As the first half bled into its final minutes, Inter Milan sensed blood.
In the 43rd minute, Lautaro Martínez pulled wide to the right flank, dragging Ezri Konsa out of position.
Brozović pinged a sharp pass into the Argentine's feet.
Facing full-back Matt Targett, Lautaro dropped his shoulder, executed a lightning-fast step-over, and ruthlessly slipped the ball through Targett's legs.
"Nutmeg! Lautaro is in!" Tyler shouted.
Breaking free down the wing, Lautaro didn't hesitate. He whipped a vicious, curling cross into the mixer.
In the center, Romelu Lukaku was waiting.
The "Little Beast" planted his feet and launched his massive frame into the air.
He completely overpowered Tyrone Mings, crushing the Villa captain underneath him as he met the ball with a thunderous header.
The ball rocketed toward the top corner.
But Emiliano Martínez produced a moment of absolute magic.
The Argentine keeper threw himself backward, contorting his body to slap the ball onto the crossbar with a desperate, flailing hand!
"MARTÍNEZ REPLIES WITH A MIRACLE!" Tyler roared.
The rebound fell kindly to Lukaku, but off-balance and rushed, the striker hacked his follow-up shot high into the stands.
Corner kick to Inter Milan.
On the touchline, Antonio Conte was a blur of aggressive gestures, waving his giant center-backs forward.
"Go! Kill them now!" he screamed in Italian.
It was the 44th minute. A third goal before halftime would snap Aston Villa's spine.
"Bastoni, De Vrij, and Godín are all in the box," Neville noted ominously. "Inter have scored eight goals from corners in Serie A this season. This is maximum danger for Villa."
The Inter fans behind the goal roared, sensing the kill.
Ashley Young jogged over to take the corner.
He raised one arm and whipped a venomous, inswinging delivery right into the penalty spot—the absolute heart of the warzone.
Bodies clashed. Shirts were pulled.
Lukaku, Godín, Mings, and Theodore Bjorn all converged on the exact same drop zone, launching themselves into the air.
Thwack.
It was Theodore!
Boasting a maxed-out heading attribute of 100, his timing and raw power were unmatched.
He rose above the giants, meeting the ball with a sickening crunch and rocketing a header out of the danger zone.
"Bjorn clears it!" Tyler shouted. "And it falls perfectly for McGinn!"
John McGinn trapped the clearance on his chest and instantly turned on the afterburners.
But as the Scotsman drove forward, a claret and blue blur blew past him.
It was Theodore Bjorn.
Having just won a brutal header inside his own six-yard box, the teenager had activated his Gareth Bale Peak Speed Card.
He was sprinting up the pitch with terrifying, explosive velocity.
"Look at the pace of the boy!" Neville gasped.
McGinn, startled by the sheer speed of his teammate, didn't hesitate. He slid a perfectly weighted pass into Theodore's path.
As Theodore took his first touch just inside the Inter half, the entire Aston Villa end of the RheinEnergieStadion rose to their feet.
They knew what was coming.
Because Conte had committed his center-backs to the corner, Inter's defense was horribly exposed.
Only Danilo D'Ambrosio and Roberto Gagliardini stood between Theodore and the goal.
Theodore didn't slow down.
He lowered his head and charged straight at them like a runaway freight train.
Gagliardini and D'Ambrosio scrambled to close the gap, hoping to sandwich him.
Theodore pushed the ball past D'Ambrosio and didn't even attempt to dodge the physical contact.
He dropped his shoulder and drove it straight into the Italian wing-back's chest.
D'Ambrosio bounced off the teenager and crashed to the turf like he'd been hit by a truck.
"He's bulldozed him!" Tyler cried.
As Gagliardini lunged in for a desperate slide tackle, Theodore flicked the ball slightly to the right, skipping over the extended leg without breaking stride.
He was inside the penalty area.
Samir Handanović, realizing his defense had evaporated, rushed off his line, spreading his body to block the angle.
Theodore didn't look up.
He didn't try to place it.
He simply put his laces straight through the ball.
Bang!
The strike was so ferocious it blurred.
Handanović flinched, but the ball was past him before he could raise his hands, nearly tearing the netting from the stanchions.
1-2!
"ASTON VILLA ARE ALIVE!" Tyler screamed at the top of his lungs. "THEODORE BJORN DRAGS THEM BACK FROM THE BRINK!"
"That is pure, unadulterated willpower, Martin!" Neville analyzed, his voice thick with awe. "He wins the header in his own box, sprints the length of the pitch, bullies two grown men, and nearly breaks the net! He refuses to let his final game end in a whimper!"
