World Cup 70 - RP Thread

[Equestrian States]

Time to find out who's going to join the Felixians in the Final...

SEMIFINAL RP CUTOFF FOR GROUPS E-H

[HopNation]

apologies for any omissions or errors, if there are any please TG me so I can update/change them.

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HopNation Sports

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1-7-15

HDT|2014|v.007

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WORLD CUP – PART 7

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Well even Cinderella had to go home at one point I just wish it could have been after claiming the crown and not just after loosing a slipper. Our Hops fell to Felix in the Semifinal match but not before pressing them all the way to penalties. It was a hard fought match by both sides and we knew there could only be one team advancing to the all coveted final, but alas it will not be our Hops. Instead we are faced with another huge task in the third place playoff when we meet up with The Terns of Polar Islandstates, which will no doubt be a great match even if it’s not for the title. I just hope we have enough left in the tank to face the Terns, especially after the effort shown in the match against Felix. I’d like to think we have plenty to spare going forward but you never know, I know we have trained hard enough and our physical stamina is certainly capable of performing the task before us. But are we in it mentally after such a trying match? Seeing that we’ve claimed victory over some supurb squads along our journey to this point one would think we have the cojones to face anyone on any day, so ‘Yes’ we do have the mental capacity to turn around after a penalty shootout loss and face yet another giant. Seeing as the team we face next is coming off a first ever loss to The Firebirds, they have faced them time and time again with each resulting in a victory for The Terns. Perhaps it will be them that is mentally crushed after such a loss, one that saw them come so close to yet another Finals appearance, one that saw them dispatch the #1 team with ease just to have their hopes erased by the #2 team in the very next match. So, I say advantage to our Hops once again especially as I have a deep feeling we will be underestimated once again and catch them by surprise. But I’ll have a little more on this upcoming 3rd place match in a bit, lets focus a bit on the match behind us, the match that handed our Hops their very first loss of this tournament. You heard that right this was our first loss so far since making it into the proper, so we’ve done exceptionally well so far and no one can take that away from us even if we never make it back to this stage again.

As I mentioned before the match against Felix was extremely hard fought, not in terms of physicality but just the sheer effort put out by both sides. Neither team wanted to give into the other as play seemed relatively even throughout the match. Each team had its chance to be in the lead and they appeared to control their own destiny with each possession. Both goal keepers were tested multiple times throughout the extended match and almost every time they were equal to the task (aside from the 6 total goals scored). Regulation saw the two teams locked at deuces, the Felixian side gaining a surprising early lead in just the 4th minute of play as our Hops reeled from their attacking nature. The remainder of the first half would ultimately go to the Felixians with the teams going into the break 1-0. Our Hops would surge back in the second half scoring shortly after the team talks and then again with under twenty minutes to play. It looked like certain victory for our Hops as the clock ticked away and we thwarted the Felix sides’ efforts. But within the last minutes and the 4th official posting just 1 minute of stoppage time added the Felixian side struck, deadlocking the teams at two and forcing extra time. In extra time it would be Felix who would open things up and midway through put the Hops down by one. We, however, would not be denied and again locked things up in the final minute of extra time to force the need for penalties. It would be there that our Hops would be undone and see the Felix side advance to the final while we would have to settle for a showing in the 3rd place playoff. Overall a magnificent game to watch and be a part of, if only we could have played just a touch better we, instead of Felix, might be in the Final of our first ever World Cup appearance.

Now back to this upcoming match against Polar Islandstates. The Terns always seem to rise to the occasion and have been to the Final more times than I care to count, but they seem to have failed more often than they have won at least if my memory serves me (which it often does not). They also seemed to have full confidence that they would once again eliminate The Firebirds like they had so many times before. Perhaps it was this misplaced confidence that led Rasmussen to think his side had the advantage over Osarius. Although I’m certain that they did not underestimate their opponent, it was rather or is simply a blemish on their record that was bound to happen one day. This time it was The Firebirds that had their proverbial number and came away with the victory. Will the squad that has finally lost to Osarius be able to bounce back and triumph over our Hops or will they lie down in hopes of salvaging whatever eggs are left in their nest? I look to the latter for the upcoming result in our match, but know that they will be prepared and ready for us no matter what. They know they cannot take any team lightly and looking at their manager and squad statistics they have prepared for everyone they faced. You don’t get to a 78-79% win percentage by being ill-prepared after all.

