The Golden Winged Of Football: Haruma Kusaka

Chapter 144 144: The Battle For Control

The entire stadium echoed with the sharp blast of the referee's whistle, and the players instantly threw themselves into the action. The Qatari squad opened the match carefully keeping possession, avoiding any risky moves as they neatly passed the ball around their backline.Down on the sidelines, Haruma sat on the bench, his eyes intensely locked on the pitch, tracking every single movement.

The ball went flying to a Qatari midfielder, who brought it down cleanly and quickly sent a precise pass forward, Izaya lunged in, trying to intercept mid-way but the ball sliced right past him, successfully reaching the feet of the Qatari winger.

Wasting no time, the Qatari winger exploded forward, closing in on the penalty box. But Gaku came sprinting across to block his path, carefully tracking the attacker's, doing well holding him back.

The winger tried to use a quick dribble to burst past, but Gaku remained perfectly patient, shifting his weight and shutting down every trick the attacker was attempting.

Growing frustrated by the tight defense, the Qatari player suddenly turned back, abandoning the push and retreating toward his own half, with Gaku right on his heels, tightly marking his back.

Seeing Gaku's relentless pursuit, the Qatari player quickly sent the ball back to his midfielder who without wasting much time send a first touch pass right back to the same winger, who used a sudden burst of speed to slip past Gaku this time.

Stunned by the quick combination, Gaku scrambled to recover, but the winger had already whipped a sharp, low cross directly into the penalty box, where Firas was charging in, ready to strike.

Reacting instantly, Kurogami moved across to block the angle Firas was tracking to shoot.

The ball zipped toward the Qatari captain, but just as Firas began to swing his leg, Takezu came sliding in out of nowhere, clearing the ball away mere seconds before it could reach Firas's boot.

The Japanese crowd exploded in loud applause, the bench players roaring in appreciation, while Haruma raised his hands over his head to clap.

The ball went flying back toward the center of the pitch. Back in defense, Takezu smirked proudly at the crucial interception before quickly shifting back into his defensive position.

Time ticked away, and the opening ten minutes belonged completely to Qatar, who maintained a firm grip on possession, carefully circulating the ball from side to side to test the Japanese lines.

In the 12th minute, the ball reached a Qatari midfielder who took a moment to scan the field, but at the same instant Jiho came rushing at him with high pressure, causing the midfielder to send the ball backward, recycling possession to his defense.

Frustrated by the constant back-passing, Jiho threw his arms up in the air. "Come on!" he scoffed.

The Qatari center-back held the ball for a brief moment before sending a short pass up to another midfielder.

And just as that midfielder prepared to push the attack forward, Nagisa quickly stepped up to block his path, causing the Qatari midfielder to turn around once again and recycle the ball back to the defense.

The defender controlled it for a second, casually raising his arm as if signaling a tactical shift, before suddenly launching a powerful, long-range switch across the field, sending a flying pass deep toward the opposite wing.

Taken completely off guard by the sudden change in pace, the Japanese players scrambled to adjust, quickly rushing over to cover the flank.

The ball sailed through the air and reached the Qatari winger, who brought it down cleanly with his chest before letting it drop to his feet. Just as he shifted to push forward, Senji came sliding in with an aggressive challenge, but the winger reacted instantly, clipping the ball aside to avoid the tackle.

Keeping his composure, the winger pushed ahead and whipped a sharp, low pass near the edge of the box, where Firas cleanly took control.

With their teeth clenched in determination, Takezu and Kabuto threw themselves directly into his line of sight, tightly blocking his path to the goal.

Taking a deep breath, Firas swung his foot and struck the ball with immense power, sending a bullet toward the net that ripped right past the defensive wall of Takezu and Kabuto, leaving both of them completely stunned.

The shot flew like a missile, tearing toward the open far corner of the net. From there Kurogami went airborne, executing a spectacular diving save to catch the ball mid-flight. He crashed heavily onto the grass, but held firm, locking the ball securely against his chest.

'Whaaaat a saveeeee!' the commentator yelled.