The Villa fans went absolutely ballistic, their chants of "THEO! THEO! THEO!" shaking the concrete of the stadium.
The referee blew the whistle for halftime.
Aston Villa had survived.
...
On Twitter, the timeline was a warzone of conflicting emotions.
@SerieA_Hub: "Conte's tactics were perfect for 44 minutes, but you can't account for a freak of nature sprinting 80 yards in 8 seconds."
@VillaFanTV: "I was in tears 5 minutes ago. Theo is dragging us kicking and screaming to this trophy!"
@EPL_Scout: "That solo goal... the pace, the power. €720 million is a bargain."
In the VIP box, Erling Haaland leaned over to Martin Ødegaard, a massive grin on his face.
"Told you," Haaland laughed. "He was never going to let them lose like that. Second half is going to be a bloodbath."
...
Fifteen minutes later, the teams emerged for the second half.
Antonio Conte had tweaked his system.
Spooked by Theodore's terrifying pace on the counter, the Italian manager ordered his team to drop even deeper.
He deployed a rigid, classic Catenaccio block. Inter were going to park the bus and protect their lead with their lives.
In the 48th minute, Theodore received the ball in central midfield.
Instantly, Marcelo Brozović broke from the defensive line. But the Croatian wasn't looking to press; he was looking to hurt.
Brozović launched himself into a brutal, studs-up, frontal tackle.
He wiped Theodore out completely, sending the teenager spinning into the air before crashing heavily onto the turf.
"Ooh, that is a nasty one!" Tyler winced.
In Madrid, Florentino Pérez likely choked on his cigar.
If his €320 million investment was injured, heads would roll!
Fortunately, Theodore's maxed-out physical attributes protected him. He rolled over, gritted his teeth, and climbed back to his feet.
The referee blew for a foul but surprisingly kept his cards in his pocket.
McGinn stood over the resulting free-kick near the halfway line. He launched a booming, aerial ball toward the back post.
Theodore made a run, leaping to contest the header against the wily veteran, Diego Godín.
Godín, knowing he couldn't match the teenager's spring, resorted to the dark arts.
As they rose, the Uruguayan subtly threw his elbow backward, catching Theodore flush on the bridge of the nose.
Theodore crumpled to the floor, clutching his face.
The referee waved play on.
Dean Smith lost his mind on the touchline.
"Are you blind?!" he screamed at the fourth official, veins popping in his neck.
While Smith raged, Inter countered.
Barella scooped up the loose ball and pinged it out to Ashley Young on the left flank.
Young surged into the Villa half.
Spotting Lautaro and Lukaku lurking in the box, the Englishman whipped an early, dangerous cross toward the penalty spot.
Lautaro pinned Tyrone Mings, using his body perfectly.
As the ball dropped, the Argentine swiveled and unleashed a spectacular, acrobatic volley.
Smack!
The shot was an absolute rocket, destined for the bottom corner.
But it never reached the goal.
It slammed squarely into the back of Romelu Lukaku, who had unknowingly drifted right into the line of fire.
The ball ricocheted to safety.
Lukaku turned around, gave a thumbs-up, and apologized. Lautaro stared at him in utter disbelief.
"Well, Aston Villa have to thank Romelu Lukaku for that clearance!" Tyler chuckled.
@InterUltra: "I am going to lose my mind. Why is he standing there?!"
@FootyBanter: "Lukaku is Villa's best defender right now! Absolute disasterclass."
Play restarted with an Emiliano Martínez goal kick.
The Argentine keeper launched a massive punt deep into the Inter half.
Theodore, his nose still throbbing, tracked the flight of the ball.
Once again, Diego Godín stepped up to contest it.
But Theodore wasn't going to be bullied twice.
As they leaped, Theodore positioned his body aggressively.
Before Godín could try any dark arts, Theodore subtly, but forcefully, drove his elbow into the Uruguayan's chest, knocking the wind out of the veteran.
Godín collapsed to the turf, gasping for air.
The referee, having set the physical precedent earlier, waved play on.
Bringing the ball down on his chest, Theodore turned toward goal.
Stefan de Vrij, terrified of letting the teenager build momentum, stepped out of the defensive line.
Without attempting to play the ball, the Dutch center-back simply lowered his shoulder and brutally body-checked Theodore to the ground.
Peep!
The referee finally blew his whistle.
A clear foul. Aston Villa were awarded a free-kick!
"Free-kick in prime territory!" Tyler announced, the tension bleeding back into his voice.
"This is exactly what Villa needed, Martin," Neville said. "Bjorn is lethal from this range. Handanović is going to have to produce something special."
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