Now, if you look at our from our Hops perspective we have overcome a lot in our short tenure, surpassing expectations at all levels. Sure we have not been around for very long, sure we have faltered time and time again. But this cycle has been different; there is new life in this squad that has only been together for a few short cycles. I for one fully questioned Coach Schmidt’s decision to bring back the same roster for another go at it, but then rumors flew throughout HopNation that he would be making cuts this time. This came before we even had a chance at that fateful playoff series with The Royal Barangay before we new we would even finish ahead of the Holy Republic Empire. The simple rumor sparked the players and set them on the path to great play. They strived to be better than the chap standing next to them on the training pitch. They were different and we could all see it as they first set out competing with themselves to be better, to get better, to play together better, and then to be better against everyone else that stood. It took everything Filix had to dispatch our Hops, we couldn’t have asked for a better semifinal than to push it to penalties. Imaginably we need to work on penalty kicks a bit more, but that’s neither here nor there and we must move forward. Many of the Hops fans have grabbed the Giant Slayer tag and ran with it, while opposition seem to hate us for it but once again we are placed into a position where it is the David versus the Goliath (for you holy bunches out there), a 41st ranked nobody versus a well established 4th placed juggernaut. Will Cinderella break out of her attic chamber and claim her glass slipper or will the evil stepsisters fit it onto their enormous feet stealing the right to 3rd place? One match will decide that fate and may the best side triumph!

I’m fully looking forward to things to come from this squad, they are young for the most part and we have a very capable supporting cast of players if you reach into the depths of our four senior leagues. I also have no doubt that some of these players on our current 23-man roster will be seeing offers coming their way, perhaps a few of them will get enticed away from their current clubs but only time will tell if that happens or not. I would hope they continue with our domestic clubs for the time being, to build and bring greater support to those levels of HopNation Football. Speaking of which, we are only days away from the start of the next season here in HopNation. The excitement continues even when our efforts here end and only the memory of this great giant slaying ride lingers on.

Good luck to Felix and Osarius as their National Teams try to lay claim to the coveted trophy. Also, good luck to our upcoming opponent, The Terns, in the 3rd place match and may the best teams prevail!

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Match Summary
Hops vs Felixians @

(cap. 81,955)

Score
HopNation 2 - 2 Felix
After Extra Time
HopNation 3 - 3 Felix
Penalties
HopNation 2 - 3 Felix

Goals
4’ Rudolf Venetianer
57’ Pheir Droimpol
72’ Pech Schytaing
89’ Luca Esser
Extra Time
110’ Sebastian Krister
119’ Teur Smuemund
Penalties
Try 1
Loostin – Save by Kiki
Jenaro – Goal
Try 2
Smuemund – Miss
Esser – Miss
Try 3
Myer – Goal
Nuremburg – Goal
Try 4
Schytaing – Goal
Garcia – Save by Subanos
Try 5
Droimpol – Save by Kiki
Alexanderson – Goal

Subs
81’ ▲ Crespo ▼ Kwan
98’ ▲ Arcerton ▼ Biaddan

Bookings
None

Brew On! Brew Well Hoptonians!
Ringwald Griffinsmith
HopNation Sports Writer

[Polar Islandstates]

Balls.

Well, I suppose it had to happen sometime. We'd maybe been relying a little on the firepower of Kolehmainen this tournament, perhaps guilty of getting ourselves all caught up in the romance of his race to a hundred international goals. All of which meant that as soon as we came up against a team that knew how to shackle Kolehmainen, and knew how to keep him out of trouble, we'd be up against it. And that's exactly what Osarius did. For a hundred and twenty minutes, they kept him at arm's length from the goal, and broke his run of scoring in every game. With that run broken, we crumbled. Bickermann couldn't help, Dardan couldn't help, even the human battering ram that is Larsen couldn't help. By the end of the first half of extra time, we had four strikers and two attacking midfielders on the pitch, with a basic 4-2-4 formation going on.

Perhaps it was that odd formation, perhaps it was pressure, perhaps it was the occasion, perhaps it was an over-reliance on the Multiverse's top striker, or perhaps it was just the one-two suckerpunch of playing the first and second seeds in quick succession that left our players all out of juice, but we just didn't look ourselves by the end of that tie. The first ninety minutes were an engaging war of attrition, but in extra time... I don't know. We just panicked a bit, I think. It's a shame that the last World Cup appearance for many of these players will only be in a third place play-off after being beaten for the first time ever by Osarius.

Osarius.

Just to be clear, my surprise at this defeat and my confidence going into it were entirely based on rhetoric. Likewise, I'm sure the pessimism shown by many in the Osarian press was also just as tongue-in-cheek based upon our history in footballing ties. I am one hundred percent certain that the footballers themselves, not to mention the managers and the coaching staff, will have had no such jokey confidence going into the match. They took it seriously, is what I'm trying to say. The 'Firebirds-Terns' hoodoo is just a story, after all.

