Not all heroes wear masks but Antonio Rudiger's moment of intervention saved Chelsea from...

[ASFN Admin]

It was beautiful, a work of art, a piece of defending so perfect in its timing, anticipation and execution that it made you want to rise up and applaud its magnificence like a shot flying into the top corner. If the script had been written beforehand, Phil Foden, the wonderkid of English football, who has come of age this season, would have scored. The headlines would be his, the glory too. But like all the most memorable moments of superlative defending, this was the sight of a script being ruined. Not just rewritten but torn up, shredded and tossed in the dustbin of what might have been. Dancing into the Chelsea area with his ballatic, perfectly balanced feet. Foden swayed, his weight shifting on to his left so he could guide a shot past the goalkeeper with his right. The young England international would have looked up and would have only seen Edouard Mendy standing in front of him. The angle favoured the City forward, the corner of the goal, to the goalkeeper’s left was open. The net would have looked like a buffet; a help yourself target. Foden’s eyes bulged. This was it, the opening goal in a Champions League final for the club you grew up supporting; the club you have played for since you were a kid; the club you love. But then, out of the corner of his eye, there would have been a blur; a presence; a flash of blue. Foden will possibly have felt the air being disturbed, of something approaching at speed. It was all in a split second, but players like Foden play with instinct. They sense things are going to happen before they do. With his masked face, Rudiger was dressed like a superhero. Or a villain, depending on whether it was dark blue or sky blue you were supporting in Porto. It was a Zorro mask and like the old swashbuckling hero of the western movies, Rudiger had spotted the danger and was coming to the rescue for Chelsea. Not on a horse, but he leapt into the air without one, taking off, leg outstretched. The risks were high, but so was the threat. If he made contact with Foden before he shot, he would be sent off and City would have a penalty and 10 men to play against.

Continue reading...