professional for the day.

By the time he left the bathroom it was already 7:30, just in time for the carpool to arrive.

"Archie! Can you help your father bring in the analysis equipment?"

"Coming."

He entered his father’s den where the Oasis music was still playing. Usually, his father would see him come in and point to which of the tactical boards to bring out, however, this time he completely stopped what he was doing to stare at him.

His jaw dropped slightly, looking as if he had just seen a ghost.

"W-Why the hell are ya wearing a suit? Are ya off to a wedding?"

His Yorkshire accent seemed to get even deeper as he uttered those words.

Archie instantly felt his face redden, however, he puffed out his cheeks and quickly took the tactical board and left the room, leaving a stunned Andy.

"I ain’t ever seen him wear a suit to a home game before," he mumbled.

"Oh my goodness Andy, is this your son? He’s grown up to be so handsome."

One of the neighbors who was waiting outside called out after seeing Archie walk out with the gear.

"Thank you so much Mrs. Higgins, of course he takes after m—"

His mum’s words stopped abruptly after she turned to her son, her expression morphing into one similar to Andy’s.

Seeing his mum react in such a way as well, Archie felt even more embarrassed.

’Can’t I just wear a suit without being gawked at? Rio wears suits to awards nights!’

Back at Elland Road, the clock hit the 35th minute. Leeds were still 1-0 up, but QPR had started to settle.

Rio stood in the center circle, wiping sweat from his brow. The adrenaline of the early goal had worn off, and now the grind had begun.

Steve Cook was marshalling his defense better now, screaming at his midfielders to close the gaps.

"Don’t let him turn! Smash him if he turns!" Cook bellowed, pointing a finger at Rio.

Rio smirked.

’He’s still rattled.’

He looked over to the bench. Farke was pacing back and forth, looking agitated. Even though they were winning, the tempo had dropped.

"Ampadu! Move the ball faster!" Farke screamed.

Rio knew he had to do something. The Tactical Blueprint for the first goal had worked perfectly, but QPR had adapted. They were sitting even deeper now, cutting off the passing lanes to Rutter.

’Time for Plan B.’

Rio activated the System interface again.

[Tactical Blueprint Active]

[Select Pattern:]

> The Can Opener (Used)

> The Overload (Cost: 200 Major Points)

> The Solo Run (Cost: 1000 Major Points)

Rio checked his balance. He had enough for the Solo Run, but that felt selfish. The Overload was smarter.

He selected it.

Blue lines appeared on the pitch again. This time, they weren’t pointing forward. They were pointing wide.

"Dan! Crys! Switch!" Rio shouted.

James and Summerville looked confused, but they swapped wings. James went left, Summerville went right.

The QPR defenders, who had gotten used to their markers, looked unsettled.

"Now," Rio whispered.

He dropped deep, right next to Ampadu. This dragged the QPR midfielder, Field, out of position.

Rio played a quick one-two with Kamara and spun into the space Field had vacated.

He was driving at the defense again.

But this time, he didn’t look for the pass. He drove towards the right side, where Summerville was now stationed.

Two defenders rushed to double up on Summerville, fearing his dribbling.

This left a massive gap on the left.

"Dan! Go!"

Rio didn’t pass to James. He passed to the space where James was going to be.

He chipped a diagonal ball over the entire defense. It hung in the air for what felt like an eternity.

Begovic hesitated. Should he come? Should he stay?

James didn’t hesitate. He sprinted past the flat-footed right-back.

He met the ball on the volley.

THWACK.

It wasn’t a clean hit. It bounced into the ground.

But the bounce deceived Begovic. It looped over his head.

And nestled into the far corner.

GOAL.

2-0.

"YOU BEAUTY!" James screamed, running towards the corner flag.

Rio stood in the middle of the pitch, arms folded, smiling like a proud father.

"That’s how you use an overload," he muttered.

The crowd erupted. "ALL LEEDS AREN’T WE!"

Farke was clapping furiously on the touchline, looking relieved.

Rio looked up at the Director’s Box again. He could see a small figure in a suit jumping up and down.

’Nice suit, Archie,’ Rio thought, chuckling.

[System Notification]

[Tactical Blueprint Successful]

[Assist Recorded (Secondary)]

Rio checked the clock. 40th minute. 2-0 up.

"Let’s kill this before halftime," Rio shouted to his team.

But as they reset for the kickoff, Rio felt a vibration in his pocket.

[Chat Room Active]

The_King: 2-0 is a dangerous score. They will come out fighting in the second half. Do not relax.

Total_Football_14: You have shown them the blueprint. Now, show them the improvisation. Do something they cannot analyze.

Zizou_5: And tell James to stop scuffing his volleys. It looks messy.

Rio laughed.

"Okay, Zizou," he whispered. "Improvisation it is."

He looked at Steve Cook. The QPR captain looked broken.

Rio decided to add a little flair.

As the ball came to him from the kickoff, he didn’t pass.

He did a roulette.

Right past Cook.

The crowd gasped.

"Olé!"

Rio drove forward. The halftime whistle was approaching.