Nonetheless, I'm disappointed. We kept them at bay for the first ninety minutes, and I stand by my statements before the match that we could beat them. They were there for the taking on more than one occasion. We just didn't take our chances, and the combination of Grassi and Drummond worked perfectly in extra time when it counted. I'm not going to dwell on the defeat any more than is necessary either. Firstly, because it still hurts, secondly, because I feel like it's not up to me to take away from Osarian journalists the chance they've waited so long for to talk about a victory over the Terns. Thirdly, and perhaps most pertinently, because I'm tired. The Terns, as ever, have worn me out.

Another semi-final, another defeat.

Sigh.

Now? We have to get ourselves up for a third place play-off tie against a HopNation side reminiscent of our own run fourteen cycles ago. (Fourteen cycles ago? Heck. I'm getting old...) They won't be an easy side to come up against, but again I'm going to make a bold suggestion that we can beat them. No, hang on, I know that we can beat them. We beat Audioslavia, the number one seeds, and we came oh so close to beating Osarius, the number two seeds. We are entirely capable of ruining HopNation's dreams of a top three finish, just as ours were ruined by The Holy Empire back in WC56... it's just a case of turning up on the day. Like we did against Farfadillis and Audioslavia, and like we didn't against Valladares, Beauce, or in extra time against Osarius.

We turn up looking up for the match, and our retiring players go home with a bronze-y coloured medal in their back pockets to add to the collection. Simple.

Or at least, you'd hope.

As for the finalists? Well, I'll go over their chances after our match against HopNation, which will give me a chance to do a little summary of our players' performances this cycle. Expect better scores out of ten than last time...

Per Tenebras ad Lucem.

Heia Terns!

Eff

xx

[San Jose Guayabal]

Football, a thrilling sport who stops the multiverse in order to see the best among the best to fight for the glory, some teams were to home early but others fought til the end, you don't win always and that's the joy of the sport, tasting victory but in other times suffering. By the fact of losing in the World Cup Semifinals doesn't means that you're a loser, it means that you are a winner because you almost made it! Come on, don't be sad, let's enjoy this!

3PPO RP CUTOFF

[Osarius]

The dressing room door opened to a cheer. An ear-splittingly euphoric roar of delight. Ezio smirked, half-walking, half-stumbling across the threshold. He could feel the fatigue in his legs now, certain that he was only standing through sheer force of will.

The squad were singing Toby's name to a familiar crowd chant melody, and the man himself was being jostled around in the middle of a group of players. He was soaked. His sodden black hair sticking to his head and face; a small dry area visible near the bottom of his undershirt; the navy and white shirt he was holding crumpled in his hand was dripping too. Toby spotted Ezio and shouted. "Buddyyyyy!" Under different circumstances, it would not have been unfair to assume the playmaker was drunk. 'Drunk on emotion, perhaps. Makes me glad I stay away from them.' Ezio thought to himself.

"Tobes!" He exclaimed.

"Didn't know if you'd make the pass, mate. Big gamble."

"Sod off Tobes!" Ezio laughed. "I owed you one, didn't I?"

"More than one, you cheeky git."

A roar from behind them, followed by a heavy weight. Both collapsed under its weight, as did several other players nearby. "Manu you fat sonuva-" Toby started.

"Love you too you magnificent bastard!" Manu grabbed Toby's head in both hands and planted a kiss on his forehead, to cheers and laughter.

"Okay, okay guys. Settle down." In their excitement, nobody had even noticed the gaffer standing by the door, a mildly amused expression on his face. "Job's not done, yet."

The room quietened down. Rapidly. The buzz of excitement remained, almost struggling against the players' respect for the manager.

"Firstly, congratulations. You're part of history now, no matter what happens next." Lewis said. "But we didn't come this far to settle for second best." Ezio smiled to himself. It was pretty amazing how Lewis could consistently tap into whatever shared mental trait everyone in the room had, and say seemingly exactly what it was they wanted, no needed, to hear. He was under no illusions that he was not coach material himself -- 'I don't know how I do what I do, no chance I could teach anyone else' as he had told Manu last week -- and there was something brilliant about it. Something he couldn't help but admire about Lewis.

When the gaffer was done, he headed toward the door and beckoned Ezio over. After the briefest of hesitations, Ezio followed. "Boss?" He asked.

"How are you feeling? You managed the full hundred and twenty, looks like you're in decent condition again." The latter part was less question, more statement.

"Yeah, I'm knackered, but that's normal. Those-"

"Bloody birds" they said, at the same time. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. You lot are gonna give me stick over that for a while, huh?" Lewis laughed.

