NUTMEG, CHAPTER 4: THE GAMES WE PLAY

15^th SEPTEMBER 2018, 7:19 PM

With guilt dripping from his eyes, Parth glanced sideways at the reflection in the mirror in his room. The evidence of the extent of abuse he had subjected his body to laid bare before his eyes. He slowly moved his arm over the bulge in middle of his body, stark in contrast to his slender frame. The flabs on his hardly toned arms were enough for him to pull his t-shirt back on with a sigh of desperation. The task was going to harder than he thought. Lately, he has been paying close attention to his appearance, something he had been oblivious to ever since he finished college. Deep down he knew who the reason for this was, and he was glad, amidst his blossoming friendship with Navya, when she announced that she would be away for a month of training, for it provided him with time to improve his physique. However, until this moment he had underestimated the effect the weekly bottles of beer and rampant gorging on junk food had been having on him. The thought slowly crept towards the back of his mind as he geared up for Barcelona’s next game against Real Sociedad at the famed Anoeta.

Anoeta has been a fortress of suffering for Barcelona for several years now, winning there just once in last 10 years. Apart from this fact, termed as the ‘Anoeta Curse’, to make matters worse for Barcelona, this game was right after the international break, where all the players are involved in games for their respective national sides and are generally fatigued. Keeping that in mind, coach Valverde opted for rotations, resting Busquets and Coutinho and giving fringe players like Rafinha a chance to make an impression. Though it didn’t take long before the curse started showing its omen, with Sociedad taking the lead in the 12^th minute. A free kick into the Barcelona’s box and was headed down and then, hit with a sublime volley and the ball bounced into the net, just kissing the goal post on the way in. There was nothing Barcelona’s goalkeeper, Marc Andre Ter Stegen, could do to save it. The remaining of the first half was frustrating for Barcelona and Parth as the team failed to muster any clear goal scoring opportunities, with the best chance coming to Gerard Pique from two well taken corners. Without Busquets, Barcelona were guilty of losing possession of the ball too easily in the midfield and the only reason they weren’t punished more was thanks to Sociedad’s wayward finishing.

The cruelty of the football world is such that all the major accolades are reserved for the goal scorers and creators while the defence is barely acknowledged. Even more precarious is the position of the goalkeeper as even a simple mistake can result in a goal for the opponents. However, a goalkeeper is the essence of the team, the last line of defence and the first point of attack. Big teams are realizing that now and are investing heavily in reinforcing the position for their teams. Sociedad would have run Barcelona rampant on the night if it hadn’t been for Ter Stegen. The German keeper, who is steadily earning the reputation as one of the best in the world, was elemental in keeping Barcelona is the game with two great one-on-one saves. If Sociedad had scored, it would have been difficult for Barcelona to muster a comeback with so many goals down.

Ter Stegen’s bravado swayed Parth’s mind back to his college days. He had joined the college football team as a novice and he, just like others looked up to the captain, Kunal, the goalkeeper of the team. The calm demeanor and striking personality made Kunal popular in the entire college. Parth had joined the team to play as a striker, because scoring goals is all that mattered to him. However, having senior strikers in the team, Parth rarely got a chance to play until the day, when Kunal suffered a minor injury and asked Parth to stand-in for him as a keeper, since the regular backup wasn’t present, as he nursed his bruise with an ice-pack. Parth remembered being nervous but was even excited, being finally able to take part in the action. He let in 2 goals and made a string of decent saves but following that day he was made the backup keeper in the team and Parth hated every moment of it. This wasn’t his favored position but Kunal was adamant in forcing him to play as a goal-keeper. Unable to suppress his angst any longer, he had a heated outburst at Kunal, who just stood patiently grasping the abuses hurled at him. That incident marked the end of Parth’s association with the team and football in general as he never stepped on the field since.

Snapping back to present time, coach Valverde opted to bring more control into the midfield by introducing the formidable duo of Busquets and Rakitic at the start of the second half. Ter Stegen’s performance was soon complimented by the attackers as Dembele and Suarez scored two goals in quick succession to hand Barcelona the lead. The goals were scrappy, in contrast to the beautiful build play that Barcelona fans are so accustomed to, even somewhat opportunistic. Sociedad were determined to not go down so easily as they created chances after chances only to be thwarted by the brilliance of Ter Stegen again or their own misfiring shots. Parth breathed a sigh of relief as the referee called the end of the game.  It was a hard-earned victory, and clearly not a dominant display by any stretch of imagination. Perhaps to win the league tournament, which lasts over 9 months, the team should be able to snatch victories even when they aren’t at their best, felt Parth. The memory from college troubled him again, as he slowly gulped his dinner and he felt it was about time he talked to somebody about it. To his surprise, only one, but unexpected, name popped up in his head, “Prabhu Dada”!