Rise of a Football God

After the EFL Cup final game between Chelsea and Fulham, immediately after the game ended, just like expected, England was taken by storm.

Not just England, social media was taken by storm.

Among the 3 domestic trophies in England, the EFL Cup may be the least valued of the 3 but it was still a major club trophy in England.

No one saw Fulham winning the EFL Cup trophy at the beginning of the season. Not even after they knocked out Everton in such a fashion. Heck, not even after they knocked out Liverpool.

They were the big underdogs of the tournament and yet somehow, they were able to defy all odds, going all the way to win the big trophy.

And the crux of it all was one name, Samuel Moses.

All the accolades could not be pushed to only Sam, it would be unfair to the other Fulham players. Afterall, just like the young Nigerian attacking midfielder, all of them gave their all for the game.

The difference between Sam and the others though could be summed up in 2 words, X Factor.

Fulham FC was never seen as one of the top clubs in England, but nor were they seen as one of the bottom feeders in the league fighting against relegation.

Fulham was a proper mid-table team.

They were not too ambitious, they just did the bare minimum to stay afloat in the league every season, just enough to not call it a failure.

This was the lifestyle of the club, this was their sustenance, but all of it changed when they bought the young attacking midfielder from Nigeria and added him to their ranks.

Sam was not content with the bare minimum.

After Sam's performance in the FIFA World Cup final against the almighty Manchester City, Sam truly entered the radar of top clubs all over the world.

Not all of them went for him immediately but of those that went for his signature, Fulham hit the jackpot, getting his signing.

They didn't go for Sam because he was some proven veteran who could dominate games across 90 minutes, not because he was an established world-class star, rather, they went for him because of his mentality above anything else.

Sam definitely had the talent; he had the skill.

Afterall, if he didn't have the skill, no amount of determination would have let him show up against Man City's defense but his skill alone was not supposed to be enough to let him do the things he did on the pitch.

Since coming to Fulham FC, Sam brought his mentality with him.

Of course, for the first few games, he stayed at the periphery of the starting XI for Fulham but after his clutch performance against Liverpool in the EFL Cup semifinal, even the blind could see the need to start him the next game.

And in the next game against Newcastle United, despite the fact that his team lost again with a much weaker team, Sam managed to show what he could bring to the Fulham team every game if he became part of the starting XI.

The next game, his manager, Marco Silva started him again and he came up clutch again, helping his team snatch the victory from Everton.

And since then, Sam never looked back.

Fulham FC had always been a good team but with Sam, he brought the winning factor to this mid-table team.

He brought that sense of inevitability that no matter how Fulham FC played in any game, with Sam on the pitch, they would always come out with a result.

Considering that he was just 18, this was ridiculous and considering that he was just coming to England after playing all his career in Nigeria in the Nigerian league made it even more unbelievable.

After the EFL Cup final, as the rave for Sam exploded even as the National England TV also broadcasted it, the local Fulham TV focused on their player more.

"Hey Derek, thank you for making it to the show today".

"It's a pleasure Sasha". The middle-aged retired ex-Fulham player smiled at the camera as it focused on him.

"So Derek, today's show will be focused on the name currently flying all over the internet and over all of England," she smiled beautifully. "Sam, or should I say Samuel Moses?"

"Sam, Samuel Moses, our no. 11, Zinedine Sam, the Nigerian Zidane, whichever one you call him is correct because that boy is a monster".

She chuckled. "That's rich coming from you Smith, considering you played the bulk of your career in the premier league with Fulham FC".

The middle-aged man smiled. "I'm not even joking. I'm telling you Sasha, mark my words, Samuel Moses is the next big thing in English football".

"That is high compliment".

"He deserves all the compliment in the world. Come on Sasha, what else do you want me to say after such a performance against Chelsea? Almighty Chelsea!"

She smiled. "Well, I can't argue with you Smith, Sam really took all of us by surprise with that swashbuckling performance".

"So Smith, what do you think is his greatest strength?"

"His mentality". The middle-aged man answered immediately, smiling. "Sam is good, he has good technique, but to me, his scariest quality is his mentality".

"I don't know if it's true but I heard he approached his coach, demanding to play him in the game against Liverpool if the coach wanted to win the game".

"I mean, come on, do you know the balls it requires to do such a thing? After just coming to England? As a Nigerian?"

"I mean, give the boy his accolades, he's got balls of steel".

"It shows his mentality".

"And look at both games. Against Liverpool FC, the coach literally introduced him 2 minutes away from time yet in that short time, Sam managed to create a miracle and like they say, the rest is history".

"This means he's not just the talk type, he's the talk and do type".

"Against Chelsea, he did the same thing after everyone thought Cole Palmer would steal all the headlines".

"No, Sam was not content with that. He was defiant, singlehandedly winning Fulham the game again and it's first trophy in years".

"Sasha, as a Fulham supporter, there's no better time in the world than now".

"Mark my words, all Sam need is time to shore up on some certain aspects of his game. With that mentality of his, he'll win the Balon d'or someday!"

"Woah, that's rich!"

"Yes, very rich but I mean it". Smith laughed. "I mean, he's the man now, he's the new household name in Fulham".

"To me, he already attained that streets will never forget status for Fulham fans, that's how high I rate him".