"Of course." Ezio grinned.

"But seriously, are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'll rest up tonight and I'll be fine tomorrow."

"Good. You're starting the final."

Ezio paused. It wasn't that he hadn't expected this, but it was an odd feeling. "What about Marco?"

"He'll understand. Did he speak to you after the Pasarga game?" Lewis asked.

"No. Should he have?"

"Thought he might have. Not to worry." Lewis squeezed Ezio's shoulder. "I need to go speak to the press. You lot running a sweepstakes on how many cliches I'll use again?"

"Dunno, boss. Tobes or Rock usually does it."

"Oi! Rock!" Lewis shouted over the noise, making himself clearly audible even at the far end of the room. "Cliche sweepstake tonight?"

"Nah, gaffer! Too focused on the match!"

"Good answer." Lewis nodded, before walking out of the door.

* * * * *

Osarian celebrations continued well into the night, and for good reason. Breaking the trend; it was an omen, they said. "Everything seems to be working out for Jermain lately," says Roberto Cormega. "We've heard that talk of a championship window, and I don't know if Lewis has really driven that point home with this group of players, but it seems like they're playing differently. More intensely."

That would certainly explain their last couple of results. A penalty shootout victory after tying things up with a minute of extra time to spare in the eight-goal thriller over Pasarga, and now somehow outlasting the Terns over one hundred and twenty minutes. As the popular internet meme goes, "One does not simply outlast the Terns". It's conventional football wisdom, like Audioslavia [almost - Ed.] always winning semi finals, any number of the "Laborious Hawk facts" circulating online -- a favourite in the office being "Laborious Hawk does not play football, he subjugates it" -- or Polar Islandstates beating Osarius. Wait on that last one.

Much was made before the semi final clash of Osarius' abysmal record against the former World Champions, and rightly so. When you lose six in a row to a team, the idea that you'll lose again becomes less an idea and more an almost unavoidable truth. Something that Jermain Lewis was acutely aware of in the pre-match press conference. "Sure, they're probably the favourites. Honestly, if I weren't an Osarian, I'd bet on them." He said. "But you know, tomorrow isn't promised today, is it?"

Similarly, Lewis will be wary of the dangers of complacency heading into the Firebirds' first World Cup final. "I think they know what's coming. You don't get to a World Cup final easily, we all know how hard that is, so I doubt anyone will be expecting a comfortable win." He explained. "We will be expecting to win, though. We almost always do." He added, tongue-in-cheek.

Ezio Grassi's return to form, following recovery from injury will have come as a huge boost to the Firebirds, who have long relied on the Fourgian assassin's sharpshooting. Oddly enough, they did not this campaign; his understudy, Firewood striker Marco Puntoriero, acquitted himself brilliantly before being relegated back to the bench in favour of Grassi. Lewis was able to shed some light on this, though. "Marco came to me after the Pasarga game and asked about Ezio." He revealed. "He expected to be dropped, realised Ezio had found gaps where he had struggled. I told him he was right, and he just asked me what he needed to do to get back into the team." When pressed on what he told the twenty-one year old, Lewis was vague. "I gave him some advice."

* * * * *

Felix would be tough. They'd have to be, right? Ezio stared absently out of the window of the team bus, on the way to Royal Equestria Stadium. He wasn't looking at anything in particular, or even thinking about anything in particular. Just... floating, really.

"Hey, Ezio." Manu nudged him. "Excited?"

"Hm? Not really."

"Mate, it's a World Cup Final, how are you not pumped for this?"

"Dunno. I've never really been excited about a specific match. Nervous once or twice, but never excited."

"Damn, Ezio. You're a baaaad man." Manu mocked.

It was hard to explain why he was never excited, and rarely ever nervous. It always sounded like arrogance, apparently. It wasn't. 'There's a difference between confidence and arrogance, Ezio.' His father always told him. 'Confidence is knowing you're good, arrogance is trying to convince everyone else.'

Ezio always thought that, being as detached as he was, nobody would ever misconstrue his confidence in his ability for anything else. Apparently not. But did it really matter how people saw him? If he was a part of the team that won the World Cup in a few hours' time, would anyone really care that they once thought he was arrogant? 'Probably.' He mused. 'Does it matter, Ezio?'

He allowed himself to drift off into something like a daydream again. Floating.

* * * * *

In the dressing room, Ezio sat on the bench, leaning back against the ball. Relaxed. He had missed this. Before the Pasarga game, before the semi final against Polar Islandstates... both times he'd been nervous. 'Nobody noticed, thankfully.' But now he was back to normal. He held one hand out in front of himself. Perfectly still.