The Japanese crowd once again erupted into a frenzy of cheers. Down on the bench, Haruma let out a breath of relief, while the other substitutes roared to hype up the massive moment.

On the sidelines, Kento and Raon clapped enthusiastically, applauding their goalkeeper's brilliant reflexes…

Still on the grass, cradling the ball tightly against his chest, Kurogami took a quick, heavy breath before pushing himself back up onto his feet. Now standing tall in his penalty box, he immediately began scanning the pitch.

'That was a top-tier shot and a top-tier save! What a thrilling clash between the captains!'

Spotting an opening, Kurogami rolled the ball out to Kabuto, who took it in stride and began moving forward. Taking a few steps he then paused just past the defensive line, holding the ball, scanning the field.

Watching his pause a Qatari striker burst forward to close him down, but Kabuto calmly slipped a neat pass across the turf to Gaku.

The moment the ball arrived, Gaku took barely a single touch before threading a quick pass into the midfield toward Izaya.

Watching the ball roll, a Qatari midfielder burst

into a full sprint, closing the distance immediately.

The moment Izaya took control, he cleverly shifted his weight, shielding the ball from that midfielder.

The midfielder kept trying to break through Izaya's shield, but Izaya remained stubborn, using his back to lock the opponent out. His eyes frantically darted across the pitch before he quickly sent a sharp pass through the gap toward Jiho.

As Jiho watched the ball roll into his path, he began adjusting his stance to take control but, out of the corner of his eye, he sensed another Qatari midfielder already rushing in, desperately stretching out a long leg to intercept the ball.

Once collecting the ball, Jiho clenched his teeth and pulled the ball back at the very last moment avoiding the outstretched leg cleanly.

Pushing past him, Jiho lifted his head, and saw Koujin already racing towards the box.

Seeing the run, Jiho's smirk widened, and he drove a firm, low pass directly into the open space ahead of his teammate.

Sensing the danger, the Qatari fullback reacted instantly and broke in a sprint, chasing the ball.

Every stride brought the defender closer as the ball rolled toward the flank, but his efforts were too late because it was Koujin who reached the ball first, taking it in stride.

Without slowing down, Koujin pushed the ball ahead with his first touch and burst toward the box.

The Qatari fullback threw himself alongside him, slamming shoulder-to-shoulder in a desperate attempt to force him wide. But the winger maintained his balance, gritting his teeth as he drove hard toward the edge of the penalty area.

Inside the box, the Qatari goalkeeper stepped off his goal line, knees bent and eyes completely fixed on the ball.

Holding possession for a fraction of a second, Koujin suddenly dragged the ball back slightly, shifting it quickly to create a pocket of space. With the window open, he struck the ball with power.

In the stands and on the sidelines, the Japanese crowds fell silent as Keiichi, Ameha, Shuya, Kento, Raon, Isamu, Itsuki, and Haruma all watched with wide eyes, their gazes locked entirely on the flight of the ball.

The ball flew through the air, curling toward the far corner of the net, completely out of the goalkeeper's reach.

But just as it was about to cross the line, a Qatari defender came flying across the goalmouth, clearing the ball mid-flight with a desperate, acrobatic volley.

A collective gasp swept through the stadium as the Japanese supporters, who had already jumped to their feet to celebrate, sank back down into their seats in disbelief.

'Brilliant! What a brilliant clearance from Luqman! He just saved a certain goal right there!'

On the sidelines, Kento and Raon remained frozen, their eyes locked on the field. Haruma lowered his head for a brief moment, letting out a sharp breath, before lifting his eyes back to the pitch with his focus completely restored.

Ismau, Ameha, Shuya, Itsuki, and Haru all wore the same look of frustration, each shaking their heads lightly.

Rising quickly from the grass, Luqman had a wide, confident smirk playing across his face.

On the other hand, Koujin stood frozen in frustration, staring intensely at the defender.

Keeping his smirk, Luqman casually walked right past him, intentionally giving Koujin a slight nudge with his shoulder as he moved back into position.

Frustrated, Koujin watched him walk away, his fists clenched…