Rise of a Football God

During the post-match interview, all eyes were on him, the King.

As the recipient of the man of the match award in this game, Sam came out representing FC Barcelona, taking the interview on their behalf.

As he walked towards the interview crew, all the cameras focused on him.

All attention was on him, and Sam didn't shy due to it.

Rather, he basked in it, rubbing his nose as he felt on top of the world.

'Ahh…, this feeling, I'll get addicted it!' He smiled.

"What a game you had Sam!" The male reporter said with a big smile on his face. "What a game! You truly killed it out there today man".

"This is the Bernabeu, and yet, you showed no respect," he laughed. "2 assists and 1 goal, what a performance, Sam how do you feel after all that?"

"Terrific!" Sam laughed. "I won't even try to be modest, I feel like a superhero".

"I still remember a few days ago while jogging alongside Gavi, Pedri, Yamal, and Balde. We met a few Barca fans on the road who demanded for us to win, saying we must win". He looked at the camera. "Guys, we did it, we won!"

He chuckled. "Getting to fulfill the dream of fans like that, it's a dream come true for me". He grinned. "That's why I feel like a superhero".

"Honestly, I feel great!"

The reporter smiled. "I can't help but recall that this game was not all bed and roses for you and your teammates, Madrid got the lead first".

"At that moment, what were you feeling? What was going through your mind? Did you know then that you would win?"

"Ah," Sam scoffed, laughing. "I'm no prophet". He smiled. "Besides, this is the Bernabeu, this is Real Madrid, there's no guarantee to win in this stadium".

"I never knew we would win, and I believe my teammates felt the same way. We just didn't want to lose without putting up a fight".

"We came to the Bernabeu with a certain mentality".

His eyes gleamed as he smiled. "We came to play our hearts out".

"If we lost, so be it, at least we'd go home with the knowledge that we gave our all on the pitch. That's enough for us".

"And since we won," he grinned again. "Thank God!" He laughed.

"What a mentality to have!" The reporter smiled. "I think a lot more footballers would benefit by having a mentality like yours".

Sam just smiled.

"With this victory, you've widened the gap between your club and Real Madrid. You now have a significant 4-point gap at the top of the table, do you think Barcelona has what it takes to retain the Spanish La Liga title?"

Sam went over his thoughts before answering carefully. "The Spanish La Liga is one of the hardest league titles to win in the world, I can't underestimate it".

"All I know is that we'll give our all to fight to the very end".

"Talking about our credentials of winning it, of course, I believe we're well equipped to retain the La Liga title".

"Beating Madrid in their home, I think that's the greatest proof of it".

"But we won't become complacent due to that. Every game apart from this one is as important, after all, they all give 3 points for a victory".

"We'll keep on doing our best, fighting for every point in every game and hopefully, come season end, our efforts are rewarded". Read new adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

"Well said". The reporter smiled.

"One more thing Sam. After your performance today, social media has been set ablaze, they're calling you the King of Spain!"

The reporter smiled shrewdly. "What do you think?"

Sam chuckled. "If they think I'm King, so be it".

"Don't even think I'll be modest, I worked hard for it".

The reporter laughed. "Well said, I like you Sam".

"Do have a great day, and thanks for having me".

"You too".

With that, Sam trudged off back to meet his teammates with his swagger in his steps, amid the rapid clicking of cameras.

He was sure that a certain Kayla would be grumbling at home already.

'After this game, my social media popularity…, heh'. He smirked.

…

Just like expected, after the game at the Santiago Bernabeu, the football world was taken by storm as reactions followed the aftermath.

Explosive reactions.

(ESPN News:)

(King Sam at the Bernabeu! Samuel Moses leads the destruction at the Bernabeu, leading FC Barcelona to a famous victory against Real Madrid with Raphinha and Gavi acting as capable support casts! The faith of the striking position at Barca is in safe hands, Barcelona players ratings vs Real Madrid:)

(Goalkeeper & Defense:)

(Marc Andre Ter Stegen: 7/10)

>The German is looking more assured in between the sticks as he dutifully protected the goal with some good saves when Madrid began piling the pressure at 1-1, including sensational saves against Mbappe and Vinicius<

(Jules Kounde: 6/10)

>Offered little in attack, but understandable since he went up against Vinicius Jnr. Did his fair bit of defending, though lost to the Brazilian a few times<

(Ronald Araujo: 7.5/10)

>A rock in defense. Marshalled the defense well against Real Madrid's rapid attack, playing the offside trap to perfection alongside his partners in defense<

(Pau Cubarsi: 8/10)

>Was a rock alongside Ronald Araujo. Did all the defending bits with little to no mistakes, and also impressed with his passing from the back. A solid performance<

(Alejandro Balde: 7.5/10)

>A great threat going forward, constantly bombing up and down the pitch and combining with Raphinha to devastating effect. Played the decisive pass that led to one of the goals<

(Midfield:)

(Frankie De Jong: 6/10)

>Got stuck in as usual doing his stuff, but sometimes struggled against Real Madrid's physical midfield<

(Pedri: 7.5/10)

>A beacon in midfield. Pedri strutted his stuff like usual, doing the tiny bits, playing passes and dictating play from the middle of the park. A solid display<

(Gavi: 7.5/10)

>A bubble of energy all over the pitch. Struggled to make much of an impact in the 2nd half, but took his goal well in the 1st<

(Attack:)

(Lamine Yamal: 8/10)

>Mendy will be seeing him in his nightmares tonight. Absolutely electric with his dribbling, turning Mendy inside out and more than one occasion. Did his fair bit of playmaking in helping defeat the Merengues<

(Samuel Moses: 9.5/10)

>What else is there to say? The King! Absolutely bossed the game from the first minute, assisting Gavi for the 1st goal, assisting Raphinha for the 2nd goal, and scoring the 3rd goal himself. An unforgettable performance<

(Raphinha: 8/10)

>Not his best day against Carvajal but he never gave up, doing his thing on the pitch and then taking his goal with aplomb when the opportunity presented itself. A solid showing<

The rating by ESPN News reflected the feeling among the football community.

Tonight, it was all FC Barcelona and Sam was at the helm of the conversations. After today's display, to a lot of football fans around the world, Sam was up there at the very top tier of footballers in the world.

He was a balon d'or contender!

He was having a terrific season, and may go all the way to win it all come season end.

They could not wait to see more of him.