A brief grin. Slowly, methodically, he changed into his warm-up gear, watching his teammates go through their pre-match rituals. Manu was shadowboxing; Toby was laughing and joking with Rock; Juan Pablo Rodriguez was silently bobbing his head, earphones on; Marco was... staring straight at Ezio. 'Why is he watching me?' Ezio wondered, raising an eyebrow.

Marco said nothing. Just a curt nod. But Ezio understood. He thought. 'He acknowledges me?' Ezio returned the nod, understanding that the younger man's steely gaze was a challenge. "I will surpass you." He was saying.

'But not yet.' Ezio thought.

[Felix]

Canterlot, Equestrian States

120 minutes of football were played and yet the match between the Hops and the Phoenix was still tied with 3 goals apiece. A goal in the 110th minute by Sebastian Krister was widely thought to be the game winner but a dramatic 119th minute Teur Smuemund goal tied the game up and forced the two sides to go to a penalty shootout. Felix has a 2-1 record in penalties in all tournaments with the two wins coming in the CE and quarterfinal stage of the BoF 52. The sole loss? Against Aels in the BoF final that denied Felix winning the tournament that they’ll probably never enter again. It was tough but Felix grew from that experience. Many of the players who played in that fateful day were present in that penalty shootout and one could assume those Felixians were more prepared for the game of “Guayabalese Roulette” against the HopNation players.

But to be honest, who is actually ready for a shooutout? No one is. Even the best players of the game admit the penalty shootout is mainly a game of luck than it is skill. So as the players did their final preparations for the shootout Ishikawa gave a speech to her team,

“Huddle around everyone. So that last minute goal was not expected. We thought we had this in the game in the bag, that we punched our tickets to the final in this very stadium. We are in shock and you could even argue that these giant-killers have the momentum but forget about that! It doesn’t matter what happened to the lead up of this situation. What matters is what we do in this situation. I am not picking the person I think is the best penalty taker, you guys are. You are going to volunteer at your own will. If you feel like you can do it. Do it. Alright team, do it for your country, do it for the sport! Go out there!”

The 11 players loudly cheered and ran to the center of the pitch. The captain, Gabriel Jenaro talked to the captain of HopNation and it was determined that the Hops would kick first. Eisa Loostin got up to kick first and his teammates cheered him on. They were confident that Eisa would make it.She set the ball down and walked back to outside the box. The player looked at Kiki Nuremburg and Kiki looked at him. She breathed in and breathed out and the whistle blew the whistle. The player slowly walked towards the ball and fired right at the middle of the goal. Kiki stood there and caught it. Loostin threw his arms up in the air and began to walk back with his head looking at the ground.

Next up is Gabriel Jenaro, the captain. He stepped up, looked at his teammates, they all nodded, as if giving him permission to go take it. He nodded back and he ran towards the penalty box. He was handed the ball and he placed it on the spot. He walked back a bit and when the referee whistled Gabriel immediately ran towards the ball and fired it to the top right corner. The goalkeeper, Oeny Subanos, thinking it was going left dived the other way. He stood no chance to stop it. Felix was ahead of HopNation, 0-1.

The next HopNation player stepped up; Teur Smuemund walked forward and dropped the ball. He walked back a bit and looked at the referee. The referee nodded and blew the whistle the player quickly looked at Kiki and ran towards the ball he kicked the ball. Unfortunately for him and his team his shot was wide right and the Teur fell to his knees and pounded the grassy turf in frustration. HopNation now missed two goals and was at the verge of elimination.

Luca Esser padded the backs of his two teammates that stood next to him and ran up towards the box. He placed the ball and ran to the edge of the box. The referee whistled. Luca began to run towards the ball but then hesitated. He began to doubt himself and delayed his stride for a second then continued again. He didn’t look confident when he took that shot and the kick resulted in the ball hitting the post and going out. Luca put his hands to his head and shook his head left and right, clearly disappointed by his effort. He walked back to the group where he would be hugged by some teammates.

Ike Myer got up to kick and he didn’t look nervous at all. Unlike Luca of Felix and Myer of HopNation, Ike had a look of determination as he walked towards the penalty box. He got the ball, placed it on the spot and when the referee whistled, coolly ran towards the ball and fired. It went right and despite Kiki’s touch on the ball the ball went in. The goal scorer just smiled and walked back to his team where he was padded in the back.

