The stadium held its breath.

Leo Stone had played the perfect pass. Erik Olsen was running clear on goal. It was the 30th minute at Stamford Bridge and Barnsley had the chance to shock the world.

Erik Olsen was fast. They called him the Viking for a reason. He ran with power. He ran with anger.

He prepared to shoot. He pulled his left leg back.

But then the wind changed.

A blue blur appeared on the grass.

It was Mykhailo Mudryk. The Chelsea winger.

The man cost eighty million pounds but in this moment he looked priceless. He had started his run from the Chelsea penalty box. He sprinted seventy yards in what felt like two seconds.

He did not just run. He teleported.

Just as Erik was about to smash the ball Mudryk slid in.

It was a clean tackle. He took the ball. He stood up. And he kept running.

"No way," Arthur Milton gasped from the bench. "He has an engine. He is not human."

Mudryk turned the defense into attack instantly.

Now Barnsley were in trouble. They had committed men forward for the counter attack. The Purple Wall was broken.

Mudryk ran down the left wing.

Enzo Silva tried to catch him. The Pitbull was fast. But trying to catch Mudryk was like a dog trying to catch a fighter jet.

"I cannot reach him!" Enzo shouted. "He is gone!"

Mudryk cut inside. He was moving so fast that Tom the defender fell over just trying to turn his head.

Sergio Ramos stepped out. The Matador.

Ramos knew he could not match the speed. He tried to use his body. He tried to block the path.

Mudryk dropped his shoulder. He tapped the ball past Ramos and jumped over the Spanish legend leg.

He was one on one with Jan Visser.

Jan made himself big. He spread his giant arms.

Mudryk did not blast it. He simply rolled the ball into the corner.

GOAL.

Chelsea 1. Barnsley 0.

The home fans erupted. The noise was deafening.

Michael Sterling stood frozen on the line. He had seen fast players before. But this was different. This was Mbappe level speed. This was terrifying.

"That was ten seconds," Michael said looking at his watch. "From our goal line to their goal. Ten seconds."

"He runs like he left the oven on at home," Arthur said shaking his head. "We are in trouble Boss."

MINUTE 40

The goal changed everything.

The billion pound team woke up.

Before the goal Chelsea were frustrated. Now they were confident. And a confident team of wonderkids is a scary thing.

They introduced the new faces to the game.

Neymar Jr Junior the Brazilian with the pink hair started to enjoy himself.

He received the ball in midfield. Enzo Silva was waiting for him.

Usually Enzo would bite. But Enzo was tired from chasing Mudryk.

The Brazilian did a roulette spin. He spun around Enzo. Then he flicked the ball over Diego Nunez head.

Diego roared in anger. He tried to grab the Brazilian but he was too slippery.

"Stand still!" Diego shouted. "Fight me like a man!"

"Catch me if you can big man!" the Brazilian laughed.

He passed to the new striker. The Italian defensive wall Luca Rossi had started the attack and now Caicedo the 115 million pound man was driving forward.

Barnsley were pinned back.

Jan Visser made a save. Then another save. Then he punched a cross away.

"I need help!" Jan shouted at his defenders. "They are swarming like bees!"

"We are trying!" Pavard yelled back. "But they are everywhere!"

HALFTIME

The whistle blew.

Chelsea 1. Barnsley 0.

It felt like it should have been 3 to 0.

In the dressing room the Barnsley players sat in silence. They were breathing heavy.

Diego Nunez looked furious. He kicked a water bottle across the room.

"I hate them," Diego growled. "They are too small. They are too fast. They are like mosquitoes. You try to squash them and they fly away."

"We need to slow them down," Ramos said. The veteran was sweating. Even he looked tired. "If we chase them we die. We have to trap them."

Michael stood in the center.

"They have the momentum," Michael said. "They have the crowd. They have the speed."

He looked at Leo Stone. The kid looked overwhelmed. He had almost created a goal but since then he had barely touched the ball.

"Leo," Michael said. "Stay wide. Do not come inside. Mudryk is cheating. He stays high. If you stay wide you force him back."

"Yes Boss," Leo nodded.

"Enzo," Michael said.

"Yes Boss?"

"Stop chasing the ball. You are running a marathon. Just protect the space."

"But I want to bite them," Enzo said sadly.

"Bite the space Enzo," Michael said. "Just bite the space."

MINUTE 50

The second half started.

Barnsley tried to slow the game down. They passed the ball at the back. Ramos to Pavard. Pavard to Diego.

But Chelsea were hungry.

They pressed high.

Enzo Fernandez the Chelsea captain signaled to his team. "PUSH!"