In a shocking move Kiki Nuremburg told her teammates to stand by as she picked up the ball from the net and placed it on the spot. She was going to take the kick herself. A couple of players objected and were going to walk to her but captain, Gabriel stopped them and told them to give her a chance to kick. Kiki allowed her colleague to walk to the center of the goalposts. She smiled at him and nodded, it was if she was wishing Oeny good luck. She nodded at the referee and he blew the whistle once again. She ran up, first going left then right then firing a low shot that would impress even the best strikers as the ball went to the bottom left corner leaving her HopNation counterpart no chance to block it.

The shootout was nearing its end and HopNation sent another player to fire, 19 year old Pech Schytaing walked up and despite his youthful look he seemed prepared for the penalty kick. The referee whistled and the player, like the last HopNation shooter, coolly ran and fired left. The goalkeeper, seeing that it was going to the top right corner couldn’t do a thing and just stood there as it past her. The score was 2-2.

The next two penalty kicks by both sides, for Felix, Alexis Garcia, for HopNation Pheir Droimpol were misses as both goalkeepers saved the shots. Oeny Subanos made a diving save to block Alexis’s possible game winner and Kiki Nuremburg blocked Pheir’s shot with her legs after guessing the wrong way but somehow blocking it as she dove the other way.

Finally, it was the last shot. In and Felix would be in the final with the winner of the Polar Islandstates/Osarius match. Out and Felix would go through another round of penalty kicks. Hanna Alexanderson volunteered to shoot. She has been a non-factor so far this World Cup and she had a chance to make her name. The ball was placed on the spot and the crowd went deathly silent. Tension was high in the air and you could hear the sound of a pin drop as the crowd waited for the final shot. Hanna waited for referee to blow his whistle for the last time and she slowly walked to the ball and fired. The ball went right in the middle and Oeny dived to the left. Goal, Felix won. Hanna ran towards her teammates and was soon brought down to the floor. The whole bench cleared and ran towards her, they realized what just happened. They are going to the World Cup final.

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Unbiased Media In Felix

World Cup 70: World Cup Final Preview
By: Steven Smith

With Felix beating HopNation in penalties The Phoenix got their tickets to their first World Cup final. We are going to face another team that has made their first appearance to the World Cup final, Osarius. Which is quite surprising considering this team is ranked number two in the multiverse and has made multiple semifinal appearances only to lose out, much to the dismay of their fans. So the scene is set. Felix, a team that has made a historic run in the name of not only herself but the region, Esportiva versus a team that has finally gotten over that semifinal hump and wants to join the AO's legendary list of World Cup winners.

Starting off with this preview is a close examination of our opponents, Osarius. In order to beat them we got to know who they are and how they got here. Osarius was drawn to Group 15 which consisted of rising powers Super-Llamaland and Cosumar. Osarius breezed through their group accumulating 41 points with only one loss. The only blip in their nearly perfect campaign was a 3-1 loss against Zips Nation. Their closest rival in that group? Super-Llamaland with only 34 points. Osarius was showing their football prowess with that dominating performance in the qualifying stage.

In the World Cup final The Firebirds were drawn to Group G. In that group there were surprise team Falcus, Esportivan power Unified Sunrise Islands, and familiar foe (at least to us) Blouman Empire. Osarius dominated Group G just like they did with Group 15. They beat Falcus 2-1, UNI 0-3, and a 1-1 draw with the Blouman Empire. They then moved on to face Ko-oren in the Round of 16. In a tightly contested match they beat highly defensive Greenblues 1-0. Osarius then beat Pasarga in a penalty shootout 3-5 after the match was tied at 4-4 at extra time. Finally, they faced the Polar Islandstates a team they had rotten luck against losing all 6 previous matches against them. Yet, at extra time they finally managed to beat them for the first time, 1-0 sending them to their very first World Cup final match.

Osarius plays a slightly aggressive counter/possession-based attacking using a 4-3-3 formation. Their manager is former Osarius NT "enforcer" player, 66 year old Jermain Lewis. He is reportedly addicted (severely might I add) to winning. His style of football is possession based and will use that possession to generate pressure on opponents with careful passing and well timed shots at goal. When they don't have the ball they will furiously try their best to get it back with a high press and a lot of pressure from defenders. This leads to cases where overcommitting leaves them open for counterattacks something we need to take advantage of. The means Felixian players are going to watch footage of that infamous Zips Nation/Osarius match where that overcommitting mistake was exploited and resulted in three goals for the massive underdogs.

Players we should really keep an eye on so we don't lose this match are Ezio Grassi and Toby Drummond. Ezio is Osarius's star striker; he scored the game winner against the Polar Islandstates and has built a reputation in being an ice cool finisher with pressure being a non-factor when he shoots. Drummond on the other hand is an amazing assist king giving Ezio, or any other player, chances to score goals with his pinpoint accurate passes.

Now it's time to review the Felixians who make up the other side in this final two battle. We will play with our usual attacking formation which is a 4-2-3-1 with a focus on attacking from the sides and keeping a high line of defense with pressing as a way to get the ball back, very similar to the Osarius method. Our starters for the upcoming grand finale include legendary goalkeeper Kiki Nuremburg, defenders Alexis Garcia, Ferdinand Gottlieb, Manuele Provenza, and Lalo Urbina, midfielders captain Gabriel Jenaro, Sebastian Krister, Maria Martel, Ji Isuel Kwan, and Rudolf Venetianer, and forward Luca Esser. With 6 playable substitutes on the bench, Fiacre Bellerose, Fernando Cleto, Chloe Álvarez, Ute Kästner, Loris Bologna, and Arthur Schultheis.

How we got to this stage is amazing when you look back at it. We were drawn to Group 7 and many pundits and experts believed this group would be a breeze for the 12th ranked Felixians. But like last World Cup Felix would face a stiff challenge. Last WCQ it was Chiata that beat us for first this WCQ we faced Kalumba, Gloriax, and Barunia yet we still won. Gloriax and Barunia were eliminated by Matchday 16 but it was the last matchday that decided Felix would be on top of Group 7. The 3–1 win against Barunia combined with a 1-0 Kalumba loss to Gloriax secured a 1st place finish (w/ 38 points) for the Felixians giving us an easier ride to the WC finals with an automatic berth.

We were drawn to Group B and we started our campaign on the wrong foot with a 3-2 loss against our easiest opponent (in terms of rank), Brenecia. Some Felixians gave up on the national team noting if Felix lost to Brenecia they were going to lose against tougher opposition Calarian Union and Legalese. But the team proved both their own fans and pundits wrong. They beat the Union 2-0 and Legalese in a classic 5-4 shootout. Felix finished first in Group B with 6 points and secured a date with Nephara the second strongest team (in terms of rank) in Esportiva in the Round of 16. Felix prevailed over them too with a 1-0 victory and finally got over that Round of 16 bump that plagued them the last two WCs. In the quarterfinals we were unfortunate enough to face the champions, The Holy Empire, after they defeated Saintland. But it didn’t matter; we beat the multiverse champs 3-1 in impressive fashion. And as many of you know, we beat HopNation in a dramatic 3-2 penalty shootout win that launched us to the finals.

Now we are a one night away from facing our final opponent in 70th World Cup. Felix has earned their right to play here with impressive footballing play and inspiring determination to keep fighting even though they are down. The last 90 minutes will determine our footballing future; will we be a World Cup winning nation? Or one that finished, “Oh so close”. We’ll find out what happens tomorrow. That’s it for today, good luck to our men and women of the National Team The Phoenix will rise up and win this trophy! Until next time! Go Felix!

In The News:

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>> Unemployment Falls To 2%
>> Felixian Attendance Expected To Be Less Than 5,000 For Upcoming Semifinal Match Due To World Cup Final
>> 300,000 Felixian Fans Reported To Be In The Equestrian States For World Cup Final
>> Felix Closes All Government Offices And Schools For The World Cup

[Equestrian States]

It all comes down to this, folks. Two teams will enter, one will emerge as the world champions. Time to find out who that's gonna be:

FINAL RP CUTOFF

RESULT

[Osarius]

There was an intensity to the game that Ezio had never felt before. He'd played in finals, sure, but nothing like this. Before the match, he'd been asked how he remains calm, knowing that billions would be watching. The truth was that he simply didn't feel pressure. "I just relax." He had told them, irritating the reporter who asked. "Yes, but how do you relax?" He could no more easily answer that question than answer how he walks. He had made something up. "Just listen to relaxing music, play a few video games maybe."

Throughout his career, this notion that he was different had persisted. He didn't react the way he was supposed to, and he knew it. But this time, there was no need to fake anything. The buzz in the stadium affected him. The hairs on his arms tingled, and everything felt different. It was almost like he had enhanced senses somehow.

He wasn't the only one. He had noticed little things about everyone else, too. Most notably, Toby Drummond's passes seemed to be quicker, he was waiting less time for them, anyway. Both in terms of the speed of the ball in flight, and the time taken for the midfielder to make the pass. Sometimes too quick, actually. 'Too quick, Tobes. I'm not that quick anymore.' Ezio thought to himself as Drummond's through pass skimmed across the moist grass ahead of him, just out of reach.