Diego Nunez had the ball. He looked for a pass.

Suddenly he was surrounded. Three blue shirts.

Diego tried to shield the ball with his massive body.

But the new Brazilian winger was cheeky. He poked his foot between Diego legs and stole the ball.

"HEY!" Diego shouted. "THIEF!"

Chelsea broke again.

Three against two.

The Brazilian ran towards the box. He passed to Nkunku.

Nkunku shot.

BANG.

The ball hit the post.

The rebound fell to Mudryk.

The speedster did not even control it. He volleyed it first time.

GOAL.

Chelsea 2. Barnsley 0.

Stamford Bridge was bouncing. The song One Step Beyond played on the speakers.

Michael sat down on the bench. He put his head in his hands.

"They are too good today Arthur," Michael admitted. "The money is talking."

"It is shouting Boss," Arthur said looking at the Chelsea bench. "Look who they are bringing on. They are bringing on Sterling. Raheem Sterling. Another fast one."

"Great," Michael sighed. "Fresh legs against our tired legs."

MINUTE 60

The game was slipping away.

2 to 0 down against Chelsea away from home was a mountain to climb.

But the Misfits did not know how to quit.

Erik Olsen was fighting a lonely battle up front.

He chased a long ball from Ramos. He bullied the Chelsea defender Disasi.

Erik won the ball. He was near the corner flag.

He looked for support.

There was nobody.

The midfield was too deep. They were terrified of the counter attack.

"COME UP!" Erik screamed waving his arms. "HELP ME!"

Kai Sora tried to run forward. But Caicedo blocked him. The Chelsea midfielder was like a wall.

Kai tried to pass around him. Caicedo intercepted it easily.

"He reads my mind," Kai whispered adjusting his sunglasses. "I do not like this."

Chelsea broke again.

This time it was the new signing Neymar Jr Junior.

He did a trick that nobody had seen before. He rolled the ball up his leg caught it on his neck and then flicked it over Tom head.

The crowd went wild.

"Showboat!" Jamie Vardy shouted from the bench. "Do it on a rainy Tuesday in Stoke!"

But it was effective.

The Brazilian passed to Jackson.

Jackson shot.

Jan Visser saved it with his foot.

"We are hanging by a thread," Arthur said covering his eyes. "We need a miracle Boss."

MINUTE 65

Michael made a change.

He looked at his bench. He needed energy. He needed belief.

"Jamie," Michael said.

Jamie Vardy stood up instantly. He crushed his empty Red Bull can.

"I am ready Boss. Let me at them."

"Take off Leo," Michael said. "The kid is tired. We go two up top. Chaos mode."

"I love chaos," Jamie grinned.

The substitution board went up.

OFF: Leo Stone

ON: Jamie Vardy

Leo walked off. He looked disappointed.

Michael put an arm around him.

"Head up Leo," Michael said. "You did well. But this is a war now. We need the veterans."

Leo nodded and sat down.

On the pitch Jamie Vardy ran straight to the Chelsea defenders.

He started shouting at Thiago Silva.

"You look tired!" Jamie shouted. "Do you need a nap?"

Thiago Silva ignored him. He was a professional.

But Jamie was annoying. He pulled shirts. He stepped on toes. He disrupted the rhythm.

MINUTE 70

The scoreboard loomed large.

CHELSEA 2 - 0 BARNSLEY

Twenty minutes left.

Chelsea were comfortable. They were passing the ball around with "Oles" from the crowd.

Michael stood on the touchline. The rain started to fall again.

He looked at his team.

They were losing. They were tired. They were outclassed by the billion pound squad.

But then he saw something.

Diego Nunez was not looking at the ground. He was looking at Mudryk.

Diego eyes were burning.

Ramos was clapping his hands shouting orders.

Enzo Silva was still running.

They were losing but they were not beaten.

"One goal," Michael whispered. "If we get one goal the panic sets in. Rich teams panic easily."

He shouted to the pitch.

"PUSH UP! RISK IT ALL!"

Ramos heard him.

The Matador nodded.

He signaled to the defense.

"NO MORE BUS!" Ramos roared. "WE ATTACK!"

The Purple Wall stepped up. They moved to the halfway line.

It was suicide. Or it was genius.

Mudryk was waiting to run behind them again.

But Michael knew something about football. When you have nothing to lose you become the most dangerous team on earth.

Chelsea had the money. Chelsea had the speed.

But Barnsley had the heart.

Michael watched as Enzo Silva won a tackle against the Brazilian wonderkid.

Enzo screamed.

"FOR BARNSLEY!"

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