Manu had jumped higher than usual to score that opening goal, too, Ezio reflected. While the giant defender was capable of some immense leaps -- 'like a salmon, mate'; as he liked to boast -- but Ezio couldn't help but feel he had no right to win that particular aerial duel. A compassionate man might have felt sorry for Gottlieb. Was it Gottlieb? Ezio couldn't be sure, he wasn't particularly familiar with the Felixians. 'I really should watch the Copa Esportiva.' He reminded himself. 'There goes that arrogance again. I don't really even know who they are. Never even considered that I'd need to. Defenders are pretty much the same, if I make the right run, I get the chance. It doesn't matter.' In fairness to Manu, it was a great header. Nuremberg, despite being one of the better goalkeepers in world football -- 'I think...' Ezio interjected into his own stream of thought; odd habit -- didn't really stand a chance. Got a hand to it, but there was simply too much power behind it.

It wasn't just Osarius' players who seemed to be operating on this higher level, either. Ezio was all too aware of how many teams had tried and failed to come back from behind against the Firebirds. It wasn't easy, Ezio himself led the press more often than not, and he knew there was a reason he was often compared to a machine. 'Terminator, they called me once. That was nice.' Ezio thought. Luca Esser's equaliser was a feat of superhuman reflexes, really. 'I would have been proud of it, anyway.' Ezio told himself. 'Besides, you have to be practically superhuman to react quicker than Rubes. Pretty sure she's got a spidey sense or something.' His thoughts drifted briefly back to a game he had played in, against Nellietopia. 'Wonder if they have a nellie-sense? Would explain a lot.'

For some, this enhanced state wasn't necessarily a good thing, though. While Ezio knew Nathaniel Doherty was an emotional player -- 'fuelled by branca' was one of the phrases he'd heard used before -- and they'd clashed over this before, he hadn't expected him to be affected as profoundly as he was. "Gaffer said Nate was close to breaking point" Darell Marshall told Ezio as he jogged onto the pitch, replacing the Ponyville United winger. Ezio had stolen a glance at the touchline; Doherty had reached breaking point, kicking away water bottles. Surprisingly, Lewis didn't say anything to him. 'Maybe he understands.' Ezio thought.

Time ticked away. Scores level, and Osarius perhaps slightly better off. Territory-wise, anyway. Ezio noted that he'd had more runs to make, which usually meant the team had possession in the opposition half. Still no breakthrough, though. And it wasn't as though neither side was probing for weakness. 'Not particularly in the mood for extra time today.' Ezio thought, glancing at his tiring teammates. Particularly Nicola Costello, who, despite support from Rock, was having to do a lot more running than usual to track Venetianer. The Felixian midfielder was making a lot of clever runs into gaps left by Rock when he pushed forward. 'They've done their homework.' Ezio noted. 'They sit back and try to catch us on the break, when Rock overcommits.'

Almost as if on cue, Lewis signalled a substitution. Ezio heard the announcement. "Substitution for Osarius. Number four, Nicola Costello, to be replaced by number twenty, Fabio Mancini." Costello looked disappointed, but also relieved, almost. 'Looks like the gaffer saw the same thing. Fabio to do the running, Rock to sit back. No more gaps.' Ezio appraised the situation. He felt something in his stomach. A rising. 'Optimism?'

Before he had time to think it through properly, a blur flashed through his peripheral vision, snapping his attention back to the present. Out of the corner of his right eye, he caught the briefest glimpse of orange. 'Darell. Those are his boots.' He knew, without looking. 'He always cuts twice, the cross is coming.' He heard the ball on the leather of Marshall's boot, somehow. Once. Twice. The shout. Ezio reacted, and looked toward Darell on the right wing, in the middle of making a cross. Without even thinking about it, Ezio had calculated the trajectory of the ball in the split second it took Darell to make contact. As the ball moved toward him, he was already almost in position to attack the cross.

Time slowed, and he was acutely aware of his own heartbeat. Rapid. 'Am I excited?' He wondered. 'I'm about to score and I'm excited. This is new.'

Adjusting his body shape, Ezio swung at the ball. He extended his leg mid-pivot, his leg lashing out like a whip. The volley resembled a sort of roundhouse kick to the lower ribs, his leg parallel to the ground. Perfect technique. 'Goal.' Ezio knew before the ball hit the net, and was already wheeling away in celebration. A primal scream escaped him. Not just his throat, or even chest. Something deeper. 'From the stomach?' Ezio ran. He ran out of green before his teammates caught him, piling onto him in celebration as if the game were already over. Somehow, he knew. They all knew. That was going to be the goal that won Osarius the World Cup for the first time. He didn't dare look up at the timer.

Nine minutes later, the whistle blew. And reality became like a van Gogh painting. But in red. Always red. 'Weird. I don't even like red.' Ezio laughed to himself.